The Philosophical Research Society is proud to collaborate with The John Lautner Foundation to celebrate the life and works of one of the 20th Century’s most important architects, and the man behind some of LA’s most iconic buildings and homes. Following an introduction by architectural historian John English, we’ll take in a rare screening of Bette Jane Cohen’s wonderful documentary THE SPIRIT IN ARCHITECTURE: JOHN LAUTNER (1990), followed by a panel discussion on Lautner, his philosophy, artistry, and legacy. Panelists will include Helena Arahuete – Lautner Associates' principal architect, Frank Escher – architect (Escher GuneWardena) and former administrator of the John Lautner Archive, Alan Hess – historian, architect, and author, and Evelyn Wendel — producer of the evening's film.

Between 1933 and 1939, Lautner apprenticed with Frank Lloyd Wright at Taliesin, where he was exposed to and immersed in Wright’s philosophy of organic architecture. By 1939 Lautner had moved to Los Angeles where he established his own practice, and over the next five decades, would design and build some of the area’s most unique and iconic structures. While he received early recognition for his work, and continued to be published throughout the first decade of his career, his projects were not easily defined by architecture critics, and his design approach was often mis understood – due inlarge part to the fact that his projects were highly individualized, responding to each client’s needs, and the challenges of each site. His body of work didn’t express a particular “style” as many of his contemporaries would become identified with. Lautner was not concerned with the outward exterior fashion of buildings, but rather the beauty, functionality and livability of his spaces.

Lack of critical recognition aside, his clients became devotees and by the late 1950’s and through the 1960’s some of them approached Lautner with bigger budgets and even bigger appetites for experimenting with new forms and structural expressions. Through many of these increasingly ambitious, monumental concrete structural projects, Lautner attempted to realize a merging of nature and shelter in inhabited spaces. He often said you need to have a “major total idea” , a “total concept” “otherwise it’s just an assembly of facades and cliches”. Carrying on the tradition of an Organic architecture taught by his teacher Frank Lloyd Wright, Lautner balanced a deep understanding of American nature with American industrial technology. He advanced those ideas in a series of famous residential and commercial buildings in Los Angeles, including the circular Chemosphere house above Mulholland Drive, the concrete Sheats-Goldstein House in Beverly Hills, the “Silvertop” home in Silver Lake, and the iconic Googie’s restaurant on the Sunset Strip. These designs puzzled mainstream critics, but were so deeply rooted in the visual and built fabric of Los Angeles that they claimed an indelible role in popular culture, starring in movies such as The Big Lebowski, Body Double and Less Than Zero.

Lautner’s legacy is that of the maverick visionary who had the ability to look at a building site and see a structure emerging from the ground up. Standing in a Lautner building one is often at a loss for words as the experience is felt on a subconscious level, visceral, through the senses.

THE SPIRIT IN ARCHITECTURE: JOHN LAUTNER (1990)

Directed by Bette Jane Cohen and produced by Evelyn Wendel, THE SPIRIT IN ARCHITECTURE was the first documentary on the life and work of architect John Lautner, and the only production that Lautner participated in directly. It was the only time that Lautner was interviewed on camera talking about his projects and revisiting his buildings. Lautner narrates the film himself, recalling his time apprenticing with Frank Lloyd Wright at Taliesen, his early career, and discusses his design philosophy and relationship with clients.

Also commenting on Lautner’s work are a host of notable experts including architect Michael Rotondi, urban planner and historian John Chase, architectural historian Ken Breisch, and historian and author Alan Hess among others. An original score sets the tone for the film while we see Lautner’s extraordinary architecture through beautiful cinematography.

Bette Jane Cohen conceived of this film as the first in a series about architects that she felt deserved to be more widely recognized for their groundbreaking work. Cohen passed away in 2016, and the film remains a great testament to her vision and passion for documenting and exposing great architecture to a wider audience.

Dir. Bette Jane Cohen, 1990, 70 mins, Unrated, English, Digital.

This is part of our Philosophy of Design Series: This April and May, we celebrate the transformative power of design with a series of events examining the work of influential architects of the past. We'll explore how their unique philosophies and principles were reflected in their creations—works that not only shaped the way we view the world and experience space but opened up new possibilities for ways of living.

Tickets: $12 (in-person event)

Please email events@prs.org or phone 323-663-2167 with any questions.

THE SPIRIT IN ARCHITECTURE: JOHN LAUTNER – Screening & Panel Discussion

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