Mid Century Modern

There are a number of us who feel strongly that the Mid Century Modern building is exceptional and should be preserved as a historical structure.

MID CENTURY MODERN ARCHITECTURE

Mid-Century Modern is an architectural style that was in great demand from the 1930’s through the 1970’s. The look was heavily influenced by the Bauhaus school, which emphasizes the use of mass-produced and easily replicable materials. The “form follows function” designs consist of simple clean lines,sweeping arcs,organic shapes, colors, rectangles, and straight lines – reminiscent of the curvy shapes created by Wassily Kandinsky and the geometric simplicity of Piet Mondrian. These architectural designs are often seen in new buildings today.

↑ Museu de Arte Contemporanea, Niteroi / Rio de Janeiro – Architect: Oscar Niemeyer

Santa Clarita Elementary is one of the very rare Mid Century Modern circular buildings. At it’s peak, Mid Century Modern was a major influence on Space Age designs not only of buildings, but also furniture, cars, products, advertising, and even cartoons, such as The Jetsons.

The designers at Smith, Powell, and Morgridge created many prominent Los Angeles buildings such as Page House at the California Institute of Technology, the Fullerton City Hall, and Santa Monica City College. Their achievements are curated in the Architecture & Design Collection of the Art Museum at University of California Santa Barbara. Architects from other cities come to our school to study and photograph the building.

The unique architecture of Santa Clarita Elementary and the fact that it is now 65 years can qualify it for historical building status. Mid Century Modern design remains popular today for its timeless aesthetics. Its key elements continue to be incorporated into contemporary designs.

It’s not obvious from the street that the school was designed as a beautiful 360 degree circle or that all the classrooms open up to the circular playground in the middle. In aerial pictures the campus looks like a flying saucer landing zone.