San Diego’s Polyhaus is Designing the Future of Fire-Safe Homes
With wildfires on the rise in California, architects and homebuilders in the city and beyond are racing to develop structures that can withstand the blaze
The morning marine layer has just burned off in La Jolla. Heat pools on the pavement. Mirages shimmer off the patio stones as a leaf blower hums somewhere in the valley below.
In the backyard of one quiet residential block, something strange juts up from the earth—an angular form clad in gleaming metal, like a shard of spacecraft wedged between rosemary bushes and stucco walls. It doesn’t look like it belongs. Then again, neither do year-round fires and routine thousand-home evacuations.
Photo Credit: Andy Cross & Cody Cloud The polyhedron–shaped Polyhaus is crafted from 64 massive, cross-laminated wood sheets.
This structure is called the Polyhaus, a polyhedron-shaped, fire-resistant home covered in insulated metal panels. Instead of walls framed by two-by-fours, the Polyhaus is made entirely from 64 panels of cross-laminated timber: massive engineered wood sheets that are half the strength of reinforced concrete and burn at a rate of just one-and-a-half inches per hour, which is three to five times slower than a traditional home. A three-ply wall crafted from the material can withstand fire for nearly four hours—long enough, perhaps, to save what’s inside it, or the whole home itself.
The unique design is the brainchild of Daniel López-Pérez, the director of the University of San Diego’s architecture program. To him, the housing crisis and the climate crisis are two sides of the same coin, and the answer might just be a polyhedron. “When we come to housing production, we are back in the 19th century,” he says, “one two-by-four at a time.” The Polyhaus breaks that mold, both literally and figuratively. The angular structure goes up in two-and-a-half days; requires just three framers; and, thanks to the digitally manufactured panels with no airgaps, gives fire little oxygen to feed on.
Photo Credit: Ariana Drehsler Polyhaus architect Daniel López-Pérez.
But it’s not just rapid construction and fire resistance that inspire López-Pérez—he’s also thinking about the source of his materials. “We have become unaware of what our houses are made of,” he tells me, shaking his head. Each timber panel used to create the Polyhaus comes from Vaagen Timbers, a Pacific Northwest company that mills wood from trees cleared in wildfire mitigation projects, specifically in Washington’s Colville National Forest. In other words, he’s using forest overgrowth that could burn to build homes that won’t. “You don’t have to be an architect or a designer to have fire safety on your mind,” he adds.
Courtesy of Polyhaus Insulated metal panels protect the the home’s exterior.
And he’s right. In an age of pressboard and synthetic insulation, it’s easy to forget that shelter was once sourced from whatever the land could offer. Before mass production and fire-resistant panels, homebuilding meant something more impermanent and intuitive. In Southern California, Native communities like the Payómkawichum (Luiseño people) built kíicha, domed shelters made from willow branches, tule reeds, and cedar bark. These structures weren’t built to resist fire so much as coexist with it. Tribal-led controlled burns kept the landscape healthy, cleared excess brush, and minimized the risk of catastrophic wildfires. The land was not a threat to defend against but a partner to understand.
Photo Credit: Ariana Drehsler The arched shape of CalEarth structures helps them withstand earthquakes, hurricanes, and tornadoes, while their material composition shrugs in the face of fires.
Some are attempting a return to this intuitive partnership with the earth a few hours north of San Diego, on the southern tip of the Mojave Desert. Yuccas and Joshua trees stand paralyzed here, locked in a heat-induced trance. It’s still. Still in that way where even the breeze seems scorched out of existence. Triple digits are just the standard now. A century ago, the desert was two percent cooler and rainfall was 20 percent heavier. Today, it’s only getting hotter.
At CalEarth: The California Institute of Earth Art and Architecture, an assembly of structures peppers an open field, breaking up the monotony of beige suburbia surrounding it. They appear to have been airlifted from another planet, with domed roofs and walls made of earthen balls. Ant hills with reptilian scales.
These extraterrestrial dwellings are SuperAdobes, the avant-garde creations of CalEarth. Located in Hesperia, CA, the campus is a cluster of sandbag-built structures, each one hewn from the desert itself. Native soil and sand are stuffed into polypropylene bags, stabilized with cement and lime, and reinforced with barbed wire. Stacked layer by layer, they rise into earthen cocoons and gazebo-scale domes that feel both primitive and futuristic.
