Palm Springs, CA
Modernism Week, the annual festival that highlights midcentury modern architecture, art, interior and landscape design, and vintage culture in the Palm Springs area of Southern California, will run February 13-23. More than 500 events are being offered during the 11-days of the festival, including many free and low-cost programs. While some events are sold out, tickets are still available for many events at modernismweek.com.
Highlighted free events include:
Exhibitions
- Trini Lopez Museum (2/13-17, 2/19-23, FREE) Visit the new Trini Lopez Museum that celebrates the life and legacy of the iconic folk-rock musician and Latino cultural trailblazer, featuring costumes, guitars, awards, gold records, and an exhibit created by musician and architectural preservationist, Gary Gand.
- Breeze Blocks are Back! (2/19, FREE) Modernists are invited to experience a new Breeze Block garden in Palm Desert.
- Modernism Art District Tour (2/21 and 2/22, FREE) You are invited to tour artists’ studios and learn about how midcentury-era artists influenced their artwork. Meet the artists and see behind the scenes in their workspaces.
Special Events
- Poolside Gossip Launch Party and In-Store Book Signing with Trina Turk and Nelda Linsk (2/13, FREE) Begin your Modernism Week experience by celebrating Trina Turk’s 30th anniversary at the launch of her Palm Springs boutique’s “Poolside Gossip” collection inspired by the iconic Slim Aarons photos.
- Modernism Week Star Dedication for Elizabeth Edwards Harris (2/14, FREE) Join Modernism Week for a special Palm Springs Walk of Stars dedication for Elizabeth Edwards Harris at the Palm Springs Art Museum Architecture and Design Center, Edwards Harris Pavilion.
- Modernism Week Vintage Car Show (2/17, FREE) Join fellow car enthusiasts at the Modernism Week Vintage Car Show. Guest curators Jeff Stork and Tom Dolle have created the theme “Bikinis & Bucket Seats” as a tribute to the fun & sun of 1960s California youth culture. More than 50 vehicles from the 1950s, 60s, and 70s will be on display at this free activity on the west side of the Palm Springs Convention Center.
- St. Theresa School Modernism Projects (2/18 and 2/20) View the St. Theresa School students’ scale models and paintings of homes and buildings designed by William F. Cody. Programming was conducted by PS ModCom, with special instruction from his Cody’s daughter Cathy.
- Modernism Yard Sale (2/23, FREE) Shop vintage items from local midcentury collectors. This annual sale has become one of Modernism Week’s most popular FREE events.
Film
· Step Back in Time: Experience the Aluminaire House in 1931 (2/14, FREE) This immersive film experience takes viewers back in time to 1931 to experience the Aluminaire House as seen by the public for the very first time. This architectural marvel, recreated in stunning photorealistic cinematic detail, celebrates its groundbreaking design and historical significance. This immersive experience is presented by Modernism Week in celebration of the 10 years dedicated to promoting and supporting Aluminaire’s arrival and reassembly in Palm Springs.
Party
- Shag’s February Modernism Print Release Party (2/15 and 2/22, FREE) Join artist Shag for two free print release parties at The Shag store, featuring complimentary cocktails, live music and other fun surprises.
Talks
- Stories Untold: Howard Smith–Rediscovering A Lost Black Modernist (2/17, FREE) The Stories Untold series continues with Howard Smith, the only Black artist to gain prominence amid post-war Scandinavian Modernism. His work is almost entirely unknown in the United States, but it will soon be exhibited at Palm Springs Art Museum in May 2025.
- Stories Untold: Preserving Sites of African American Resilience, Activism, Achievement and Architecture (2/17, FREE) Often places where significant African American history happened have been unrecognized and under-celebrated. This program will discuss the most extensive effort in US history by the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund to change that and tell their stories.
- Expanding the Field: The Preservation of Modernist Homes at World Monuments Fund (2/18, FREE) Javier Ors Ausín, Senior Program Manager at World Monuments Fund, highlights WMF conservation projects of emblematic modernist homes around the world and the evolution of heritage conservation.
- Honoring a Local Legacy: Midcentury Modern Inspiration at Cotino, the first Storyliving by Disney community (2/17, FREE) Disney Imagineers and Pixar artists discuss how the midcentury modern architecture legacy of Palm Springs and the animated Disney•Pixar film Incredibles 2 influenced the community’s design.
