If you're after a one-stop-shop for all things midcentury ahead of Palm Springs Modernism Week 2025 this week, The Palm Springs School: Desert Modernism 1934-1975, a new book launch by Rizzoli, is for you. The tome, authored by design historian Alan Hess, offers an immersive and detailed deep dive into the Californian modernist architecture genre and the International Style's distinct expression within the arid landscapes of the West Coast.
Albert Frey House II, a.k.a. Frey II, Albert Frey, 1964
Flick through 'The Palm Springs School: Desert Modernism 1934-1975'
The book looks at the region's significant 20th-century architectural offering and discusses the concepts, aesthetics and experimentations that unite projects and typologies. Covering diverse buildings and settings, from housing to commercial and from urban/suburban to more rural, standalone structures, this is a publication that looks into common threads and what might make this movement into a 'school'.
Edgar J and Liliane Kaufmann House, a.k.a. Kaufmann House, Richard Neutra, 1946
Building types include residences, gas stations, hotels, airports, restaurants, and spas. Highlighted architects are Richard Neutra, John Lautner, Albert Frey, William Cody, William Krisel and Donald Wexler, among many more. The book is illustrated by drawings and archival photography (including by legends such as Julius Shulman).
Steel Development Homes (now Alexander Steel Homes), Donald Wexler and Richard Harrison, 1962
'From our 21st-century vantage point, we can look back and discern that a group of 20th-century Palm Springs architects formed a cohesive yet diverse Palm Springs School of Architecture. Each arrived in this astonishing landscape for a different reason. Their creative dreams spanned three continents and two oceans, from Zurich to Shanghai,' writes Hess in his introduction.
Arthur Elrod House, John Lautner, 1968
'In Palm Springs, the challenges of the terrain and atmosphere reshaped the work of these architects over time – these circumstances created a specific school of architectural ideas that inspired them all.'
Enco Gas Station, a.k.a. Nichols Service Station, a.k.a. Tramway Gas Station (now Palm Springs Visitors Center), Albert Frey and Robson Chambers, 1965
Take a plunge into the rich and layered built environment of Palm Springs; and its lasting and far-reaching influence, which spans far beyond the Californian city's relatively boutique size.
Hill House, a.k.a Raymond Cree House II, Albert Frey, 1955
'The Palm Springs School: Desert Modernism 1934-1975, Rizzoli, 2025
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