Us Modernist Radio - Architecture You Love

A graduate in Architecture from Oxford, Professor James Stevens Curl is known for scholarship, penetrating criticisms, lucidity of style, and holding his nose at the stench of Modernism, of which he is definitely not a fan.  He’s probably rather be down at the Groaning Board hoisting a pint, but we’re thrilled to have him talk about his new award-winning book, Making Dystopia: The Strange Rise and Survival of Architectural Barbarism, in which he takes apart the Modernist movement piece by piece!  However, he makes a good argument for how the wider modern movement in the 1950's (highways, cars, planes, not just architecture) has harmed the planet and the community way of life.

Over the last few year, we’ve been checking out design and architecture podcasts from around America.  We've had Frances Anderton of DnA, Debbie Millman of Design Matters, Josh Cooperman of Convo by Design, and David and Marina of Midnight Charrette.  Today we welcome two new friends who keep the public's design fire going with their interesting and popular podcasts.  Architect Steve Chung is based in Boston, where the good clam chowder lives, focused on residential and hospitality projects. Steve graduated in architecture from Harvard and interned with Richard Meier in New York, worked for Machado Silvetti in Boston and collaborated with designer Philippe Starck. He was the host and creator of the PBS series Cool Spaceswhich ran in 2014 and is currently co-host with Doug Patt on the Design Your Dream Home podcast.  Architect Donna Sink is the host of the Archinect podcast with guests we know and love such as Sekou Cooke and David and Marina from Midnight Charette, plus our buddy Rusty Long from right here in

Three Amigos: Tom Kundig, Frank Harmon, and Marlon Blackwell.  Not only are they the best of friends but they are award-winning rockstars of Modernist residential architecture.   Tom Kundig is principal with Olson Kundig Architects and came to national attention with 1998’s Studio House and in 2002, the Chicken Point Cabin.  Tom’s honors include the Cooper Hewitt 2008 National Design Award, eleven national AIA design awards, too many Washington AIA awards to count, and over 450 feature articles worldwide.  He is the author of Tom Kundig Houses, Tom Kundig Houses 2, and Tom Kundig Works. Frank Harmon grew up in North Carolina and worked for North Carolina’s Ed Loewenstein and New York’s Richard Meier, teaching at Auburn University and NC State University’s College of Design. He’s received over 60 design awards, the most ever for a North Carolina firm.  Frank is the author of the book Native Places: Drawing as a Way to See and writes the Native Places blog. Marlon Blackwell is the author of An Architecture o

Today we wrap up coverage of Modernism Week 2019 by honoring architect Paul Rudolph. 2018 was the 100th anniversary of architect Paul Rudolph's birth and his work lives on to even high acclaim than when he was alive.  Rudolph got on the national radar through innovative Modernist houses in Sarasota, Florida.  Later he created masterworks in concrete and steel in New York, New England, and late in his career Singapore and Hong Kong. Host George Smart talks to two big Rudolph fans, returning guest Sarasota Architecture Foundation President Christopher Wilson and the lead moderator of the Modernism Week Paul Rudolph tribute, Dick Burkett.  

Today we welcome back Justin Shubow, President of the National Civic Art Society, a non-profit dedicated to promoting the classical tradition in public art and architecture. President Trump appointed him in 2018 to the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, a federal agency which oversees the design and construction of government buildings and memorials in Washington DC. Shubow is the author of The Gehry Towers over Eisenhower, a 150-page critique of the Eisenhower Memorial, a battle he sort of won, sort of lost against architect Frank Gehry. With a background in philosophy and law, he has taught at Michigan and Yale and speaks on architecture at places like the US State Department, Baylor University, Colorado College, Hamilton College, and the University of Virginia. 

