MidCentury Architecture

When you've only seen a house in photos taken 50 years ago, you're not sure if you want to see it in its present-day condition. So, it's a pleasant surprise to see the Daphne house looking kept up (if a little overgrown) and still looking like its original self.

Nicholas and Virginia Daphne commissioned Ellwood to design their house in the late 50s after trying unsuccessfully to work with Frank Lloyd Wright on a house design. In 1953, Mr. Daphne had visited and admired Ellwood's Case Study House No. 16.

Built on a 2'4" x 2'4" module and raised three feet off the ground, the steel frame is infilled with full height Greek Pentelic marble and gray tinted glass. For a shadow effect, the panels of marble and glass were recessed seven inches from the frame. Adding to the sense of floating is the bed of black Mexican rocks around the platform.

The home's architecture has a Classical look to it and comes across as a modern interpretation of ancient Greek/Roman architecture. This house still looks great and hopefully someone who appreciates its design will pick it up.

Update: Forgot to add this. Here's the Arts & Architecture article from 1963 about the Daphne Residence.

Sidenote: This house is attributed to Craig Ellwood, but now, Jerry Lomax, an architect employed by Ellwood is recognized as the designer.

Here's a selection showing the house in 2008 from the realtor's site.

Carport/Front Porch

Kitchen

Living Room

Pool

Backyard

Links:

Virtual Tour

California Modern: The Architecture of Craig Ellwood

From LIFE Magazine (1951):

Architect Bruce Goff, one of the few U.S. architects whom Frank Lloyd Wright considers creative, scorns houses that are "boxes with little holes." But he likes circles, believing that a circle is "an informal, gathering-around, friendly form." Working on this theory, he designed a house for the Albert Fords of Aurora, lll. which makes most modern houses look quaint.
The house consists of a huge, domed center circle, 166 feet around. and two semicircular bedroom wings, all shaped by steel arches made of standard Quonset ribs. At the base of the center sphere, which is built on three levels, is a curved cannel coal wall, treated against smudging and weathering. For sparkle, this wall is studded with ordinary playing marbles and with numerous 100-pound clusters of bright glass cullets, a hardened waste product periodically cleaned from glass furnaces.
Navy surplus rope covers the horizontal ceilings. Cypress siding, laid in a herringbone pattern, lines part of the domes and walls. There are no windows, so ventilation is provided by hinged louvres and ceiling vents. Chief hazards of the main living space are the glass walls, which carry out Goff's theory of "space moving inside and out." To keep guests from trying to follow suit Mrs. Ford is growing succulent plants in ditches outside the glass walls.
The house, which cost $64,000, delights its owners. Mr. Ford, who is a gas-company executive, likes the doorless carport ("No trouble now to put the car away"); Mrs. Ruth Van Sickle Ford, who is the director of the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts, is pleased to have a balcony studio where she can paint, a gallery where she can hang pictures and plenty of room where she can entertain-all in a house that requires little care. Friends and curious passers-by are often less delighted. While building was in progress so many people came to gape at what they variously called the "big apple," "birdcage," "dome" or "hangar" that the Fords posted a sign reading, "We don't like your house either."











Links:

MidCentArc Ford House Flickr Set

Bruce Goff bio w/More Links

Paul Ringstrom's Ford House Set on Flickr

Scenographix, Ltd

Designed by the Taliesin Associated Architects in Elm Grove, Wisconsin, this "Ultimate House" as declared by the Milwaukee Journal, opened in 1963. As you can see below, it still exists today.

























