Mid-Century Modern

OregonLive.com
The Oregonian’s Bridget Otto highlights Modern Capital as a Resource for Mid-Century Modern Real Estate. Modern Capital is a resource not only for those in D.C. but others around the country looking for information on mid-century modern real estate and design.

Washingtonian: If You Love Midcentury Modern Architecture, You Have to Check Out Reston
Michael Shapiro is quoted in an article on the mid-century modern residential architecture in Reston, Virginia.

Good news for all of you Richard Neutra nuts. The modern master’s studio and residence in Silver Lake in Los Angeles was just named a National Historic Landmark. “The Neutra Studio and Residences (VDL Research House) in Los Angeles, California, is associated with Richard Neutra, a nationally and internationally seminal figure of the twentieth century Modern movement in architecture, ” said the U.S. Department of the Interior’s announcement. “During the 1940s, as Neutra’s work evolved, he also became the well-recognized founder of mid-century ‘California Modern’ architecture. The VDL Research House is the only property where one can see the progression of his style over a period of years and is among the key properties to understanding the national significance of Richard Neutra.”  The current home was rebuilt by Neutra and his architect son, Dion,  in the 1960s after the original house was destroyed by fire. Neutra founded his firm in 1926 while he was still living in his friend, Rudolph Schindler’s, house, which Schindler designed in 1922.
Just to note: D.C.’s one and only Neutra-designed house is the 1968 house (see below) for Ann and Donald Brown. He designed it in mere minutes once he saw the wooded lot overlooking Rock Creek Park. 

 
Here are a few photos of Neutra’s VDL Research House.
The front of the Neutra VDL Research House II. It is located at 2300 Silver Lake Blvd.
Neutra numbers.
The second-floor library/den.
The stairwell and second floor.
Nice windows in the kitchen.
One of the small but well-designed bedrooms.
The 1940 Read More >

Bethesda Magazine: Mad About Midcentury Modern
Bethesda magazine interviews Michael Shapiro about mid-century modern homes in Montgomery County.

Thanks to George Smart of North Carolina Modernist Houses for the heads up on this endangered mid-century modern on Lake Holiday, which is is located near Winchester, Va. The house was designed by Henry Dole Norris and featured in a 1967 edition of Better Homes and Gardens. Norris was a plan book architect whose designs were built all over the United States. The owner is willing to donate the home to anyone who can move it within the next couple of weeks. The owner is also willing to let people disassemble pieces before demolition if the house is not moved.  Owner Joanne Kennedy can be reached at (703)727-2595. (The house is not on a public road and can only be seen by appointment.)

Senior county architectural historian Clare Lise Kelly’s book, Montgomery Modern: Modern Architecture in Montgomery County, Maryland, 1930-1979, is now available in Kindle e-book from Amazon. The book, which chronicles mid-century modern architecture in Montgomery County,  is also available in paperback and hard cover.  This illustrated reference book includes an inventory of key buildings and communities, and biographical sketches of architects and developers.
If you want to learn more in person, you can see Clare on March 30 at St. Paul’s Methodist Church in Kensington. The mid-century church, pictured above, was designed by Duane & Duane and finished in 1968. The reception and illustrated author lecture will begin at 7 pm. The event is sponsored by the Kensington Historical Society and the Kensington Park Friends of the Library. Books will be available for purchase and signing.
The publication of the book is part of the county’s Historic Preservation Office’s award-winning Montgomery Modern initiative to educate the public about the architectural heritage of Montgomery County. For information about additional future talks, go to www.montgomeryplanning.org/montgomerymodern
 
The book’s cover showing the Robert Llewellyn Wright House (1957), Bethesda, by Frank Lloyd Wright. Photo by Carol Highsmith.
 
 

With the blizzard now passed and the big dig to begin, I thought everyone could use some pictures from the land of palm trees and no snow: Los Angeles. During the holidays, I went to LA and explored the mid-century modern and modern homes throughout the city. From the ever-present modest dingbats to the stunning mid-century modern homes in exclusive Trousdale Estates, it is always fascinating to see the breadth of modern residential architecture in Southern California. The dingbat is one of the most common housing types in LA–two- to three-story boxy structures built over parking space. They typically have cool names, numbers and Googie adornments.

This dingbat in West Hollywood is a bit more staid than others.

 
Besides the raised dingbats, there are plenty of other modest mid-century apartment complexes.  Here is one of my favorites with the walls of glass surrounding the stairwell and the cool screen block on the right.

This one on North Sweetzer in West Hollywood has an asymmetrical front gable that extends on the right side to cover the balcony.

Here’s a single-family Bauhaus-style home in West Hollywood.

Moving up into the hills above Hollywood, Trousdale Estates is the exclusive neighborhood in Beverly Hills packed with custom mid-century modern homes by  leading mid-century architects, such as Wallace Neff, Paul R. Williams and A. Quincy Jones. Always a haven for the stars, today many of Hollywood’s elite live there and have done restorations or major modern renovations. A numbers of houses have also been lost.

Here are some Venice Beach moderns–and Read More >

Washingtonian: Before and After: This Midcentury Modern Masterpiece Underwent a Shocking Transformation
Washingtonian looks at the before and after of a mid-century modern Charles Goodman renovation project Michael Shapiro did with Michael Cook, AIA, of Cook Architecture.

If you don’t follow architectural photographer Darren Bradley, you should. His photos of mid-century modern and modern architecture are just stunning. As someone who grew up in New Jersey and still goes up to the Jersey shore every summer, I had to link to Darren’s amazing photos and monumental post about the mid-century architecture in Wildwood, N.J. (I took the shot above of the Panoramic years ago.)
Less than 200 miles from Washington, the Wildwoods (Wildwood, North Wildwood, Wildwood Crest) at the Jersey shore have the country’s largest concentration of mid-century commercial architecture from the 1950s and ’60s. The architecture of the motels, diners, restaurants and vintage neon signs reflect the era’s fascination with the automobile, air and space travel and all things Tiki/Polynesian. The architectural style in Wildwood was dubbed Googie. Many of the Doo Wop motels in Wildwood were built by Will and Lou Morey.
With more than 100 Doo Wop buildings having been destroyed amid the boom in real estate, the National Trust for Historic preservation named the Doo Wop motels to its “Most Endangered” list in 2006.
If you plan to go this summer, check out the Doo Wop Preservation League for great information and a map to the area. Also check out this site and this one.

