27 Nov 2014
New art attraction showcases the city's modernist heritage
The city of Palm Springs unveiled its brand new Architecture and Design Center earlier this month, bringing a new art attraction to a destination renowned for its mid-century modern architecture. Also known as the Edward Harris Pavilion, the Center is the new campus of the Palm Springs Art Museum and shows how modernism bloomed in the southern Californian desert.
The modernist building was originally designed as a bank by noted architect E. Stewart Williams in 1961. The glass and steel structure has since been restored and transformed into a museum space by design firm Marmol Radziner, which revived the former Kauffman House and other notable mid-century buildings in Palm Springs. The Center also features floor to ceiling windows that reveal incredible views of the surrounding San Jacinto Mountains.
Now a Class 1 historic structure, the Architecture and Design Center showcases the unique design of Palm Springs, which boasts the world's largest concentration of mid-century modern buildings per capita.
The Center perfectly complements the Palm Springs Art Museum's permanent collection of over 55,000 objects, including works by Picasso, Matisse, Anish Kapoor, Anthony Gormley and many more. The museum, which recently celebrated its 75th anniversary, has a growing collection of architecture and design. The new campus holds archives of Albert Frey, E. Stewart Williams and Elrod Harold Borderick, three important architects of the desert modern style which developed in and around Palm Springs in the middle of the 20th century.
Visitors will find examples of Palm Springs' modernist legacy at every turn. The city's mid-century modernism is famous worldwide for its futuristic buildings of steel, glass and concrete with open-plan living creating a flow between the house and outdoor desert landscape. Today, the style is so revered that the most iconic buildings are viewed not as pieces of property but as works of art. Enthusiasts can see many architectural highlights on a modern tour of Palm Springs or experience the 10th anniversary of Modernism Week in February 2015, during which the newly-developed Palm Springs Architecture and Design Center will be in the spotlight.
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About Palm Springs
One hundred miles east of Los Angeles, Palm Springs is a desert playground with year-round sunshine, blue skies and stunning natural beauty. Nestled beneath California's San Jacinto Mountains, the city is famed for its Hollywood legacy, Native American heritage and huge collection of mid-century modern architecture. The desert oasis boasts a wealth of adventurous hiking trails and historical canyon tours, as well as chic boutiques, world-renowned golf courses and unique experiences, including the chance to stay in the former homes of Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley.
About Palm Springs Bureau of Tourism
The Palm Springs Bureau of Tourism is the city's official destination marketing organisation whose focus is to promote the city to consumers, the media, and domestic and international trade buyers, thus increasing visitor arrivals to the city, and increasing its exposure as a world-class year-round leisure destination. The Palm Springs Bureau of Tourism is operated and managed by SMG.
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Press Contact
For media information and images, please contact Sarah Habicht or Guy Hough at Hume Whitehead on 0845 498 9987 or email: sarah@humewhitehead.co.uk / guy@humewhitehead.co.uk
