GG's Island restaurant (formerly the Chart House), which hugs the mountain along Highway 111 in Rancho Mirage, was extensively damaged by a fire in the very early hours yesterday morning, leaving the Organic Modernist building with about $5 million in damage, reports the Desert Sun. According to the Architect's Newspaper blog, the restaurant was designed by San Diego architect Ken Kellogg and is an important example of Organic Modernism: "Outside, it's the image of protective desert shelter: the taut vaulted roof stretches down, like the fabric of an umbrella or the shell of a crab, almost to touch the landscape berms rising to meet it. Inside, however, the heavy timber columns, curving glu-lam roof ribs, and rubble stone walls wind their way through the restaurant like a well-designed forest. They create layers of space, naturally lighted by a skylight curving along the spine, with an appealing complexity."
· GG's Island in Rancho Mirage catches fire [Desert Sun]
· Organic Architecture Catches Fire in Coachella Valley [AN Blog]
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