20th Century L.A. Architects: Chinese American Architects - Paul R. Williams - Pedro E. Guerrero - 2013 Pacific Standard Time Presents

Last month was the start of Pacific Standard Time Presents (PSTP) Modern Architecture in L.A. with the roll out of exhibitions, talks, and city-walk events until this September.  Sixteen cultural institutions are participating - aided with grant funding from the Getty.

The smaller scale PSTP series is a follow-up to the 2011-2012 Pacific Standard Time:  Art in L.A. 1945-1980, in which sixty organizations examined the art scene in the post-World War era.  Last year's exhibits examined cultural identity by telling the stories of African American, Chicano, and Asian American artists.

Chinese American Architects

Last year the Chinese American Museum presented "Breaking Ground:  Chinese American Architects in Los Angeles” - an endeavor that was at least a year ahead of its time; it seems appropriate to mention it again now.  An article by Wendy Gilmartin summarized the show in LA Weekly's blog - Breaking Ground' at Chinese American Museum Shows That Not All L.A. Architects Are Old, White Dudes.

Paul R. Williams, Architect

The pioneering African American architect of L.A. was an Angeleno, Paul Revere Williams (1894-1980).  To borrow from Wikipedia, Williams designed "modern interpretations of Tudor-revival, French Chateau, Regency, French Country, and Mediterranean architecture".  I don’t know if Williams’ works will be included in PSTP; if not, perhaps his traditional designs did not break enough new ground to fit the bill in PSTP.

Williams worked in the offices of John C. Austin before opening his own firm in 1922.  By the time of his retirement in 1973, he contributed directly, through joint ventures, or provided alterations, to more than 3,000 projects of residences, public buildings, business sites, schools and public housing complexes in the city; throughout Southern California and the country; and in foreign sites, too.

The affluence of his clients meant his designs took root in Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Brentwood, Flintridge, Hancock Park, Hollywood, Pacific Palisades and Pasadena.  He built for Frank Sinatra, Lon Chaney, Tyrone Power, Lucille Ball & Desi Arnaz, Barbara Stanwyck, Zasu Pitts, and Zsa Zsa Gabor, to drop just a few names.  His celebrity African American clients included William 'Bojangles' Robinson and Eddie 'Rochester' Anderson.  He built homes for L.A.'s old families, too:  a Del Valle and the Bannings.

Well-known, iconic spots synonymous with Los Angeles and to Williams' credit include the Theme Building at LAX, the Beverly Hills Hotel, the Polo Lounge, Beverly Wilshire Hotel, Saks Fifth Avenue department store, the County Courthouse downtown and even one that has been razed but remains in our collective memory:  the Ambassador Hotel.  (Update August 9, 2016:  Williams may have been a commissioner or a municipal board member that caused his name to be associated the LAX project, but he was not the architect of the Theme Building.)

Other sites included the Packard auto showroom in Beverly Hills, the Malibu Post Office, the Bank of America in Victorville, and the San Gabriel Hospital in the city of San Gabriel.  Education projects included numerous public schools and several UCLA buildings and fraternity houses.

Pi Beta Phi Sorority House near USC - one of Paul Williams' last projects (about 1973)

Williams designed several tract developments located in Costa Mesa, Downey, Oceanside and Whittier.  He was awarded jobs for several city housing projects:  Compton-Imperial, Nickerson Gardens, and Pueblo Del-Rio.

Relatedly, civil rights attorney Leo Branton Jr. passed away on April 26th.  He was victorious co-defender in the 1972 murder trial of Angela Davis, but as a newly minted graduate in 1948, Branton helped singer Nat King Cole to legally break a color barrier after Cole purchased a home on Muirfield Road in the exclusive Hancock Park community but faced disdain from neighbors.

Ironically, by 1948 Paul Williams was a seasoned architect.  By that time he also served on the city's first Housing Commission from 1933 to 1941.  Williams built clients' homes in Hancock Park.  And it was not until 1951 when Williams himself managed to build his own house in the Lafayette Square upper middle class area of west central L.A., a time when Blacks moved in as Whites moved to other parts.

