Tourists and locals drawn to scaled down Modernism Week 2021

Thursday kicked off the valley's annual celebration of mid-century architecture, design, art and culture: Modernism Week. Both locals and tourists were in town to participate the scaled down version of the 11-day attraction, which consists of various events throughout the desert.

The celebration is normally held in February, but because of the pandemic it was pushed to April.

"It’s a little bit warmer in April than it is in February, but we’re so glad that we were able to reschedule our event," said Lisa Vossler Smith, Modernism Week Executive Director.

Vossler Smith was among dozens of people to attend an event fashion show at Temple Isaiah in Palm Springs. Models strutted down the runway of the outdoor show, held in the parking lot.

"Modernism Week is a celebration of architecture and design throughout the Coachella Valley and we do tours and activities from Palm Springs all the way to Indio, and so we welcome the entire community to come out," said Vossler Smith.

This year was Temple Isaiah President Mitchel Karp's fifth year organizing the show.

"We sold probably 230 tickets. It was very impressive for post coming out of COVID. Everybody was socially distant, everybody had their masks," said Karp.

A sanitizing station was also set up.

Karp owns Mitchel's Palm Springs, a men's and women's clothing store in downtown.

"We donate all the ticket sales with the help of Modernism Week to Temple Isaiah," said Karp.

Starting Monday the Temple will host week-long tours to showcase the synagogue that was built in the iconic era.

"Frank Sinatra had a lot to do with the building of this temple because he raised a lot of money for it. This really fits into the Modernism Theme and so we have people from these tours coming from all over the country," said Rabbi Steven Rosenberg of Temple Isaiah.

Those wanting to take a step back in time could also go to Sunnylands Center and Gardens in Rancho Mirage.

"Truly it takes you back into the period. It truly is representative of Modernism Week. I mean I could just visualize all the things happening in the 50s and 60s around the area," said visitor, Chris Burns.

Burns took a guided tour of the history-filled site. The estate, which was completed in 1966, is the epitome of mid-century modern, and gives visitors a look at the location that has hosted some of the world's top leaders.

"It just adds to the enjoyment I would think," said Fremont resident, Andrew Lang. We are really interested in the history of it going back to when it was the Camp David of the west and all the presidents, dignitaries and prime ministers from other countries."

Though this year's celebration is much more scaled down, there is no loss of popularity for people wanting to come out and enjoy a bit of history.

"We do have many sold out events but it’s because the capacity is so small, we’re keeping all of our groups very small this year so that we can provide a safe and happy experience for everyone attending. Even if an event is sold out, please check the days, next days coming up because we have events going on for 11 days total," said Vossler Smith.

The week has also had a positive impact for some local businesses.

Destination PSP in downtown Palm Springs is the official merchandise holder for the event. Sales are through the roof, topping what they've done even on a pre-pandemic weekend when thousands of people were in town for Coachella, according to owner Jeffrey Bernstein.

"I think Modernism Week is a big catalyst in it because it’s the first really outdoor in-person event that we have had this year since the pandemic," said Bernstein.