Frank Gehry, a well-known architect, bought a 1920 pink bungalow in Santa Monica, CA in 1977 and he had a much “different” plan than your average fixer upper. Imagine yourself, 1978, pink house, outside of LA, what do you do? Make it a masterpiece. In 1978 Frank Gehry started to test and experiment with many materials he was currently familiar with-metal, plywood, chain link fences, and exposed wood. With all of this he kept the original house intact but added onto it with abrupt angles throughout the house, inside and outside.

Nothing had truly been done like this before which of course sparked interest with the neighbors, but not necessarily good interest. They complained and complained all because of something new. Although, I don’t know why they had such a problem with something so diverse, modern, and contemporary. Especially when their street before had all types of homes from small one stories to large two stories, from terra cotta roofing to rancher style houses. With natural light streaming in everywhere from the new windows featured on the added roofline which created dimension and a larger feel to the relatively small home. What makes this house so impressive is that nothing is uniform throughout and that this is not only someone’s place to live but also a work of art.

The Gehry Residence is absolutely magnificent and is very impressive for the 1970’s, it was before its time. As you view the house there is still that vintage feel that makes every home feel warm and cozy, with older styling still left behind, like the crown molding, the few windows left intact, and even sea-foam green cabinets in the kitchen straight out of the ’60’s. Amazingly, the older style compliments the new urban style and vice versa. That warm feel that we all love created by the antique styling but the size of the spaces inside. Each room is simplistic with room for plenty of storage but it doesn’t stick out, it hides where it is least noticeable. What makes a house brilliant is using every room, and every space-being aware of what you bring home with you every day, and keeping a compact lifestyle-to its advantage. Which Frank Gehry demonstrates perfectly by including a full size family home in only a smaller two story. All of this mixed with the trees and green plants around the home and neighborhood make it even better, providing shade and aesthetics. A simple life, and a life of what we really want, is a happy life. Thanks to Frank Gehry for creating a phenomenal place that not only looks greats but also is symbolic of life itself.