Tag: Visual Culture

"Mr. Barnum’s Camera Man": Mathew Brady among the cannibals.

November 20, 2013

“The Figi Cannibals.” Photograph by Mathew Brady, 1872. Courtesy of the Meserve-Kunhardt Foundation. BY ROBIN BLYNAssociate professor of English at the University of West Florida Traditionally, Mathew Brady occupies an esteemed place in the history of photography and in the history of the United States. Otherwise known as “Mr. Lincoln’s Camera Man,” Brady stands nobly … More "Mr. Barnum’s Camera Man": Mathew Brady among the cannibals.

Archival analysis and cold war Pan Americanism

March 20, 2013

Courtyard of the Pan American Union, Washington, DC, 1943. Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, FSA-OWI Collection (LC-USW36-734). Photograph by John Collier. Among the buildings on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., only the Pan American Union (PAU) houses an international organization. The first of many anticipated “peace palaces”constructed in the early twentieth century, … More Archival analysis and cold war Pan Americanism

Animals, artists, and the question of ethics: A dialogue with Steve Baker.

January 30, 2013

“There seems to be a lingering expectation that art should provide consolation – the consolation that terrible things are only happening far away, or that artists unreservedly condemn such things.” What follows here is an interview with Steve Baker about his new book, Artist Animal, in Minnesota’s Posthumanities series (further details about the book at … More Animals, artists, and the question of ethics: A dialogue with Steve Baker.

Rethinking Michelangelo Antonioni’s modernism: A conversation between Karl Schoonover and John David Rhodes

October 17, 2012

Michelangelo Antonioni, 1995. The iconic Italian arthouse auteur Michelangelo Antonioni (1912–2007) would have turned 100 this fall, and here UMP authors John David Rhodes and Karl Schoonover discuss how his complex films have transformed their understanding of the politics of the moving image. ——- Karl Schoonover: I’m interested in the fact that both of us … More Rethinking Michelangelo Antonioni’s modernism: A conversation between Karl Schoonover and John David Rhodes

Planning a summer or Memorial Day weekend trip? These beautiful, significant national destinations are primed to spark the intellectually curious adventurer in you.

May 24, 2012

Half Dome Overlook, Yosemite National Park, California.Photograph by Robert Bednar. Diablo Lake Overlook, North Cascades National Park, Washington.Photograph by Robert Bednar. Wawona Tunnel Yosemite Valley Overlook, Yosemite National Park, California.Photograph by Robert Bednar. Zion Lodge, Utah, 1930s. Colored Lantern Slide.National Park Service Historic Photograph Collection. Watchtower at Desert View, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona.Photograph by … More Planning a summer or Memorial Day weekend trip? These beautiful, significant national destinations are primed to spark the intellectually curious adventurer in you.

Fertile Hysteria: "Desert birthers," "maternity tourism," and the regenerative properties of racialized citizenship

June 8, 2011

The most recent birth-certificate debate means it’s once again time to evaluate properties of citizenship and the racialized value of American life. Image source. BY RUBY C. TAPIAAssociate professor of comparative studies and women’s studies at The Ohio State University and author of American Pietàs Challenging the rights to U.S. citizenship and the U.S. presidency … More Fertile Hysteria: "Desert birthers," "maternity tourism," and the regenerative properties of racialized citizenship

"HPV Boredom 2" and the future of public service announcements

March 2, 2011

From seventeenth-century broadsides about the handling of dead bodies, printed during London’s plague years, to YouTube videos about preventing the transmission of STDs, public health advocacy and education has always had a powerful visual component. Imagining Illness explores, through various essays, the diverse visual culture of public health, broadly defined, from the nineteenth century to … More "HPV Boredom 2" and the future of public service announcements