Photo Credit: Ariana Drehsler Hesperia’s CalEarth creates near-indestructible homes out of native soil and sand, cement and lime, and barbed wire.
These are no fragile art pieces, either. These buildings are meant to last. Against fire. Against flood. Against earthquakes, mudslides, tornadoes—whatever the climate throws at us next. Their secret is the arch: a timeless engineering feat that redistributes stress, letting the buildings flex rather than shatter. Square walls crack; curves endure. The domes resist seismic events and hurricanes, while their makeup of earth material stands up against increasingly large, dangerous, and expensive Californian wildfires.
At the helm of the institute stands Dastan Khalili, who began his journey with the organization at just 2 years old, tagging along on projects with his father, Nader Khalili, the revolutionary founder of CalEarth. What began as a project in the 1980s to plan for off-planet construction on the moon and Mars evolved into an educational institute teaching the SuperAdobe design—now studied by NASA and utilized by the United Nations—to students around the globe in hopes of providing a housing solution for Earth and the wildfires we’re increasingly facing.
“If you go back doing the same thing expecting different results, it’s just going to lead to another catastrophe,” Khalili says, “because the only thing that’s truly sustainable is the fire, the tornado, the hurricane, the earthquake. They’ve been here for billions of years, and they will be here long after.”
Photo Credit: Ariana Drehsler A mere three framers can put up a Polyhaus in less than three days.
He’s not being poetic. He’s being literal. Wildfire predates humans—by a lot. It’s been igniting Earth for over 400 million years, sparked by lightning strikes, volcanic eruptions, and falling rocks. These days, though, 85 percent of US wildfires can be traced back to human activity: cigarettes, campfires, powerlines, sparks off metal… the list goes on. But there’s more to it than an errant cig. The reason California is burning, and burning fast, is rising temperatures and their effect on the terrain. Climate change is causing vegetation to shrivel and brush to dry up. Droughts are the norm—about 40 percent of the state is currently experiencing one, according to CalMatters— resulting in dead trees, their carcasses a wildfire’s ideal supper. Snowy peaks are melting faster, and water tables are dropping.
In other words, California’s changing climate has made the state increasingly prone to wildfire, and not just in remote forests. In recent years, development has pushed deeper into high-risk areas, placing more homes and communities in harm’s way. Between July 2023 and June 2024, nearly 230,000 people moved to the Golden State, many into regions already vulnerable to fire. In San Diego County, plans are approved for a 2,750-home development just north of where the Border 2 fire burned 6,625 acres in January.
Courtesy of Wildlife Prepared The fortified materials required of IBHS-certified houses can keep structures intact for far longer than conventionally built homes—and the company set two small buildings alight to prove it.
If we can’t stop the spark, then working with the existing elements seems to be the logic guiding many architects, engineers, and homebuilders.
That’s where people like Steve Ruffner come in. As president and regional general manager for KB Home operations in San Diego, Orange County, and Long Beach, he found himself in charge of developing Dixon Trail, a new neighborhood in Escondido near a wildland-urban interface. At a builder’s conference, Ruffner witnessed a live demo from the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) showing two homes side by side: one built to 1980s housing code, the other fully fire-hardened by IBHS. The company lit both. The former burned to the frame; the latter barely flinched.
Ruffner decided that Dixon Trail deserved that same level of protection against potential fires in Escondido. California already requires homes near wildfire-prone areas to meet Chapter 7A of the state building code, including a laundry list of fire-rated materials, from roofing to vents. Dixon Trails goes a few steps further with the IBHS Wildfire Prepared Home Plus certification. This means fortified materials and defensible space—at least five feet of cleared perimeter around each home, no wooden fencing connecting houses, and outbuildings moved at least 30 feet away.
“When you have combustible items—a fence, shed, plant, tree—flames from the fire can ignite those items, leading to the ignition of the house,” says Steve Hawks, the senior director of wildfire at IBHS. Hawks is a part of the research team doing post-fire analyses, including those in Los Angeles. What he’s learned is that it’s not the wall of fire that brings down buildings, but tiny, wind-blown embers that slip through the cracks of vents or catch on a pile of pine needles by the back door.
Courtesy of Wildlife Prepared Homes in Escondido’s Dixon Trail development meet the rigorous safety standards of IBHS Wildfire Prepared Home Plus certification.
