I just got word that the State Historical Resources Commission has added a Manhattan Beach home to California's registry of historic landmarks. The Strand-front house now joins the Manhattan Beach pier as the only two structures to grace this list.
If you've ever cruised the Strand in Manhattan Beach, you have almost certainly noticed this house, which is flanked by handmade copper and glass sculptural panels. And your mouth almost certainly gaped open because the home is truly striking.
If not, see for yourself:
But what's really striking, well, sweet really, is the story behind the home.
Owner John Scott and his late wife Marian bought the property in 1960 for $27,000. Both graphic artists, Marian designed the home and John crafted the decorative sculptures out front.
If you've ever cruised the Strand in Manhattan Beach, you have almost certainly noticed this house, which is flanked by handmade copper and glass sculptural panels. And your mouth almost certainly gaped open because the home is truly striking.
If not, see for yourself:
But what's really striking, well, sweet really, is the story behind the home.
Owner John Scott and his late wife Marian bought the property in 1960 for $27,000. Both graphic artists, Marian designed the home and John crafted the decorative sculptures out front.
The outside is obviously fabulous, but the inside is what is really spectacular --
a split-level masterpiece with an indoor-outdoor atrium wrapped by
glass hallways and bedrooms. It's decorated with hand-made sculptural
chandeliers and a spiral staircase covered in rich purple carpet.
As John phrased it, he kept his nose out of the design process because he "wanted it to be Marian's thing."
She died in 2002, but the home is a love letter of sorts that never ends so long as John keeps rattling around in the house.
John sees Marian's presence in the design's aesthetic and functionality everyday, he said. Her choices make more sense, and John can see her thought process behind design elements of the house.
Through the years, many architecture buffs and journalists asked the couple for tours, but the Scotts always turned them away, John said.
"I'd say, 'Marian, what do you think?' And she'd say, 'I'm not a licensed architect, so it would not foster my business. Secondly, it is a bit of an invasion of privacy, and thirdly, Scotty, don't you think we have enough ego around here?'" John recalled.
Needless to say, I consider myself pretty fortunate to tour this home in January 2007 for a previous Daily Breeze story, and it remains one of my favorite assignments ever, but mostly because I got to hear John tell sweet stories about his beloved wife.
As John phrased it, he kept his nose out of the design process because he "wanted it to be Marian's thing."
She died in 2002, but the home is a love letter of sorts that never ends so long as John keeps rattling around in the house.
John sees Marian's presence in the design's aesthetic and functionality everyday, he said. Her choices make more sense, and John can see her thought process behind design elements of the house.
Through the years, many architecture buffs and journalists asked the couple for tours, but the Scotts always turned them away, John said.
"I'd say, 'Marian, what do you think?' And she'd say, 'I'm not a licensed architect, so it would not foster my business. Secondly, it is a bit of an invasion of privacy, and thirdly, Scotty, don't you think we have enough ego around here?'" John recalled.
Needless to say, I consider myself pretty fortunate to tour this home in January 2007 for a previous Daily Breeze story, and it remains one of my favorite assignments ever, but mostly because I got to hear John tell sweet stories about his beloved wife.
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