Imaginary Florida
The construction of a fantasy that was sold, consumed and projected out from Florida.
Turning on the Fantasy Fountain
Places Journal
As water became abstracted from the landscape, so did the imagination. How the Los Angeles Aqueduct made Hollywood.
Hating Bourbon Street
Places Journal
A geographer upbraids the Bourbon Street haters and scrutinizes the politics of authenticity in New Orleans.
Hometown, America
Places Journal
Visting the boyhood homes of Mark Twain and Walt Disney, an architectural historian finds a mix of fact, fantasy, and commercial exploitation.
Havana: Nostalgia Is a Dangerous Business
Places Journal
The recent literature on Havana perpetuates misleading ideas about the the city’s architectural character and urban politics.
Size Matters: Small Towns with Big Things
Places Journal
An expansive look at largeness, from the Burj Khalifa to the world’s biggest ball of twine.
The Essential Indifference of American Suburban Housing
Places Journal
A British architect offers a close reading of American suburbia, where mass production meets the myth of the frontier.