Fire Island Modernist celebrates the seductive seaside houses of Horace Gifford, a handsome and charismatic charmer who attended business meetings wearing a Speedo. As the 1960s became the “sixties,” Gifford executed a remarkable series of beach houses that transformed the terrain and culture of New York’s Fire Island from a sleepy bohemian backwater into a wildly permissive “oasis of free love.” Growing up on the beaches of Florida, Gifford forged a deep connection with coastal landscapes. Pairing this sensitivity with jazzy improvisations on Modernist themes, he perfected a sustainable yet sensuous architecture in cedar and glass, as attuned to our animal nature and the natural landscape. His serene 1960s pavilions provided refuge from a hostile world, while his exuberant post-Stonewall, pre-AIDS masterpieces orchestrated bacchanals of liberation.

Blending cultural and architectural history, Fire Island Modernist ponders a fascinating era through the story of an architect whose life, work, and colorful milieu trace the arc of a lost generation and still resonate with artistic and historical import.

Christopher Rawlins is the founder of Rawlins Design, an architecture and interiors firm currently restoring several Horace Gifford homes. He is also the founder of Pines Modern, a non-profit preservation organization devoted to Fire Island’s Modernist legacy.