Wright created a sculptural masterpiece, but he was pushing the boundaries of residential construction. He didn't put enough reinforcing steel in the cantilevers of the house over the waterfall, so as soon as they removed the formwork, the house started to sag. Wright was always assuring the Kaufmanns it was natural, but it was the house failing.
With its five-story living room, 200 tons of stonework, soaring redwood beams and five-foot-thick, 14-foot-high, 2,000-pound front door, the triangular temple is still spectacular. Which is not to say that the former playboy's paradise has been turned into anything resembling a traditional home.
Text description provided by the architects. The expansion project of CPP College arises from the need to adapt the school space to new usage demands, respecting the identity of the original architectural ensemble, which was also designed by our office. The main question was to understand how to intervene in an already established architecture, adding value without compromising the existing language and harmony.
The works of this baroque brutalist, who was active until his death in 1997, have been steadily demolished over the past few decades - his Riverview High School in Sarasota in 2009, the Shoreline Apartments in Buffalo in 2020, his Burroughs-Wellcome Building in North Carolina the following year. Multiple Rudolph houses have been lost in the same period. Others remain at risk; the fate of his still-polarizing Boston Government Service Center is exceptionally unclear. Nature has been cruel as well, washing away his Sanderling Beach Cabanas in Sarasota in a 2024 hurricane.
"We like that it's a little uncomfortable navigating the units. It's almost as if you're going camping," states Mike Matas, an entrepreneur and designer at LoveFrom, Jony Ive's creative collective. "The experience isn't about luxury. Nothing is overly polished. You have to work your way through the spaces, which is part of the fun," adds his wife, Sharon, a designer and illustrator, hailing the puzzle-like quality of the architecture.
Architect Pauline Percheron, based just outside Montpellier in Saint-Georges-d'Orques, was tasked with a delicate balance: to modernize and expand a historic maison de maître without losing its soul. Situated in a protected area, the home-a main house and small outbuilding-had been partially renovated 15 years prior. Its owners, now empty nesters, wanted to reimagine it as a warm, open retreat where their grown children and future grandchildren could gather.
With so many mid-century buildings still populating the campus, David spent hours of her own time researching the history of each building, its architect and the various movements and schools represented. Many campus employees who see these structures every day probably don't even think about these things. The tour is sponsored by the Preservation Action Council San Jose (PAC*SJ), and tickets are available on the PAC*SJ website.
