Architects, Friends & Space: Palm Springs Has it All

Besides Frank Lloyd Wright, my favorite architect is Albert Frey. He has been discussed a few times on this blog and will be showcased a few times more. You've been warned. He is an incredible part of the fabric that forms Palm Springs, hence this trip to the desert.

The Architecture and Design Center is the somewhat unknown sibling to the Palm Springs Art Museum. We have found numerous exhibitions here that have been absolutely incredible. This Albert Frey one has been on my calendar for over a year.

"Embark on a journey through the life and groundbreaking work of architect Albert Frey. Born in Zurich, Switzerland, Frey achieved early career success in Paris and New York before settling in Palm Springs, where he left an indelible mark on the architectural landscape. Curated and designed by Brad Dunning, this expansive retrospective showcases rare and previously unseen treasures, including architectural models, drawings, films, photographs, and furniture. Frey’s distinctive “simple but severe” style, synonymous with Desert Modernism, comes to life, highlighting his profound influence on the Coachella Valley, the United States, and beyond."

Through the knowledgeable tour guide, we learned more about this talented man. After earning his architecture diploma in 1924, he left home and moved to Paris in 1928 to work for Le Corbusier, on projects including the Villa Savoye (pictured above). Moving to New York in 1930, Frey was the first Corbusier disciple to work in the U.S. There, he became partners with architect A. Lawrence Kocher, who was also managing editor of Architectural Record magazine.

As a side note, Le Corbusier is perhaps the 20th century's most influential architect, responsible for persuading us of the merits of modern design on a grand scale. His work was at points hugely beautiful and accomplished, and at others, terrifying and extremely unhelpful. To work with him was a huge accomplishment.

Kocher and Frey also designed four buildings, including the acclaimed Aluminaire House, a demonstration house designed for the Exhibition of the Architectural League in New York, 1931. Recently gifted to the Palm Springs Art Museum as a part of their permanent collection, this iconic masterpiece of modernist design is being reconstructed in place of the south parking lot of the Museum. Aluminaire House was recently listed by Architectural Record as one of the most important buildings completed worldwide in the past 125 years.

The architects designed the 22 x 28-foot home, framed in aluminum alloy and steel, as an affordable, easy-to-reproduce unit for mass production. Its name is the interplay of building material and light. Three-inch-thick aluminum walls sealed three stories of space supported by six slender aluminum columns secured with screws and washers. Inside, pastel-hued rayon fabric covered the walls. Glass and gently ribbed aluminum sheathed the outside. At the Architectural and Allied Arts Exposition in 1931, the Empire State Building won a gold medal of honor for design, but this house is what fascinated attendees of the eight-day fête.

Interestingly, the Aluminaire House piqued the interest of Wallace K. Harrison, a Modernist architect who led the design of UN Headquarters (working with Le Corbusier and others) as well as Rockefeller Center and Lincoln Center in New York City. By September 1952, when Time Magazine featured him on one of its covers, Harrison had already directed the construction of $700 million in projects. He bought the building around the time of its debut for $1,000 and moved it to his estate in Huntington, N.Y., to use as a weekend house and later extended it.

After Harrison passed away in 1981, Aluminaire House fell into disrepair. A subsequent owner of the property filed an application for its demolition—to the chagrin of local preservationists. Over the next decades, various people worked to get this historic building here for all of us to ogle in Palm Springs. How very, very cool is that? It's supposed to be completely restored in March. Watch for a blog post then!

Remember how Kocher and Frey designed four buildings? This one is extra special as it's the one that brought Albert to the desert. In 1934, Frey came to Palm Springs to supervise construction of the Kocher-Samson Building, a mixed-use building for his partner’s brother, J.J. Kocher.

This photo is the reception office for Frey's architectural firm. The exhibit has the actual secretary's desk. Man, I love that.

Frey moved to Palm Springs permanently two years later. Frey went onto design a body of work including residential, commercial, institutional and civic buildings. In October, I shared his Frey House II. I was excited to see Frey House I that sadly no long exists.

This is the sketch for his suspended dining table. Built in 1940, it's pretty dang groovy.

Frey lived in Palm Springs until his death in 1998. As Palm Springs’ first full-time, resident architect, Frey is known as one of the founders of Desert Modernism. I'm eager to continue this history lesson on subsequent visits.

Lunch was a picnic on Sharon's patio. After she left Temecula, her next stop was a six week sojourn in Palm Springs.

Our final stop of the day was at the highly anticipated Rancho Mirage Observatory tour.

Opened on March 25, 2018, as a teaching and learning tool for all ages, it is intended to further public understanding of our night skies while offering new programming opportunities in astronomy. The Observatory plays an integral role in the growth of the Rancho Mirage Library’s campus (more about that in tomorrow's post). Constructed adjacent to the Library’s western entrance, the addition of this research level facility underscores the Library’s commitment to lifelong learning, education for all ages, and a focus on the sciences.

"Join us for a FREE behind the scenes Observatory facility tour Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays at 3:00 pm. No registration is necessary, simply meet in the Library Lobby where a member of the Observatory Team will greet you. This tour lasts approximately 30-45 minutes and includes indoor and outdoor aspects with minimal seating available."

"Our research-grade PlaneWave Instruments CDK700 telescope will inspire those young and young-at-heart for many years to come. This telescope was chosen with the assistance of Mr. Dan McKenna, the then Superintendent of Palomar Mt Observatory, for its quality and versatility. The 27.5″ primary mirror allows us to see millions of light-years away all from the floor of the Coachella Valley. Our telescope even employs a novel solution of placing two refracting telescopes end-to-end to create a periscope for viewing at a comfortable height without the need for stairs. We currently have 3 cameras for imaging the lunar surface, planets, and deep-sky objects."

"In the spirit of perpetually improving our program offerings, we recently installed a new feature that can be enjoyed day or night, no matter the weather. The Integrated Space Theater system is a collection of seven projectors, four speakers, one subwoofer, and hours of creative design that come together to display short, visually gorgeous astronomical films on the inside of the Observatory’s closed dome." So very cool.