You will not experience any jet lag as you view some European modernism right here in Washington. The annual tour of European embassies is tomorrow (May 9) with the “Shortcut to Europe: European Union Embassies’ Open House Day.” Mid-century modern and modern embassies to focus on are the embassies of Denmark (above) and Finland, Sweden, the Netherlands and Germany. Enjoy the trip.

With the second of the last seven “Mad Men” episodes airing now, I wanted to make sure everyone saw this interesting piece by Andrew Romano,  the West Coast Correspondent for Yahoo News who lives with his wife in a 1946 Alvin Lustig-designed mid-century modern home in Los Angeles. He says the show’s true legacy will focus on the promotion and celebration of mid-century modern furniture and design. (You should follow him on Instagram here.)
“‘Mad Men’s’ influence on design preferences may well outlast its influence on menswear and cocktail menus. Sure, hard-core design types have already moved on — to 1970s decadence or 1980s Memphis,” Romano writes. “But normal human beings still prefer the Design Within Reach look, and this doesn’t seem to be changing. Enter the hashtag #modern on Instagram, and 2.45 million photos pop up. With more than 325,000 subscribers, Dwell, a monthly love letter to modernist design, is one of the most popular shelter magazines in the country.
“It’s a short leap from retro to retrograde, and surrounding ourselves with artifacts from an earlier age could easily seem weird, or suffocating, or just plain pretentious. I don’t want to ignore new design just because it’s new, and I don’t want my living room to look like a set. But true modernism protects against that. At its best, it doesn’t get old. That’s because it isn’t a historical style — a fad, a trend — like French provincial or Mission revival; it isn’t a predetermined look, Read More >

Finnish Embassy is the first LEED-certified embassy in Washington.
Happy birthday to the the Finnish Embassy, which turned 20 this month. Located on Massachusetts Avenue across from the Naval Observatory, it is the first LEED-certified embassy in Washington. The embassy was designed by Mikko Heikkinen and Markku Komonen and opened in 1994. The open, granite, steel and glass structure backs up to Normanstone Park and reflects the Finns commitment to openness, the arts and the environment.
“The architects chose to marry function with form and created a unique building which reflects some of the values that Finns hold most dear,” the embassy says in its history of the building. “The Finnish taste for modernity resulted in the building’s thoroughly contemporary design. Finland’s commitment to transparency is reflected in the embassy’s wide-open spaces and extensive glass surfaces. By blending harmoniously with the vines and trees of the neighboring park, the embassy reflects Finland’s deep respect for nature.”
Here are a few shots of the embassy.
Finland Hall is a multi-purpose cultural facility.
The soaring space of the hall.
A view from inside. The embassy backs up to parkland.
The glass-enclosed cantilevered balcony on the back of the building.
The balcony is surrounded by lush greenery.
Alvar Aalto stools out on the balcony.

Featured in Progressive Architecture in 1958, the Deigert & Yerkes designed Primary Day School in Bethesda opened in 1955. The stark white, sprawling hexagonal design with touches of–how appropriate–primary colors is hard to miss if you are driving on south on River Road from the Beltway.

“The school flourished, and in the 1950s it began planning for a more permanent home,” the school’s web site says. “A parent donated land for a school building, a local foundation awarded a grant, other parents helped guarantee a mortgage, and eventually construction began on a new school. In the fall of 1955, Primary Day welcomed the first students to its new campus on River Road in Bethesda, Maryland. It remains the school’s home today.”

David Norton Yerkes and Robert C. Deigert were partners their leading modernist firm from the mid-1940s to mid-1960s. They also designed the National Arboretum Administration Building and the contemporary neighborhoods of Manor Woods, Wessynton and Truro. They also designed this round elementary school in Wheaton.
 

Hope everyone had a good Easter and Passover. I wanted to remind you that the May 3 Hollin Hills House and Garden Tour is fast approaching. Make sure you buy your tickets now if you have not done so already. Beyond the main event of touring 10 homes and gardens, tour organizers will host a pre-tour lecture and a new  “Ask the Expert” opportunity. During the tour, participants will be able to ask a  panel of designers and architects questions on the neighborhood and designs of architect Charles Goodman. The experts’  table will be stationed outside of 7420 Hopa Court.

The lecture, “Early Goodman Architecture and Influences through the Design and Development of Hollin Hills,” will run from 11 am to noon in the Hollin Meadows Elementary School cafeteria. Patrick W. Collins, Chief Architect of the Department of State, Bureau of Overseas Building Operations, and  John A. Burns, Chief Appeals Officer for Cultural Resources in the National Park Service, will discuss the influences on Goodman’s groundbreaking work in Hollin Hills. Collins grew up in the neighorhood and Burns has been a long-time resident.

You will not want to miss this chance to learn more about Hollin Hills.

