What was Phoenix like before it became such a large metropolitan city?

There was a really neat sense of optimism, Western character, and lore. There was this rootedness of epic stories: The Biltmore, the Wright houses and Taliesin, and Cosanti—it was pervasive. It was a cool place to be. It was a time (in 1968) when I was making 50 cents an hour working for Paolo Soleri at Cosanti. After taxes we had an income of about $32 a week. We had board and a place to live on the Cosanti site, but with that money we were able to buy groceries for the week, go to a few movies, travel a little bit, and buy an Indian artifact occasionally; it was pretty cool. All through the ’70s and ’80s there was a sort of constant optimism. The millennium has since marked gridlock and sprawl across the entire West from large city to small. The car has taken over. And what we’ve fortunately seen in the late ’90s is awareness and people finally starting to do something. We have our first light-rail route coming online at the end of next year and high hopes about the new densification and where things are going.

What’s the artistic community like here, and the creative landscape in general?

The creative landscape has, at its heart, three museum institutions of distinct focus. We have the Phoenix Art Museum, which we call the grand dame. They have a wonderful new second addition, completed by Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects, which is just finished. It’s a contemporary forum that’s tied to thinking and lectures and cultural events, so it’s abuzz. There’s something good happening there that’s at the core of the city. The other museum being SMoCA, which was a transformation I did of a five-plex AMC theater that was completed in 1999, now 20,000 square feet of gallery space. It is a Kunsthalle, if you wish, a museum basically without a major collection. I collaborated on a sculpture court at the site with James Carpenter, the great glass artist. It is well curated, well conceived, and is a shot in the arm for Phoenix. And then you have the Nelson Fine Arts Center, of course, the award-winning building by Antoine Predock that combines the Hispanic character of this place with the rich collections of Arizona State University.

Which is your favorite to visit?

SMoCA, hands down. Marilu Knode is the senior curator there and they put together really interesting exhibitions. It’s definitely worth a look. The two north galleries feature Rotraut Klein-Moquay’s collection, who was the widow of Yves Klein. And so we have some Christos and other really killer pieces. That’s the nice thing about that museum, you’re always surprised. The little gift shop there is a must for architectural books, design objects, and such. Then there’s the gallery scene in Scottsdale, which is interesting but more of a commercial scene, other than the Lisa Sette Gallery. What’s become the legacy here are the First Fridays. They have evolved from hundreds to literally thousands of people coming out. There are probably 50 to 60 venues every month without exception. It becomes a street carnival, and at the core of that is a gallery called Modified Arts, which is a music and entertainment venue along with a gallery. Grand Avenue and Roosevelt are these edgy commercial hearts of the old city from back in the ’20s. You have Eye Lounge and Made Art Boutique all within walking distance. They’re at the heart of this thing, and it rocks. Eye Lounge is a co-op for young artists, really good stuff that never disappoints. We have Tammie Coe, who is an artist in her own right who does these unbelievable pastries and breads. Right down the street you have Welcome Diner, it’s a fantastic little hamburger joint half the size of this conference room. There is a good music scene going on too. There’s the Rhythm Room, which is a whole subculture in of itself.

Sounds like a pretty eclectic mix.

Yeah, a totally eclectic mix. There’s Tempe’s musical heritage with the Gin Blossoms and such—vestiges that start forming to make a city. The arts are there along with the retail venues. There’s a place called Red Modern Furniture, which is over on Camelback Road, and Lola, which is a little tapas place nearby. We’ve also got Passage, an unbelievable boutique on Central Avenue that is just blowing everybody away. It is the hottest little fashion venue with the most wonderful environment. It’s the most unexpected thing, and it’s affordable, accessible, and cool. My Florist Café and Zoës Kitchen are in the 7th Avenue and McDowell Road area, which is just six blocks from the art museum, and there are some really interesting used furniture shops there. Another place that’s gotten a lot of buzz is LGO, La Grande Orange Grocery and Pizzeria, which is located in an old post office. Something good happened there. It’s the sort of thing you see often in really great cities, and we’re finally getting it. Phoenix has been too much about big-dollar development, always going to the next site and screwing up the land values of the communities. So nothing has filled in consistently. And that’s problematic. There’s a hunger of that developer mindset here that sometimes hasn’t been the best for the city. I find that the singular freeway systems across this vast state were much more gratifying as a younger man when traffic and tourism weren’t what they are. Trips to Sedona or the Grand Canyon are not as satisfying as the fabric of the city. Canals, streets, neighborhoods. When you keep your eyes open, there’s really a lot to see.

What are some of your favorite buildings in the area?

The Arizona Biltmore by Albert Chase McArthur has basically weathered a legacy now of almost 80 years, and it is a benchmark of excellence; its siting, its use of materials, its quite luxurious lobby space. It is a great place to have a glass of wine and smoke a cigar; and if you do, go sit on the back patio looking at the sun set over Piestewa Peak (formerly Squaw Peak); it’s a seminal building. The Central Library and SMoCA go without saying—there’s the Deer Valley Rock Art Center that I also designed. It’s at a petroglyph site with more than 1,500 petroglyphs, completed in 1994. The Palo Verde Library by Wendell Burnette and Gould Evans is getting a lot of play; it was on some covers and won a national AIA award. The Loloma Transit station was done by Vito Acconci with a local architect named Doug Sydnor, so that’s a cool thing. Everybody always hears of Arcosanti, but Cosanti is really the one to go and see. It’s this magical little thing, the original studio with the old buildings. Richard Meier’s new contemporary courthouse has an interesting environmental agenda, but has gotten such bad press. It’s a very difficult thing in a post–Okalahoma City, post–9/11 world because courthouses are no longer public places. There’s a suspicion in Arizona of outsiders, that they aren’t looking close enough, so the big-time New York architect didn’t win big reviews for a building that looks silly to the locals. The press killed it before it had a chance to live.

What about activities that people could only do in the Phoenix/Scottsdale area?

A trip to the great reading room at the Burton Barr Central Library is a must, ideally arriving at solar noon, which is normally around 12:30. You can see the roof flow and light, which is a cool thing. If you happen to be here on the summer solstice we have a celebration of the event where each candle is lit by a dagger of light through the skylights. Hiking the loop trail around Piestewa Peak or the rim trail up Camelback Mountain is a great way to see the perspective of the city. Biking on the canal system is another great way to see the different neighborhoods and history of the city. If you follow the canal route, it’s a pretty comfortable thing for just about anyone. Read your New York Times on Sunday morning, get on your bike for a few hours, and you’ve seen everything from a different point of view.

Where’s a good place to grab a nice dinner?

Sea Saw is a wonderful interesting little sushi place over near the canal in Scottsdale. Rancho Pinot is probably the best authentic gourmet Western cuisine you can find here. The chef and host are a couple—impeccable, really really good stuff with an eclectic cowboy environment. Barrio Café is one of the nicest Mexican food experiences offering an interesting vegetarian and Southwestern thing that has more to do with Mexico than it does New Mexico. City Bakery is another cool place. It is tied to the Bentley Projects, which is this sort of MASS MoCA gallery slash party place. City Bakery and the Poisoned Pen bookstore are dynamite.

And finally, where would you recommend having a nightcap?

AZ88 Bar & Restaurant has been a mainstay since the ’80s. One of the owners is a conceptual artist, so it’s an interesting place with stimulating architecture. And, again, the bar at the Biltmore. Whether you’re going to eat there or just have a cocktail, it’s a fantastic experience.