Gwendolyn Wright is an

architectural historian An architectural historian is a person who studies and writes about the history of architecture, and is regarded as an authority on it. Professional requirements As many architectural historians are employed at universities and other facilities ...

, author, and co-host of the PBS

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

series '' History Detectives''. She is a professor of

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing buildings ...

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, also holding appointments in both its departments of

history History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

and

art history Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today, ...

. Besides "History Detectives", Dr. Wright's specialties are US

architectural history The history of architecture traces the changes in architecture through various traditions, regions, overarching stylistic trends, and dates. The beginnings of all these traditions is thought to be humans satisfying the very basic need of shelt ...

and

urban history Urban history is a field of history that examines the historical nature of cities and towns, and the process of urbanization. The approach is often multidisciplinary, crossing boundaries into fields like social history, architectural history, urb ...

from after the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...

to the present. She also writes about the exchange across national boundaries of architectural styles, influences, and techniques, particularly examining the

colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

and neo-colonial attributes of both

modernism Modernism is both a philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new forms of art, philosophy, an ...

and

historic preservation Historic preservation (US), built heritage preservation or built heritage conservation (UK), is an endeavor that seeks to preserve, conserve and protect buildings, objects, landscapes or other artifacts of historical significance. It is a philos ...

Biography

Gwendolyn Wright attended

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...

, and in 1969 received a BA in history and art history. She did her graduate work at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant un ...

, and was awarded her M.Arch in 1974 and her

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * '' Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. al ...

in Architecture in 1978. She published her first book in 1980. Wright was hired by Columbia University in 1983, two years later becoming the first female to gain tenure in its prestigious

Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation (GSAPP) is the architecture school of Columbia University, a private research university in New York City. It is regarded as an important and highly prestigious architecture school.

. She succeeded founder

Robert A. M. Stern Robert Arthur Morton Stern, usually credited as Robert A. M. Stern (born May 23, 1939), is a New York City–based architect, educator, and author. He is the founding partner of the architecture firm, Robert A.M. Stern Architects, also known a ...

as director of the Buell Center for the Study of American Architecture, serving in that capacity from 1988 to 1992. In 2002, she was hired by television producers to be part of what would ultimately become the new TV series " History Detectives". Back then the working title for the show was “American Attic”, and the initial concept was to tell stories of history through a focus on houses, hence their interest in adding an experienced architectural historian like Wright. The concept has evolved into solving historical puzzles that use a wide variety of tangible objects to show how historians piece together various kinds of knowledge—and conflicting evidence and diverse perspectives—about what happened, how and why. The show has become one of the most popular and successful programs on PBS. Wright has remained one of the five hosts in front of the camera from its initial broadcast season in 2003 to the present. In the show's publicity, she is held up as the team member most likely to suggest how to proceed when the rest are stymied. She has authored four books, edited two others, and written numerous articles, reviews, and essays. Gwendolyn Wright has been recognized for her achievements on numerous occasions, including a

John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation was founded in 1925 by Olga and Simon Guggenheim in memory of their son, who died on April 26, 1922. The organization awards Guggenheim Fellowships to professionals who have demonstrated exceptional ...

Fellowship, 2004-5, a Fellowship in the Humanities from the

Ford Foundation The Ford Foundation is an American private foundation with the stated goal of advancing human welfare. Created in 1936 by Edsel Ford and his father Henry Ford, it was originally funded by a US$25,000 gift from Edsel Ford. By 1947, after the death ...

, 1979–80; a Nina Sutton Weeks Fellowship from the Stanford Humanities Center, 1982–83; a Fellowship from the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

Institute for the Humanities, 1991; a Getty Fellowship from the

Getty Center for the History of Art and the Humanities The Getty Research Institute (GRI), located at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, California, is "dedicated to furthering knowledge and advancing understanding of the visual arts".

, 1992–93; a Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation Fellowship, 2005-6; and a

Graham Foundation The Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts is a 501(c)3 non-profit that “fosters the development and exchange of diverse and challenging ideas about architecture and its role in the arts, culture, and society. The Graham realize ...

Fellowship, 2006. She was elected a fellow in the

Society of American Historians The Society of American Historians, founded in 1939, encourages and honors literary distinction in the writing of history and biography about American topics. The approximately 300 members include professional historians, independent scholars, jou ...

in 1985, honoring literary quality in historical writing. Wright is married to the historian

Anson Rabinbach Anson Gilbert Rabinbach (born June 2, 1945) is a historian of modern Europe and the Philip and Beulah Rollins Professor of History, Emeritus at Princeton University. He is best known for his writings on labor, Nazi Germany, Austria, and European t ...

. She has a daughter, Sophia Bender Koning, and a stepson, David Bender.

Bibliography

''Moralism and the Model Home: Domestic Architecture and Cultural Conflict in Chicago, 1873-1913''. 1980 (1985 paperback) University of Chicago Press. :*Chicago residential architectural history in the context of competing economic and cultural forces during the pivotal years 1873-1913. ''Building the Dream: A Social History of Housing in America''. 1981 (1983 paperback). New York: Pantheon (MIT Press paperback). (9780262730648 paperback) :*US residential architectural history in the context of other developments since the late 1600s. ''The History of History in American Schools of Architecture, 1865-1975''. (edited with Janet Parks) 1990 (1996 paperback). New York: Princeton Architectural Press. :*Examination of the role of and changes in the teaching of history within US schools of architecture, including the relationship of architectural history to architectural theory and learning. ''The Politics of Design in French Colonial Urbanism''. 1991. University Of Chicago Press. :*Morocco, Indochina, and Madagascar architectural history during the French colonial administration. ''The Formation of National Collections of Art and Archaeology''. 1995. CASVA/National Gallery of Art. :*Examination of the architecture and contents of museums and their role in depicting and shaping national identities and aspirations. ''USA: Modern Architectures in History''. 2008. Reaktion Press/University of Chicago. :*US architectural history survey emphasizing Modernism as a response to changing economic and cultural conditions since 1865.

References

External links

About Gwendolyn Wright
page on PBS "History Detectives" website
PBS "History Detectives" Host/Historian Gwendolyn Wright
YouTube interview by Mark Molaro on ''The Alcove''
Gwendolyn Wright
, Wright's own website {{DEFAULTSORT:Wright, Gwendolyn American television personalities American women television personalities American architectural historians Historians of the United States Columbia University faculty UC Berkeley College of Environmental Design alumni New York University alumni Living people American women historians University of Michigan fellows Columbia Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation faculty Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American women

Biography

Bibliography

See also

References

External links