If you ask any architecture enthusiast where to find the best midcentury-modern architecture in America, there’s a good chance you’ll get Palm Springs, California, as your answer. The resort town in the Coachella Valley first drew visitors at the turn of the 20th century, but modernist architecture arrived in the 1930s, when actor Gary Cooper commissioned a home there. Other Hollywood stars followed suit, and soon architects like Richard Neutra, Albert Frey, and John Lautner were busy working on Palm Springs homes. The new book Palm Springs: A Modernist Paradise ( $75, Rizzoli ), with text and photographs by Tim Street-Porters, brings readers on a tour of the city’s iconic properties, many of which have been impeccably restored by their new owners. “Palm Springs is seductive,” writes fashion designer Trina Turk in the foreword. “The air is fresher, the sunshine more intense, the stars at night are brighter, and the cocktails just taste better.” Take a look at of six of the properties featured in the book below.
The Leff-Florsheim House. Designed by Donald Wexler as the Florsheim family’s winter retreat, this 1957 home was restored by a new owner in the 2000s.
The Arthur Elrod House. Local interior designer Arthur Elrod gave architect John Lautner complete creative control of building his residence. The result is a stunning concrete-and-glass construction—perhaps you’ve seen it in the Bond film Diamonds Are Forever .
The Morrison-Strassner Residence. This 1970 hillside house was designed by Patten & Wild, and it was recently restored by designer-architect Tim Morrison and actor-producer Scott Strassner.
Villa Grigio. Architect James McNaughton designed this house in 1964, and today it’s owned by AD100 designer Martyn Lawrence Bullard.
Albert Frey House II. The Swiss architect Albert Frey, who studied under Le Corbusier in Paris, came to Palm Springs in 1934. This was the second home he built for himself here, in 1964.
Palm Springs: A Modernist Paradise , with text and photography by Tim Street-Porter.
