February 19, 2013

Palm Springs Modernism Weekend


If you are a Southern California local, did you get a chance to visit Palm Springs for Modernism Week? It's been on my to-do list for a couple of years, and last weekend I headed out to the desert to warm up and see some beautiful architecture.  Modernism Week is 10 days of lectures, tours, and exhibits celebrating all things mid-century modern. As it turns out, Palm Springs has the largest concentration of mid-century modern architecture in the United States, and it's all in our backyard!

One of the exterior home tours I went on was in the Vista Las Palmas area, which back in the 40's, was home to many celebrities including Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe, Peter Lawford and Sidney Sheldon. Here are some of the remarkable homes we saw:






These simple homes, against the backdrop of the San Jacinto mountains and the blue sky, are just spectacular.

But my favorite, by far, was the opportunity to see Richard Neutra's Kaufmann House, which was built in 1946, and later restored to its' original condition by Marmol Radziner in 1992.


Here are a few extra images found via Mid-Century Modern Freak on Tumblr.



I think I could get used to that.

Palm Springs Modernism Week will conclude on February 24, so there is still time to head out to the desert and check out some of the events.

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