Contemporary corporate architecture’s impact on communities examined

Soumen Rakennustaiteen Museo (SRM)McDonald’s-Finland Headquarters in HelsinkiHas corporate architecture doomed the city? Over the last century, corporate headquarters — as well as churches, universities and government institutions — have been pillars of the urban environment, embodying the culture, values and aspirations of their societies. Yet today’s corporations — competing in global, open-market economies; distanced and disassociated from the means of production — have increasingly situated themselves on the suburban periphery, replacing civic engagement with simple displays of technological prowess. As a result, “corporations must be seen as potential ‘dissolving agents’ of the cities in which they have chosen to locate,” argues Peter MacKeith, associate director of the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis, where he also serves as associate dean of Architecture.

Annual Liederabend to feature Robert Schumann’s song cycle Dichterlieb Oct. 9

Soprano Kiera Duffy and pianist Sandra Geary will present Washington University’s annual Liederabend at 4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 9. Literally translated as “evening of song,” Liederabend is a German term referring to a recital given by a singer and pianist, particularly of works by 19th-century Austrian or German composers. The Oct. 9 program will feature Robert Schumann’s beloved cycle of sixteen songs titled Dichterliebe, based on poems of Heinrich Heine.

Hip-hop, humor, poetry and politics

Leslie LyonsUniverses in *Slanguage*From hip-hop and blues to boleros and salsa, the cutting-edge poetry collective Universes captures the distinctive sounds and percussive rhythms of their native South Bronx. In October, Universes will make its St. Louis debut with Slanguage, a blistering yet exuberant depiction of modern urban life, at Washington University’s Edison Theatre.

Prominent Mexican writer Carlos Fuentes to speak

Influential Mexican literary and political figure Carlos Fuentes will deliver the Association of Latin American Students Lecture for Washington University’s Assembly Series at 11 a.m. on Oct. 12. in Graham Chapel. His talk, which is free and open to the public, is titled “Celebrating Cervantes and Don Quixote.”

Fiction writer Bonnie Jo Campbell to read for Writing Program Reading Series Oct. 6

Courtesy photoBonnie Jo CampbellFiction writer Bonnie Jo Campbell will read from her work at 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 6, for the Writing Program Reading Series. Campbell is the author Q Road (2002), named a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers book, and the collection Women & Other Animals (1999), which won the prestigious Associated Writing Programs prize for short fiction.
Older Stories