Inside Suite 110 at The Gardens on El Paseo, a photography installation shows the region's modernist buildings mid-restoration, converted to new uses or somewhere in between. On October 9, 2026, Herman Miller announced the opening of Herman Miller Palm Desert at 73-425 El Paseo. The company calls it its largest retail location in North America, and it opened with a commissioned exhibition.
The exhibition stays up through Modernism Week in February 2027. That makes it the longest-running thing on El Paseo's fall calendar. A parade, a tree lighting and a run of new restaurants and shops all fall inside that window, so this season on the street has an anchor that lasts four months.
A furniture store built to hold an exhibition
The exhibition is called Hot Line, by photographer Tag Christof, and Herman Miller commissioned it for the opening. The announcement describes Christof's work as photographs of buildings in restoration, reuse and transition across Palm Springs and the Coachella Valley. The idea is that modernism keeps changing to deal with the desert climate and new uses, and isn't frozen in its original form.
The photographer explained the appeal in a line from the company's release:
"I love these buildings because, even in states of change or transition, they are totems of a time of surging optimism that feels impossible today."
The store sells home and office furniture and accessories. It also displays material from Herman Miller's archives and has flexible gathering spaces that the company says are meant for future events, exhibitions and community conversations. The release links the show to George Nelson's book How to See, which asks people to look again at familiar buildings.
The store's posted hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday. Because it keeps regular retail hours, the exhibition is open on an ordinary afternoon, and that's the reason it can anchor the season.
What else happens on El Paseo while Hot Line is up
The four months from the opening to Modernism Week include two free community events on El Paseo and several other fall dates around Palm Desert. Here's how they line up around the exhibition:
| Date | What | Where |
|---|---|---|
| October 9, 2026 | Herman Miller Palm Desert opens with Hot Line | 73-425 El Paseo, Suite 110 |
| Sunday, October 25, 2026 | 62nd Annual Palm Desert Golf Cart Parade | El Paseo, San Luis Rey west toward Ocotillo |
| October 29, 2026 | Last Thursday concert of the fall series, MJ Vibes, 6 p.m. | Civic Center Park |
| November 10, 2026 | Veterans Day Eve Celebration, plaza at 5:30 p.m., The Hit Men at 7 p.m. | McCallum Theatre |
| November 21, 2026 | Light Up The Holidays tree lighting, 4 to 6 p.m. | Listed by The Shops on El Paseo |
| November 24 to December 30, 2026 | WildLights on select nights, 6 to 9 p.m. | The Living Desert |
| February 2027 | Hot Line closes with Modernism Week | Herman Miller Palm Desert |
The exhibition stays open through the parade, the tree lighting and on to Modernism Week. The Palm Desert Food & Wine festival is scheduled for March 18 to 21, 2027, after Hot Line has closed.
Where to eat and shop on the same visit
A visit to the exhibition now has more places nearby to fold into the same afternoon than it did in August. These are the openings with confirmed status:
- J's Deli, 73655 El Paseo. The Jewish deli closed last year, and in September the Coachella Valley Independent reported the owners' plans to reopen at this address. Its website now says "Now Open!" with hours of 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday through Tuesday, and 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday.
- Yozu Asian Bistro, 73061 El Paseo. It's in the former Shorebird space, and its own site calls it a modern izakaya. A September 30 review on Palm Springs Bites describes a menu of shareable small plates, wok dishes, sandwiches, entrées and raw items, including rolls, nigiri and sashimi.
- Napastäk, 73-130 El Paseo, Suite C. Greater Palm Springs Business Insider reported in early October that this specialty food and culinary gift shop has a Palm Desert location.
- FP Movement, 73545 El Paseo, Space #1316. The activewear, beauty and wellness boutique opened on October 1 in 2,297 square feet, according to the company's announcement.
A deli breakfast, a stop at the exhibition and an izakaya dinner now fit along one street. Over on Highway 111, One More Bite Dumpling House has been working toward a Palm Desert opening at 73547 Highway 111. KESQ reported on October 9 that it was aiming for the end of October, with fire and county health inspections still to come.
Sunday's parade on the same street
Three days after this post goes up, the street the exhibition sits on turns into a parade route. The 62nd Annual Palm Desert Golf Cart Parade is Sunday, October 25, and the El Paseo Catalogue lists the day's schedule like this:
- 8 a.m. The Palm Desert Rotary Club pancake breakfast at El Paseo and San Luis Rey.
- 9 a.m. Entertainment, food and drink vendors, marketplace booths, a custom golf cart show and a classic car show.
- Noon. The parade starts and heads west along El Paseo from San Luis Rey toward Ocotillo.
Viewing along the curb is free, and spectators can bring chairs or blankets. The September Cactus Hugs guide to the 2026 parade lists free parking at The Gardens on El Paseo parking structure, the same center where Herman Miller opened, plus the city lots between El Paseo and Highway 111, including Presidents Plaza East and West. If you park at The Gardens, the parade and the exhibition can be one outing.
This year's grand marshal is actor and producer Anthony Anderson, whose Anthony Anderson Celebrity Golf Classic is held at BIGHORN Golf Club. The theme is "Better Together," with the tagline "Individually Unique. Collectively Unstoppable." In KESQ's announcement, Alisa Williams, President and CEO of the Palm Desert Area Chamber of Commerce, said the parade "is about bringing people together, having fun and celebrating what makes our community special."
The parade runs for one day and the exhibition stays up for months. Together they give El Paseo a busy Sunday this week and a reason to come back in the slower weeks before the holidays.
From the tree lighting to Modernism Week
After the parade, the next free gathering on the street is Light Up The Holidays on November 21, from 4 to 6 p.m. It's a community tree lighting listed on The Shops on El Paseo events calendar. The same weeks bring WildLights at The Living Desert on select nights starting November 24, with a member preview on November 23. Herman Miller's announcement describes the store's gathering spaces as built for future events and exhibitions. If that programming arrives, it will land in the gap between the tree lighting and February.
When Modernism Week starts in February 2027, people coming to see modernist houses in Palm Springs will find a show about those same buildings at a store on El Paseo, and it will have been open since early October.
If Hot Line has you looking at a midcentury house somewhere in the valley and wondering what restoring it would involve, that's a conversation we enjoy. Bernal Smith Group has more than 37 years of combined experience helping clients buy and sell homes across the Coachella Valley. Contact Us, and we'll share what we've learned.
