Videos - High Modern Weirdness of the Late 60s and Early 70s

text by Clifton Bertram

Never let it be said that the late 1960s and early 1970s were not a time of profound weirdness....

Here Raquel Welch dances a discombobulated 'Space Girl' dance in a truly weird outfit (although less weird than those worn by her male counterparts), in front of the statues for the very funky Mexico 1968 Olympic Summer Games.



One of the most spaced-out movies of a spaced-out decade, in Zardoz Sean Connery goes a long way from his James Bond type-casting. Or does he....?



Delia Darbyshire was a female electronic music pioneer who worked for the BBC in the 1960s and 'electronified' Ron Grainer's Doctor Who theme. Here she is shown doing a mind-blowing bit of electronic 'arranging' with a series of reel-to-reel decks, all beat-matched to create a full-blown composition.



Of course, we all remember the original Planet of the Apes, starring Charlton Heston, Roddy McDowell and Kim Hunter, but less-well remembered is the classic Jerry Goldsmith soundtrack. Goldsmith, perhaps better recognized for having scored all the Star Trek movies, created a moody, dissonant masterpiece for Planet of the Apes, which worked in seamless harmony with the stark landscapes of Glen Canyon and Lake Powell. One reviewer called this avant-garde score "one of the most innovative film scores of the 20th century", an assessment with which I am inclined to agree.

1950s and 60s Concept Cars From General Motors (Videos)

Asmara, Eritria's Beautiful African Modernist City (Video)

Lesser-Known London Landmarks No. 4 - 577 Oxford Street East

The clinic of Dr. S.J. Weinberger, Pediatric Dentist and Orthodontist. An outstanding and well-preserved example of Streamline Moderne amidst the forest of Victorian Revival that is downtown London.

Photos: London City Hall

London City Hall is a very nice, albeit modest, example of the International Style, in particular details such as the pilotis, or ground floor supporting columns upon which the structure rests, a staple with the pre-eminent modernist, Le Corbusier, as employed on his signature Villa Savoye (1928).

The exterior cladding is Tyndall Limestone, from quarries in Manitoba. Tyndall stone is one of the most iconic building materials in Canada, used not only the Manitoba Legislature, but also parts of the Parliament Building and the Canadian Museum of Civilization. Tyndall stone is prized for its mottled effect, and is sometimes referred to as 'parchment stone' because of it.

The Provincial Government Philistines in Charge of Ontario Place are Putting Canada's Architectural Heritage at Risk

An announcement to the press on Thursday July 15 suggests that the provincial government philistines in charge of managing Toronto’s iconic Ontario Place attraction are planning to raze the site, and admit that that the cash-strapped McGuinty government has not ruled out selling off some of the property as waterfront housing.

Quoted in the Toronto Star, Ontario Place acting General Manger Tim Casey said that the formal Request for Information, issued July 15, (link to RFI) will lead to a Request for Proposals this fall, with the probable outcome being the demolition of the attraction’s signature Cinesphere, as well as the complex’s other pavilions.

“It’s very early. But this is exciting. 2011 will be our 40th anniversary. It definitely needs a revitalization, that’s no surprise. It’s a blank slate, we’re open to just about anything.”

Corporation spokesman Hugh Mansfield reiterated the ‘blank slate’ mantra, implying in statement to the Toronto Sun that lakefront condos are not being ruled out. According to the Sun, Mansfield said “nothing, including housing, has been ruled out”.

“We’ve certainly suggested in the RFI that it’s a blank canvas. That’s the way we want people to approach it.”

If the Cinesphere and the floating ‘pods’ at Ontario Place were destroyed, especially to make way for yet more condos, it would constitute a major crime against Toronto’s, Ontario’s and even Canada’s cultural heritage, and a victory for provincial government flunkies such as Casey who appear to have no understanding of the significance of the current site.

Originally opened in 1971, Ontario Place was a ground-breaking architectural marvel featuring five ‘floating’ pods and the striking geodesic dome housing the Cinesphere. The dome provided a signature modernist look not unlike Spaceship Earth at Disney World’s Epcot Centre or the Montreal Biosphere, which was designed by Buckminster Fuller to serve as the centerpiece of the U.S. pavilion at Expo 67.

