The Dwell on Design tradeshow was enjoyable, but the highlight for us was the Dwell Home Tours. Dwell organized two separate tours—Eastside and Westside—each featuring six modern-style homes. All of the houses showcased contemporary architecture, with interiors designed and furnished to match the modern aesthetic.
Some of the homes pushed design boundaries and were decidedly bold, yet most felt approachable and genuinely livable rather than pretentious. On Saturday we toured the Westside homes; our favorite there was the Reilly Biddle residence in Venice, CA, designed by duArchitects.
Description from Dwell:
We organized the public spaces—dining room, kitchen, and living room—into an open plan based on a 15’ x 23’ modular grid. The kitchen sits at the center of this space and functions as the symbolic heart of the house. It is flanked by the dining area at the front and the living room at the rear. The living room opens to the pool and garden through floor-to-ceiling glass. A walnut display wall separates the bedrooms and baths from the public spaces.
The home steps up from the public areas to four bedrooms arranged in a linear gallery hall. We raised the floor in the bedroom wing to create a sense of intimacy and separation from the more public zones. The master bedroom anchors one end of the gallery and provides direct access to the pool and yard.
Structural engineer Gordon Polon used tube steel and engineered lumber to achieve an economical 23’ span and 14’ ceiling heights in the living spaces. Polished concrete floors with a hydronic radiant heating system warm the living areas. The windows and doors are customized versions of standard commercial glazing systems.
Our House is a carefully planned, economically constructed single-family home inspired by the Case Study Program, which promoted modern, affordable, well-designed housing in post-war California. Construction was completed in 12 months by Glenn Lyons Construction. The landscape design by Coen + Partners uses California native and drought-tolerant plants.
The following day we toured the Eastside homes. These properties felt more personal and, to our eyes, more immediately livable than many on the Westside. Our favorite was the Deronda Drive residence in Beachwood Canyon, positioned beneath the Hollywood sign. The house, designed by Michael Ferguson of Space International, stands out for its elegant restraint.
The Deronda Drive home is neither excessively large nor showy. It sits comfortably on the hillside, maximizing spectacular views while integrating nature—tall pines sway by the master bedroom and succulents punctuate the landscape throughout the property.
Description from Dwell:
Located near the apex of Beachwood Canyon, the 2,800 sq ft Deronda Drive residence is composed of two primary rectangular volumes shifted off axis to underscore their programmatic differences. Public living areas sit on the site’s ridge to take advantage of flanking outdoor spaces that function as extensions of the living and dining areas when they are opened via large sliding glass doors.
The more private sleeping and bathing areas occupy a cantilevered volume that hovers above a parking court and nestles among the treetops along the property perimeter. A defined plaster shell folds and undulates around these public and private volumes, calibrating levels of privacy and exposure while framing picturesque surroundings and skyline views.
Among the smaller homes on the tour, a charming cottage in Atwater Village—designed and built by RST 73—stood out for its thoughtful detailing and efficient use of space. The well-appointed small-scale homes proved that excellent modern design can be comfortable and practical at any size.
If you have the chance to take a Dwell self-guided home tour, we highly recommend it. These tours offer fresh perspectives on Los Angeles architecture and reveal how contemporary design can enhance everyday living.
More photos from our Dwell home tours are available in our photo collection.