Another tour I did was of the Gamble House in Pasadena. Interior photography also forbidden, of course. Some interior photos available here. The only Greene & Greene house open to the public (they claim) the house is an impressive example of the pinnacle of the arts and crafts style - and what happens when an unlimited budget meets very exacting craftsmen. Although only built 10-15 years before Hollyhock House, and also influenced by Japanese architecture, it might as well be in another world.

Our docent sniffed that "unlike Frank Lloyd Wright", the Greenes had incredible attention to detail. Hearth inlays match wood, silver or semiprecious stone inlays in the furniture. Mrs. Gamble's writing desk has an inlay to match her favorite Tiffany vase. Each room features one type of wood, even to the windowsills. Each door is custom designed to match the pattern of panelling in the room to which it belongs. The butler's pantry has a custom cabinet to store table leaves... The table, of course, designed by the Greenes.

The carpets were also designed by the Greenes and were surprisingly modern, largely plainish with subtle edge patterns.

The house is panelled nearly floor to ceiling and they light it with era-appropriate 15 Watt bulbs, so it is extremely dark.

I found the style impressive but also a little oppressive. It was dark and...well, being an almost 100 pure expression of the Greenes' style, very formal, very regular, very matchy.

Here are some details from the foyer- exposed pegs, straps (decorative but giving the impression the stairs are strapped together), the exposed underside of the stairs (showing the bones of the house in arts & crafts style), the section of banister carved from one enormouse piece of Burmese teak, and the stained glass front door which has two identical layers of stained and leaded glass.

Thanks for the write-up. I toured the Gamble house about 13 years ago when I was hot-and-heavy in my A&C phase. It's a wonderful house with wonderful craftsmanship. Around that same time I toured FLW's Ennis house, which was in a rather shocking state of disrepair and had just recently divested itself of a long-term tenant. But I'm very glad I got to see it.

I saw the Hollyhock house back in 2009 when it was still undergoing its restoration. What surprised me most was actually the setting on that sort of campus or whatever it was. When these homes are photographed, they seldom reveal much about the surroundings and it allows one to imagine a sort of Shangri-la of a setting when in fact it's usually very different. For instance, the Rosenbaum house (FLW Usonian) in Florence, AL is always striking in photographs. But when you drive up and see a decommissioned 1960s school building next door and houses in need of repair across the street, it deflates the fantasy a bit.

I looked at the photos before I read the text of your post. I like to form my own opinion before continue. I absolutely love the Gamble House.

I am really not a fan of FLW. His work always seems so austere to me. Be that as it may, this is my favorite of his work. I was a bit disturbed that so many things looked to me like Mayan Architecture. That fireplace is really a show piece. What a relief it was that I read in the text that he was in a Mayan phase. I had been thinking he was just a copy cat.

Regarding both the houses but especially Gamble house, and I know this is indelicate, I would like to know what they smelled like. I love the smell of wood and I wonder how long that scent lasts.

Thank you once again for sharing.

Thanks for the write-ups and links. I really enjoyed looking at them. I dont think either of these are in my list of top favorites, but I would love to see them in person. Very cool that you got tour them!

Jakabedy, you're right, the Barnsdall Art Park is quite scrubby and the fence around hollyhock is no better than chain link! I did however really enjoy the LA municipal art museum next door which had some fresh contemporary exhibits. The funniest thing about the Gamble tour was they gave us a huge lecture about not stepping on the carpet edges and the guy in front of me, I swear, went out of his way to stomp on every single edge!

Beryl, the house was a bargain, especially since they've already spent like $4 million plus restoring it. However it is labelled as a self guided tour and there were no official guiding docents. Also much of the house is off limits.

Emmaline, good eye on catching the Mayan influence! I knew nothing about Mayan revival so I did not until I read about it.

Rocky, I know you'll like my other two tours better: the Stahl house and the Neutra VDL house.

Oh Emmarene... Smell. Good question. The Gamble just did smell good. Did it smell much of wood? I'd have to say yes, comfortably, but in a very subtle way. It was clean, dry and well maintained so it had all those smells too.

The Hollyhock House was wall to wall tourists and I visited on a 95 degree day so... It smelled, alright! Because the restoration was relatively recent and so extensive, it probably smelled to me more like a new house than anything else.

Thanks for sharing this. Much appreciated.

We were at the Gamble House a month ago. Robo, your commentary is better than our tour guide's was! Here is the exterior of that magnificent door.

My husband, being the little devil that he is, told the tour guide that he thought the house was pretty, but far too dark, and that if he owned the house he would paint all the woodwork white. When the gasps of shock and dismay died down, he turned to me and gave a subtle, mischievous smile.

The topmost photo is vertigo-inducing, like M C Escher. It must be the angle. The ceiling treatment makes it look like a wall with a picture rail. Very upsetting to my visual cortex. I cannot get a handle on that concept. Well done, FLW!
Casey