http://www.preservationnation.org/information-center/saving-recent-past/additional-resources/LA_Modern_web.pdf
Hello Everyone:
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Century Plaza Hotel
flickr.com |
This morning I came across an interesting question on my Facebook page. This question was posted by Trudi Sandmeier, the Director of the USC Master of Heritage Conservation program. "For those of us in Southern California, what do you think have been the worst losses among our region's modern resources and have they galvanized a movement in favor of the recent past?" I've been contemplating this question for the better part of the morning, trying to come up with some sort of response. Certainly Los Angeles has many valuable resources from the modern period. Alan Hess defined Modernism as thus, "Modernism is the board term defining a wide range of buildings and city planning aspects reflecting the new conditions of twentieth century life."
(http://www.laconservancy.org/explore-la/curating-city/modern-architecture-la/history-la-modernism) Mr. Hess further states, "Modernism derives its forms and beauty from a fresh use of materials, structures, and functions...includes a wide range of styles, looks, and aesthetics..." More to the topic, why bother saving modern resources? Let's discuss.
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Johnnie's Coffee Shop at night
laconservancy.org |
The city of Los Angeles began life as an out post for Spanish explorers and missionaries and overtime, has emerged as a global metropolis, attracting new residents and visitors by the droves every year. When you mention Los Angeles to tourists, the first thing that comes to mind is Hollywood and the entertainment industry. True there, the rise of the film industry contributed greatly to Los Angeles' and by extension, Southern California, rise as a modern metropolis. Against the backdrop of this infant industry, architects found their way west to pursue their dreams of breaking the strangle hold of academic period revival styles and creating buildings that embodied the Western spirit of innovation. Bold faced architects such as Frank Lloyd Wright and Irving Gill broke with traditional building methods while German emigre architects Rudolph Schindler and Richard Neutra created magnificent single family homes with radical engineering feats.
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Ennis House
charlesnolder.zenfolder.com |
The Ennis House in Los Feliz is an example of a modern resource that would be deeply mourned if it were lost. The house is a one Frank Lloyd Wright's masterpieces. Built in 1924, it is composed of interlocking concrete blocks made with aggregate from the site, in according with the architect's design concept of unifying the building with its environment. In 1994, it suffered serious damage from the Northridge Earthquake and is currently being held together with scaffolding and wishful thinking. You've heard of Fallingwater, the Ennis House is falling down. What would make this loss keenly felt that it is largest of Wright's textile block houses and represent a full manifestation of the architect's attempt to introduce an "indigenous" architecture to Southern California. This house along with the Freeman House, a contemporary of the Ennis House, present references to Meso-American architecture through their decorative elements, massing, and form. Fortunately, the house was recently purchased by Ron Burkel, who intends to restore it. Thank You. Interestingly, Wright's textile block houses coincided with his work on the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo. Another topic for another day.
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Dodge House
en.wikipedia.org |
The loss of the Dodge House in West Hollywood was a keenly felt loss by many preservationists and architecture fans. The Dodge House was built between 1914 and 1916 by Irving Gill and was considered by many architectural historians to be one of Gill's finest works. The house was used by its owner, Walter Dodge, until 1924 when it was sold to T. Morrison McKenna. It was acquired by the Los Angeles Board of Education in 1939 in a debated condemnation action, and never full used again. In 1951, the Board of Education determined that a school was no longer necessary in the West Hollywood area and eventually the house was slated for demolition. Preservation efforts were directed at protecting the house from demolition. A group of local residents and architects formed the "Citizen Committee to the Dodge House." In 1966, the Board sold the Dodge House to Bart Lytton and in 1967, Mr. Lytton announced a $2.4 million development plan. Effort to save the house continued through the late sixties but to no avail, the house was finally demolished on February 9, 1970, appropriately during a torrential rainstorm. The efforts to save the Dodge House is an example of a modern resource galvanizing preservation efforts.
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Pann's Restaurant
yelp.com |
World War II brought a boom to Southern California. As the war came to a close, America's increased prosperity and promise for a brighter future help shape the future of Southern California. The deluge of returning soldiers, the abundance of land, and new suburban planning principles sparked a period of growth fueled by the new aerospace, manufacturing, and home building industries. New forms in commercial architecture reflected a new-found confidence in the future and moved with the times. The jazz-inflected Art Deco was out and
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Capitol Record
fineartamerica.com |
the rock and roll car culture fueled bold forms were in. Pann's Restaurant was an homage to the Atomic Age, while the Capitol Records Building in Hollywood referenced the Apollo Rockets. Would the potential loss of any of these resources serve as a rallying cry for preservationists and architecture aficionados? I would posit that the answer is yes because, they represent a form of vernacular architecture that has so ingrained into the American popular culture that the loss of one of this would represent a diminution of that landscape. So what is being done to draw attention to these resources and hopefully save them from the wrecking ball? Mod Com.
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The Richard and Dion Neutra House
laokay.com |
What is Mod Com? Mod Com
(http://www.modcom.org) is an arm of the Los Angeles Conservancy
(http://www.laconservancy.org) dedicated to saving Los Angeles' treasure trove of post-World War II buildings from destruction. The Los Angeles Conservancy created a map that allows the user to explore the more than three hundred modern gems throughout Southern California. In 2005 the Conservancy launched "Curating the City: Wilshire Boulevard," a board-based approach to exploring Los Angeles. The city is presenting as a living museum that interprets various elements of its cultural history. Each theme of the Curating the City project is dedicated to a particular architectural or historical theme within the built environment of Los Angeles County. Pacific Standard Time Presents celebrates the city's modern architectural heritage through an encyclopedic presentation of modern architecture spread out over nine venues across Los Angeles. This series of exhibitions and related lectures is intended to examine a range of buildings from the most iconic to the network of freeways that have shaped the city.
(http://www.laconservancy.org/explore-la/curating-city/modern-architecture-la/about-curating-city/modern)
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Schindler-Chase House
commons.wikimedia.org |
Why bother saving the modern treasures?Saving our modern treasures is, a way, different from saving an older landmark. From the perspective of the public, the value of the Modern resources has reached its expiration date. Currently, there are a number of Modern resources that are threatened with demolition. For a complete list please go to the Los Angeles Conservancy website and click on the link to Modern. The Conservancy lists thirteen challenges to saving Modern resources. Age is the common theme for these challenges. Buildings are like people. When a building is young and new, it's seen as fresh and exciting. As it ages it's starts to show wear and tear. Like people, it undergoes cosmetic procedures to refresh itself. This sometimes leads to bad paint jobs (think a really bad dye job) or a botched procedure (the breast augmentation gone horribly wrong). Some buildings age gracefully, others not so much. For many individuals, mid-century buildings are still too new, somewhat unloved, and threatened. Hey, take a look at your environment and accept the fact there are somethings built in YOUR LIFETIME that are historic. Get over your bias toward Modernism and learn to love it.
Personally speaking, I like the idea architecture is really getting its due as an art form. While people don't connect with bricks and mortar, they connect with the stories and memories associated with those places. For example, people have memories of going to Pann's Restaurant for meals and the good times associated with that activity. As an art form, architecture has and always been an act of art. It's never been truly appreciated until recently and that's a good thing.
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