DIGS is the premiere luxury real estate lifestyle magazine serving the most affluent neighborhoods in the South Bay and Westside of Los Angeles, California.
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52 DIGS.NET | 8.12.2022 P R O F I L E | J O H N P A W S O N A N D C L A U D I O S I LV E R S T R I N A R C H I T E C T U R E + D E S I G N That it is not easy to separate the house from one's gradually intense experience of it is itself a holiday—an escape that is explicitly part of its place, from light to landscape. "The sun plays with the architecture in a dance of shadow and light that continues throughout the whole day," Caroline describes. "If you wish, you can set the clock to it, as in ancient cultures." Why try? Neuendorf House is precisely where one comes to lose oneself. At the same time, "You experience a calmness, a sense of belonging, and a sense of yourself," Caroline adds. "And at night, the stars!" On approach of the house, one enters the courtyard via an architectural incision that gives way to a view of a 40-meter pool protruding into the landscape. "It takes your breath away," says Caroline. With five bedrooms, four bathrooms, the spacious, almost monastically appointed interior features airy living spaces with an ethereal, cathedral-like light. All that's left is transcendence. Except: the rooftop terrace with sea view, the two salt-water pools (the smaller one heatable with Jacuzzi), the clay tennis court, and the organic vegetable garden. With seam- less flow between spaces and many exposures to the outdoors, the house is as composed as its architecture is fastidious. The Neuendorfs did not need persuading to know that their home is a sublime place to visit. As the family started to scatter, they began hosting friends, then strangers. Even Pawson and P H O T O S T O P L E F T A N D R I G H T ; N G E L I C A - L A R S S O N ; B O T T O M R I G H T R E N E E K E M P S Silvestrin still visit, which speaks volumes about the architects' affection for one of their early works. "I don't think it is good to leave a house uninhabited," Caroline explains. "It becomes a lonely and sad place." Neuendorf House is not that. Now in a kind of heyday, the property is enthusiastically booked, particularly by those with an appreciation if its architecture and the figures responsible. Pawson and Silvestrin were far less known in 1989, having done a few London flats. "It was their first freestanding house, and a first for us too," says Caroline. As art dealers, "We did not know that one day this house would almost become an architectural icon. We just loved the idea of living in such a space." She candidly admits that at the time the house was built, most people did not understand it. "We were made fun of a lot. Not that we cared." Staying true to that laissez-faire instinct gave the Neuendorfs decades of family joy; in opening up their house to others, they have given the world, and Spain especially, one of its most interesting and provocative buildings. "It was obviously courageous for all of us, architects and client, to build it," says Caroline. "It started as a vision, became a family holiday house and turned into something that people [admire] after so many years, which is very rewarding. It is a beautiful never-ending story!" neuendorfhouse.com