Atomic Ranch Editor Jickie Torres joins us to talk Palm Springs, modernism, and the 75th anniversary of the Hollin Hills House and Garden Tour, now the largest mid-century modern home event on the East Coast. Touring architecture has been around as long as the Coliseum, but we're in a new era of architecture as tourism, with an economic impact we're just starting to understand.
https://www.hollinhillsmodern.com
https://modernismweek.com
https://www.atomic-ranch.com
https://www.eichlerhometour.org
Atomic Ranch Editor Jickie Torres joins us to talk Palm Springs, modernism, and the 75th anniversary of the Hollin Hills House and Garden Tour, now the largest mid-century modern home event on the East Coast. Touring architecture has been around as long as the Coliseum, but we're in a new era of architecture as tourism, with an economic impact we're just starting to understand.
https://www.hollinhillsmodern.com
https://modernismweek.com
https://www.atomic-ranch.com
https://www.eichlerhometour.org
Hi everybody, welcome to no Show. I'm Matt Brown, joined as always by Jeff Borman, and today's episode is inspired by something very personal. One of the most beautiful neighborhoods in America is located just outside of Alexandria, virginia Holland Hills, and in a few days from this recording, holland Hills will host. In a few days from this recording, holland Hills will host an enormously popular and long-running house and garden tour. This year, may 4th celebrates the 75th anniversary of the neighborhood, now the largest mid-century modern home event on the East Coast. It was the first community in America to be made up entirely of contemporary homes.
Matt Brown:It's a 326-acre neighborhood south of Old Town that was built roughly from the late 40s to the early 1970s by developer Robert Davenport and architect Charles Goodman. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2013 and it is a Virginia landmark historic district. One of the homes in Holland Hills is owned by Jeff and his wife, heather, and when they bought this house 20 odd years ago, I was agog. I couldn't believe it. It is a wonderland of straight lines, glass walls and unrepentant ring-a-ding-ding charm. Jeff, how did you land this place?
Jeff Borman:Good luck and an even better friend. I will tell you we did not have the neighborhood in mind, as so many people do. There's a wait list to go by now. Heather and I saw it for the first time at a real estate listing, drove there and literally bought it on the spot Best investment, best decision and the whole thing took about 30 minutes.
Jeff Borman:The first Holland Hills House and Garden Tour was in 1953. It was a madly avant-garde showcase of glass houses set in the woods. It was at the time a radical curiosity in Washington DC in an era of center hall, colonial design and Cold War, wholesome family values and the greatest generation was just bringing the boomers into the world. And all of a sudden, here it is, this very strange group of eclectic artists and people who were willing to live without shades, right Without blinds, and just open themselves up, both bringing the indoors out and the outdoor. In the event's a fundraiser to protect the architectural integrity and the public spaces like the acres and acres of park. It takes 100 volunteers and a combined 1,000 hours from the neighborhood to pull this off. I have about 2,000 tickets sold out in just a couple of days back in November. It's sold out in just a couple of days back in November. It has an educational aspect to show off mid-century modern architecture from modern or contemporary, it's true mid-century.
Matt Brown:This got us thinking about the growing business of architectural tourism Touring. Architecture has been around as long as the Coliseum, but we are in a new era of architecture as tourism and, of course, modernism. Week in Palm Springs has heralded that era Over 100,000 attendees, 350 events, 55 million in the local economy. And to help us unpack how the future began, today we are welcoming Jiki Torres. Jiki is Director of Content for Engaged Media. She's editor of Atomic Ranch, she is author of Atomic Ranch, remodeled Marvels and she is an uncontested expert on clean lines, cool surfaces, sweeping views. Jiki, welcome to no Show.
Jickie Torres:Thank you for having me. I'm so excited to be here.
Matt Brown:Let's start at the start. What is Atomic Ranch and how long has it been around?
Jickie Torres:So Atomic Ranch that term specifically refers to sort of this post-war architectural boom that happened. That addressed two things. One was that you've got this kind of class of architects who were challenging the status quo, which at this time, the status quo was architecture from the Victorian era and even as recent as the craftsman era. And two, they were also looking for ways in this kind of post-war era to elevate or use, or make an argument for the use of different types of materials for home building that were much easier to be mass produced. So we're talking about things like steel and glass, the things that allow for these huge windows and expansive use to take place.
Jickie Torres:So it was kind of an experiment in kind of material, but it was also addressing this concept of their concept of this is the way we should be living now as this post-war society. This is the way architecture needs to change to address the ways that we are, you know, living as families. You know, you look at some of these which, mind you, some of these designs emerged from the 30s, the 20s. They were so far ahead of their time that even as we look at them today in 2024, a lot of these designs are still radical and they're still futuristic looking. So I think there's this kind of general awe and curiosity around that.
