How They Pulled It Off: A "Garden Enclave" ADU Clad in Custom Terra-Cotta Tiles
The textural facade was inspired by the greenery of the surrounding landscape and the clay tiles of the main home's roofing.
The textural facade was inspired by the greenery of the surrounding landscape and the clay tiles of the main home's roofing.
Welcome to How They Pulled It Off, where we take a close look at one particularly challenging aspect of a home design and get the nitty-gritty details about how it became a reality.
Cars may rule the road in Los Angeles, but that wasn’t what the owners of a charming 1930s Spanish Revival–style house in L.A.’s Leimert Park wanted for their own backyard. "Like many homes of this era, the side and backyard of the home were organized with a garage at the back and a long driveway that occupied much of the 6,200-square-foot lot," says Mira Henry of local firm Current Interests. As a result, the backyard was designed more for a car than for living and gathering—not quite what the owners had in mind.
The ADU’s materials are very craft-focused, from the custom terra-cotta tiles that are hand-cut in the factory, to the tinted green concrete base of the building. The ADU is attached on one side to the Spanish Revival–style main house, which the homeowners purchased in 2009.
Photo by Franco Zulueta
Henry and coprincipal Matthew Au sought to transform the backyard into a "garden enclave" with a new, 400-square-foot ADU at the back corner that would serve as an office and guesthouse. This move also enabled enough space to build a pool and large patio, perfect for hosting.
The ADU houses a central living area with a kitchenette, a full bathroom, and storage. It looks out onto the pool, whose wide coping creates both a hard edge against the softer native California vegetation and also a space to lounge.
Photo by Franco Zulueta
A large and abundant fig tree was previously located on the site where the ADU was placed. Inspired by the tree and previously overgrown landscape, a deep green was selected as the color of the ADU’s exterior cladding.
Photo by Franco Zulueta
See the full story on Dwell.com: How They Pulled It Off: A "Garden Enclave" ADU Clad in Custom Terra-Cotta Tiles
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