Modernism Week hit a milestone this year, celebrating its 20th anniversary with an unprecedented lineup of events and a significant economic boost to the Greater Palm Springs region. Held from February 13-23, 2025, the internationally recognized architecture and design festival expanded its program to include more than 500 events—a new record—drawing an estimated 115,000 attendees from across the globe.
Dedicated to honoring and exploring midcentury and modern design, architecture, art, and culture, Modernism Week continues to be a major cultural and economic driver for the region. This year’s event generated an estimated economic impact of $62.7 million, contributing to a cumulative total of more than $500 million since its inception two decades ago.
Modernism Week offered a variety of new events alongside the return of audience favorites, including architectural tours, engaging presentations, and iconic parties. Collaborating with more than 60 partner organizations, 30 neighborhoods, and 90 sponsors, Modernism Week expanded its reach across Palm Springs and five additional desert cities. The City of Palm Springs is Modernism Week’s Civic Presenting Sponsor. Generous contributions are also provided by the City of Indian Wells, City of La Quinta, City of Palm Desert and City of Rancho Mirage.
2025 Highlights
The 2025 festival blended fresh experiences with returning favorites, offering a dynamic mix of architectural tours, lectures, and high-profile social events. CAMP, the festival’s lively headquarters at the Hyatt Hotel, welcomed nearly 28,000 visitors, serving as a central hub for tours, exhibitions, and meetups.
“Our festival celebrates the global influence of Modernism while shining a spotlight on the architectural and design heritage of Palm Springs. It is an honor to welcome attendees from all 50 states and more than 20 countries,” said Lisa Vossler Smith, CEO of Modernism Week. “We are immensely grateful for the support of our sponsors, including Ferguson, Brizo, Dunn-Edwards Paints, Monogram, Cotino, Design Within Reach, Flor, Natural Retreats, and Willis. Their continued partnership enables us to deliver a world-class experience for our guests.”
William Kopelk, Modernism Week Board Chairman and co-founder, echoed this sentiment: “In celebration of our twentieth Modernism Week festival, we presented many new and exciting programs, while we also brought back some of our most popular home tours and events from past years. We proudly showcased our modernist architecture, historic neighborhoods, and preservation initiatives through engaging presentations and programs with prominent architects and designers for both new and returning guests. From the spectacular Palm Springs Modernism Show to the sparkling parties, our attendees were universally delighted by Modernism Week 2025.”
Modernism Week attendees came from all fifty United States and the District of Columbia, with California accounting for the majority of attendees (approximately 45%). Attendees came from 460 of 482 cities in California, or 95% of all California cities. Locally, the Coachella Valley represented 38% of tickets sold in California. Beyond California, attendees traveled from Illinois, Minnesota, New York, Oregon, Washington, and 25 other countries, including Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Germany.
Palm Springs Modernism Show Draws Thousands
The popular Palm Springs Modernism Show, which celebrated its 25th year, also saw strong attendance numbers. More than 14,000 people attended the popular sale at the Palm Springs Convention Center, on par with the previous year, including more than 1,200 attendees who participated in the opening night preview event that benefitted Modernism Week. The Show will return to Palm Springs for Modernism Week’s October 2025 event and again in February 2026.
“We are proud that the Palm Springs Modernism Show continues to be one of the highlights of Modernism Week,” said Rosemary Krieger, President of Dolphin Promotions, the show’s producer for 25 years. “Our dealers were extremely pleased with sales including robust sales on the opening night and throughout the four-day show.”
Education, Scholarships, and Giving Back
Beyond its cultural and economic contributions, Modernism Week remains dedicated to education, featuring more than 85 lectures and films by leading architects, landscape designers, historians, and design experts. A keynote presentation was delivered by Dr. Raymond Neutra, son of celebrated architect Richard Neutra.
The festival’s success also fuels philanthropic efforts. In addition to its multi-year commitment to funding college scholarships for Coachella Valley students in architecture and design, Modernism Week’s Board of Directors has also sent a $10,000 donation to the California Community Foundation’s Los Angeles Fire Relief Fund, in solidarity with their neighbors and fellow Californians. This fund provides immediate and long-term support to those affected, from rebuilding homes to restoring critical community infrastructure. Modernism Week will continue its support of relief efforts and other nonprofit initiatives in the region.
A Global Stage for Modernism
The festival continued to garner significant international and national media attention, generating more than 4.9 billion media impressions, up from 2.095 billion the previous year, a new record for the festival. Media coverage was reported from a wide range of media outlets. Significant media that covered the festival included Architectural Digest, Archinect, Architectural Record, Associated Press, Atomic Ranch, California Home+Design, Condé Nast Traveler, Dezeen, Dwell, Eichlernetwork, Forbes, Frommers, Hello Magazine, Hollywood Reporter, Houzz, Iconic Life, Locale, Los Angeles Magazine, Los Angeles Times, Monocle, MSN, NBC Los Angeles, New York Post, Orange County Register, Palm Springs Life, Ranch and Coast, Robb Report, Stock Market News, Sunset Magazine, The Hollywood Times, Thrilllist, Time Out Los Angeles, Vancouver Sun, Vogue Korea, Wallpaper, Yahoo Finance, Yahoo Lifestyle, and Yahoo News.
International media coverage included articles from nearly 30 countries including, but not limited to: Australia, Belgium, Canada, Chile, China, Cuba, France, Germany, Greece, India, Indonesia, Italy, Jordan, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Philippines, Poland, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand, United Kingdom, and Vietnam.
Looking Ahead
Modernism Week – October will take place October 16-19, 2025 (tickets go on sale August 1, 2025) and Modernism Week 2026 will take place February 12-22, 2026 (tickets go on sale November 1, 2025).
For more information, visit modernismweek.com.