Jeff Borman:Architecture, in many ways, is the highest form of art. Right, you can actually live in that artwork. What's different about the demographic? What's unique about the attendees? The following is incredible who are these people?
Jickie Torres:who are, who are we? We are, um, we are people who um. Well, so you're very engaged, because this is a scarce commodity, right, the ability to get into these houses which, as you say, have survived not only the test of time but the test of you know, sort of design gentrification, if you will, especially in the last handful of years, where the value of property is outrageous and you're talking about structures that are 70 plus years old, structures, again, if you're looking at what the masses describe as luxury and noteworthiness, it really goes against the grain. Whether you're a fan of modernism or architecture specifically, you would at least understand the value of the history of your own town being preserved and the history of your own town being explored, highlighted.
Jeff Borman:So do you have any statistics you can share with us about modernism-related tourism economic impact of events like these? In addition to the Holland Hills House and Garden Tour, modernism Week every February is probably actually not probably it is certainly the most well-known, but you also have the Eichler Tour in LA. Several big events in Columbus, indiana, arapahoe Hills in Denver used to do an event I don't know if they still do, but you also. Then you have falling water and homes that people just it's single properties, you know, often done by Frank Lloyd Wright, that people travel around the world to see. What kind of economic impact does the tourism have?
Jickie Torres:Well, yeah, I mean, as you mentioned at the top of the of the discussion, you know, I think the statistics for modernism week specifically have been updated 130 000 attendees. Uh, we're talking 68 million in economic impact for the local communities. And here's the thing that modernism week in palm springs and that's what I can really offer the most details about because it's the most really supported and funded and scientifically dissected but it's the impact of Palm Springs, but it's also the impact of the surrounding desert communities which Modernism Week, as an organization has begun to identify, as you know, room to help again restore, preserve, you know, the architectural gems of other communities. Palm Springs is what's famous for it, but there's desert hot springs, palm Desert, la Quinta, the surrounding areas that have just as much of that kind of ripple effect of modernism, history, or modernist history, I should say. And so I think you start to see the bigger these events become, the more like the concentric circle grows in the ways that it impacts more in a regional way rather than, you know, such a specifically nuclear way.
Jickie Torres:You know one of the things that I think, uh, these areas, eichler's, the eichler tours in california, you know, uh, charlotte, you said denver, it's about the uniqueness of the availability of these homes, these swaths, these whole neighborhoods that were built that way to grow these. And this is one of the availability of these homes, these swaths, these whole neighborhoods that were built that way To grow these. And this is one of the reasons why Atomic Ranch has such a, you know, specific. I have such a specific mission statement to help these communities become like Palm Springs, become like Modernism. Week is because of the trickle-down effect that it has, you know, in the surrounding communities, the small businesses in the areas that cater to restoring or decorating your mid-century modern home. There's a lot of layers to it, for sure.
Jeff Borman:Having seen more P&Ls than I'd like to from Holland Hills Community Association. This event provides almost, you know, 80% of the funding for you funding, and it only happens every two years, but the funding to protect the design, to protect the parks, the maintenance that otherwise would not be kept up 80% of that revenue comes from this one event. I'm going to shift a little bit, though, because when we talk about tourism and the attraction for modernism, it goes beyond house porn. You've got Frank Lloyd Wright's Biltmore, arizona that I know. 15, 20 years ago, heather and I took a trip to Arizona just because it was a bucket list item of mine to stay there. Saarinen's TWA Hotel outside LaGuardia is probably America's biggest, newest attraction the rebuild of that. Is there a community that does these hotels that travels around?
Jickie Torres:Yeah, you know, I think there's certainly an opportunity to be more organized about that. But yes, I mean the business of modernism tourism. You know, for example, modernism week being the biggest kind of international modernist event. Um, 50 of the attendees are from california, but there are actually 24 countries represented in that tourism group. Um, I know, I see this reflected in our kind of subscription. You know um demographic. Australia, canada, the United Kingdom, germany, france, I mean they all come to modernism week for that.
Jickie Torres:But what this really touches on is that in the modernist era and for fans of modernist architecture and design, you know, you do have this phenomena, which is that you've got these what they call starkitects right. Frank Lloyd Wright, you know um, you know, eichler was a developer, but his, his collection of homes, I mean there's this sort of driving fascination to visit these locations that are done by these famous star architects. You cross them off the bucket list, you know, um, there's also this idea that modernism is, is regional, and that because we're talking about architecture and we're talking about homes, you know, what worked in Palm Springs didn't work in Denver because of the climate, it didn't work in the Pacific Northwest, again because of the weather, and so there were different types of modernism that really flourish in these regional locations.
Jickie Torres:And I think modernist fans like to go and see that too. I mean it's the variation on the theme Right, and I think modernist fans like to go and see that too. I mean it's it's, it's the variation on the theme Right. And so I think that there's this idea of sort of collecting a list of the homes you've been able to see because their claim to fame is your claim to fame.