For nearly 40 years, Ontario Place has had a cherished place in the heart of its visitors, as is made clear by online comments by readers of the major dailies carrying the story:

Don't destroy Ontario Place just return it to its innocent past. It was wonderful then. Commercial space and restaurants that are world class - you must be joking. Don't destroy this wonderful location by making it into the condo canyon destruction of the waterfront a mile to the East. This stupid concrete wall has stopped us from visiting Toronto anymore. Visit somewhere else for a nice waterfront.

- Will 0099, 9:00 am July 16, 2010, National Post

To whatever developers are paying attention: 1. I want the Cinesphere to stay the way it is. 2. I miss the Forum. I like the idea of "free-with-admission" concerts. Bring that back please. I have a lot of happy memories of Ontario Place. Ontario North Now, the kids' place with the hanging maze of punching bags, the wading pool, that was fun!

- Christine Ilott, 10:37 pm July 15, 2010, Toronto Sun

No matter what the redesign involves, let's ensure the historical architectural elements (the pods and the cinesphere) remain.

- T. Hughes, 11:59 am, July 16, The Globe and Mail

Beyond nostalgia, there are very legitimate heritage reasons why a conservation perspective should be maintained at the Ontario Place site. As the home of the world’s first functional IMAX theatre, the Cinesphere is a standing monument to a Canadian technological achievement that has made inroads the world over. But perhaps most important, the entire site is Toronto’s very best example of Structural Expressionism architecture. To destroy it would be a tragedy similar to the loss of Habitat 67 or the CN Tower.

A reaction to the increasing standardization expressed in the modernist International Style, as exemplified by buildings such as TD Centre, Structural Expressionism sought to leverage the technology developments that came into common use by the late 1960s to create a “high tech” look in which the building’s structural elements would be revealed by the design – a “nuts-and-bolts, exposed-pipes, technological look”.

Besides Ontario Place, some of the best examples of Structural Expressionism can be found in Paris’ renowned Pompidou Centre and the I.M. Pei-designed Bank of China Tower in Hong Kong.

Structural Expressionism is also sometimes called Late Modernism, which succinctly captures its place in the continuum of modern architecture. It extended the progressive ideas of modernism to their ultimate outcome, making use of the advanced materials brough about during the technology boom of the latter half of the 20th century.

Despite the fact that modernist architecture is the single most defining feature of 20th century design, many of the structures that exemplify it are at profound risk of being lost forever because their architectural significance is not understood.

Although relatively young, works of Modern architecture may be lost because of demolition, neglect, or alterations. Although an awareness of the plight of endangered Modern buildings is growing, the threats continue. Non-profit groups such as the World Monuments Fund, Docomomo International and the Recent Past Preservation Network are working to safeguard and document imperiled Modern architecture. In 2006, the World Monuments Fund launched Modernism at Risk, an advocacy and conservation program.

Ontario Place is of further significance to Canadian architectural history as one of the more notable works by internationally celebrated Canadian architect Eberhard Zeidler. A graduate of Weimar’s Bauhaus University, Zeidler emigrated to Canada in 1951 and developed a number of distinctive modernist structures around the world, including The Eaton Centre in Toronto, Vancouver Expo 86’s Canada Place, and the culturally-sensitive mixed-use MediaPark in Cologne, Germany. Zeidler was made an officer of the Order of Canada in 1984, and in 1986 won a medal from the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada.

On many levels, then – cultural, historical, artistic – it would be a grievous offense against the Canadian heritage to allow the destruction of Ontario Place, especially if it were bulldozed simply to fill provincial coffers. And, especially given the degree to which Toronto has become a showplace for world-class architecture in recent years, it would also be tantamount to yet another thumb in the eye from the province to the citizens, taxpayers and voters of the Greater Toronto Area.

Fortunately, nothing is yet a done deal. Being in the Request for Information phase, plans for Ontario Place are in their infancy, and can yet be crafted to include sensitivity to the architectural heritage the site represents. Tourism and Culture Minister Michael Chan, the provincial minister responsible for the Ontario Place Corporation, must take a personal interest in the preservation of the complex’s most distinctive features, and must immediately make a statement to voters pledging to retain Ontario Place’s significance.

The first step should be to demand that the Request for Proposal (RFP) scheduled to be issued this fall contain specific evaluation criteria designed to give increased scoring to competitive submissions maintain these features. The competition must be formally designed so that ‘blank slate’ approaches are rated quantitatively lower than those with a preservation and restoration imperative.

