Curating the Coast

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Summer 2025

Abstract

The Curating the Coast website was created by Seaver students as the final assignment for HIST 204: History of the American People, taught by Dr. Megan Kendrick. The assignment involved a close examination of primary sources in the Malibu Historical Collection of Pepperdine Library' Special Collections. Sources represent a range of historical landmarks from the Los Angeles coastline extending from the Santa Monica Mountains and Malibu and the greater Los Angeles coastal region. Artifacts and student research are presented through a digital humanities-based website built by digital history minor, Cady Moore. The elements of the website include in-depth metadata for each artifact, geolocation of each landmark represented by the artifacts in a map feature, and individual research essays that provide historical context and interpretation of the artifact. Students collaborated to curate individual artifacts into themed exhibits, with themes such as “On the Water,” “Art and Architecture,” Mary Frampton’s “Save Our Coast” movement, and “Leisure and Tourist Spaces.” The name of the project is “Curating the Coast” as an homage to the coastal landscape and the legacy of the material culture, built environment, and land use regimes along L.A’s beaches and coastal communities. However, the name is also broad enough to be applicable to future student research. Follow this website as we continue to curate the coast.

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