6516 SW Barnes Rd ~ on market $299k

Front Living Space

Front Living Space

I had the opportunity recently to tour this home available in the Sunlight Community. These homes do not go on market very frequently so I jumped at the chance to take a peek.  The AIA award winning home is one of fifteen designed and built in 1979 by architects Bill Church (who still lives here next to this unit)  and John Maslen.  While I was there visiting, I bumped into one of the neighbors who said that her unit was a part of the 2009 Street of Eames tour. I looked up the tour info and in her interview she (Dot Dixon) states that the Sunlight Community concept was put together over conversations during group dinners. The original community group were all interested in passive solar design, shared belongings (such as tools), working together….communal, green, minimalist, modern.

This 1,820 sq ft home  (photographed above) is built going up into the hillside surrounded by trees.  There is a main door  that takes you into an enclosed mud room entry before you enter the main open living space.  There are high ceilings and cutout windows all throughout the home making it unnecessary to turn on any lights during the daytime.  The main living, dining, kitchen space is open and overlooks the sunken solarium that keeps the space bright and warm during the winter and the site placement of the structure keeps it cool during the summer.  The home is broken up into four main levels separated by small (3 stair) flights of stairs. The first interior flight up houses a media room with a loft that has a built in ladder and a door to the enclosed, private yard space.   The bedrooms all have lofts (the 3rd level lofts have windows) also making the otherwise smallish space feel large and much more useful.  The master bedroom has a wall of closets, a bathroom and a large loft with a round window that adds a nice flow to the space. There is a separate laundry room central to all of the bedrooms and a utility room off of the kitchen but other than that there is no basement or garage to house a lot of things…designed by minimalists for minimalists.

On site, there is a community building with a large space for entertaining, exercise room, bike room, guest room and wood shop. The multi acre property has communal Japanese style paths, gardens and natural spaces. There are also parking spaces above the home for 2 cars and guest parking.

solarium keeps it warm in the winter and cool in the summer

sunlight in the upper floor loft

master bedroom loft with round window

Located in the Catlin Crest area:

Catlin Crest area

Memorial Coliseum Mid Century Architecture Designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill

This Saturday June, 19th 2010 at the Architectural Heritage Center, there will be a program discussion on identifying significant mid century architecture and ways to protect these structures.

From the Architectural Heritage Centers website:

Buildings and residential enclaves from the mid-twentieth century are reaching and surpassing the 50 year mark, making them widely eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. Yet preservationists still face a number of challenges, even when advocating for buildings that can now be recognized as officially “historic.” Development pressures, the economy, and aging infrastructure—along with widespread misconceptions about the role of modern architecture in the U.S.—put these resources at risk in the Northwest and throughout the country. The recent discussion surrounding Memorial Coliseum brought this to our own backyard. We look at this debate as a new opportunity for our community to discuss Portland’s architectural “recent past” and work to identify the significant buildings and landscapes that make that era—and our region—unique and memorable.

But many Mid-Century Modern buildings are not highly visible icons like the Coliseum; there are office buildings and churches, commercial structures and houses that remain undocumented and unprotected. Local and regional architects, builders, and property owners themselves chose to adapt national trends to shape a Portland and Oregon mid-century “identity” that was and remains distinctly different from preceding styles and trends. There is a critical need to identify, appreciate, document, and preserve many of these buildings before they disappear, or are discarded as “unimportant.” Improving public awareness, addressing policies for preservation, promoting sustainable re-use and restoration and supporting grassroots advocacy will be necessary, if we are to save our own architectural past.

This mega-program will be led by Christine Madrid French, Director of Modernism + Recent Past Program with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and Anthea Hartig, Director of the National Trust’s Western Regional Office, in San Francisco. They will be joined by a cadre of local advocates who continue to call attention to and advocate for the Mid-Century Modern buildings in our community.

The event is from 10am-4pm, costs $20, and lunch is provided. If you would like to attend, you must RSVP here.

Saul Zaik

Part 3 of Rejuvenation’s Conversations with a Modern Architect series is tomorrow night at the Portland showroom.  This time it is legendary architect Saul Zaik in the hot seat being interviewed by Becca Cavell of THA architects.  The event starts at 6pm and there is a recommended donation of $20 to the Street of Eames benefit that funds after school programs for homeless youth.  RSVP here

About Saul Zaik (from the Rejuvenation site):

Saul Zaik began practicing in 1956 with partner Donald Blair and later established Zaik/Miller with Jim Miller. In the early days the firm mostly focused on residential work, but it later expanded its portfolio to include public buildings such as financial and educational institutions. In the 1950s and 1960 Zaik/Miller Architecture firm was well-known for its strongly regional residential designs. Notable restoration projects include: Timberline Lodge, Crater Lake Lodge and Vista House at Crown Point. Saul Zaik is still practicing today.

