History of American Vernacular Architecture & Landscapes

History of American Vernacular Architecture & Landscapes

Art History 457 (FALL 2013)

Monday-Wednesday-Friday, 11:00-11:50 (Elvehjem Building, Chazen Museum of Art, L150)

Professor Anna Andrzejewski

Office: Conrad A. Elvehjem Building (Chazen Museum of Art), Room 210

Department Phone: 262-9183

E-mail:

Office Hours: Fridays, 12-2 and by appointment

Course Description:

This course will examine an array of American vernacular buildings and landscapes from the colonial period to the present and consider what they can tell us about the past (and potentially the present). By vernacular, I refer to ordinary or everyday spaces and places that people encounter daily--houses, workspaces, institutional buildings--but rarely think about critically. Because these environments often were (and are) ordinary--that is, not high-style, not designed by architects, landscape architects, professional designers, etc.)--traditional art historical frameworks that focus on stylistic categories or maker's biographies prove rather ineffective in interpreting them. Thus, this course will look at recent work by scholars from the fields of anthropology, history, American studies, cultural geography, landscape architecture and history, folklore, and material culture to construct frameworks that help us understand the significance that vernacular environments have had for their makers and users. In so doing, we will also consider question the need for the category of “vernacular,” as the approaches we discuss may be brought to bear upon any aspect of the built environment. A all-day field trip to the rural landscapes of southwestern Wisconsin is required as part of the course, as are visits by noted scholars of Wisconsin vernacular architecture and landscapes. Student projects will focus on the history of Mifflin Street, including its more recent history.

Course Objectives:

There are several interrelated objectives for the course—some descriptive and some interpretive. It will be obvious to many students from the first day of class that vernacular buildings and landscapes deviate significantly from high-style or architect-designed examples. This doesn’t mean these spaces are necessarily inferior to more famous designed examples—just different! Furthermore, understanding these buildings as historical and cultural evidence necessitates that we think of them in ways beyond their style and/or maker’s biography. Thus a major goal of this course will be to have students acquire a working vocabulary that can help them describe vernacular buildings and landscapes (and really ANY built environment) in meaningful ways. Learning appropriate terminology will help students recognize and understand vernacular environments in a way that does not judge them relative to “high style” ones and allows us to seem them as complex forms of architectural and historical evidence.

A second objective of the course involves learning approaches and methodologies (from the disciplines listed above and potentially others) that help us make meaning out of ordinary buildings and landscapes that we encounter daily. Through a series of essays written by scholars working in the fields of American vernacular architecture and landscape history, we will discuss & evaluate the usefulness of various approaches to understanding the American built environment in all of its diversity. We will also have the opportunity to apply approaches through hands-on research conducted during the last third of the course.

While a semester-long course in American vernacular architecture and landscapes cannot be comprehensive (and this course doesn’t pretend to be), a third goal of the course is that students will gain a foundational understanding of the history of vernacular buildings and landscapes in the United States as they evolved through time—with a focus (particularly in the last third of the course) on the vernacular architecture and landscape of south-central Wisconsin. Because there is no one book that covers this history in its entirety, this knowledge will be gleaned through class discussions (based on selected readings) that will occur during the semester.

Course Requirements:

Success in the course is contingent upon the student's attending class sessions, participating in class discussions and activities, keeping up with readings, completing a series of writing assignments, and preparing for quizzes and presentations. Students who come to all class periods, actively participate in class activities and discussions, and regularly engage with the material (that is, prepare at least FIVE hours outside of class per week CONSISTENTLY through the semester) will earn the highest grades in the course. PLEASE NOTE: THERE IS NO FINAL EXAM FOR THIS COURSE. Graduate student requirements vary somewhat from that of undergraduates.

Materials to Purchase. I have decided not to require a textbook for this course. I would rather you spend time focusing on lecture content and the readings in the Coursepack/Reader. You should, therefore, purchase the following at Bob’s Copy Shop, 616 University Avenue:

1) COURSEPACK/READER. Most required readings have been compiled into a READER, which is available for purchase from BOB’S COPY SHOP, 616 University Ave. You are expected to purchase a copy of the reader, keep up with the readings (assigned for each class period), and come to class prepared to discuss the material ON THE DAY they are listed on the CALENDAR. The reading load for this course is heavy, largely because we have a great deal to cover in a very short amount of time. Because of the heavy reading load, assignments have been scaled back—but that means you are expected to read assigned texts by the due date, and you will be graded on participation (see below). Also, you should be aware that the readings & the lectures rarely overlap; if you miss class, you should get the notes from someone else because the readings do not duplicate lecture material (and vice-versa). To assure that students are keeping up with reading assignments, they will be asked to submit two (2) one-page précis (article summaries) on readings in the READER; each précis must be submitted by the date for which it is assigned (no exceptions). Guidelines for these précis are included in the course READER.

2) WORKBOOK. A short workbook has been prepared to help you take notes and prepare for quizzes and discussion sections. This workbook includes images we discuss in class as well as discussion questions you can consult IN ADVANCE to know what we will be discussing. You will be allowed to use your workbook during quizzes – so take advantage of it to take notes!!!!

Quizzes. There will be two non-cumulative quizzes (see calendar for dates). Quiz questions will consist of a mix of short answer and short essay questions (some of which will likely involve slides) that engage with topics discussed in class or in the assigned readings. These quizzes may take up the majority of the class period on the days on which they are held. Format will be discussed in advance.

