Thesis and Dissertations

THESIS AND DISSERTATIONS

2022

Kathleen Powers Conti 
'Tell it Like it Was': Race, Memory, and Historic Preservation in the American South 
Dissertation Co-Supervisors: Chris Long (Architecture) and Diana Berry (History) 
2020-21 Carter Manny Research Citation

2021

Alexander Bala  
Polish Modernism’s Essentialist Claim: The Hansens and Open Form Architecture  
M.A. Thesis Supervisor: Christopher Long

Ernesto Bilbao 
"Aviation, Architecture, Landscape, and Urbanism: The Development of Quito, Ecuador’s Old Mariscal Sucre Airport, 1920-1960" 

Willa Granger 
Constructing Old Age: Race, Ethnicity, Religion and the Architecture of Homes for the Aged 
Dissertation Supervisor: Sarah Lopez 
2020-21 Carter Manny Writing Citation

2020

Anna Christine Nau 
Preservation Professionals: Architects and the Origins of Architectural Preservation in the United States, 1876-1926 
Dissertation Supervisor: Michael Holleran

Jennifer Tate 
"Good Americans in Good American Houses: The Politics of Identity and Modern Housing Design in the New Deal Era" 
 Supervisor: Anthony Alofsin

2018

Victoria Sanchez Holgin, 2018 
Colombia's History of Modern Architecture revisited through the Housing Agency Instituto de Crédito Territorial. 1939-1965. 
Supervisor: Fernando Lara

Bridget Gayle Ground 
Engaging Displays of Architecture and Design History: Approaches to Museum Exhibition Practice 
M.A. Thesis Supervisors: Christopher Long 

Robert Scott Gill, 2018 
"Hidden Truths in Flights of Fancy: Sex, Power, and the Cinematic Staircase, 1932-1955," 
Supervisor: Christopher Long

2017

Williamena Ruth Granger 
Cedar Springs Place: Housing, Citizenship, and City-Making in Centennial Dalla
M.A. Thesis Supervisor: Richard Cleary

Anastasia S. Rees 
Moscow as Montage and the Experience of the Soviet Modern from 1918 to 1938 
Dissertation Supervisors: Richard Schiff, Danilo Udovicki

Xiangnan Xiong 
From Am Karlsbad 24 to the Tugendhat House: Mies van der Rohe’s Quest for a New Form of Living 
Dissertation Supervisor: Christopher Long

2016

Irina Rivero 
Triple Alliance in Reverse 
MA Thesis Supervisor: Fernando Lara

2015

Aurora Wilson McClain 
Meeting in St. Louis: American Encounters with Nascent European Modernisms at the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition 
M.A. Thesis Supervisor: Anthony Alofsin

2014

Samuel Tommy Dodd 
Televising Architecture: Media, Public Engagement, and Design in America 
Dissertation Supervisor: Richard Cleary

Laura McGuire 
Space Within: Frederick Kiesler and the Architecture of an Idea 
Dissertation Supervisor: Christopher Long

Jorge Villota Pena 
The Hyper Americans!: Modern Architecture in Venezuela During the 1950s 
Dissertation Supervisor: Richard Cleary

2013

Bethany Christian Morse  
Richard Neutra, Biorealist  
M.A. Thesis Supervisor: Christopher Long

Brian Poepsel  
Fay Jones and his Residential Clients: Communication Through the Details  
M.A. Thesis Supervisor: Anthony Alofsin

Jennifer Leigh Tate  
The Language of the Dolmabahce Palace: Communicating Change in the Tanzimate-Era Ottoman Empire 
M.A. Thesis Supervisor: Anthony Alofsin

2012

Ashley Blair Chadwick 
Negotiating the Represented City: Los Angeles, the City of Perpetual Becoming 
M.A. Thesis Supervisor: Christopher Long

Yuanjing Du 
A Heritage Tourism Preservation Plan for Mogao Grottoes, PR. China 
M.A. Thesis Supervisors: Michael Holleran, Christopher Long

Tara Dudley 
Ownership, Engagement, and Entrepreneurship: The Gens de Couleur Libres and the Architecture of Antebellum New Orleans, 1820-1850 
Dissertation Supervisors: Richard Cleary, Christopher Long

Elise Louise King 
Welton Becket and Bullock’s Pasadena: Quiet Icons of Mid-Century Design 
M.A. Thesis Supervisor: Christopher Long

Nonaka, Natsumi 
The Illusionistic Pergola in Italian Renaissance Architecture: Painting and Garden Culture in Early Modern Rome, 1500-1620 
M.A. Thesis Supervisors: Miroslava Benes, Rabun Taylor (Classics) 

Priyanka Sen 
The Architectural History of the Peggy Guggenheim Collection of Modern Art 
M.A. Thesis Supervisor: Richard Cleary

2011

Taylor, Christine Lynn 
The Architectural Imperative: A Dual History of Sustainability and Informal Housing Within Architectural Discourse 
M. A. Thesis Advisor: Fernando Lara

