Vernacular Architecture Forum Untitled page

Note from the Editor

Christine R Henry — Sat, 06 Feb 2016 00:29:10 GMT

by Christine Henry

Welcome to the Winter 2016 edition of the Newsletter. It is jam-packed with information about upcoming opportunities, calls for papers, and related conferences. Of course, there is exciting information about our upcoming conference this summer in Durham where we hope you will join us. We also have two feature essays about fieldwork projects that members are undertaking. Thanks to all for the wonderful submissions! Please keep them coming.

There have been two developments about the newsletter from the board meeting this fall that I wanted to share with you. First of all, the board voted to make the newsletter available without having to enter your membership number and password. This is partially to make it easier for our members to access the articles, but was also in response to member requests to use the newsletter as a recruiting tool in the way that the paper newsletter was used. So please read the newsletter and then pass it on to people who may be interested joining, so that they can get to know this wonderful organization better.

The second development at the fall board meeting was a discussion about the name of the newsletter. Unofficially it is known as the “VAN”, an acronym for the Vernacular Architecture Newsletter. But the board felt that the name could use a makeover. We are hoping to find a single word, acronym, or short phrase that would convey a bit more about the organization. So here is where we are calling on your experience and creativity. Please e-mail me your name suggestions and ideas, or if you really like the VAN, let me know that as well.

Happy Reading!

Christine Henry, Newsletter Editor

Digital tip: Another great way to view the VAN is by just going directly to the issue for Winter 2016 on the website. This e-mail has links and previews of all of the stories, but when you go to the winter newsletter on the web site, you can read each entry in order by scrolling down the page.

VAF Annual Conference, Durham, North Carolina, June 1-4, 2016 From Farm to Factory: Piedmont Stories in Black and White

Christine R Henry — Tue, 02 Feb 2016 17:26:03 GMT

Call for Proposals: New "Field Notes" session at VAF, Durham, deadline February 15

Christine R Henry — Tue, 02 Feb 2016 17:16:47 GMT

What new and interesting fieldwork finds should we know about? What sites have you studied that push our definition of fieldwork? How are scholars of vernacular buildings and landscapes experimenting with new methods to suit our increasing range of material?”

The VAF is organizing a new session at the Durham, North Carolina conference (Saturday June 4, 2016), and we look forward to a lively shared conversation about research in the field. If interested in participating as a speaker, please submit a short paragraph (add pictures, if helpful) describing a proposed 5-8 minute talk. We especially encourage graduate students to share their dissertation projects. Participants in this session will be listed in the conference program.

Please send a 1-2 page c.v. and a short (500 words max.) proposal by February 15, 2016 to Gretchen Buggeln, gretchen.buggeln@valpo.edu

Contact Gretchen with any queries.

Call for Applications: Buchanan Awards, deadline February 19

Christine R Henry — Tue, 02 Feb 2016 17:13:39 GMT

VAF is calling for nominations for the 2016 Buchanan Award that recognizes vernacular architectural studies that do not take the form of books or published work. The application deadline is February 19, 2016.

Paul E. Buchanan Award

Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
Paul Buchanan Investigating Plasterwork

The Paul E. Buchanan Award was instituted by VAF in 1993 to recognize contributions to the study and preservation of vernacular architecture and the cultural landscape that do not take the form of books or published work. Hundreds of studies, reports, documentation projects, restoration plans, National Register nominations, exhibits, video/digital media productions and public programs are completed each year without the benefit of distribution or recognition beyond the limited audience for which they were commissioned. Nonetheless, many of these efforts can serve to inform and inspire us all. The award is named for Paul E. Buchanan who served for over thirty years as the Director of Architectural Research at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. Buchanan set the standard for architectural fieldwork in America and inspired many VAF members in the rewards of fieldwork. This award honors the valuable work that most of our members and professional associates perform.

Nominations

The Vernacular Architecture Forum seeks nominations for the Paul E. Buchanan Award.
Projects completed in the last two years are eligible for consideration and may include, but are not limited to:

Architectural Recording Projects (including HABS/HAER/HALS)
Historic Structures Reports
Cultural Resource Surveys
Historic Designation Studies (including National Register and National Historic Landmark)
Preservation Plans
Restoration Projects
Furnishing Plans and Installations
Exhibits and Other Temporary Installations
Permanent Museum Exhibits
Visual Arts Presentations (e.g. drawing, painting, photography, 3-D media)
Film and Video Presentations
Computer Applications and Modeling
Educational and Interpretive Programs
Symposia, Conferences, and Public Events

Please submit:

Three electronic copies of the project product on CDs, DVDs, or flash drives as appropriate
One hard copy of the project product on paper or other appropriate medium
Cover letter briefly delineating the background and essential content of the project, and identifying the investigators and the sponsoring agency or organization

The application deadline for 2016 Buchanan Award is February 19, 2016.

Electronic nomination materials should be submitted to Buchanan Award. Hard copies should be sent to:

Jennifer Cousineau
137 Millcroft Way
Thornhill, Ontario
L4J 6P7
Canada

Committee
Jennifer Cousineau, chair
Paula Lupkin
Eugenia Woo

Past Buchanan Award Winners

VAF Ridout Fieldwork Grant supports research on farm buildings in Down Jersey

Christine R Henry — Tue, 02 Feb 2016 16:49:08 GMT

by Janet L. Sheridan

We latter-day “Friends of Friendless Farm Buildings” in Down Jersey, are recording Salem County farm outbuildings with the help of a $500 Orlando Ridout V Fellowship. This project continues work I started in anticipation of the 2014 VAF annual conference. I’m trying to address the huge gap in our detailed understanding of farm buildings in southwestern New Jersey, which are rapidly disappearing despite aggressive efforts to preserve farm land.

