On a quiet hillside in Encinitas, California, a distinctive 1970s residence has been returned to something close to its original spirit—not as a museum piece, but as a living laboratory for artists, designers and craftspeople.
The 2,500-square-foot house was designed by Shanna Kellogg, with structural assistance from her father, noted California organic architect Kendrick Bangs Kellogg. Its most striking features are its soaring arched roofs, now newly clad in copper, and an interior shaped by warm wood, changing levels and long passages of natural light.
Unfold Projects founder Mel Meagher purchased the property in 2022 with the intention of restoring its original character while preparing it for a new purpose.
Later alterations—including built-in bookcases, painted surfaces and additions that interrupted the home’s original sightlines—were removed. Original woodwork was repaired, while natural materials such as teak, clay and limestone were introduced with restraint.
The restoration became an exercise in creative reuse. Copper left over from the new roof (above) was transformed into 21 works of art and furniture. Salvaged redwood and other dismantled materials became lighting, sculpture, rain chains and even a guitar.
Materials that could not be incorporated into the house were donated to Habitat for Humanity.
Among the project’s most evocative additions is a living wall in the primary bathroom, fulfilling Shanna Kellogg’s unrealized vision of a tree-filled atrium.
Throughout the house, restored timber, textured walls and carefully framed views reconnect the interior with the mild coastal landscape outside.
The property will now become part of the Unfold Artist Residency. A former woodshop beside the main house has been converted into an artist’s flat, intended to host writers, designers, chefs, researchers, ecologists and craftspeople exploring new approaches to creativity, sustainability and regenerative design.
The result is less a conventional renovation than a conversation across generations—between an original architect and contemporary makers, between handcrafted design and environmental responsibility, and between a California house and the landscape that first inspired it.
____
Adapted from reporting by Dan Howarth for Dezeen, published July 25, 2026. Photography by Justin Chung.
No comments:
Post a Comment