Dwell November/December 2023

What to do with a Philip Johnson house? A titan of the 20th century, he designed era-defining structures all over the country and shaped how Americans understand modernism and postmodernism from his decades-long tenure in the Museum of Modern Art’s architecture department. But for a period, he was also an avowed supporter of fascism, the deep extent of which has recently emerged—thanks in no small part to an excellent biography by critic Mark Lamster. Johnson later renounced his right-wing political leanings, but the most troubling part of his legacy may not be the fact of those beliefs but the narrow, dictatorial canon they seem to have informed. He often celebrated individual design stars, the majority white men, while leaving women, people of color, and others out of 20th-century design’s official history—a…

Yasara Gunawardena Photographer One Last Thing, p. 112 Yasara Gunawardena’s early exposure to photography came about when her father would let her play with his camera. “He would be so willing to put it in my hands and let me run around and take pictures,” says Gunawardena. These days, the L.A.-based photographer shoots a variety of subjects, including food, people, travel, and more, but hasn’t forgotten how important that sense of play is for a professional. “Otherwise, things tend to feel a little bit too serious,” says Gunawardena, who captured architect Melissa Shin’s personal toy collection for One Last Thing. “My job that day was literally to play with toys. What a gift.” Jenny Xie Writer “Bookcase Study,” p. 64 When Jenny Xie stepped inside the Brooklyn apartment reimagined by…

What a fun house! OK, Meg: You need to spill the details on making that zigzag light. Or sell it. That thing is genius! IAMTHELAB DESIGN STUDIO VIA DWELL.COM Finally, a house that looks like people actually live in it. JAMES_IN_THE_FOREST VIA INSTAGRAM Refreshing to see bold colors in the sea of sad beige interiors taking over this decade. WYNOTT VIA INSTAGRAM Colors make us happy for sure! Let’s use more in living spaces. THESURFACELAB VIA INSTAGRAM More of this and fewer beige, characterless, minimalist boxes. GALLERYNORTHSTAR VIA INSTAGRAM “The use of color throughout the home feels fun and fresh, yet approachable and sophisticated all at once. Bye-bye, beige!”k_apostrophe via Instagram Featured Collection ADUs…

Farmhouse belongs on a farm. @hjbarnhart Great for Waco. Not for every suburb in America. It’s the new tract home. @mengelen1 I love modern, and I love a farmhouse, but why must they exist together? Julia Stevens, style editor Classics are classic for a reason. @lesorum In the area I live ALL new builds are white with black window trim. No creativity! @christiwaldron It’s the white siding with black trim that’s bad. Poor farmhouse looks like it’s wearing thick eyeliner. @evardoodle Joanna Gaines–style folksy shtick got annoying. Too much gray. Ban barn doors. @mjarzemsky I suppose it can be fun if it winks at its own falseness, but “modern farmhouse” usually means a few cloyingly quaint details dressing up monstrously big suburban homes. No thanks. William Hanley, editor-in-chief Monochromatic, overdone,…

1950s Wall-to-Wall As millions of families moved into newconstruction houses during the post-WWII building boom, they were ready to splurge on decor. Recent advances in production technology made it possible for tufted nylon to replace woven wool as the dominant carpet type, and it quickly became the fashion to stretch carpet from one wall to another. The Saxony style consisted of tightly twisted cut-pile fibers that stood straight up, creating a dense, soft feel and a uniform look. Bright blues, rich burgundies, and emerald greens were all common color options for the average suburbanite. 1960s and ’70s Shagadelic, Baby Not unlike the era’s shifting ethos, machine-made carpet began to get higher and looser in the ’60s: We’re talking, of course, about shag. Made possible by advancements in technology that allowed…

american icons Levi’s 501 jeans. Eames chairs. Two turntables and a microphone. The best American innovations have influenced generations. Here, we celebrate enduring design and new work that embodies the spirit of its forebears. Patchwork People have been sewing cloth onto other bits of cloth basically since textiles were invented. But block quilts, like the classic log cabin patterns of the 19th century and ring designs in the early 20th, have distinctly American variants. Maybe the most famous American tradition came from the enslaved women of Gee’s Bend, Alabama, who invented a distinct abstract, improvisational form of quilting. “[During the Civil War] people didn’t have money to buy a big, long, fancy piece of fabric. So you had a piecing together. That kind of instinct is, I think, an American…