Sheats Goldstein Residence
Encyclopedia
Sheats Goldstein Residence, is a house designed and built between 1961 and 1963 by American architect John Lautner in Beverly Crest, Los Angeles, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, just a short distance from the Beverly Hills border. The building was conceived from the inside out and built into the sandstone ledge of the hillside; a cave-like dwelling that opens to embrace nature and view. The house is an example of American Organic Architecture
Organic architecture
Organic architecture is a philosophy of architecture which promotes harmony between human habitation and the natural world through design approaches so sympathetic and well integrated with its site that buildings, furnishings, and surroundings become part of a unified, interrelated...

 that derives its form as an extension of the natural environment and of the individual to whom it was built. Typical of Lautner's work, the project was approached from an idea and a unique structure was derived that solved the challenges of the site.

The house has been featured in several movies, including Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle
Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle
Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle is a 2003 American action comedy film. It is the sequel to 2000's Charlie's Angels. It opened in the United States on June 27, 2003, and was number one at the box office for that weekend and made a worldwide total of $259.2 million.The cast again includes Cameron...

, Bandits
Bandits
Bandits is a 2001 American crime-comedy drama film directed by Barry Levinson. It stars Bruce Willis, Billy Bob Thornton, and Cate Blanchett. Filming began in October 2000 and ended in February 2001. It helped Thornton earn a National Board of Review Best Actor Award for 2001...

, and The Big Lebowski
The Big Lebowski
The Big Lebowski is a 1998 comedy film written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. Jeff Bridges stars as Jeff Lebowski, an unemployed Los Angeles slacker and avid bowler, who is referred to as "The Dude". After a case of mistaken identity, The Dude is introduced to a millionaire also named...

. Architectural articles on the house have appeared in the Robb Report
Robb Report
The Robb Report is an American, English-language, luxury-lifestyle magazine featuring products — including automobiles, real estate and watches — for affluent connoisseurs.-History:...

, Town & Country
Town & Country (magazine)
Town & Country, formerly the Home Journal and The National Press, is a monthly American lifestyle magazine. It is the oldest continually published general interest magazine in the United States.-Early history:...

, Architectural Digest
Architectural Digest
Architectural Digest is an American monthly magazine. Its principal subject is interior design, not — as the name of the magazine might suggest — architecture more generally. The magazine is published by Condé Nast Publications and was founded in 1920, by the Knapp family, who sold it in 1993...

, Azure
Azure
In heraldry, azure is the tincture with the colour blue, and belongs to the class of tinctures called "colours". In engraving, it is sometimes depicted as a region of horizontal lines or else marked with either az. or b. as an abbreviation....

, House & Garden
House & Garden (magazine)
House & Garden was an American shelter magazine published by Condé Nast Publications that focused on interior design, entertaining, and gardening....

, and The New York Times Magazine
The New York Times Magazine
The New York Times Magazine is a Sunday magazine supplement included with the Sunday edition of The New York Times. It is host to feature articles longer than those typically in the newspaper and has attracted many notable contributors...

.

History

The home was originally built for Helen and Paul Sheats and their five children. Helen, an artist, and Paul a doctor, commissioned Lautner for a previous project known as Sheats Apartments located in West LA adjacent to UCLA (originally built 1949).

There were two subsequent owners before a businessman, James Goldstein
James Goldstein
James F. Goldstein, is a multi-millionaire "NBA superfan" who attends over one hundred NBA games each season , including approximately 95 percent of home games for the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers....

, purchased the residence in 1972, in a state of some disrepair. Goldstein commissioned John Lautner to work on the transformation of the house; a series of remodelings that would encompass the entire house over a period of more than two decades. Goldstein worked with Lautner until the architect’s death in 1994 on what they called “perfecting” the house. Jim continues to work collaboratively with Duncan Nicholson, architect, on new projects that enhance Lautner's original vision.

The Sheats Goldstein Residence is one of the best known examples of John Lautner's work; he designed not only the house, but the interiors, windows, lighting, rugs, furniture, and operable features. The house is extensively detailed, and the range of the architect’s work is visible through the different stages of the re-mastering. All of the furnishings enhance the house and are completely related so that the aesthetic of the forms is a function of the whole.
The original construction of the house is poured-in-place concrete, steel, and wood. The home was built with 5 bedrooms, 4.5 baths, and a living room that was originally completely open to the terrace, protected by only a curtain of forced air. The living room features open space that carries the interior into the outdoors blurring the line between the interior and exterior. The expansive coffered ceiling living room is pierced by drinking glass skylights in the coffers (750 skylights in all). The home uses cross ventilation for cooling; there is no air conditioning. The floors are radiant heated with copper pipes that also warm the pool. Exterior covered pathways lead to the guest bedrooms and the master bedroom. Lautner opened these spaces because of the temperate climate that Southern California offers most of the year. Pool windows in the master bedroom were also an original feature that allowed Helen Sheats to watch her children as she worked in her studio below the pool.

