'Coast Modern' film celebrates West Coast Modernist Architecture
Watch a trailer of Coast Modern
Like many of us, filmmakers Mike Bernard and Gavin Froome are drawn to the romantic modernism of North America's West Coast, the landscape where the architecture of glass, wood, concrete and steel could be at its most expressive and fertile.
Coast Modern begins with Arthur Erickson's 1972 Eppich House, with Bernard and Froome's camera going on to pan lazily through some of the lesser known marvels of post-war architectural design, a mouth-watering array of domestic design that offers up a truly utopian vision of how things could be, as well as visiting many of the classics, including Rudolph Schindler's Sachs Apartments in LA, the Case Study Houses and The Sea Ranch near San Francisco
And yet there's a shadow of regret underpinning the whole enterprise. As one of the interviewees puts it, 'modernism is a beautiful failure - you can't call it a success when 90% of people do not want to live in a Modernist house.' Tear downs are still all too common as the relentless march of neophilia sweeps away many perfectly decent buildings.
The tide is slowly turning in favour of the old, however. Douglas Coupland goes further, citing Wallpaper's early focus on this once obscure arm of international modernism as one of the main drivers behind its recent revival (and the film also makes a sly dig at the hipsterisation of modern design).
Coast Modern might appear to be preaching to the converted, with hazy, dreamy photography that shifts between crisp focus and fashionable blurs and a cast of commentators - architects, writers and designers - extolling the virtues of these relentlessly verdant sets for a very singular type of domestic life. But it's the feeling of longevity and life and the slow assimilation of building and landscape that stands out, decades of interaction between place and nature that can't be recreated overnight.
Hopefully Coast Modern will open up closed minds a little further, bringing more people into the light, space, air and nature that defined a truly fertile phase of architectural design.
Coast Modern will be screened at the Architecture & Design Film Festival in New York, which runs from 18 to 21 October
A still from the film, showing Hoke Residence, designed by Jeff Kovel of Skylab Architecture, 2007, Portland OR
Reunion House, designed by Richard Neutra, 1949, Los Angeles CA
Smith House 2, designed by Erickson/Massey Architects, 1964, Vancouver BC
Watzek House, designed by John Yeon, 1937, Portland OR
Dunbar House, designed by Barry Downs, 1958, Vancouver BC
Case Residence, designed by Ron Thom, 1965, Vancouver BC
Coupland House, designed by Duncan McNab, 1958, Vancouver
Glendower House, designed by Bestor Architecture, 2006, Los Angeles CA
Glendower House, with Frank Lloyd Wright's 1924 Ennis House in the upper background
Henrik Bull (FAIA) shows us the modernist treasure map of Northern California
Wallpaper* Newsletter + Free Download
For a free digital copy of August Wallpaper*, celebrating Creative America, sign up today to receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories
Jonathan Bell has written for Wallpaper* magazine since 1999, covering everything from architecture and transport design to books, tech and graphic design. He is now the magazine’s Transport and Technology Editor. Jonathan has written and edited 15 books, including Concept Car Design, 21st Century House, and The New Modern House. He is also the host of Wallpaper’s first podcast.
-
Commune’s sustainable personal care products look ‘quite unlike anything else’
Commune’s Somerset-made products stand out in the sustainable skincare crowd. Madeleine Rothery speaks with the brand’s co-founders Kate Neal and Rémi Paringaux
By Madeleine Rothery Published
-
‘Hedonistic and avant-garde’: Rabanne’s Julian Dossena on the legacy of the chainmail 1969 bag
Paco Rabanne’s 1969 chainmail handbag encapsulates the late designer’s futuristic, space-age style. Current creative director Julien Dossena tells Wallpaper* about the bag’s particular pleasures
By Jack Moss Published
-
Postcard from Paris: Olympic fever takes over the streets
On the eve of the opening ceremony of Paris 2024, our correspondent shares her views from the streets of the capital about how the event is impacting the urban landscape.
By Minako Norimatsu Published
-
Niemeyer’s modernism celebrated in Oscar Ibirapuera, an example of 21st-century São Paulo living
Perkins&Will completes Oscar Ibirapuera, next to Niemeyer’s modernist landmark park in São Paulo, Brazil
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Calming interiors characterise a 1950s mid century modern house in Mexico City
HEMAA Arquitectura celebrates the mid century architecture of a family house – designed by Mexican architect Augusto H. Álvarez – with a respectful renovation, plus a new material palette of light oak and grey stucco
By Harriet Thorpe Last updated
-
Join virtual tours of Frank Lloyd Wright’s architectural masterpieces
A new series of virtual tours offer you the chance to explore Frank Lloyd Wright's architecture from the comfort of your home. The campaign to continue educating and inspiring the public through the digital sphere is also a reminder of the importance of the physical experience of architecture, and an appeal for funding support to heritage sites all over the world during the Covid-19 crisis
By Harriet Thorpe Last updated
-
Dirk Engelen tours his restored Antwerp home – a 1970s architectural masterpiece
Belgian architect Dirk Engelen was surprised to find a John Lautner look-a-like house in suburban Antwerp. Drawn to its unique concrete and brick design, his curiosity got the better of him and he bought the house and renovated it, not without bringing some architectural abstractions of his own to the design
By Harriet Thorpe Last updated
-
Herbert W Burns’ Gillman Residence renovated in Palm Springs
A Palm Springs house designed by architect Herbert W Burns has been brought back to life, with plenty of contemporary improvements. ‘This house can truly be considered a brand new home with Herbert Burns’ bones’ say the designer-developer duo behind the comprehensive restoration and renovation
By Harriet Thorpe Last updated
-
Join a 1960s celebration of desert modern residential design
For Palm Springs Modernism Week the residents of Park Imperial South, a modernist community with zig-zag roofs designed by architect Barry berkus in 1960, are throwing a party to celebrate the architecture and the era
By Harriet Thorpe Last updated
-
Four architects on the influence of Palm Springs
Many contemporary architects working today have been inspired by the modernist architecture of Palm Springs. Modernism Week brings them back to the desert town for a series of events that focus on the work of contemporary architects from restorations and renovations, to obsessions and design expressions
By Harriet Thorpe Last updated
-
An Instagram hotspot in Tokyo is under threat, so snap it before it’s flattened
Designed by architect Kisho Kurokawa, the iconic Nakagin Capsule Tower in Tokyo has become something of an Instagram pilgrimage for architecture enthusiasts. But as the building fell into a state of disrepair, the Metabolist landmark has long been in danger of demolition and the final decision is to be made by the building’s management society by vote
By Sanae Sato Last updated