Red-tile roofs, white stucco walls, and wood-beam ceilings are synonymous with Santa Barbara’s Spanish-Mediterranean architecture, a style required by the zoning ordinance of the tony California seaside resort town, setting the tone for the entire city. The same is true for much of the architecture of Highland Park, beginning in 1924 with Lang & Witchell’s design for the Town Hall.  Fooshee and Cheek adopted the Spanish Colonial style for their design of Highland Park Village in 1928.  In the ensuing years Spanish Mediterranean style has been a continued favorite for residences throughout the Park Cities.  Not only is the style an aesthetic fit, it also is appropriate for Texas’ hot climate.

For a recent commission RDDA designed a stripped-down Santa Barbara-style house and melded it with modern interiors. The house is the perfect blend of Spanish Mediterranean elegance, with crisp, austere detailing and an open floor plan, which results in a contemporary design.

To the client’s specification, RDDA designed a symmetrical, white stucco facade, punctuated with large windows and topped by a red clay, barrel tile roof.  To lend a more contemporary look the facade is stripped of much of the ornamentation that is typical of traditional Spanish-Mediterranean architecture.  The result is a clean, understated classical design, which offers an alternative to the assemblies of “white boxes” seen in so much of today’s “transitional” architecture.

In a beautiful, unifying cadence, three arched doorways stretch across the entry foyer, each one centered under an unadorned groined vault.

The Great Room, extending seamlessly from the entry foyer through three arched openings, features a beamed ceiling and a third row of three arched glass doors, centered on the other two sets of three arches. Natural light fills the room.

The Great Room extends onto the outdoor living area, creating an ideal flow for entertaining.

The large, open kitchen includes breakfast banquette dining, as well as a casual sitting area that overlooks the backyard and pool.

Expansive glass doors, opening onto a large balcony that overlooks the backyard, are the centerpiece of the master bedroom.

The layout of the house frames the site in an L-shape with the garage and quarters connected by a covered walkway.

A secluded, walled courtyard with a babbling fountain imparts a Moorish influence to the exterior design, adding to the overall sense of peace, tranquilty, and contemporary comfort that the house affords.

RDDA enjoys projects, such as this, that challenge the architect to merge a touch of formal tradition with relaxed, contemporary lifestyles.

The interior designer for the project was Laura Lee Clark.
The builder was Bob Liberi of Robert Raymond Group.