While Dixon Trail may look like any other California neighborhood, it has an invisible coat of armor over it, made of cement siding, stucco shutters, steel garage doors, and a metal front door. The project is set to finish next summer, with half of its 64 units already sold.
Beyond peace of mind, there’s another benefit: insurance. IBHS certification is supported by insurance companies, which means homes built to the company’s standards are not only safer, they’re insurable—a growing concern in fire-prone regions where many carriers have pulled out entirely. Due to California’s Proposition 103, insurance companies can’t use wildfire modeling to assess potential risk or easily raise rates. Combined with skyrocketing wildfire losses—like the estimated $75 billion-plus in insured damages from the LA fires alone—this has driven many major insurers out of the state. As a result, homeowners are forced to rely on the California FAIR Plan, originally designed as a last resort, for coverage. But after LA, it’s cracking under pressure, too, tacking on $1 billion in extra charges to insurers and, ultimately, the homeowners trying to rebuild.
What California’s wildfires continue to make clear is this: While individual homes may be burning, it’s entire communities that suffer. The future of fire-safe living lies in building smarter neighborhoods designed to work with the land rather than against it. The innovations are here, from sandbag domes born of desert soil to geometric timber homes that burn slow and build fast. But no matter the material or method, lasting fire resilience will depend on more than the architecture. It will rely on planners, builders, insurers, and homeowners treating wildfires not as isolated events but as inevitable conditions we must live and build with.
“This is not just a homeowners problem,” Hawks says. “This is an all-of-us problem.”
And that means the homebuilding solutions, like fire, will have to spread.
Courtesy of USDA Forest Service
A History of Wildfires in California
Before 1850: Indigenous communities in California use low-intensity burns to clear underbrush, renew soil, and shape fire-adapted ecosystems like coastal prairies. These practices are outlawed in 1850.
1889: The Santiago Canyon Fire, also called the Great Fire of 1889, burns over 300,000 acres across Riverside, Orange, and San Diego counties.
1905: The Act of 1905 creates the position of California State Forester and affords them the right to appoint local fire wardens, the origins of The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE).
1906: A devastating earthquake followed by massive fires destroys more than 80 percent of San Francisco.
1933: The fast-moving Griffith Park brush fire in Los Angeles kills 29 civilians attempting to fight the blaze.
1961: The Bel Air Fire tears through upscale Los Angeles neighborhoods, prompting new fire safety policies and laws in the city, including the banning of highly flammable wood shingle roofs and the implementation of a stringent brush clearance program.
1970: The Laguna Fire burns roughly 175,000 acres in San Diego County over 12 days. Until 2020, it remains among California’s 20 largest wildfires.
1991: The Oakland Hills Firestorm burns just 1,500 acres but destroys over 3,000 homes and kills 25 people.
2018: The deadliest wildfire in California history, the Camp Fire, devastates Butte County, killing 85 people and all but leveling several communities, including the town of Paradise.
2020: Burning over one million acres across six counties, the August Complex Fire becomes the largest wildfire in state history. 2020 sets a California record with 1.74 million hectares burned statewide— more than double the previous annual record from 2018.
2025: Fueled by drought and Santa Ana winds, fires in Altadena, Pacific Palisades, and other parts of Southern California kill at least 30 people and burn over 57,000 acres. It is potentially the most expensive wildfire in US history.
Lili Kim is a content coordinator and writer for San Diego Magazine, with experience highlighting local businesses and communities. When not writing or shooting film, she is likely brewing her seventh cup of tea of the day or strolling along Sunset Cliffs.
Charitable gatherings, downtown music festivals and theater premieres—of both the heartwarming and thought-provoking variety—are among San Diego’s standout events this weekend. You can’t spell fundraising without ‘fun,’ and both elements are central at Poway OnStage’s Taste of the Towne and the Switchfoot Bro-Am. Listeners of blues, reggae rock and silky smooth jazz can check out the East Village Blues Fest, Field of Dreamz and the San Diego Smooth Jazz Festival, respectively. As for the city’s thespian community, new shows include Cygnet Theatre’s production of Broadway favorite The Spongebob Musical and the world premiere of the OnWord Theatre show Marti Gobel’s Adult Storytime: A Caregiver’s Guide To The Blues.
