A Trip to Kansas City
Art Deco, Cold Air Drainage, CRT, and More
A trip to Kansas City this past weekend inspired me in many ways, even in the nearly 100-degree heat. When at home, I always head for Cedar Bluffs Natural Area in nearby Mahaska County for a long walk as dawn breaks. Saturday morning, I went looking for the sunrise in Kansas City, but there were a bunch of tall buildings in the way. Which was a bit disconcerting at first, but I got used to it.
I’m used to the subtle changes in the atmosphere on my walks at Cedar Bluffs, especially the cooler air in the valleys, the breezes one catches in open spaces, and the warmer temperatures that greet me under the forest canopy.
This graphic illustrates the phenomenon.
Sometimes fog forms in the valley, and the graphic above illustrates this.
Here it is below Cedar Bluffs.
As far as I could tell, there was no cold air drainage in Kansas City Saturday morning. When I went out at about 5:30 a.m., the app on my phone said it was 85 degrees, but it seemed hotter. The “heat island effect in Kansas City is severe, like seventh worst out of a study of 60 cities nationwide.
The above graphic illustrates how an urban heat island works.
So, if an urban heat island can raise city temperatures, say 10 degrees, it was somewhere in the 90s in Kansas City Saturday morning.
Still, I paid particular attention to minor, nearly indiscernible atmospheric movements; I caught a bit of a breeze walking on east/west running streets, with no such luck on north/south running streets.
The most interesting atmospheric phenomenon was when I walked in front of the entrances to the many parking garages; these heat blasts were like mini-Derechos.
Annie, Johanna, and I had a great time, and our main reason for the trip was to see the exhibit American Art Deco: Designing for the People, 1918-1939 at the Nelson-Atkins Museum. It was beautiful and runs through January 8, 2023.
Apparently, giants play badminton on the lawn.
I know little about Art Deco, except that I love it. Its decorative themes are:
Sunbursts and fountains - representing the dawn of a new modern age.
The Skyscraper shape - symbolic of the 20th century.
Symbols of speed, power and flight - the exciting new developments in transport and communications.
Geometric shapes - representing the machine and technology which it was thought would solve all our problems.
The new woman - reveling in her recently won social freedoms.
Breaking the rules - cacophonous jazz, short skirts and hair, shocking dances.
Ancient cultures - for oddly enough, there was a fascination with the civilizations of Egypt and Central America.
I could have spent a week--no, a lifetime at the museum and should have learned more about individual artists and various interpretations of their art, but I didn’t. Here are a few pieces that resonated with me.
I’m unsure of the symbolism of the scythes, but the boat symbolizes power and modern transportation. Scythes are likely a symbol of production. The woman above illustrates common Art Deco themes of combining geometric forms and rounded ones. The woman is likely a representation of the “new woman” - reveling in her recently won social freedoms. Also, it seems to me (oh, I wish I knew more--I would love for readers to comment on all of these images) to have Greek and Roman influences. The farmer is both languid and powerful, and I have seen few such sensualized photos of farmers.
Seeing the above two images was profoundly sad, not only because of our history but because so many Republicans have successfully banned the teaching of civil rights history in many of our classrooms, including in Iowa. The bogeyman this time is Critical Race Theory, an academic endeavor to look at the roots of and continuing effects of systemic racism. It isn’t even taught in schools. However, given recent legislation, any teaching of our civil rights history is, arguably, illegal.
Here is the Register’s reporting on what is banned:
Teaching the ideas that:
The U.S. or state of Iowa is fundamentally or systemically racist or sexist.
An individual, by virtue of race or sex, is inherently racist, sexist or oppressive, either consciously or unconsciously
Anyone should “feel discomfort, guilt, anguish or any other form of psychological distress” because of one's race or sex.”
Did you feel any discomfort when viewing the two images above? Of course, you did, and so would anyone with an ounce of empathy.
The irony is that laws against teaching CRT prove it needs to be taught. It’s a truism that we can learn from history, so we don’t repeat it and can be better. Republican efforts to stop teaching these crucial lessons mean that they aren’t lessons they want our children to learn because they seek to perpetuate them now and into the future--e.g., efforts to restrict voting in minority neighborhoods.
And where is the American Academy, our esteemed educational institutions, its renowned faculty, protesting this outrage?
