The Entenza House + Case Study House designed by Richard Neutra
Case Study House designed by Richard Neutra
Entenza House
475 Mesa Road, Santa Monica, CA
The Entenza House was built for John Entenza, the editor and publisher of Arts and Architecture magazine in 1937 by Harwell H. Harris, ‘as a declaration of his commitment to modernity. His curved-wall carport, spiral staircase, and metal railing make it more Streamline Moderne than classical International Style. The Entenza House was Harris’s only realized example of Streamline Moderne. It has been renovated and slighted changed by Michael Folonis.’ - The Architectural Guidebook to Los Angeles
After taking these photos outside, the owner came out and after a brief discussion about his house, he invited me to the upper deck to take pictures of the view of the canyon. Here is the view from the upper deck, looking down the staircase.
Entenza House: Case Study House #9
205 Chatauqua Boulevard, Pacific Palisades, CA
Architect: Eames and Shaarinen
‘The steel-frame and roof design is not as assertive in this Case Study House as in the adjacent Eames House. A single rectangualr form contains all of the spaces, including the two-car garage. As with the Eames House, the open interior was most impressive with the furnishings of Saarinen chairs and built-in angular sofa. The house has been considerably altered.’ - The Architectural Guidebook to Los Angeles
Case Study Houses
‘The Case Study Houses were experiments in residental architecture sponsored by John Entenza’s Arts & Architecture magazine, which commissioned major architects of the day, including Richard Neutra, Raphael Soriano, Craig Ellwood, Charles and Ray Eames and Eero Saarinen, to design and build inexpensive and efficient model homes for the residential housing boom caused by the end of World War II and the return of millions of soldiers. The Eames’ CSH #8 was assembled by hand labor in about three days.
The program ran from 1945 until 1966. The first six houses were built by 1948 and attracted more than 350,000 visitors. While not all 36 designs were built, most of those that were constructed were built in Los Angeles; a few are in the San Francisco Bay Area, and one has been reported in Phoenix, Arizona. A number of them appear in iconic black and white photographs by architectural photographer Julius Shulman.’ - Wikipedia
Why include great architecture here? Inspiration comes from everywhere… what inspires you?
Stumble it!
March 5th, 2006 at 10:29 am
this is not the “entenza house”. Charles Eames and Eero Saarinen designed and built the Entenza house as part of the Case Study Program, also known as Case Study House #9 for John Entenza in Pacific Palisades, CA.
March 5th, 2006 at 11:50 am
hmmmm. very interesting. i see where my confusion comes from… in ‘The Architectural Guidebook to Los Angeles’ (p. 48 #7), it refers to this house as the ‘Entenza House’, 1937. this home, was the literal home of John Entenza. later on (p. 51 #27), it refers to the actual case study home that you refer to as the ‘Entenza House’, 1949, as well. it turns out that the two homes are less then a mile away from each other, the former being just north-east of CSH#9. for the google driving directions between the two, click here. i emailed the publisher of the guide and i have posted a photo of the CSH9 Entenza House above.
great call and thanks for the input. ; >
March 31st, 2006 at 5:35 am
Good site… Nice design
May 9th, 2007 at 2:51 pm
Mooradian should study a bit of modern architectural history. In fact, John Entenza, the publisher of CA Arts and Architecture, commissioned and built two great modern houses for his own use, both located in Pacific Palisades. The first house (in the top photo above) was designed by Harwell Hamilton Harris in 1937, the second (and part of the Case Studies House Program) was designed by Charles Eames and Eero Saarinen in 1949. Both are thus correctly labeled “The Entenza House.”
However, the second picture above is NOT of the 2nd Entenza (Case Study) House, but of the Case Study House designed by Richard Neutra, which is, incidentally a neighbor of the (2nd) Entenza house and of the Charles and Ray Eames House as well.
May 9th, 2007 at 4:25 pm
steven, thanks for the clarification. you are also, of course, correct about it’s location. the photograph was taken from the back/side/front (?) yard of the eames house. as i look across my neighborhood, which has about 5 different template shaped homes, the stunning image of the eames house and for that matter, studio, comes back to me. one of these days…
June 2nd, 2007 at 2:21 pm
Check the website http://artsandarchitecturemag.com for a presentation of Entenza’s Case Study House #9 by Eames and Saarinen. Also all other CSHs.
June 2nd, 2007 at 2:42 pm
thank you david. thank you, thank you. it should be noted that anyone interested in the case study homes really needs to take a close look at what you have put together here. it’s a wonderful resource and there are some great stories about the evolution of the arts & architecture magazine as well as the great challenges the architects and the magazine faced. i believe it is critical that we appreciate and learn from these achievements in the light of what our homogenized situation is today. the options today for creative expression in the facade of our homes, and therefore the projection of our own selves, is limited due to, i suppose, builders protecting their investments and the overly restrictive policies that intrude upon creativity via neighborhood associations. it’s possible to be wrong about this, but regardless, looking at the A&A and CSH is refreshing and inspiring, nonetheless.
david. thank you again for carrying the torch of A&A, passed on to you by john in 1962, and for inspiring us. the energy from the magazine and your endeavours revitalizes our creative perspective and will not go to waste. it will be passed on.
June 3rd, 2007 at 9:22 am
I blush and thank you.
June 18th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
Hi there…I Googled for magazine photography, but found your page about The Entenza House + Case Study House designed by Richard Neutra…and have to say thanks. nice read.
June 24th, 2008 at 6:25 am
melinda;
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i’m glad you stumbled upon it. i love how that works…
if you ever get the chance to tour the case study homes in southern california, please do! they are incredible and are a great source of inspiration that fuels my creativity.
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woohoo!
drew
June 22nd, 2009 at 2:54 pm
I am the granddaughter of John D. Entenza. He adopted my father Kenneth Entenza. I grew up in Pacific Pailisades until my mother moved my brothers and I to Minnesota in the late in 1970s. I want to get photos of the two John Entenza homes to give to my younger brother, John R. Entenza, who was named for John D. Entenza. Please clarify for me…the original Entenza house was located on Mesa Dr. in Santa Monica (photo #1 above) and the second Entenza house was the case study house#9 located at 205 Chautauqua in Paicific Pailisades (#2 photo above is not this house??). I am unsure which house my father spent time in ( I think the one in the Palisades), so that is why I am looking for photos of both houses.
July 14th, 2009 at 8:11 pm
my dad was friends with ken entenza and spent a lot of time at the house on Chautauqua. He has stories for you about your dad and grandfather if you want.
July 21st, 2009 at 1:17 pm
Absolutely! It has been many years since I have seen my father, Ken. I know that he is still alive and living in Southern CA, but there has been no contact at all. I know very little about Ken’s early years and would like to know more.
March 16th, 2010 at 4:01 pm
Hello Jeff Kagan…Are you still out there? I became extremely ill about a year ago with a couple of bad relapses and am only just starting to feel better. I would really enjoy hearing anything you might know about Ken’s early years. I have been doing some geneology, and any information you might know would be appreciated. Leigh M. Entenza