The house is designed for a retired couple with the need for guest bedroom suites and a large communal space for the living, dining, and kitchen areas.



This 2,600 square-feet single-family residence is located in Palm Desert, California. The house is located on a flat, irregularly shaped lot at the end of a cul-de-sac.  The neighborhood contains a variety of styles and references to the preferred typical suburban desert subdivision architecture.

All photographs are courtesy of Ciro Coelho 

 
To achieve a feeling of “simplicity” within conventional means, it was decided that planning and construction must be straight-forward and the character of the house reflect a strategy of enclosure and openness focused towards the main outdoor space. 


Two simple volumes are connected together to define a corner with one wing containing the guest bedrooms, and the other containing the master suite.  The two wings are connected at the main living, dining, and kitchen space.


Hallways are located along the east and south sides of the two wings and help to define the laterally spaced rooms, which can be closed off from the circulation zone with large sliding walls.  The rooms all access the outdoor pool/courtyard space from large sliding glass walls.
   

The architects used exposed concrete block walls, natural stone veneer walls, plaster over wood framing, concrete floors, walnut cabinetry, Gascogne Blue limestone floors in bathrooms, translucent glass panels, Montauk Black marble counters in kitchen, Venetino White marble countertops in bathroom and on kitchen island.

  

Firm:  OJMR Architects was founded in 1989 in New York City, and was re-located to Los Angeles in 1991.  The firm’s projects span the range of residential, commercial, and industrial architecture and interiors, as well as furniture and urban design. 

Principal Jay M. Reynolds, AIA, grew up in Los Angeles, where, as a sixth-grader he was exposed to architecture by an art teacher.  He attended the University of Oklahoma, Norman, earning his Bachelors of Architecture degree while on a baseball scholarship.  A Master of Science degree in Architecture and Urban Design from Columbia University, New York City, came next.  Prior to opening his own practice, Reynolds worked in the offices of I.M. Pei and Rand Elliot. In addition to his architectural practice, Reynolds is a studio instructor of interior architecture at Woodbury University, Burbank, CA.