John Lautner's Silvertop
SIlvertop shortly after construction © John Lautner Foundation, wwwjohnlautner.org “Silvertop” was a large, high-budget, high quality, innovative dream-opportunity that arrived unexpectedly. The client, a successful local industrialist and visionary, was seeking the “just right” architect for his family’s dream home. Having conducted extensive interviews with the “best” of the prominent “midcentury modern” stylists in the area, John—whose work was actually far afield from their trendy fare—was chosen primarily due to his broader, grounded perspective and clearly superior architectural enlightenment. Along with the client—as is often the case—came the project’s site, something that he had been developing for some time, slowly purchasing lot after adjoining lot and eventually amassing six normal-sized residential parcels into a single, enlarged one that would accommodate his ambitious objectives. It thus became a hilltop in a quiet neighborhood in Hollywood. Its gentle, downw...
