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Walking into an Atomic Indy crash party is like stepping onto the set of “Mad Men.”
Young professionals — often dressed in pillbox hats and pedal pushers — sip cocktails, discuss mid-century modern architecture and lounge on kidney-shaped sofas.
“It’s an interesting group of people, and we share the same desire and the same energy for this style of home,” said David Lowery, whose home was featured at a crash party earlier this month. “A lot of (the appeal) is capturing the feeling of walking into one of these homes and feeling like you’re back in that time period.”
The parties are organized by Atomic Indy, a local group that celebrates mid-century modern architecture. The group’s founder is Barrett Crites, known to group members simply as Baz.
His blog is a virtual gathering place for local mid-century modern enthusiasts. He started the blog while searching for — and then renovating — his own mid-century modern home in the Devington area near 46th Street and Emerson Avenue.
“As (the blog) became more popular, people who owned mid-century homes would invite me over,” Crites said. “I started to hear the same conversation at every single home, which was, ‘I wish I knew other people who owned these homes, and I’d love to see the insides of them.’”
Crites organized the first home tour/party in July 2009. Since then, he’s organized seven other tours, with an average attendance of 50 to 60 people. The next party will be next spring.
“They are a lot of fun,” said Mark Dollase, vice president of Indiana Landmarks, who has attended several of the crash parties.
One of Indiana Landmarks’ sub-groups, Indiana Modern, focuses on homes built from 1941 to 1970, and that group receives a $2 donation from each Atomic Indy entry fee.
“These properties are coming into their own as historic buildings,” Dollase said. “People in my business typically use the 50-year rule about when things become historic, and we’re now hitting that time frame for buildings built in the ’50s and ’60s.”
The appeal of the homes, Dollase said, is the clean lines, natural lighting and use of natural materials, such as limestone and wood. Indianapolis has only a few hundred mid-century modern homes, many of them clustered in small pockets on the Northside.
“I would not say that residents of Indianapolis in that period ... necessarily embraced what we now call mid-century modern designs in a big way,” Dollase said. “But we do have some outstanding examples.”
Lowery’s home was built in 1957, and he bought it two years ago from the original owner. The mid-century modern highlights include the original orange Formica boomerang countertops, vintage switch plates and appliances, and kidney-shaped tables.
Since the mid-1990s, Lowery has flipped eight mid-century modern homes in Indianapolis, Several have since been featured at crash parties.
“It takes me back to a good time in life, as far as the time period,” Lowery said. “It’s just a feeling I get whenever I see a home such as this.”
Going?
For more information, visit www.atomicindy.com. The next Atomic Indy crash party will be next spring. The suggested entry fee is $5, which includes a $2 donation to Indiana Landmarks.
