CaseStudyHouse9

Place

Entenza House (Case Study House #9)

The design of Case Study House #9 exemplifies the concept of merging interior and exterior spaces through glass expanses and seamless materials.

Case Study House #9, also known as the Entenza House, was designed for Arts & Architecture publisher and editor John Entenza as part of his innovative Case Study House program sponsored through the magazine. The property is situated on a primarily flat parcel on a bluff in Pacific Palisades overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

Designed by Charles Eames and Eero Saarinen and completed in 1949, the house is modular in plan and features steel frame construction. But in contrast to many modern residences utilizing steel frame construction, that of the Entenza House is not actually revealed, but concealed with wood-paneled cladding.

Entenza frequently entertained, so the house consists of mostly public and very little private space.

The room arrangement included two bedrooms, a study, two bathrooms, kitchen, large open living/dining area, utility room and garage. A large, sunken living room with a built-in seating area facilitates conversation. 

The house is primarily sheathed in Truscon Ferroboard with the ocean-facing elevation glazed by Libby-Owens-Ford glass with Truscon steel window framing. The east elevation consists of lightweight concrete block by Rocklite. This design exemplified the concept of merging interior and exterior spaces through glass expanses and seamless materials.

View the National Register of Historic Places Nomination