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Although the house is not as spatially adventurous as the contemporary works of Frank Lloyd Wright, or even of the earlier New England "Shingle style," its mood is casual and its symmetries tend to be localized. "On this tour, your docent will lead an exploration of the house and its history through rooms lined with rare woods, featuring handcrafted details, fixtures, and furnishings designed by the architects and unique to the house." The Gamble House was the best known of the Greene Brothers’ “ultimate bungalows,” a Pasadena house type notable for its grand scale, meticulous craftsmanship and range of architectural influences. Similar to the rest of the residences on the tours, a connection to the outdoors is inseparable from the history of the house and to this day, the restoration team is keeping the intention alive. In fact, Isabelle Greene—the granddaughter of Henry Greene and landscape architect—has been working on revamping the garden that has been forgotten for years.
California Architecture
At the time, many families from booming cities in the Midwest and on the East Coast were migrating to California in the hopes of a cleaner, warmer, healthier lifestyle. Many of them settled in Southern California and a large group set up camp in Pasadena. The drawings of the house were completed in February of 1908, the site ground-broken in March, and ten months later the house was completed and the first custom-built piece of furniture delivered. The family moved in immediately, and the house and all of it's specially-designed furnishings were officially finished in 1910. The Gamble House in Pasadena, California, is an outstanding example of American Arts and Crafts-style architecture.
A Visit to the Gamble House, an Arts & Crafts Gem in Pasadena - National Review
A Visit to the Gamble House, an Arts & Crafts Gem in Pasadena.
Posted: Thu, 26 Aug 2021 07:00:00 GMT [source]
Specialty Tours
The house, which was designed by lauded architects Charles and Henry Greene in 1908, was constructed for members of the Gamble family, of Procter & Gamble fame. The prominent amount of lush outdoor space and sleeping porches on the property exhibit an appreciation that the Greenes had for nature. Ever since the house was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1978, it’s been owned by the City of Pasadena and is operated by the University of Southern California. Marking the 50th anniversary of the house being gifted to the city, this entire year has been filled with celebratory events including lecture series, tours, family-friendly days, and reunion events. They're also planning to reveal a documentary that's been in the works by well-known film producer, Don Hahn.
National Trust for Historic Preservation: Return to home page
Low-pitched roofs, deep terraces, and titanic, unscreened sleeping porches dominate the exterior of the house. The street view is especially striking for the monumentally deep eaves that shelter the northeast porch, which visually expands the boundaries and overall form of the house well beyond the confines of its shingled walls. In the early years of the twentieth century, sleeping porches were popular and national periodicals promoted them to health seekers and the culturally alert, many of whom came to Pasadena for the winter season. Nowhere did these porches proclaim more boldly the promise of outdoor life than in the Gambles’ winter residence.
Materials and Tags
In order to create such a precise work of art, the Greenes worked with Peter and John Hall, two brothers from Stockholm who were known as master woodworkers, stair builders, and furniture craftsmen. Additionally, they worked closely with Emil Lang, a glass artisan who was responsible for the stained glass that fills the house. The Proctor and Gamble family found the perfect fit when they hired the Greenes. Since their father was a respiratory physician, the brothers also believed in the importance of living a healthy lifestyle full of circulating air and sunshine. They incorporating this theory into each of the houses they designed in their careers. Beginning the tours with such an artisanal masterpiece showed us how much dedicated work goes into keeping these iconic structures alive.
The strong ties to the outdoors are brought to the interior as well, through flowers and trees which are engraved in the windows, doors and lanterns. Indigenous Japanese shapes appear throughout the house, in the contour of the dining room table, the cloud lift in the transom bar of each window, the recessed handles on drawers and the ebony frame of the master bedroom furniture. We offer a variety of in-depth docent-led tours designed to focus on features of the house that we are not able to cover in a regular one-hour tour.These tours are conducted by docents with years of experience and a great deal of passion. These longer tours allow them to share with you their own excitement and knowledge while giving you a behind the scenes look at what make this historic landmark so special.
Since 1978, the Gamble House has been owned by the city of Pasadena and run by the University of Southern California. Currently owned by the City of Pasadena and operated by the University of Southern California, the Gamble House is open to the public for tours. Celebrating a diverse mix of art, architecture and history of the Arroyo Seco area, MOTA Day features five unique... One of the wooden panels in the entry hall is actually a concealed door leading to the kitchen, and another panel opens to a coat closet. Please click HERE for photography and film reservations (fees apply) and policies.
The Gamble House's floor plan is integral to its design, and understanding it can help you appreciate the home even more. Although the Greenes never traveled to Japan, they found inspiration closer to home, frequenting the Japanese Garden at The Huntington with its historic Japanese House and ceremonial teahouse. Although, the style did not fully blossom in their work until Charles visited the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair and its Japanese exhibits, which influenced their designs from there on out. The Gamble House, constructed in 1908 as a home for David B. Gamble, son of the Procter & Gamble founder James Gamble, is widely regarded as the pinnacle of the American Arts and Crafts movement. Today the home is a National Historic Landmark and is open to the public for tours and events.
Celebrating the historic Gamble House in Pasadena - Los Angeles Times
Celebrating the historic Gamble House in Pasadena.
Posted: Tue, 30 Aug 2016 07:00:00 GMT [source]
Public Tours
Do we even dare say that tours of the house provide a chance to travel back in time? After all, The Gamble House famously served as Doc Brown's home, and his lab stood where the bookstore stands today, in 1985's beloved "Back to the Future." "The Gamble House exemplifies the work of Greene & Greene, illuminating the themes in their work that contributed significantly to Southern California's early 20th century artistic heritage and built environment." Inside peek-arounds were put on hold early in the pandemic, while outdoor tours gave devotees of the destination a look at the gardens, patios, and all of that charming brickwork.
Shown here is one of the living spaces that’s filled with intricate woodworking and handcrafted furniture. The various spaces of the house are separated by different wood patterns on the floor. The chevron pattern denotes public formal spaces for entertaining, while the linear horizontal flooring presents private, informal spaces where the family would spend their time. The essential nature of architecture by Greene & Greene begins with intense attention to detail and craftsmanship, as their bungalows mark the height of the American Arts and Crafts style. The brothers were inspired by the concept of total design, or gesamtkunstwerk, which was stressed in the German-designed rooms at the 1904 Louisiana Purchase International Exposition in St. Louis. When they met David and Mary Gamble, they already had developed a list of rich couples who commissioned them to design their houses, with generous budgets and relatively free reign.
The Greene brothers were known for their Ultimate Bungalows (think supersized Craftsman homes) which were heavily influenced by traditional Japanese architecture, and the Gamble House is without a doubt the finest example of their work. In real life it also bridges time, as the history of the home ties Pasadena’s past to its present. In 1895, David Gamble retired from his position in the family-run Proctor & Gamble Company and began to winter in Pasadena with his wife Mary. Gamble House tours (one-hour tours, specialty and group) are offered on Tuesdays, and Thursdays through Sundays. The mission of The Gamble House is to inspire the public’s appreciation and understanding of architecture as a fine art through the example of The Gamble House, the most complete and best-preserved work of American Arts and Crafts architects Charles and Henry Greene.
It also consisted of a spacious sitting room, which was decorated with five rugs that were designed by Charles Greene using watercolor. Across from the fireplace, there is a window that leads to the terrace, which overlooks the garden. The expansive window was designed to let light brighten the room during the late afternoon. At the far end of the room lie bookcases, a small games table, and a piano to offer entertainment and leisure. The piano was designed by the Greenes to blend into the paneling of the room.
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