Two Ecologists Designed This $2.4M L.A. Midcentury to Be at One With Nature

Drawing inspiration from Sea Ranch and their passion for the natural world, Leona and Rudolph Mattoni crafted a Beverly Hills home with soaring windows, plentiful patios, and overflowing gardens.

Apr 30, 2025 - 19:51
Two Ecologists Designed This $2.4M L.A. Midcentury to Be at One With Nature

Drawing inspiration from Sea Ranch and their passion for the natural world, Leona and Rudolph Mattoni crafted a Beverly Hills home with soaring windows, plentiful patios, and overflowing gardens.

Drawing inspiration from Sea Ranch and their passion for the natural world, Leona and Rudolph Mattoni crafted a Beverly Hills home with soaring windows, plentiful patios, and overflowing gardens.

Location: 9620 Heather Road, Beverly Hills, California

Price: $2,395,000

Year Built: 1969

Designers: Leona and Rudolph Mattoni

Footprint: 2,824 square feet (4 bedrooms, 3 baths)

Lot Size: 0.11 Acres

From the Agent: "Leona and Rudolph (Rudi) Mattoni, partners in life and business, designed this three-level home, incorporating period features like cedar-shake siding, post-and-beam construction, soaring vaulted ceilings, and luminous clerestory windows. Each room prioritizes abundant natural light and an immediate connection to Coldwater Canyon’s sylvan setting. Terraced exterior spaces and views of coast live oak and neighboring Norfolk Island pines stretch the lot lines to appear far beyond their measure. Rudi Mattoni, a renowned lepidopterist, environmentalist, and real estate investor, was a self-taught designer who built several houses, a laboratory, and two apartment complexes, often collaborating with his close friend, Robert Skinner, AIA. For this home, Rudi and Leona crafted a unique hybrid of California modernism that marries the clean lines of Los Angeles midcentury design with the angular 1960s rusticity of the Sea Ranch.  This residence represents the best of both worlds, a rare survivor of innovative midcentury architecture ideally suited for the 21st century."

The garden is still home to some of the Wisteria, Camelias, and Magnolias that the previous owner planted before the house had even finished construction.

The garden is still home to some of the Wisteria, Camelias, and Magnolias that the previous owner planted before the house had even finished construction.

Sterling Reed

The garden is still home to some of the Wisteria, Camelias, and Magnolias that the previous owner planted before the house had even finished construction.

The garden is still home to the same wisteria, camelia, and magnolia specimens that the previous owners planted before the house had even finished construction.

Sterling Reed

This is the first time the home has hit the market since 1969.

This is the first time the home has hit the market since it was built in 1969.

Sterling Reed

See the full story on Dwell.com: Two Ecologists Designed This $2.4M L.A. Midcentury to Be at One With Nature
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