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By: Paula Rabinowitz

A few years ago, on my way to see Pedro Almodóvar's film, Talk to Her, which was playing at the local indie-flick multiplex alongside Frida, I stopped at the public library to return a book. Parked in its lot was a minivan plastered with reproductions of Frida Kaylo's paintings and a banner proclaiming "Vivan Las Artistas Latinas!" I ran across the street to a drug store, bought a disposable camera, and began shooting away, all four sides of the vehicle. Only when I looked at the developing prints did I realize that reaming the license plate was this work's title: Frida Karlo. This traveling "homenaje a Frida" is part of an evolving landscape of playful feminist post-modern kitsch. The "Karlo" works through design to fashion identity; or perhaps it is the other way around: it uses identity as a mechanism of design.

Read this article in its entirety on page 20.

Photomontage of Frida Karlo images taken with the authors disposable camera representing the evolving landscape of playful feminist post-modern kitsch.

Paula Rabinowitz is a Professor and Department Chair in the College of Liberal Arts at the University of Minnesota.

By: Ozayr Saloojee

The first and essential mandate of a school of architecture is the conscious, deliberate and involved participation in the education of the designers of the future. In addition to the pedagogies and curricula that explore issues of history, theory, culture, sustainability, 'design,' and a host of other topics, it is logical that our schools consistently pose questions regarding the evolving nature of architecture and of the architect.

Read this article in its entirety on page 27.

Selimiye Mosque, Mimav Saginaw, Istanbul

Ozayr Saloojee is an Assistant Professor at the School of Architecture in the University of Minnesota's College of Design.

By: Mayor R. T. Rybak, speech

For the first time in my life, the popular culture of America values urban living and no other city in America is as ready to step up to that challenge more than Minneapolis. Americans are moving back to cities and Americans are moving to Minneaplis. From 1990 to 2000 our city grew by 14,000 people and is expected to grow by as much as 50,000 in the next 15 years.

Read this article in its entirety on page 30.

This article is an excerpt from Minneapolis Mayor R. T. Rybak's address at the newly renovated Russian Art Museum to a crowd of architects, landscape architects, developers, planners, and the general public. It was presented as a part of the Great City Forum on Tuesday, February 28, 2006.

By: Philip Glenn Koski, AIA

The Mall of America has recently been put on the market for 1.2 million dollars. That, anyway, is the price quoted in the recent upgrade of the board game, Monopoly: Here and Now Limited Edition. IN the 2006 re-engineering of the game by the toy titan, Hasbro, the familiar Atlantic City street names have been replaced by iconic landmarks representing 22 American cities. According to the latest re-appraisal, Mall of America (MOA) is valued just above Saarinen's magnificent Saint Louis Arch at an even million bucks.

Amide the hurly-burly of the game's sweeping real-estate shake up, Hasbro has...

Read this article in its entirety on page 34.

Minneapolis - St. Paul International Airport.

Philip Koski is a principal at iota, an architectural firm in Minneapolis.

By: Ryan O'Malley

Cabbage, Benjamins, Skrilla, Cheese...
For the same reason the Eskimos had myriad names for sow, we Americans have countless terms for our currency. Images of money are all around us. It's difficult to think of a more ubiquitous artifact that's both commonly and uniquely charged with meaning.

Whatever its appearance, Cheddar always collects the energy of what we imbue it with - power, security, fear, etc. Still, its graphic content undeniably conveys an image of the issuing nation.

Read this article in its entirety on page 38.

Ryan O'Malley is a thesis student in the Mster Architecture Program at the Universtiy of Minnesota's College of Design.

By: Della Hansmann

As students in Minnesota, our daily schedules were apparently unaltered by Hurricane Katrina, so we looked for ways in which we could offer support to those in the Gulf Coast region. The first opportunity for students to contribute directly came during spring break, 2006, when about 20 students from Cameron Sinclair's Architecture for Humanity course travelled to Biloxi, Mississippi, to lend a hand for the week.

Read this article in its entirety on page 40.

Students constructing access ramp for Al and Ruby D'Orville.

Della Hansmann is a second year graduate student in the Master of Architecture program at the University of Minnesota.

By: Heidi Lukewich

This thesis sought to test the ability of architecture to reanimate a place, specifically the American phenomenon known as Main Street.

Main Street has characteristically served as the commercial corridor of typical American towns. Main Street is a phenomenon because it is not just a place, but also an event; it is the physical manifestation of a town's essence. Its significance, however, has naturally changed over the years. As the big box and malls provide services that mimic Main Street's services, its role in our everyday lives has decreased.

Read this article in its entirety on page 44.

Figure A: Depicts the two sides of Main Street in Medford, Wisconsin, split physically and developmentally in half by Broadway Avenue. Figure B: Part of the inspiration for the design of the project came from the physical nature of the site, the green depicts gaps in the urban fabric that allowed for connections in the design.

Heidi Lukewich is a 2006 graduate of the College of ARchitecture and Landscape Architecture. This is an excerpt from her thesis, Re-Animating Main Street.

By: Steven Mitrione, MD

Gardens have played a role in healthcare for centuries. With the advent of modern medicine in the beginning of the twentieth century, this historical role has been lost. However, there has been renewed interest in utilizing garden environments as therapeutic entities to enhance the process of healing that occurs in healthcare environments.

Read this article in its entirety on page 48.

Plan of Clare Apartments Therapeutic Garden. Drawing created by author.

Steve Mitrione is a 2006 graduate of the College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. This is an excerpt from his capstone project.

By: James Wheeler

Just as a building is comprised of a myriad of structures and systems working in harmony, the language we use to express ourselves requires the same amount of scrutiny and detailing that our designed documents possess. Through a commitment to this crafting of our professional identity we may begin to improve the trajectory
of our architecture and the nature of our relationship to both the built environment and the public we serve.

Read this article in its entirety on page 52.

James Wheeler is a thesis candidate in the Master of Architecture program at the University of Minnesota's College of Design.

By: Sonja Sudheimer

"Good" Architecture
In Henri Lefebvre's 1974 "The Production of Space" he employs a dialectical approach to evaluating architecture. He asks questions and answers them thoughtfully, addressing nuances as well as broad themes; and through this method, his theory acquires depth and a level of precision. It is through this process of inquiry and answer that Lefebvre lands on two key messages:

The production of space...

Read this article in its entirety on page 59.

Barcelona Pavilion, Mies. Image courtesy of Meredith Hayes.

Sonja Sudheimer is a thesis candidate in the Master of Architecture program at the University of Minnesota's College of Design.