Architecture

#118: Wayfarers Chapel by Lloyd Wright (Palos Verdes)

#118: Wayfarers Chapel by Lloyd Wright (Palos Verdes)

September 25, 2022

Lloyd Wright's shimmering cliffside masterpiece of redwood, glass and stone gets more impressive with each passing year, as nature swallows it up. But Wright almost didn't build it! The story of how the Wayfarers Chapel came to be is almost as amazing as the building itself. Almost.

#117: Howard Longley House (Greene & Greene – South Pasadena)

#117: Howard Longley House (Greene & Greene – South Pasadena)

September 18, 2022

Finished in 1897, the Howard Longley House is the oldest surviving building in LA by Charles & Henry Greene, towering figures in the California craftsman architecture movement.

#112: Heinsbergen Decorating Company Building (Central LA)

#112: Heinsbergen Decorating Company Building (Central LA)

August 18, 2022

This curious late gothic French chateau was the headquarters of the Heinsbergen Decorating Company, one of the 20th century's great mural and interior design firms. Respected architects Curlett & Beelman designed it in 1928, and built it out of bricks salvaged from buildings that were demolished to make way for LA City Hall.

#109: Mirlo Gate Lodge Tower (Palos Verdes)

#109: Mirlo Gate Lodge Tower (Palos Verdes)

July 31, 2022

This medieval-style tower was built in 1925 to house the gatekeeper of upscale Palos Verdes Estates. The history of the Mirlo Gate Lodge Tower tells us a lot about the development of the Palos Verdes peninsula, and it's a fascinating case study for how architects can create a unified aesthetic when planning a city.

#107: John Lautner House (Silver Lake)

#107: John Lautner House (Silver Lake)

July 15, 2022

John Lautner's Silver Lake home, designed in 1939, was the first house the master architect designed by himself. It's a vitally important building for architecture history. It's also a beautifully put together home, packing a ton of creative details and spatial ideas into a very small footprint.

#105: Ard Eevin (Glendale)

#105: Ard Eevin (Glendale)

July 3, 2022

This eclectic 1903 mansion was the home of Daniel Campbell, an Irishman who emigrated to CA with $50, made a fortune in the Klondike gold rush, brought his family out to LA and soon became one of Glendale’s early civic leaders during the city’s first major growth spurt.

#104: 52nd Place Historic District (South LA)

#104: 52nd Place Historic District (South LA)

June 28, 2022

A unique tract of one-story craftsman bungalows in South LA, important both for its architecture and for the story it tells about the movement of Black Angelenos in the '30s through the '50s.

#103: Oaklawn Bridge & Waiting Station (Greene & Greene – South Pasadena)

#103: Oaklawn Bridge & Waiting Station (Greene & Greene – South Pasadena)

June 23, 2022

South Pasadena's Oaklawn Bridge is a unique entry in the canon of master craftsman architects Charles & Henry Greene. Enhancing its gracefulness are the adorable waiting station and mysterious obelisk attached to its eastern end.

#102: Glendale Main Post Office

#102: Glendale Main Post Office

June 15, 2022

This stately post office has served the city of Glendale since 1934, and survived multiple waves of USPS consolidations. Yes, its Italian Renaissance revival style was old hat by the time it was built – but what a lovely example it is!

#101: Frank Lloyd Wright’s Freeman House (Hollywood)

#101: Frank Lloyd Wright’s Freeman House (Hollywood)

June 8, 2022

Covered in tarps and "no trespassing" signs, the Freeman House is one of Frank Lloyd Wright's least appreciated homes in LA. But from an architectural, social and preservation standpoint, it's also one of the most fascinating.

Roadtrip: Etan Does Idyllwild

Roadtrip: Etan Does Idyllwild

May 20, 2022

For my 40th birthday, I visited the NRHP-listed landmarks in the SoCal mountain town of Idyllwild: a livable yellow UFO, a John Lautner cabin made of tree trunks and zig-zagging glass, a wooded State Park and a modernist tram station at 8,500 feet.

#98: John Lautner’s Foster Carling House (Hollywood Hills)

#98: John Lautner’s Foster Carling House (Hollywood Hills)

May 12, 2022

This 1948 masterpiece by John Lautner seamlessly merges outdoor and indoor with an exterior wall that swings out at the flip of a switch and a pool that extends into the living room.

#95: Villa Bonita (Hollywood)

#95: Villa Bonita (Hollywood)

April 24, 2022

This 1929 apartment complex once housed Errol Flynn and Francis Ford Coppola. It distinguishes itself from the many Whitley Heights high-rises by the spectacular vines that wrap around it, as if mama nature herself designed the facade.

#94: Victorian Homes on 1300 Block of Carroll Avenue (Angelino Heights)

#94: Victorian Homes on 1300 Block of Carroll Avenue (Angelino Heights)

April 22, 2022

The immaculately preserved Victorian homes on Carroll Avenue in Angelino Heights make up the highest concentration of Queen Annes in LA, and serve as a proud example of preservation efforts done right

#93: Lucretia Garfield House (Greene & Greene – South Pasadena)

#93: Lucretia Garfield House (Greene & Greene – South Pasadena)

April 19, 2022

This pristine Greene & Greene home in South Pasadena's Oaklawn neighborhood was built for Lucretia Garfield, the widow of assassinated US President James Garfield. Throughout its history, a former first lady lived and died here; Madonna's sister lived here for a decade; and 3 Grammy-winning albums were recorded in the basement.