Palm Springs has a huge architecture event called Modernism Week every February. It’s a fascinating array of architecture, lectures, parties, tours, exhibits, and the occasional plastic surgery gone awry. Host George Smart was there earlier this year talking with nearly all the speakers, authors, and special guests who make the week (actually 11 days) a blast! Architecture documentaries visually capture the spirit and stories of great Modernist buildings in ways not possible through books and photos.  USModernist Radio welcomes architect Dion Neutra and producer Devon Chivvis to our poolside studio at the swanky Hotel Skylark.  Neutra stars in PJ Letofsky's new documentary Neutra: Survival Through Design that premiered at Modernism Week; and Devon Chivvis shares the latest progress on her exciting new documentary, The Harvard Five - about the architects that settled in (and unsettled the locals) in New Canaan, Connecticut: John Johansen, Marcel Breuer, Landis Gores, Phillip Johnson and Eliot Noyes, transformi

In an interview recorded at REX in Brooklyn, New York, George Smart sat down with architect Josh Ramus. The Huffington Post named him one of the five greatest architects under 50. Wallpaper Magazine described him as one of the world's most influential young architects. Esquire Magazine dubbed him the young saviour of American architecture. Icon Magazine called him one of the 20 Essential Young Architects. And Popular Mechanics said “Josh who? Is he that cold fusion guy?” Graduating from Harvard in Architecture in 1996, Ramus worked for Rem Koolhaas before forming his own practice, REX, in 2006. Like many famous architects, Charles Gwathmey and Richard Meier come to mind, his mom helped him get the project that rocket-launched his career. He has been a Visiting Professor at Yale, Rice, Columbia, Harvard, MIT, and Syracuse. And in his spare time, he trained for the Olympics!

Palm Springs has a huge architecture event called Modernism Week every February. It’s a fascinating array of architecture, lectures, parties, tours, exhibits, and the occasional plastic surgery gone awry. Host George Smart was there earlier this year talking with nearly all the speakers, authors, and special guests who make the week (actually 11 days) a blast! Authors Michael Stern and Alan Hess join us poolside at the swanky Hotel Skylark to discuss their new book: Hollywood Modern: Houses of the Stars. They uniquely capture the glamour of each star and how their personality, even their appearance, matches the house they chose. From the Johnny Carson House in Malibu to the ultramodern Gary Cooper House in Holmby Hills, these houses curate our brains just like the movies do. Later on, we welcome back the delightful celebrity expert Lindsay Blake, creator of the hugely popular movie location blog Iamnotastalker. Spoiler alert: she’s quite the stalker!

Despite enormous success, architect Minoru Yamasaki’s reputation declined in the 1970's with the negative public reception of the World Trade Center in New York and the spectacular failure of St. Louis’s Pruitt-Igoe public housing project. Author Dale Gyure is associate chair and professor of Architecture at Lawrence Technological University. His most recent book, Minoru Yamasaki: Humanist Architecture for a Modernist World, is the first to closely examine Yamasaki's work and life.

Palm Springs has a huge architecture event called Modernism Week every February.  It’s a fascinating array of architecture, lectures, parties, tours, exhibits, and the occasional plastic surgery gone awry.  Host George Smart was there earlier this year talking with nearly all the speakers, authors, and special guests who make the week (actually 11 days) a blast! The photographers documenting the mid-century movement provide us a wealth of information, perspective, and enjoyment, capturing not only amazing houses but the lives and careers of their owners and architects. From poolside at the swanky Hotel Skylark, you’ll meet authors Emily Bills and Pierluigi Serraino talking about one largely undiscovered Modernist photographer,  Marvin Rand.  Their new book along with Sam Lubell, California Captured, puts Rand front and center in the same world class as Julius Shulman and Ezra Stoller.  Later we join photographer Andrew Pielage about his quest to shoot every Frank Lloyd Wright building in the world. 