Remodeling

The remodelings began shortly after James Goldstein purchased the house and were done in stages so that different parts of the house could remain occupied. The entrance was redesigned later with a new koi pond, stepping stones, and waterfall as part of the 1980’s remodel. All of the stucco ceilings were replaced with redwood, steel mullions were removed and replaced with frameless glass, and skylights in the kitchen, dining room
Dining room
A dining room is a room for consuming food. In modern times it is usually adjacent to the kitchen for convenience in serving, although in medieval times it was often on an entirely different floor level...

, and guest bathroom
Bathroom
A bathroom is a room for bathing in containing a bathtub and/or a shower and optionally a toilet, a sink/hand basin/wash basin and possibly also a bidet....

 were made operable for complete openings to the sky. The kitchen
Kitchen
A kitchen is a room or part of a room used for cooking and food preparation.In the West, a modern residential kitchen is typically equipped with a stove, a sink with hot and cold running water, a refrigerator and kitchen cabinets arranged according to a modular design. Many households have a...

 was remodeled with wet sanded concrete countertops and the cabinets were replaced with stainless steel, and bubinga, an African hardwood. The kitchen induction burners were the first of their kind. A new cantilevering glass dining room table is held in place by two concrete pedestals. All switches have been replaced with custom stainless steel buttons and electronic control systems. In the mid 90's an aircraft panel display was installed as a TV, the first of its kind. Almost all of the living room furniture was added later, secured in place and made from concrete and stainless steel.
The master bedroom went through an extensive remodel and has a concrete lounge cast in the floor at a glass corner that slides away with a push of a button. The floors, cabinets, bed, toilets, sink, and closet were all redone to adjust to the lifestyle of new owner, James Goldstein
James Goldstein
James F. Goldstein, is a multi-millionaire "NBA superfan" who attends over one hundred NBA games each season , including approximately 95 percent of home games for the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers....

. The master bedroom was enlarged and glass spanned over the new addition to protect the integrity of the original floor plan. An all glass sink was designed and built so that the view was completely unobstructed.

Over the years a micro climate has been introduced up around the architecture. Goldstein working with a Santa Barbra landscape designer, Eric Nagelmann, have created a tropical garden that has grown, as Goldstein has acquired additional lots around his property (including the neighbouring site of another Lautner-designed house, the Concannon Residence, which Goldstein demolished in 2002 to make way for a tennis court).

Above Horizon

The skyspace, also called "Above Horizon" is an art installation located on a steep slope below the residence. The skyspace was designed by light artist, James Turrell
James Turrell
James Turrell is an American artist primarily concerned with light and space. Turrell was a MacArthur Fellow in 1984. He is represented by The Pace Gallery in New York...

, in collaboration with architect, Duncan Nicholson. The project is built in the same construction materials as the home. Originally, James Goldstein
James Goldstein
James F. Goldstein, is a multi-millionaire "NBA superfan" who attends over one hundred NBA games each season , including approximately 95 percent of home games for the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers....

 conceived this art installation as a collaboration between John Lautner and James Turrell
James Turrell
James Turrell is an American artist primarily concerned with light and space. Turrell was a MacArthur Fellow in 1984. He is represented by The Pace Gallery in New York...

, but Lautner died before being able to work extensively on the project.
Now finished, the room features two portals, made by a local aerospace engineer, which fold away using carbon fiber composite materials. The room also contains a built-in concrete lounge to enjoy the thousands of hidden LEDs that flood the room every evening for the sky and light show.

Continued Vision

A new project conceived by Goldstein and envisioned by John Lautner as a schematic concept for a tennis court and guest house on adjacent property is under construction. The project under way has been revised with the assistance from the architect, Duncan Nicholson. Also included will be an office, recreation room, and theater building that will allow Goldstein to work and entertain from home. The new structures are being constructed from poured-in-place concrete with all the amenities and high-tech gadgets the original home abundantly offered. Additional hardscape projects and art installations are planned to be provide for an ever growing collection on the estate.

External links

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