Jeff Kovel's Hoke House

As of this moment, there are only 2 tickets left for the once in a lifetime opportunity to:

1.  Tour the Hoke house with the architect Jeff Kovel of Skylab Arch (that was also featured in the (first) Twilight movie)

2.  Enjoy a multi course meal in the Hoke’s home prepared by Naomi Pomeroy of Beast, 2009 Food & Wine Best New Chef,  who is also a 2010 finalist for the James Beard Foundation Best Chef: Northwest.

3. Use this opportunity to sponsor the Street of Eames benefit that funds after school programs for homeless youth.

Tickets are $450 per and supports the Street of Eames fund, claim your tickets at the Street of Eames website here.

loads of natural light pouring in from the great wall of windows (and all over the Noguchi table)

I had the opportunity the other day to go and tour a late 70’s contemporary modern home that is for sale ($750k) in a quiet SW hills neighborhood. I love  most things modern but a lot of times I cringe when I think of late 70’s early 80’s anything to do with homes because of the finish work we typically find in these homes. However, the owners of this contemporary modern have a great sense of style and design and the home itself is more of a well laid out canvas that has allowed them to imprint their great taste on it without making it feel or look awkward. The house flows seamlessly from room to room where each new room is more comfortable than the last. The house is situated high on a hill so the main living space (pictured above)and family room has forested mountain views as far as the eye can see that are very soothing while the huge rock encrusted fireplace gives you the cozy feel that you are in a comfy ski lodge, taking a break from the slopes.

cozy up in the Eames lounge chair in front of the fireplace and the view? yes please

custom Doug Fir front door (photo: Marisa Swenson)

Two huge custom Doug Fir grid doors invite you into a slate entryway where you can go either head to the living room that opens to the sky or take a left and go to a couple of bedrooms, office or up a flight of stairs to the landing and open hallway that overlooks the living room. The master suite is nice and separate from the rest of the home with a balcony that is so high up, it feels like you are on top of the world. The master bath/spa has a large soaking tub imported from England, teak cabinets, Pratt & Larsen (local company) sliced pebble walk in shower, and connected is a huge closet.

custom Euro spa bathroom with hidden toilet

The landscaping surrounding the house was done by a Kurisu trained professional landscape architect by the name of Sadafumi Uchiyama, who is currently the Garden Curator at the Portland Japanese Gardens.

Lesson learned: don’t ignore late 70’s modern, with a great design sense and quality finishes, they can make very warm, pleasant homes.

P.S. I also suggested that they make the furnishing negotiable since they have so many great pieces that make the house even more fascinating.

Click on map below to view RMLS listing:

SW contemporary modern home

Photos used with permission of listing broker.

DC202 Modern Design Space - Located in the Leftbank Building

DC202 Space

David Horning, one of the architects at Modern Organic Architecture, invited me over to see his new Portland office located in the Leftbank Project building.  David mentioned while we were setting up a meet time, that there were some additional design people that are located in the space that I should check out while I was here etc.  What I expected to see was a couple of  different offices of small businesses that sometimes do work together but what actually exists in this very large, open space is a living, breathing, community of modern design focused people that actively collaborate on projects.  The design collective they have formed is called DC202 and is made up of David Horning - Modern Organic Architecture,  Holly Freres – JHL Design,  Bill Fritts – Intelligent Design and Solid Core,  Gary Hartill – ORANGEWALLstudios.  The attitude of the group is very open, non-competative, wanting to share ideas and space with each other (real life modern family). There is a very strong sense of community within the group, the combined goal being: getting sustainable, beautiful modern design out into the world.  DC202 has started a monthly open house happy hour  for all design people to come and meet new, like -minded folks, share ideas,  or just hang out in the cozy space they have created.  Their next event is Friday, February 26th 2010 from 4-5:30pm at the Leftbank Project Building – 240 N Broadway Ste. 202, bring a bottle of wine to share!

P.S. Don’t forget to say hi to the cutest members of the collective, Greta and Tucker.

