New York City; The 22nd Century 

Editor: This painting is called *New York City; The 22nd Century* by John Conrad Berkey. The dominant color is a steely blue and the buildings are massive, creating an atmosphere that feels both awe-inspiring and slightly ominous. I’m curious about the ways it reflects on the social context of envisioning future urban environments. What do you see in this piece? Curator: Well, seeing a futuristic cityscape always invites consideration of what societal anxieties or aspirations are projected onto that vision. Berkey painted this during a period marked by rapid technological advancement and urban renewal projects, so how does this vision of the 22nd century grapple with, or perhaps critique, the urban planning and architectural trends of his own time? Do you see elements of modernism pushed to their extreme? Editor: I definitely notice the streamlined geometric forms, amplified on a massive scale. It makes me wonder, were viewers at the time impressed by this progress, or apprehensive? Curator: It's both, I suspect. Futuristic depictions often served as promotional material for burgeoning technological industries. The sleekness and order suggest utopian possibilities through technological progress. Consider the car, a prominent feature here. It reinforces narratives of convenience, but at what cost in terms of resource allocation, infrastructure demands, and perhaps social stratification visible in the architecture? What values does Berkey’s composition privilege? Editor: So, by focusing on the potential social impacts of the design itself, it goes beyond a purely aesthetic vision of the future, pointing to real issues… Curator: Exactly! The artwork then functions as a sort of speculative fiction prompting conversations around socio-economic power and control in this modernized future. Editor: That’s given me a whole new lens through which to appreciate it, and made me think about the politics of even imagining a cityscape. Curator: Indeed, these speculative images become crucial sites for negotiating public attitudes and acceptance of such radical change.