Jeff Borman:You should have an old Pan Am flight operated just to tours like these, in every smoking encouraged throughout the plane.
Matt Brown:I'm for it.
Jickie Torres:Maybe a bus, maybe a smoking bus Are there any particularly endangered species of modernism that you'd encourage people to go visit? All of them are. So my encouragement is to go to these home tours, go to these neighborhood events, because you know your ticket, your ticket price goes towards strengthening the preservation groups that are involved in organizing them. You know those once or two times a year or two times a year, but there are also these preservation groups work all year long to effectively keep some guidelines around how these homes are treated, draw attention to and create things like petitions and kind of local movements to save them. I mean, I don't think any area is particularly immune.
Jickie Torres:I just saw an article the other day and maybe this is something that gets cut or maybe it's not, but I saw this article the other day about the actor Chris Pratt and his wife Katherine Schwarzenegger, how they had recently bought this home in this neighborhood to be close to their, to their mom, and it was designed by Craig Elwood and it's a stunning piece of modernist architecture and history in LA, which you know, you think that LA is, you know, has pretty good awareness of mid-century, you know treasures and whatnot. And he bought it and he raised it and it's gone and he's going to build a modern farmhouse over it. So I think that you know my message would be to pay attention to what's going on in these preservation groups in these neighborhoods and support them in whatever way. You can Follow them online and get their numbers up and buy a ticket to a tour or a lecture, because the work that these guys are doing, these groups are doing in these communities really hands-on. That's the best way to save these.
Jickie Torres:You know these structures and, frankly, you talk about an area like Denver which I feel like, per square mile sheer volume, has the most number of mid-century era homes and ranches built somewhat related to kind of the aeronautic history of Denver. But a lot of those homes are endangered because you've got these first-time homebuyers who find homes that are kind of right in their bracket and they are attracted to it because of price and location and have no clue about the architecture and are, you know, at a rapid rate, remodeling them, as we'd say in our industry, where you're stripping them of their you know mid-century character and features and elements in favor of brand spanking, shiny kitchens and windows and what have you.
Matt Brown:Is the argument when you have buyers take over and just level the place? Is the argument that it's just too much money and too much hassle to rehab it?
Jickie Torres:Oftentimes. Oftentimes they do, but also because even some of the most, I would say, you know, luxurious, most high end of these mid-century homes and I've been to the ones in Palm Springs that was owned by Sinatra, owned by Dean Martin, I mean, by today's standards they're not, they're still modest, right Like square footage wise, space wise. And so again you go, you look at this piece of property which is has this particular prescribed value to it and the way that you as a homeowner or builder, developer or investor try to maximize, that is, to put a piece of property on it that actually matches up with the bot you know, kind of your generalized buyers wishlist, and those two rarely really overlap, and so that tends to be what happens.
Jeff Borman:In hotels. We see a lot of the same investor debates. Right, you buy this incredibly old building that's beautiful and it has a fanfare to it. And then you look at it and you think, okay, we can put $200 million into restoring this fabulous old building. Or, like the Waldorf Astoria in New York City, let's just tear it down. And I think that difference is very stark. I mean, even if you take Blackstone, who owned the Waldorf in New York City and just recently sold the Biltmore Arizona, they looked at those two investments very differently. I don't have any insight into it, but I can tell you that one sold for about a billion dollars and got demolished. The other, they poured immense funding into restoring it and profited by the tune of about a quarter of a billion. But I think the two are very different approaches and it doesn't usually work out in favor of preserve the architecture financially.
Jickie Torres:I have seen, you know, that kind of faction of tourists that you know is looking for those unique experiences they're looking to. I mean, there's all you can think of. You mentioned the TWA hotel, but there's a lot of historic hotel spaces across the country that are getting renovated and restored and really people are leaning into or sometimes even infusing that mid-century design style into it because of that interest. You know these old motor lodges that were, you know, getting now turning into some of the hippest, coolest hotels in town. I think that's a reflection of the fact that people are looking for unique experiences both where they live but also how they vacation.
Matt Brown:For unique experiences both where they live, but also how they vacation. I was also thinking a little bit about the vibe of Modernism Week in Palm Springs and I've never been. I want to go, and I've also never been to the Holland Hills tour. I want to go to that, but I'm going to have to wait two years to that because I'm unavailable this time. There's a sneaky reason not so sneaky reason that I think these are popular too in that they sort of access this idea of a house party.
