Photographing Mid-Century Detroit
This riveting father-son collaboration is at the Library of Michigan in Lansing closes tomorrow.
The Elements of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh is one city made of hundreds of distinct enclaves. Variation is richness, diversity is beauty. - A photo essay by Karen Lillis.
Cleveland in the Kremlin
It should be of some interest—perhaps not only in a sentimental sense—that the lands that birthed so many of the drivers of neoliberalism and contemporary fascism were also the birthplace of the left-wing movements like the founders of the Communist Party of the United States of America.
Pittsburgh’s Thriving Indigenous Legacy
Native culture is not static — it’s a living, evolving part of everyday life for Pittsburgh’s “urban Natives.”
Shaft in Cleveland
Tidyman may have taken a dim view of his hometown (an anonymous former co-worker said, “He talked about Cleveland like it was a birth defect”), but even he could appreciate its dramatic possibilities.
Ebony Magazine at 5619 South State St., Chicago
That the building has endured is, in its own small way, a testament to Ebony’s lasting legacy, Chicago’s rich Black business and literary history, and the continued tenacity of Washington Park’s residents.
The Terrible Towel is Poised to Strike
We love it because it's authentic, not handed out by some bank or corporation -- a giveaway fit for nothing greater than cleaning the car. Cope's Towel is bigger than that. It is a part of our history and Pittsburghers love nothing more than hometown history.
A Bungalow of My Own
Every time I moved felt like facing my entire life all over again.
Wisconsin’s Wooden Skyscrapers
But the biggest and most transformative benefit of mass timber is invisible. Since trees absorb and store CO2 as they grow, they have the potential to sequester carbon at scale — if harvested responsibly. Buildings could go beyond net-zero and achieve negative emissions.
Improvising Milwaukee and Jazz
Milwaukee’s actually representative in many ways of jazz in other cities. “It’s probably no different than any other Midwest city.... you have these smaller midsize, Midwest cities like Columbus, Ohio, and Milwaukee, and Cleveland. They have this great history, but it’s largely unacknowledged by the greater folks that are interested in jazz.”
August Wilson’s “Radio Golf” Still Timely
The story of the Hill District is one of the vibrant Black culture that fueled Wilson’s career. It’s also a story of redevelopment initiatives that harmed the conditions in which that cultural richness could flourish.
From Mexico City to the Steel City
She was motivated to get involved locally and feels her time at Carnegie Mellon in the School of Architecture paved the way. “The city was my campus.”