Archinect - Live Blog - AIA 2013 Spring Conference "Regional Modernism"

Learning from Krisel...

2013-05-20T19:33:00-04:00

One of the biggest highlights of my experience at the conference had to be getting a chance to meet/connect/and learn from William Krisel. To be honest, prior to attending the conference I knew little of Krisel’s work other than the signature butterfly roof. However, I did know that he was one of the keynote’s and that we would be visiting many of his projects throughout the conference.

USC Class of 1998 and USC Class of 1949!

It was to my great surprise and pleasure that Will actually approached me at the opening reception of the conference. Will had read my bio/profile which the Committee on Design and distributed on the 2013 Knowledge Scholars and Will had taken the time to do his homework. He introduced himself as a fellow USC alumnus and did so in Mandarin! Apparently, Bill was born in Shanghai and grew up speaking fluent Mandarin. He was even stationed in China during World War 2 as a translator.

Bill sharing his experiences with Michael Stern

In any case...

A privileged experience...

2013-05-20T18:24:41-04:00

The desert sky was bright with stars, the breeze was cool and refreshing, and the dappled light of the pool received both in turn while swaying gently in the breeze and washed the walls of the house with a soft fluid glow. The windowless perimeter of the minimalist house closed itself off from its desert context and clearly demarcating the threshold of in and out, and we were clearly in. We were gathered at one long dining table in the cleverly designed living/dining/courtyard of the open plan house. With the sliding glass walls of the house tucked away, we were neither inside nor out, sitting comfortably in ambiguity .

It was a private dinner for 14 individuals in the desert home of architect Jim Jennings, including the architect himself. Both the perimeter wall and floating roof with sliding glass walls were carefully positioned to frame the mountains and the sky, and we all gladly obliged as we collectively stared at the desert sky with drinks in hand and silently too...

Day 2 - A whirlwind tour through modernism in the desert...

2013-05-11T22:08:00-04:00

Day 2 of the conference kicked off yesterday and I got to see what the conference is really about. It's actually pretty simple. It's about seeing, experiencing, and appreciating design through special access tours with a group of like- minded design savvy professionals. We got a chance to experience, rather than just see, some of the most important legacies of the entire spectrum of modernism to minimalism. We were given insights into the work by the architects, the owners, and the builders. But most of all we were able to experience this together as a collection of design professionals from a myriad of varied backgrounds and practices, but all with a focused interest on design.

Attack of the Architects!!

What I personally found most striking about the projects we saw, and relevant to my own approach to design, was the level of spatial, formal, and material experimentation that was occurring during the birth of modernism. Architects like Albert Frey, Don Wexler, Richard Ne...

Day 1: First impressions and first connections...

2013-05-10T11:48:00-04:00

Day one of the AIA Committee on Design's 2013 Spring Conference...a few first impressions, observations, and connections...

First of all, my apologies for the lack of posting, but the internet connection in my room last night was spotty. This morning it seems to be much better.

Second, I'm going to explain a bit how I will be doing the live posting. I'm basically going to keep it in the format of a Instagram slideshow of the events. The conference will be focused on visiting and experiencing meaningful design projects here in Palm Springs. As such, I will focus less on the designs themselves, and more on the experiences.

I made the two hour drive from Los Angeles with relative ease, since heading east on the I10 (away from downtown) in the middle of the day is petty much traffic-less (by LA standards).

The conference is being hosted at the Riviera Palm Springs...when I arrive Bruce Bland AIA National Staff member is greeting attendees and checking them in...

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Watch this space!

2013-05-07T13:55:43-04:00

Deepika and I will be live-blogging the AIA Committee on Design's 2013 Spring Conference "Regional Modernism" live from Palm Springs. Watch this space for constant updates and photos, and don't forget to follow us on twitter #CODPS13

https://twitter.com/SynthesisDNA

https://twitter.com/BLENDarchCom

The Conference opens with a reception at 5:30 pm at the Ace Hotel on Thursday, May 9 and will end at 10:00 am on Sunday, May 12.

The Conference hotel is the Riviera Palm Springs Resort & Spa.

The tours will give us the opportunity to explore the distinct modern architecture that developed in this desert setting in the middle 20th century. The tours are in the planning stages and are subject to change. Some of the projects we will visit are:

Menrad Residence by William Krisel
Desert One by Jim Jennings
Steel Houses by Don Wexler
Grace Miller House by Richard Neutra
Abernathy House by William F. Cody
Hotel Lautner by J...