- Passionate Home Preservation: Inside and Out (2/19, FREE) This fascinating lecture by interior designer Bill Stewart highlights several of his successful design projects with a focus on his recent renovation of the King Gillette Estate (1923) in the Mesa.
- The Eye and the Inn: The O’Donnell House and the Legendary Desert Inn (2/19, FREE) Local historian and author Tracy Conrad will explore the fascinating histories of the Thomas O’Donnell House and the Desert Inn.
- Canyon Country Club: Transforming Palm Springs’ South End (2/19, FREE) Palm Springs Preservation Foundation board member Steve Treinen presents Canyon Country Club’s social and architectural history through vintage and contemporary imagery.
- Saving an Icon: The Restoration of Hotel Lautner (2/19, FREE) Co-owner and designer Tracy Beckmann provides her personal insights into the renovation of the award-winning Hotel Lautner (designed by renowned Modernist architect John Lautner in 1947).
- Expanding Awareness of Modernist Architecture Within the National Trust of England, Wales and N. Ireland (2/17, FREE) The National Trust, renowned for preserving centuries old country houses and estates, is increasingly focused on raising awareness and preservation of modernist architecture in the United Kingdom.
Highlighted low cost ($40 and under) programs include:
Tours
- Modernism Week Featured Home Tour: The West House (2/14-17, and 2/21-23, $40) Tour the dynamic residence recently remodeled by Michelle Boudreau Design previously owned by actor Adam West, best known for his role as Batman. This 1954 property in the cherished Old Las Palmas neighborhood features customized elevated details and revitalized modernist aesthetics with an innovative twist, all while paying tribute to Albert Frey’s signature architectural elements and honoring the iconic legacy of Batman.
- Modernism Week Featured Home Tour: Sackley Chase Sensation (2/14-17, and 2/21-23, $40)This stunning 70s residence was designed by the prolific Palm Springs architect Stan Sackley in 1976 and beautifully decorated by the iconic interior designer Steve Chase. This remarkable home, recently updated by Grace Home Furnishings, features striking Brutalist features, including pristine Italian natural travertine floors and expansive walls of glass that offer breathtaking views of the surrounding mountains and the Indian Canyons golf course.
- 2025 Modernism Week Vintage Trailer Show (2/22 and 2/23, $30) This thoughtfully curated collection of vintage trailers, campers, buses and motor homes is arguably one of the largest and most attended vintage trailer shows in the United States. Trailer owners and custom restoration craftsmen will be on hand Saturday, February 22 and Sunday, February 23 to meet the public and discuss their trailer’s unique history and travels.
Special Events
- Palm Springs Modernism Show (2/15 – 2/17, $30) The 25th Annual Palm Springs Modernism Show will feature 138 premier national and international dealers offering the best of Midcentury and Modern Design. Collectors will be able to purchase from an impressive diversity of collections, including furniture and decorative arts represented by the 20th century and now includes cutting-edge contemporary 21st century designs for the home. Tickets are good for return entry for Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.
- Curated Vintage Event (2/22, $15 and $30)Retailers and private dealers showcase their finest vintage apparel, luxury items, textiles, jewelry, and accessories. It highlights exceptional vintage fashion and accessories to dress vintage fashion lovers. Inspirational retailers and private dealers converge to feature their very best.
Talks
- Keynote Presentation: Dr. Raymond Neutra–Survival Through Design (2/15, $35 general admission, $100 VIP reception)Modernism Week is honored to welcome Dr. Raymond Neutra, President of the Neutra Institute for Survival Through Design, as its 2025 Keynote Speaker. The youngest son of famed architect Richard Neutra, Dr. Neutra is committed to preserving the physical and intellectual legacy of Richard Neutra, along with using the Neutra legacy to help solve modern-day design challenges.
- An Evening with the Daughters of Design: Bertoia, Eames, and Saarinen (2/18, $25) Eero Saarinen, Charles Eames, and Harry Bertoia were design legends that played significant roles in postwar American design. Enter Susan Saarinen, Carla (Eames) Hartman, and Celia Bertoia, three descendants of those design icons who continue their legacy. In this spirited presentation,the three will “compare chairs and childhoods” with an educational and entertaining presentation filled with stories, family photos, and memorabilia.
