Located on the site of an existing house, which was demolished to make way for this approximately 15,000 sq ft contemporary villa, Faring Road House is a sophisticated modern home fit for its glamorous location in Los Angeles' Bel Air neighbourhood. Designed by East London-based architecture firm Quinn Architects, headed by Laurence Quinn, the house sits on a generous sloped site looking towards the Hollywood Hills.
Luscious gardens surround the white-rendered property, helping to shield it from prying eyes. Its tranquil surroundings were in fact one of the key elements that informed the team's design decisions. Say the architects: 'A detailed soil survey was commissioned to understand the below-ground condition of the hillside, which then became a catalyst for both the architectural, civil and structural design'. Now, the home's carefully landscaped gardens include a tennis court and a sunken gym.
A dramatic route leads the visitor up from the street entrance to the building's front door. A cascading stone staircase guides to the house. It highlights 'a sense of arrival', explain the architects. The considerably-sized structure is spread across three floors, peering from the site's natural slope, white-walled and lined with contrasting dark American black walnut flooring inside.
The high-ceilinged interior features living, kitchen and dining areas, three bedrooms, walk-in wardrobes, office space and a games room. The main living accommodation spans 7,000 sq ft, which is matched by 6,500 sq ft of open terraces that include an infinity pool and jacuzzi. Large openings overlook the terraces, while a guest suite located next to the main house offers an extra three bedrooms.
A key point in the client's brief was for the house to accommodate the display of a significant art collection, which made the strategic use of light seminal to the architectural solution. Employing skylights, clerestory windows and gallery level lighting, Quinn and his team have created a space with the right balance of natural and artificial lighting, a perfect home environment for their art-savvy client.
A cascading stone staircase leads visitors to the house, highlighting 'a sense of arrival'
The main living accommodation spans 7,000 sq ft, which is matched by 6,500 sq ft of open terraces that include an infinity pool and jacuzzi
The considerably-sized structure is spread across three floors, white-walled and lined with contrasting dark American black walnut flooring inside
The high-ceilinged interior features living, kitchen and dining areas, three bedrooms, walk-in wardrobes, office space and a games room
Long sofas emphasise the proportions of the living area
A key point in the client's brief was for the house to accommodate the display of a significant art collection
A marble-clad stairwell is lined with customised recessed lighting
In addition to a generous master suite, the property boasts six other elegant bedrooms
Mature trees create a natural boundary around the residence, shielding it from prying eyes
The home's carefully landscaped gardens include a tennis court and a sunken gym
An existing home was demolished to make way for the 14,500 sq ft villa
-
Cascading greenery softens the brutalist façade of this Hyderabad homeThe monolithic shell of this home evokes a familiar brutalist narrative, but designer 23 Degrees Design Shift softens the aesthetic by shrouding Antriya in lush planting
-
You may know it as ‘Dirty House’ – now, The Rogue Room brings 21st-century wellness to ShoreditchThe Rogue Room – set in the building formerly known as Dirty House by Sir David Adjaye, now reinvented by Studioshaw – bridges wellness and culture in London's Shoreditch
-
A local’s guide to Paris by Art Basel newcomer Ash LoveVisual artist Ash Love shares their essential addresses in the French capital as the city hosts the art fair’s fourth edition
-
Explore Tom Kundig’s unusual houses, from studios on wheels to cabins slotted into bouldersThe American architect’s entire residential portfolio is the subject of a comprehensive new book, ‘Tom Kundig: Complete Houses’
-
Ballman Khaplova creates a light-filled artist’s studio in upstate New YorkThis modest artist’s studio provides a creative with an atelier and office in the grounds of an old farmhouse, embedding her practice in the surrounding landscape
-
The most important works of modernist landscape architecture in the USModernist landscapes quite literally grew alongside the modern architecture movement. Field specialist and advocate Charles A. Birnbaum takes us on a tour of some of the finest examples
-
Jeanne Gang’s single malt whisky decanter offers a balance ‘between utility and beauty’The architect’s whisky decanter, 'Artistry in Oak', brings a sculptural dimension to Gordon & MacPhail's single malt
-
An idyllic slice of midcentury design, the 1954 Norton House has gone on the marketNorton House in Pasadena, carefully crafted around its sloping site by Buff, Straub & Hensman, embodies the Californian ideal of the suburban modern house embedded within a private landscape
-
Herzog & de Meuron and Piet Oudolf unveil Calder Gardens in PhiladelphiaThe new cultural landmark presents Alexander Calder’s work in dialogue with nature and architecture, alongside the release of Jacques Herzog’s 'Sketches & Notes'. Ellie Stathaki interviews Herzog about the project.
-
Meet Studio Zewde, the Harlem practice that's creating landscapes 'rooted in cultural narratives, ecology and memory'Ahead of a string of prestigious project openings, we check in with firm founder Sara Zewde
-
The best of California desert architecture, from midcentury gems to mirrored dwellingsWhile architecture has long employed strategies to cool buildings in arid environments, California desert architecture developed its own distinct identity –giving rise, notably, to a wave of iconic midcentury designs