Danish mid-century design is hot. You can get a taste of it right here in Washington by touring the Danish Embassy on May 10 as part of the EU’s open house day.
The 1960 Danish Embassy is the first modern embassy in Washington. It was designed in 1947 by Danish architect Vilhelm Lauritzen and opened in 1960.
Lauritzen met with Walter Gropius, who, along with students, worked with Lauritzen on the project, which connected the ambassador’s residence to the embassy by a glass corridor. Henrik Kaufmann, the Danish ambassador after World War II, wanted a modern building rather than one of the existing mansions to serve as the office space and ambasador’s residence and to reflect the Danish ethos of modesty and equality. “If the different sections are gathered in one new and modern decorated building the work will be more efficient, several expenses will be reduced and some will even vanish completely,” Kaufmann said. ” The love of work will increase and the number of days lost through illness will go down.”
Leading Danish designer Finn Juhl was in charge of furnishing the interior, using such iconic pieces as Arne Jacobsen’s “Swan” and “Egg” chairs, the lighting of Poul Henningsen and some of his own furniture designs.
A glass bridge connects the ambassador’s residence to the right with the offices on the left.
Marble-floored foyer of the ambassador’s residence. The interior and exterior marble is from Greenland.
A view from inside the foyer.
Very rare Poul Henningsen lighting.
Designs by Arne Jacobsen, including this Egg Chair, and other Danish designers can be seen Read More >

It’s spring–at least that is what the calendar says–so it is time to get out of the house, explore and get ready for summer. I thought I would post some mid-century homes not too far from DC that could be nice weekend retreats — or full time residences if you want to feel like you are on vacation all year. This looks to be a 1980 Deck House in Arnold, Md. but the original design is more mid-century modern. It is listed for $479K. This 1976 A-frame sits on more than an acre in New Oxford, Pa. and is listed at $134K. I like this 1966 mid-century modern listed for $1.060 million near the water in Severna Park, Md. Here’s a 1965 beach house right on the Severn River. It is listed at $899K. And how about this 1978 passive solar and earth shelter home on more than 12 acres in King George, Va.? Listed for $359K.
 

A Feb. 25 Montgomery County Council public hearing on the early 1960s Wheaton Youth Center may be the last time for supporters to make a pitch to save the building from demolition. Montgomery County would like to demolish the building and construct a new library/recreation center facility on an adjacent parcel. Historic designation is supported by the Historic Preservation Commission and the Montgomery County Planning Board. However, the County Council has the final say on the building’s future.
While some are concerned that preservation of the historic building will prevent the planned new library and recreation center from being constructed, the Planning Board has found that it is possible for preservation and redevelopment to occur at the same time. The preservation community believes that a new use can be found for the Wheaton Youth Center, and the new library can be constructed on the site without any impact to the planned program for the new facility.
The award-winning Japanese-inspired design was done by Keyes, Lethbridge and Condon. The center is said to have served as a premier spot for concerts back in the day, including Alice Cooper, Bob Seger and Rod Stewart. Some even say that Led Zeppelin played a show there in 1969.
The Feb. 25 hearing will take place at 7:30 p.m. at 100 Maryland Ave. in Rockville. Written comments/testimony may be emailed to Council President Craig Rice at county.council@montgomerycountymd.gov and County Executive Ike Leggett at ocemail@montgomerycountymd.gov or by mail to the Council’s Office of Legislative Information Services, Read More >

Want to learn more about how and why Charles and Ray Eames had such an important impact on modern design? The design duo will be highlighted as part of the museum’s  upcoming Portraits in Design lecture on Saturday, Feb. 15, by Patricia Kirkham, professor at the Bard Graduate Center. Kirkham will examine the couple’s enduring legacy and how they “propelled modern design into the mainstream through their furniture, textiles, and architecture” and how “their Case Study House #8 stands today as an emblem of the southern California lifestyle, blurring inside and outside through a fresh, dynamic architectural composition.” You can buy tickets here for the 11 a.m. program.

While Washington’s Metro has its share of problems as anyone who has ridden it knows, its stunning yet simple brutalist design by Harry Weese still stands the test of time and is a true architectural symbol here in the nation’s capital. The mid-century modern design has now garnered the 2014 American Institute of America’s Twenty-five Year Award, which recognizes architectural design of enduring significance.  “The Twenty-five Year Award is conferred on a building project that has stood the test of time by embodying architectural excellence for 25 to 35 years,” according to the AIA. “Projects must demonstrate excellence in function, in the distinguished execution of its original program, and in the creative aspects of its statement by today’s standards.”
See what the jury had to say:
“The striking design of the prototypical Washington Metro station revolutionized public perceptions of mass transit in the mid-to-late 20th century. The station designs have held up remarkably well despite the phenomenal population growth of the Washington region and accelerating pressures on the system.
“The stations are airy and spacious, avoiding the claustrophobic qualities of so many older subway facilities in other cities. They are quintessentially modern while maintaining a certain grandeur befitting the nation’s capital. The original stations are now–and have always been–largely free of graffiti and litter, thanks in part to thoughtful planning on the part of the original architects–the designs actively discourage the sort of degradations that plague many other mass transit systems.”
The award will be presented this June at the Read More >

River Road Unitarian Church by Francis Donald Lethbridge.
I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas. I wanted to take this opportunity to wish everyone a healthy and happy 2014. I also wanted to thank everyone for reading the site during the past seven years and for continuing to support my wonderful sponsors. During this time of year, I thought a collection of images of the varied mid-century modern church design seen throughout the country would be appropriate. Here’s just a few of the dozens and dozens of churches I have snapped during the past seven years. Enjoy and Happy New Year. Just click on each photo to view in a larger format.
1. Church near Joshua Tree, CA
2. St. Paul’s in Kensington, MD
3. Waikiki Baptist in Honolulu
4.-5. St. Mark in Honolulu
6. St. Mary’s in Rockville
7. Church near Alexandria
8. Fort Washington Baptist
9. First Christian in Columbus,  IN (By Eliel Saarinen)
10. North Christian Church in Columbus, IN (By Eero Saarinen)
11. Episcopal Church Center, University of Miami campus
12. St. Mary’s in Rockville
13. Church in Los Angeles
14. Cedar Lane Unitarian in Bethesda (By Pietro Belluschi with Keyes, Lethbridge and Condon)
15. Belle View Baptist Church in Alexandria
16. Church in Palm Springs

With the snow and ice that we had here the past couple of days, I thought some images from Honolulu would help take your mind off the dreary weather. Honolulu is one of the best cities in the United States to find such a concentration of mid-century modern architecture. “In the middle of the 20th century, Honolulu boomed,” architectural writer Scott Cheever wrote in Honolulu magazine piece in 2006. “New buildings sprang up like mad, and the architects of the mid-century designed them to excite people with endless possibilities. Definitely modern, these buildings seemed to float in the concrete dreams of a new era.”
Hawaii’s brand of modern architecture is exciting and exotic, taking the ideas of modernism and putting a tropical spin on the designs so they fit with the beautiful natural surroundings. Here are some of my favorite shots from my recent trip in August.
Here’s the portico of the 1964 Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall by Merrill, Simms, Roehrig. Man made and natural architecture (the palms) together.

