Exterior Decoration: Hollywood's Inside-Out Houses

by John Chase

The popular language of status-conscious architecture is explored in this account of the notorious do-it-yourself remodels clustered on the fringe of Beverly Hills in West Hollywood. These former stucco bungalows have been transformed by their owners into distinctive visual statements. As if they were stage sets, the exteriors of these houses have been treated as interiors, with urns and finials placed on rooftops like bibelots on a mantel, and windows and panels of trellis arranged as though they were pictures on a wall. The result is a lively architectural vernacular, well documented with "before and after" photos, interviews, and construction details.

128 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1971

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

I borrowed this book out of the library to appreciate the history of my Norma Triangle neighborhood. And to understand the architecture and sometimes larger than life architects and interior designers that made my neighborhood so unique.

Grateful that the author, John Chase (who sadly passed away), wrote and preserved this history because new development continues to threaten these iconic homes and styles.

"In what was the middle- and working-class neighborhood of West Hollywood, remodeling rather than replacement began to occur exclusvely in the late 1950s. These domestic remodels followed a general prescription: addition of more square feet, opening up of interior spaces, new kitchens and baths and reorientation of the interior toward newly enclosed exterior gardens and courtyards. While the remodelings were supposed to be fundamentally utilitarian in nature, they inevitably ended up being concerned with imagery". (Foreward)

"The West Hollywood remodels have sometimes been regarded as the anarchic wit of a largely gay community of interior decorators. But the houses are not intended to be jokes. The remodels have more to do with anxieties produced by Los Angeles's loose social structure than with a taste for camp. Except for a few truly idiosyncratic buildings, the remodels reflect the desire to lay claim to upper-class status." (pg. 15)

[Alexandra Infante · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is so awesome! Los Angeles vernacular architecture, the descent of West Hollywood’s sleepy Spanish Colonial Revival homes via the conversion into 1950’s and 60’s Hollywood Regency remodels. If you love campy architecture, urns, exterior draping and mansard roofs you must get this book! I only wish that the book was in color. However, if you live in the area you have already seen many of the houses.

[John Akamatsu · Rating 5 out of 5]

While this may appeal to kitsch lovers, the author loves what he sees, and documents the history of the transformation of typical bungalows into this strange hybrid of set design and homes. It will give you greater appreciation of the not only the homes, but of the city of Los Angeles, and its dreamers.