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Bernard Zimmerman: 1930 to 2009

Zimmerman left his mark on the Los Angeles having worked on Century City's Twin Towers, downtown's Bunker Hill, the Case Study House #29 in Silver Lake, and the Museum of Tolerance.

Edie Cohen -- Interior Design, 6/23/2009 12:00:00 AM

Architect, planner, educator, and, perhaps, most important of all, tireless advocate for design excellence, particularly in Los Angeles. These are among the titles held by Bernard Zimmerman, FAIA, who passed away June 4 at 79.

Honored in 1999 with the Lifetime Achievement Award by AIA/Los Angeles, Zimmerman leaves a legacy that includes the Masters of Architecture program he created in collaboration with the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The yearly lecture series featured Massimilano Fuksas as its 2009 speaker.

Many of Los Angeles’s threatened landmarks have survived largely due to Zimmerman’s leadership efforts. Among them count the Hollywood Sign, Rudolf M. Schindler’s Kings Road house, Angels Flight, and the Watts Towers.

As a practicing architect for more than 40 years, he left his mark on the city having worked on such projects as Century City’s Twin Towers, downtown’s Bunker Hill, the Case Study House #29 in Silver Lake, and the Museum of Tolerance. One of his last initiatives was the Architecture + Design Museum.

Zimmerman graduated from the UC Berkeley School of Architecture and completed a master’s degree in planning at the University of Southern California.