 Love the appropriate design on these apartments near Diamond Head.

The banks are beautiful in Honolulu. I like how the columns on the American Savings bank evoke the shape of palm trees.

The 1967 Atlas Insurance Building on King Street was designed by Ernest Hara. I love the concrete planters.

The 1960 King Center (1960) on South King Street was designed by Takashi Anbe. It features a  free standing expressionist portico and metal screened façade.

Below is the former Hawaii Life Insurance building (1951) by Vladamir Ossipoff. Unfortunately, the original rainbow Read More >

Finally. A taste of mid-century modern on Kensington’s Antique Row. I am excited to report that Doug Meyers of Modern Mobler (a Modern Capital sponsor) has opened up a second location at 3730 Howard Ave.  Named Mobler at Kensington, the shop will feature mid-century modern and Danish modern furniture, accessories and art among the more traditional shop offerings along the strip.  Doug’s new shop is in a new space that also includes Sage Style, which specializes in vintage clothing, jewelry and accessories from the 1930s to ’80s. Store hours are Monday through Saturday 10:30 am to 5:30 pm and Sunday from noon to 5:00 pm.

The National Building Museum’s Architecture 101 series will explore “Miesien” architecture on July 20. Kevin Herrington, professor of art & architectural history at the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT), will examine the architecture of, or influenced by, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe which is characterized by large expanses of plate glass, visible steel framing and minimal structural decoration. The discussion runs from 11 am to 12:30 pm. You can sign up here.
Mies’ Crown Hall at ITT.

The Hal Esten-designed Halex House at 814 Thayer Ave. in Silver Spring, which served as the headquarters of the National Association of the Deaf (NAD) for 35 years, is slated to become a four-story apartment building.

The NAD sold the building for $4 million in 2006. The Planning Board approved plans for the apartment building in 2008. The plans were revised last year after the property owner changed hands and partnered with Montgomery County’s Department of Housing and Community Affairs. The new owner is seeking  to develop the property as an affordable housing tax credit project. The original design for the proposed building looks very cool and modern; the new proposal not as much.

Esten, who worked for Charles Goodman before launching his own successful firm, designed many award-winning homes throughout the DC area. He not only designed the building but had an office there as well.

Here is a vintage shot from one of Esten’s marketing books that I received from the family when I sold Hal’s own house in Hammond Wood in Maryland.

I hope everyone had a good Easter and Passover. While inventory is still very tight, I have seen a bit of an uptick in mid-century modern and other contemporary homes coming onto the market during the past week or so. We’ll see what happens as spring kicks into high gear. The theme for today’s post is wood-beamed ceilings, a common design element seen in mid-century modern homes. Check out the extensive wood and wood-beamed ceilings in this mid-century in Lake Barcroft listed for $699K. The soaring wood-beamed ceilings in this house in Cabin John listed for $1.79 million have been painted. If you want your wood-beamed ceilings with more acreage, take a look at this vintage 1958 home on 23 in Boyds. It is listed for $719K.

Peerless Rockville is kicking off a series of events this Saturday exploring various communities in Rockville, including the mid-century modern neighborhood of New Mark Commons, whose entrance is marked by the totem pole pictured. The wooded community, a Planned Urban Development, was developed by Edmund J. Bennett and designed by the  modern architectural firm of Keyes, Lethbridge and Condon. The series will also explore Twinbrook, Woodley Gardens, Carl M Freeman’s Americana Centre and King Farm.
“Free and open to the public, the series [titled Modern Living for a Modern City] will highlight five neighborhood communities from the early postwar housing boom to mid-century planned development to the ‘new town’  movement popular at the end of the century,” the local preservation group says. “The series will culminate in an evening lecture and panel discussion at Rockville City Hall, offering guest lecturers and residents an opportunity to discuss the factors that influenced modern development, the significant elements of each time period and the special features of each community that have contributed to its success and left lasting imprints.”

Washington Post: Research, references are keys to finding a good real estate agent
Michael Shapiro is highlighted for his specialization in mid-century modern real estate.

Planners are working on a new sector plan for Glenmont that looks at past recommendations and reflects the community’s vision for a transit-oriented, revitalized community. The Planning Board will hold a public hearing on the draft plan this Thursday (Feb. 14.) here in Silver Spring.
Glenmont Forest (the former Americana Glenmont) was built by Carl M. Freeman, who helped introduce modern residential architecture in DC. Photos courtesy of Clare Lise Kelly.
As part of this review, two important mid-century modern resources will be subject to the hearing this week.  One is Carl M. Freeman’s 1961 Americana Glenmont modernist garden apartment complex (now called Glenmont Forest). Freeman was a leading innovator in modern housing, bringing “California contemporary”-style to Washington.
The Georgia Avenue Baptist Church was designed in the 1950s by Theodore R. Bennett. An early 1960s education wing was designed by Vosbeck-Ward Associates.
The other is the 1956 Georgia Avenue Baptist Church, which uses TECFAB panels that were developed by Charles Goodman, and manufactured in a Goodman-designed plant in Beltsville. The church was designed by Theodore R. Bennett. An early 1960s education wing was designed by Vosbeck-Ward Associates.
Here is an excellent resource for more information on Americana Glenmont and the church.
Clare Lise Kelly, research and designation coordinator for the Montgomery County Planning Department’s Historic Preservation Section (HPC), says the HPC’s staff believe the apartment complex and church are highly significant resources, merit historic designations and should be protected amid the proposed development of the area. She adds Read More >

Formica, the staple of mid-century modern kitchens and bathroom counterops is turning 100 and getting some notice. To celebrate its 100 anniversary, Formica has launched a new retro-inspired line. Retro Renovation has all the news and pictures here. The radio program Marketplace gave Formica  a shout out for being an affordable and green product for your mid-century restoration project. I know I always love seeing the vintage patterns when I am out exploring the mid-century modern houses in the area.
Vintage boomerang Formica for bathroom (top) and kitchen.
 
