Rate My Professor Jonathan Mekinda

Jonathan Mekinda is an Associate Professor of Design History in the School of Design at the University of Illinois at Chicago, part of the Architecture and Design faculty, and serves as Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs in the College of Architecture, Design, and the Arts. He earned an AB in Architectural Studies from Brown University, followed by an MA and PhD in History of Art from the University of Pennsylvania. Mekinda teaches courses on design history and theory, and his research focuses on the history of architecture and design during the middle decades of the twentieth century, particularly in Italy and the United States, examining modern design practices and their socio-cultural implications.

Mekinda has received grants from the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts, the Terra Foundation for American Art, and the Friends of Switzerland Stratton Fellowship. His publications include co-editing Chicagoisms: The City as Catalyst for Architectural Speculation with Alexander Eisenschmidt, published by Park Books in 2013, accompanied by a curated exhibition of the same name at the Art Institute of Chicago in 2014. Additional writings appear in The Journal of Architectural Education, The Journal of Design History, and Design Issues. Currently, he is completing his book Building the “House of Man”: Design and the Modern Home in Milan, 1933–1957. Mekinda contributes to the field through organizing, panel discussions, and presentations at conferences for the Institute of Contemporary Art in Philadelphia, the International Committee for Design History and Design Studies, and the Society of Architectural Historians.