Kaufmann Desert House
| Kaufmann Desert House | |
|---|---|
Kaufmann Desert House, November 2000
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| General information | |
| Status | Complete |
| Architectural style | International |
| Location | 470 West Vista Chino Palm Springs, California United States |
| Coordinates | 33°50′42″N 116°33′10″W / 33.8451°N 116.5529°WCoordinates: 33°50′42″N 116°33′10″W / 33.8451°N 116.5529°W |
| Completed | 1946 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Richard J. Neutra |
The Kaufmann House (or Kaufmann Desert House) is a house located in Palm Springs, California, that was designed by architect Richard Neutra in 1946.
It was one of the last large-commission domestic projects designed by Richard Neutra, but it is also arguably one of his most architecturally noteworthy and famous homes.
It is "one of the most important examples of International style architecture in the United States and the only one still in private hands", and in 2008 was offered for sale.
This five-bedroom, five-bathroom vacation house in Palm Springs, was designed to emphasize connection to the desert landscape while offering shelter from harsh climatic conditions. Large sliding-glass walls open the living spaces and master bedroom to adjacent patios. Major outdoor rooms are enclosed by a row of movable vertical fins that offer flexible protection against sandstorms and intense heat.
A combined living and dining space, roughly square, lies at the center of the house. While the house favors an east-west axis, four long, perpendicular wings extend in each cardinal direction from the living areas. Thoughtful placement of larger rooms at the end of each wing helps define adjacent outdoor rooms, with circulation occurring both indoors and out.
The south wing connects to the public realm and includes a carport and two long, covered walkways. These walkways are separated by a massive stone wall and lead to public and service entries, respectively. The east wing of the house is connected to the living space by a north-facing internal gallery and houses a master bedroom suite. To the west, a kitchen, service spaces, and staff quarters are reached by a covered breezeway. In the northern wing, another open walkway passes along an exterior patio, leading to two guest rooms.
The home was commissioned by Edgar J. Kaufmann, Sr., a Pittsburgh department store tycoon as a desert retreat from harsh winters, and was built in 1946. It was made famous by the 1947 photos by Julius Shulman. A decade earlier, Kaufmann commissioned Frank Lloyd Wright to build Fallingwater in Pennsylvania.
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