Midcentury Design

Subterms

    Latest story

    150 Shares153 Views

    Inside a $3.8 Million Landmark Palm Springs Home That Inspired a Fragrance

    by

    A rare and alluring midcentury-modern abode designed by late architect Donald Wexler in the 1950s as his personal home has just popped up for sale at $3.8 million in the desirable Movie Colony East neighborhood of Palm Springs.

    Completed over seven decades ago, and aptly known as the Donald and Marilynn Wexler Residence, the post-and-beam spread today has the added cachet of having inspired the citrusy, floral, and woody 1272 fragrance created by its owner, Perfumehead founder and CEO Daniel Patrick Giles, who told Robb Report earlier this year that he wanted to translate the spirit of his beloved house into scent.

    The living room is wrapped in vertical fir siding and walls of glass.

    Lance Gerber

    RELATED: The Last Home Donald Wexler Ever Designed Just Hit the Market in Palm Springs

    Giles liked the property so much he purchased it twice, first in 2007 for $915,000. The fashion and beauty industry veteran then undertook a two-year restoration and remodel in collaboration with Wexler and Lance O’Donnell of o2Architecture, with their efforts garnering them the Palm Springs Modern Committee Residential Restoration of the Year Award in 2009. He wound up selling the home to Broadway actor and director Joe Mantello in 2015 for $1.6 million, before buying it back in 2023 at nearly $2.3 million.

    Sited on a third of an acre near Ruth Hardy Park, the gated and hedged digs offer three bedrooms and two baths in roughly 2,400 square feet of neutrally hued, Darren Brown-designed living space adorned with terrazzo floors throughout. Also incorporated within the white wood-framed and flat-roof structure are many of Wexler’s original elements, including spun-metal can lights, built-in shelving, floor-to-ceiling walls of glass shaded by deep overhangs, and an open, L-shaped floor plan.

    The primary bedroom’s en suite bath has a soaking tub set against an exotic Zebra marble accent wall.

    Lance Gerber

    RELATED: A Brand-New Glass House Floating Above Palm Springs Lists for $10 Million

    Standing out is a spacious living room wrapped in vertical fir siding, plus a dining area that connects to a minimalist kitchen upgraded with newer stainless steel appliances. A primary suite sports a freestanding soaking tub set against a wavy Zebra marble accent wall, while William Kopelk-landscaped grounds modeled after a Japanese rock garden host a black-bottom pool and a spa nestled among granite boulders, native plantings, and mature olive and pine palm trees.

    The property, which is listed by Rick Grahn and Brian Linder with The Value of Architecture at Compass, has been named to the National Register of Historic Places and designated as a Palm Springs Class 1 Historic Resource. It’s also covered by the Mills Act, meaning significant property tax savings are offered in exchange for preserving its historic appearance.

    Click here for more photos of the Palm Springs residence.

    Lance Gerber

    Authors

    Wendy Bowman

    Wendy Bowman is a real estate writer at Robb Report. Before that, she was a freelancer for Modern Luxury and several other media outlets, where she primarily covered luxury properties for…

    Read More More

    More stories

    • 125 Shares119 Views

      in Vacation Homes

      You Can Rent Midcentury Architect Philip Johnson’s Wolfhouse on Airbnb

      by

      A lot goes into owning and maintaining a historic residence created by a world-famous architect like Philip Johnson. Luckily, for those not up for the full-time task, you can rent the late visionary’s Wolfhouse in Newburgh, New York, instead.

      The Hudson Valley property was completed in 1949, the same year Johnson finished his famous Glass House in New Canaan, Connecticut. In the decades since the midcentury countryside retreat has been thoughtfully preserved and recently underwent a three-year renovation to restore the abode to its original glory.

      Named after Ruth and Benjamin Wolf, who commissioned the project, the hilltop abode can sleep up to six guests and comprises four bedrooms and three bathrooms. According to Designboom, the house was purchased in 2020 by former Guggenheim graphic designer Jiminie Ha and artist Jeremy Parker. The pair updated the residence using materials and original floor plans that they found in the Columbia University architecture library.

      The Hudson Valley property was completed in 1949.

      Jeremy Parker

      “We recognize the harmful effects of planned obsolescence. It’s our responsibility as designers to lead with smart sustainability at the forefront of our practice, not creating more waste, but working with what we already have,” Ha told the publication. They also teamed up with USM Modular Furniture to revamp the kitchen, which is now clad with steel, and sourced vintage design elements, including sinks, trims, and tubs, to match Johnson’s aesthetic, which includes an open floor plan with tons of glass walls framing views of the Hudson River. 