Attendees may remember the three farmsteads featured on the “Patterned Brick and Beyond” tour. That fieldwork uncovered two hewn-framed English barns that had been converted to dairy barns, and three kinds of crib barn/wagon houses. We began to learn the details of construction and how they functioned and changed over time in southern New Jersey, where no detailed recording of agricultural buildings had been done before. To see this survey, go to https://app.box.com/s/t31y2n1h43yweges8lbrft0ld0rkoqbf.

Among the barns, we found two examples of the three-bay, English threshing ground barn, but also two examples of a two-bay animal barn, one pre-industrial, the other early 20^th century. On the John and Charlotte Wistar farm (formerly known as Wyatt), these two barn types had been built end to end, and later were connected, extended, fitted with hay loaders, and finally, added to and converted for dairying purposes. On the Watson farm, the threshing barn was also extended, fitted with a hay loader, and given a straw shed addition, which was later converted to a milking parlor. An animal barn—for horses—was added in the early 20^th century, when new dairying laws required cows and horses to be segregated. The alterations seen in these barns reflect well the ways in which southern New Jersey farmers responded to the expanding livestock market in the nineteenth century, and to twentieth-century government dairy regulations that required sanitary conditions for the production of milk, as Sally McMurry has discussed for nearby southeastern Pennsylvania (Buildings & Landscapes 20:2, 22-47).

The other outbuilding we found was the multi-purpose gable-fronted wagon house or drive-in corn crib, which contains corn cribs, a drive-in or drive-through wagon bay, and sometimes a tightly closed loft for storing grain and a cellar for storing potatoes and fruit. True to Henry Glassie’s observation, New Jersey wagon houses are “located in a position of importance with the farmyard.” (“Eighteenth-Century Cultural Process in Delaware Valley Folk Building” Winterthur Portfolio, Vol. 7 (1972).

Anxious to learn more, this year I landed another project grant from the New Jersey Historical Commission. This time, we are recording five outbuildings on four properties—a long dairy barn, a small carriage barn, and three wagon houses. The Ridout grant is a welcome supplement to the funding, as the New Jersey grant amount is smaller than requested.

So far, the buildings have all been measured. That fieldwork took place between August and November, aided by my intrepid measuring duo, Stephanie Fazen and Maria Moreno—veterans of my previous grant and 2014 VAF tour chase car drivers. Though the drafting, detailed photography, archival research, and narratives are yet to come, there are findings to report.

Figure 1

In the Cadwallader long dairy barn (Figure 1), we found three, hewn-framed ground barns, each one a threshing barn, standing end-to-end, within the long dairy barn. One barn was dated “1792” on an inscribed tie beam, one pre-dates 1840, and the other was added shortly thereafter in what appears to be an expanding antebellum operation. The oldest barn was originally one-story, then it was raised to match the height of the second, two-story barn. Besides its original shortness, it is also distinguished by having hewn braces and rafters, whereas in the others these pieces are sash-sawn—a rare, dated piece of cutting technology.

In 1934, a new Quaker family from Pennsylvania moved in. In order to expand and upgrade for dairying, all three barns, standing as individuals, were connected together, fitted with a hay loader, and two were widened to meet the government regulation for accommodating a double rank of milking stalls, wood framed with metal stanchions. At this still active dairy farm, the progression of change has taken this barn mostly out of use as modern buildings now handle milking and stabling. Heifers still occupy the pens and veal calves occupied the old milking stalls for a time, but now only cobwebs and a large population of cats occupy the milking parlor.

Figure 2

The Mulford farmstead has a wagon house(Figure 2) and a small carriage barn (Figure 3), both clad in board-and-batten siding and framed with sash-sawn timbers, so likely it was built before the Civil War. The wagon house was like no other I had seen, showing four different builds over a century. Beginning as a one-story building of unknown use, it grew upward to a one-and-a-half story granary with wagon bay, then grew deeper by six feet, and finally sprouted lateral shed additions, one containing a corn crib. The sheds have a shallower-sloped roof than the center section, giving the building the typical broken-slope roofline so often seen in area wagon houses. Two of three original grain bins survive in the loft—a most exciting find. Also intriguing was the discovery of an old shoe, perhaps a ritual concealment, within the wall.

Figure 3

The square-plan, two-story carriage barn features a carriage bay, a horse stall with a manger, and a hay loft. Though the double-doors are replaced with a passage door, weathering on the frame and the door header seen in the loft bears evidence of them. It is now a chicken house.

Figure 4

Figure 5

Lastly are two very similar wagon houses, named Zerns (Figure 4) and Thompson (Figure 5), that have the appearance of the Dutch-American barn of northern New Jersey and the Hudson Valley. Like the latter, they are gable-fronted with a large central bay with double-leaf wagon doors and smaller side-aisles. The roofline is straight, and they appear to have been built of a piece. But instead of Dutch anchor bent framing, we see English box frames. This building type was never the main barn—the place for threshing, animal quarters, and fodder storage. Both wagon houses are almost identical in design—a full cellar under the drive bay, a stone foundation, corn cribs built into the center bay, a broad, sturdy stair to the loft, and a close-fitting, unpainted, horizontal board wall finish in the loft—possible evidence of grain storage.