Links:

Taliesin

Wesley Peters

From Google's LIFE Photo Archives is the Bowman Residence located in Kirkland, Washington. Photographed in June 1958 by Nat Farbman:







From University of Washington - Dearborn-Massar Collection:







Links:

Paul H. Kirk bio on Docomomo WEWA

From University of Washington - Dearborn-Massar Collection

"Early in Haertling's career he was commissioned by University of Colorado psychology professor Theodore Volsky to design a house for his family of four on a steep hillside lot extending from a mountain stream in west Boulder. The lot featured views in all directions, half of them slightly upwards to the mountains. The Volskys were interested in taking advantage of these views in a dramatic living room situation. The prominent upward views suggested the upwards curving catenary roof form open to the high view areas while still maintaining interior scale. One gets a 360' view from the curtain-less living room of the mountains to the west and south, and the plains and cityscape to the east and north. The steepness of the site was accommodated by lowering the house into the earth as much as possible to the rear and allowing light in by way of large lightwells. For basic economy a circular floor plan was conceived, which allowed for increased circulation in the smaller area of the circle and for larger rooms with minimum access distance.
The living room sits atop the circular form blossoming at the highest point from the ground that capitalizes on the excitement of the terrain. The lower level contains a recreation room and the entry. Upon ascending the stairs one emerges into an interior garden which not only surprises and delights, but also is very functional in that it serves also as a short cut between living areas.

During the construction of the Volsky house a dozen of the neighbors collaborated on a letter of protest regarding its "sheer grossness", and voicing their concern over "a definite though incalculable loss of property values." Within a year of the completion of the house Life Magazine printed a 6 page article on it in their Ideas in Houses section. In the following years it appeared on CBS-TV's show "21st Century" hosted by Walter Cronkite, Schonen Wohnen, and L'Architecture D'aujourd'hui magazines. Since that time the Volskys have made a hobby of maintaining the house in its original form."
- www.atomix.com/haertling/volsky.html



From LIFE Magazine, 1966:











More LIFE pics:




All Photos: Michael Rougier
Links:

Charles A. Haertling - Architect A.I.A.

Charles Haertling (Wikipedia)

Outside the box - The Rocky Mountain News

Work by the wonderful Charles Haertling!

Here are some places to start:

LottaLiving - Your Ultra Guide for Googie, Atomic Age and Mid Century Modern Living.

Modern Capital - Dedicated to mid-century modern homes, design and events in Washington, D.C. and the surrounding suburbs

Modern Austin - Mid Century houses in and around Austin, Texas.

Modern Phoenix - Photos and articles about MidCentury design and architecture in Phoenix, AZ.

Palm Springs Modern Committee (PS ModCom) - Covers the MCM architecture from Palmer&Krisel, Albert Frey and Donald Wexler to name a few.

Racquet Club Road Estates - All about the neighborhood in Palm Springs with houses designed by Palmer & Krisel.

Houston Mod at the Houston Architecture Info Forum

Red Stick Modern - Exploring Mid-Century Modern Architecture in Baton Rouge.

Central Florida Modern - An ongoing collection containing the works of Central Florida's prominent modern architects, designers and builders from the 1950s and beyond.

Cincinnati Modern - Real Estate site focusing on MCMs in Cincy.

Desperately Seeking Modern - Images and opinions about mid-century, contemporary, and post-modern buildings and homes from across America.

Synthetrix - Photos of the Forgotten - A pictorial refuge for nostalgic reflection

Orange County Googie Archive - Documenting the remaining examples of Googie architecture.

Ready for a another athlete's home? You already got an insider's view of Willie Mays' pad from the 60s, so let's see how Wilt "The Stilt" Chamberlain pushed the limits of mod living as shown in Life from March 24, 1972 and the January 1974 issue of Ebony. The architect was David Tenneson Rich who has the story of his involvement on his site.

Here's more info from Big Time Listings when the house was sold in 2007:

"Built in 1971, the five-bedroom, 7,158-square-foot contemporary-style house at 15216 Antelo Place in Bel-Air was built by Chamberlain, who lived there until his death in 1999. TV writers George Meyer and Maria Semple purchased the house from Chamberlain's estate in 2002 for nearly $3 million, and have owned it ever since. The house has attracted much attention over the years-both with this listing and in 2000-2002, when Chamberlain's estate was trying to unload it, first for $7.45 million and later reducing its asking price to $4.38 million. The house's unconventional (some might say tacky) features include a gold-lined hot tub, a retractable mirrored ceiling above the master bed, a swimming pool that flows into the living room, walls of glass, 40-foot ceilings, a wrap-around pool, and a balcony suspended over the living room, according to listing information. Other features include five and a half baths and teak finishes, according to listing information.

