The Dona S. and Dwight M. Kendall Concourse. Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
The covered walkway links the east and west sections of campus, making each building accessible to visitors without having to set foot on Wilshire Boulevard.
Category: architecture
Newport Beach: Crystal Cove Cottages
Originally part of the massive Irvine Ranch, Crystal Cove is a hidden beach along Pacific Coast Highway between the towns of Laguna Beach and Corona del Mar in Southern California. As kids growing up in Orange County in the 1960s, we could ride our horses and dirt bikes along the beaches and in the hills above. The Irvine Ranch cowboys in their Jeeps would look the other way as we raced our motorcycles up and around the steep hillsides with endless views of the ocean, with our promise to stay far away from the cattle grazing nearby.
Funding for the restoration of the remaining 17 cottages has been largely secured. Above are some photos taken last summer of a few of the cottages awaiting restoration. We’re looking forward to visiting once again to survey the progress.
We weren’t the first to enjoy the recreational aspects of the area. The human history of Crystal Cove goes back thousands of years beginning with the ancient native Americans who inhabited its productive hillsides and shores.
Fast-forward to the 1920s and 30s, Crystal Cove became a popular summer spot for families who built simple cabins and elaborate tents on land they leased from the Irvine Company. By 1939, the Irvine Company and county officials officially limited the number of new cottages in Crystal Cove.
Through committed community preservation interest and involvement over many years, the area’s unique history, as wells as the cottages, were saved from demolition and redevelopment into a luxury beach resort, preserving Crystal Cove’s heritage and remaining cottages for the public to enjoy.
By 2011, several dozen cottages in the historic district had been restored and made available for overnight rental to the public at affordable rates, not including additional cottages restored for concession, interpretive and administrative uses.
Modernism: 1948 Gillman residence
The 1948 Herbert Burns-designed Gillman residence in the Little Tuscany neighborhood of Palm Springs was literally brought back from almost certain demolition by Thomboy Properties and their team. What a treat to spend time this week exploring and enjoying this stunning desert home!
Palm Springs: Newly updated kitchen in the 1935 Guthrie House
A view of the newly updated kitchen in Albert Frey’s 1935 Guthrie House, located in the El Mirador neighborhood of Palm Springs.
Palm Springs City Hall by Albert Frey 1952
Palm Springs: Albert Frey’s 1935 Guthrie House
Another desert mid-century modernism masterpiece we photographed this week was also designed by Albert Frey.
Originally built in 1935 in the El Mirador neighborhood of Palm Springs, a newly completed restoration and modernization of Frey’s Guthrie House undid decades of neglect and ill-conceived remodeling.
Transformed and expanded into three-bedrooms and three-bathrooms updated for contemporary desert living, the 3,583-square-foot home retains the clean lines and Albert Frey’s design aesthetics reflected in the original 1,600 square foot home.
This inviting view shows the Guthrie House opened up and reflected in the pool, hinting at the entertaining potential of the home.
Modernism Week 2020
We spent another sunny and warm afternoon in Palm Springs, this time exploring the architectural gems of the desert for Modernism Week 2020.
Our first stop on our extended journey is Palm Springs City Hall, located at 3200 E Tahquitz Canyon Way, just down the street from the Palm Springs International Airport.
Designed by legendary Palm Springs architect Albert Frey, city hall was constructed in 1952.
Just as I was getting ready to press the shutter, the Modernism Week tour bus pulled up full of modernism aficionados for a brief visit. I thought it made for an interesting shot.
Follow us as we explore more iconic architecture of Palm Springs over the next few weeks.
The Henry Samueli School of Engineering
Engineering Hall. The Henry Samueli School of Engineering at UC Irvine.
#hssoe #UCI #anteaters #ucirvine #biomedicalengineering #chemicalengineering #civilengineering #electricalengineering #mechanicalengineering #engineering
Binon’s Gambling Hall
While Las Vegas’ historic extreme exterior lighting has largely been replaced by LEDs, Benny Binion’s neon and tungsten-powered signage still illuminates Binion’s Gambling Hall at 128 Fremont Street.
Memories of Taliesin West
I was saddened to learn that Frank Lloyd Wright’s School of Architecture at Taliesin and Taliesin West will close. Established in 1932, Taliesin has been home to over 1,200 architects who furthered the practice of “Organic Architecture.”
I would make many walks from my home in Ancala (which I built in 1997), up the road to Taliesin West, occasionally bringing my camera along. Attending events and taking tours enhanced my appreciation of how Wright and the school impacted architecture in many ways.
These photos are from my last walk to Taliesin West in April 2018, taken a few weeks before moving back to California.
While I’m not an architect, but rather an avid enthusiast, I have great hopes that Frank Lloyd Wright’s vision for educating new architects will continue. Perhaps Arizona State University is a good place to continue that legacy.
Abetica Studios 
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