I’ll submit a future VAN report upon completion. For questions or comments, please email me at jlsheridan@verizon.net. Thank you, VAF, for the kind help!

Figure 6: The crew at Zerns. Stephanie Fazen, Maria Moreno, Janet Sheridan.

Research Inquiry

Christine R Henry — Tue, 02 Feb 2016 16:36:38 GMT

Domestic History: Request for Domestic Improvement Case-Studies

by Thomas Hubka

I am writing a book about how a majority of middle-to-working class Americans achieved domestic improvement in the late 19^th and early 20^th century (1880-1940). I am seeking detailed case-studies of family histories in houses and apartments demonstrating the material conditions of pre- and post-domestic improvement reform. This would include details about acquisition (or lack) of public utilities, stoves and appliances, basic furniture, bedroom size and usage, etc. Although family history is an important component, I am primarily collecting case studies that allow me to construct measured plan drawings showing the location of utilities, furniture, as well as standard architectural elements like room shape, stairs, windows and doors. Since the type of buildings I study are rarely drawn in plan detail, I have typically relied on documentation within existing houses and from photographs, diaries, oral histories, archival records, etc., from houses that no longer exist. Ideally, I would record the domestic transition of a particular family from a pre-reform house or apartment to later improved (or remodeled) dwelling—so that I would record and interpret both dwellings.

My overall goal is to make detailed plan drawings identifying the material cultural “standards” of average middle-to-working class domestic environments in the late 19^th and early 20^th century. I focus on the transformation of house form and function (such as the addition of dining rooms, closets, private bedrooms) and domestic amenities and industrial produced goods & services (such as kitchen appliances, public utilities, etc.).

Another way to describe the type of domestic history I am looking for is a history of working class family’s “firsts” and “lasts.” Or the first time a family used their own (three-fixture) bathroom, or ate in their own dining room, or put their clothes in a closet, or used an electric appliance like a washing-machine or a vacuum cleaner, or filled a shelf with books, or bought a piece of furniture that could be handed down---all for the first time. It’s also about the last time a family hand-pumped or hauled water, or used an outhouse, or cooked and heated on a wood or coal stove, or lived in a two or three room house or apartment, or shared bedrooms with parents and siblings, or took in boarders, or washed clothes by hand--all for the last time. Typically, however, many working class firsts and lasts overlap, as when new dining rooms are added to houses with old outhouses.

This might be a way to publicize your family history but I would also appreciate any suggestions about previously documented sources or people who might be willing to contribute. I am also interested in literary sources, like Thomas Bell’s, _Out of This Furnace_ , where, for example, I have drawn the plan of described domestic scenes in a common type of Pittsburgh house—but this is a rare, accurately detailed account and I only show it as the type of detailed plan drawing I would like to make of other documented houses.

Please contact: thubka@uwm.edu

HABS/HAER/HALS Summer Employment Opportunities for Students, deadline March 7

Christine R Henry — Tue, 02 Feb 2016 16:27:07 GMT

Announcing Summer Employment Opportunities for Students

Hiring: ARCHITECTURAL HISTORIANS, ARCHITECTS and LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS

Heritage Documentation Programs (HABS/HAER/HALS) of the National Park Service seeks applications from qualified students for 2016 summer employment documenting historic sites and structures of architectural, landscape and technological significance. Duties involve on-site field work and preparation of written historical reports or measured and interpretive drawings for the HABS/HAER/HALS Collections at the Prints and Photographs Division of the Library of Congress. Projects last 12 weeks, beginning in late May or early June. For details regarding application and job duties visit our website at http://www.nps.gov/hdp/jobs/summer.htm

Architectural Paint Research Conference Call for Papers, deadline February 15

Christine R Henry — Tue, 02 Feb 2016 15:59:19 GMT

Call for Papers - The 6^thInternational Architectural Paint Research Conference

Dates: March 15-17, 2017

Location: Columbia University, New York, NY

Language: English

Website: www.apr2017.org

Powers of Ten: Expanding the APR Toolbox

Like the Charles and Ray Eames 1977 short film, Powers of Ten, Architectural Paint Research (APR) deals with magnitudes of scale, from a single pigment particle, to a painted house, to the decorative tastes of an entire region. In the spirit of the film, the 2017 APR conference aims to take a closer look at how we carry out our research at every level, from the micro to the macroscopic.

The 6^th International Architectural Paint Research Conference organizing committee is sending out a call for papers and posters for its next meeting in New York City, March 15-17, 2017. Submissions are invited from APR specialists and advanced students, as well as members of related disciplines including art conservators, preservation architects, decorative painters, heritage managers and materials scientists.

There will be a session on APR standards led by the standards committee, as put into motion at the 2014 Stockholm APR conference.

Topics should ideally include but are not limited to:

Non-traditional or Overlooked Finishes: Projects where finishes identified through APR included unexpected color combinations, non-traditional use of traditional materials, finishes rarely discussed at previous APR conferences, or finishes that may be unique to a single geographic region.

