Located in Pacific Palisades, California, the 511 House is a riot of form, color, texture and materials in an almost post-modern mix of California Modern and Googie road-side architecture.

Link: Kanner Architects
Related: Canyon View by Kanner Architects (L+L)

Reference: CA Boom II Day One (L+L)
Reference: CA Boom II Day Two (L+L)
Reference: CA Boom II Day Threee (L+L)

The house was designed with two main volumes. From the front a blue tiled two story structure sits to the south (left) and houses the vertical circulation. And to the north lies the white textured stucco garage with its luminous corrugated fiberglass door. The entry sits at the joint between the two pieces, though its interior space belongs to the stair volume.

Stepping inside the blue terrazzo floored entry hall, the bulk of the house reveals itself through west facing windows as an extension of the white stucco garage volume stretching along the north edge of the property. The topography of the site allows for the entry at street level to actually be the second level of the house. Three bedrooms occupy the upper level of the main structure beneath the boomerang roof form. The stairway is a sort of tower with a lookout space up a ladder from the entry and stairs descending to the lower living level.

Here the house opens completely to the exterior patio via floor to ceiling glazing and vast sliding doors which, when open, create a unified indoor/outdoor living space. The lower level features an open plan living room dining room separated by a floating plywood bookshelf unit, and an open kitchen. A convertible space with large sliding door can function as a family room or guest bedroom with an adjoining bath. The hallway space connecting the stairwell and living areas functions as a library with built-in bookshelves and desk space. In addition, a large storage room is tucked into the site sitting beneath the garage.

ARCHITECT & HOMEOWNER STEPHEN KANNER, FAIA, LEADS THE TOUR OF HIS HOME

The finish materials throughout the home are widely varied, but repeated palette, which includes marine grade plywood, apple-wood ply, carrera marble, glass mosaic tile, aluminum and douglas fir framed windows, polished concrete and steel. The exterior stucco is a rough striated texture with random nubs (what else do I call them) scatted about. Far from the coveted smooth finish plaster or the pedestrian spray-on stucco texture, this stucco finish is reminiscent of 50's and 60's era Los Angeles apartment buildings.

Designed to take full advantage of the bright light and cool Pacific Ocean breezes, the house forms a synergy of interior and exterior spaces of this 3,500 square foot home. Built for about $230 square feet in 2001, much of the cost went towards the steel structural system.

Click here for the 511 House Photo Gallery