Architect John Lautner | Boomers Daily

The Local Project – (April 28, 2023) – Inside an heirloom home, unification lies at the centre. In designing Wainscott Residence, Bates Masi + Architects considers the fabric of the area and the immediate and future needs of the house.

Video timeline: 00:00 – Introduction to the Heirloom Home 00:22 – The Salt Box 00:47 – Acknowledging the Culture of Place 00:57 – The Brief 01:40 – A Walkthrough of the Heirloom Home 02:06 – The Art Cube 02:39 – Intertwining Domestic and Vacation Living 02:58 – The Future Needs of the Materials 03:41 – The Interiors Palette 04:07 – Unifying the Home and Immersing in its Surrounds 04:55 – Coming Together to Form One Voice

Its structure and materiality connect the residing family to the landscape, art and heritage of the area, whilst also bringing them together through considered multigenerational living. Bates Masi + Architects thoughtfully responds to the needs of the future home’s inhabitants, who came with a desire to display a significant art collection inside an heirloom home, to maintain views of the landscape and to house their two adult children as the family grows.

This forms the basis of the residence’s distinct structure, which is made of three individual volumes that operate just as seamlessly separately as they do together. Wainscott Residence reveals what lies inside an heirloom home. It is inherently linked to the surrounding landscape, dominated by picturesque green lawns, trees and a distant skyline that give a fresh, vibrant feel that is echoed in the coveted art collection. The southern aspect connects to the surroundings; every south-facing room opens up to the outside, with the doors pocketed into the walls so that the house can be completely unified with the landscape.

The Local Project – (April 25, 2023) – Overlooking the city of Los Angeles, Sheats-Goldstein Residence by John Lautner and James Goldstein is an iconic and action packed home that ignites the idea that a residence is an expression of its owner.

Video timeline: 00:00 – Inside the Iconic and Action Packed Home 00:49 – A Reflection of Mentality and Personality 01:16 – A 1972 Purchase of Amazing Design and Views 02:14 – The First Step in the 45-year long Renovation Process 03:14 – No Separation between Inside and Outside 03:42 – John Lautner’s Dislike of Box-like Forms 04:09 – A Focus on the Natural Elements 04:43 – The Addition of Tropical Vegetation 05:30 – A James Turrell Skyspace 06:05 – The Continuation of John Lautner’s Legacy 06:45 – Two Rebels Working in Cohesion 07:21 – Preserving History and Hard Work

Built and designed to reflect James’s life and experiences, the house asserts a dominance over the landscape with its frameless glass walls, hidden wonders and angled corners and turns. After buying the residence in 1972, James sought the help of John Lautner to re-model the home after observing the previous owner’s undesirable changes to the original design. Part of James’s wish was to return the structure’s lost character through dramatic improvements.

After John’s passing and having resided in the home for 45 years, James has continuously worked on adding to character of the iconic and action packed home, with respect to John’s original vision. Opposed to building anything that resembled a box or came to a 90-degree angle, John Lautner designed the home with angular walls, built-in furniture and open plan floor spaces. Wanting the residence to feel natural, the use of concrete floors is used to help imbue the feeling of openness, while carpets used within the home are designed to look like small stones and deepen the natural impression.

Additionally, the frameless glass wall that occupies the living room continues to unite the indoor and outdoor spaces and enables views of the tropical foliage and vegetation that surround the building. Spanning across over 1.5 hectares of hillside, the home’s landscape is saturated with thick foliage and vegetation that holds hidden walkways, ponds and open grassy areas. Additionally, the unique character of the iconic and action packed home is further emphasised with the James Turrel skyscraper. Tucked into the lower hillside of the home, the building acts as a form of art, allowing for one to sit back and delve into the appreciation of light and shadow.

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