The house sits on a 2.58-acre parcel that has ocean and city views, according to public records and listing information."

Life Magazine

Ebony

More links:

Ursa Major Estate

A Walk Through Wilt's House

The House That Wilt Built

Wilt Chamberlain's spirit, and legend, live on in his mansion on the hill

Another one of our favorites here is George Masumoto's Lipman Residence. Located in Richmond, Virginia, it was built in 1957. This "split-level" was included in the book Contemporary Houses Evaluated by Their Owners (1961). Here's a pdf of that article: background-of-simplicity-lipman-residence-matsumoto











It was a pleasant surprise when I came across these new photos of the Lipman house on ryantevebaugh's Flickr page. Although it looks like there was an addition built, Matsumoto's design still looks good 50 years on. Enjoy these full color pics of Mid Century Modern goodness:









Links:

Lipman Residence article from Contemporary Houses Evaluated by Their Owners (pdf)


George Matsumoto Set on Flickr

ryantevebaugh's Lipman Residence Set on Flickr

George Matsumoto video interview (1997)

Here's a gem that was on the Dallas market a year or two ago. This is (was) the Hayes Residence, designed by Harold E. Prinz and LeVere Brooks in 1956. Recently, I discovered some b&w pics taken when the house was new, so I decided to do a little then and now comparison. The b&w photos are by Maynard Parker and are from the Huntington Library. Clicking on the b&w pics will get you a high-res shot and the color ones will take you to my Prinz & Brooks Flickr set to see more.

















Here's an article from the Sept 07 issue of D Magazine by Mary Candace Evans -

"This mid-century modern beauty was designed by Harold E. Prinz and LeVere Brooks in 1956 for the first Chevrolet dealer in town, Earl Hayes. The property was published in the American Institute of Architects Guide to Dallas Architecture. Cantilevered over a spring-fed lake on a Kessler hillside, the 7,301-square-foot home features floor-to-ceiling windows, brick walls, travertine floors, and original rich wood interior walls. The house boasts four bedrooms, six-and-a-half baths, four living areas, three carport stalls, and separate three-car garage on nearly 2 wooded acres. The master suite has an adjoining sound-proofed office or sitting room with balcony. Further amenities include a wine cellar, two separate quarters, 10-foot-deep pool with solid brass four-tiered fountain, two poolside dressing rooms, and a green lawn irrigated by lake water. Hidden storage abounds, including two walk-in basements."

Google Street View: 718 Kessler Lake Dr

From the pages of Ebony, August 1963 is phototour of Willie Mays' mod house. It's interesting to see the mix of styles in here, particularly Willie's bedroom. It goes to show that not everyone who lived in a Modern home filled it with furniture by Eames, Nelson, Knoll, etc.

The home was constructed by speculative builder Al Maisin and even though the article says an architect was involved they don't mention his name.

The house still exists, but I couldn't find any other details. Here's what Google Maps shows. I've included some snapshots from Google at the bottom of the page.
Click on each pic for a larger view

Nice article from the folks at globeandmail.com about the restoration and expansion of an mcm house built in 1956. The architect was Robert R. McKee from Vancouver. There's practically no info about him online, though the name seems familiar. The expansion was carried out by Nick Milkovich, a frequent collaborator with Arthur Erickson. Wish there were more pics.





Read Article here: Modernist home gets a 21st century update

Interesting post about forgotten architects: Architects We've Never Heard Of

At considerable less cost ($1.259M) than Neutra's remuddled Singleton residence, this Philadelphia house built in 1959 was originally the Hassrick residence. It was placed on the market by the second owners in 2002. Now, here it is again. The realtor's description says it has fallen into disrepair. What happened in six years?

