Modern or Mundane?

posted by Christopher Swope

As I wrote in October's Governing, mid-century modernism is turning 50. That means a slew of ranch houses, boxy glass office buildings and mimimalist concrete monuments are becoming eligible for historic landmark status.

Is this stuff worth preserving? Does it matter that 50s styles were simple and spare and inspired cheap knockoffs? Does it matter that there's tons of 50s architecture all over the country? Does it matter if you remember when modernism was new? Sound off by clicking on "Comments" below.

Comments

[Deborah Johnson]

I don't know whether this stuff is "worth" preserving. What I do think is that at some point our predecessors probably thought the stuff we now revere was old and outmoded, so I am willing to question my own impressions. This has come up a couple of times recently in Olympia, our capital city, where I am currently a planning commissioner. One 1950 building that is listed is an old Christian Science church, now used as an art school. See photo at . This was before us for rezoning in the recent past. The state is also looking at demo'ing the modernist General Administration bldg. on the Capitol campus. See photo/article at . It is not listed. Even if the building is not saved, there's a cool mural inside that is worth keeping.

Also, I recently visited Palm Springs, which it turns out has a society dedicated to modernist preservation (they call it "Desert Modern"). See .

[Deborah Johnson]

All the links were stripped out of previous posting.

[Christopher Swope]

Here's Deborah's links:

Christian Science church: http://www.mariahartschool.org/location.html

General Administration building:
http://www.theolympian.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060728/NEWS/607280328

Palm Springs Modernist Committee:
http://www.psmodcom.com/buildings.html

[Christopher Swope]

What's interesting is how our own impressions change over time. Five years ago, I think I might've hated that General Administration building in Olympia. Now, I find myself liking the lines and proportion of it.