SOCIETY OF ARCHITECTURAL HISTORIANS

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHAPTER

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SOCIETY OF ARCHITECTURAL HISTORIANS

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHAPTER

JOIN

SOCIETY OF ARCHITECTURAL HISTORIANS

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHAPTER

JOIN

THE SOCIETY OF ARCHITECTURAL HISTORIANS

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHAPTER

JOIN

SOCIETY OF ARCHITECTURAL HISTORIANS

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA CHAPTER

JOIN

Author: Brent Eckerman

Murphy & Hess on Googie: SAH/SCC Zoom Presentation

Come explore the architectural drawings of Googie masters Armet Davis Newlove and celebrate the publication of the new book Googie Modern (Angel City Press, 2022) by Michael Murphy and Alan Hess, both of whom will join us for this program. Googie Modern, conceived, curated, and designed by Michael Murphy, is a feast of mid-century modern design. Each […]

Jack Rogers Hopkins: SAH/SCC Zoom Presentation

Please join SAH/SCC as we explore the life and work of designer-craftsman Jack Rogers Hopkins. The book Jack Rogers Hopkins: California Design Maverick (Sam and Alfreda Maloof Foundation for Arts and Crafts, 2022), edited by Jeffrey Head and Katie Nartonis, brings together more than 95 historical photos of Hopkins’ eclectic and visionary sculptural works, with […]

An Unlikely Modernism – Bakersfield Built: SAH/SCC Zoom Presentation

Join SAH/SCC Board Member David Coffey as he takes us to an unlikely place for a modernist mecca: Bakersfield, California. David Coffey is the owner of Richard Neutra’s Davis House, curator of the Frank Lloyd Wright Ablin House and founder of Bakersfield Built—a celebration of Bakersfield’s modernist architecture that takes place every five years. Built […]

Oest on LA Public Housing: SAH/SCC Zoom Presentation

Join us for a new lens on public housing history in Los Angeles, as scholar Nicole Krup Oest shares her PhD thesis for the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Zurich. Her fascinating thesis-turned-book, Photography and Modern Public Housing in Los Angeles (Heidelberg University Library, 2021), looks at how photography shaped public perceptions […]

Wyeth on Welz: SAH/SCC Zoom Presentation

Join SAH/SCC for a virtual program with author and filmmaker Peter Wyeth, whose string of discoveries excavated from the most fragmentary evidence has uncovered the architecture career of perhaps the leading South African painter, Jean Welz. The Lost Architecture of Jean Welz (DoppelHouse, 2022) chronicles the mystery of Welz’s virtual absence in the architectural record […]

Long on Peters: SAH/SCC Zoom Presentation

Be sure to join us for another dynamic lecture by scholar and historian Christopher Long from University of Texas at Austin, as he turns his attention to the little-known architect and designer Jock Peters (1889-1934). Long’s new book, Jock Peters, Architecture and Design: The Varieties of Modernism (Bauer and Dean, 2021), is the first monograph […]

Ettinger on Neutra in Latin America: SAH/SCC Zoom Presentation

Please join us for a program coinciding with the publication of the English-language version of Catherine Rose Ettinger’s 2018 book Richard Neutra: Encounters with Latin America (Arquitónica). While many people are familiar with the architect’s legacy in Southern California, far fewer have explored his work in Latin America. Neutra’s experiences in the southern countries greatly influenced his […]

Tremaine Patronage: SAH/SCC Program

Join SAH/SCC on our second post-pandemic on-site event to get an insider’s look at the exhibition “From Riggs to Neutra and Niemeyer: Tremaine Houses, 1936–1977” at the AD&A Museum at UC Santa Barbara. Our tour guide will be the exhibition curator, SAH/SCC Life Member Volker M. Welter. who is also the author of Tremaine Houses: One […]

Schwartzman on Arts & Crafts: SAH/SCC Zoom Presentation

SAH/SCC welcomes author, filmmaker, and graphic designer Arnold Schwartzman to share about his new book, Arts & Crafts: From William Morris to Frank Lloyd Wright (Palazzo Editions, 2021). The book focuses on a group of British and American craftsmen who vehemently rejected the mass production of the Industrial Revolution. William Morris, Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Frank Lloyd Wright, […]

