Trousdale Residence by Swift Lee Office
Designed in 2005 by Swift Lee Office, this midcentury single family house is located in Beverly Hills, California, United States.
Description by Swift Lee Office
The Trousdale Residence is a remodel of an existing one-story residence located in the Trousdale Estates of Beverly Hills. The original house was built in 1960 and has since been opened up extensively to take advantage of its view, a baronial vista sweeping from the Hollywood Hills to the Santa Monica beach, with downtown in between. In the end, the interior transformation is really about marking the end of an era when domestic spaces of service were hidden and compartmentalized, i.e. butler’s pantry, servants’ quarters, separate entries, and etc., and where it was a norm to find his- and her- spaces separating the genders.
All the south-facing walls are glass, including one in the master bath which has a view of Trousdale Canyon. The interiors flow seamlessly to the outdoors. Terrazzo floors continue onto the terrace, where a found by Rios Clementi Hale Studios, aligns the sunken tub. A ledger stone wall in the shower, on the other hand gives a rough-hewn edge to the otherwise clean stucco walls. The kitchen is glossy and modern, but off-set by the rough concrete block wall pattern on the interior wall. The block wall is replicated from the existing exterior concrete block wall to bring the outdoor inside.
The house was really taken down to the studs leaving only the support columns and roof. Some of the changes include removing a wall between the dining room and living room to create one large entertaining area; reducing closet space in the master bedroom to accommodate a larger master bath; minimal architectural detailing and palette. A monochromatic color scheme is complemented by vegetation and amplifies the near-stark quality of light/shadow in certain areas of the house. The most dramatic feat was however, to replace all the southeast-facing walls – those in the dining room, living room, guest room, and master bedroom and bath – with glass, most of it sliding doors.
Photography by Elon Schoenholz
- by Matt Watts
