RIP: Julius Shulman

Julius Shulman

98 years old is a very generous amount of time to spend on earth. And, by all accounts, Julius Shulman was a very nice guy. Nonetheless, it is with a bit of sadness that we say goodbye to a man who was responsible for giving us the visual face of modern architecture.


You may not have been able to live in one of the homes that he photographed, but his pictures were very much an influence for anyone interested in that type of style or architecture. For us, when we were refurbishing our circa 1950's home here in Rhode Island, we almost exclusively referred to his photos of those quintessential homes in Los Angeles for influence. In some cases, his photos are more important than the homes he was documenting.

For many, his name is not the first to come to mind, but without a doubt - if you have any interest in Mid Century Modern design or architecture - his photos would have probably been your first introduction. With his passing, we lose a central figure in an important period of time. But, his legacy will be the thousands of images he left us to contemplate.