Architectural models, material and digital, are central to building practice. How models work in ways unintended by their makers or their patrons is the subject of this talk. By considering a set of very different historical models – Mussolini’s model of Rome, the model of Hagia Sophia in the video-game, Assassin’s Creed, and an Early Modern model of the Holy Sepulchre in the British Museum – we may more fully appreciate the agency of even the conventional architectural model.

Biography:

Annabel Wharton, William B. Hamilton Professor of Art History, Duke University, and Vincent Scully Visiting Professor at the Yale School of Architecture in Fall, 2014, received her Ph.D. at the Courtauld Institute, London University. Her initial research focused on Byzantine art and culture; later she investigated the effects of modernity on old cities (Building the Cold War: Hilton International Hotels and Modern Architecture and Selling Jerusalem: Relics, Replicas, Theme Parks). Architectural Agents: The Delusional, Abusive, Addictive Lives of Buildings will appear next winter.