It was a great day when I opened a banker box to find hundreds of glossy, black and white photos of buildings--I love the nostalgia of old photographs, I love how architecture can be a time capsule reflecting the sensibilities and priorities of a community at a particular point in time and I have a growing curiosity about what was here before. I was delighted to discover they are all photos of structures that exist(ed) in Minnesota.

Think you missed your chance to submit to the annual Artwords contest? Think again! ArtWords is accepting submissions through January 31st! Submit to z.umn.edu/artwords18

Are you a creative writer and an art enthusiast? The WAM Collective and The Tower encourage you to submit to ArtWords!

While processing the archival collection of the Weisman Art Museum, I stumbled upon a heartwarming exchange between a UMN Ph. D candidate and Frederick R. Weisman himself. Copies of the letters dated July 21, 1993 and July 26, 1993 are in a folder amidst other reactions to the newly built Gehry-designed museum building.

Dear Mr. Weisman,  (Although I must tell you, I think of you as Fred)

Imagine its the mid-1990's and you're trying to decide between grad schools while paging through all the printed catalogs you got in the mail last week. You come across these photos of stylish grad students, studying on the terrace of the spandy new Weisman Art Museum overlooking the Washington Ave bridge and Minneapolis's downtown cityscape complete with Metrodome Stadium. Then, imagine yourself in the same situation. Pretty tempting, right?