The Mediterranean Revival is an architectural style that caused an absolute sensation when it was first introduced to Florida during the Roaring 20s. For northerners accustomed to the Beaux Art behemoths of New York or Boston, the colorful tilework and shaded courtyards in the “magic city” of Miami and Palm Beach served as a portal to distant and exotic geographies. In this presentation, Emily Neumeier will introduce the architects and developers who popularized this style and uncover overlooked histories of race, class, and colonialism in Florida’s urban development.
Bio: Emily Neumeier is Assistant Professor of Islamic art and architecture in the Department of Art History at Temple University. Her current research on Orientalist architecture in the United States has been supported by a fellowship from the Society of Architectural Historians and the Wolfsonian Institute. Publications include the recent edited volume Hagia Sophia in the Long Nineteenth Century (Edinburgh University Press, 2024) and the book Architectural Revolution on the Ottoman Frontier: Greece and Albania in the Age of Ali Pasha (Penn State University Press, 2025).