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 Curating Los Angeles Blog March 2, 2012 Blog Entry Touring Silver Lake's Mid-Century Modern Gems I am always on the lookout for new ways to see Los Angeles and learn about its rich history. While I love exploring the city on my own and do that as often as I can, I’ve found that taking a tour is an equally satisfying way to go – not to mention a good use of my time. With a knowledgeable guide, I can learn more about a particular place in a short period of time than would be possible if I just went out and wandered. With that in mind, I recently participated in a driving tour of the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles run by Architecture Tours L.A.Click to view blog article |
 Los Angeles Magazine February 2012 Issue Class LA to Z Modernist: Architecture Tours L.A. includes the Buck House on one of its seven excursions. Its most popular explores Silver Lake and the homes designed by Richard Neutra, Rudolph Schindler, and John Lautner—the all-stars of Los Angeles modernism. Click here to read the complete article |
 Australian Modern 2012 Edition Destinations: Modernist USA by Chris Osborne A perfect way to see Neutra houses and other mid-century modern architecture is with Architecture Tours LA, operated by architectural historian Laura Massion Smith. Click here to read the complete article |
Los Angeles Magazine December 2011 Issue Take Your Seats, PLEASE! by James Morel Case Studying: Of the seven excellent tours architectural historian Laura Massino offers, we’re most enamored with the Silver Lake excursion, which opens 30 homes to the public. As she navigates her van through winding streets, Massino supplies deep background on houses built by Lloyd Wright, Richard and Dion Neutra, John Lautner, and Rudolph Schindler. Click here to read the complete article |
 Southern California Close-Ups: There's a name for it:fun By Christoper Reynolds The Los Angeles Times. (Record edition).Los Angeles, Calif.: Mar 20, 2011. abstract Venture into the park, or nearby Elysian Park, or one of the creative neighborhoods in between, and you'll find not only beloved landmarks such as Griffith Observatory and Dodger Stadium, but also happy surprises, such as the time-travel supply shop, or the cafe where cops dine daily to the sound of echoing gunfire, or the Korean greetings that echo at dawn every day atop Mt. For more on Disney and Manson, and much more on the architectural legacy of Richard Neutra, Rudolf Schindler and others, sign on for a two- to-three-hour tour from Laura Massino Smith, founder of Architecture Tours L.A. After a cup at Lamill Coffee Boutique (1636 Silver Lake Blvd.) and a stroll along the east or west reservoir footpaths, you meet Massino Smith, who wheels you through the hills in her minivan, spinning the stories behind the dozens of homes whose open floor plans, big windows and spare geometry were revolutionary in their time. Click here to read Architecture Tours L.A.'s section of article View complete article |
 Cal State LA Today March 1, 2011 A 'tour' on the town Laura Massino ’95 MA holds a key to Los Angeles’ past. Continually driving from Silver Lake to the Hollywood Hills, from Pasadena to downtown Los Angeles, Massino unlocks the city’s architectural gems, prominent residences, and bits of culture and history for hundreds of Los Angeles tourists and residents. Click here to read the complete article |
 Beverly Press September 16, 2010 Architecture Tours L.A. Highlights Unknown Gems of Los Angeles Many tour companies offer sightseeing excursions to movie stars' homes and Hollywood landmarks, but one local tour guide strives to showcase some of the hidden architectural gems in the City of Angels. Click here to read the complete article |
 The Advertiser Travel, 21 April 2007 The Flip Side of LA By Jan Rowe Los Angeles, for Australians is usually a destination to see icons of Disneyland, Universal Studios, Hollywood and Beverly Hills or a quick stopover on the way to somewhere else. But there is another Los Angeles for travellers. Click here to read the complete article |
 Daily News Sunday, June 18, 2006 - TRAVEL Unsung treasures of Los Angeles BY ERIC NOLAND, Travel Editor The El Rey Theatre preened gloriously in pink, yellow, green, blue and red. A Buddha laughed so hard that he slapped his thighs. A single word atop a 1920s apartment building ``Asbury'' evoked the shadowy fiction of Raymond Chandler. Click here to read the complete article |
