William Krisel, Architect at The Getty Center - Event

April 13, 7:00 PM–9:00 PM

The Getty Research Institute, 1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 1100 Los Angeles, California 90049

Please join us for a special screening of Design Onscreen’s latest documentary film, William Krisel, Architect at The Getty Center, Los Angeles, on Tuesday, Apr. 13, 2010 at 7:00PM. A conversation between William Krisel and Wim de Wit, head of the Department of Architecture and Contemporary Art at the Getty Research Institute (GRI), will follow the screening.

Over the course of his sixty-year career, Architect William Krisel has brought “modernism to the masses,” designing more than 40,000 individual housing units across the U.S. Krisel’s influential work has come to epitomize midcentury Southern Californian design. Krisel’s archive now resides at the GRI.

William Krisel, Architect (2010), directed by Jake Gorst, explores his life and work, including his roots in 1930s China, his ground-breaking designs for modern living, and interviews with scholars, his contemporaries and family. “I’m a firm believer that good modern design can make your life happier, more productive and more enjoyable,” says Krisel.

During the 1950s, Krisel built thousands of mass-produced tract homes in Palm Springs–and throughout Southern California–and thus played a key role in establishing the desert modernism of the area. By devising airy dwellings with massive windows opening into the bright expanse of the surrounding landscape, Krisel proved that modest midcentury homes did not have to be “cracker boxes” of unimaginative and claustrophobic design.

William Krisel, Architect is produced by Design Onscreen, a Denver-based nonprofit dedicated to producing, preserving and promoting high-quality films on architecture and design.

Admission to this event is free, but a reservation is required. To make a reservation, please visitwww.getty.edu/research or call (310) 440-7300. Note, late arrivals cannot be guaranteed seating. Parking is $15.00; free after 5:00 p.m

Read more via Dwell