WSOA Faculty Anthony Fontenot’s Research on Gregory Ain Featured in Los Angeles Review of Books
Professor Anthony Fontenot鈥檚 book Notes from Another Los Angeles: Gregory Ain and the Construction of a Social Landscape (MIT Press, 2022) has garnered international recognition. His research on the Los Angeles-based pioneering modern architect Gregory Ain, whose work includes the Park Planned Homes in Altadena, is featured in the Los Angeles Review of Books (March 14, 2025). Authored by the prominent critic Kate Wolf, 鈥淟earning from Park Planned Homes鈥� examines the impact of the recent Los Angeles fires on the Altadena housing development and explores its future possibilities.
Based on an interview with Fontenot, the article delves into Gregory Ain鈥檚 innovative housing designs, the history of Park Planned Homes, and the potential for rebuilding. Fontenot鈥檚 expertise on Ain鈥檚 work is grounded in his detailed exploration of five revolutionary low-cost housing projects: Dunsmuir Flats (1937), Park Planned Homes (1947), Avenel Cooperative (1948), Mar Vista Housing (1948), and Community Homes Cooperative (1946鈥�1948, unbuilt) featured in Notes from Another Los Angeles. These extremely successful yet controversial housing projects, several based on the cooperative model, promoting equality and racial integration, fused Ain鈥檚 interest in radical left-wing politics and design.
Fontenot’s work has attracted widespread attention from both national and international media, including an extensive review of the book by Kate Wolf in The Nation and it has also been reviewed in the international peer reviewed journal Platform Architecture and Design (Milan, Italy). The book was featured in The Architect鈥檚 Newspaper, Domus, in a special issue on housing, and Tribune (UK). In addition, Fontenot鈥檚 research continues to gain recognition within academic and architectural communities, with Mariana Siracusa, founder of SPAZIO (Milan), an architecture gallery, bookstore and independent platform for critical reflection, speculation and discussion, creating a YouTube video dedicated to the book.
Professor Fontenot’s research resonates globally, contributing to a broader understanding of progressive architecture and urban design. His work is helping to redefine the legacy of Gregory Ain and his architectural innovations. The article in Los Angeles Review of Books further underscores the local and international impact of 黑料社区 School of Architecture鈥檚 research efforts.
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