Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

A Bel Air House by Iconic L.A. Architect Paul R. Williams Gets a Modern Refresh

A Bel Air House by Iconic L.A. Architect Paul R. Williams Gets a Modern Refresh

Designer Ernest de la Torre marries the house’s 1934 Tudor style with a minimalist vibe.

The key to a lasting relationship, they say, is striking a perfect balance. In the Bel Air neighborhood of Los Angeles, designer Ernest de la Torre describes his latest project as a “great marriage” of sorts. He and Mark Rios of the architecture firm RIOS were tasked with marrying two opposing themes: the clean, modern sensibilities of their client and the vintage flourishes of her 1934 Tudor-style duplex, a design ­evocative of the English countryside by legendary Hollywood architect Paul R. Williams.

The ensuing 30,000-​square-foot renovation with new addition resulted in a measured study in contrasts: airy California cool tempered by organic textures and a historical collection of art and design.



“She really is a minimalist,” de la Torre says of his client, a film producer with homes in New York and L.A. For more than a decade, she and her husband, a former entertainment chairman, had been living at odds with their home’s elaborate crown moldings, wrought-iron staircase, and other old-world elements. They once considered moving, but found themselves unable to part with their scenic backyard views of lush treetops. Still very much in love with the location (notably right on top of the Bel-Air Country Club’s 17th hole), they ultimately decided to stay, but not without a major intervention.



A complete overhaul followed, with the demolition of half the duplex. In place of a detached apartment that had always felt oddly disjointed, Rios’s team built a seamlessly attached modern wing, designed for a couple focused on entertaining. The addition houses the informal spaces, including a family room that continues out to the pool deck through disappearing glass doors. Upstairs, a main-bedroom complex occupies the entire second floor with marble bathrooms and closets akin to luxury boutiques, and two lower levels cascade down the steep hillside, one for a seven-car garage and another for the home gym.



The client entrusted de la Torre to build upon the home’s collection of art and design. Having worked for her before, he came into the project with a clear understanding of her vision: “She likes her minimalism, but also rich history and art,” he says. In the more formal interiors of the original construction, where expansive sliding-glass walls have replaced French doors, the eclectic decor spans the work of contemporary Los Angeles artists to vintage pieces of European and Southeast Asian provenance. A flash of illuminated neon cuts through the moody watercolors of Mary Weatherford, mounted in the living room behind the plush Jean Royère Polar Bear sofa. Craggy geodes and quartz spheres sit in various corners for their feng shui properties.



De la Torre wanted to establish a distinctly West Coast mood for the home, leaning into more casual indoor-outdoor living while maintaining a level of elegance. Rather than silk rugs for the living and dining rooms, he opted for woven raffia by Edward Fields and Cogolin; along with the Vietnamese bamboo window treatments and rattan furniture that appear throughout the house, they are a nod to the client’s Malaysian heritage and a necessary organic element to temper the coolness of the new glass walls. “A little layer of texture,” he says, “makes modern not feel cold.”

In the formal dining room, the walls were laboriously treated with layers of deep mahogany plaster, then scored along the surface and finished with wax to resemble traditional Chinese lacquer. They were inspired by a pair of 18th-century Chinese Coromandel screens that de la Torre repurposed as doors for china cabinets.

Take a Tour of This Modernized Paul R. Williams House




Wanting to avoid an endless series of white from room to room, he applied the “compression-expansion” effects of alternating light and dark. The receding view through the dark dining room and white living room doorways frame the icy Stuart Haygarth chandelier in the foyer. There, in place of Williams’s original wrought-iron banister, the stairway curves around a sinuous panel of steel, patinated to exude the same rich warmth of the dining room walls.



For the couple, the entire project was a “compromise,” de la Torre says, “to build a modern space, but keep the original house that they had loved for more than 10 years.” Touches of the original architecture remain in the ornately carved limestone entryway and the decorative wall panels of the former Tudor library, now the study, lacquered in a lustrous Chinese red.

From the outside, Williams’s half-timbered, formerly redbrick Tudor-style facade is still visible beneath the layer of black and white paint that matches the modernist new addition. In this story of love, compromise, and rehabilitation, it was the process of give-and-take, of striking the perfect balance, that quite literally kept this household together.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Trump Says Ukraine Can Fully Restore Borders with NATO Backing
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Germany Weighs Excluding France from Key European Fighter Jet Programme
Cyberattack Disrupts Check-in and Boarding Systems at Major European Airports
Björn Borg Breaks Silence: Memoir Reveals Addiction, Shame and Cancer Battle
When Extremism Hijacks Idealism: How the Baader-Meinhof Gang Emerged and Fell
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
Trump Orders $100,000 Fee on H-1B Visas and Launches ‘Gold Card’ Immigration Pathway
France’s Looming Budget Crisis and Political Fracture Raise Fears of Becoming Europe’s “Sick Man”
Three Russian MiG-31 Jets Breach Estonian Airspace in ‘Unprecedentedly Brazen’ NATO Incident
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
EU Proposes Phasing Out Russian Oil and Gas by End of 2027 to End Energy Dependence
×