Case studies with a Focus on Cross-section Microscopy: As always, APR case studies are welcome topics at the conference. We request that papers be well supported by cross-section photomicrographs and other analytical data that illustrate your interpretive process.

Research into paint materials and technologies: This can include archival research or research of a technical nature that sheds a new light on paint materials or finishes. Topics may focus on a particular studio or decorative painter/artist’s working methods, colourman’s practices, pigment manufacture, and/or the evolution of paint/pigment/varnish technology.

Replication of Historic Finishes: Spotlight on the challenges and solutions involved with replicating finishes identified through APR. Topics can include methods for removing overpaint, collaborating with decorative painters to replicate schemes, and/or the sharing of information that could only have been gleaned through the preparation/replication process.

Projects Revisited:Have you had the opportunity to re-visit an old project? If so, how have these projects fared over time? How has your work been received by the public? What lessons did you learn that carried over into future projects?

Submitting an Abstract

The language of the conference will be English. To submit an abstract for a paper or poster, please submit a provisional title with a summary (500 word maximum) at http://www.apr2017.org/call-for-abstracts/. Please use the name of one author. The names of any co-authors can be submitted in the body of the abstract.

This year we encourage submissions from advanced students working on APR related projects for a dedicated “Student Research Session”. Select papers will be included in the final publication. When submitting your abstract, please indicate if this is a student submission.

Abstracts must be submitted by February 15, 2016.

Selected speakers and poster authors will be notified by April 16, 2016. Details regarding guidelines for the conference presentations and articles will be provided at the time of notification. Speakers will also be requested to submit their work in the form of a full-text, illustrated article for publication in the conference post-prints. This article will be peer-reviewed and due on November 15, 2016.

Poster authors may be asked to give a 5-minute presentation at the conference, but will not be responsible for an article.

If you have any questions, please contact Mary Jablonski mjablonski@jbconservation.com

AHLP Call for Papers and Posters, deadline March 3

Christine R Henry — Tue, 02 Feb 2016 15:57:41 GMT

CALL FOR PAPERS and POSTERS

Alliance for Historic Landscape Preservation - 38th Annual Meeting Chicago, Illinois, 1st – 4th June 2016

Theme: Urbs in Horto – City in a Garden

An Invitation

The AHLP is pleased to announce its 2016 annual meeting in Chicago, Illinois, and the Program Committee invites proposals for presentations that will encourage lively discussions about cultural landscapes. As Chicago emerged in the 1830s, “Urbs in Horto” became the newly formed city’s motto as well as its driving vision, as made apparent in the establishment of an extensive parks and boulevard system in the 1870s and Daniel Burnham’s 1909 Plan of Chicago, which called for the expansion of the system and the acquisition of natural areas outside the city limits. It is therefore a particularly appropriate setting to address cultural landscape preservation issues relating to urban parks and park planning; engaging with lakes and rivers; native plants and planting design; and “the middle west.” While presentations that address these topics are especially welcome, this should not discourage those wishing to address any issue relating to the theory and practice of landscape preservation.

Proposals are invited within three (3) categories of presentations:

 Papers: 25-30 minute papers addressing issues in landscape preservation theory,

practice, or education
 Summaries of Works-in-Progress: 10-15 min. discussions of on-going projects
 Posters: graphic presentations of projects using appropriate illustrative

techniques. (One panel 30" by 40" is recommended.)

Because of time constraints, each person may submit only one proposal in the first two categories.

Submission Guidelines for each category

Papers

Please submit an abstract of 500 words or less outlining the topic of the paper, its context within theory, practice, or education, its timeliness, principal findings or conclusions, and questions for discussion.

Summaries of Works-in-Progress

Please submit a proposal of 250 words or less outlining the work-in-progress, its context and potential significance, and questions for discussion.

Posters

Please submit a proposal of 250 words or less outlining the project, its context and significance, and questions for discussion.

All abstracts and proposals must be submitted electronically as e-mail attachments - these should be Microsoft Word documents and be arranged as follows:

 Title page: this should note the type of presentation proposed, then give the title of the presentation, the author's name and complete mailing address, institution/firm affiliation, phone number and e-mail address
 Content pages: these should note the type of presentation and the title, and then provide an abstract or proposal within the word limits set out above - please do not include your name or any identifying personal information on content pages

All proposals should be sent to Kimball Erdman at the following e-mail address: kerdman@uark.edu

The deadline for all submissions is March 3, 2016

The Selection Process

A panel will evaluate all proposals using a blind review process. The program selection will be based on the following criteria (listed in order of importance):

- originality of content and approach
- likelihood of the topic stimulating interdisciplinary discussion, and
- relevance to the theme of the meeting.

Those making a proposal will be notified of the decision of the panel by March 18, 2016.

Presenters must pre-register for the meeting and must take out memberships in the Alliance if they are not already members. The Alliance will provide boards to which posters of the recommended size can be attached, but those presenting posters are responsible for the transportation of their posters to and from Chicago.

Student Scholarships

The Alliance welcomes proposals from students and some scholarships are available for those whose proposals are accepted. Students wishing to apply for a scholarship should send their proposals together with their scholarship application materials to the AHLP Education Committee and not to Kimball Erdman. Please refer to the Alliance website for full scholarship application details.

Questions arising from this call for papers and posters may be e-mailed to Kimball Erdman.