Griffith Observatory: Hollywood’s Celestial Theater: SAH/SCC Zoom Presentation

Join SAH/SCC for another exciting Zoom presentation by favorite speaker and SAH/SCC Member Stuart W. (Bill) Leslie. This time, Leslie will talk about the architecture of a Los Angeles icon: Griffith Observatory (John C. Austin and Frederic M. Ashley, 1935; Levin and Associates Architects/Pfeiffer Partners, 2006). Leslie maintains that Griffith Observatory has never been apologetic […]

Svetlana Petrović

Working in support of SAH/SCC for more than twenty years, Svetlana is an art director and graphic designer living and working between Los Angeles, California and Belgrade, Serbia. She designs our quarterly newsletter and is also responsible for our beautiful new website which was created by her and her partner’s design and build agency, CATCH ME CREATIVE.

Agnie Agostino

Angie Agostino, the owner of AgostinoCreative, has been working in the multimedia industry providing graphic design, photography, social media and interactive projects for over 20 years. She has also teamed up with author Jeffrey Crider and the two of them have published several books focusing on the history of various cities in the southern California region — many, of which, have recently been added to the Library of Congress.

Julie D. Taylor, Hon. AIA

Julie is Founder/Principal of Taylor & Company, a company providing public relations and marketing services to professionals and organizations involved in architecture, design, and furnishings. A self-described “design evangelist,” she has written three books including Spa: The Sensuous Experience (2006); Bars, Pubs, and Cafes (2000); and Outdoor Rooms (1999), in addition to countless articles on design, architecture, marketing, and art. Julie has been editor of SAH/SCC News since 1998, and was the West Coast correspondent for ArchNewsNow.com. She is a frequent guest lecturer on marketing architectural services at conferences and universities. Julie is on the advisory board of USModernist, and was the co-founderof CANstruction LA. She was given honorary AIA/LA membership in December 2007 and received an Allied Professions Achievement Honor from AIA California Council in 2012. Julie was the 2014-2016 Public Director on the National AIA Board of Directors and was granted national honorary AIA status in 2018.

Lilian Pfaff

Lilian Pfaff, Ph.D. is an award-winning author, educator, curator, and real estate agent at MODERN CALIFORNIA HOUSE. She earned her Master in Art History from University of Hamburg, her Master of Advanced Studies in Architectural Theory from ETH Zuerich and her Ph.D. in Architecture History from the University of Zuerich. She is the author of J.R. Davidson (Birkhauser, 2019), Escher GuneWardena (Birkhauser, 2017), and numerous other books and articles. She is a member of the adjunct faculty at Cal Poly Pomona, Pasadena City College and Woodbury University—teaching architectural history and theory. She is a board member of the HPOZ Board Highland Park – Garvanza.

David Coffey

David Coffey is the owner of Richard Neutra’s Davis House (1937) in Bakersfield, CA, as well as the steward/caretaker of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Ablin House (1959). He has curated and produced multiple historical architecture events in Bakersfield, including “Masters of Modernism: Neutra & Wright in Bakersfield” with SAH/SCC’s Sian Winship in October 2009, and “Bakersfield Built: 1930s” in conjunction with CSUB’s celebration of the 75th anniversary of the publication of John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath.  Other programs with the Bakersfield Museum of Art, CSUB Library Special Collections Department, and the Kern County Museum to curate and produce “Bakersfield Built: 1960s” in September of 2019 and Bakersfield Built the 1950’s in September of 2024. He is working with the University of Uruguay in Montevideo on ongoing programs promoting the rich modernist building in Uruguay titled Montevideo Modernism.  He is a board member of the Bakersfield Museum of Art and is currently on its Exhibition Committee. David grew up in Cincinnati, OH, and graduated from the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music with a BA in electronic media.

