Hamilton HOUSE
The Donald and Dolores Hamilton residence is a mid-century modern family home perched on a Los Angeles hillside overlooking the San Gabriel Mountains. It was designed in 1961 by the Japanese-American architect Kazuo Umemoto. Umemoto’s post-and-beam construction captures the innovative spatial and structural technique pioneered by the USC School of Architecture. The result allows uninterrupted floor to ceiling glass that floods the interiors with natural daylight and panoramic views.
Deftly crafted translucent acrylic folding screens lining the interior provide both privacy and diffused lighting throughout. Delicate patterns and shadows dance across the floor at moments throughout the day. At night, with the screens pulled across the glazing, the building glows on the hillside like a delicate lantern.
Never before renovated, the house required balancing upgrades to the unseen but necessary infrastructure as well as sensitive renovations of the kitchen, bathrooms, and private spaces. Major changes included reinforcing the structural integrity, providing a new energy efficient heating and cooling system, addressing the seismic glazed envelope, and replacing the corroded and defunct plumbing.
Sensitive yet significant renovation of private spaces flanking the open central living room included providing an en-suite bathroom, clad as a discreet wood-paneled volume, to the primary bedroom. Bathrooms and a laundry room were reconfigured with more spacious proportions and given ample storage. The kitchen was refreshed with new finishes, lighting, and appliances, maintaining the same layout.
Materials were selected with California mid-century-modern heritage. Custom terrazzo details included upturn shower pans and bases as a nod to Richard Neutra. New lighting provide warm yet modern updates throughout
Photos by Stephen Schauer