FILM www.archive.org/details/American1958
In 1958, Chevrolet created the 30-minute Technicolor film The American Look, “in appreciation of the stylists of America.” Although it is, in the end, a commercial for the 1959 Impala, it nonetheless shows a remarkable range of midcentury industrial, interior, and building design. Now in the public domain, the film is available for download in three parts (add “_2” or “_3” to the URL to access the other parts). Search video.google.com for “The American Look” to view the entire film in a browser window.
ACTIVISM squanderedheritage.com
Since August 2006, Karen Gadbois, Laureen Lentz, and friends have been documenting New Orleans homes and other buildings that owners want to demolish. Both women, who hail from elsewhere, hope to prevent unnecessary razing or, at the very least, preserve local architectural memory. Inevitably, though, some structures—such as 2627–29 Bruxelles St. (shown), which has been approved for demolition—will one day exist only online.
PHOTOGRAPHY themorningnews.org/archives/galleries/american_cities
More than a dozen images by Los Angeles–based photographer Catherine Opie, part of her American Cities series. Included are photos of St. Louis, Chicago, Minneapolis, and New York, as well as a brief interview with Opie about the series.
PODCAST asla.org/land/audiovideo/laschaudio.html
Mary Ann Lasch of Gensler is a security design expert who has worked with the General Services Administration in an effort to create design guidelines that balance safety and openness. Interviewed at last year's annual meeting of the American Society of Landscape Architects, she discusses the current state of security design and where she thinks it's headed.
GRAPHICS
nearfield.org/2006/09/the-dashed-line-in-useFrom European designer Timo Arnell comes a visual survey of the dashed line's many meanings—hidden geometry, movement, and more—over a half-century of information design. Arnell is the founder of Touch (nearfield.org), a research project exploring and developing new uses for radio frequency identification, near field communication, and mobile technology.