Here are some pics from the 2002 site:







Here are some pics as it is today:







Check these links for more:

• 2002 Site - Richard Neutra's Cherry Lane House


• Sotheby's Listing

MidCentury Atlanta

Seems folks are catching on to the uniqueness and livability of MCM homes. This article from the Hartford Courant tells us that more people are refurbishing these houses in New Canaan, where the pattern has been tear down and throw up a gargantuan mansion. Many of these houses were designed by John M. Johansen, Marcel Breuer, Landis Gores, Philip C. Johnson and Eliot Noyes.

Article is no longer available at the Courant's site, here is the reprinted article:

By ROBIN STANSBURY | Courant Staff Writer
August 19, 2007

NEW CANAAN - Just a few years ago, preservationists worried that the town's collection of modernist houses, one of Connecticut's historical treasures, was in danger of destruction.The houses' very design - smaller, one-story structures built with natural materials that flow into the landscape - put them at risk of being torn down to make way for the larger McMansions that have become so popular.

But the death in 2005 of Philip Johnson, one of the most famous of the modernist architects, and the opening earlier this year of his world-famous Glass House in New Canaan for public tours, seems to be turning the tide in favor of the town's notable modernist homes, according to local history experts and preservationists.

"People are coming looking for these houses, so the tear-downs have slowed down," said Janet Lindstrom, executive director of the New Canaan Historical Society. "They seem to be much more respected. Many of them are in the process of being refurbished and it could be that maybe five years ago, they would have been torn down and lost to us forever."

Efforts to preserve the houses, all by noted modernist architects, got another boost recently when the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism and the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation provided funds for a $65,000 survey. The survey will focus on houses built by Johnson and four other famous modernist architects and on houses that were built by architects who were influenced by them.

One reason that the survey is important, organizers said, is that no one knows yet how many modernist houses have survived in New Canaan, although estimates put the number somewhere between 80 and 100. The records of tear-downs are also spotty, but historians estimate that as many as 20 have been demolished.

The significance of the survey reaches beyond Connecticut.

"When you look at national preservation standards, there's verbiage on what makes a Victorian significant or what makes a Georgian home significant, but that language doesn't exist for modern homes," said Christy MacLear, executive director of the Phillip Johnson Glass House.

The language developed in the New Canaan survey can be applied across the country to identify significant modernist homes.

"This will highlight moderns in the eyes of our country, signify to the country that these assets are significant," MacLear said. "When you look at saving a modern home, much of the preservation is reactive, jumping in once a home is threatened. We are working to ensure these assets are highlighted and to put in place protections so they are not threatened in the future."

A Home For The Modern

New Canaan, a wealthy Fairfield County suburb, has long been known for its modern houses. That's because of the "Harvard Five," a catchphrase used to describe the five architects - Johnson, Marcel Breuer, Elliot Noyes, Landis Gores and John Johansen, all from the Harvard Graduate School of Design - who moved to New Canaan in the 1940s to build houses for themselves and their clients.

"It really is such an unlikely thing to happen right here in New Canaan," said William D. Earls, author of "The Harvard Five in New Canaan" (Norton, 2006). "What they did was incredibly interesting and they were pushing the envelope at the time."

The houses were built until about the late 1960s. But beginning in the mid- to late 1990s, they became vulnerable as the state's housing market soared and developers searched for land to build ever larger residences. The modernist homes became easy targets because they were smaller, appealed to only a small group of potential buyers and could be torn down to make way for larger homes.

Among those lost: at least four of Johansen's houses, including his first, which had been listed on the state's Register of Historic Places; a Noyes creation known as Stackpole House, which was torn down in 1999 to make way for a new house; and at least two houses designed by Marcel Breuer.

"There's very little left by Johansen. His own house is gone," Earls said. "Some of the early homes, the more modest homes that reflected a more moderate lifestyle, have been lost. It's history that's gone. A two-room Colonial from the 1700s might not be practical, but it's still a loss because of the historic significance. So are these."

The most famous of New Canaan's modern homes is Johnson's Glass House - described as the most iconic modern home in the United States and a pioneering residence of the International style. It's located on 47 acres off Ponus Ridge Road. Johnson lived in the house from 1949 until his death in 2005 at age 98.

