This Midcentury Home Was Designed by a Lloyd Wright Protégé. A San Diego Couple Just Freshened It Up
After discovering a one-of-a-kind residence in La Jolla, Paul Basile and Jules Wilson only enhanced Frederick Liebhardt’s original vision.
After discovering a one-of-a-kind residence in La Jolla, Paul Basile and Jules Wilson only enhanced Frederick Liebhardt’s original vision.
They say there’s never a perfect moment to buy a home, and that was certainly the case for designers Paul Basile and Jules Wilson. "We had only been dating for a year and I had just purchased a condo in a high-rise in downtown San Diego," explains Paul. At the same time, the couple had fallen in love with a midcentury residence in the La Jolla neighborhood: it had asymmetric lines, impeccable woodwork, and having been designed by a Frank Lloyd Wright protégé, echoes of the famous architect’s Arizona home. If Jules and Paul were going to make it their first home together, there was just one problem: "It wasn’t livable," says Paul.
Architectural photographer Julius Schulman, known for his documentation of midcentury modern architecture, shot the home in 1953.
© J. Paul Getty Trust. Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles (2004.R.10)
"La Jolla is very hilly and doesn’t warrant this type of build," says Paul Basile, who purchased this 1951 home designed by local architect Frederick Liebhardt to renovate with his partner, Jules Wilson.
Photo by Jennifer Siegwart
The home needed all new infrastructure—electrical, plumbing, heating, and cooling. The landscape was dead and the kitchen was outdated. "Most people would have leveled it," says Paul. But with their experience as designers—Jules has an interior design studio under her name, and Paul runs his own design, build, and fabrication company, Basile Studio—they immediately saw the potential. After seeing the home for the first time, they put in an offer that evening, in disbelief that it had been on the market for 300 days.
"We found out soon after we visited the house that Frederick and his wife, Marianne, attended Taliesin West under Frank Lloyd Wright for two years," explains Paul. Jules planted ferns on the property that create a lush barrier around the concrete and stone construction.
Photo by Jennifer Siegwart
See the full story on Dwell.com: This Midcentury Home Was Designed by a Lloyd Wright Protégé. A San Diego Couple Just Freshened It Up
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