Name: Kaufmann Desert House
Client: Edgar J. Kaufmann
Address: 470 West Vista Chino, Palm Springs, California
Architect: Richard Neutra
Style: International Style
Description: Built in 1946 in Palm Springs California, the Kaufmann Desert House stands as a hallmark of the International Style in postwar American residential architecture. Commissioned by Pittsburgh department store magnate Edgar J. Kaufmann Sr, who had previously commissioned Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater, it was designed by Austrian‑American modernist Richard Neutra as a desert retreat embodying notions of openness, light, and climate responsiveness. Constructed with steel framing, Utah buff stone, and full-height glass walls, the house features long extending rooflines, movable vertical louvers to shield from heat and sandstorms, and a central living/dining pavilion from which four wings radiate: public, master, service, and guest areas.
Beyond its architectural innovation, the Kaufmann Desert House became iconic through photographs by Julius Shulman and Slim Aarons, including the legendary “Poolside Gossip,” which captured its effortless mid-century glamour. After changing ownership several times, it underwent a meticulous restoration in the early 1990s led by Marmol Radziner & Associates to faithfully recreate Neutra’s original vision, sourcing matching stone, replicating custom metal fascia, and restoring original finishes and landscape relationships. Today, it is celebrated as one of Neutra’s most enduring masterpieces and a defining example of mid‑century modernism tailored to desert living.
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Villa Savoye
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