His astounding project list can be found in Paul R. Williams, Architect, a Legacy of Style, by his granddaughter Karen E. Hudson (Rizzoli, NY:  1993) telling of the breadth of his 50+ years impact in Southern California.  Read more about Williams on the website http://www.paulrwilliamsproject.org/.

Pedro E. Guerrero, Photographer


Could Pedro E. Guerrero be honored sometime during the architectural series?  Guerrero, an Arizonan of Mexican descent, photographed for Frank Lloyd Wright throughout a 50 year span.  His photographic work was on view at the Julius Shulman Institute exhibition the Spring of 2012 at the Woodbury University Hollywood Gallery.  In September he  passed away at the age of 95.

Chinese American Artists Working in Los Angeles

This post title is borrowed from the title of a current exhibit at the Vincent Price Art Museum located on the campus of East Los Angeles College, Monterey Park, California.

Image courtesy of the Vincent Price Art Museum (VPAM)

The genuine lives of Chinese Americans are seldom portrayed in the media.  Likewise, artistic achievements by Chinese Americans in Los Angeles have not received adequate attention from art historians, including the period since the end of World War II.  The 'Round the Clock exhibition is a rare, prideful opportunity to appreciate the lives of five men through their delightful artwork, as well as their productive work careers.  After wandering through the large gallery hall, everything is all right:  the artists are strong role models, and they remedy the media vacuum with a huge dose of positivity.

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(Click on image to enlarge) (Above four images courtesy VPAM)

My visit to the museum Saturday, March 10th, was enriched through the presence on the gallery floor by Milton Quon, the fifth artist exhibited.

(Click image to enlarge) Courtesy of VPAM

Several of his children were present also, and I had ample time to speak with everyone.  I asked Mr. Quon whether there were any women artists in his circle, and Helen Liu Fong came to his mind.  Fong was an architect - her achievements are included in the Chinese American Museum's current exhibition Breaking Ground: Chinese American Architects in Los Angeles (1945-1980) showcasing the work of "four pioneering Chinese American architects whose contributions were critical to the development of Los Angeles' urban and visual landscape between 1945 and 1980."

Although 'Round the Clock does not include a female artist, there is a strong consolation:  Sonia Mak, guest curator, is the woman who spearheaded this exhibition to make it possible.

From left:  Timothy Quon, Sherrill Quon, Milton Quon, and Sonia Mak.  The watercolor drawing behind Mr. Quon was inspired by Winslow Homer.

I learned quite a bit about Milton Quon - and I think it was mutual.  He is curious and interested in everyone around him.

He had a role as an extra in Sandra Bullock's 1994 film "Speed" portraying a "Chinese" passenger on a bus.  On the film set, he passed the long hours of waiting by sketching the activity going on around him.

Milton Quon explains how he first met artist Jake Lee, with son Timothy looking on.

I did not have the notion to ask what compelled him to his subject matters.  I do know that he is a native Angeleno.  On exhibit includes a piece from 1990 entitled "Refinery East Los Angeles."  Below is "Chavez Ravine Grocery, Effie Street" from about 1952.  Was he aware of the impending doom for the Chavez Ravine neighborhood to be redeveloped for public housing or for a ball park?

(Courtesy of VPAM)

Showcase of Tyrus Wong's commercial projects, including greeting cards.  (Courtesy of VPAM)

George Chann's "Shy Boy" (Courtesy of VPAM)

John Kwok's abstracts (Courtesy of VPAM)

For a critique of this exhibition, read Blouin Art Info.

For an interesting Q & A with the curator, Sonia Mak, read the Huffington Post issue of January 19th. 

Update: Read a review on the Los Angeles Times Culture Monster.

'Round the Clock is an admission-free exhibition - see it before it closes on May 25, 2012.