The tasteful appetizer to Switchfoot Bro-Am’s annual Beach Fest is the laid-back Benefit Party, returning this Thursday from 6-10 p.m. at Viasat. Guests will be treated to a curated dining menu, a performance by Switchfoot with special guests, and the chance to bid on live and silent auction items, including local excursions, apparel packages, and deluxe arts experiences. Individual ticket options include general admission ($300) and reserved seating ($450); the money raised will go towards youth-centered programming at six local nonprofits.
6155 El Camino Real, Carlsbad
Taste of Our Towne at Poway Center for the Performing Arts
June 13
Patrons of Poway OnStage are invited to Taste of Our Towne, the organization’s annual culinary fundraiser, this Saturday at 5 p.m. at Poway Center for the Performing Arts. The evening will begin with auctions, plus bites and libations from over a dozen local vendors before magician Chris Funk, aka The Wonderist, takes the stage for an interactive comedy show.General admission is $115 for Taste of Our Towne; proceeds from this event will benefit Poway OnStage’s Professional Performance Series and Arts in Education Initiative.
Rod Stewart at North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre
June 12
Before (potentially) riding off into the sunset, British rocker Rod Stewart is strutting his stuff stateside with the unconventional voice and unquestionable verve that’s propelled his nearly six decade-long solo career. Though the “Da Ya Think I’m Sexy?” artist’s days on the road may be dwindling, that’s even more reason to give him his flowers in the present. Stewart’s upcoming show this Friday at 7:30 p.m. at North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre will feature prolific singer-songwriter Richard Marx as the opening act. Tickets start at $40.
2050 Entertainment Circle, Chula Vista
Switchfoot Bro-Am Beach Fest
June 13
Following Thursday’s Benefit Party, the 22nd annual Switchfoot Bro-Am will switch (get it?) from its fundraiser to a free day at Moonlight Beach for Saturday’s all-day Beach Fest. From 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. there will be surf competitions—including surf jousting—and from noon to 5 p.m., Sun Room, Telephone Friends, Kimiko, a handful of special guests and, of course, Switchfoot will perform for attendees. Additionally, throughout the day, there will be a variety of vendors and brand activations to explore. Admission is free with RSVP, while VIP pit tickets are $195.
As the mysterious saying goes, ‘If you build it, they will come,’ but instead of Iowa cornfields, this time the message is coming from inside SD’s home ballpark. This Saturday, Ocean Beach natives Slightly Stoopid will headline the first-ever Field of Dreamz Festival, and they’ve brought along a handful of ska, reggae and island-inspired rock acts for the ride. Doors will open at 3 p.m., and fans can see sets by Stephen Marley, Pepper, Sublime—whose first album with frontman Jakob Nowell drops Friday—and more. Ticket options include standard admission ($125), floor tickets ($188), plus All-Star VIP ($244) and Hall of Fame VIP ($610) passes.
Ryan Hardison is a freelance arts and entertainment writer and recent graduate of San Diego State. When he's not staring at his laptop, he's likely eating an adobada burrito or getting sunburnt at the beach.
There’s a creative inertia that resides in San Diego, producing a near-constant stream of cool events. Fortunately, this weekend is no different. Those with an artistic inkling can search for inspiration at MCASD’s EXPO Design Market or admire the mixture of live performance and neighborhood charm during the North Park Music Fest. Foodies can dine (with wine) at Stake Chophouse & Bar during its ZD Wines Dinner or explore Barrio Logan’s standout eats at the Sabor Del Barrio. Plus, Pride Month is already in full swing in SD with the return of DISCO RIOT’s Queer Mvmnt Fest and the two-day Out & Abt Music Festival.
Stake Chophouse & Bar is collaborating with Napa Valley’s ZD Wines—a family-run winemaking institution that’s been around since 1969—on an intimate four-course dinner this Thursday at 6:30 p.m. Throughout the meal, each dish will be paired with a curated pour from ZD Wines, with patrons set to receive a chardonnay, pinot noir, and pair of cabernet sauvignons. Dinner guests will also be treated to insight on the night’s wine pairings from ZD Wines’ senior winemaker Chris Pisani. Reservations are $210 pre-paid through OpenTable.
Take advantage of all the dynamic attractions that the Barrio Logan Cultural District has to offer—and eat very well while you’re at it—during the third annual Sabor Del Barrio. This Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. attendees can devour their way through 35 neighborhood staples and traverse the tasting stops on foot, by bike, via a free trolley shuttle, or a combination of the three. Tickets are $40 online ($55 day of) and come with complimentary admission to Quint Gallery, the Athenaeum Art Center, and the Chicano Park Museum & Cultural Center, plus a free tour of Tao of Clay.
