This self-driving tour of mid-century churches around Palm Springs, new to the 2018 programme of Modernism Week events, presents participants the chance to learn about the town’s most interesting church architecture.
Curated by Michael Kunkle, a Palm Springs local with a passion for mid-century modernism and his mother Ruth Ritter, who just moved to Palm Springs from South Carolina this year, the tour is a unique way to explore the town during Modernism Week.
The tour allowed Kunkle and Ritter to combine their knowledge in a creative way; mixing Kunkle’s architectural and design expertise with Ritter’s experience of churches and religion – and it was a way for the pair to spend time together and build Ritter’s new community network in Palm Springs.
‘In addition to the fantastic architecture, we have learned that the church history here in Coachella valley is colourful: Indians, earthquakes, hardships, cooperation, support and inclusion,’ says Kunkle.
First stop on the Sacred Places tour is the First Baptist Church Palm Springs, designed by architect Howard Lapham in 1963, a textured concrete building with a geometric stained glass window. Kunkle’s tour reveals details such as how materials for the church were donated and it was the congregation who worked on its construction. Lapham also designed ‘arguably the most famous Palm Springs nightclub “Chi Chi’” adds Kunkle.
Another impressive structure - this time constructed of poured concrete in thick curved sections, is the Palm Springs United Methodist church, designed by architect Hal Whittemore in 1965. Unique details include the cast metal cross at its spire designed by artist JB Thompson in 1965 and a plaque on the seat where Elvis Presley used to sit.
Other highlights include Albert Frey’s Desert Chapel, built in 1963, where the original phone system can be admired, as well as intricate geometric wood carvings and chandeliers; and a piercing red stained glass window by artist Gabriel Loire at the St Louis Catholic Cathedral City – designed by architect Joseph F Dameron in the 1960s.
The First Baptist Church, designed by architect Howard Lapham in 1963 (left) and the concrete belltower of the Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church (architect unknown, built 1963) (right). Photography: Michael Kunkle
The United Methodist church, designed by architect Hal Whittemore in 1965. Photography: Michael Kunkle
Two details of the St Louis Catholic Cathedral City, designed by architect Joseph F. Dameron in the 1960s, with stained glass by artist Gabriel Loire
The Saint Theresa Catholic Church, designed by architect William Cody in 1968
Patterned details at the Desert Chapel designed by architect Albert Frey in 1963. Photography: Michael Kunkle
INFORMATION
The ‘Sacred Places’ tour runs on February 24, 2018. For event details visit the Modernism Week website.
-
What is the role of fragrance in contemporary culture, asks a new exhibition at 10 Corso ComoMilan concept store 10 Corso Como has partnered with London creative agency System Preferences to launch Olfactory Projections 01
-
Jack White's Third Man Records opens a Paris pop-upJack White's immaculately-branded record store will set up shop in the 9th arrondissement this weekend
-
Designer Marta de la Rica’s elegant Madrid studio is full of perfectly-pitched contradictionsThe studio, or ‘the laboratory’ as de la Rica and her team call it, plays with colour, texture and scale in eminently rewarding ways
-
Explore the Perry Estate, a lesser-known Arthur Erickson project in CanadaThe Perry estate – a residence and studio built for sculptor Frank Perry and often visited by his friend Bill Reid – is now on the market in North Vancouver
-
Take a deep dive into The Palm Springs School ahead of the region’s Modernism WeekNew book ‘The Palm Springs School: Desert Modernism 1934-1975’ is the ultimate guide to exploring the midcentury gems of California, during Palm Springs Modernism Week 2025 and beyond
-
Meet Minnette de Silva, the trailblazing Sri Lankan modernist architectSri Lankan architect Minnette de Silva is celebrated in a new book by author Anooradha Iyer Siddiq, who looks into the modernist's work at the intersection of ecology, heritage and craftsmanship
-
Palm Springs Modernism Week 2025: let the desert architecture party beginPalm Springs Modernism Week 2025 launches on 13 February, marking the popular annual desert event’s 20th anniversary, celebrated this year through more midcentury marvels than ever
-
Inside Bell Labs, the modernist vision behind Severance's minimalist settingWe explore the history of Bell Labs - now known as Bell Works - the modernist Eero Saarinen-designed facility in New Jersey, which inspired the dystopian minimalist setting of 'Severance'
-
We zoom in on Ontario Place, Toronto’s lake-defying 1971 modernist showpieceWe look back at Ontario Place, Toronto’s striking 1971 showpiece and modernist marvel with an uncertain future
-
Tour 21 lesser-known modernist houses in EuropeTake a tour of some of Europe's lesser-known modernist houses; architectural writer and curator Adam Štěch leads the way, discussing the 20th-century movement's diversity under a single vision
-
Frank Lloyd Wright’s Weisblat House, a Usonian modernist Michigan gem, could be yoursFrank Lloyd Wright’s Weisblat House in Michigan is on the market – a chance to peek inside the heritage modernist home in the countryside
