Venice Eclectic: Modern Architecture from the '70S and '80S
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G ROSE AVE. PALMS BLVD. LAKE ST. PACIFIC COAST HIGHWAY LINCOLN PLACE PENMAR AVE. LOOK FOR STREET PALMS BLVD. PARKING ON PENMAR 1 ROSE AVE. HAMPTON DR. MAIN ST. MODERN ARCHITECTURE FROM THE ’70s AND ’80s 2 BROOKS AVE. B INDIANA AVE. C 3 A SUNSET AVE. D SPEEDWAY PACIFIC AVE. ABBOT KINNEY BLVD. 6 8 7 CABRILLO AVE. 9 P E 10 SAN JUAN AVE. 11 MAIN ST. F MARKET ST. ANDALUSIAAVE. RIALTO AVE. ABBOT WINDWARD AVE. KINNEY 4 GRAND BLVD. 12 BLVD. 5 POST OFFICE 13 SHORT LINE S. VENICE BLVD. N. VENICE BLVD. CANALS OCEAN FRONT WALK PACIFIC AVE. 14 15 W. WASHINGTON BLVD. This tour is presented as part of About Curating the City: Significant events that helped to shape Modern Architecture in L.A. the Venice of the 1970s and ‘80s Curating the City: Modern 1905 Venice of America officially opens Architecture in L.A. treats Greater 1906 Short Line canals open south of Los Angeles as a living museum, Venice Boulevard using public programming and an interactive website to interpret the 1911 Pacific Electric railway takes over story of L.A. modernism in different Venice Short Line route ways. Launched originally in 2005 1920 Venice founder Abbot Kinney dies as Curating the City: Wilshire Major support for Curating the City: 1925 City of Venice becomes part of the Boulevard (curatingthecity.org), this Modern Architecture in L.A. has been City of Los Angeles broad-based educational approach provided by the Getty Foundation. 1929 Venice of America canals filled with encourages the ongoing exploration dirt and appreciation of L.A.’s unique This booklet was produced in built environment. Complete details Oil discovered on Venice Peninsula conjunction with a tour and panel on all programs can be found at Great Depression begins discussion held on April 20, 2013. laconservancy.org/modern. 1950 Pacific Electric railway abandons Tour curated by: Venice Short Line route – Trolley Way Curating the City is part of Trudi Sandmeier and LAC staff. becomes Pacific Avenue Pacific Standard Time Presents: Photography by: Venice begins to be called the “slum Modern Architecture in L.A. This Larry Underhill, unless otherwise by the sea” collaboration, initiated by the noted. Getty, brings together seventeen 1962- Close to 550 “blighted” buildings Design by: Future Studio. 1965 demolished local cultural institutions from April through July 2013 for a 1965 Marina Del Rey dedicated Special thanks to Charles Arnoldi, wide-ranging look at the postwar Lucia Dewey Atwood, Gay Brewer 1968 Free Venice Beachhead published, built environment of the city as a a newspaper dedicated to and Continuum, Juan Bruce and whole, from its famous residential reestablishing Venice as an Epoxy Inc., Edward Cella, City of Los architecture to its vast freeway independent city Angeles Office of Historic Resources/ network, revealing the city’s SurveyLA, John Crosse, Steven 1971 The Argonaut begins publishing a development and ongoing impact in Ehrlich, John Ellis, Frederick Fisher, weekly local newspaper for beach new ways. Todd Gannon, Jonathan Kaplan, cities Carol Lewis, Katherine Metz, Cedd Sylmar earthquake measures 6.6 Use of these school premises has been on the Richter scale – new seismic Moses, Ed Moses, Brian Murphy, granted pursuant to the provisions of regulations implemented Daniel Paul, Jeffrey Stanton, and Sections 17400, et seq., of the Education all the Los Angeles Conservancy Code of the State of California to Los 1972 California Coastal Commission volunteers who participated in this Angeles Conservancy from the Board of established (jurisdiction extends event. Education of the Los Angeles Unified School inland to Lincoln Boulevard) District. The Board of Education does not sponsor or take responsibility, nor does it Venice portion of bicycle path necessarily endorse any of the activities, constructed statements, or opinions which may be Southern California Institute of expressed at this meeting or activity. Architecture (SCI-Arc) established in Santa Monica 1973 Venice Town Council formed 1973- OPEC oil embargo and energy crisis About the Los Angeles Conservancy 1974 – inflation spikes and slows real The Los Angeles Conservancy is a membership-based nonprofit organization estate market dramatically that works through advocacy and education to recognize, preserve, and revitalize the historic architectural and cultural resources of Los Angeles 1978 Title 24 enacted mandating energy County. The Conservancy was formed in 1978 as part of the community- efficiency in buildings based effort to prevent demolition of the Los Angeles Central Library. Venice declared “roller skating capital It is now the largest local historic preservation organization in the U.S., with of the world” over 6,000 members and hundreds of volunteers. 