Mid-century modern architecture birthed not only whole developments of glass, wood, concrete and steel, but made several names household words, at least for those in the know. Among them Joseph Eichler, Mies van der Rohe, and Richard Neutra. Neutra, born in Austria in the late 1800s, trained extensively in Europe before coming to the United States and becoming a citizen in the late ‘20s. After a brief stint with Frank Lloyd Wright and Rudolf Schindler, he opened his own architecture firm in the Los Angeles area. (That firm lives on today in the form of Richard and Dion Neutra and Associates, with his legacy being maintained by his son Dion.)

Richard Neutra based his design on simple post-and-beam construction, his homes made use of large windows, sliding glass doors, concrete and the natural elements of light and water. The greatest concentration of Neutra architecture is located in Southern California where his practice was established. Homes and office buildings can be found not only in the greater metro area, but inland in the San Gabriel and San Fernando valleys, in the seaside communities of Pacific Palisades, Santa Monica and Malibu, as well as tony enclaves such as Beverly Hills and Brentwood. There are also small pockets of Neutra-designed homes in Northern California. They can be found primarily in San Francisco, Berkeley and Carmel.

One of the vital traits of his design process was absorbing a client’s goal and implementing user-oriented design. In fact, each home he designed is named after the original owner. Although a technically brilliant architect, his ego did not stand in the way of making a home fit the lifestyle of the occupants. He considered architecture an "applied art;" which only works if man works better in and because of it. Neutra was a full-service designer, imagining both the inside and outside of the buildings he worked on. His renderings included full-grown landscaping, making his architecture like fine wine, taking years to mature and blossom into what he initially envisioned.

His most famous legacy is undoubtedly the Kaufmann House, located in Palm Springs where mid-mod lives happily amongst the desert and cacti. Designed and constructed in the mid-1940s it has been captured beautifully by famed photographer Julius Shulman. While not his first house—Neutra had been designing homes in the Coachella Valley since the ‘30s—it is a marvel, considered to be one of the Top 20 significant architectural works in the area. View this New York Times post about the 2007 marketing of the illustrious Kaufmann House: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/31/arts/design/31hous.html

One of the few Bay Area Neutra properties that can be viewed by the public (albeit on a website) is located at 2056-2058 Jefferson Street in San Francisco, a duplex in the heart of the Marina built in 1937. Architect Chad Overway is the current owner of the property that consists of two flats (one with a 600-bottle wine room) plus a studio. Bought in the early 1990s for $775,000, he has restored most of the original features. It went on the market in September 2009, but was withdrawn in February of this year. Wedged between two more typical SF properties, this home has an open floor plan, full walls of windows to the outside, as well as glass walls serving as hallways. There is a rooftop garden, perfect for entertaining, with views of the Bay, the Golden Gate and the Palace of Fine Arts. A stunning home in a stunning location.

Hillsborough is fortunate to have a remarkably rare Neutra home on La Cuesta Road. Of all Hillsborough’s amazing architecture, only two homes are listed on the National Register of Historic Places: Carolands and Neutra-designed Hoffman House on La Cuesta. Built in 1937, this is a dramatic composition of Neutra’s High International Style. The 4200 sq. ft. home last sold in 1999 for $3,150,000 just after being totally renovated.

My new listing (pictured, and incidentally across the street from a Frank Lloyd Wright original) at 755 Bowhill Road, Hillsborough, while not a Neutra, reflects his design aesthetics masterfully. Berkeley architect David Avila captured the clean lines and relationship to the outdoors that are hallmarks of the style. This new listing is offered at $3,475,000 and truly the only modernist home of its class currently available on the Peninsula market. Explore at www.HillsboroughModernist.com and call my cell for a private showing: 650-455-3735

Interesting Factoid: Huntington Beach Public Library was designed by Richard Neutra. If you check their website, you will note that the typeface used in their name and logo is Neutraface, a type style designed in homage to Richard Neutra.