wooden lights

When I come across furniture, lighting, and other randomness that I fall in love with, I mentally classify these things into where they will go - my Moroccan/bohemian waterfront villa in southern Spain, my garden apartment in Paris, or my cozy cabin in Big Sur (ok, so I don't currently own any of these dream homes, but maybe in the next 10 years?). Anyway, these crack bowl light fixtures by Kwon Jae Min would be perfect in my Big Sur kitchen...

image via contemporist

spiritual modern

I have this thing for churches, chapels, temples..religious buildings of any kind. They are truly the only places where you can be alone and quiet. There is something so humbling and beautiful about feeling small in such a massive space. Growing up on the east coast coast you see so many old stone and brick churches and cathedrals that i tend to associate classical details with a feeling of spirituality. 

However, I've seen so many architects as of late that have managed to make the most modern and minimal structures feel peaceful. here are some of my favorites 'old' and new...

Church of the Light, Ibaraki, Japan - Tadao Ando
Chiesa di San Giovanni Battista, Mogno Switzerland
St. Nicolas, Heremence Switzerland - Walter Maria Forderer
Notre Dame du Haut Ronchamp, France - Le Corbusier
St. Bartholomew's Church, Eastern Bohemia - Qubus Studio
Cathedral of Christ the Light, Oakland, CA - SOM
La Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain - Antonio Gaudi

visual acoustics

Go rent Visual Acoustics. 

It's a documentary about Julius Schulman, an amazing photographer and key figure during one of my favorite architectural movements, California modernism. He brought to life the works of architects that were just starting to make a name for themselves at this time - Neutra, Schindler, Koenig, Eames.  His photos of these iconic homes were some of the first images i had seen of this type of architecture, and were what turned me on to architecture in general.

Much like an architect, Schulman had a brilliant sense of composition, proportion and light that enhanced the  architecture in his images by creating a mood.  He captures a fantasy of a mythical los angeles and palm springs in the 50s and 60s, where the wild landscapes blend seamlessly with open architecture.

The film is incredibly interesting and Schulman is the cutest little old man who has some great stories about working with Neutra, Wright, etc. so just watch it already.

Kaufmann House, Neutra
Chuey House, NeutraCase Study House 22, Koenig

neil krug

 everything he does is pure light and magic

i love new york

ivy covered brownstones..

old churches...
the graceful integration of classic and modern architecture...

creative little storefronts...