The ultra-modern residence of the pioneering architect Rudolf Schindler, built in 1921-22,
was turned into a museum because of its unusual architectural and social innovations. The house, on Kings Road in West Hollywood, was designed by Schindler as a communal living and working space for his wife, himself and another couple, and it established radical precedents, both for its use of unrefined building materials in the interior and for the avant-garde living arrangements of its inhabitants (they slept outdoors, wore loose-fitting clothes and engaged in a free-spirited lifestlye). Architects today continue to study the modern dwelling, and the Los Angeles design firm Marmol Radziner + Associates will debut a collection of authentic reproductions of Schindler furniture created for the Kings Road residence. On exhibit recently at the Pacific Design Center, the sofa and ottoman (above), constructed of plain planks of clear-heart redwood and upholstered in vintage velvet, are at once rustic and sophisticated.
April 2002