2010

Timothy Kent Parker 
The Modern Church in Rome: On the Interpretation of Architectural and Theological Identities, 1950-80 
Dissertation Supervisors: Christopher Long, Danilo Udovicki

Elise Louise Wasser 
Writing About Wright: Edgar Kaufmann Jr.’s Analyses on Frank Lloyd Wright 
M.A. Thesis Supervisor: Richard Cleary

2009

Samuel Tommy Dodd 
Merchandising the Postwar Model House at the Parade of Homes 
M.A. Thesis Supervisor: Richard Cleary

Vladamir Kulic 
Land of the In-Between: Modern Architecture and the State in Socialist Yugoslavia, 1945-65 
Dissertation Supervisor: Danilo Udovicki

Kathryn Alisa Pierce Meyer 
The Architect as Collector: Karl Kamrath’s Collection of Frank Lloyd Wright 
M.A. Thesis Supervisor: Richard Cleary

2008

Laura Margaret McGuire 
The Colors of Home: Nineteenth-Century Theories of Color at Frank Lloyd Wright’s Home and Studio 
M.A. Thesis Supervisor: Richard Cleary

2007

Kristen Noel Brown 
House Designs of Norman Bel Geddes: Four Projects from the Collection of the Harry Ransom Center 
M.A. Thesis Supervisor: Richard Cleary

Monica Michelle Penick 
The Pace Setter Houses: Livable Modernism in Postwar America 
Dissertation Supervisor: Anthony Alofsin

2006

David Myron Bentley 
Saving Place: Preserving Authentic Community Character 
M.A. Thesis Supervisor: Christopher Long

Ely Marie Merheb-Emanuelli 
Preservation of Urban Design: The Story of Paseo de Diego 
M.S. Historic Preservation Supervisor: Christopher Long

2005

Yifeng Zhang 
Toward a Preservation of Isolated Historic Building as a Group: Case Study of XuJiaHui in Shanghai, China 
M.S. Historic Preservation Supervisor: Christopher Long

2003

Kathryn Elizabeth Holliday 
Leopold Eidlitz and the Architecture of Nineteenth-Century America 
Dissertation Supervisor: Anthony Alofsin

2001

William Owen Harrod 
Bruno Paul: The Life and Work of a Pragmatic Modernist 
Dissertation Supervisor: Christopher Long

1998

Lisa Diane Schrenk 
The Role of the 1933-1934 Century of Progress International Exposition in the Development and Promotion of Modern Architecture in the United States 
Dissertation Supervisor: Anthony Alofsin

1997

Debra Kay Schafter 
Archaic Modernism in Viennese Art and Architecture, 1890-1918: Theories and Applications 
Dissertation Supervisor: Anthony Alofsin

1993

Christopher Alan Long 
Josef Frank and the Crisis of Modern Architecture 
Dissertation Supervisor: Anthony Alofsin

  • Instagram Post
    Masters of Science in Historic Preservation student Sonya Sehgal is the first recipient of the inaugural Theodore Prudon Education Fund Grant from Docomomo @dodomomous!
    @utsoa

    Masters of Science in Historic Preservation student Sonya Sehgal is the first recipient of the inaugural Theodore Prudon Education Fund Grant from Docomomo @dodomomous!

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    @utsoa

    On view this fall in the Materials Lab 🌿Associate Professor Danelle Briscoe’s exhibition “Eco Illusions: The Plastic Behind the Green” asks the question: Can we truly call a system ‘green’ if it’s propped up by materials that may outlive the ecosystems they aim to sustain?

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    @utsoa

    Celebrating the accomplishments of our professors, UTSOA’s faculty studio features dive into the dynamic firms and individual practices that shape their expertise inside and outside the university.

    Our second feature is Alterstudio Partner Kevin Alter.

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    @utsoa

    Join us in welcoming the new and visiting faculty joining the School of Architecture community this fall!

    ▪️ Lidia Cano Pecharroman joins us as an Assistant Professor of Community and Regional Planning and the Director of the Extreme Weather Adaptation Lab at @thelbjschool

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    @utsoa

    Led by Senior Lecturer Robert Stepnoski (@robertstepnoski), the 2025 Summer course “Robots for Architecture” explored robotic automation in architectural design and fabrication using KUKA robots.

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    Our faculty are known for their expansive professional practices that extend beyond the university, so we’re kicking off a new series to feature the research and design work of our wonderful professors. <br>
    @utsoa

    Our faculty are known for their expansive professional practices that extend beyond the university, so we’re kicking off a new series to feature the research and design work of our wonderful professors.

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    @utsoa

    A little quiet before the next creative storm. Two months down, two to go—see you in August. 🗓️

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    Even in an increasingly digital profession, hands-on fabrication remains a cornerstone of design education.<br>
    @utsoa

    Even in an increasingly digital profession, hands-on fabrication remains a cornerstone of design education.

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    Summer stillness at UTSOA ☁️
    @utsoa

    Summer stillness at UTSOA ☁️