BELLAS ARTES

Inspired by her previous experience as an art dealer, Webb designs beautifully composed spaces. She believes in the power of light, and shadow, in creating atmosphere; a pale, luminous wallcovering may be balanced by the presence of antiques, or a chapel-like white bedroom may segue into a deep gray sitting room. As important is a sense of hand: the feeling of glazed earthenware, a worn oak farm table, the softness of fine linen. Webb is also motivated by the pursuit of joy and the power of beauty she makes sure these are rooms for living, for gathering with family, for refuge.

Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright for Edgar Kaufmann Sr., his wife, Liliane Kaufmann, and their son, Edgar Kaufmann jr., Fallingwater is lauded for its architectural daring and drama. Here the Kaufmanns sought to live in harmony with the natural world. The rooms of the house reflect this ideal and remain suffused with a natural aesthetic that embraces stone and wood, handwork and craftsmanship. In the living room, the great stone floor flows riverlike toward the horizon of Wright–designed built-in sofas and large-paned casement windows, where views open to balconies, to forest, and to cascading falls. From here “the hatch” opens to the flowing stream below. Pools and the waters of Bear Run were beautiful and for swimming. Relaxed elegance was the order of the day. Delicacy, softness, tactility are everywhere in evidence.

Much more than a resort destination, Palm Springs has served as a laboratory of the Modern; here so much architectural innovation and design took form. From the steel-and-glass boxes of Richard Neutra to the earthy organic homes of John Lautner, and everything in between, the solutions of architects and designers—including notably William F. Cody, E. Stewart Williams, and Albert Frey were diverse and are ever more relevant in the face of contemporary challenges. Their answers addressed questions that still hold urgency: How to design sustainably in harsh climates? How to use technology efficiently and creatively to meet those challenges? How to build affordable and high-quality mass-produced housing? How to reflect a region’s culture, economy, and distinctive atmosphere?