AHLP Student Scholarship for annual meeting, deadline March 3

Christine R Henry — Tue, 02 Feb 2016 15:53:46 GMT

ALLIANCE FOR HISTORIC LANDSCAPE PRESERVATION

STUDENT SCHOLARSHIPS

The Alliance for Historic Landscape Preservation announces the availability of Student Scholarships for its annual conference in Chicago, Illinois, USA
June 1-4, 2016

URBS IN HORTO — CITY IN A GARDEN

The 38th annual gathering of the Alliance for Historic Landscape Preservation will provide a venue for lively discussions about cultural landscapes in urban settings. The conference location, Chicago, Illinois, is known for its motto, “Urbs in Horto,” which guided the establishment of an extensive parks and boulevard system in the 1870s and Daniel Burnham’s 1909 Plan of Chicago, which called for the expansion of the system and the acquisition of natural areas outside the city limits. Students are encouraged to submit presentation proposals that explore issues relating to urban parks and park planning; engaging with lakes and rivers; native plants and planting design; “the middle west;” or other topics relating to the theory and practice of landscape preservation.

Scholarship Details:

Up to two student scholarships are available to attend and present research at the 2016 Annual Conference in Chicago.

One student will be selected to present his or her studies in historic landscape preservation as part of the conference professional program, in a 15-minute PowerPoint presentation.

One student will be selected to present his or her studies as a poster during the poster sessions of the conference program.

The total value of each scholarship includes a waiver of the conference registration fee and an award of $600 to offset travel expenses. Upper-level undergraduate and graduate students in all disciplines related to cultural landscape preservation may apply for a scholarship. Additional information about the conference and the Call for Papers is available at www.ahlp.org.

To apply, send the following materials via e-mail to the Education Committee members listed below in PDF or Word .docx files:

• A letter addressed to the Education Committee clearly stating your interests in attending the 2016 Annual Conference in Chicago;

• Your current curriculum vitae;
• A one-page abstract of your proposed conference presentation, and
• Three (3) letters of recommendation from your professors or employers.

The deadline for receipt of applications for the 2016 student scholarships is March 3, 2016. Selected students will be notified on or before March 18, 2016.

Applications from Canadian students should be sent to:

Ted McLachlan, ted.mclachlan@umanitoba.ca University of Manitoba
204-237-6125

Applications from U.S. students should be sent to:

Eric MacDonald, eamacdon@uga.edu University of Georgia
706-542-0118

Website:

http://www.ahlp.org/

SESAH 2016 Call for Papers, Sessions, and Posters, deadline March 31

Christine R Henry — Wed, 27 Jan 2016 19:36:11 GMT

In 2016, the Southeast Chapter of the Society of Architectural Historians will return to New Orleans for the first time since 1994. With addresses by expert speakers, multiple walking and bus tours, and of course great food, it promises to be a good time for all! Tulane University’s National Register listed campus located on majestic St. Charles Avenue will be the venue for paper sessions and addresses. Conference attendees are invited to select accommodations from one of many blocks of reserved rooms and enjoy scenic rides to and from campus on the historic streetcar line.

Poised between the tenth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and the city’s Tricentennial, New Orleans today offers a built environment in which the past, present, and future are palpable. Its culturally complex and aesthetically diverse architectural fabric engages, challenges, and charms. The 2016 SESAH conference invites new perspectives on the architecture of the city, the region, and beyond. Potential themes of interest include creolized architecture, world’s fairs, the impact of disasters on the built environment, modernism, enslavement architecture, cemeteries, schools, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and more. As always, papers on any architectural history topic are welcomed. Proposals for themed sessions are encouraged. Paper presentations are 20 minutes maximum accompanied by digital slides. Submit a paper and come be a part of the collegiality and conviviality that distinguish SESAH gatherings!

For more information and details, please visit http://sesah.org/2016/01/15/sesah-2016-call-for-papers-sessions-and-posters/

Conference: NY Folklore Society, Saturday April 2 at Cooper Union

Christine R Henry — Wed, 27 Jan 2016 19:31:09 GMT

Crisis of Place: Preserving Folk and Vernacular Architecture in New York
Saturday, April 2, 2016 at The Cooper Union in New York City

What is the folk and vernacular architecture of New York State? What makes it "folk" or "vernacular"?
How are the conditions of urban and rural life in 2016 challenging traditional architectural practices among various ethnic and regional communities?
Who is sustaining vernacular design and construction in the face of globalization and gentrification, and why?

This one-day gathering of folklorists, historical preservation advocates, community members and scholars, students, museum professionals, architects, urban planners, and other cultural workers will address questions concerning the significant crisis in our understanding of everyday landscapes and built environments: where and what is the folk and vernacular architecture of 21st century America? The day-long conversation will include presentations by architects and architectural historians, a community-based advocacy panel with current advocates from both metropolitan and Upstate New York, walking tours, presentations by graduate level emerging scholars, and a closing plenary in roundtable format open to a wider community discussion.

Our esteemed speakers include: Michael Ann Williams (President, American Folklore Society and Professor of Folklore, Western Kentucky University); Annie Polland (Senior Vice President, Education & Programs, Lower East Side Tenement Museum); Cynthia Falk (Associate Professor of Material Culture, The Cooperstown Graduate Program); Molly Garfinkel (Director, Place Matters/City Lore); Nancy Solomon (Director, Long Island Traditions); Joseph Sciorra (Director for Academic and Cultural Programs, John D. Calandra Italian American Institute, Queens College); and graduate students specializing in folk and vernacular architecture, and many more!

