<
https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2023/jun/21/did-this-72m-wave-house-inspire-sydney-opera-house-harry-gesners-california-creation-up-for-sale>
"A beach house that could have played a role in Jørn Utzon’s design of the
Sydney Opera House is up for sale – with a price tag of US$49.5m ($72m).
Malibu’s “wave house”, designed by Californian self-taught architect Harry
Gesner, has been home to pop star Rod Stewart and Warner Bros record executive
Mo Ostin, who fostered the careers of Jimi Hendrix, Prince, Neil Young, Joni
Mitchell, Fleetwood Mac and Madonna among others. It is generally considered
the architect’s masterpiece.
Gesner has said he used a grease pencil to sketch ideas for the wave house on
his surfboard while surveying the site from the ocean, with the idea that the
house would thrust out into the surf at high tide and nestle back in the sand
at low tide.
The resulting three crested-roof formation houses the public living areas of
the six-bedroom, eight-bathroom home, with vast panes of glass capturing the
Malibu vista, appreciated best from a must-have of luxury contemporary interior
design of the time: a carpeted, sunken conversation pit.
The crested roof may be similar to that of the Sydney Opera House, but Gesner’s
influence on Utzon remains the subject of debate. The Danish architect, who
died last year, won the competition to design the opera house in 1957, around
the same time Gesner was designing the wave house for his surfer friends Gerry
and Glenn Cooper. The house was not completed until 1963; the Sydney Opera
House would take another 10 years."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
