Paul Rudolph's buildings, built and unbuilt, continue to inspire clients, annoy critics, and gain fame, even though he died in the mid-90’s.  These days, though, it’s almost all smiles and admiration, and there’s an important exhibition of Rudolph’s work at the Metropolitan Museum in New York through March.  Year round on certain days, however, you can visit Rudolph’s former office in New York, the Paul Rudolph Institute for Modern Architecture, or PRIMA.  And while you’re there, you can also see the late architect Myron Goldfinger’s traveling exhibition, Circle Square Triangle.  Today we’ll talk with the curator of that Met exhibition, Abraham thomas, the Executive Director of PRIMA, Kelvin Dickinson, and the curator of Goldfinger’s exhibition, his partner and wife June Goldfinger.  Later on, come out swinging with musical guests Chelsee Hicks and the Wholly Cats.

The Bjarke Ingels Group completed the Spiral, a tower in Hudson Yards with tree-lined terraces going around the building, all the way up.  Today we’ll talk with project architect, Dominyka Voelkle.  Later, you’ll discover architect Carter Sparks through his number one fan and archivist, Justin Wood.  Then it’s returning musical guest, jazz superstar and high school teacher, the delightful Canadian Diana Panton.

For decades, we’ve been reading about Lindal Cedar Homes in design magazines.  Now, under the leadership of third-generation President Christina Lindal they’ve branched out into compelling designs inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright.  And inside great houses like this, you’re probably going to need good decorating advice, so we go to Montauk New York to talk with author and interior designer Lauren Rottet.  Wrapping up, musical guests Marco Palos and American Idol’s Blake Lewis of Phat Cat Swinger.   

It's our annual Christmas show, and In the studio we have a partner in one of North Carolina’s hottest firms, architect Adam Sebastian. We talk with Quinn Garvey, our special agent inside the amazing Craig Ellwood house that Chris Pratt tore down in early 2024, and later, jazz with Angela Bingham.

Celebrities aren’t typically huge fans of Modernist architecture. Most prefer a 1930’s mansion or an Italianate villa. But there are a few, like Jennifer Aniston, Holland Taylor, Scott Caan, Kelly Lynch, Leonardo DiCaprio, and others who keep Modernist houses in the spotlight.  Today we’ll talk with Alison Martino, producer, historian, and preservationist, the Godmother of Old Hollywood and Los Angeles.  Next up, Frank Sinatra expert Bill Boggs, and later, we’ll learn about the Modernist town of Columbus Indiana from author Matt Shaw, with a new book. 

The town of Lancaster OH is famous as the birthplace of David Graf, best known as Sgt. Eugene Tackleberry in the Police Academy series.  Lancaster is also famous for … glassware, and their best-known creative rebel was Fran Taylor.  From 1939 to 1962, Taylor ran GayFad Studios, and 60+ years after her business closed, partners Jason and David Annecy have revived the brand, opened a store, and held Bottoms Up, a wildly successful midcentury barware show this past summer.  USModernist was there, interviewing the Annecys, artist Josh Agle aka Shag, and  the barware lady Amy Chastek.

We can't believe it, but USModernist Radio will be ten years old soon.  We'll have a special show number 400 featuring past guests and - you!  Are you a fan of the show?  Learned something useful?  Got a funny story?  Please contact George Smart [email protected] or 919.740.8407

From Australia, we talk with with architect and 2002 Pritkzer Prize winner Glenn Murcutt. From the UK, we’ve got architecture critic Rowan Moore, and wrapping up, the author of Modern Chinese Architecture: 180 Years, Nancy Steinhardt.

Rocking the California architecture scene for over 60 years, we’ll talk with Malibu architect Ed Niles.  Then it’s over 3000 miles and down 500 to Florida with tropical architect Ralph Choeff.  Later, one of the stars of the Purple Room in Palm Springs, musical guest Chris Bennett!

In late 2023, new owners of a classic George Matsumoto Modernist house in Raleigh NC took out a demolition permit. Usually, that’s the end of the road for a Modernist house, but Melinda and Andy Knowles stepped up and persuaded those owners to delay demolition – so the couple could move the house seven miles across town, where it has been wonderfully restored on a new site next to their existing mid-century Modernist house. And with the best architecture book of the year, we'll talk to architect and author James Biber. Later on, musical guest Allegra Levy.

We’ll talk today about Texas and California, two of our most populous states that could not be more different, with Kathryn O’Rourke and Ben Koush, authors of Home, Heat, Money, God: Texas and Modern Architecture; and Michael Webb, author of California Houses: Creativity in Context.