Rudolf Michael Schindler, Schindler House, West Hollywood, USA, 1921-1922

About the architect
Rudolph Michael Schindler  (1887 Vienna – 1953 Los Angeles) was an Austrian-born American architect whose most important works were built in or near Los Angeles during the early to mid-twentieth century.

About the house
The Schindler House was such a departure from existing residential architecture because of what it did not have; there is no conventional living room, dining room or bedrooms in the house. The residence was meant to be a cooperative live/work space for two young families. The concrete walls and sliding glass panels made novel use of industrial materials, while the open floor plan integrated the external environment into the residence, setting a precedent for California architecture in particular.

The Schindler House is laid out as two interlinking “L” shaped apartments  using the basic design of the camp site that he had seen a year before. Each apartment was designed for a separate family, consisting of 2 studios, connected by a utility room. The utility room was meant to serve the functions of a kitchen, laundry, sewing room, and storage. The four studios were originally designated for the four members of the household. The house also has a guest studio with its own kitchen and bathroom.  Instead of bedrooms, there are 2 rooftop sleeping baskets. The baskets were redwood four post canopies with beams at mitered corners, protected from the rain by canvas sides.

The house is built on a flat concrete slab, which is both the foundation and the final floor. The walls are concrete tilt up slabs, poured into forms on top of the foundation. The tilt up slabs are separated by 3 inches (76 mm), filled with concrete, clear glass or frosted glass. The tilt up panels act as the hard sheltering wall at the back of the house, and a softer permeable screen at the front.

References :

• Smith, Kathryn; Grant Mudford (2001). Schindler House. Harry N. Abrams, Inc. pp. 7–40. ISBN 0-8109-2985-6.
• http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/Kings_Road_House.html
• http://cargocollective.com/sjmatkaluk/Reconstructing-the-Schindler-House