| McKinley Residence
Venice, California
This project was designed
and built by the architect for his young family . The site is a
tight 40 by 90 foot lot in Venice, California . Rather than give
up 15 feet of the rear yard to a driveway off the alley as required,
the architect created a detached garage and located, by variance,
the 15 feet between the two structures to form a courtyard. The
two structures are connected by a bridge at multiple levels. The
project employs several integrated environmental strategies which
include: solar domestic hot water and radiant heating and cooling,
natural ventilation by automatic electric skylights and windows,
whole house ventilation and screened combination doors and hopper
windows, and natural and nontoxic interiors and finishes. Several
innovative materials are used throughout, including rammed earth
site walls, poured in place concrete walls, furniture and floors
, integrally pigmented stucco and plaster and exposed fir framing.
The architect fashioned all counter tops, sink basins, tubs, showers,
and fireplaces out of Syndecrete, the precast lightweight concrete
which he developed . In the spirit of Schindler and Neutra, the
building takes advantage of the coastal climate by creating outdoor
spaces, including a sleeping porch, outdoor fireplace and multiple
roof decks which are used for growing edible landscape and recreation
This
home is available as a still photo and film location.
The McKinley Residence
has been featured in many publications, including:
VLife
(A
supplement to Variety), October 2003
Dwell,
December 2002
Organic
Style, September/October 2002
GA Houses 67,
2001
B.
Smith Style, June/July, 2000
Fine
Homebuilding, December 1999/January 2000
Los Angeles
Times Magazine, 1997
Recently featured in
the 
See
the NEW addition to this residence.
First Floor / Site Plan
Second Floor Plan
Longitudinal Section |