For more information: http://www.nyfolklore.org/progs/conf2016.html

Building and Landscapes seeks nominations for co-editor, deadline June 1

Christine R Henry — Wed, 27 Jan 2016 17:40:26 GMT

Call for Co-Editor

The Vernacular Architecture Forum is seeking nominations for a new co-editor for its acclaimed academic journal Buildings & Landscapes: The Journal of the Vernacular Architecture Forum. The new co-editor will be named roughly one year in advance of assuming the position to allow for a smooth transition. The editor designee will be expected to follow the editorial process beginning in the summer of 2016 and begin a four-year term as co-editor in June of 2017.

B&L’s two editors work closely with the publisher, the University of Minnesota Press. The terms of the two co-editors are staggered so that every two years one editor rotates off. New co-editors are appointed by the President of the Vernacular Architecture Forum with the approval of the VAF’s Board of Directors. The co-editors hold a joint position on the Board of Directors of the Vernacular Architecture Forum.

Buildings & Landscapes appears in print twice a year as an attractive, large-format journal. Significant attention is paid to the physical appearance of the print journal, which features abundant black-and-white illustrations and high quality paper. Digital on-line access is available through JSTOR, as is a digital supplement that allows enhancements including color illustrations, 3D models, film, and audio. Working with the University of Minnesota Press, the co-editors pay close attention to editing and image quality. Future opportunities include continuing to refine and expand the digital edition of B&L available through JSTOR, which may include experimenting with new media.

B&L editors oversee all aspects of publication: soliciting scholarly contributions (through conferences, word of mouth, and other means); vetting submissions by working with peer reviewers; preparing manuscripts for publication by working closely with authors; coordinating copyediting and page proofs with the University of Minnesota Press; working closely with authors and the B&L image editor on image permissions; and arranging with the review editor for the timely submission and editing of reviews.

The ideal editor will have a strong record of previous publications; a history of involvement with the VAF; editorial experience; and a keen interest in collaborating with other scholars. Institutional support – from the candidate’s academic institution or professional organization – would be beneficial, including funding to support travel to conferences (to solicit contributions to the journal), funding for editorial assistants (such as graduate research assistants), and flex time during the academic year to facilitate editorial work.

Nominations (including self nominations) should include a 1-2 page statement of interest that outlines the candidate’s background and preparedness for this position along with a current CV. Please send nominations (as a single .pdf) to Anna Andrzejewski at avandrzejews@wisc.edu by June 1, 2016. Inquiries and questions are also welcome.

Member News: Timothy Orwig Assists with Berkley Common Historic District Nomination

Christine R Henry — Wed, 27 Jan 2016 17:07:17 GMT

Submitted by Milda Richardson

This news item is based on an interview with Tim Orwig and the Sunday Gazette article by Rory Schuler, “Revisiting Shadows of the Past,” Nov. 1, 2015, pp. A1+7.

The Massachusetts Historical Commission recently approved the Berkley Common Historic District for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places. Four centuries of deceased are buried in the Berkley Common Cemetery, the heart of the proposed historic district.

Preservationist Timothy Orwig consulted with the Berkley Historical Commission, completed the research on the district, and presented the application to Mass. Historical. He took exceptional interest in the old burial ground and was quoted in the Taunton Sunday Gazette saying, “Given their age, number of carvers and exceptional craftsmanship, the gravestones in the Berkley Common Cemetery must be acknowledged as artistic treasures of the district.” The cemetery was established in 1758 and contains works by early stone carvers such as the Soule family, Cyrus Deane, Deacon Ebenezer Winslow, William Stevens, rare carvings John Bull completed as an apprentice, and about 30 stones attributed to a Berkley blacksmith. According to gravestone expert Vincent F. Luti, Winslow placed at least 30 stones and the Soule family about a dozen. The 4.4-acre cemetery is surrounded by a true New England rock wall dating from around 1850.

The town of Berkley, founded in 1735, was the center of anti-British sentiment in 1774-1775. Berkley Common and its cemetery, still in use today, are a rich, untapped resource for future scholarship.

Timothy Orwig earned his Ph.D. from Boston University’s American and New England Studies Program and teaches in the Art + Design Department of Northeastern University.

Building and Landscapes 22.2 Table of Contents

Christine R Henry — Wed, 27 Jan 2016 17:05:17 GMT

Winter 2016 Bibliography

Christine R Henry — Tue, 19 Jan 2016 02:18:11 GMT

Compiled by Ian Stevenson and Zachary Violette

Akagawa, Natsuko. “Rethinking the Global Heritage Discourse – Overcoming ‘East’ and ‘West’?” International Journal of Heritage Studies 22, no. 1 (January 2, 2016): 14–25. doi:10.1080/13527258.2015.1068213.

Andrews, Carolyn. “Wells Street Bridge in Chicago: A Moveable Monument Restored.” APT Bulletin XLVI, no. 2–3 (2015): 46–53.

Beardsley, John, ed. Cultural Landscape Heritage in Sub-Saharan Africa. Washington, DC: Dumbarton Oaks, 2016.

