Reisenbach Residence

Sandy Reisenbach grew up with his feet in the sand in the Rockaways of Long Island and dreamed to have the same when he moved to Southern California to become a film exec. They’d long been escaping their busy lives in Los Angeles by coming up to the Carpinteria coastline when the property next door came up for sale. Sandy and his wife Gayle jumped at the opportunity  – it was nearly  twice as wide as their own and had amazing views of the Channel Islands and Santa Barbara. Their primary requests for their new home was the ability to walk into any room and be able to see the ocean, and the ability to have guests while maintaining a degree of separation and privacy. The design is a juxtaposition of traditional and geometric shapes – a modern interpretation of the classic shingle style. In an effort to make the house look like it had been there forever, we created two separate wings and stepped them back from the street to maintain the rhythm of their neighbor’s homes. The owners had always wanted a round room, so we created a “lighthouse” element where the exterior shingles continue inside the home, creating a wonderful feeling of bringing the outside in. The only room without an ocean view is an interior Media room at the base of the tower element – a place to cozy up with a movie or a good book. The naturally weathering materials and muted color palette were chosen to blend with the surrounding landscape.