DecArts

Alexis Fair, a masters candidate in the Cooper Hewitt/Parsons program, sat down with me to talk about the Weeksville Heritage Center. Which she covered in a course on period rooms. Founded in 1838, Weeksville was the second largest free, African American community in the U.S. in the pre-Civil War era. The settlement was named for James Weeks who, along with a group of African-American investors, acquired property in the area. Weeksville was almost lost to history when urban development threatened to erase the physical memory of the historic community. A grassroots effort to document the history of Weeksville and preserve the remaining properties emerged in 1968 through the leadership of local historian James Hurley, Dr. Barbara Jackson, and artist and activist Dr. Joan Maynard (the found Executive Director). Today Weeksville stands as a multi-dimensional arts and cultural space. The Hunterfly Road Houses are New York City landmarks and have been listed on the National Register of Historic Place since 1989. Here are some of the links for the places, people, and articles discussed. Twitter: @DecArtsPodcast Department of Cultural Affairs, Chakaia Booker Heather Lynn McDonald’s thesis on The National Register of Historic Places and African-American Heritage Brooklyn Life, Seán Devlin

I interviewed Kara Nichols about Saturated: The Allure and Science of Color which starts this Friday, May 11 and runs through Jan. 13 at the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum in NYC. Kara worked on this exhibition for her curatorial capstone at the Parsons/Cooper Hewitt graduate program. Saturated explores various aspects of color and how color theory can be translated into the visual applications of design. The exhibition was co-curated by Susan Brown, associate curator of textiles and Smithsonian research librarian, Jennifer Bracchi. This exhibition expands on “Color in a New Light,” which was curated by Jennifer and presented by the Smithsonian Libraries at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington D.C. from January 2016 to March 2017. Through these nearly 200 objects and books on display in Saturated: The Allure and Science of Color, the show will explore both the complex nature and the beautiful presence that color reveals through design, art and in our everyday lives. Saturated - Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. As always pictures will be up on the Twitter page @DecArtsPodcast

This week JT McParlin is back on the podcast to talk about Stanley Kubrick’s film A Clockwork Orange (1971). As always pictures will be up on the Twitter page @DecArtsPodcast

This week JT McParlin was on the podcast, he is a Masters candidate at the Parsons Cooper Hewitt Program, and we are talking about the Stanley Kubrick film 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). We were planning on also doing a later film by Kubrick as well, A Clockwork Orange (1971), but we ran out of time so stay tuned for that episode at a later date. As always pictures will be up on the Twitter page @DecArtsPodcast 2001: A Space Odyssey in Retrospect

Kayla Seifert (from the Contemporary Painting episode) is on the podcast this week to talk about the Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book and the transformation after WWI when cookbooks began to be mass produced. As usual all images will be up on the twitter page @DecArtsPodcast Better Homes & Gardens Handyman's Book, 1957

Sylvia Ferguson (from the Henry Dreyfuss episode) is on the podcast this week to talk about entertainment, ethnography, and eugenic displays at the World’s Fair. As usual all images will be up on the twitter page @DecArtsPodcast Here are some of the links for the videos and articles discussed. National Fairground and Circus Archive, “History of Side Show Exhibitions and Acts - Research and Articles,” National Fairground and Circus Archive - The University of Sheffield. Crockett, Zachary. "The Rise and Fall of Circus Freakshows." Priceonomics. Little Miracle Town Pamphlet

Sydney Friedman (from the Bersa pattern episode) is back this week to talk about the Jogbra. Which came about at a time when Roberta “Bobbi” Gibb ran in the 1966 Boston Marathon when women were not allowed to and she didn’t have a sports bra. Billie Jean King is named Sports Illustrated’s first ever Sportswoman of the Year and played Bobby Riggs in the infamous ‘Battle of the Sexes’. Here are some of the links for the videos and articles discussed. Florence Williams, “The Athletic Brasserie,” 99% Invisible. Title ix Gary Singh, “Stripped,” Metro Santa Cruz, February 16, 2005 
 Smithsonian Jogbra Archive

The DecArts podcast is back! I am excited to start the year off with an object. Hannah Winiker comes on to talk about bandboxes. For anyone who isn’t familiar with bandboxes they are functional and decorative objects that held men’s collars and other fashion accessories. They represent a bridge between the handmade process of producing and the industrial process of manufacturing by machines that occurred in the 1800’s with the Industrial Revolution, which is around the time when the bandbox peaked in popularity,1820-1845. Physically, bandboxes are round or oval in shape and range in size and covered in wallpaper, or “paper hangings” as they were known then. Here are some of the links for the videos and articles discussed.
 HANNAH’S OBJECT OF THE DAY BANDBOX https://www.cooperhewitt.org/2014/08/14/documenting-u-s-history-on-a-carryall/ https://www.cooperhewitt.org/2014/11/17/bandboxes-get-political/ https://www.cooperhewitt.org/2015/04/09/american-bandbox/ https://www.cooperhewitt.org/2015/07/17/walking-beam-sidewheeler/ https://www.cooperhewitt.org/2016/01/21/of-the-stovepipe-variety/ https://www.cooperhewitt.org/2017/05/04/making-history-claytons-ascent/ https://www.cooperhewitt.org/2018/01/11/please-do-feed-the-squirrels/ THE ETUI