Matt Brown:You know, I feel like the, the, the event in Palm Springs. It's like a week and a half. Uh, you're moving around. It's all kinds of cocktail parties. You're in and out of these different places. I know a lot of them. You can't just stick around and have a drink in somebody's, somebody's backyard, but I think it. It it's a big, movable feast, it's a big party and I that as a draw for people, I think is really alluring from a tourism side and I I wonder how many other local groups are kind of thinking along those lines of like. Let's turn this into. Local groups are kind of thinking along those lines of like let's turn this into not just a tour but like a party that will go from Friday night to Sunday.
Jickie Torres:Absolutely.
Jickie Torres:I mean that's you know, that's first of all, that's what allure people in.
Jickie Torres:Right, you promise them a good time, you make it convivial, you make it a fun gathering and certainly in our own experience you know, with kind of interacting with people who are traveling to this location and trying to buy a ticket we hope they buy one of ours.
Jickie Torres:Our experience in this is that when you do travel to that location, you don't want to have this. You don't want to learn these lessons in a hall or a lecture room or a theater. You want to learn these lessons in this beautiful home, lecture room or a theater. You want to learn these lessons in this beautiful home and, for what it's worth, the events that we throw. You actually can have the drink in the backyard because our events last, you know, an hour and a half or two hours where we talk to the homeowner and the builder, whoever's responsible for the house, and we really do a deep dive with that 150 people who have come to spend that hour with us, two hours with us, and we want to make it convivial. We have drinks and refreshments and little appetizers that get passed. What's underscoring all of this is the celebration of this architecture and what has stood the test of time.
Jeff Borman:I've heard Atomic Ranch is doing a roadshow. What is this? What inspired this thing?
Jickie Torres:So I think this whole conversation is really right, in line with kind of what we've decided we want to try to do more of, and that is, you know, we as I mentioned, atomic Ranch's mission statement is to help these mid-century modern communities across the entire country to preserve, restore and celebrate their mid-century modern communities, and we've always become you know, we've been media sponsors for Modernism Week for since 2017.
Jickie Torres:And so we've become really well known for that. But I wanted to be able to take what is so beloved and so celebrated and so fun about what we do in Palm Springs and take that to other communities in hopes to A draw attention to these local mid-century neighborhoods that might need more awareness and might need more help in sort of letting the local community know what they have be to help fundraise for these organizations, using, hopefully, our the atomic ranch brand recognition to draw more of an audience and our own marketing, you know abilities to broadcast these events across to bigger audiences. And, yeah, so this idea of taking this Palm Springs Modernism Week show on the road to these other locations was sort of born out of that.
Matt Brown:It's time for the mystery question, and this is a fun one. They're all fun, but this one's particularly fun. Chiki, for your many years of service to modernism, the powers that be have decided to pool their money and award you any modernist house in California. You get the deed, you get the keys. What house would you choose?
Jickie Torres:This is like a Sophie's Choice moment.
Matt Brown:I think um but more serious, but more serious more on the line.
Jickie Torres:You're right.
Jickie Torres:You're right yeah, yeah gosh, I I think there are so many incredible sort of out of this world mid-century, modern, iconic properties. I would probably, if I put the layer of reality over this, I'd probably try to stay in Southern California and it would be a toss-up between the Stahl House, which is right there, iconically, in the hills of LA, overlooking in Julia Shulman you know the amazing fashion photography, all of the stuff that has happened at the house, because it's just the story of it is so unique, the location of it is so unique, it's just so iconic. It'll be a toss-up between that and the um goldman sheets house. Talk about badass, you know the jackie treehorn home it was, it was in the big lebowski.
Jickie Torres:It's got like this triangular like roof with this triangular pattern underneath and it's like the whole like two fat two sides of it is open to the, to the pool, which kind of is an infinity pool. Um, it's been in so many movies. I'm gonna text you a picture of it when I get out.
Jeff Borman:Once you see, you're like oh yeah, duh I think it actually comes with jeffges lounging on the couch. That'd be great. Wow, For $27 million you can have the home. For $27.9 million you get one day with Jeff Bridges lounging around like the dude.
Jickie Torres:And he'll make you all, he'll make you all white rush.
Matt Brown:Sold. I love it. Chiki, thank you for being part of the show.
Jickie Torres:Do you have anything you want to plug? Um, well, speaking of atomic ranch on the road, we've got an event? Um coming up in may. We're going to go back to the shag house in palm springs because out of that sold out way too fast, there's way too many people who are interested in visiting it. Um, so we're going to be doing a series at the shag house. I'm going to be traveling to bellevue, washington, in September to do a house up in Pleasure Point which is designed by not only designed by George Bell, but it's George Bell's personal home, personal residence. And I'm working on more. You can go to Atomic Ranch dot com to find out more information about those, and I mentioned our book Atomic Ranch Remodel Marvels. For anybody who's interested in what it takes to renovate one of these homes, that is going to be your bible chiquitaurias everybody, thank you so much for being part of thank you guys, what a fun conversation.
Jickie Torres:Thanks for having me.