DC202 work space

DC202 View

Street of Eames Modern Home Tour

Tickets for the 2010 Street of Eames modern homes tour are available for purchase right now.  Special advanced tickets are available for an additional donation price of $250 per pair (includes 2 – $50 tickets and a $150 tax deductible donation to the Street of Eames Fund, which supports after-school programs for homeless elementary school students in Portland Public Schools).  Regular priced tickets ($50) officially go on sale February 22nd, 2010  but the event sells out every year (within minutes) so, if you don’t want to take any chances,  then you should buy tickets now at the Street of Eames website.

Verner Panton chairs manufactured by Herman Miller in September, 1974, in vibrant orange molded plastic.

Danish Modern Living Room Set

convertible sofa bed by Hans Wegner (not sure how long that sale was going)

The other I day I was out and about picking up flyers from the printers, there were no parking spaces in the usual vicinity, so I had to park a couple of blocks away. I jumped out of the car and saw a small a-frame reader board that said “mid-century modern furniture” and had an arrow pointing up.  I looked up and saw a door to a narrow staircase, so I decided to pop in to see what they had.  What I expected to walk into was a 1,500 – 2,000 sq. ft. space with a couple of overpriced pieces that were more intended for an e-bay sale. What I walked into, after the couple of flights of stairs, was an 8,000 sq ft warehouse packed full (not uncomfortably) of amazing Danish mid century modern furniture in great/excellent condition. Rooms full of Eames chairs, mid century credenzas, sofas, it goes on for quite a while (and so could I). I was not completely shocked by the pricing, it was what I expect to see this type of furnishing in this type of  condition, and when I was there they were having a 20% off of everything sale.  I met one of the owners and they told me they had been there for awhile but are only open Fri. – Sun. (they actually do a lot of their business on-line), check their site for hours and stop by if you can, it is breathtaking.

Look Modern is located at:

800 SE Clay

Portland, OR 97214

Let’s go on a little road trip:

First we head north to Seattle, WA where Benjamin Allison shows us Seattle’s most amazing modern architecture at his site Jet City Modern.

Jet City Modern - Seattle, WA

Now, let’s head south and visit MCM superman Paul Kaplan from Palm Springs, CA.  Paul has his fingers to the pulse of all things MCM in California and beyond.

Palm Springs MCM goodness via Paul Kaplan

Heading east, we hit Boulder, CO where Sean McIllwain gives us front row seats to the modern home catalog in this beautiful city at his Mod Boulder site.

modern homes in Boulder, CO (this is their office)

Now, let’s take a turn to the south and head to our sister city (I have personally adopted her) of Austin, TX where Ben of Modern Austin gives us all of the modern goodies that Austin holds.  This site is really pretty and has a lot of good info about the architects and design.

Modern Austin, TX

Thanks for taking the trip with me, I hope you enjoyed it.  I will be on the lookout for more modern sites to feature so if you know of any good ones, drop me a line.

Cheers!

back of the double gabled Gresham Rummer *Not For Sale*

A little while ago I stumbled across a very entertaining blog about a family (the Lewis’) from Gresham restoring/remodeling their Rummer home.  They do not make it look fast or easy but it is very entertaining getting to take a peek into their remodeling projects and the outcome is always amazing, they do such a great job! Another thing that I love about the Lewis’ blog is that the entire family is excited about their home projects, they make it feel like the home is a family member and not just a place to live.

So after I had devoured all of the blogs contents, I contacted Steve and Haley and invited myself over to tour and get a first hand look of their restoration project.  When I visited they had zero kitchen, it was gutted to the studs (very brave).  Haley took me on the tour and explained all of the pretty, clean lines they are going to open up throughout the home, to take it back to the way it was intended to look (& then some).

The kitchen design is influenced by case study home #22.  Here is the plan:

kitchen plan, modeled after case study home #22 - (photo by the Lewis')

case study house #22 - photo by Julius Shulman

Update: Since I have visited, the Lewis’ have put the kitchen back together.  Pics here!  It is amazing, thanks for sharing it with us.

P.S. can’t wait to see what they do with that ‘56 Airstream Safari aka Plan B

Gresham Rummer holiday ~ beautiful! (photos by the Lewis')

For a list of all of the Rummer homes for sale in the Portland area visit the Rummer page where I will update listings as they hit market.

More Rummer Related Blog Posts:

• Rummer Mid Century Modern Home – Bonnie Brae
• Rummer Neighborhood – Oak Hills
• About Rummer Homes
• Rummer Page