Such a move would recognize the need to revitalize the site and re-connect it with the city, all while ensuring its cultural significance is respected. It can and should be designed to restore Ontario Place to its proper position as an icon of Canadian Modernist design, along with the CN Tower, Toronto City Hall, the Art Gallery of Ontario and TD Centre.

World's Fair 1964 - New York

Lesser Known London Landmarks No. 3 - 267 Victoria St.

This residence was built in 1923, and is officially considered Art Deco, although the first signs of Streamline Moderne are very evident.

It is designated as a Priority 2 Building on London's inventory of heritage buildings, and thus "warrants designation under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act on application by the owner" due to its " significant architectural / historical value".

Lesser-Known London Landmarks No. 2 - Dorchester Apartments

I have been unable to find any information regarding the architectural heritage of this quite remarkable example of midcentury modern apartment complex construction, but many of its details are quite distinctive.

Located just north of Oxford on Richmond Street, the Dorchester Apartments are managed by Timbercreek Asset Management, and apparently serves primarily as student housing for the nearby University of Western Ontario.

Lesser-Known London Landmarks No. 1 - Art Novelty Co. Building

Now owned by Murray Prepress, Ltd., and before that by Dobbyn Creative Printing for over 60 years, this fine example of Streamline Moderne commercial/industrial building started life housing an enterprise called the Art Novelty Company in the 1940s, mostly printing calendars.

The curved corner, glass block windows and Helvetica fonts on this building at the corner of Wellington Road and Grand Ave. are all well-preserved.

The Dominion Public Building, London Ontario

Text and photos by Clifton Bertram

Some fast facts concerning the Dominion Public Building, a much-beloved architectural landmark and Art Deco masterpiece in downtown London:

• Built under the auspices of the Public Works Construction Act of 1934 (and therefore, basically, a stimulus project), it was completed in 1936 and first housed the London Post Office

• It is considered to be an example of the so-called 'Modern Classicism' variant of Art Deco.

• It was re-opened in 2007, after $7.4 million worth of restoration work. All building systems were updated, and an emergency generator and a freight elevator were installed. Interior architectural details were preserved to their original state throughout the building.

Heritage.ca lists the following as the defining characteristics of the Dominion Public Building:

• The monumental public scale, the profile and massing rising from a single-storey base in stepped back volumes, and the strong vertical accent of the multi-storey piers which separate the deeply recessed windows and doorways.

• The external sculptural ornament featuring the maple leaf, rose, shamrock, thistle and fleur de lis.

• The interior main public space with coffered ceiling panels and the remaining original internal fixtures such as light fixtures and brass doors.

• The polished marble walls, and polished marble floors with coordinated terrazzo floors

• The manner in which the building reinforces the urban streetscape of London through its construction, scale, and its location, and its physical and functional relationship to the other buildings in town.

Architecture: It is Time to Market Modernism

It always rankles with architects that their work is rarely valued.

A simple comparison of sales prices for great works of art and great works of architecture reveals an astonishing discrepancy. It is difficult to draw parallels between artists and architects but in the case of two near-contemporaries, Picasso (1881-1973) and Le Corbusier (1887-1965), a Spaniard and a Swiss who each chose to make his home in Paris and each revolutionised his respective cultures, it is, for our purposes, reasonable.

Picasso’s “Nude, Green Leaves and Bust” sold in May for $106.5m. Two years ago, the top floor of Le Corbusier’s Villa Stein, in an upmarket Parisian suburb, came on to the market. It was being touted at £775,000 ($1.1m), barely more than an equivalent apartment in a contemporary building. Yet this is one of the key buildings of the modern movement, a villa of stunning originality and exquisite proportions, a landmark in architectural history. It is also a great apartment – airy, with wonderful views. So why the disparity?

To read more of this content at The Financial Times click here.

St Thomas Post-Office: The International Style in Small-Town Ontario

While I can't say for sure that the St Thomas Post Office on Talbot Street was built with funds made available in support of Canada's Centennial, it certainly looks as though it could have been. Still there's a part of me that has a sneaking hunch that it might date back slightly earlier. I do aim to find out, though...

What is true is that the post office is an absolutely fantastic - and textbook - example of The International Style, whose leading adherent was arguably Le Corbusier (for purposes of comparison, check out this picture of a Le Corbusier factory, and this picture, the only building Le Corbusier ever designed in the Soviet Union.

