Kelton Apartments

Kelton Apartments

This was the third and smallest apartment project in Westwood and the second in which Neutra invested his own funds as a partner. The triplex cleverly appears to be one large gracious house. On the sloping site, one leg of an L, a cube with a balcony protected by a deep overhang steps down toward the street. A tall stucco spur wall separates the two ground floor units visually. The volumes on each of the ground floor units are not monolithic but sometimes step a few feet in and out, creating more variety in engaging the landscape. Meanwhile, the top floor retains its clean rectilinearity which anchors both street and rear facades; this strategy also provides shelter for the more animated ground floor plan when it steps back from the plane of the upper wall.