An Architecturally Significant Modernist ‘Treehouse’ Is up for Grabs in L.A. at $2.4 Million

Back in 2015, when Piper Mavis was seeking a place to live in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Silver Lake, the visual artist ran across a particularly intriguing home cantilevered into a steep hillside. Though it was out of her budget and had an especially precipitous staircase leading up to the living space, she attended an open house anyway and was instantly captivated by the picturesque views overlooking the iconic Hollywood Sign and Griffith Observatory.

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Soon after, Mavis came to find out that the 1960s structure had the added cache of having been the very first project undertaken by USC School of Architecture students Raúl Garduño and Peter Heiser , so she doled out nearly $1.2 million for the retro residence and vowed to restore the then-rundown abode in keeping with the designers’ original vision. Now, nine years later, the post-and-beam property has popped up for sale again, this time with a nearly $2.4 million ask.

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“As soon as I walked around it, I thought that the house was really special and that was before I even knew that it had been the first home that [Garduño and Heiser] had designed,” Mavis related to Open Space in a recent video. “It really is a magical place.”

Nestled amid a tree-laced parcel of land spanning less than a quarter of an acre, the open-air steel and glass dwelling aptly known as the Garduño-Heiser House is fronted down below by a detached carport with room for two vehicles. Then there’s the aforementioned vertigo-inducing flight of stairs, which ascends to 1,400 square feet of treehouse-like living space containing two bedrooms and an equal number of baths on a single level.

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Among the highlights is a floating living room spotlighted by the original Malm fireplace and floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors spilling out to an expansive deck, along with a shelf-lined dining area that doubles as a gathering spot. An updated kitchen is outfitted with walnut cabinetry, ceramic countertops, and newer stainless appliances.

Elsewhere is a built-in office nook and a guest bedroom sporting a bath that pays homage to artist Charles D. Kratka’s bold mosaic tile design at the Los Angeles International Airport and in Quentin Tarantino’s 1990s film Jackie Brown , plus a primary suite that comes complete with a bath holding a sunken tub sitting adjacent to the private interior atrium.

The listing is held by Ilana Gafni and Rob Moore of Crosby Doe Associates.

Click here for more photos of the Garduño-Heiser House.

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