Berg, Anne. “The Nazi Rag-Pickers and Their Wine: The Politics of Waste and Recycling in Nazi Germany.” Social History 40, no. 4 (October 2, 2015): 446–72. doi:10.1080/03071022.2015.1076124.

Bramwell, Lincoln. Wilderburbs: Communities on Nature’s Edge. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 2016.

Chan, Hiu Ling, and Christopher Cheng. “Building Homeland Heritage: Multiple Homes among the Chinese Diaspora and the Politics on Heritage Management in China.” International Journal of Heritage Studies 22, no. 1 (January 2, 2016): 1–13. doi:10.1080/13527258.2015.1068211.

Cleeman,Jørgen G. “‘Brickmaker + Farmer’: Damariscotta River Brick Making in the Nineteenth Century and the Traces of Maine’s Agro-Industrial Past.” Buildings & Landscapes: Journal of the Vernacular Architecture Forum 22, no. 1 (April 2015): 10–35. doi:10.5749/buildland.22.1.0010.

Daniel Bluestone. “Charlottesville’s Landscape of Prostitution, 1880–1950.” Buildings & Landscapes: Journal of the Vernacular Architecture Forum 22, no. 2 (2015): 36. doi:10.5749/buildland.22.2.0036.

Das, J. D. “Between the ‘Culture of Poverty’ and the Cultural Revolution: Katherine Dunham’s Performing Arts Training Center in East St. Louis, 1965-1973.” Journal of Urban History 41, no. 6 (November 1, 2015): 981–98. doi:10.1177/0096144215602007.

Dellios, Alexandra. “Marginal or Mainstream? Migrant Centres as Grassroots and Official Heritage.” International Journal of Heritage Studies 21, no. 10 (November 26, 2015): 1068–83. doi:10.1080/13527258.2015.1066410.

Engstrom, S. “Building a Midwest Cultural Capital: Professional Theater and Urban Development in Minneapolis.” Journal of Urban History 41, no. 6 (November 1, 2015): 962–80. doi:10.1177/0096144215602006.

Erkklia, Catherine Boland. “American Railways and the Cultural Landscape of Immigration.” Buildings & Landscapes: Journal of the Vernacular Architecture Forum 22, no. 1 (April 2015): 36–62. doi:10.5749/buildland.22.1.0036.

Foulkes, J. L. “Seeing the City: The Filming of West Side Story.” Journal of Urban History 41, no. 6 (November 1, 2015): 1032–51. doi:10.1177/0096144215602013.

Goff, Lisa. Shantytown, USA: Forgotten Landscapes of the Working Poor. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2016.

Green, Keith Evan. Architectural Robotics: Ecosystems of Bits, Bytes, and Biology. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2016.

Hamilakis, Yannis. “Archaeology and the Logic of Capital: Pulling the Emergency Break.” International Journal of Historical Archaeology 19, no. 4 (December 2015): 721–35. doi:10.1007/s10761-015-0307-4.

Harrison, Conor. “Extending the ‘White Way’: Municipal Streetlighting and Race, 1900–1930.” Social & Cultural Geography 16, no. 8 (2015): 950–73.

Hines, Sara N. Cottage Communities: The American Camp Meeting Movement (A Study in Lean Urbanism). Ashland, MA: Hines Art Press, 2015.

Hutchings, Rich, and Marina La Salle. “Archaeology as Disaster Capitalism.” International Journal of Historical Archaeology 19, no. 4 (December 2015): 699–720. doi:10.1007/s10761-015-0308-3.

Jake Wegmann. “Research Notes: The Hidden Cityscapes of Informal Housing in Suburban Los Angeles and the Paradox of Horizontal Density.” Buildings & Landscapes: Journal of the Vernacular Architecture Forum 22, no. 2 (2015): 89. doi:10.5749/buildland.22.2.0089.

Julie Nicoletta. “Selling Spirituality and Spectacle: Religious Pavilions at the New York World’s Fair of 1964–65.” Buildings & Landscapes: Journal of the Vernacular Architecture Forum 22, no. 2 (2015): 62. doi:10.5749/buildland.22.2.0062.

Kevin D. Murphy. “Viewpoint: Peculiar Places and Strange Guests: Obsolete Resorts in Some Mid-Twentieth Century Children’s Books.” Buildings & Landscapes: Journal of the Vernacular Architecture Forum 22, no. 2 (2015): 1. doi:10.5749/buildland.22.2.0001.

Klee, Jeffery E. “Object Lesson : James Anderson Blacksmith Shop, 1986–2011: An Appreciation.” Buildings & Landscapes: Journal of the Vernacular Architecture Forum 22, no. 1 (April 2015): 1–9. doi:10.5749/buildland.22.1.0001.

Krivý, Maroš. “Greyness and Colour Desires: The Chromatic Politics of the panelák in Late-Socialist and Post-Socialist Czechoslovakia.” The Journal of Architecture 20, no. 5 (September 3, 2015): 765–802. doi:10.1080/13602365.2015.1088053.

Kuskey, Jessica. “Listening to the Victorian Telephone: Class, Periodicals, and the Social Construction of Technology.” Nineteenth-Century Contexts 38, no. 1 (January 2016): 3–22. doi:10.1080/08905495.2015.1105506.