1979 The pop-up Architecture Gallery For more information, visit laconservancy.org. exists for nine weeks 1984 Olympic marathon route includes Los Angeles Conservancy Pacific Avenue 523 West Sixth Street, Suite 826 Southern Pacific railroad begins to Los Angeles, CA 90014 sell parcels along the Electric Avenue 213.623.2489 right-of-way laconservancy.org 1989 West Washington Boulevard renamed © 2013 Los Angeles Conservancy. All rights reserved. Abbot Kinney Boulevard VENICE ECLECTIC: A Context for Venice n 1905, Venice of America was born. The brainchild of The Venice section of the beachside bike path and Ocean entrepreneur Abbot Kinney, the seaside resort modeled Front Walk helped make the area into a tourism mecca again. Ion Venice, Italy was one of Southern California’s earliest In 1977, local entrepreneur Jeff Rosenberg started a roller themed environments. A series of canals, a main lagoon, and skate rental company called Cheapskates. Soon, people skat- an oceanfront pier formed a hub of amusements, including ing in bathing suits were such a common sight that in 1978, dance pavilions, roller coasters, bath houses, and eateries. A Mayor Bradley declared Venice to be the “roller skating capital second smaller set of canals (known as the Short Line canals) of the world.” was built just to the south. Hotels, rental cottages, and tent Venice was also attracting the attention of young architects cities were built to serve the patrons. The Pacific Electric railway looking for clients willing to experiment and push the bound- brought tourists from around the city, and Venice became a aries. For nine weeks in 1979 in an apartment in the heart of thriving beach resort. Venice, SCI-Arc faculty member Thom Mayne turned his spare The early heyday of Venice lasted only twenty years. After bedroom into a pop-up art gallery. The Architecture Gallery Kinney’s death in 1920, the city eventually voted to join the was dedicated to the idea that architecture IS art, and it was City of Los Angeles, ceding local control to the burgeoning the first of its kind in Los Angeles. The work exhibited and metropolis. In 1929, with the rise in automobile traffic, the the publicity it generated resonated throughout the city, but original Venice of America canals were filled in to provide especially in Venice with its supply of vacant lots, inexpensive streets and better parking, removing one of the resort’s sig- land, and creative residents. Architects began to adaptively nature elements. The Depression hit, reducing the amount of reuse existing buildings and design eclectic infill structures and discretionary income Angelenos could spend on amusements. experimental additions throughout Venice. In the 1980s, as the Oil was discovered in the southern part of Venice, and soon the economy improved, architects were commissioned to design area was riddled with oil derricks. By the 1950s, Venice had the buildings that reflected the artistic community, finding creative nickname “Slum by the Sea.” ways to push architectural boundaries on the small lots avail- Venice, with its faded glamour and cheap rent, became able. Venice is filled with the early work of architects who have home to a creative mixture of beatniks, hippies, and artists of since gone on to design distinguished, award-winning projects all types. In 1961, local business and property owners, seeking around the world. to “clean up” the city, formed the Venice Planning Committee. This group of avant garde architects has been labeled as This group, in a thinly disguised effort to eradicate the “radical the Santa Monica School or more famously, the L.A. School. fringe element” from Venice, recommended that the City of Los According to architectural critic and academic Charles Jencks, Angeles begin a rigorous agenda of building code inspections. ”The L.A. School was, and remains, a group of individual- These inspections identified over 1,000 buildings that needed to ized mavericks, more at home together in an exhibition than be either significantly repaired or demolished altogether. Own- in each other’s homes. There is also a particular self-image ers who could not afford to make the changes were unable to involved with this Non-School which exacerbates the situation. get loans and were forced to demolish their buildings. By 1965, All of its members see themselves as outsiders, on the margins, close to 550 “blighted” buildings had been demolished, includ- challenging the establishment with an informal and demand- ing many of the original turn-of-the-century Venice of America ing architecture; one that must be carefully read.” (Heteropolis, buildings. Empty parcels were scattered throughout Venice. 1993) Venice grew slowly in 1970s – in part due to the economic In her seminal 1961 book The Death and Life of Great challenges of the oil embargo of 1973-74 and its resulting American Cities, Jane Jacobs penned some essential truths economic impact, and in part due to community activists who about urban planning. Crucial to the success of any urban promoted a slow-growth agenda. In 1972, in neighboring area is diversity—including economic, ethnic, and architectural Santa Monica, the Southern California Institute of Architecture diversity: “..