- Googie In Plain Sight! Armet & Davis’ Sands Hotel in Palm Springs Revitalized (2/20, $15) Architect Lance O’Donnell and Architectural Historian Steven Keylon explore how one of Palm Springs’ oldest continuously operated resorts reinvented itself over the last century to become one of the City’s most storied properties, and its revitalization to come.
- Simple! Fast! Modern! Fun! Taking the Road to Success with Midcentury Self-Improvement Records (2/21, $25) This highly entertaining event invites fans of modern design, midcentury lifestyles, and retro aesthetics to the captivating world of vinyl records that paved a path to today’s well-being podcasts and Instagram influencers.
- Italian Modernism: Carlo Scarpa and the Architecture of Geometry, Water and Light (2/17, $18) Annalisa Capurro, aka @ms.modernism, is an interior designer, architectural historian, and preservationist. In this fascinating talk, she delves into the extraordinary work and legacy of Venetian modernist architect, Carlo Scarpa, renowned for his masterful fusion of modernist principles with artisanal techniques. His career was marked by a masterful fusion of modernist principles with artisanal techniques, resulting in buildings that were both functional and poetically evocative.
- Leedy Legacy: The Sarasota School of Architecture (2/19, $18) Max Strang, FAIA, provides an in-depth exploration of Gene Leedy’s pivotal role in the Sarasota School of Architecture, highlighting his works journey from post-and-beam structures to Brutalism.
- Blurring the Lines: Studio AR&D Architects (2/19, $15) This presentation by Studio AR&D Architects will explore the studio’s design process of crafting modern desert homes that blur the boundaries between indoor and outdoor spaces, creating seamless living environments.
- Capturing California Modernism: Photography and the Rise of an Iconic Architectural Style (2/20, $15) Discover the timeless allure of California Modernism, a design style that seamlessly blends indoor and outdoor living with effortless luxury. ARCHITECT Editor-in-Chief Paul Makovsky will lead a compelling discussion on the origins, evolution and contemporary interpretations of this iconic movement through the art of photography.
- Blurring the Lines: Studio AR&D Architects (2/19, $15) This presentation by Studio AR&D Architects will explore the studio’s design process of crafting modern desert homes that blur the boundaries between indoor and outdoor spaces, creating seamless living environments.
- Curated Landscape: Monuments, Sculpture, and Other Built Delights on the Grounds of Sunnylands (2/18, $15) Join Anne Rowe, Director of Heritage at Sunnylands, as she shares the intriguing provenance of the sculpture and unique “follies” chosen by Walter and Leonore Annenberg for their estate’s landscape. Walter and Leonore Annenberg began entertaining at their desert home Sunnylands in 1966. Major artworks and other unique structures were steadily added to the grounds over the next fifteen years. These lively additions augmented some built gems that estate architect, A. Quincy Jones tucked into the original landscape.
- The Glass House’s Other Half: The Restoration of the Brick House (2/18, $18) Philip Johnson’s 1949 Glass House is iconic, yet its adjacent Brick House, part of the original design, is less known—a counterpoint that compliments and contrasts with the celebrated glass structure.
- Iwan Baan: Rome – Las Vegas: Bread and Circuses (2/19, $18) Photographer Iwan Baan will present a talk on his latest publication “Rome – Las Vegas Bread and Circuses” (2024, Lars Müller Publishers), which offers a visual comparison of two cities often perceived as architectural opposites.
FILMS
- SCHINDLER SPACE ARCHITECT. A New Documentary on Rudolph M. Schindler (2/17, $20) This newly released full-length documentary explores R.M. Schindler’s richly complex work, life, and his legacy as a pioneer of modern architecture. Austrian-born and educated, Schindler changed forever the architectural landscape of Los Angeles and laid the foundation for what now is considered the California lifestyle of indoor-outdoor living. The film is narrated by Meryl Streep and Udo Kier and features comments by renown architects Frank Gehry, Steven Holl, Thom Mayne, and Ray Kappe.
- WORLD PREMIER FILM – THE HARVARD 5: a story of love, architecture, and a design revolution (2/15, $20 for general admission and $100 for reception) This documentary tells the little-known story of five ground-breaking architects and designers-Philip Johnson, John Johansen, Landis Gores, Eliot Noyes, and Marcel Breuer- who ignited a Modern design revolution from the least likely place: colonial New Canaan, Connecticut.