The house is made of sheets of quarter-inch-thick glass divided and supported by black steel pillars. It is a simple rectangle, one floor, a total of 1,728 square feet. There are no interior walls, only a circular brick column that houses a fireplace on one side and a bathroom on the other.

The house is now owned by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and thousands have clamored to buy tickets to tour it this year. Such exposure, along with extensive media coverage, has helped raise the profile of New Canaan's modernist houses and bolstered efforts to preserve them.

"The market for these homes is healthier now than it has been for decades," said Susan E. Blabey, a real estate agent with William Pitt Sotheby's International Realty in New Canaan. She credits the opening of the Glass House for much of the change in attitude.

''That was a huge event internationally and it shined a light on our heritage, the value of New Canaan real estate and the purity of this design,'' she said. ''These are very special houses.''

Unlikely preservationist

Susan Bishop finds herself an unlikely preservationist. As recently as five years ago, Bishop said she'd never really given much thought to New Canaan's modernist houses, even though she has lived in town for more than a decade. But today, she's the owner of one -- a 1951 Marcel Breuer home that had been sold to a developer and slated for demolition. Now Bishop plans to move her family into the house after an extensive renovation that involves removing an addition to the original Breuer house, which is on 3 acres, and adding her own addition for more bedroom space for her children.

The family is downsizing from a traditional colonial-style home.

''We don't have a great knowledge of modern history, but since this was a significant modern'' -- Breuer built the house for himself and lived there with his family -- ''that's why we decided to even go look at it,'' said Bishop, who is now president of the New Canaan Historical Society. ''We thought there was potential. We've been in a vintage colonial for a long time and thought this would be a terrific direction to go in. It would have been a shame to see it torn down.''

But for the most part, such homes come at a steep price. Real estate in New Canaan is among the most expensive in Connecticut. The median sales price for a house in New Canaan is $1.56 million. The Bishops purchased the Breuer house for $2.6 million, but declined to say how much they are spending on renovations.

Over the past two years, as the collection of modern homes has received more attention and enjoyed a resurgence, prices have increased. A year ago, a modern on Ponus Ridge Road across from the Glass House sold for $3.75 million.

Craig Bloom and Ashlea Ebeling purchased one of New Canaan's modernist houses in 1999 for $700,000, outbidding a developer -- a price that today, would be impossibly low in today's market, Bloom said.

''The house basically sold for a little over the land value at the time we bought it. That wouldn't happen today,'' Bloom said. ''All the attention the Glass House has been getting has helped broaden the understanding and recognition of New Canaan as a focal point for this type of architecture.''

The home was built in 1962 by architect Hugh Smallen, with an addition built in 1967.

''We were looking for something interesting or different, and a modern definitely fit that category,'' Bloom said. ''We loved the windows. We were living in New York City and this has almost floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the woods.''

Old House Journal has a good article on "how progressive architects and builders brought high-concept houses to the postwar 'burbs."

Houses like this for example:



Several communities that sprung up with houses having a modern bent are still going strong today, preserving the homes:

** Arapahoe Acres on Flickr

** Arapahoe Acres website

** Hollin Hills on Flickr

** Glenbrook Valley

** Memorial Architecture Blog

** Memorial Bend

This is how to do right by a MidCentury Modern house.

This North Carolina house from the 60s evokes images of houses by Pierre Koenig and Craig Ellwood and, of course, Mies van der Rohe.



The exterior spiral steps remind me of the steps on the Gropius House. I'm not too sure what I think about that little cover on the roof deck, but I'm no architect.



Check these links for the whole story and more pics:

Custom Home Online

Tonic Design

World Architecture News

Oxide Architecture

Here's a good article about steel houses @ Eichler Network

Case Study House #22 (Stahl Residence) - Pierre Koenig, Architect

Photo: Julius Shulman

Seems Taschen has undertaken putting into book form the A&A Magazine issues involving the Case Study Houses. Release is planned for Spring '08. These are great references for seeing influential houses that inspired (still inspire) architects.

