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Office Space: The History Behind our Modern Workaday Existence

816 views · Published 18 December 2015 · 59:16 · Indexed 31 October 2026

Channel: Chicago Humanities · 2015 · Education

As any worker bee will tell you, the beige modularity and low-slung fluorescent lights of today's offices are hardly inspiring. But Nikil Saval's literary flair and fascinating research reveal the intrigue lurking in the spaces where we spend our 9 to 5 lives. From the clerks in Herman Melville's "Bartleby, the Scrivener" to the design of Herman Miller desk chairs, Saval's "Cubed" traces the surprising and illuminating history behind our modern workaday existence. Designer Jonathan Olivares will join him for a conversation.

This program is generously underwritten by the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts and is part of the 2015 Chicago Architecture Biennial.

This program was recorded on November 7, 2015 as part of the 26th annual Chicago Humanities Festival, Citizens: http://chf.to/2015Citizens

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