If you’ve been listening closely, you know our special series called Children of Genius, featuring Susan Saarinen, daughter of Eero Saarinen, Raymond Neutra, son of Richard Neutra, Emily Ain, daughter of Gregory Ain, and Randy Koenig, son of Pierre Koenig. Today we're thrilled to talk with Charlee Deaton, daughter of architect Charles Deaton. You can also see it from the nearby Interstate. The Sleeper House got world-famous through the Woody Allen movie of the same name in 1973.  Deaton’s projects included the Wyoming National Bank in Casper and the Harry S. Truman Sports Complex in Kansas City.  And in case you're wondering, and we know you are if you saw the movie, the house's orgasmatron is not a real thing!  Plus, dropping by the studio, great mid-century jazz from musical guests the Luca Colonna Trio. There's something special about these guys - listen for more!

Palm Springs has a huge architecture event called Modernism Week every February.  It’s a fascinating array of architecture, lectures, parties, tours, exhibits, and the occasional plastic surgery gone awry.  Host George Smart was there earlier this year talking with nearly all the speakers, authors, and special guests who make the week (actually 11 days) a blast! Today USModernist welcomes two California architects building new Modernist houses and one expert sharing how Modernism started:  Joel Turkel founded Turkel Design and created NextHouse, a series of prefab modern homes still marketed by the fine folks at Deck House. In 2014, in an exclusive collaboration with Dwell Magazine, Joel launched the Axiom Series, a line of modern houses that combine sleek modern design with all the benefits of prefab construction. Now he lives in one!  Anthony Poon is an architect, concert pianist, artist, and author. He created new ways to build and promote Modernist home developments while maintaining design integrity and

Debbie Millman is the founder and host of the pioneering, award-winning, long-running, and successful podcast, Design Matters. Going into her 14th year, Millman has interviewed over 400 designers, artists, and others in the creative culture such as Milton Glaser, Malcolm Gladwell, Barbara Kruger, Massimo Vignelli, Marina Abramovic, Thomas Kail, Laurie Anderson, Shepard Fairey, and Steven Heller. She’s a polymath of designer, artist, writer, educator, curator, speaker, and CEO.  Design Matters won the 2011 Cooper Hewitt National Design Award, a Webby for Best Individual Episode, and in 2015 Apple designated it one of the best overall podcasts on iTunes.  She is the author of six books, and her art has been included in the Boston Biennale, the Chicago Design Museum, Anderson University, and the Czong Institute for Contemporary Art.

Palm Springs has a huge architecture event called Modernism Week every February.  It’s a fascinating array of architecture, lectures, parties, tours, exhibits, and the occasional plastic surgery gone awry.  Host George Smart was there earlier this year talking with nearly all the speakers, authors, and special guests who make the week (actually 11 days) a blast! You remember books, right?  Those things we had in our hands to read before Kindle? George and Tom welcome author Adele Cygelman, whose newest book is Arthur Elrod: Desert Modern Design. Elrod was one of the country’s most famous interior designers and his John Lautner-designed Palm Springs house became a celebrity (and still is) from an appearance in the James Bond movie Diamonds are Forever. Later on, we move down the road to Rancho Mirage, an oasis of Modernism that’s the subject of a new book, Mod Mirage, by Melissa Riche with photography by Jim Riche. Rancho Mirage had the very first developments on golf courses—a model that soon adopted around t

Kinston is about as typical Eastern North Carolina as you can get.  They have lots of barbeque, a minor league baseball team that’s pretty good, they support what’s left of the tobacco industry, and they keep up the CSS Neuse, one of the last Confederate ironclad ships, although Donald Trump is considering restoring it to attack Canada.  Kinston never had a really great restaurant, but that changed when chef Vivian Howard and artist Ben Knight came to town in 2006 from New York and opened Chef & the Farmer and later the Boiler Room and Benny’s Big Time. Then there was their PBS TV series A Chef's Life, which won two Daytime Emmys and a Peabody award.  They are also Modernist homeowners!  We first came across this talented couple when their Modernist house in Deep Run NC won a George Matsumoto Prize for North Carolina residential Modernist design. Host George Smart and guest co-host, NCModernist's Rebekah Laney, chat with Ben in the studio and Vivian from her car!