When you go to Arts & Architecture Magazine, be sure to check out "casehouses" for pdfs of some of the articles.

The "Bobby Darin Residence, 1955. This classic Mid-Century showpiece is an achievement of unity, privacy and repose. A creation of interior space in light and remarkable use of elemental qualities punctuate its every aspect. Bands of wrap around windows combine the interior/exterior, exposed brick walls in bedrooms, step down living room centered on the fireplace with a flow of interior space closely connected to the outdoors, classic fixture details and a swimmer's pool. Enjoy living in a work of art!"

More pics and info @ Sotheby's Realty Page.

This is one of Neutra's best:

"RICHARD NEUTRA, ARCHITECT. THE SINGLETON RESIDENCE, 1959. This is one of the most famous architectural sites in America, comprising five plus acres on top of Bel Air, with exceptional views. Neutra designed this residence to sit in perfect harmony with nature. Renovated and expanded with respect, integrity and no expense spared. A new master bedroom wing has been seamlessly added, the kitchen expanded, and a gallery now blends the approach to the earlier Neutra addition into the overall floorplan with élan."

Check out Sotheby's Realty for more info and pics.

Also, more pics @ Meyler and Co.

"Case Study architect Edward Killingsworth's masterpiece, the 1957 Opdahl House, fell into ruin, but thanks to a musician with a passion for modernism, it is celebrating its 50th anniversary in mint condition."

Read more at Dwell

Also, Unique California Property has pics of the restoration.

To round out this trifecta, the LA Times interviewed Killingsworth in 2004.

Modernist buildings in danger of being lost

By Blair Kamin
Tribune architecture critic
Published July 8, 2007

There's an inconvenient truth that preservationists typically gloss over in their ever-more-pressing fight to save mid-20th Century modernist buildings from demolition: Many (though certainly not all) of these buildings are tough to love.

Perhaps it's their cool abstraction, or their labyrinthine floor plans, or their harsh materials, like the serrated concrete that can practically cut your skin. Whatever the reason, the American public has yet to cotton to these buildings. A survey of America's 150 favorite works of architecture, released last February, didn't contain a single structure by Chicago's master of steel and glass, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.

But popularity is one thing; quality is another. A half century ago, when Space Age America was infatuated with all things new, there wasn't yet broad-based popular support for preserving old Victorian houses or Beaux Arts train stations that evoked the grandeur of ancient Rome. They were, like today's threatened mid-century modernist buildings, too old to be new and too new to be old. And so, they were shortsightedly torn down. Now the question is whether we're about to make the same mistake again.

Danger signs abound. In Cleveland, public officials want to destroy Marcel Breuer's brooding, 29-story Cleveland Trust Tower, its facade a honeycomb of rough concrete, and replace it with a midsize government office building. In Boston, Mayor Thomas Menino is pushing a plan to sell City Hall, a monumental hunk of concrete that is a textbook example of the aptly named Brutalist style, and build a new government center on the South Boston waterfront.

Even in Chicago, where several iconic modernist buildings (Crown Hall, the Daley Center and the Inland Steel Building) have been restored or put on protected landmark lists, little-noticed modernist gems, such as Edward Dart's Emmanuel Presbyterian Church at 1850 S. Racine Ave. in Pilsen, could be smashed to smithereens with no public debate.

The rest of the article is @ the Chicago Tribune

Mills Residence 1956 & 2007

Poland Residence 1958

South Bay Bank, Manhattan Beach, CA - Designed by Craig Ellwood



Designed between 1955 - 56, this would be Ellwood's first commercial project. This all steel structure consisted of eight inch wide flange columns with concrete blocks infilling. Construction of this earthquake-resistant bank took place between 1957 - 58. The metal grille is made up of standard-size aluminum bars. These were designed to interlock with each other, making welding unnecessary.



The bank adheres to Ellwood's belief that industrial materials could be used for pleasing architectural design.

Here's how it looks today: