Deco for a Demagogue: Father Coughlin’s Shrine of the Little Flower
Date: Saturday, January 15, 2022
Time: 3–4pm
Location: The Wolfsonian–FIU @ 1001 Washington Avenue
The Shrine of the Little Flower, a Catholic church built in the Art Deco style outside Detroit, was the center of a radio empire started by Father Charles Coughlin that reached up to 30 million Americans each week in the 1930s. Originally an advocate of President Roosevelt's New Deal and critic of the Ku Klux Klan, Coughlin turned to anti-Semitism and support for fascism by the end of the decade. In a talk that reveals the links between design, politics, and power, Wolfsonian chief librarian Frank Luca and curator Shoshana Resnikoff will trace Coughlin's role in American life and shed light on how religion and rhetoric shaped the Deco design of his church.
Organized with Miami Design Preservation League and presented as part of Art Deco Weekend.
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