AHIS G8753 Media Architectures: Nineteenth Century to the Present

N. Elcott

More than ever, architecture is built to house images rather than people. Recent scholarship has responded with a proliferation of texts across related fields: the history and theory of art, architecture, and media. Yet surprisingly few scholars (let alone seminars) have assembled this diverse literature into a coherent history. This seminar will venture an archaeology of such media architectures from the nineteenth century to the present. Major topics include: museums, galleries, exhibitions, installations, environments; studios; dioramas, (moving) panoramas; arcades, crystal palaces; theaters, cinemas; television, networks, interfaces. Readings will be culled from the ample recent scholarship on art, architecture, and media.