Luisa Valle. “Object Lesson:Thomas Hirschhorn’s Gramsci Monument: Negotiating Monumentality with Instability and Everyday Life.” Buildings & Landscapes: Journal of the Vernacular Architecture Forum 22, no. 2 (2015): 18. doi:10.5749/buildland.22.2.0018.

MacKay, Robert B. Gardens of Eden: Long Island’s Early Twentieth-Century Planned Communities. New York: W. W. Norton, 2015.

Matthys, C. “Discourses versus Life Courses: Servants Extramarital Sexual Activities in Flanders during the Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries.” Journal of Urban History 42, no. 1 (January 1, 2016): 81–100. doi:10.1177/0096144215611096.

McMury, Sally. “Research Notes: The Public Image of Dairying in the Late Twentieth Century: A Primary Source Trail.” Buildings & Landscapes: Journal of the Vernacular Architecture Forum 22, no. 1 (April 2015): 90–97. doi:10.5749/buildland.22.1.0090.

Oevermann, Heike, Jana Degenkolb, Anne Dießler, Sarah Karge, and Ulrike Peltz. “Participation in the Reuse of Industrial Heritage Sites: The Case of Oberschöneweide, Berlin.” International Journal of Heritage Studies 22, no. 1 (January 2, 2016): 43–58. doi:10.1080/13527258.2015.1083460.

Page, Max. “Sites of Conscience: Shockoe Bottom, Manzanar, and Mountain Meadows.” Preservation 67, no. 4 (2015): 22–29.

Parreno, Christian. “Boredom and Space: Blunting and Jading as Causes of Change in Architecture.” The Journal of Architecture 20, no. 5 (September 3, 2015): 831–38. doi:10.1080/13602365.2015.1092461.

Petroski, Henry. The House with Sixteen Handmade Doors: A Tale of Architectural Choice and Craftsmanship. New York: W. W. Norton, 2014.

Pocock, Celmara, David Collett, and Linda Baulch. “Assessing Stories before Sites: Identifying the Tangible from the Intangible.” International Journal of Heritage Studies 21, no. 10 (November 26, 2015): 962–82. doi:10.1080/13527258.2015.1040440.

Prista, Marta Lalanda. “Architecture-Building: Mobilising the Lessons of the Survey Popular Architecture in Portugal.” The Journal of Architecture 20, no. 5 (September 3, 2015): 839–67. doi:10.1080/13602365.2015.1095021.

Reynolds, M. “Landscape in Motion: Nostalgia and Urban Redevelopment in Ed Ruscha’s Then & Now: Hollywood Boulevard, 1973-2004.” Journal of Urban History 41, no. 6 (November 1, 2015): 1052–72. doi:10.1177/0096144215602014.

Satterthwaite, Ann. Local Glories: Opera Houses on Main Street, Where Art and Community Meet. New York: Oxford University Press, 2016.

Shepherd, Nick. “Contract Archaeology in South Africa: Traveling Theory, Local Memory and Global Designs.” International Journal of Historical Archaeology 19, no. 4 (December 2015): 748–63. doi:10.1007/s10761-015-0310-9.

Shkuda, A. “The Artist as Developer and Advocate: Real Estate and Public Policy in SoHo, New York.” Journal of Urban History 41, no. 6 (November 1, 2015): 999–1016. doi:10.1177/0096144215602008.

Stratigakos, Despina. Where Are the Women Architects? Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2016.

Taylor, Tamarind, and Chris Landorf. “Subject–object Perceptions of Heritage: A Framework for the Study of Contrasting Railway Heritage Regeneration Strategies.” International Journal of Heritage Studies 21, no. 10 (November 26, 2015): 1050–67. doi:10.1080/13527258.2015.1061582.

Thomas, Zoë. “At Home with the Women’s Guild of Arts: Gender and Professional Identity in London Studios, 1880–1925.” Women’s History Review 24, no. 6 (November 2, 2015): 938–64. doi:10.1080/09612025.2015.1039348.

Trask, J. “The ‘Loft Cause’ or ‘Bohemia Gone Bourgeois?’: Artist Housing and Private Development in Greenwich Village.” Journal of Urban History 41, no. 6 (November 1, 2015): 1017–31. doi:10.1177/0096144215602012.

Tyler, Ilene R. “Highland Park Ford Plant: Documentation and Redevelopment.” APT Bulletin XLVI, no. 2–3 (2015): 36–45.

Whelan, Bernadette. “Women on the Move: A Review of the Historiography of Irish Emigration to the USA, 1750–1900.” Women’s History Review 24, no. 6 (November 2, 2015): 900–916. doi:10.1080/09612025.2015.1013305.

White, Wendel A. “‘Schools for the Colored’: Places, Words, Pictures.” Buildings & Landscapes: Journal of the Vernacular Architecture Forum 22, no. 1 (April 2015): 63–89. doi:10.5749/buildland.22.1.0063.

Yu, Hua. “A Vernacular Way of ‘safeguarding’ Intangible Heritage: The Fall and Rise of Rituals in Gouliang Miao Village.” International Journal of Heritage Studies 21, no. 10 (November 26, 2015): 1016–35. doi:10.1080/13527258.2015.1048813.

Zorzin, Nicolas. “Dystopian Archaeologies: The Implementation of the Logic of Capital in Heritage Management.” International Journal of Historical Archaeology 19, no. 4 (December 2015): 791–809. doi:10.1007/s10761-015-0315-4.