Sunday, September 27, 2009

Grey Gardens in Palm Springs?












I recently stumbled onto this forlorn estate that is surrounded by numerous abandoned-looking cars of some vintage. A little research uncovered the following:
"At the depth of the depression, [Wallace] Neff’s wealthy playboy client [Singer Sewing Company heir] Arthur K Bourne acquired a fine lot in Palm Springs, one of the few towns in the region which was still booming. It was becoming popular with the film colony and with Pasadena socialites wealthy enough to be unaffected by bad times. The house the architect built on the property was an attempt to fuse the Mediterranean Revival with the modern style - to enjoy the best of both worlds.
The dwelling was disposed around three sides of a patio, with a swimming pool at the center. Most of Neff’s swimming pools up to that time had been in Beverly Hills, and they had usually been well removed from the house. But the central location was appropriate since this was a vacation retreat, but such a location was more characteristic of modern than Mediterranean Revival site planning. The modernity of the patio was diluted by making the bedroom wings identical and adding a circular ornamental fountain from which water spouted into the pool. Thus the place took on the air of an exotic North African desert oasis. Neff used almost a whole wall of sliding doors to make the living room an indoor-outdoor room in the modern manner and the simple, almost brutal, almost flat shed roofs had a modern look which was negated by the red tiles used as a covering material.
There was a separate wing for the servants rooms and kitchen on the north, while the two front doors were a reflection of the Bournes hospitality. The north door was for guests who might come and go without disturbing family members in the south wing. Neff grasped the possibilities of Palm Springs readily, as demonstrated by the inclusion of a small second story room and loggia. By climbing only one flight to this mirador, one can enjoy a view all over the valley. The house has had several owners, but has never been drastically altered."

-Alson Clark
Wallace Neff: Architect of California’s Golden Age

6 comments:

  1. Very interesting house. The watercolor of the house, the third picture was done by famous CA artist Carl Oscar Borg born in 1879 and died in 1947. He was Swedish and came to CA in 1903 when he jumped ship on from a ship he was a seaman on and decided to live here. He taught at the CA. Art Institute and later at Santa Barbara School of the Arts. He often painted the desert and Indians. Lou

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  2. We walked by today Jan 22 and the deteriorating antique cars are still in front. Do you know more you can share?

    Your title is spot on. This would make a great story. I see AK Bourne inherited part of 44 million upon his father's death in 1919. He apparently owned a number of other houses.

    Why are those cars still sitting there? It did appear there were workers there starting repairs.
    Thanks!
    Steve Blevins
    steve@blevins.ws

    ReplyDelete
  3. We walked by today Jan 22 and the deteriorating antique cars are still in front. Do you know more you can share?

    Your title is spot on. This would make a great story. I see AK Bourne inherited part of 44 million upon his father's death in 1919. He apparently owned a number of other houses.

    Why are those cars still sitting there? It did appear there were workers there starting repairs.
    Thanks!
    Steve Blevins
    steve@blevins.ws

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Those interested in this house can come see it June 11, 2016 from 5pm-8pm. We purchased the property in March and have been working diligently to reveal its original state. We want to share this historical home with the community!

      It has not been renovated, it has taken us this long just to learn the house, its systems, and nuances. We couldn't be happier that most of the property is in its original state.

      486 W. Patencio Lane
      Palm Springs, CA 92264

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  4. Painfree -- that is exceptionally generous of you. It's got the historic architecture community of PS buzzing, that's for certain. What a treat! You've seen Neff's self-published book of 1964, featuring the house? The Borg water color is one of only 4 or 5 color plates in the book -- that's how highly he must have thought of it. I'll bring my copy to show you, if you haven't seen it. Thanks again! -- Steven Price

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