 
 

Daniel Donnelly loves clay. After shaping it as a kid and majoring in the medium in college, he is now launching a new line of Decorative Ceramic Lighting. The shapes of the lamps are inspired by mid-century modern lines such as the  classic shapes of La Gardo Tackett.  “While my oldest son attended the Corcoran, I  rediscovered my love of clay and created a clay studio in the back of of a 1979 Volkswagen Van,” Daniels says.

Daniel was creating so many ceramic pots that he began to make them smaller while keeping the proportions the same. “I accidentally cut the bottoms out of several pots while doing the final shaping and decided to start stacking them one atop of the other,” he says. “Next thing, I’m making plans to create table lamps.” Daniel will launch his new creations at an opening day party this Saturday (Dec. 15) from 12-6 p.m. at the Daniel Donnelly showroom in Alexandria. Light refreshments will be served.
Dozens of the lamps will be on display, including wheel-thrown vessels that are stacked totem pole style–“Cones and Spheres”–as well as hand-formed cubes, balls and “chunks,”along with groups of his ceramic miniatures and scaled furniture models. All the pieces are made and fired entirely by Daniel at his home studio. Make sure to stop by the showroom this Saturday for these custom, functional pieces of art.

I drove through a nice pocket of mid-century modern homes in Alexandria the other day on my way to see Charles Goodman’s Severeid House. Turning from North Pickett onto North Pegram, you’ll find a number of mid-century homes on large lots. This 10,000 square foot home from 1967 is on an acre and has a center atrium. The mostly vintage home has 8 bedrooms and 6 full bathrooms and 2 half baths. It is for rent for $9,500 a month.

Here are few shots of some of the other homes that dot the street. These are not on the market.

These homes were built by Edmund Bennett and designed by Keyes, Lethbridge and Condon, the team responsible for Carderock Springs and Potomac Overlook in Bethesda and New Mark Commons in Rockville. This area in Alexandria is called Potomac Overlook.

Further down Pegram, a steep driveway marks Goodman’s Sevareid House, which sits on 1.5 acres on a hilltop overlooking Seminary Valley.

Huffington Post: Mid-Century Modern Homes For Sale In The D.C. Area
Michael Shapiro highlights mid-century modern homes for sale in the area and discusses the allure of mid-century modern architecture.

Only a few more days until ‘Mad Men’ returns to the air. You can now vote for your favorite finalist in the Washington Post ‘s second ‘Mad Men’ Look contest. The winner will be revealed Monday, March 26, the day after the two-hour season premiere of the show. Want to learn more about mid-century style?  Two of the Post’s judges for the contest will host a live discussion at noon tomorrow (March 22) about interior design and the ‘Mad Men’ Look. Vern Yip, a columnist for The Washington Post Real Estate section and an HGTV star, will join an hour-long chat taking your questions with Post interior design writer Jura Koncius.

The last day to enter  the Washington Post ‘s second ‘Mad Men’ Look contest is Monday, March 12, so make sure to submit photos of your D.C.-area mid-century modern digs. Judges will pick the finalists and then readers get to choose the winner, who will have their abode featured online and in the paper. (Here is the article from last time; my wife and I came in second place. Above is a shot from our living room.) Good luck to all those who enter. And thankfully, only two weeks left until the show returns to the airwaves with a two-hour premier.

Do you want to have your breath taken away and eat dinner at one of the most iconic mid-century modern houses in the country? For $5,500 you and three friends can do just that at the 1960 Stahl House (Case Study House #22) by Pierre Koenig. “You and three friends will enjoy drinks, hors d’oeuvres, a gourmet sit-down dinner, live music, a breathtaking view of LA, and the experience of a lifetime in the Stahl House,” the invite says. “Your hosts for the evening will include Eric Bricker, director of VISUAL ACOUSTICS: THE MODERNISM OF JULIUS SHULMAN, a member of the Stahl family, and a notable guest speaker (think architect, actor, musician, artist….). What better setting for engaging conversation, good friends, food, drink and a memory to last?” Enjoy if you decide to do this. If you need a fourth, I’m available.
 
 

Washington Post Real Estate Blog: Washington’s mid-century modern neighborhoods
Writer Amanda Abrams interviews Michael Shapiro about the area’s mcm neighborhoods.

