#407/Men About Town: Christopher Kennedy + Kip Serafin + Kurt Cyr

Joining us today is architectural historian Sian Winship; Minnesota’s MVP for midcentury modern, Bobak Ha’Eri; Spencer Luckey on his playgrounds, and music by jazz pianist Lenore Raphael.  

From poolside at the swanky USModernist compound during Modernism Week, we’re all about two architects: Chicago’s Mies van der Rohe with guests Iveta Cerna, director of the Villa Tugendhat in Brno, Czech Republic; and Mies’s grandson, architect Dirk Lohan. Later on, we’ll hear from Max Strang, archivist of Gene Leedy and his impressive Florida architecture. 

This week is the close of a wildly popular exhibition at the National Building Museum in Washington DC called Capital Brutalism, the history of DC’s best Modernist buildings.  With us is Executive Director Aileen Fuchs and head curator Angela Person.  Heading to California, we’ll hear what happened to a couple who went all-in on prefab, which is great, but then their prefab company went belly up, which is not.  Later on, special musical guest Madeleine Peyroux dances us to the end of love. 

From poolside in Palm Springs during Modernism Week 2025, today’s guests are authors Chris Rawlins on Fire Island’s Horace Gifford, Donald Luxton on Vancouver’s Arthur Erickson, and recorded at the PRP4 DOCOMOMO conference in Boston, David Fixler. 

When you hear about architect Mies van der Rohe and his famous Farnsworth House in Plano Illinois, little is said of the client.  Today you’ll learn the real story of Dr. Edith Farnsworth from author Nora Wendl, we talk with Todd Gannon about architect Frank Israel, plus authors Kevin Murphy and Mary Anne Hunting on women architects in the early days of Modernism. Later on, tacos with musical guest Gabrielle Stravelli. 

From poolside at the swanky USModernist compound in Palm Springs, today’s guests are the three distinguished men about town. Need a midcentury sofa in green tomorrow?  How about a tour for 25?  Or a private cocktail party at the Dinah Shore house?  Who are you gonna call?  As the expression goes, we got a guy, actually three guys, who make these wonderful kinds of things happen. 

From watches to undersea lodges to 21st century architecture, we’ll step outside the box a bit today to talk exquisite timepieces with  Ben Rousseau, underwater house pioneer Ian Koblick, and architect John Jennifer Marx.  

From poolside at Modernism Week 2025, we’ll talk with Colin Flavin, Halsey Smith, and Tim Techler on the architecture of Walter Gropius in Massachusetts and William Krisel in Palm Springs. Back in the studio, San Diego’s top Modernist realtor and ardent preservationist Keith York has a new book on Craig Ellwood -- and Alexandra Bregman hunts for a Philip Johnson house. UPDATE: A previous version of this episode gave the incorrect location for Tim Techler's practice. He is based in Newton MA. 

Today on the show number 404, architects Celeste Robbins, Grant Kirkpatrick, and Duan Tran, and podcast host Lisa Gralnek. Plus the wit and wisdom of Modernist homeowner, Burt Reynolds!

From poolside at the swanky USModernist compound in Palm Springs during Modernism Week 2025, we will meet Steve Treinen, with a new book on the Indian Canyons area in Palm Springs, plus Palm Springs architect James Cioffi, who sheds light on a pervasive myth.  Back in the studio, we’ll hear from author Helen Thompson on Aspen plus lovely tunes from musical guest Champian Fulton.