Image credit: Cameron Carothers
A rare home by Frank Gehry has changed hands, after a local buyer with architectural passions purchased the property in Thousand Oaks, California.
The Sirmai-Peterson House was, to that point, still owned by the original client, Mark Peterson, the asbestos plaintiff’s attorney who commissioned Gehry to design the home.
Image credit: Cameron Carothers
Image credit: Cameron Carothers
Completed in 1988, the Sirmai-Peterson House explores a fragmented approach to residential design. Commissioned in 1983, the 2-bedroom, 2-1/2-bathroom project marks a significant moment in Gehry’s early domestic work, extending ideas of formal autonomy and composition into a single-family dwelling.
Image credit: Cameron Carothers
Image credit: Cameron Carothers
Set within a secluded, oak-covered hillside, the 4,512-foot residence is organized as a series of discrete volumes rather than a unified structure. Individual rooms are expressed as separate forms, each with distinct geometry and material treatment. The elements are arranged across the site in a loose configuration around a central courtyard, creating a scheme that recalls a small cluster of buildings rather than a conventional house.
Image credit: Cameron Carothers
Image credit: Cameron Carothers
Circulation between the volumes requires movement through exterior space to reinforce a connection to the surrounding landscape. The courtyard operates as the spatial and organizational core, linking the individual structures while opening toward a water feature beyond.
Image credit: Cameron Carothers
Image credit: Cameron Carothers
Meanwhile, the material palette is limited to stucco, galvanized metal, and concrete block externally, with exposed wood framing and unfinished surfaces internally.
Image credit: Cameron Carothers
Image credit: Cameron Carothers
The property was listed by Brian Linder and Rick Grahn of LA-based The Value Of Architecture. Avid readers will remember our conversation with Linder, who created a massive following with his video tours of stunning Southern California homes, in our Archinect Meets series.
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