The current issue of Washingtonian has a  fascinating piece on the construction and politics behind Eero Saarinen’s groundbreaking Dulles airport terminal that opened 50 years ago this month. Sudip Bose explores the architectural wonder that ushered in the Jet Age in Washington. Despite its beauty, many people wondered: Would this soaring building really take off? Would anyone actually use it? An excerpt from Bose’s piece below:
“‘At long last,’ wrote Washington Post architecture critic Wolf Von Eckardt, ‘Washington has a truly outstanding modern building by a truly outstanding modern architect.’ In the estimation of some critics, the opening of Dulles was the biggest thing to happen to Washington architecture since Charles Bulfinch reconstructed the US Capitol after the British set it ablaze in the early 1800s.”
“And yet it wasn’t clear whether anybody would actually abandon National or Baltimore’s Friendship Airport—which could also accommodate jets—in favor of the new facility. As Post columnist Drew Pearson put it, ‘Will [Dulles] remain empty, its ticket counters barren of business, its skycaps idle, its escalators with no more than a trickle of suitcases? . . . Some people are wondering whether Dulles Airport, with all its beauty and all its perfect aeronautical techniques, may become another white elephant.’”
It took many years, but Dulles has now come into its own.
“Sure enough, Dulles endured some lean years,” Bose writes. “Passenger traffic rose from 50,000 at the end of 1962 to just 2.5 million in 1975—this at a time when 11.7 million travelers were passing through National. Even in the mid-1980s, traffic Read More >

The stock market got hit again today, but what about the value of your vintage mid-century modern furniture collection? Check out this CNBC piece examining the booming market for mid-century modern designs. “[I]n the late 1990s, the Internet boom put serious money in the pockets of 20-something programmers and Baby Boomer entrepreneurs. Neither group was interested in filling their Silicon Valley mansions with museum pieces; these inventors of the future wanted a look that that leaned forward,” the article says. “They discovered the sleek, industrial-chic work of the Mid-century masters — the California modernist Charles Eames and his wife Ray; the Italian-born, Michigan-educated designer Harry Bertoia; and European scions of the Bauhaus movement.” If you are in the market for the work of these and other mid-century designers, please visit my sponsors: ARCHER, Home Anthology, Modern Mobler and Daniel Donnelly, where the annual Herman Miller runs through Dec. 12.
 

Edward Durell Stone (think Kennedy Center, MoMA, the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi, Busch Stadium, the former Standard Oil building in Chicago (see above) among others) was an early and leading modernist architect and educator who later in life moved away from the strict International Style of his early work (I love his 1934 Richard Mandel House in New York). His later use of more classical inspirations and forms would bring scorn from the architectural elite despite his commercial success. Now Stone’s youngest son, Hicks Stone, himself an accomplished architect, has written “a  personal and authoritative biography of one of the most controversial figures of twentieth-century architecture,” publisher Rizzoli says about the 336-page tome.
If you want to learn more about Edward Durell Stone, head to the National Building Museum on Jan. 11 from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. for a lecture by Hicks Stone, who will be talking abut his new book and his father’s life and career. (Don’t see details online yet but price for members is $12; non-members are $20.)
Oh, and if you have $7 million you can by a home in D.C. designed by the elder Stone. The 1939 modern home with some traditional touches such as the roof line has been on the market for a couple years. The home was originally built by George Marshall, the then-owner of the Redskins, and his wife actress Corinne Griffith.

If you are obsessed with the the designs of Ray and Charles Eames or you want to learn more about the famous husband and wife design duo, this is a good time to do some exploring. First, you can see the Eames House living room at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art for its exhibition California Design, 1930-1965: “Living in a Modern Way.”  The entire living room was packed up and moved to the exhibit as The Eames Foundation performs preservation work on the house, pictured above. The living room will eventually be re-staged according to vintage photographs taken during earliest years of the home. The exhibit runs until March 25, 2012.
When you are in California, you can also check out the 450 Eames pieces at JF Chen for “Collecting Eames: The JF Chen Collection.” It is the largest collection of original Eames pieces shown together. The exhibit runs through Jan. 14, 2012.
The documentary Eames: The Architect and the Painter is now making the rounds of film festivals. The film, narrated by James Franco, opens theatrically in New York and L.A. on Nov. 18, and will have its broadcast premiere Dec. 19 as part of the PBS American Masters series. It will be screened at the National Gallery here in D.C. on Feb. 12, 2012.
 
If you can make it to LA or can’t wait to see the movie, check out these vintage images from Life magazine.
 

Frank Lloyd bought two. That’s a good endorsement of the bentwood rocking chair known as the Rapson Rapid Rocker. The chair was originally designed in 1939 by Ralph Rapson, a leading American modernist architect and furniture designer, who is known for his unique sketches and for designing Case Study House #4 (unbuilt; modified versions available here).

To learn more about Rapson’s furniture designs, head to Archer in Georgetown for the upcoming Ralph Rapson: The Architect as Chair Designer, the first exhibit dedicated to the furniture designs of the award-winning Rapson. The opening reception for the exhibit is Nov. 4 from 6 to 8 p.m. The exhibit, which will run until Dec. 4, is curated by architectural historian and co-author of Ralph Rapson: Sixty Years of Modern Design, Jane King Hession. (I recently sold Jane’s custom Goodman in Hollin Hills. Jane and her husband are now building a modern home in Minnesota.)
The show will feature highly sought-after vintage Rapson chairs, produced in the 1940s for H.G. Knoll, as well as sketches–crafted in Rapson’s famous and inimitable style (see above)–for dozens of unrealized furniture designs. The event will showcase chairs from Rapson-Inc.’s new production line of Rapson classics, available exclusively at Robert Chapman’s ARCHER.

“We are thrilled at the depth and breadth of the ARCHER event and exhibit,” says Rapson-Inc. owner Toby Rapson, who is scheduled to attend the opening night reception. “Robert is deeply knowledgeable about Modernism, and the ARCHER space is beautiful. It’s a Read More >

I hope you were able to get to the National Building Museum’s Designing Tomorrow: America’s World’s Fairs of the 1930s, which closed recently. The first-of-its-kind exhibit highlighted the innovative design displayed at the world’s fairs of the 1930s. One of the most interesting sections of the exhibit was on homes featuring the latest in modern technology and convenience  that were introduced and marketed to the fair goers. The 1933 fair in Chicago–the theme was a Century of Progress–highlighted the Homes of Tomorrow Exhibition, a dozen, mostly modern-style homes that sat along lake Michigan.
Florida Tropical House by Robert Law Weed.
After the fair, developer Robert Bartlett purchased five of the homes, the Wieboldt-Rostone House, the House of Tomorrow, the Florida Tropical House, the Armco-Ferro House and the Cypress Log Cabin, loaded them on barges and floated them across Lake Michigan to Beverly Shores, Indiana, where is was developing a new resort community. (The log cabin was dismantled and trucked to Indiana.)  Bartlett bought the homes so he could use them as a marketing device to bring people to see his development.
Today the houses are listed on the National Register of Historic Places and are in various states of repair. The houses have been leased to the Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana. In turn, private individuals or families have leased the homes and are rehabilitating them. On my my way back home from my recent visit to Chicago, I drove through  Beverly Shores to see these landmark homes. In addition to these homes, Read More >