This week I interview Noelle Kichura, a Masters candidate at the Parsons/Cooper-Hewitt History of Design and Curatorial program, about her proposed thesis. Here are some of the links for the videos and articles discussed.HARVARD DESIGN MAGAZINE ESSAY GETTY CONSERVATION TALK ON VILLA SAVOYE MARY MCLEOD LECTURE Links to publications PRIVACY AND PUBLICITY, COLOMINA CHARLOTTE PERRIAND, MCLEOD LE CORBUSIER, SBRIGLIO Also check out Gwendolyn Wright's "Domestic Architecture and Cultures of Domesticity" in Design Quarterly, House and Home (1987)

This week I talked to Molly Martien, a Masters Candidate at the Parsons-Cooper Hewitt program for History of Design and Curatorial Studies. She wrote a paper that she will be presenting at the MAPACA conference in November on SNCC and 1960’s design. MAPACA: https://mapaca.net SNCC LIBRARY LEGACY PROJECT: https://library.duke.edu/slp SNCC DIGITAL GATEWAY: https://snccdigital.org SNCC LEGACY PROJECT: http://www.sncclegacyproject.org FREEDOM RIDERS: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/freedomriders/

I talk with Khyati Sheth to talk about the Alvar Aalto - Art and the Modern Form exhibition, which was at the Ateneum Museum this summer. THE ALVAR AALTO MUSEUM: http://www.ateneum.fi/nayttelyt/alvar-aalto/?lang=en PAIMIO SANATORIUM: http://www.paimio.fi/en/services/tourism ARTEK: http://www.artek.fi/index.html VILLA MAIREA: https://www.villamairea.fi/en @DecArtsPodcast

This week Sydney Friedman and I talked about Stig Lindberg (1916-1982) and the Bersa pattern. This is part one of a two part series that focuses on Scandinavian design. Check out the pictures for this episode at the @DecArtsPodcast twitter feed. National Museum page for Gustavsberg http://www.nationalmuseum.se/sv/English-startpage/Visit-the-museum/NM-runt-om-i-Sverige/Gustavsbergs-porslinsfabrik/ Gloria Cecelia Ray Karlmark, Little Rock Nine http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=726

This week Kara Nichols talks about the exhibition Fringe Elements at Kent State University Museum which runs from July 2017 to July 2018. Follow the DecArts podcast on Twitter @DecArtspodcast EXHIBIT: https://www.kent.edu/museum/event/fringe-elements MUSEUM COLLECTION: https://www.kent.edu/museum/online-collection CALUSARI: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tb3WxG3zCkM CALUSARI: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VM7lTvNWH8o&list=FLry7ZaoJkpU9Ey1JokeZcuQ

This week Sylvia Ferguson talks about American, Industrial Designer, Henry Dreyfuss and consumerism in post-war America. Sidenotes: Gayle Davidson was Sylvia’s professor and the name on the sale of the lavatory drawing. Crane Co. sold to American Standard in 1990. Lavatory definition: a room or compartment with a toilet and washbasin. OBJECT OF THE DAY: https://www.cooperhewitt.org/2017/03/07/sink-or-be-sunk/

This week Annaleigh is on the podcast to talk about her time out at Taliesin this summer and the most current exhibit on at MoMa, Frank Lloyd Wright at 150: Unpacking the Archive https://www.moma.org/calendar/exhibitions/1660?locale=en TALIESIN: http://www.taliesinpreservation.org FALLINGWATER: https://www.fallingwater.org PODCASTS COVERING OTHER FLW TOPICS: http://99percentinvisible.org/episode/usonia-1/ http://99percentinvisible.org/episode/usonia-the-beautiful/

This week Hannah Winiker is on the podcast talking about how she preserved the stories of southern families through their collections of antiques such as paintings, furniture, silver, textiles, and portrait miniatuers. QUESTIONS ANSWERED: Rosalie became a museum home in 1938. The antebellum social season may have been after Christmas into mid-summer, but this is not 100% confirmed. HISTORIC NEW ORLEANS COLLECTION: https://www.hnoc.org/ HNOC ONLINE RESOURCES: https://www.hnoc.org/research/online-resources CLASSICAL INSTITUTE OF THE SOUTH: https://www.hnoc.org/research/classical-institute-south STANTON HALL: http://www.stantonhall.com/longwood.php DUNLEITH HALL: http://www.dunleith.com/ ROSALIE: http://rosaliemansion.com/ MAGNOLIA GROVE: https://www.loc.gov/item/2010641116/