I assume there are voices of protest from the academy, but all I hear are crickets. Presidents of public institutions are afraid of being considered “political” and having their budgets cut even more than they have in the past generation or two. And Republicans have had the endowments of private institutions in their crosshairs for years. Where Republicans hold the purse strings, a great many public education and elite private educational institutions are in peril.
In Iowa, one of the most visible features of the history of systemic racism is I-235 through Des Moines. Built-in 1958 (not ancient history--within my lifetime), I-235 was designed to go through and destroy a vibrant Black community. Dave Elbert, writing for the Des Moines Business Record in 2020, calls the freeway a “Racial Scar.”
Here is how Dave put it:
Des Moines has a deep scar on its racial psyche from decisions made 60 years ago to route Interstate 235 through the heart of the city’s Black community. Wiped out in the process were the homes of hundreds of African Americans along and near Center Street, where Black supper clubs and service businesses thrived in 1958.
But Elbert reports there was an alternate route that wouldn’t have destroyed a Black Community.
In February 1958, three months before the Iowa Highway Commission approved the Center Street route, Monroe Patzig, a local engineer, suggested an alternative, which he said would be less expensive and involve less “inconvenience.”
Patzig, whose idea was supported by 18 other engineers, suggested running the freeway south of downtown, parallel to the east-west railroad district that already existed. It was similar to a 1920s proposal for a highway south of downtown, and the route was nearly identical to today’s Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway.
Unfortunately, Patzig’s plan was never seriously considered.
And now, for a quick aside, and to make this project even more insidious, I read something years ago that told the story of a prominent white Des Moines developer who was sleeping with a member of the Iowa Highway Commission and her influence on the commission led to the adoption of the Center Street Route that would profit the developer over alternatives. Consequently, a Black community was destroyed. Sorry, but I can’t find the reference.
The story of I-235 and the destruction of a Black community should be taught in Iowa schools, but Iowa’s ambiguous laws likely forbid it. Perhaps some teachers or school district will challenge the law. Don’t get your hopes up that the legislation will be overturned. Governor Kim Reynolds signed the legislation, and just last month, she made her fifth appointment to the Iowa Supreme Court. All seven Iowa Supreme Court members were appointed by Reynolds or her predecessor, Governor Terry Branstad. So, the entire bench was appointed by Republican Governors.
As we left the museum, I spotted the above giant sculpture in the first photo above and went over to get a better angle. In the second image above, Johanna shot me lying on the ground below the sculpture as I tried to get the shot. Look closely at the center of the photo. That’s me. Unfortunately, when I stood up to walk back down the hill, it was steeper than I thought it was. Yes, I know exactly what you are thinking of! Former President Trump’s walk down the ramp at West Point a few years ago!
Remember how he ended up almost running at the bottom of the ramp? Well, that was what happened to me, only while Trump managed the situation, I fell and landed on my face, broke my glasses, and hurt my back. And my ego. I like to say I hit a “pocket of intense gravity,” but I know better.
Much to my surprise, and as you can see above, my phone captured the moment I hit the ground. Too bad it wasn’t in “selfie” mode. I think…
Fortunately, no one, including Annie and Johanna, saw the incident. However, they saw me lying on the ground and watched me get up with grave concern. They dusted me off, Annie tended an abrasion on my cheek, and Johanna wrapped a bandaid around my broken glasses.
“Remember, Dear,” said Annie. “You aren’t 55 anymore….”
Indeed.
After realizing I would be OK, we did some other things I hope to tell you about later, but ultimately they went off to shop, and I decided I would drink a cold beer. Or two. After all, it was 98 degrees.
On my way to air conditioning and a cold beer, I took the above photo of a post-2020 iconic image of the transition from summer to fall during pandemic times. It hurt to bend over to take the picture, but it was worth it.
It just so happens I found the perfect place to wait until Annie and Johanna were back from shopping and ready for dinner. The Yard House. Choosing among the world’s largest selection of beers in the world is a remarkable amount of pressure, so I just asked the woman at the bar to bring me something local and good. She did.
I enjoyed my time so much, and just because I can, I uploaded some sound of the Yard House, in case you want to join me.
After our trip to Kansas City, there is much more to discuss, including the glorious work of art above. Stay tuned.
But before you go, check out Julie Gammack’s “Iowa Writers Collaborative,” and please subscribe to it and the individual authors listed. Julie is doing amazing things and bringing together some great Iowa writers, and I’m honored she invited me to be in their company.
Thanks, for the trip (minus the trip).
Your observation about CRT is so important.