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Pauline Lowe Residence

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Pauline Lowe Residence
Floor plan of Pauline Lowe Residence, from a 1934 publication
Floor plan of Pauline Lowe Residence, from a 1934 publication
General information
StatusDestroyed in 2025 Eaton Fire
Architectural styleModernist
Address596 East Punahou Street, Altadena, California, U.S.
Year(s) built1934
OwnerPauline Lowe
Design and construction
Architect(s)Harwell Hamlton Harris

The Pauline Lowe Residence or Pauline Lowe House was a private home in Altadena, California, built in 1934, designed by Harwell Hamilton Harris. It was destroyed in the Eaton Fire in 2025.

Design and construction

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Pauline J. Lowe (1896–1983)[1] worked for the Bullocks Wilshire department store in Los Angeles,[2] and later was store manager at I. Magnin's Pasadena location.[3][4] She asked her friend Harwell H. Harris to design a small one-story home for her. The modernist residence built in 1934 on East Punahou Street in Altadena, California, for about $4000.[2] It was Harris's first independent project, after leaving the Richard Neutra office.[5] The house was considered stylish; it was featured in California Arts and Architecture[6] and other publications.[7][8][9] The design won honorable mention in a House Beautiful competition,[10] and its elements were copied elsewhere.[2] Frank Lloyd Wright "acknowledged his admiration" for the Lowe residence.[11]

The Lowe residence was built from redwood, and noted for its efficient use of a narrow lot, strategic shade placement, and earthquake safety features.[8][12] Among its distinctive features were 21 exterior doors,[5] some of them opening onto private exterior spaces for outdoor sleeping.[13] The distinctive doors were initially sliding doors inspired by Japanese design;[10][14] these were soon replaced with hinged doors, when Lowe complained about the original installations rattling in the wind.[15] Harris's original design called for a flat roof, but the house had a hip roof when built.[16]

2025 Eaton Fire

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In 2025, the Pauline Lowe Residence was described by The New York Times as a "midcentury landmark,"[17] and by the Los Angeles Times as one of the "architecturally significant houses" destroyed in the Eaton Fire.[13][18]

References

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  1. ^ "Pauline Withey". The Press Democrat. May 1, 1983. p. 21. Retrieved January 26, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ a b c "Lowe, Pauline House, Altadena, CA". PCAD (Pacific Coast Architecture Database). Retrieved January 26, 2025.
  3. ^ "Local Nisei Girl Has Week of Glory as L.A. Princess". Pasadena Independent. August 26, 1951. p. 50. Retrieved January 26, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ Billheimer, Ruth (September 24, 1961). "Gabbing About". Independent Star-News. p. 38. Retrieved January 26, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ a b "Harwell Hamilton Harris". US Modernist Archives. Retrieved January 26, 2025.
  6. ^ Harris, Harwell (January 1935). "Residence of Miss Pauline Lowe, Altadena" (PDF). California Arts and Architecture: 20.
  7. ^ "The Pauline Lowe Residence in Altadena". The Architect and Engineer of California. 123 (3): 42–43. December 1935 – via Internet Archive.
  8. ^ a b "Japanesey House Wins Honorable Mention". The Times. November 23, 1934. p. 13. Retrieved January 26, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ Mock, Elizabeth, ed. (1944). Built in USA: 1932-1944. Museum of Modern Art. p. 23.
  10. ^ a b "Suggesting the Japanese". House Beautiful. 76 (4): 72–73. October 1934 – via Internet Archive.
  11. ^ Devins, Kim J. (May–June 1980). "Harwell Hamilton Harris: The Architect as Artist". AIA North Carolina: 17 – via Internet Archive.
  12. ^ Architectural Forum (1936). The 1936 book of small houses. pp. 98–99 – via Internet Archive.
  13. ^ a b "Updates: The architecturally significant houses destroyed in L.A.'s fires". Los Angeles Times. January 11, 2025. Retrieved January 26, 2025.
  14. ^ Lancaster, Clay (1983). The Japanese Influence in America. Abbeville Press. p. 180. ISBN 978-0-89659-342-8.
  15. ^ Long, Christopher (June 16, 2023). "Asian Influences and the Rise of Southern California Modernism". Nonsite.org. Retrieved January 26, 2025.
  16. ^ Germany, Lisa (January 1, 2000). Harwell Hamilton Harris. University of California Press. pp. C-3. ISBN 978-0-520-22619-7.
  17. ^ Lubell, Sam (January 15, 2025). "The Design Legacy of Los Angeles That Fell to the Fires". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 26, 2025.
  18. ^ Dreith, Ben (January 21, 2025). "More Richard Neutra houses lost as toll of LA fires becomes clear". Dezeen. Retrieved January 26, 2025.
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