HOLLYWOOD SIGNS: THE GOLDEN AGE OF GLITTERING GRAPHICS AND GLOWING NEON

Hollywood Signs: The Golden Age of Glittering Graphics And Glowing Neon

We recently discovered a book called Hollywood Signs: The Golden Age of Glittering Graphics and Glowing Neon. What an absolute treat for design and Hollywood history fans alike. While we at Modern Living LA tend to focus on houses and buildings, these iconic signs play a pivotal roll in our appreciation of the structures they adorn. Great design lies at the intersection of architecture and these historic signs.

Several of these signs were actually created by the architectural firms commissioned to design the buildings. The still standing Cinerama Dome Theater by Welton Becket and Associates exhibits its playfully colorful letters in bright lights. Sardi’s restaurant designed by Rudolph Schindler displays an elegant neon sign in sans serif font. The streamline moderne Earl Carroll Theater on Sunset Blvd by Gordon Kaufman generously used neon in the exterior signs and vertical piping along the building sides. We’re told it is going thru a renovation and may reopen. The building was originally praised in California Arts and Architecture (the predecessor to Arts and Architecture magazine).

We have a new found appreciation for these remarkable sign and value the efforts made to save the ones we’ve not lost. And, a special thanks to Kathy Kikkert for preserving all of these signs on the pages of her book.

THIS WAY FOR MORE INFORMATION | THIS WAY TO MORE “LIFE | STYLE”


If you would like to know more about this amazing home, contact Brian Courville at 310-622-0312. Or, for additional Mid-Century Modern | Architectural homesSpanish homes, Historic Los Angeles homes or Classic Los Angeles homes for sale reach us by email at: Brian Courville. If you are considering selling, contact us for a free no-obligation home valuation.

INVENTING LA: THE CHANDLERS AND THEIR TIMES

We love good L.A. history. And, this one is quite a doozy. The family that ran the Los Angeles Times for decades wielded a powerful hand in shaping the city as we know it today. We’d recommend this documentary for anyone who calls L.A their home. 


If you would like to know more, call 310.622.0312 or email Brian Courville. Whether Mid Century ArchitecturalSpanishLuxury, or Classic Los Angeles design, MODERN LIVING LA is here to guide you home. Follow us on Instagram @modernlivingla

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1000 Chairs published by Taschen

1000 Chairs. Revised and updated edition

Sometimes we take for granted something so basic as the chair we sit on day after day.

Sit back, relax, and survey some of the most iconic chairs in history. A must for design addicts and collectors alike, this dependable compendium presents each chair alongside essential information about the designer and their work, from Alvar Aalto to Eva Zeisel, from Art Nouveau to International Style. This recently refurbished edition traverses archetypal seats of the 1800s right up to the most innovative designs of today.

The ultimate reference book for anyone interested in knowing the what, where, who, why and how of the most iconic chairs from the last two centuries.” Red Magazine

From the 1,800’s to today, this collection outlines the modern history of your favorite seating designs along with some you’ve yet to discover.


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If you would like to know more, call 310.622.0312 or email Brian Courville. Whether Mid Century ArchitecturalSpanishLuxury, or Classic Los Angeles design, MODERN LIVING LA is here to guide you home. Follow us on Instagram @modernlivingla

Designated one of the Top 7 real estate websites for modern homes in the world by thespaces.com

Julius Shulman | Modernism Rediscovered published by Taschen

The Master of Modern | Discoveries from the Julius Shulman vaults


The undisputed heavy weight of architectural photography, Shulman’s library of photos seems never ending. The “forgotten” masterpieces in this collection pay tribute to some lesser known but incredibly important modern homes with a focus on Southern California.

The photographs of Julius Shulman offer one of the most compelling visual chronologies of architectural modernism. This book offers privileged access to Shulman’s extraordinary archives with some 200 images paying homage to the multifarious forms of modernism across California and the rest of the United States.

THIS WAY BACK to MORE “THINGS WE LIKE”…

If you would like to know more, call 310.622.0312 or email Brian Courville. Whether Mid Century ArchitecturalSpanishLuxury, or Classic Los Angeles design, MODERN LIVING LA is here to guide you home. Follow us on Instagram @modernlivingla

Designated one of the Top 7 real estate websites for modern homes in the world by thespaces.com

Studio ko | Yves Saint Laurent Museum Marrakech | by Karl Fournier and Olivier Marty

A fascinating account of the story of the Yves Saint Laurent Museum in Marrakech – and a gorgeous homage to creativity

Conceived as a candid diary, this remarkable book documents the 1,423 days that it took to design, build, and inaugurate a beloved architecture and fashion destination. From the moment the up-and-coming French-Moroccan practice Studio KO received a call from YSL’s longtime partner Pierre Bergé to the opening of the museum’s doors in 2017, one month after Bergé died, the entire process of bringing the building to life – its commission, the creative process behind it, and its construction – is told and illustrated here as never before.
ORDER THE BOOK HERE


If you would like to know more, call 310.622.0312 or email Brian Courville. Whether Mid Century ArchitecturalSpanishLuxury, or Classic Los Angeles design, MODERN LIVING LA is here to guide you home. Follow us on Instagram @modernlivingla

Designated one of the Top 7 real estate websites for modern homes in the world by thespaces.com

EXPANDING FIELD OF ARCHITECTURE | WOMEN IN PRACTICE ACROSS THE GLOBE | by Marcia Feuerstein, Jodi La Coe and Paola Zellner Bassett

MAY 26th, 2022 | Publication Date

This book documents contemporary architectural projects designed by women architects participating in diverse forms of practice in diverse regions around the world. Examining each design within its unique context, this collection of forty projects includes beautifully illustrated case studies of transformative buildings, encompassing a range of sizes, building types, materials, and construction methods. Overcoming historical challenges within architectural practice, the women architects in this collection lead their firms and expand the field of architecture.  

ORDER THE BOOK HERE

If you would like to know more, call 310.622.0312 or email Brian Courville. Whether Mid Century ArchitecturalSpanishLuxury, or Classic Los Angeles design, MODERN LIVING LA is here to guide you home. Follow us on Instagram @modernlivingla

Designated one of the Top 7 real estate websites for modern homes in the world by thespaces.com