Every two years since 2002, the U.S. Department of Energy has held its Solar Decathlon on the National Mall to challenge collegiate teams to design, build, and operate solar-powered houses that are cost-effective, energy-efficient, and attractive. One of the 11 teams competing in the competition is a team of students from two schools: Southern California Institute of Architecture and the California Institute of Technology.

The team’s design is known as CHIP, which stands for “Compact Hyper-Insulated Prototype.” CHIP, as you can see from the photos, is is a prefab, net-zero solar-powered house that the team says despite its futuristic look can be ” injected into the Los Angeles landscape after it returns from Washington, D.C.”  If you want to learn more about the project and meet those involved, please come to a special event sponsored by the Vinyl Institute at the Hirshhorn Museum next Thursday. See details below:
Thursday, Sept. 22
6:30-8:30 p.m.
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Lerner Room
RSVP to: rsvp@sciarc.edu
(213) 356-5385
Hope to see you there.
 
 
 
 
 

A number of clients, friends and readers have been asking me lately about the process of building their own modern home, including prefabs. One of the best resources on the web for learning the ups and downs of building a modern prefab is the blog by Chris Johnson and Sarah Johnson, the owners of the modern vacation rental and Modern Capital sponsor Lost River Modern. Chris and Sarah documented the whole process of building a Res4 prefab (pictured above) on 30 acres in West Virginia. Go back to the beginning the read the whole site if you are thinking about buying land and putting up a prefab.  If you are thinking of building a modern home from scratch and working with an architect, check out the new blog Minnesota Modern. The site is written by clients of mine who just sold their custom Goodman in Hollin Hills and are now building a modern home in Edina. They are just at the beginning so you can follow along to see how the entire process evolves.

During and after World War II, the population of the Washington area boomed. There was a great need, especially in the growing suburbs, for libraries, houses of worship and schools. Most of it was basic modern design of the time, or as one of my favorite sites calls it: mid-century mundane. One example of this 1950s public architecture is the former Rollingwood Elementary School in Chevy Chase. (It is now a private French International School.) I drive or cycle by this almost everyday. I finally got off my bike the other day to snap a few shots. I like the the Neutra-like raised metal letters and numbers and the screen block on the side of the building.

Here are a couple upcoming modern-related events that I thought might be of interest. On June 7,  Alexandra Lange, critic, architectural historian, and co-author of Design Research: The Store That Brought Modern Living to American Homes, and Russell A. Flinchum, Ph.D., archivist of the Century Association Archives Foundation, professor, and author of American Design, will discuss the rise of industrial design during the 1930s, its relationship to the democratization of “good design” in consumer products, and the contemporary version found in mass-market stores such as Target and IKEA. On June 9, you can head to the Room & Board store on 14th Street for a cocktail party and to see the short film, Powers of 10, by Charles and Ray Eames. The film will be followed by a discussion led by the Eames’ grandson, author and Eames Office Director, Eames Demetrios. RSVP here.

Work on Richard Neutra’s Rice House in Richmond is now complete and available for retreats and private events. You can see the recent Richmond Times Dispatch story and slideshow here. (Here’s a slideshow of images I took during a fall 2009 tour of the house before the work was started.)  The exterior of 1964 home designed  for Ambassador Walter Rice, a top Reynolds Metals Corp. executive, and his wife, Inger, a native of Denmark, can be seen as part of monthly tours of the oasis where the home is located: a man-made 12-acre island overlooking Williams Dam. The only International Style home in Richmond, the Rice House is perched 110-feet above the James River. The 6,000 square foot house is made of marble from Georgia and is stretched out along a granite ridge running parallel to the river.  Walter (who died in 1998) and Inger Rice, who still lives in Richmond, donated the home to the Science Museum of Virginia Foundation in the 1996. You can read more about the history of the house in the nomination to the National Register of Historic Places.

The annual week of embassy tours kicks of this Saturday (May 7) with the “Shortcut to Europe: European Union Embassies’ Open House Day.” Mid-century modern and modern embassies to focus on are the embassies of Denmark, Finland, Sweden and Germany. I saw Denmark and Finland last year and plan to see the mid-century modern German Embassy’s chancery this year. The 1964 building on Reservior Road was designed by renowned German architect Egon Eiermann.
On May 14, another 35 embassies are open to the public, including the Brazilian Embassy, which has been undergoing major work the past few years. I have not driven by in a while but I assume the renovations are done and ready for the public to see. I am excited to explore the 1971 embassy’s chancery (pictured above)  on Massachusetts Avenue. The Miesien floating box was designed by Brazilian architect Olavo Redig de Campos.

 

You can learn a lot from books even if you do not read them. I picked up a stash of modern architecture books at the annual Stone Ridge Used Book Sale. Many of the books I purchased were from the library of Alan Hamilton Rider. I had never heard of Rider so I did some research. I mean, I Googled him. Sure enough he was an architect who graduated with a master’s degree in design in 1953 from the Cranbrook Academy of Art.
Here’s from the Washington Post‘s obit in June 2010:  “Early in his career, Mr. Rider was an associate in the architecture firm of John Carl Warnecke. Among the projects he worked on with Warnecke, who died last year as well, was the memorial for President John F. Kennedy at Arlington National Cemetery. Mr. Rider also helped develop a master plan for the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis and the hangar for Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base.”
Rider, who retired in 1994, was also one of the designers of the brutalist Lauinger Library at Georgetown University. Ah, a library. Now if I could actually find time to read a book.
 