This week I sat down with Trang Tran to talk about Archizoom and Radical Italian Designers in the 1960’s. EXHIBIT: http://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2017/ettore-sottsass 1968 BOOK: https://www.amazon.com/1968-Photographs-Maurizio-Cattelan-Pieropaolo/dp/6185039044 JERRY SALTZ ART REVIEW: http://nymag.com/arts/art/reviews/65115/ DAKIS JOANNOU: http://www.interviewmagazine.com/art/dakis-joannou/ BEATRICE COLOMINA/ELMHURST MUSEUM EXHIBITION http://www.architectmagazine.com/design/playboy-magazine-and-the-architecture-of-seduction_o

This week I had a conversation about advertising and packaging in the dairy world with Rachel Hannicut. Please excuse the technical difficulties, it was a rough Thursday for electronics.

Brooklyn Gallagher (@brooklynngallagher) and I sat down for a new extension of the DecArts podcast, which is the tipsy Thursday episode (created while in Paris). Basically Brooklyn and I did a version of Drunk History. I asked Brooklyn to help me review the Christian Dior exhibition in Paris due to her knowledgeable sense of fashion, curation, and marketing. CHRISTIAN DIOR EXHIBIT: http://www.lesartsdecoratifs.fr/en/exhibitions/current-events-1322/musee-des-arts-decoratifs/christian-dior-couturier-du-reve/ DIOR: https://www.dior.com/home/fr_fr BROOKLYN’S INSTAGRAM; https://www.instagram.com/brooklynngallagher/

This week I am broadcasting from Paris and was able to sit down with Adèle Bourbonne to talk about a couple of her classes on French 18th century interior luxury trends. MOBILIER NATIONAL: http://www.mobiliernational.culture.gouv.fr FURNITURE PIECES: http://metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/206971?sortBy=Relevance&when=A.D.+1600- http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/gilt/hd_gilt.htm

This week I discusses Nick Lopes' paper on Graphic Design in Contemporary European-style Board Games that he wrote for Jeremy Aynsley's class on Issues in Graphic Design. If you are interested in looking into these games further visit:https://boardgamegeek.com/strategygames/browse/boardgame If you want somewhere to play in NYC visit: https://www.meetup.com/Uptown-NYC-Board-Gamers/

This week Elizabeth Muir and I had a foodie talk about Julia Child’s ‘The Art of French Cooking’. The thesis we mentioned is by Ashley R. Armes, B.A. ‘Image of Nation, Image of Culture: France and French Cooking in the American Press, 1918-1969’, A Thesis in History, submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Texas Tech University, Master of Arts, December 2006. The cookbook I mentioned is ‘Thug Kitchen’. If you want to read more about the flavors check out Sarah Lohman’s book ‘Eight Flavors’: http://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Eight-Flavors/Sarah-Lohman/9781476753959

This week I had a lengthy and fun chat with Ria Murray, a Master’s candidate at the Parsons-Cooper Hewitt program, about Hector Guimard’s stylistic innovations in standardized design. OBJECT OF THE DAY: https://www.cooperhewitt.org/2017/04/03/building-up-affordable-housing-in-interwar-france/ NYPL ARCHIVE: http://archives.nypl.org/mss/1264 OBJECT OF THE DAY TOMBSTONE: https://www.cooperhewitt.org/2016/10/30/noveau-repose/ LILLIAN NASSAU: http://www.lilliannassau.com

This week I have a quick chat with Lily Gildor about the life of designer Florence Knoll and her impact on office interiors. *side note we forgot Knoll's second husband's name, it was Harry Hood Bassett. CRANBROOK http://www.cranbrookartmuseum.org/history/ KNOLL https://www.knoll.com FLORENCE KNOLL BASSETT PAPERS https://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/florence-knoll-bassett-papers-6312 THE GLASS HOUSE http://theglasshouse.org

This week I talk with Kayla about her undergraduate Senior thesis project. ARTIST SPACE http://www.brooklynartscouncil.org/documents/2019 MET TOURS https://www.shadyladiestours.com/nasty-women-metropolitan/ MARILYN MINTER https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/marilyn_minter_pretty_dirty S. LEIGH THOMPSON https://www.gobeyonddiversity.com

The first episode of the DecArts podcast discusses the Native American Dreamcatcher and the connection to current political and social discourse. Guest this week is Annaleigh McDonald a Masters Candidate at the Cooper-Hewitt/Parsons program for History of Design and Curatorial Studies. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-37863955