Careers >> Browse Articles >> Architecture
Postcards from Palm Springs: Modern Gems in the Desert
Featured Author:
Michael DiTullo
Michael DiTullo is currently a design director at Converse. His team is responsible for a wide range of products, from on-court performance footwear for athletes like Dwyane Wade to lifestyle and retro products. Previously DiTullo has been a footwear designer in the Brand Jordan and Sport Culture divisions of Nike, where he designed industry leading footwear and bags. Prior to joining Nike, Michael was a designer at Evo Design, where clients included Burton, Bose, VTech, Samsonite, Kodak, and Chantal among others.
Michael graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design, attended the Cleveland Institute of Art on exchange and studied design in Milan. Michael has won numerous design awards, freelances actively, teaches from time to time, can sketch an ’82 Fire Bird from memory, owns enough shoes and watches to match them with T-Shirts, and geeks out on design way more than anyone should. In his free time, he is a contributor for core77. He has also lectured on design process at at universities, art schools, and corporations such as The Columbus College of Art and Design, The Rhode Island School of Design, and Adobe. His work will be featured in several upcoming books. DiTullo lives on the outskirts of Portland with his wife Kristina, who is a painter, and their dog, Louie, who is spoiled. http://michaelditullo.com/
More articles from this author:
Michael DiTullo & Kristina DiTullo
Next we headed over to the North side of town—the Elizabeth Park neighborhood—made up of over 20 blocks of Alexander-built homes, many designed by Donald Wexler. Originally constructed as affordable housing and vacation homes, lots of these small houses are not insulated, but have huge, classic swimming pools. Many are extremely run down and dilapidated; it’s an odd sight to see the future in disrepair. And as little as 4 years ago you could pick up one of these butterfly-roofed beauties for under $100,000. They have recently come into vogue, however. (30-something LA folks who can’t afford houses in LA, but who can get a piece of mid-century modern for a song.) So about 25% have been beautifully renovated, and those go for an average of just under a half a million. But you get that pool.
Driving away from town we stumbled upon some of the tour highlights of the Dwell Conference. To our surprise, the magazine was not only there for the classic homes; Dwell was promoting what some builders were calling New Century Architecture. On the outskirts of town, a half-dozen new developments are under construction, taking the best from contemporary urban planning and accessible design, but staying true to the roots of Palm Springs. To us, they look straight out of a Mies van der Rohe sketchbook.
Just a bit farther, we took a few minutes and pulled over to walk through the windmill farm. We had never seen one this big in the United States, and the mills tower over you. Some are brand new and gleaming, others from the 1970’s. From the ground, they seem arranged in random rows and formations; we go ahead get lost among them.
Another 45 minutes drive and we’re in the Joshua Tree National Park. We planned to stay for a couple of hours, but the natural wonder changed our minds. The moon was full that night, and the park was breathtaking. Peaceful, serene, perfect.
On our last day, we dropped into the Palm Springs Art Museum. (It is an awkward, Brutalist structure, but the collection boasted a Rothko, Duane Hanson, and several Helen Lundeberg’s. The Jim Isermann piece as you ascend the stairs is amazing.) And here’s the irony: At the time we were there, the Museum had a show of modern architecture from around the world, packed with architects’ sketches and huge models. A fitting bookend to an inspiring vacation.