      Throughout the residence restored and updated residence are iconic mid-century furnishings.

      Chris Daniele/@dirtandglass

      “We had originally thought about using a stone overlay for the countertops and worked with artist Shawn Maximo to visualize a more modern version of this kitchen,” Parker explained to Architectural Digest. “Once we saw the USM setup in place, we decided that it spoke for itself and that we really didn’t need to add more details to the counter.”

      The home sits on a grassy slope overlooking the Hudson River.

      Chris Daniele/@dirtandglass

      Wolfhouse is priced on Airbnb at a cool $1,110 per night with a two-night minimum stay. In addition to serving as a vacation rental, Ha and Parker have turned Wolfhouse into an art hub and a community-focused incubator for a variety of design and architecture programs. Some of the past events held here include artist exhibitions and lectures for creatives. “It was important for us, as LGBTQ and BIPOC community members, to acknowledge Newburgh’s history and find a path forward in engaging the home more proactively as a center for education and programming,” the owners told Time Out.

      Authors

      Abby Montanez

      Abigail Montanez is a staff writer at Robb Report. She has worked in both print and digital publishing for over half a decade, covering everything from real estate, dining, travel and topics…

      Read More More

    • 200 Shares169 Views

      in Luxury

      A Midcentury L.A. Home Owned by a Contemporary Artist Hangs on the Market for $3.6 million

      by

      Contemporary artist Paul Ruscolini, whose oeuvre includes text-based paintings and portraits rendered entirely with nail polish, has recently reduced the asking price of his creatively appointed midcentury modern home in L.A.’s secluded Lake Hollywood Estates neighborhood by almost 10 percent, taking it from a dollop under $4 million down to $3.6 million.

      Built in 1965 and sited on a quarter-plus-acre parcel that’s nipped down a pin-drop quiet cul-de-sac just below the Hollywood Sign, the private, low-slung home was updated and modernized in 1994 by avant-garde architect Michael Maltzan. Since then, it’s passed through several owners, including TV writer-producer Gary Janetti, whose credits include Family Guy, Will & Grace, and, most recently, The Prince, and celebrity stylist/TV personality Brad Goreski, a reality TV veteran recently seen on The Real Friends of WeHo and as a judge on Canada’s Drag Race. It was Janetti and Goreski, since married and settled into a $5.6 million home in Beverly Hills, who sold the almost 2,900-square-foot home to Ruscolini in 2012 for $1.8 million.

      One of the seller’s nail polish portrait paintings hangs amid custom built-ins in the home office.

      Todd Goodman

      A former fine art dealer, Ruscolini is also a keen collector who’s amassed a trove of works by a laundry list of blue-chip contemporary artists. And, throughout the house, sprinkled among works by Keith Haring, Ed Ruscha, Man Ray, Louise Nevelson, Damien Hirst, Robert Longo, and Andy Warhol, are bits and bobs of his own work. In the kitchen, with its long snack bar and plush blue velvet sofa for casual snacks, Ruscolini’s text-based painting, Untitled (Wink), makes a strong statement against an eggplant-colored wall, while a nail polish portrait of Kate Moss hangs in the study/home office. Other pop culture icons who have been rendered by Ruscolini in nail polish include Barack Obama, Katie Holmes, and Pink.

      Beyond the gated courtyard entry and koi pond, there is a mix of concrete and polished wood floors, an abundance of warm, natural materials, and numerous cleverly placed skylights that fill every room with natural light. The dining room has a full wall of open shelves, where Ruscolini displays a vast collection of green pottery, while the living room has a minimalist fireplace and two walls of glass sliders that connect the light-drenched room to the outdoor living and entertaining spaces.

      A massive floor-to-ceiling wall of glass slides open to connect the main bedroom to the backyard.

      Todd Goodman

      A wood-paneled hallway connects the public rooms to the home’s four bedrooms and three bathrooms. Red drapes add a touch of Hollywood glamor to the otherwise sedate, wood-paneled main bedroom, and the bathroom is a serene space with an egg-shaped tub and separate shower.

      Mature trees and lush vegetation encircle the property, providing privacy from (and for!) the neighbors. A graveled, partly tree-shaded patio is an ideal spot for relaxing, and there’s a great view of the Hollywood Sign from the slender strip of lawn at the far side of the swimming pool.

      Ready for its next art- and design-minded owner, the property is listed with Alyson Richards and Carl Gambino of Gambino Group at Compass.

      Click here for more photos of 2613 Lake Hollywood Drive.

      Todd Goodman More