Palm Desert's Architectural Gems of Modernism

When a young and ambitious architect moved to the Coachella Valley in the 1950s, he embarked on a career that would forever change the look and vernacular of American design. Donald Wexler became a pioneer in a new architectural art form, called Modernism, that has come to define the Palm Springs area.

His work spans three decades of projects including residential, commercial and municipal buildings that epitomize the ethos. Many of those buildings are right here in Palm Desert.

Sidney Williams, Palm Springs Art Museum Curator of Architecture and Design, explained that Wexler’s structures have, “a great sense of space, clarity of design and efficiency of function.”

Williams oversaw the installation of the museum’s Wexler exhibit, “Steel and Shade,” on display at the museum through May 29.

“Don used new materials and adapted them to the desert, creating an indoor/outdoor environment,” Williams said, pointing out the elements of the steel façade, which fronts the exhibit.

The façade, a replica of those used on Wexler’s iconic Steel House designs, was recreated for the museum using the original plans by students of Cal Poly’s College of Architectural Design. They had the additional honor of being guided by the master himself.

Donald Wexler, now retired, used to live in one of the Palm Springs homes he designed. His involvement in the museum project gave the students an educational experience they will not forget.

Wexler first came to the desert after a brief stint under the tutelage of another Modernist innovator, Richard Neutra. He was later hired by William Cody to work on the Tamarisk Country Club project.

“And when the job was done," Wexler said, "I had just fallen in love with Palm Springs and didn’t want to live anywhere else.”

His projects with Bill Cody, Rick Harrison, and subsequently, on his own, dot the Coachella Valley, from Palm Springs to Indio.

Nine are in Palm Desert. From the dramatic contrasting shapes of the building on El Paseo to the spacious and open-air on Phyllis Jackson Lane, they represent architecturally significant examples of Modernism.

Other Wexler projects in Palm Desert include Fire Station #2 on Town Center Way, the So-Cal Gas building on Mayfair Drive, the CitiBank building on Town Center Way, the on Rutledge Way, the Crocker National Bank, the and the .

Wexler admired the works of Neutra and Frank Lloyd Wright but he said he was not aware that they were creating a new art form.

“We just called it Desert Architecture, what I thought belonged in the desert,” he said.

Inspiration came from many sources, according to Wexler.

“The International Style was the trend at the time,’’ he said. “And I guess I was part of that.”

But in the hands of Wexler and his peers, Modernism took on a uniquely American identity. And the success of the museum’s Wexler exhibit indicates an ongoing fascination with the design movement.

Curator Sidney Williams added that the museum is currently looking for a new home for the remarkable steel façade from the exhibit, which must be dismantled at the end of May in preparation for a new exhibit.

“If we just recycle the steel, it has little value. But the building façade itself is so impressive. And could have a number of possible uses,” she said.

Anyone interested in the façade was asked to call Sidney Williams at the Palm Springs Art Museum.