In an interview with Palm Springs Life in 1964, legendary Palm Springs architect William Cody stated, "Coachella Valley really isn't the desert as it used to be. With air conditioning as we have it today in our homes, offices and automobiles, you can live as comfortably on the desert as anywhere else throughout the year. We have a plentiful water supply, clear skies and more daily sunshine than any place else in the country. All this means the departure from architecture of necessity which began with the primitive Indians who first inhabited Southern California. The Spaniards, who so very strongly influenced early development in the (3 comments)
The Palm Springs Preservation Foundation presents Alexander Weekend in Palm Springs on March 25 - 27, 2011. The event is a three day celebration of The Alexander Construction Company and their contribution of building several mid-century modern developments in the city. Many of the residences built by The Alexander Construction Company were designed by Bill Krisel so his innovative plans are also celebrated during the weekend. More than 2,500 modern Alexander homes carry on today in Palm Springs. Event sponsor, Paul Kaplan, principal of Paul Kaplan Modern Real Estate Group, said of the weekend, "I'm proud to be sponsoring (0 comments)
About 30 vehicles lined the front of The Palm Springs Convention Center Monday afternoon for a vintage car show hosted by Concours d'Elegance as a Palm Springs Modernism Week event. A majority of the vehicles on display were from the mid-century modern period and boasted design elements from that era. Aviation and space age inspirations were prevalent among the automobiles chosen for the event. Incorporating a functional minimalist design with whimsical detail was apparently a popular trend for mid-century vehicles. The cars seemed to either have heavily pronounced curvature or extreme straight lines and when lined up along the street (0 comments)
In spite of looming rain and cold, a sold out crowd gathered at Park Imperial South in Palm Springs last Saturday evening for a home tour, poolside cocktail reception and a discussion with architect Barry Berkus, A.I.A. Park Imperial South marks its 50th Anniversary this year and having the condominium project's designer on hand made it a highlight event of this year's Palm Springs Modernism Week. Nine homes in varying stages of rehabilitation and remodel were open for tour to attendees and the modernists were excited to see the renovations of many of the units. Several units had been completely (1 comments)
The exhibit, Steel and Shade: The Architecture of Donald Wexler, continues its run at The Palm Springs Art Museum through May 29, 2011. As an accompaniment to Palm Springs Modernism Week, this exhibit can act as a primer to mid century desert area architecture and emphasizes Wexler's influence on the local design community as a foundation for the Palm Springs Modernist movement. The exhibit includes original presentation drawings, working drawings and photographs. These are augmented by a number of new professional photographs and new models, including a full-scale sectional steel model illustrating the prefabrication system Wexler used in his steel (0 comments)
Today is the opening of Palm Springs Modernism Week which idealizes mid-century modern design, architecture and culture originating in the 1950s and 1960s. The design style is typified by clean, simple lines and this 11 day festival celebrates its elegant informality. Paul Kaplan is a local area real estate agent and principal of Paul Kaplan Modern Palm Springs Real Estate. He specializes in marketing mid-century residences in Palm Springs and has been active in community architectural issues. He is an expert on Palm Springs Modernism as well as a gold sponsor of this year's event. He recently took time to (5 comments)
The Rancho Mirage Library will present a free lecture with Architect William Krisel in conjunction with Palm Springs Modernism Week on Friday, February 18th, 2011, at 4:00pm. Credited with helping to bring modernism to the masses, Krisel worked with The Alexander Construction Company to design many Palm Springs area buildings and residences. His work can be seen in neighborhoods such as Vista Las Palmas, Racquet Club Estates and Twin Palms as well as buildings such as The Ocotillo Lodge. His House of Tomorrow so impressed The Alexanders that they made it their private home. The House of Tomorrow is also (2 comments)
There was a time when an area on South Palm Canyon Drive close to the Ramon Road intersection was referred to as The Financial District. Dominated by large financial institutions, these structures were a monument to desert area commerce and the money that existed in the region. However, most of these banks and lending centers were architecturally significant works of art and today we are lucky that many of them remain untouched. Only a couple of them however are being utilized for their original purposes. Some remain vacant. Some have been converted to office/retail environments and some may actually be (0 comments)