
In 1977, a postmodernist theorist wrote that the destruction of the Pruitt-Igoe housing complex in St. Louis was “the day Modern architecture died.” The idea was parroted by others as a convenient way to mark the end of something that they wanted to see as a failure, namely Modern architecture. Enter The Pruitt-Igoe Myth.
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We’re psyched that Hyperallergic is now a Jedi. As proof of our love for the force, we’re hosting a special event with John Powers and Luke DuBois, who will be making a world premiere presentation at Hyperallergic HQ by screening episodes 2 (robots as peasants) & 4 (abstraction is the force) in the continuing epic that is “Star Wars Modern.” Get your tickets now!
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This week we are pleased to publish an essay by sculptor and blogger John Powers about the relationship of death, sculpture, and modernity. The essay, titled “Art, Not Suicide,” wrestles with Rosalind Krauss and her influential essay “Sculpture in the Expanded Field,” as a starting point and asks, “What is the role of death in modern sculpture?” What he finds may surprise you.
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She’s one of New York’s old skool art critics and has penned books on everyone from David Smith to Edward Gorey. An authority on 20th C. modernism, Karen Wilkin agreed to talk to Hyperallergic about her experience as a longtime observer of the art world and in the process she spoke about an art world “afraid of missing out on something,” and she offers some advice to aspiring critics.
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