Editor's note: The COVID-19 pandemic and the closure of museums around the world brought a particular problem for JSAH's newly appointed exhibition review editor, Patricio del Real: a sudden absence of evident subject matter. Fortunately, Dr. del Real was up to the challenge. It was his idea to approach architectural curators working in several cities and ask how the pandemic has affected the work they are doing. His introduction and their reports follow. —KE
Shutdowns, quarantine orders, and social distancing guidelines had already been enacted in some parts of the world in early March 2020 as I began to assign reviews of the many architecture and design exhibitions that had recently opened. Once the full force of the COVID-19 pandemic struck New York City and Boston—the two cities where I live—I thought it important to create a record of these unprecedented times. Amid the initial shock and disorientation,...
University of California Press