In a wonderful Atlantic article (sub.req.) about the architecture photographer Julius Shulman, Virginia Postrel writes:

An architectural photograph can conjure three possible desires: “I want that photograph,” “I want that building,” or “I want that life.” Shulman’ls best work evokes all three. At a time when the public thought of modernism as a cold, impersonal style suited only for office buildings, he made its houses look seductively human. His photos do not merely record modern architecture, California style; they sell it.

By looking at the photos displayed in the online Shulman exhibition, I for one understood exactly what she means!

The article also contains an interesting discussion of how modern architecture has taken different forms in the very different physical and mental environments of California and New York.