Palm Springs celebrates the era of Modernism in architecture and more Feb. 15-25, so put on your gym shoes and powder pink lipstick because America’s tantalizing time capsule is taking off, right on schedule. According to Modernism mavens, there is still a mountain of events open for ticket purchase and touring. The Retro Fashion Show, my personal favorite themed “Spanning the Decades,” is slated for Feb. 18 at 2 p.m. at Temple Isaiah, which is an icon of midcentury architecture it its own right.
The fashion show, in collaboration with M Vintage and Mitchells Palm Springs, spotlights “Haute Couture” to the max. The event takes place at Temple Isaiah’s Warsaw Ballroom, temporarily transformed into a temple of fashionable midcentury designers from the 1950s sharing the runway. This means a serious blast to the past “through the eyes of Coco Chanel, Emilio Pucci, Christian Dior and Pierre Cardin.” Tickets are $45 each.
Returning this year is “The Illuminated Modern and its Sunset” architectural bus tour, a perennial favorite with an updated route. Find out about the stories behind the legendary homes in South Palm Springs reflecting the essence of the mid century “leisure lifestyle.” This provides an opportunity to take your “white buck” shoes out of storage and show them off!
There’s still time to tour the first-ever Modernism Week Showcase Home, Moroccan Modern, constructed in 1975 by architect Hal Lacey and recently renovated by Thomboy Properties. The entry to the residence is a show in itself with dramatic custom carved 10-foot-high double entry doors enhanced by the geometry of angled walls. Home tours are scheduled Feb. 16- 18 and 23-24. Tickets are $40 each.
A returning favorite is the 18th Annual Palm Springs Modernism Show & Sale at the Palm Springs Convention Center, Feb. 16-19, with 85 national and international dealers exhibiting a range of decorative furniture and fine arts representing design movements of the 20th century. The four-day exposition is produced by Dolphin Promotions and opens with an early buying preview on Feb. 16 benefitting Modernism Week. Included with admission is an opportunity to peruse the Palm Springs Modern Design Expo with 40 exhibitors. Add to this the Architecture Design Art Film Series in collaboration with the American Documentary Film Festival at The Camelot Theatre, Feb. 23-25. This series features 26 films, short films and documentaries.
For details, visit
modernismweek.com.