Memphis architect Mel O’Brien studied at Princeton at the same time as architects Hobart Betts and Charles Gwathmey and a similar use of form and materials is evident in this, his former personal home. Like houses designed by these peers, this house evidently draws on the geometry and flat planes of the International Style of the early twentieth century. The recessed entry and very private facade are markers of 1970s architecture.
The authors of Memphis: An Architectural Guide comment that the house “looks as if it might have been designed for a beach site in one of the Hamptons,” perhaps referencing Gwathmey’s work in Amagansett, yet it was very clearly carefully designed for its location. Fellow architect Andrew Smith---recruited by O’Brien to work in his Memphis firm---recalls O’Brien being influenced by Charles Moore’s work on the homes at the Sea Ranch project, famous for making use of existing topography and views. The O’Brien home’s T-111 siding was reportedly unpainted originally and only painted by later owners. The house rises over three levels, from a partly below-grade den with sheltered patio, to the main living area which is at grade at the front but hovers above the garden at the rear, to the third level with bedrooms with views of trees and sky.
The circular living room does not have expansive views of what would in any case be a suburban landscape. Instead, it embraces its occupants with light captured from the sky above, entering through a large glass square punctuating a sliced column. Three bathrooms are all lit by skylights. A floor-to-ceiling window on the side of the house is not used to provide a way for the neighbors to gawk at the furnishings but instead allows the occupants a lush view of a shade garden. The kitchen is connected to the dining room, as logic would dictate, but its dominant connection is to a balcony overlooking the garden and pool. Each bedroom has access to one of the sheltering balconies that “appear as though cut out from a solid mass”( Survey of Modern Houses in Memphis, Tennessee from 1940-1980).
Residence 2 4432 Park Avenue, Memphis,TN Architect: A. L. Aydelott and Associates, architects Constructed:1960
Designed by the father of modern architecture in Memphis.
From the Survey of Modern Houses in Memphis, Tennessee from 1940-1980:
“The concept of this house goes well beyond the low-pitched roof style popularized during the 1950s and1960s. The front of the house is dominated by a portico and courtyard. The main living area opens to the front courtyard as well as the rear landscaped pool area. The room is transparent, yet private, and incorporates the exterior landscape as if a part of the interior space. The floorplan is organized around the main living space with the dining, kitchen, den, and garage to one side and the split level bedrooms to the other. The exterior architecture is quiet, refined, and reflective of the modular exposed post and beam structural system employed in the design.”
Residence 3 6125 Green Meadows, Memphis TN Architect: A. L. Aydelott and Associates, architects Constructed:1962
From the Survey of Modern Houses in Memphis, Tennessee from 1940-1980: “This is an interesting mid-century modern style house, the design of which was influenced by Japanese architecture.The covered walkway, structural details, screen fence and landscape at the entry courtyard draw on the traditions of Japanese construction.The courtyard concept is key to the success of the main living space---both sides of the room are fully glazed with one looking into the courtyard and the other to the rear yard. The low sloped roof, post and beam structure, large windows, and ornamental landscape elements combine to provide a formal, yet relaxed and private environment.”
Residence 4 417 N. Perkins Architect: Robert “Buddy” Martin Constructed: 1955
This L-shaped modern house embraces a huge oak tree in the center of the front patio, visible from floor to ceiling windows in both the formal living room and the den on the opposite leg of the L. The house sits far back on its large lot, and a low brick wall shields the large front patio from passersby. Formal and informal spaces are treated with equal care. The den still has its cork floors and paneled walls. The unusual square dining room has walls of grasscloth. Large glass sliding doors give onto a smaller patio, creating the sensation of both seclusion and connection to nature. A interior clerestory window allows natural light from this room to light the bedroom hallway. The formal living room is unfussy and elegant, with the smooth paneled fireplace wall flowing into the hardwood floors without interruption.
