The Dome Is Where the Heart Is

A Hallmark of Middle Eastern Architecture Helps Muslims Orient Themselves Toward Mecca, and One Another

The green dome of the Omar ibn Al-Khattab mosque in Los Angeles interrupts the low skyline with a quiet gravitas. The mosque has been here since 1982, next door to the University of Southern California, its minaret a beacon for the Muslim community that clogs Exposition Boulevard with traffic every Friday afternoon for congregational prayers. When I was younger, this was where my community held funerals and weddings, Ramadan dinners, and Eid celebrations. At sunset, we gathered in the great prayer hall, in the glow of dying sunlight and fluorescent …

The Surprisingly Modest Start to McMansion Sprawl

Builders Like the Campanelli Brothers Helped Fuel Midcentury Suburban Desire, from Massachusetts to Moscow

After V-J Day—August 14, 1945—millions of World War II veterans came home and began to look for a place to live. New highways, cars, and government-sponsored mortgages encouraged them to …

How an Abandoned Bus Station Became a City’s Creative Hub

Hailed as a Leader in Tijuana's “Rebirth,” the Terminal-Turned-Collaborative-Space Quickly Grew Into a Victim of Its Own Success

Standing under the multi-colored glass ceiling in the former Mexicoach bus terminal, Tijuana native Miguel Buenrostro asked a small group of visitors, “What does it feel like to destroy something …

Why Does Los Angeles Keep Rewriting Its Own Script?

Finding What's Worth Preserving in a City Known for Constant Change and Flux

There’s a classic scene in the 1991 comedy L.A. Story, where “wacky weekend weatherman” Harris Telemacher, played by Steve Martin, is giving a tour around the city of Los Angeles. …

The Puritans Didn’t Have ‘Mudrooms’

The Modern Obsession With a Spotless Home Ignores Early Americans’ Dirtiest Traditions

It’s late at night, and I’m staring at seed catalogues while the scripted tones of a reality real estate show—my favorite soporific—drone on in the background. An earnest young couple …