You know the image. A well-dressed man looks out of the wall-to-wall glass on his modern, stylishly appointed home, the expansive lights of Los Angeles’ urban sprawl beyond the hillside he gazes from. This image from famed architectural photographer Julius Shulman brought SoCal’s midcentury style front and center and immortalized the movement for generations. The home in this image, Case Study No. 22, was designed by Pierre Koenig and photographed in 1960. It was one of many modern homes sponsored by Arts & Architecture.
While most of these modern marvels are privately owned, they still reside on the same blocks they did in the 40s, 50s and 60s. If you ever wanted an in-person view of the exteriors, Curbed LA offers a handy map with the address and location of many favorites.
According to Curbed, “The houses were intended to be relatively affordable, replicable houses for post-World War II family living, with an emphasis on ‘new materials and new techniques in house construction,’ as the magazine’s program intro put it. Architects involved included Charles Eames, Richard Neutra, and Pierre Koenig.”
“With the help of photographer Julius Shulman, who shot most of the homes, the most impressive of the homes came to represent not only new styles of home design, but the postwar lifestyle of the booming Southern California region.”
You can read more and view the map here.
