Carefree California: Cliff May and the Romance of the Ranch House

If you are anywhere near Santa Barbara from April 12 to June 17, don’t miss this exhibit at The Art, Design & Architecture Museum!

“The exhibition and accompanying catalogue examine the modernization of the ranch tradition and its transition from regional designs in adobe, brick, tile, and stucco to the modest wood and glass tract house of the forties, to the near-minimal system-built ranches May designed and sold in the late 1950s and, finally, to his luxury ranch houses.”

–from the museum website

For more information: http://www.uam.ucsb.edu/Cliff_May.html

Help Save (by creating) the Andrew Geller Archives

You know those crazy (crazy-awesome!) geometric beach houses from the 50’s and 60’s like the ones pictured below?  Well those were built by Andrew Geller, and currently his grandson, filmmaker Jake Gorst, is trying to raise funds to create an archive and shoot a documentary about Geller’s works.

You can find out more about the kickstarter project and donate to the cause at this link.

More information can be found at AndrewGeller.net.

LA: John Lautner House Tours

Would that I were wealthy and lived in LA. It seems that along with the Lautner exhibit at the Hammer Museum (Between Heaven and Earth: The Architecture of John Lautner -through October 12), the Hammer Museum is also conducting house tours of Lautner properties. http://www.hammer.ucla.edu/programs/65/

If you are able, I highly recommend you take advantage of this opportunity! If not, at least go see the exhibit at The Hammer Museum.

Tour I: Sunday, July 27, 2008
Tickets: $145 each

The Harpel Residence (1956)
The Tyler Residence (1953)
The Schwimmer Residence (1982)

Tour II: Sunday, September 14, 2008
Tickets: $145 each

The Jacobsen Residence (1947)
The Harvey Residence (1950)
The Reiner/Burchill Residence - also known as Silvertop (1963)

Tour III: Sunday, August 24, 2008
Tickets: $55 each

Sheats/Goldstein Residence (1963)

Tour IV: Sunday, October 12, 2008
Tickets: $55 each

Sheats/Goldstein Residence (1963)

Ticket prices are listed above and include admission to the exhibition, shuttle service, free parking (Tours I & II), discounted parking (Tours III & IV), and for Tour I and Tour II ticket buyers only--an active level friendship to the MAK Center at the Schindler House.

To purchase tickets for Tours I and II, you must be a member of the Hammer Museum at the Contributor level or above. Up to four (4) tickets can be purchased per membership. For more information on Hammer membership, click here. To purchase tickets for Tours III and IV, no membership is required.