California modernism

Eichler’s mid-century modern stylings are abundant in Northern and Southern California and Wavelet House is a reconsideration of the area’s architectural precedent. Set on a narrow lot with side-yard setbacks, the evocative mid-century façade belies an unexpected rear that is more modern. The metal and wood slats of the entrance are quiet aesthetically and offer additional privacy to the residents. The material asymmetry in the front courtyard is a nod to playfulness of the back of the home.   Joe Fletcher Joe Fletcher Joe Fletcher The rear of the home, which is encased in a curtain-wall façade that is nearly three stories at its apex, adds a lightness against the angularity of the metal roof o... More

Situated high above the city, the Crestwood House is a remodel of a mid-century modern home. Eric Staudenmeier Eric Staudenmeier The project was framed around taking something ‘modern’ and making it more contemporary. While the idea of indoor/outdoor living is typically taken for granted in Southern California, the altitude of the site allowed for an atmospheric connection rather than a connection to the landscape. As the clouds change color and are in constant motion along the coastline, the house and its materials were thought of as a canvas to be manipulated by the sky. The house is neutral while the exterior environment animates the interior spaces. Eric Staudenmeier Eric Staudenmeier More

The desert is open space and long views, but also the close-up, detailed perfection of the cactus flower. It is nature’s serene minimalism. This is the setting for our project inside the gated community of The Vintage in Indian Wells, California. William MacCollum This project involved deep creative collaboration with the clients, who partnered with architect Marc Whipple and the W^R team on every aspect of the interior design, and personally curated or co-designed each of the many art pieces throughout the house. With a passion for racing and cars, and also for collecting fine wines, the program was going to include dazzling and innovative displays that would be both highly visible and striking artistic statements. This house... More

William MacCollum   This project was built adjacent to the Mountain Course in the Bighorn Golf Club, Palm Desert, California, in the foothills of the Santa Rosa Mountains. The design of the central living space has formed a theatrical proscenium, framing the desertscape scene of mountains, trees, and sky. William MacCollum   Our client visited the desert frequently growing up, and always wanted a house there. In addition to an indoor/outdoor open feeling, he wanted to see water from every vantage point in the house.   “This is why we not only have the backyard patio that pockets neatly into the fireplace and kitchen, but have created the entryway courtyard, which is really a very large pond. From anywhe... More

Miter House is a structure that is simultaneously solid and transparent. As you approach, the façade reveals its layered form.   Bush-hammered stone cladding gives way to a smooth plaster layer that, in turn, sits atop a transparent layer of windows -- taught, frameless, corner glass that captures the view and invites the eye in.  This is a representation of our client: private at first, but familiar over time. Joe Fletcher The space of the home is similar. It’s a reveal that is based on two related paths of travel. Horizontally: an up-and-over movement that carries you from the street to the backyard on this lot that straddles a ridgeline. Vertically: a central void that provides for stair circulation and bri... More

  Simon Berlyn   Design for Resort Style Living Our three-acre Bundy Drive project, completed in collaboration with Ramtin Ray Nosrati at Huntington Estates Properties, is certainly brimming with entertainment and the desirable amenities that bring resort living home. All this requires a large house, so our design goal, once again, is to maintain a human connection despite a broad canvas. We create visual connections between multiple levels, and even across large volumes, so people won’t find themselves cut off in a dark hallway. Simon Berlyn Simon Berlyn By creating view corridors, we assure that when you come around a corner there is something to draw you in, always a window with a view, a piece of art o... More

The 660-690 Indiana Street project transforms a block along the neighborhood’s western edge with two unique mixed-use residential buildings set above a destination Arts Café and weaves a series of new courtyards and gardens into the urban fabric. The entire Project consists of 116 new apartments including 16 on-site BMR units. Set kitty-corner from Esprit Park, the design proposes the future Dogpatch Arts Plaza at the stub-end of 19th Street, designed by CMG landscape architects. Each of the two buildings are designed by a separate architect. Kennerly is the Architect for the 61-unit “M” Building, extending down Indiana to 18th Street with vertical bars of glass & Corten steel, rolling wave-form roofs, and finished off by a crisp white... More

Jason Speth Guests coming up the front steps of this hilltop home are met with a Carrera marble sculpture by Richard Erdman, titled Serenade, selected by our clients, whose devotion to the process made this an especially joyful collaboration. Also part of the team were Robert Wright and Jason York of McCormick and Wright, who did the interior design and were a distinct pleasure to work with. There are a lot of details and non-standard finishes in this house - personal taste, not trendy taste. The dark-grey rough stacked-slate exterior is capped with crisply contrasting white stucco. A pivot-style all-glass front door and surround welcomes you to the modern West Coast lifestyle, framing a view through the house to the hills beyond.... More

This 2,100 square-foot weekend residence was built in Seadrift on the Stinson Lagoon in Marin County, California. Although the lagoon is filled with Pacific Ocean Sea water, it is shallow and warm – much like a lake and so used for swimming, paddling, and many other non-motorized water sports. While beach houses are often tattered and somewhat quirky, this one is meant to be modern and refined, yet casual. It was created for a family of five that live in San Francisco who surf, cook, craft, and party. The design process was very collaborative and enjoyable. Marin County coastal codes require houses in this zone to be notably elevated above the sea level, which results in houses being quite high in relation to the lagoon and ocean.... More

This 5,000-square-foot house in Mill Valley was designed as a home for an empty-nester couple. The site was the inspiration and the guiding element for the architecture: vast views of Mt. Tamalpais, intimate connections to groves of redwood trees, and a steep incline. Given its location, stepping up the hillside and squeezed between redwoods, the home is stratified into three levels.The lower floor is built into the hillside, while the upper two are open to daylight and views. The first floor includes the garage, entry, painting studio, gallery, and guest quarters. The entry is a two-story space with a staircase leading up to the second floor—the main living level--which connects to the outside with views in many directions. This double... More

Caption   Our clients for this project were a family intent upon staying closely connected even while moving to a considerably larger home. This was accomplished with the use of energy efficient glass walls throughout, an open floor plan, and sight lines between floating levels and rooms allowing the family members to stay connected visually throughout the space. Caption Caption Caption   They also had a passion for modernism and had collected art pieces that we included in our 3D models to make sure scale and placement were considered. Caption Caption Caption   One of the owners is a well-known sports agent making the entertaining of adults as well as teenage children and their friends... More