Small-Screen Architecture
By Michael Bridgeman
Television ad, 1948 [1]
This time of year, I get itchy feet. There are buildings and places to see, but limited daylight, cold temperatures, plus snow and ice make that difficult if not impossible. One way to satisfy the itch is through the small screen, be it a TV or laptop. This month I offer a small sample of television programs, video presentations, and lectures that may help the architecture enthusiast cope as daylight slowly increases and temperatures creep up.
Sources
I’ve narrowed my recommendations to make them decidedly local; they are about places in Madison or Wisconsin. All the videos are easily available either by streaming or DVD, with direct links provided below. I’ve also made sure you can watch without obstacles like paywalls or membership fees. Even within these parameters, there’s plenty to see if you have the time and inclination to search and watch.
My principal source is University Place a “virtual lecture hall” organized by PBS Wisconsin. Its wide-ranging collection encompasses presentations about Wisconsin architecture, design, and history. Among my more productive search terms were “architecture,” “buildings,” “capitol,” “archaeologist,” and “Frank Lloyd Wright.”
A close second for finding videos is the public library’s LINKcat, a shared online catalog for Wisconsin libraries including the South Central Library System. A third source is YouTube. I use the free version, which comes with ads. For both LINKcat and YouTube be sure to include “Madison” or “Wisconsin” when searching if you want locally focused content. These three sources are not the only places to look, as you’ll see below, but they cover a lot of ground.
Topics
The Capitol has defined Madison since its founding and the current building was completed in 1917. Here is a sampling of available videos that touch on the history and design of the National Historic Landmark.
Historian Michael Edmonds [2]
“Stories from the Capitol: Building the Monument” and “Stories from the Capitol: People and Politics” feature historian Michael Edmonds.
In “Art of the Capitol: A Beaux Arts Masterpiece,” former Chief State Architect Dan Stephans highlights fine and decorative arts in the Capitol.
Restoration architect and Madison Trust board member Charles Quagliana focuses on the man responsible for the building’s design in “George B. Post: Architect of the Wisconsin Capitol.”
A DVD of “Our House: The Wisconsin Capitol,” a program produced by PBS Wisconsin, is available at public llibraries.
Frank Lloyd Wright is arguably the most widely known person to hail from Wisconsin. A towering figure in architecture and design, he spent his formative years in Madison. The list below describes a handful of the many videos about Wright’s Wisconsin work.
The Burnham Block in Milwaukee [3]
Mike Lilek, curator of the Burnham Block in Milwaukee, describes “Frank Lloyd Wright’s American System Built Homes.”
Virginia Boyd, a professor at UW-Madison, explains the ideas behind Wright’s domestic designs in “Frank Lloyd Wright's Uniquely American Home.”
“The Jewel in the Woods: Frank Lloyd Wright's Seth Peterson Cottage” relates the story of an 880-square-foot cottage now within Mirror Lake State Park near Lake Delton.
Among many videos about a Wright design in Two Rivers is “Still Bend: The Bernard and Fern Schwartz House.”
Videos about other buildings in Madison and across Wisconsin range in length from a few minutes to an hour. Creative searching will point you to much more beyond my few suggestions.
Marshall Erdman’s Middleton Hills [4]
UW-Madison professor Anna Andrzejewski spotlights an important Madison builder, developer, innovator, and occasional Wright collaborator in “Marshall Erdman’s Contributions to Postwar Architecture.”
Jim Feldman talks about the history, construction, and styles of “Buildings of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.”
“Sauk Prairie’s National Register Buildings” profiles nine buildings in the twin villages of Sauk City and Prairie du Sac.
In “The Village of Cooksville” Larry Reed discusses the history of a New England-style settlement in northern Rock County.
Archaeological sites have rich stories to tell. Mounds and rock art, created by indigenous people long before the arrival of Euro-American settlers, are visible above ground. Underwater shipwrecks have been found by Wisconsin’s intrepid maritime archaeologists.
Archaeologist John Broihahn [5]
Archaeologst John Broihahn investigates the work of “Wisconsin’s First Mound Builders."
Amy Rosebrough, recently named state archeologist, describes “New Perspectives on Wisconsin’s Monumental Earthworks” made possible by new technologies.
Robert Ernie Boszhardt and Geri Schrab talk with Norman Gilliland about the history of “Wisconsin Rock Art.”
Maritime archaeologists Tamara Thomsen and Caitlin Zant tell the stories of some of the shipwrecks included in the “Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary.”
Scratch That Itch
At the beginning of this post, I implied that there are no places to see by foot this time of year. That isn’t entirely true. There are regular indoor tours at a number of worthwhile destinations in our area. Here are three.
Under the capitol dome [6]
The Capitol is a spectacular building and a place worth visiting regularly. Fortunately, free tours are offered year-round. Check the Wisconsin State Capitol Tours website for details and schedules.
There is a small fee for tours of Monona Terrace, which are offered on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturday at 1 p.m. There is more information on their website.
The First Unitarian Society Meeting House offers tours throughout the year. The tours require a fee and need to be booked in advance. See the meeting house website for details about public, private and group tours.
There’s no need for itchy feet. Whether in person or via a small screen, historic architecture is yours to enjoy all through the winter months.
. . .
Image Credits
[1] Internet Archive, https://archive.org/details/DuMontTVAdWelcomeGift
[2] University Place, PBS Wisconsin
[3] Historic Milwaukee Inc. website
[4] Photo by Michael Bridgeman
[5] University Place, PBS Wisconsin
[6] Highsmith, Carol M, photographer. Inside Wisconsin's Capitol dome, Madison, Wisconsin. United States Madison Wisconsin, None. [Between 1980 and 2006] Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/2011630641/.