Famous Architect John Lautner was born in Marquette, Michigan, and moved to Los Angeles in the late 1930s during his apprenticeship with Frank Lloyd Wright. In 1938 John opened his own architecture practice with his first independent project being a one-bedroom frame house costing $2500 and built with his contractor friend Paul Speer.
His first solo project was in 1939 and was his own home which established his name. Later that year the Lautner House was featured in Home Beautiful as the best house in the United States by an Architect under thirty.
Primarily recognized for his residential architecture, Lautner designed houses that embrace and respond to their landscape. He wanted to connect human beings to buildings and buildings to natures admired for blending his unique architectural vision for structure, space, and function with modern engineering and the natural landscape. He did not repeat his designs‚ no two of his buildings are alike.
His work is especially significant for its radical expansion of both the technical and spatial vocabulary of domestic architecture. Some of his major works were The Foster Caroling Residence which has become one of his most celebrated designs and marked the beginning of his fruitful collaboration with de la Vauz, which lasted through seven major projects, including the famous “Chemosphere”. The Chemosphere which was built in 1960 has become one of Lautner’s best-known and most influential creations. Located at 776 Torreyson Drive in West Hollywood, this house was designed for and young aerospace engineer Leonard Malin and built by John de la Vaux. The steep hillside was considered impossible to build on until Lautner solved the problem by siting the entire house 50 feet off the ground on a concrete pillar with 8 angled steel spokes supporting and stabilizing the outer rim of the house. The house is octagonal and lozenge-shape therefore being described as a flying saucer and enjoys and panoramic view over Hollywood.
Another famous home built by Lautner was the Garcia house which sits high above the Hollywood hills, on a concrete arch that floats off the ground. It was designed in the early ’60’s and is one of the cities most progressive and futuristic architects. Beneath the arch, the space splits into two parts, with an outdoor spiral staircase leading from Mulholland Drive down into the living area which is devoted to public entertaining and dining, the other dedicated to more intimate bedroom areas.
During his career his has designed over 200 architectural and his houses were sited in elevated locations or difficult sites such as a hillside or seashores. Lautner’s cutting edge architectural designs have directly influenced and permanently changed the housing landscape in the Hollywood Hills.