About the McLuhan Institute

The McLuhan Institute (not -Foundation, not -Centre) was founded by Andrew McLuhan in the summer of 2017 for the simple reason that it didn’t exist.

I realized that nothing was in place to keep going after my dad died.

Andrew’s father Eric McLuhan (1942–2018) was the eldest son of Marshall McLuhan, and theirs was a close collaboration. Father and son, teacher and student. They almost shared a brain, so closely complimenting each other’s perception and thinking. Eric worked with Marshall from the mid 1960s on, becoming his closest collaborator. When Marshall died in 1980, it was unexpected. There was nothing in place to keep his work going, except his son. The Centre for Culture and Technology had been closed by the University of Toronto following Marshall’s stroke in 1979. Though it reopened in the early 80s, without him it went in other directions.

I didn’t want to get caught in the same position as my dad, without a plan. I knew he wasn’t going to live forever. So I came up with this idea for a McLuhan Institute. It would have four pillars: research, education, archive, exploration. It would be a place where McLuhan work is not only preserved and valued, but is also actively pursued in its unique tradition.

I just didn’t expect dad to die so soon.

Eric McLuhan died suddenly while on a speaking trip with his son Andrew McLuhan in Bogota Colombia in May 2018.

Since then, Andrew has been studying, learning, exploring, and discovering what The McLuhan Institute is and can be. He has given talks, written by commission and an (almost monthly) Substack The McLuhan Newsletter. He takes on private students and teaches Understanding Media Intensive, a 36-class deep dive into Marshall McLuhan’s guide to technological and cultural change. Constantly diving deeper into the work and seeking ways to bring it into the present where it’s needed most.

Future plans for The McLuhan Institute include establishing it as a non-profit and opening its doors officially for people to come and study and work in its archives in Prince Edward County, Ontario, Canada, and to host related events.