<p> This is a graduate thesis catalog exploring the work of 19th wood engraver Elbridge Kingsley. Kingsley's contemporary influences are traced using primary sources and visual analysis. Kingsley's stylistic tendencies, in both his original and interpretive engravings, are linked to other 19th century American artists. A brief discussion of the history of wood engraving and its technique are included as it relates to the evolution of Kingsley's style, as evidenced in his published work and his prints for collectors.</p>

<p> <i>Community Life</i> by Michi Tanaka was one of eight government commissioned murals created by students at Rohwer Relocation Center in 1944 illustrating the Japanese American evacuation and relocation. The final versions of these works no longer exist. The preparatory drafts, however, remain intact and provide valuable information regarding the artists' experiences at Rohwer. Through an iconographic analysis of Tanaka's mural draft and an exploration of themes and principal elements in her life at camp such as religion, fashion and socialization, this thesis suggests that <i>Community Life</i> illustrates a cultural synthesis between two disparate cultures. This synthesis influenced the development of a bicultural identity, specifically among <i> Nisei</i> (or the American-born children of Japanese immigrants) such as Tanaka. The mural can be viewed as an introspective consideration of Tanaka's incarceration in which the cultural conflict of her Japanese heritage and American citizenry seems to have been resolved artistically.</p>

<p> The Lincoln Memorial Monument is one of the most successful monuments in Washington D.C. Abraham Lincoln's achievements in his presidency left imprints on every American's life. His memory lives on through the generations. The monument was originally considered a Union Civil War and Presidential memorial, but has evolved into something more. This thesis will analyze the evolution on this monument. This memorial has adapted to a shifting nature of its meaning to different generations throughout the history of the United States. This nature is attributed to its location, the Civil Rights Movement, the Civil War, and the personal character of Abraham Lincoln. </p><p> A major aspect of success comes from the location and iconography of the site. The statue alone inspires a spiritual connection to the struggles of Lincoln. The memorial was placed on the direct axis of the National Mall. This is considered a location of great honor and is easily accessible to visitors. The site and design also allows a massive amount of people to gather and participate in events on the grounds of the monument. A visit to the Lincoln Memorial is a remarkable journey though American history and the extraordinary memorials and monuments of the National Mall. </p><p> Another crucial aspect to the success of this monument in Washington D.C. is the struggle for civil rights. The Civil Rights Movement was able to use the monument as a stage for protest. The movement could then use the Lincoln Memorial and the character of Lincoln as part of its iconography. This fundamentally changed the meaning of the Lincoln Memorial Monument. This allowed a major shift in the meaning of the movement, allowing the monument to grow within another generation of Americans. </p><p> The personal life and views of Lincoln led to many of his successes and accomplishments throughout his political career. His experiences in life impacted many of his policies and the laws that he stood for in the United States. Lincoln's character proved to be inspirational in a time of need and slavery. His political stances paved the way for sociopolitical changes in the United States. His character is a crucial aspect in understanding the need to honor such a great man. The circumstances of Lincoln's death have also made him into a martyr for abolition. The assassination created a legacy in the history of the United States. </p><p> Events of the Civil War and its time period also played a crucial matter in the Lincoln memorial's success. The American Civil War and the division of the United States of America proved to be an altering time in American history. Many Southern politicians fought for the right to maintain individual states' rights. These rights mainly pertained to slavery. As the conflict over slavery continued, a total of eleven states seceded from the Union to create the Confederate States of America. The Civil War lasted four years with hundreds of thousands of deaths. In the end, the Union triumphed and the United States remained one nation.</p>

<p> During the 1950s <b>Katharine Prentis Murphy</b> (1882-1967) used authentic colonial era furnishings to create a series of complex, multi-layered museum and historic house installations that highlighted the aesthetic qualities of American antiques and placed her at the forefront of the post World War II Colonial Revival movement. Murphy placed objects from the 1750s into highly patterned and brightly colored room settings, which was an unorthodox design strategy for the time but one that incorporated popular trends and tastes of the 1950s. Her post war room settings appealed to consumers who were not ready to give up traditional furniture, or the conventional values and virtues associated with it, but who also wanted modern comfort and up-to-date styling. Murphy's displays revealed her own point of view as a designer and demonstrated how the resilient Colonial Revival movement evolved and expanded in the context of 1950s modernism.</p>

<p> This thesis explores Gregory Ain's planned housing communities spanning the period 1939-1948, connecting their conception to the theoretical legacy of Modernism that began with the <i>Congr&egrave;s Internationaux d'Architecture Moderne</i> (CIAM) in Europe a decade earlier. Expanding on existing scholarship, this thesis attempts to contextualize Ain's One Family Defense House Project (1939), Park Planned Homes (1945-47), and Mar Vista Tract (1946-48) within the social, political, and economic context of the interwar and postwar period. Although the latter two projects are more well-known, I attempt to expand the understanding of their design through new and lesser-known examples by Ain in the area of tract housing and contemporaneous housing examples. These include his manifesto for a project entitled Preliminary Proposal 'A' for a low-cost community housing development in Southgate, California and the U.S. government's Basic Minimum House (1936). The three projects discussed in this thesis expand the context within which one views the typical tract house, but also the avant-garde approach to Modernism during this era and the years that followed.</p>

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2006. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 67-11, Section: A, page: 4334. Adviser: Kimberly Shinew. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 188-198) Available on microfilm from Pro Quest Information and Learning.