Richard Neutra was born in Vienna, Austria in 1892 to a
Jewish family. As a young man Neutra was very sensitive to his surroundings and
would often run around the city, observing and taking in all sensations and
visuals presented to him by the cityscape.
One particularly striking visual prompted Neutra to become an architect. This visual was civic architect, Otto Wagner’s rail station and bridges. Wagner’s designs were striking, infused with Wagner’s search for a modern architecture, that they were unlike anything young Neutra had seen.
Neutra was so heavily influenced by Wagner that he decided to attend the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts, where Wagner taught. There Neutra also began to follow the architectural teachings of Adolf Loos and worked for him in later years. These two architects molded Neutra’s early theories and beliefs in architectural design.
After finishing University Neutra moved to the United States, as per Loos’ recommendation, to work for the architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Neutra worked for Wright for a few months before moving to Los Angeles.
In Los Angeles, Neutra moved in with fellow Vienna Academy of Fine Arts student Rudolf Schindler. Schindler, being five years older than Neutra, had also previously worked for Frank Lloyd Wright and was already making a name for himself in Los Angeles. Both architects and their families lived together in Shindler’s concrete and wood home. Both architects also reached international architectural prestige in designing houses for Philip and Leah Lovell.
The Hansch House, built in 1955, is situated near the San Bernardino Mountains and surrounded by curving roads and beautiful views. Due to the fact that the house is so close to the San Bernardino Mountains the site had very sharp slopes. This site condition caused Neutra to give the house a split-level floor plan and used “planting fortissimo” to keep dirt from washing away.
As a visitor, one would enter the Hansch Residence on the lowest level. The entry way has a 13 ft. ceiling and would have to take a short flight of stairs to the living room. The kitchen is located next to an exterior reflecting pool, situated on top of the first floor. When looking out from the kitchen sink the reflecting pool is located at eye-level to the viewer.
