Glissmann
Object America is a research project initiated by the Observational Practices Lab to investigate observational methods—from the scientific to the absurd—in order to reveal unseen histories embedded in everyday objects and to speculate on the future of the concept of “America.” We invited Ellen Lupton, Senior Curator at the Smithsonian Cooper Hewitt Design Museum, to select an object from the museum’s collection that she believed represents “America.” She chose the Model 500 telephone, designed by Henry Dreyfuss first in 1949.
We then identified thirteen researchers from diverse disciplinary backgrounds—ranging from climate science to poetry—who investigated this object and shared their ways of looking through lectures and written reflections. Their responses form a collection of transdisciplinary essays that explore how a single object can become a lens onto cultural identity, technological history, and possible futures.
COLLABORATION WITH SELENA KIMBALL, CO_INITIATOR, CO-EDITOR, DESIGNER