Sam Hinton Folk Heritage Festival at Old Poway Park
June 6
Survey the depth of oral storytelling during the free annual Sam Hinton Folk Heritage Festival this Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Old Poway Park. Named for harmonica virtuoso, marine biologist, and longtime San Diegan Sam Hinton, this event highlights folk artists who specialize in time-honored traditions. Throughout the day, attendees can see performances by musicians with roots in Americana, Cajun, and Appalachian rhythms on the main stage, dance in the Templars Hall, and hear historical tales from the Storytellers of San Diego in the Porter House.
14134 Midland Road, Poway
North Park Music Fest
June 6
Psychedelic rockers Frankie and the Witch Fingers will headline an eclectic lineup at the North Park Music Fest. This Saturday, enjoy sets from noon to 1:45 a.m. from over thirty performers—including DJs, bands, and local acts—across a dozen North Park venues. Ticket options include general admission ($25 online, $35 day of) and VIP passes ($65) which come with lounge access at Granada House, line-skipping privileges and more; festival proceeds will go towards the North Park Business & Neighborhood Foundation. Plus, performances at Pure Pawsh, Visual Art + Supply, Overland, and Playground Art + Coffee will be open to the public.
North Park
Out & Abt Music Festival
June 6 & 7
The calendar has just flipped to Pride Month, and Out & Abt is celebrating in style. The two-day Out & Abt Music Festival begins Saturday from 3-10 p.m. at The Soap Factory with drag shows, circus acts, a manic pixie dream market, two stages of live music, and last but not least, a mechanical bull. The festivities will continue with an after party from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. at Gossip Grill and conclude with an afternoon pool party at Hard Rock Hotel San Diego on Sunday from 1-7 p.m. Ticket options include weekend general admission passes ($70), and entry to the music festival ($30), after party ($17) and pool party ($27).
Citywide
Photo Credit: Kevin Berne
Theater & Art Exhibits in San Diego This Weekend
The Monsters at La Jolla Playhouse
June 2-28
Fresh off its Drama Desk Award-winning run in the Big Apple this past winter, The Monsters will have its first West Coast production beginning Tuesday in the Mandall Weiss Forum at La Jolla Playhouse. Written by and co-starring Ngozi Anyanwu, The Monsters finds its reconciliatory narrative in a young woman yearning to repair her relationship with her estranged older brother in the brutal and unforgiving world of mixed martial arts. The Monsters will have preview performances this Tuesday through Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Saturday at 2 & 8 p.m. and Sunday at 1 & 7 p.m., with tickets ranging from $30-$74.
Ryan Hardison is a freelance arts and entertainment writer and recent graduate of San Diego State. When he's not staring at his laptop, he's likely eating an adobada burrito or getting sunburnt at the beach.
June Gloom isn’t stopping San Diegans from making the most out of the month. There’s something for every music lover, from swaying to smooth jazz at The Rady Shell to rocking out at Slightly Stoopid’s Field of Dreamz Festival. Art enthusiasts can visit the Mingei for an exhibit showcasing Native American and Pacific Rim heritage, while foodies can try the latest fried fad at the San Diego County Fair. Whatever your interests, it’s time to text the group chat and make some plans. Here are all the best things to do in San Diego this month:
Khalid is headlining his first tour since 2019—this time for the R&B and pop showstopper After the Sun Goes Down—and he’s ready to dance through Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre.
Photo Credit: Angela Babby / Courtesy of Angela Babby
Theater & Art Exhibits in San Diego This Month
6/5–7/19
With a beat that can’t be stopped, New Village Arts will revive the joyful musical Hairspray, a fusion of teen pop stardom and racial integration in Civil Rights–era Baltimore.
6/13–9/13
Cat Gunn poignantly examines the impact of forced separation from ancestral lineage through If Only by the Light of a New Moon, their solo museum debut at ICA Central.
Proceed to Pride Month with the Out & Abt Festival, featuring a carnival-themed playground at The Soap Factory, an afterparty hosted by Gossip Grill, and the next day, a sapphic poolside bash at the Hard Rock Hotel.