All the hallmarks are there: rectilinear forms; light, taut plane surfaces, glass and steel, in combination with concrete, as well as a focus on achieving unity through standardization, as opposed to symmetry.

The bottom of the building is clad in a particularly impressive black marble, while the grid pattern of its construction is both relieved and enhanced through the device of making some panels opaque blue rather than settling on a simple expanse of glass.

Sadly, I have a strong suspicion that most St Thomas residents neither know nor care that they have such a superlative example of The International Style on their main street.

Photo Essay: When Kitsch Moderne Goes to Seed

All photos Clifton Bertram

Like drive-in movie theatres, the drive-in restaurants that were such a part of the car culture of the mid-20th century possessed a unique form of "kitsch moderne" styling, sharing an aerodynamicism with the animated series, the Jetsons, and other retro-futuro approaches.

The Food'n'Foam drive in outside of St. Thomas, Ontario on the road to Talbotville, has been abandoned for years, and weeds now crack the pavement where Impalas and Barracudas once roamed free. Even in its advanced decrepitude, you can still make out some of the hallmark features of this particular design genre, in particular the 'flying wing' structure of the car bays.

The font used on the signs is iconic, as well.

Those who are interested in reading more about drive-in restaurant design and culture could do worse than to procure a copy of The American Drive-In: History and Folklore of the Drive-in Restaurant in American Car Culture or Car Hops and Curb Service: A History of American Drive-In Restaurants 1920-1960.

The De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill-on-Sea, UK

Text by Clifton Bertram

The iconic De La Warr Pavilion was commissioned in 1935 by Herbrand Sackville, the socialist 9th Earl De La Warr and then-mayor of Bexhill, and designed by Erich Mendelsohn and Serge Chermayeff. The intent of the structure was to provide the residents of Bexhill and area with accessible culture and relaxation, demonstrating the progressive social consciousness that underlies so much of the modern movement. It was the first public building in the U.K. built in the Modernist Style, and is considered to be a perfect expression of the International Style.

"Part of a great national movement, virtually to found a new industry - the industry of giving that relaxation, that pleasure, that culture which hitherto the gloom and dreariness of British resorts have driven our fellow countrymen to seek in foreign lands."

- The Ninth Earl De La Warr, on the occasion of the Pavilion's unveiling.

The Pavilion also adroitly illustrates the transition from Art Deco to post-Deco modernism, combining curvilinear forms and marine architecture motifs with the concrete and steel construction and spacious, airy interiors that so influenced Mies Van Der Rohe.

While critical reaction to its unveiling was largely enthusiastic, fringe groups such as the pro-Nazi Weekly Fascist denounced the use of "foreign Jews" in its construction - perhaps as much a reflection on the fact that the Jewish Mendelsohn -- the co-designer of the structure, and one of the most celebrated architects in Germany -- had recently escaped the National Socialist government by fleeing to Britain. He was shortly thereafter to migrate to Palestine.

After falling into disrepair after decades of neglect, the Pavilion was restored and re-opened in 2005, with new additions such as its award-winning bandshell, a bold yet delicate flourish with styling reminiscent of an Art Deco handerchief vase, which perfectly preserves the spirit of the Pavilion while adding new functionality.

The design of the times: Creating the 'Mad Men' look

Here’s how much creator Matthew Weiner cares about the design details of “Mad Men”: He and his staff have had conversations about whether the characters would use red or green maraschino cherries in their drinks.

“I don’t think it should be seen as an artistic triumph. I think it should be seen as someone who as OCD,” Weiner said in an interview, and it's possible he was only half joking.

Weiner likes his characters’ homes and offices to look lived in; the ashtrays at Sterling Cooper were full of cigarette butts, some with the imprint of the lipstick colors of the era.

“It’s very hard to make things look dirty on TV. We do it all the time, and it’s extra effort,” he said as we walked through bedroom of Don and Betty Draper (and yes, it is smaller than it looks on TV—the bed is only a full bed ).

The bedroom itself wasn’t beat up, but Weiner recalled having a debate with the show’s designers over the blue velvet headboard in their room. He eventually gave in when he was told that actress January Jones “would look amazing” next to it.

To read more of this content at the Chicago Tribune, click here.