Field Trips. Students are TO MAKE EVERY EFFORT to attend an all-day field trip to southwestern Wisconsin – will be held on Friday, November 1. If you cannot go, you should make arrangements with the Instructor for an alternative assignment, or drop the course. This trip, led by Arnold Alanen, Professor of Landscape Architecture, will take us to the driftless region around Mineral Point, Argyle, Wiota, and New Glarus. Our focus will be on ethnic building traditions and how they make up this complex landscape in rural southwestern WI. The bus will leave at approximately 8:00 a.m. and will return to Madison by 5:30 p.m. In lieu of purchasing a textbook, students are asked to make a small donation to support the cost of the bus ($10). Students have the option of bringing their lunch, although those interested in having a vernacular Cornish lunch are invited to join the Instructor for pasties at the Red Rooster in Mineral Point (cost approximately $5). The field trip will provide an excellent summation of our discussions from the first part of the semester, and show applications in a real-world setting. IF YOU HAVE MANDATORY EXERCISES (I.E., MIDTERMS) IN YOUR OTHER COURSES, YOU SHOULD NOT ATTEND THE FIELD TRIP; please speak with the Instructor about alternative assignments.

A short (3-4 page) response paper will be required upon return from the field trip (see calendar for due date). The paper should focus on what the student learned on the trip, and tie that acquired knowledge to themes/issues discussed in the course. Guidelines will follow at a later date.

Final Projects – TBA. This year, we will be working on group projects related to the vernacular buildings and landscapes of Madison in the Mifflin Street neighborhood. It will offer students a chance to go “in the field,” to look at actual buildings and landscape features, and also learn the basics of conducting research on them. This is exciting in several ways. First, it offers students a chance to actually conduct original research. Second, it represents the “Wisconsin Idea” in the sense of involving the educational mission of the university with the broader public. Third, it allows us to work with the State Historical Society and the City of Madison’s Department of Planning to gather data on historic buildings and landscapes. And finally, students’ research will become part of the permanent record. Data will be collected for archiving at the Division of Historic Preservation, and hopefully, help the City make informed decisions as they move forward with redevelopment in the area.

The precise nature of the activities and the location for this research will be announced later. For now, you need to know a few things. First, you will be working in teams to gather data. This is because these activities will be new to most of you, and also because safety is a concern. As you will be walking around looking at buildings, I would feel better if you did it together. Second, you will be responsible to get around Madison to conduct the research. You will also have to conduct research, some of it off campus (downtown at the courthouse). Because of these complications, several class periods will be devoted to research time for you to conduct these tasks; the instructor will meet you at various locations to assist. Your final grade for the “group work” will be based on participation in activities in the neighborhood, contribution towards research conducted elsewhere, a brief group presentation on your findings, and a final group written report that pulls together all of your findings (details on format will follow at a later date).

Also, your experience in the field will contribute toward your last written assignment: a short (3-4 page) research proposal. This is not a group project but an INDIVIDUAL project. For this proposal, you will be asked to write about some aspect of your group project that interests you, and describe – using knowledge gleaned in class – how you would go about conducting a larger research project. This proposal will require you to conduct little, if any, research. The idea is to use ideas you have gleaned over the course of the semester to consider how you would pursue independent research beyond this course on something that interests you. Students can propose to work on a single building, a feature of a building, a particular architectural style, building materials/technology, landscape design, or a theoretical issue of interest to them. The idea is to pick something you LIKE, and explore how you would continue to think about it beyond this course. These proposals are due no later than the last day of class.

Class Participation. As the CALENDAR below indicates, considerable portions of this class are devoted to CLASS DISCUSSION, which is appropriate for a 400-level course. All students should participate in class discussions on a regular basis and participate fully in the final project. To that end, a hefty percentage of your grade will be based on class participation. TO THOSE WHO FEAR SPEAKING UP IN CLASS: I feel your pain—but part of a liberal arts education involves learning to engage in meaningful intellectual dialogue. If the cat has persistently got your tongue, you may wish to meet with me OUTSIDE of class to talk one-on-one about the material or write “response papers” to improve your participation grade (though nothing can make up for complete lack of verbal participation). You may consult with me periodically to gauge how you are doing in terms of your participation grade. If the class is consistently reticent to engage in discussion, the Instructor will ask that students submit response papers EACH WEEK to be graded as part of class participation.

Students’ grades in class participation will be determined on a mix of factors, including (but certainly not limited to) regular attendance in class. Regular participation in class discussions, which includes asking questions of the professor or your peers (especially during PRESENTATIONS) and responding to queries by the professor or your classmates, will figure into this grade. Should the Instructor need to assign response papers at any point in the class, these will count toward the class participation grade as well.

Distribution of Grading (UNDERGRADUATES*):

Quizzes 30% (15% each)

2 précis (article summaries) 10% (5% each)

Field Trip Response 15%

Final Project – Group Work 15%

Research Project – Proposal 15%

Class Participation 15%

100%

*Graduate students will be evaluated slightly differently.

Grading Scale: The grade scale will follow University standards, but might vary given grading results: 94-100, A; 89-93, AB; 84-88, B; 79-83, BC; 74-78, C; 65-73, D, 64 and below, F.