6/10–7/5
Imagine and experience your favorite fairytale ending during the San Diego County Fair, which returns this summer with a new theme: Once Upon a Fair.
11 & 13
The return of the Switchfoot Bro-Am means two things: an elegant seaside fundraiser in North County and a free bash at Moonlight Beach full of sun, surf competitions, and live music.
For the first time, NASCAR will start its engines in San Diego. Naval Base Coronado will host this one-of-a-kind racing spectacle to commemorate the U.S. Navy’s semiquincentennial.
25
Itadakimasu! In other words: Let’s eat! Sample, then rank, the best Pan-Asian dishes from local eateries at Julep Venue during SD Mag’s 21+ Omakase Open, done to support the Convoy District.
28
If you ever needed a reason to eat ice cream and gelato, here’s a charitable one. Raise money—one waffle cone at a time—for Feeding San Diego during this year’s Scoop San Diego festival.
Ryan Hardison is a freelance arts and entertainment writer and recent graduate of San Diego State. When he's not staring at his laptop, he's likely eating an adobada burrito or getting sunburnt at the beach.
Kelly H. Harfouche, founder of KQ Aesthetic Society, knows firsthand that cosmetic treatments like fillers, neurotoxins, and microneedling, can not only enhance a person’s appearance and restore confidence, they have the power to truly change a person’s life. An expert injector has the ability to tailor treatments to each individual patient’s anatomy and goals for personalized results. Harfouche, a board-certified nurse practitioner, has spent nearly a decade perfecting her craft as an aesthetic injector and integrating her multifaceted artistic skills with precision patient care. Her commitment to continual education and training, plus a passion for helping people look—and feel—their best, set KQ Aesthetic Society apart in a sea of local medspas.
For many people considering nonsurgical treatments, the intent is to look refreshed and refined. KQ Aesthetic Society’s philosophy eschews a cookie cutter approach that bases treatments around units, instead working to understand each person’s unique goals, then curating a treatment plan to fit that vision. Harfouche focuses on “inclusive luxury,” the belief that everyone deserves access to aesthetic treatments, respective of budget restrictions. She develops long-standing trusted relationships with her patients, and works with each one to achieve their aesthetic objectives and address the underlying causes of their concerns.
“For me, forming an honest and open relationship with every patient who walks through the door is essential. This means understanding them on a deeper level and meeting them where they are to define and achieve their individual goals,” she says.
Drawing on her artistic background, which inspired her transition into medical aesthetics, Harfouche sees each client as a “unique canvas.” Rather than relying on standardized procedures, the practitioner’s distinctive approach combines her profound understanding of the physiological and anatomical changes associated with aging with an unwavering commitment to ongoing education about the newest products and their mechanisms of action. Her goal is to make each patient feel beautiful in their own skin and to embrace their individuality.
She has also pioneered a way to combine her talent for aesthetic artistry with her philanthropic nature. Harfouche is one of only a handful of providers using dermal fillers to treat patients with lip asymmetry and scarring resulting from cleft lip surgery. Patients travel from around the country for this transformative treatment, noting increased confidence and a restored identity. She hopes to eventually launch a training program to help fill the void in this space.
“My passion has always been connecting with people and giving back in any capacity that I can,” she says. In the rapidly advancing landscape of aesthetic medicine, you can place your confidence in Harfouche and KQ Aesthetic Society to deliver exceptional care. To learn more or book a consultation, please visit kqaestheticsociety.com.
San Diego is just out here minding its own business. It’s long been cast as Los Angeles’s less ambitious sibling—the chill one, the one who shows up late for dinner reservations in flip-flops with a few provocative opinions. Architecturally it’s often cast the same: secondary, derivative, a footnote to California modernism that seems to begin and end with the Stahl House (Case Study House #22). LA has Pierre Koenig, Craig Ellwood, John Lautner. San Diego has the original fish taco.
But this version of the story is redacted, metaphorically speaking.
While the jazz hands of Hollywood and its hills cast a spell on historians and architecture buffs, San Diego had, and has, its own quiet evolution: It invented and reinvented itself through homegrown modernism, beginning with The Allen House (1907) in Bonita by Irving J. Gill.
“The biggest misconception is that San Diego was following Los Angeles,” says Keith York of Modern San Diego, one of the city’s top guides to modernist architecture. “Those who consider Rudolph Schindler and Richard Neutra as the fathers of Southern California Modernism often fail to recognize the outsize influence Gill and his buildings had on their work.”