Jean Baaden

Jean Baaden has worked in the building industry since 1987. From commercial general contractors to custom builders, she is proud to have contributed to projects like Terminal 2 (removal of the ‘bubble’ satellite terminal) at LAX, the historic renovation of the Kaufmann House, LAUSD upgrades, and the largest residential swimming pool at 420 linear feet. Jean is eager to continue expediting issues with the Los Angeles Mayor’s office, collaborating with creative teams, and making a difference in rebuilding the city through Boyd Contracting. Outside of work, Jean enjoys hiking hidden trails & staircases, swimming, quality cinema, spending time with family & friends, clean gourmet food, LA’s historic sites, and music in the parks. She looks forward to continuing her travels in Europe as well as exploring sites across the United States.

Brent Eckerman

Internet Editor

Brent Eckerman is an architect who has worked in Los Angeles for the past forty-one years. He received his architectural degree from Cal Poly Pomona. During his career, he spent many years as a Senior Associate at Frederick Fisher and Partners in Los Angeles. He currently works for VTBS Architects in Santa Monica. He has an interest in Modern Architecture and particularly in Mid-Century Modernism. Brent also has a strong background in computer technology and acted as the driving force behind the SAH/SCC Website. 

Rina Rubenstien

Membership

Rina Rubenstein’s family came to Los Angeles a century ago. Her father, a landscaper who took her to his construction sites including UCLA, JPL, & Century City, instilled in her a strong connection with the built environment of Southern California. After high school, Rina moved to Israel to work on a kibbutz, milking cows and weeding cotton. While studying Biblical Archaeology & Classical Art History at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, she worked summers on excavations and winters in the Israel Museum. Since then, she has held mostly library and information management positions. Rina was Treasurer of a SAH/SCC for several years. She lives in a 1913 Craftsman home in West Adams, where she’s active in neighborhood affairs. 

John Berley

Treasurer

John Berley has been a Board Member since 1994 and was President of the SAH/SCC from 1996 to 1999. He is a former Senior Associate at Frederick Fisher and Partners, Architects and for 14 years served as a Landmarks Commissioner for the City of Santa Monica (2003-2017). John has been responsible for rehabilitation projects including the Annenberg Community Beach House (2009), Grand Central Air Terminal (Henry Gogerty, 1930), as well as the Sunnylands Center and Gardens in Rancho Mirage.  Over the years, John has created such memorable SAH/SCC programs as On Parallel Lines: The Sarasota School of Architecture and the Case Study House Program; Creative Space: Architects Offices, and Beyond the Bauhaus: The Legacy of Walter Gropius in Boston. He is also the leader of the ongoing Modern Patrons series, which offers thoughtful dialogue with homeowners who commissioned the modern masters. Additionally, He has written on the early influence of Irving Gill, A. Quincy Jones, and the Post-War development of Modern Architecture in America.

Jay Platt

Vice President

Jay Platt is the Principal Planner for Historic Preservation with the City of Glendale Community Development Department. He is also an Adjunct Associate Professor in the Heritage Conservation program at USC.  Over the last thirty years, Jay has served in various roles in the public, private, non-profit, and education sectors in New York City, Philadelphia, and his hometown, Los Angeles.  And, most days, he’s still into it!  He received his undergraduate degree from UCLA and an M.S. in Historic Preservation from the University of Pennsylvania.  He and his wife Kathleen enjoy life in Eagle Rock with a couple of amusing beagles.

Sian Winship

President

As a member of the SAH/SCC Board for the past twenty eight years, Sian Winship has created numerous educational programs celebrating modern residential architecture in Southern California and across the country. In 2011, Sian earned her Masters of Historic Preservation (MHP) from USC. Sian is the author of the award-winning Japanese American Context and Women’s Right’s Context for SurveyLA. She has also authored a number of successful National Register nominations including the Bakersfield Woman’s Club, A.Q. Jones Residence #3, the St. Vincent Seminary Historic District. She has researched and written historic context statements for Ventura, Bakersfield, Paramount, and was the principal author of the award-winning Long Beach Suburbanization and Race Context Statement. She is also on the board of the Neutra Institute for Survival Through Design. She is an adjunct professor in the Heritage Conservation Program at USC.