Henry Ford in California

Stephanie Sherman
Visual Arts
UC San Diego

Henry Ford in California considers the legacy of Henry Ford and the car on the development of California’s social aesthetics and techno-culture. The research from Henry Ford in California will become part of a prospective thesis on Ford that charts the influences of populist aesthetics through both a written essay and curated exhibition. The research trip will include three components–archival research in San Francisco (SF Public Library, Prelinger Archive, Pacific Film Archive, Buckminister Fuller archives at Stanford), tours of contemporary technology centers in Silicon Valley, and meetings with both Berkeley urbanists working on california transport planning and community development and art presenters to discuss exhibition/presentation venues. Research will contribute to a collection of visual media that will contribute to an essay on Ford in California and curated projects on Ford’s legacy, with potential iterations in LA, San Diego, San Francisco, and beyond.