New music, new materials, new methods, new shapes — the middle of last century turned traditional design upside down.

Following the austerity of the World War II years, the prosperity of the decades that followed ushered in new era of style.

With men back from the war and mass distribution of washing machines, clothes dryers and the dishwasher, women found more leisure time in a new suburban lifestyle. A few years on, hubby found himself sipping his martini at the barbecue grill, flipping through Playboy, sideways, and fancying himself in a Corvette.

In this new lifestyle, fashion evolved from concealing to creating the hourglass figure. First came the poodle and pencil skirt, cone bras and small waists, progressing to the elegant form-fitting shifts of the impeccably styled Jacqueline Kennedy and her pillbox hats. Epitomized by the cool 1957 Chevy, iconic cars of the era changed as fast as fashion and were easy to identify by brand and year.

Did you know there was a similar evolution in architecture in the mid-century?

In south Florida, architects translated modernism to suit subtropical conditions, meanwhile creating an avant-garde and stylized approach to shelter suitable to a hot and wet climate while paralleling the design trends of multiple disciplines; furniture, fashion and graphics and more.

Back in the 1970s, communities struggled to save pre-Depression era buildings from the bulldozer.

Fast forward to 50 years later — it’s time to pay attention to the designs of fifty-sixty years ago — stylish buildings appropriate for here. As a bonus, they offer great light and cool spaces and are made of remarkable local materials used in a distinctly modern manner.

In November, the local chapter of the American Institute of Architects and the Southwest Florida Museum of History will jointly celebrate local architectural and period style of the middle century by hosting a retrospective, affectionately titled “SWFL McMo” (Southwest Florida — Mid-century Modernism).

The exhibition is three-fold: a look at our best local buildings of the midcentury and their impact and influences today; a borrowed exhibition from Sarasota showcasing renowned architect Paul Rudolph’s revolutionary Florida Houses; and a sampling of classic modern Herman Miller furniture and fashion of the era.

Come to the Southwest Florida Museum of History November though January to experience the evolution of midcentury style and architecture of southwest Florida. It’ll be as cool as a collection of 1957 Chevys. Come early and you may even get the back seat.

Joyce Owens, FAIA RIBA, Architect About Town - Special to the Fort Myers News-Press

Joyce Owens FAIA RIBA