 The Weekend Australian Edition 5 - Travel, Saturday 13 May 2006, Page 008 City of Angels By Matthew Brace CHICAGO may be considered the spiritual home of American architecture, but Los Angeles is its playground. Dazzled by the brilliant California sunshine and abundant space, architects and designers brought their fantasies to life there. Click here to read the complete article |
 Qantas Inflight Magazine - The Australian Way August 2006, pg. 107/108 (USA Architecture) Roman around LA by AARON PEASLEY LOS ANGELES IS A TOWN FOND of a comeback. When the art collection of eccentric billionaire J Paul Getty was moved to its new Richard Meier-designed digs in 1997, many thought its previous home, a Mediterranean-inspired villa, would become another of the city’s many obscure architectural has-beens. Click here to read the complete article |
 Connaissance Des Arts April 2006 - pg. 80, 81, 82, 85, 86 Frank Lloyd Wright, Richard Neutra, Charles et Ray Eames: les grands noms de l'architecture des annees 1920 aux annees 1950 ont donne a la ville de Los Angeles (Californie) quelques-uns des plus beaux exemples de leur talent. De Silver Lake a Los Feliz; de Hollywood a Pacific Palisades, visite cinegenique dans un L.A. a l'abri des sunlights. Click here to read the complete article |
 Indoor Green Style Spring/Summer 2006 - pg. 67, 68, 69, 79, 85 Click here to read the complete article |
 WestWays January/February 2006 Issue, pg. 59 In Architecture Tours L.A. Guidebook: Hancock Park/Miracle Mile (Schiffer Publishing Ltd., 2005, $9.95), the latest in a series that also includes Hollywood, Silver Lake, downtown L.A, and more, Laura Massino Smith takes you on a driving tour that reveals quirky facts about some of L.A.most fascinating structures. Click here to read the complete article |
 Chicago Sun Times October 2, 2005 Smith, an architectural historian, has been giving guided tours for well over a decade and has packed this knowledge into these books that feature color pictures, casual commentary and helpful maps. I found the Silver Lake book indispensable on a self-guided driving tour in search of modernist houses. Click here to read the complete article |
 Los Angeles Magazine November 2004 Issue, pg. 30 She's already covered Silver Lake, Hollywood and downtown, and now Laura Massino Smith is adding Hancock Park and Beverly Hills/West Hollywood to her collection of Architectural Tours L.A. Guidebooks, slender volumes inspired by her driving tours. Click here to read the complete article |
 Beverly Hills Forum Series December 13, 2004 at 7:30pm After choosing a career in art, working with art appraisers, in art bookstores, auction houses and art galleries, Laura Massino decided to return to the roots of her education as she now shares her specialized knowledge and passion for the history of architecture in Los Angeles with those who wish to explore with her -- through her owner operated "Architecture Tours L.A." Click here to read the complete article |
 Sunset Magazine October 2004 Issue, pg. 30 On a foggy morning, I head out from Hollywood with Laura Massino of Architecture Tours L.A. to sample the city's architectural diversity, from Hollywood-inspired period revivals to works by such modern masters as Frank Lloyd Wright and Rudolph Schindler. Massino, an East Coast native, has been in L.A. for 18 years, during which time she became intrigued by the city and eventually went on to get a master's in architectural history. Click here to read the complete article |
 Cadillac noir and L.A. architectural:[FINAL Edition] Maria Puente, Shawn Sell, Jayne Clark USA Today. Arlington, Va.: Jun 22, 2001. pg. D.01 Nobody walks in L.A., so you may as well ride in style. And what better way to ogle some of the city's most notable buildings than from the back seat of a classic 1962 black Cadillac? Click here to read the complete article |
