MSD Public Lecture: 'When Lines Became Objects' with Jordan Kauffman

This talk traces a moment in the late 20th century when architectural drawings attained autonomy from architectural processes to become perceived as aesthetic artifacts in and of themselves. It unravels the transnational social and economic forces that shifted perceptions and understandings of them, the impact this had on their collection and preservation as objects with historical and cultural value, and the effects of this on the discipline and practice of architecture.

About the speaker

Jordan Kauffman is an architectural historian whose work spans from the Renaissance to the present, with particular interests in architectural representations, art-architecture relationships, global architectural history, and architecture’s impact on Indigenous landscapes. His book, Drawing on Architecture, The Object of Lines, 1970-1990, was published by the MIT Press in 2018, and numerous essays of his have appeared in academic and disciplinary media. Kauffman has taught architecture and design history at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Brandeis University, Tufts University, Boston University, and Monash University. He sits on the editorial board of the Society of Architectural Historians Australia and New Zealand.

Time Zone

This lecture will be held online on Friday 5 August at 10 am Australian Eastern Standard Time. To check the date and time of this lecture against your time zone, click this link and enter your city.