Summer 2013 Field School in Buildings, Landscapes and Cultures

Website: www.blcfieldschool.blogspot.com

Buildings-Landscapes-Cultures, School of Architecture and Urban Planning;
Department of History, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Department of Art History, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Class Dates: June 10 – July 13, 2013
Preparatory Workshop (attendance required), June 3, 2013, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM, Room 191, School of Architecture and Urban Planning, UWM

Course Numbers: The Field School will satisfy an elective requirement for the ecological and preservation concentrations. You may choose 6 credit hours from the following course numbers.
ARCH 534: Field Study–3 cr.; ARCH 561: Measured Drawing for Architects. –3 cr.; ARCH 562: Preservation Technology Laboratory. –3 cr.; Arch 390: Independent studies for undergraduate students. –3 cr.  We will be accepting a maximum of 20 students. 
 
This course provides students an immersion experience in the field recording of the built environment and cultural landscapes and an opportunity to learn how to write history literally “from the ground up.” This year, we will focus on the ethics of ecological stewardship and historic preservation practiced in the Historic Water Tower Neighborhood (HWTN) of Milwaukee. The neighborhood’s history dates back to the days when the City expanded northwards along the lake. The area has many historic and designated buildings, a number of residential historic districts, an extensive park system, bluffs of Lake Michigan and one business historical district. The National Register of Historic Places has created five separate districts within HWTN’s boundaries and named several notable buildings separately.

The five-week course calendar covers a broad array of academic skills. Workshops during Week 1 will focus on photography, measured drawings, documentation and technical drawings; no prior experience is necessary. Week 2 will include workshops on oral history interviewing and digital ethnography. Week 3 is centered on mapping and archival research. Week 4 and 5 will be devoted to producing final reports and documentaries. Students will learn how to “read” buildings within their urban material, social, ecological and cultural contexts, create reports on historic buildings and cultural landscapes and produce multimedia documentaries. Nationally recognized faculty directing portions of this school include Jeffrey E. Klee, Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Anna Andrzejewski, Associate Professor of Art History, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Michael H. Frisch, Professor and Senior Research Scholar, University at Buffalo, Jasmine Alinder, Associate Professor of History, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee, Michael Gordon, Associate Professor Emeritus of History, University of Wisconsin Milwaukee, and Matthew Jarosz, Associate Adjunct Professor of Architecture and Historic Preservation, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Documentary equipment and supplies will be provided, but students must be able to fund their own meals and modest lodging accommodations. For more information please contact Prof. Arijit Sen at senA@uwm.edu.

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This field school is sponsored by Historic Water Tower Neighborhood, School of Architecture and Urban Planning, Department of History, School of Letters and Sciences, UWM.