Mar Vista Residence, Californian Real Estate, CA Residential Development, USA Architecture, Images
Mar Vista Residence in California
May 12, 2021
Mar Vista Residence, CA
Design: Tim Gorter, Architect
Location: Mar Vista, California, USA

For the Mar Vista Residence project, TGA modernized and expanded a modest tract home that the client had lived in for more than 30 years, heightening features they had always appreciated and resolving long-standing frustrations with the original design. The redesign preserves the bones of the existing structure but transforms it from a cramped, dark, and dated space into an open and daylit home imbued with mid-century modern character.

An ultra-low-profile butterfly wing roof replaces the old pitched one, clarifying the roofline and making space for clerestory windows without raising the house’s overall height. The new roof uses 10×100 steel I-beams to achieve a depth of just 10 inches. The clerestory windows fill the interiors with sunlight from a high angle, enlivening the space with dramatic shadows. The windows also open a distant view to the Hollywood Sign, a landmark the clients never before realized they could see from their property.
The redesign also adds a new glass-and-steel volume on what was a small and underused front lawn. The addition balances the house’s massing, complementing a garage that extended awkwardly from the main structure. It makes room for a home office, a new bedroom, two bathrooms, and a ...