Olan and Aida Haefely and Mr. and Mrs. Bethuel C. Moore Houses

Olan and Aida Haefely and Mr. and Mrs. Bethuel C. Moore Houses

Richard Neutra intended his designs for two houses on adjacent lots to serve as separate and independent units with a unified aesthetic. Neutra’s designs successfully achieve the competing values of privacy and community. Visitors enter the complex on a single route, passing from the street down a pergola-covered pathway to a landscaped garden, courtyard, and finally two entrances. While both houses shared a common aesthetic and set of materials, the plans for each were individuated to each of the family’s preferences. This was the case in the Moores’ house, where Neutra joined the kitchen and living room with a fireplace. In contrast, in the Haefelys’ house, the fireplace wall was shifted so that it divided rather than connected the two spaces. Other differences, including the single-story height of the Moores’ house and the two-story height of the Haefelys’, suggest the ways each house was a unique design.

Adapted from Neutra – Complete Works by Barbara Lamprecht (Taschen, 2000), p. 263.