Designers Philippe Naouri and Eric Choi of Maison d’Artiste, specialists in restoring modern villas, have already worked on several architectural gems in Los Angeles. For this project, they collaborated with the architectural firm Tim Campbell, experts in historic architectural renovation. The work took four and a half years to complete.

The key challenge in renovating a house of significant heritage value is preserving its original character while adapting its spaces to contemporary lifestyles. In this case, the living area of the house was doubled through the construction of two new building wings, which perfectly echo the minimalist lines of the original structure, providing a more flexible spatial layout. All of the villa’s period features were either restored or faithfully recreated, including its woodwork.

With its minimalist lines and rectangular volumes framed by large windows and topped with flat roofs, this villa embodies modern Californian architecture, evoking iconic works by Rudolf Schindler (Schindler House, 1922) and Richard Neutra (Kaufmann Desert House, 1946). It incorporates prefabricated materials such as concrete, steel, and glass, harmoniously combined in a way that recalls the experimental spirit of the Case Study Houses. The architect is said to have been inspired by a meeting with Charlotte Perriand during the villa’s design.

The building, greatly expanded during its restoration, appears to float above the ground and frames a geometrically designed reflecting pool at the center of the composition. The transparency of the spaces creates a continuous dialogue with the views and the carefully curated gardens.

Born in London, architect Rex Lotery (1930–2007) studied at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York and practiced in California. Best known for his midcentury homes, Lotery also distinguished himself through his urban planning projects, including the Central Business District in Inglewood, Charmlee Regional Park, and downtown Santa Ana. He is recognized as a Local Master Architect by the Beverly Hills Cultural Heritage Commission, alongside other prestigious architects such as John Lautner, Richard Neutra, and Frank Lloyd Wright, for having shaped the built landscape of Beverly Hills. These architects are defined as “widely recognized figures whose genius has influenced their era.”

A member of the national board and president of the American Institute of Architects of Southern California in 1973, Rex Lotery gained fame for designing Elvis Presley’s villa at 1174 Hillcrest Road in the Trousdale Estates and was awarded the American Institute of Architects prize in 1990 for his personal residence in Santa Barbara.

Lotery’s architecture draws heavily on the Case Study Houses, built between 1945 and 1966 in Los Angeles by renowned architects such as Richard Neutra, Pierre Koenig, Ray and Charles Eames, and Eero Saarinen. Like Lotery’s own houses, these designs follow modernist principles, including open-plan layouts supported by a steel post-and-beam structure, lightweight and transparent façades, and flat roofs.