My favourite house in the world

[lobelia321]

My favourite house in the world used to be the house in Hitchcock's film North by Northwest but then I found out last week that this house is not real; it is a set.

Yesterday, in Heffer's Bookstore, I discovered the original of that house, the real existing satellite-google-map-locatable House of My Dreams. It is the Stahl House (also known as Case Study House nr.22 because it was, apparently, part of a Case Study project run between 1945 and 1966 to promote modern low-cost housing in the Los Angeles area). It is on Woods Drive in West Hollywood. The architect is Pierre Koenig.

And here are pictures. I just love this house so much. I bought a book that has all the Case Study Houses in it, and I was drooling over it all last night. I may post pics of others in the near future.

This is one big drawback about living in England. Modernism somehow managed to pass England by.

Especially modernist architecture. Holland, Germany, Australia -- they all have their traditions of International Style type domestic housing. But England? Around the corner from where I'm living there's a huge residential development going up, and it's brick, tiny windows, two up-two down, living/dining/kitchen, low ceilings, just as if 90 years of architecture had never, ever happened. *weeps*



The Stahl House, or Case Study House nr.22, Pierre Koenig, 1959-60

























A video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRaKFwMF52U

The house in Hitchcock's North by Northwest:


The Eames House
I couldn't resist. Here is the Eames House (Case Study House nr.8, Chautauqua Boulevard, Pacific Palisades, L.A., architects: Charles and Ray Eames; date: 1945-59!!)

Comments

[mystisblom.livejournal.com]

I think I just had a housegasm! Can I share it?
The Stahl House is just amazing.

[lobelia321.livejournal.com]

Oh, yes *housegasms* galore.

And this was built as low cost housing! I doubt it is now, though...

[yellow-oranges.livejournal.com]

I love houses with that inside/outside feel! Thanx for sharing

[lobelia321.livejournal.com]

Aren't they divine? You need the climate for it, of course. *stares at whirling snow storm in garden*

[maralily.livejournal.com]

You might be interested in Paolo Soleri's "Arcosanti" Project in Arizona. It is brilliant.

The Stahl house is fab.

[lobelia321.livejournal.com]

Thank you for that link. Very fascinating. It reminds me of that town featured in 'The Truman Show', I forget the name of it, in Florida. I am interested in these sorts of urban planning schemes but I would not like to live in one. Also, the style I drool over is high modernism, International Style, and this Arizona project looks chunkier, more post-modern. But I'd love to visit it!

[azewewish.livejournal.com]

Oh, I love that house!!!

[lobelia321.livejournal.com]

Isn't it droolworthy?

[sheldrake.livejournal.com]

Lovely! For some reason, you do find a few more modernist houses in this country in seaside towns. I mean, nothing like this, obviously, but still... some of them haven't even had false sloping roofs put on by stupid people!

[lobelia321.livejournal.com]

That's true. Brighton! There's that Mendelsohn house (note: a German), and my own town has its very own modernist secondary school (note: by Gropius, a German). The odd thing is these days English architects are huge internationally; buildings by Foster, Rogers, and others whose names escape me are, e.g., springing up all over Germany, incl. really prestigious projects (Reichstag etc.) but this seems to have zilch effect on domestic housing up the road from me. Meh.

[ahuilani.livejournal.com]

What an utterly fantastic house! Despite not having hills in Florida, there have been pretty good attempts to create houses like that here.

I am currently obsessed with Vincent Gallo's (http://www.radaronline.com/photos/2007/05/vincent_gallo_john_lautner_wolffe_house_1.php) former home, designed by John Lautner.

[lobelia321.livejournal.com]

Oh, that Gallo house is also very tasty, a bit like Frank Lloyd Wright means the Empire State Building. Plus View.

[(Anonymous)]

I'm happy to say that I brought in the furnishings and styled the shots for your images #8-11. www.boomerangformodern.com -The Architect was there that day along with the Stahl's. It was a day I'll never forget. A truely magical place. I was honored to be chosen. The very next day they started shooting scenes from "Galaxy Quest" there.