If you will be in LA this coming weekend, you may want to include on your agenda a stop at the Neutra VDL Research House in Silver Lake for a tour and festivities to celebrate the 85th anniversary of the Neutra Practice (Richard and son Dion). Here’s a note I received from Dion, who worked with his father to rebuild the family home in the 1960s after the original house was destroyed by fire.
“Join us to celebrate ‘Neutra Practice at 85 weekend’ April 8-10, 2011. Richard Neutra founded this firm in 1926 while he was still living in the Schindler House. Shortly thereafter, came the birth of his second son, Dion. At about this time, he was working on his first major project, the Jardinette Apartments (1927) in Hollywood. A couple of years later, [he designed] the Lovell Health House (1929). After a distinguished 40 years, his architect son joined as partner and vice president in 1965. Dion has carried on the firm since his father’s death in 1970. … This is what we celebrate on this occasion. Join us!”
During my recent trip to LA, I stopped at the Neutra House for a tour and some photo taking. Here are a few shots:
The front of the Neutra VDL Research House II. It is located at 2300 Silver Lake Blvd.
Neutra numbers.
The second-floor library/den.
The stairwell and second floor.
Nice windows in the kitchen.
One of the small but well-designed bedrooms.
The 1940 Garden house in the backyard was spared from the fire.
The penthouse solarium.
View of Silver Lake Reservoir from rooftop balcony.
 

Happy New Year. I hope you have a very happy, healthy and modern 2011. To start the new year off, I am running a contest for a 2011 MoMA Chairs calendar as seen above. (Actual chair not included.) All you have to do to enter is post a comment below, on Facebook or send me a message on Twitter telling me about your modern New Year’s resolution. Do you want to visit homes designed by your favorite architect? Buy that piece of mid-century modern furniture you have been pining for? (Eames Lounge Chair for me.) Or do you plan to read every issue of Dwell ever published? All who enter will be placed in a hat and picked at random. Submissions due by midnight on Tuesday, Jan. 4. Good luck.

I hope everyone is having a good holiday season. I took a holiday hiatus but am back blogging now. As is typical for this time of year, not many new modern listings have hit the market during the past few weeks. I’ll bring you all the latest listings as the spring market heats up. Talking about heat, I was down in South Florida and did some mid-century modern exploring. Here are few shots from two buildings that sit across from each other on North Federal Highway (U.S. Route 1) in Boynton Beach: a bank and a church.  South Florida is a treasure trove of mid-century architecture. Building boomed after World War II. The advent of air conditioning and the highway system, such as Route 1, allowed those from the north to flock south. I spent some time exploring the MiMo (Miami Modern) architecture along Biscayne Boulevard, also Route 1.  Another post to follow soon from that excursion, including shots of the 1963 Bicardi Building by the Cuban-architect Enrique Gutierrez.

I like the church's mod stained glass.

If you are craving the warmth of Danish modern design to soothe you in this frigid weather, stop by the Corcoran’s Gallery 31 through Dec. 20 for its show Origin to Icon: Exploring Danish Design. The show “will explore the correlation between design inspiration and design outcome. Examples of iconic Danish designs will be showcased in juxtaposition to the elements that motivated their designers to create them.” Think an egg for Arne Jacobsen’s Egg Chair like the one above I photographed during a tour of the Danish Embassy. A reception will be held at the Corcoran on Thursday from 6 to 8 p.m.

If you are an Eames addict and your loved ones are looking for gift ideas for the holidays (I hope my wife reads this), send them a link to this post as a not so subtle hint on a what they can get you. (You can also try to win one here.) The Story of Eames Furniture was written and designed by Marilyn Neuhart together with her husband John. Both worked at the Eames Office in various capacities since the 1950s. They spent the past 15 years compiling this two-volume, 800-page book with more than 2,500 images that tells the behind the scenes story of the office and the designers and manufacturers that helped create the iconic brand. Check out this excellent video below about the book and the Neuharts produced by publisher Gestalten.

Summer time is for road trips. Cycling. Swimming. And eating lots of ice cream. In my book, seeing mid-century modern architecture is definitely part of the mix as well. So on the family’s recent trek north to Vermont and New Hampshire, we made sure to include some mid-century modern sightseeing to the typical summer itinerary. Beyond our main modernist destinations (Empire State Plaza in Albany and Philip Johnson’s Glass House; look for future posts), it was fun to spot mid-century modern architecture and design along the road in the small towns that we passed through. On my train up to meet my family at the beach in south Jersey where we would start the journey, I read a fascinating piece in the latest issue of Modernism on Milo Baughman and the sidebar on Hudson, N.Y., which has an extensive selection of mid-century modern vintage stores.
A shot from one of the mid-century modern furniture stores in Hudson, NY.
While prices were steep for the most part (the town is a haven for New Yorkers on the weekend), a few stores had some more affordable items. My wife and I picked up a vintage aluminum floor lamp with a Saarinen-style tulip base and globe top. We even at ate several mid-century diners, including Clark White Diamond for Jersey sliders (wish I had gone there when I was growing up in Jersey) and the Blue Benn Dinner in Bennington, VT, a vintage 1940s diner car from where else, New Jersey.
We had good Read More >

Are you looking to rent a mid-century modern oasis? Take a look at this updated mid-century on a secluded and wooded lot near the beach in Lake Barcroft in Falls Church. The home, which has 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths and an office, has a heated swimming pool and extensive deck, porch and patio to take in the mid-century goodness and natural surroundings.

Modern Capital Snags 2nd Place in Post’s ‘Mad Men’ Contest
Michael Shapiro’s mix of vintage and new modern furnishings takes 2nd place in the paper’s ‘Mad Men’ Look contest.