A Ground-Up Bungalow in Venice Beach Channels the Spirit of California Modernism

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Project Details:

Location: Venice, California

Architect: Design, Bitches / @design_bitches

Footprint: 1,973-square-foot home and 716-square-foot detached garage/studio

General Contractor: Oliver Garrett Construction Inc.

Structural Engineer: Parker Resnick Structural Engineering

Civil Engineer: CM Peck

Landscape Design: Terremoto / @terremoto_landscape

Photographer: Yoshihiro Makino / @yoshihiromakino

From the Architect: "B+B house is located in Venice, California, a neighborhood known both for iconic beach bungalows built at the turn of the 20th century and architectural experimentation. This specific site is nestled on the edge of the famous ‘walk streets’ of Venice where small lots are tightly woven together as the city stretches to the Pacific Ocean. The house was built for a small creative family who work in various ways and have a constant flux of extended family and friends that flows in and out of town on a regular basis.

"The house feels instantly comfortable, welcoming to all and not too precious to use. The site, while sandwiched closely between neighboring houses, has an incredible sense of openness to the sky with views punctuated by surrounding palm trees. The view up and out from the inner most part of the site is the true center of the home, so we created a dynamic connection between the main house and rear studio through the interior yard between. At the upstairs studio at the rear, we peeled the roof back from one third of the volume, while the opposite primary bedroom acts as a treehouse overlook creating a distinctly different experience on either side of the central yard. It was essential that all spaces have the ability to connect and retreat depending on how it might be used at present or many years into the future. The garage can house cars, music recording sessions, casual movie screenings, or be used as a guest studio.

"Proportion and scale were carefully considered from larger formal intersections down to the varying details and directionality of material texture, pattern, and rhythms. The flexible loft in the double height front room bridges the boundaries between gathering and retreat. Interior windows were punched through upstairs volumes so both cross breezes and conversations continue and flow from upstairs down to the main living areas that spill into the yard. Solar hot water/radiant flooring and solar skylights are used, minimizing energy consumption throughout the year."