Special and Digital Collections Unit
The latest addition to Auraria Library Digital Collections is a long-forgotten artifact: Laminations. Produced from the late 1970s to the early 90s, Laminations was the official student publication of the University of Colorado Denver College of Environmental Design. To those of you who weren't around back then, prior to becoming the CU Denver College of Architecture and Planning, design disciplines were held within the College of Environmental Design, which actually used to maintain its own dedicated library prior to being integrated with Auraria Library. Laminations was published semi-regularly on a monthly basis and included articles, essays, editorials, and all manner of journalistic intrigue focusing on architecture and planning in the Denver area. Some notable issues include one dedicated to architect I.M. Pei, whose firm co-designed the 16th Street Mall, and a woeful lament of Denver's disappearing historic structures in the downtown Central Business District. In addition to its cheeky verbiage, Laminations was a fascinating outlet for students who pointed their pens at the built environment in an effort to understand it, preserve it, and manage its evolution.
