The Spanner Residence

architect: Rex Lotery, F.A.I.A.
c. 1968

At the Spanner Residence (1968) mid-century master architect Rex Lotery developed a hillside building solution in which light & space are gloriously one. Completely unlike Lotery's sprawling one-story Trousdale designs, here a 2-story exterior suggests a conventional division into ground-floor public spaces and walled-off upper sleeping floor. At entry the visitor discovers instead a series of interlocking volumes and spaces on multiple levels unfolding as one progresses from one to the next. Light suffuses all, from mitered corner windows & high clerestories. Yet each space is clearly & functionally defined. Patios, pool and plantings expand living space outside. The included, adjacent empty lot could become a spectacular play yard or garden. 2-car garage with shop, dark room & wine cellar, 3 bedrooms, ground-floor library with full bath and a large studio-office complete a program as ingenious as it is attractive.