Courtesy of Keith York
A new book, The Distinct Modernism of San Diego—written by Mark Hargreaves and Hallie Swenson, published by York—focuses on eight architects who were born, raised, or built their careers in San Diego. It illustrates how the city wasn’t hosting weekend warrior architects on side quests. It was a staging ground for a less look-at-me modernism from luminaries like Gill, Lilian J. Rice, Richard Requa, Lloyd Ruocco, Frederick Liebhardt, Kendrick Bangs Kellogg, Sim Bruce Richards, and Cliff May.
“Absent the backstabbing competition for projects, a collegial group of architectural peers collaborated and maintained lasting friendships with one another as they designed in response to the temperate climate and slower economy,” York says.
Largely unknown until the mid-1960s, Gill is a marquee name today. He arrived here from the East Coast at a moment when San Diego was still defining itself, which gave him the freedom to invent something new, experiment, rebel.
Instead of imposing the flourishes and frills of the time, he considered San Diego’s climate, light, landscape, history—the joie de vivre—and designed for this place. “[Architects of the west] must have the courage to fling aside every device that distracts the eye from structural beauty, must break through convention and get down to fundamental truths,” he once said, a sentiment that nails the un-ornate, total lack of pretension that’s defined San Diego people and culture.
And, lo, did Gill fling: His flat roofs, clean lines, and almost no ornamentation—though not necessarily modernism in the Eames or Eichler sense—foreshadowed what would later be called minimalism. Gill eventually became synonymous with the Los Angeles narrative, but broader architectural histories overlook the fact that his most progressive designs happened here.
Courtesy of Keith York
Another key to San Diego’s architectural movement was Lilian J. Rice, who often worked behind the scenes with little credit. She was one of only about 10 women in America licensed as architects at the time. Even though she died from cancer at 43, she somehow managed to complete an estimated 170 projects in the region, many in Rancho Santa Fe.
Born and raised in National City, Rice also wasn’t importing ideas. She shaped her own based on her understanding of this region and her commitment to protect the natural environment. Her work has been categorized as Spanish Colonial Revival, but she wasn’t reviving as much as she was refining a style suited to our border region—serene, mirroring nature, beautiful.
Like Sim Bruce Richards, who was his own way of life. While Gill stripped away ornamentation and Rice focused on the peace of open spaces, Richards came along several decades later and went full emo. By then, modernism had grown deep roots; its steel-and-glass structures took themselves very seriously. Richards came to party.
Photo Credit: Ollie Patterson
An eccentric, unpredictable man with half a face (part of his jaw was removed following a bone infection when he was a child), his life was a jalopy of adventures. He was opinionated and passionate about design, music, texture—and he created what he called a “sensuous environment.” He wanted his clients and their guests to feel the spaces as much as to be in them, appealing to the visual, tactile, nasal (“a cedar house smells good”), auditory (“acoustically superior”), even taste. “Though, I‘ve never had a client lick my houses,” he once wrote.
Organic, woodsy, textured, aromatic—if you ever find yourself in a Sim Bruce Richards house, a licking impulse might not seem so outrageous.
Gill, Rice, Richards and the other architects in Distinct Modernism built a legacy in San Diego that resonates nationally. And the work of these heavy hitters isn’t stuck in an inaccessible collectors realm: This October, homes by Kellogg and Liebhardt will open to the public as part of the La Jolla Modernism Home Tour—an opportunity to experience it not as a museum relic or magazine image (ahem), but as something alive.
Modernism in San Diego was never about glamour or an intention to be iconic. What transpired here is more nuanced, more ingrained with a less shouty aesthetic. A very San Diego aesthetic.
Dive into the unexpected this weekend, where curated meals, experimental performances and behind-the-scenes experiences await. Foodies are invited to the first 2026 gathering of The Blank Table as well as Chef Onyi’s seasonal Rooted dinner at Millport. Broaden your artistic horizons with Project [BLANK]’s Working Title No. 5, or check out the genre-bending musical lineups at Seek Fest or Fiesta Del Sol. As an added bonus, The Rosin Box Project is pulling back the curtain and opening a trio of after-hours rehearsals to the public ahead of its new Incubator Lab show.