 DESIGN OF THE TIMES Los Angeles Confidential Magazine - June 1-August 31, 2003 Whether you're looking for the city's great architecture or to get your feet wet on the back of a long board, Mondrian Hotel concierge Greg Hall tips us off to the top must-do excursions in Tinseltown and beyond. Frank Lloyd Wright, Frank Gehry, and Richard Neutra are all known for their LA star homes (architectural design, that is) and historian and local hipster Laura Massino will help you discover.... Click here to read the complete article |
 Houses in Motion By Ginny Chien The Los Angeles Times. (Record edition).Los Angeles, Calif.: Sep 23, 2001. pg. 1 You won't see Brad and Jennifer's love nest on this Hollywood tour. Rather, cruising with Architecture Tours L.A. means admiring masterpieces by Frank Lloyd Wright, Richard Neutra and other greats while riding in a flamboyantly finned black 1962 Cadillac. Click here to read the complete article |
 l.a. confidential Metropolitan Home: July/August 2001 Los Angeles is home to some of the most exciting architecture in the world-from Greene to Gehry. And one of the simplest ways to see some of these far-flung buildings is from the comfort of this 1962 black Cadillac... Click here to read the complete article |
 l.a. confidential Modernism Magazine: Winter 2001 It's architects, not movie actors, who are the stars of Architecture Tours L.A.. Click here to read the complete article |
 Automobile Club of Southern California GreatestHits Maps When driving from point A to point B on city streets, it's easy to miss what's in between. But let someone else keep an eye on the road-like a nice woman in a big, black classic Cadillac... Click here to read the complete article |
 Los Angeles Times - Calendar Weekend March 6, 2003 Excerpts from article entitled "L.A's invisible builder": The Cadillac passes the old General Petroleum Building on Flower...where Massino reminds us how Becket found a way to build lighter skyscrapers by changing concrete mixing formulas... Click here to read the complete article |
 FOR BUILDING BUFFS Valley Magazine: August 2002 If you want to see where Hollywood's stars live, this isn't the tour for you. But if you're interested in the architecture and history of Hollywood, then Laura Massino's Architecture Tours L.A. is the place to be. Click here to read the complete article |
 Planning an Adventure in L.A? Dwell Magazine: Jan/Feb 2003 Architecture Tours L.A. hosts privately guided driving tours, conducted by an architectural historian, of Silver Lake and other areas.. Click here to read the complete article |
 See L.A. the Cadillac Way Vision Magazine: Fall 2002 Tired of those overhyped tours of celebs' Los Angeles mansions? Architectural historian Laura Massino has a fresh new way of seeing the City of Angeles. Click here to read the complete article |
 See L.A. the Cadillac Way Fine: Issue Two The work of Frank Lloyd Wright, Frank Gehry, and Rudolf Schindler never looked so good as it does from the back seat of architectural historian Laura Massino's 1962 black convertible Cadillac. Click here to read the complete article |
 Tour de Force - Architecture Tours L.A. is No Crash Course Story and photos by Nikki Pedersen Brentwood News - May 2002 Out of a Brentwood hillside, at 449 Skyewiay Road, cantilevers a Lloyd Wright masterpiece whose supervising architect was John Lautner. Even Laura Massino, architectural historian and owner of Architecture Tours L.A, has to pause in reverence. "If I could choose any house to live in, it'd be that one," Massino declares. Click here to read the complete article |
 Graduating Class of 1986 Fashion Institute of Technology, State University of New York Laura Massino, Interior Design, runs Architecture Tours L.A., for which she gives tours of Los Angeles in a vintage '62 Cadillac. Click here to read the complete article |
 CSULA alumna takes her degree to Los Angeles streets By Amy Flaa University Times, CSULA - February 27, 2003 The rumble of a V8 engine is my soundtrack for the day, or at least for the next two-and-a-half hours on a blazing Saturday morning as I ride shotgun in a 1962 vintage black Cadillac. Fins included. Click here to read the complete article |
 L.A. rivista in Cadillac 24 Febbraio 2002 Alla scoperta delle chicche architettoniche di Los Angeles con un tour molto particolare, ideato e organizzato da Laura Massino che con la sua macchina molto kitsch ci trasporta dal tudor al post-moderno, dal neo-maya all' Art Deco. Click here to read the complete article |
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