Palm Springs has a huge architecture event called Modernism Week every February.  It’s a fascinating array of architecture, lectures, parties, tours, exhibits, and the occasional plastic surgery gone awry.  Host George Smart was there earlier this year talking with nearly all the speakers, authors, and special guests who make the week (actually 11 days) a blast! Music is an important part of Modernism Week.  Host George Smart talks with singer-songwriter AJ Lambert, who just released a debut album and performed to rave reviews at Modernism Week; see if you can guess the Secret Word before George says it.  Plus Joan and Gary Gand of the Gand Band, owners of one of the sweetest mid-century houses in Palm Springs and known across the Coachella valley for their swinging Chicago-inspired blues.

Over the last few months, we’ve been checking out fellow design and architecture podcasts from around America.  We've had Frances Anderton of DnA and Josh Cooperman of Convo by Design – and today we’re excited to welcome the hosts of Midnight Charrette.   Co-host Marina Bourderonnet (bor-dare-ro-nay) grew up in France, training at the Ecole Nationale Superieure d'Architecture with a Bachelor of Architecture degree.  She speaks four languages and loves, we recently learned, suspenders. Co-host David Lee grew up near Disneyland and teaches architecture at Woodbury University.  He also went to school in France, with a degree in Music and Architecture from the American Art School at Fontainebleau.   Marina and Dave’s wideranging repartee with guests and between themselves does indeed cover the known spectrum of human experience from the credibility of Aquaman -- to why you can’t buy a simple cactus plant in Palm Springs.

Palm Springs has a huge architecture event called Modernism Week every February.  It’s a fascinating array of architecture, lectures, parties, tours, exhibits, and the occasional plastic surgery gone awry.  Host George Smart was there earlier this year talking with nearly all the speakers, authors, and special guests who make the week (actually 11 days) a blast! Today George talks with author and longtime Modernist researcher Christine Madrid French, who with Marty Hylton did the first comprehensive survey of Florida mid-century Modernist architecture, accessible here; plus he chats visiting Australian Modernist Amy Jarvis of Canberra; and finally a talk with Ken Topper of Richard Neutra's iconic Lovell Health House, which you’ll remember from the movie LA Confidential.  

Architect Philip Johnson’s father invested 100 years ago in ALCOA, the huge aluminum company, which Johnson a millionaire in his '20s. Before he became an architect, however, Johnson organized a landmark exhibition on International Style at the Museum of Modern Art in 1932 which introduced important Modernist architects as Le Corbusier, Walter Gropius, and Mies van der Rohe. He went on to get formal education in design but by then his reputation as a kingmaker of architects was firmly established.  He is regarded as one of the first architects to achieve celebrity status, as much for his design evangelism and connections than for his buildings. He died in 2005 at the age of 98. Today host George Smart with co-host Kate Wagner of McMansion Hell welcome Mark Lamster, an award-winning architectural critic of the Dallas Morning News and a professor of architecture at the University of Texas at Arlington. For nearly a decade, Lamster studied Johnson’s correspondence, archives, and even his FBI file for a new biogr

Palm Springs has a huge architecture event called Modernism Week every February.  It’s a fascinating array of architecture, lectures, parties, tours, exhibits, and the occasional plastic surgery gone awry.  Host George Smart was there earlier this year talking with nearly all the speakers, authors, and special guests who make the week (actually 11 days) a blast! Today from poolside at the swanky Hotel Skylark, George Smart welcomes one of the show's favorite guests - it's Ms. Modernism, Annalisa Capurro from Australia, who has logged more Modernism Week miles than anyone in the world. Next, the founder of the Palm Springs Modern Committee, Peter Moruzzi.  And we wrap up with Modernism Week CEO Chris Mobley.  Learn about how to build one of the most successful Modernist events in the world - and a super toilet village!