San Diego may be a craft beer capital, but it’s also home to a diverse array of wineries. During the San Diego County Vintners Association’s annual San Diego Wine Week, oenophiles can sample several of the best pours the region has to offer. The centerpiece event, Sunday’s all-inclusive SDCVA Wine Festival from 3-6 p.m., will feature over 20 local wineries at Bernardo Winery; general admission is $90. Additional Wine Week events include Vintners Table at Cordiano Winery (Thursday), San Diego Wine Country at the Bay at Mission Beach Women’s Club (Thursday) and the Seedling Soiree at Olivewood Gardens (Saturday).
Citywide
The Blank Table
May 28
The Blank Table series is an exercise in local culinary creativity, innovation and collaboration with the most secret of ingredients readily available: the element of surprise. On six Thursdays from May-October—with year seven of the series beginning this Thursday at 6 p.m.—60 patrons will be served a unique menu with five set courses, each with curated cocktail pairings. And to keep the air of mystery alive, the dinner location and menu will not be disclosed until 24 hours ahead of time. Tickets are $275 for Thursday’s dinner and a season pass for all six monthly dinners is $1,402; a portion of event proceeds will be donated to Feeding San Diego.
Surprise Location
Rooted: A Dinner Experience by Chef Onyi at Millport
May 30
Chef Onyinyechukwu Akpa welcomes food lovers to try a seasonal spread, dually inspired by her mastery of West African flavors and California’s seasonal ingredients, during the second edition of Rooted: A Dinner Experience at Millport. This Saturday from 6-9 p.m., chef Onyi will serve a five-course tasting menu, with dishes such as slow roasted beef, plantain upside down cake and akara, Nigerian black-eyed pea fritters. The meal will be entirely gluten-free, with vegan accommodations also available. Tickets are $115 and can be purchased here.
775 13th Street, Imperial Beach
Bridgerton & Blooms High Tea at Estancia La Jolla
May 31
Dearest reader, Estanica La Jolla opens up its grounds once a month for its outdoor Tea in the Garden series, and you’re in luck, because this month’s tea time is inspired by the enchanted English setting of Bridgerton. During the Bridgerton & Blooms High Tea this Sunday from noon to 3 p.m., guests can savor an afternoon worthy of the ton, complete with floral accoutrements, custom teas, cocktails, finger foods and enough sweets treats for Lady Whistledown to write home about. Tickets are $82.
9700 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla
Courtesy of Fiesta Del Sol
Concerts & Festivals in San Diego This Weekend
Juvenile with the 400 Degreez Band at House of Blues San Diego
May 29
Over the years, Juvenile has more than proven himself as an all-time emcee, with his breakout 1998 album 400 Degreez still a defining example of the South’s hip-hop brilliance. This Friday at 7 p.m. at House of Blues San Diego, Juvenile will play hits like “Slow Motion” and “Back That Azz Up,” along with selections from Boiling Point, his first album in 12 years. Plus, he’ll be joined by the sensational 400 Degreez Band, and as anyone who’s seen his NPR Tiny Desk performance already knows, Juvenile with a live ensemble is a match made in music heaven. Tickets start at $55 for this concert.
1055 Fifth Avenue, Gaslamp
Kuumba Fest
May 30
Kuumba Fest returns this Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. with the theme of “Black 2 Mind, Spirit & Body” for its 34th annual iteration. This free community festival, organized in support of the city’s Black Arts + Culture District, will feature DJs, dancing, spoken word, musical performances and an African marketplace with food, apparel, health resources and more. Then from 6-8 p.m. at the Elementary Institute of Science, the festival will conclude with a screening of the documentary American Curl followed by a Q&A panel with the film’s producers.
Ryan Hardison is a freelance arts and entertainment writer and recent graduate of San Diego State. When he's not staring at his laptop, he's likely eating an adobada burrito or getting sunburnt at the beach.
AVRP Studios’ tradition for Design Excellence and Innovation began in 1976 with Doug Austin, FAIA, in Solana Beach, California. The firm has since grown to complete major projects throughout the United States and Canada. We think of ourselves as a family and we care deeply about people. We want to inspire, help make their lives richer and more complete through our efforts. We believe that architecture is one of the most important art forms because of the impact it can have on the lives of those it touches. We’re delighted to have been recognized with over 150 awards for design excellence.
703 16th Street, Suite 200, San Diego, California 92101 | 619-704-2700 | avrpstudios.com
