West Coast Modern Week announces 2024 programming
Celebration of West Coast Modern architecture and design runs July 9 to 14 and features walking tours, exhibitions, a documentary screening, and more
Eppich House I. Photo by Luis Valdizon (When They Find Us)
West Vancouver Art Museum, with support from British Pacific Properties and Livingspace, presents West Coast Modern Week from July 9 to 14 at various venues
EVERY YEAR, West Coast Modern Week celebrates the distinct architectural style of West Coast Modernism, which has deep roots in West Vancouver. The region’s natural setting of ocean, rocks, and rainforest, presents certain challenges and opportunities that are reflected in the local architecture.
Kicking things off on July 9 is the West Coast Modern Week Launch Party and WVAM 30th Anniversary at Isetta Cafe Bistro. The fundraising event features architects, designers, artists, and more at the café set in an iconic West Vancouver building that was designed in 1961 and once housed a diner, gas station, and car garage. It was renovated in 2022.
On July 9, 10, 11 are Walking Tours: The Modern Jewels of Dundarave. Led by experienced guides, the two-hour tours around the Dundarave waterfront will explore several mid-century buildings.
A panel discussion called SITE | LIGHT | CADENCE | SPACE ARTHUR ERICKSON REVISITED takes place on July 10. Renowned architect Arthur Erickson defined site, light, cadence, and space as his four first principles of architecture. The West Coast Modern League teams up with the West Vancouver Art Museum and the Polygon Gallery for this celebration of Erickson’s centenary through the lens of local designers who have revisited his work through active renewal and preservation.
Waterford Apartments. Photo by Luis Valdizon (When They Find Us)
On July 11, it’s the Annual Barry Downs Lecture Series: From City to City Up the Coast, with Alan Hess. Hess is the author of 21 books on Modern architecture and urbanism in the 20th century. He is a commissioner on the California State Historical Resources Commission and serves on the boards of Preserve Orange County, Palm Springs Modernism Week, and DesignOnScreen. The architecture critic of The Mercury News and contributor to The Architect’s Newspaper has helped restore buildings from the Modern era, including CBS Television City, Bullock’s Pasadena, NORMS La Cienega restaurant in L.A., and the oldest remaining McDonald’s stand. His next book, The Palm Springs School 1930-1975, will be published next year.
July 12 sees a film screening of Arthur Erickson's Dyde House and Q&A with Max Amerongen, Trevor Boddy, and Dr. Lee Foote. The new documentary tells the story of an early Erickson house located just outside of Edmonton, its architect, its clients, and the broader context in which it was built.
Eppich House II. Photo by Luis Valdizon (When They Find Us)
The 18th Annual West Coast Modern Home Tour with Modern Tea Party happens on July 13. This gives people private access to this year’s featured homes, including Eppich I, designed by Erickson in 1979, with renovations by BattersbyHowat Architects in 2015; Symons House, designed by Hamish McIntyre in 1962; Geoff and Ruth Massey House, renovated by Living Radius in 2023; and Waterford House, designed by Romses Quan and Associates in 1985, with suite renovations by Adam Becker Design in 2023. The tour ends with a Modern tea party in the West Vancouver Art Museum garden, catered by The Modern Pantry.
On July 14, it’s the West Coast Modern Week Concert: Sharon Minemoto & James Danderfer Trio, featuring Minemoto on grand piano, Danderfer on clarinet, and Paul Rushka on bass. This group will play jazz classics of the 1950s and ’60s along with some original compositions.
Two exhibitions coincide with West Coast Modern Week: running from May 15 to July 20 at the West Vancouver Art Museum is A Refuge: Arthur Erickson, with an opening reception on May 14, 6 to 8 pm. Designed by Arthur Erickson runs June 6 to August 30 at the West Vancouver Memorial Library.
Tickets for all events are available as of May 10. 
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