Revamped midcentury modern abode, architect chose preservation over alteration.
In the heart of the San Francisco Bay Area, a historic mid-century modern home has been meticulously restored by award-winning architect Casper Mork-Ulnes. The renovation was a sensitive and thoughtful update of the original design by Roger Lee, a prominent mid-century modern architect.
Mork-Ulnes' approach was to preserve and clarify Lee’s original design intent, rather than undertaking a full gut renovation. This process involved highly surgical edits that refined the architectural concept while respecting the original spirit of the home.
One of the key design aspects was enhancing the relationship between interior and exterior spaces, a hallmark of California modernism and Lee’s work. Mork-Ulnes carefully removed some interior walls to create a visual connection from the front door all the way through the house to views of the Bay beyond, blurring the boundary between inside and outside.
The renovation also involved a central rectilinear volume that consolidated the home's storage, pantry, and two bathrooms. This core was clad in meranti timber, designed to virtually disappear into the space, providing both functional and aesthetic refinement without detracting from the overall openness.
A playful and unexpected element is found in the bathrooms, where floor-to-ceiling tomato-red tiles inspired by fiery sunsets over the Bay add vivid color and character to these typically utilitarian spaces.
The timber-clad, galley-style kitchen was preserved, with a small dining room tucked into a corner behind it and a cocktail bar hidden behind a door in the central storage volume. The '70s-era appliances were to be replaced during the renovation.
Mork-Ulnes' work reflects a balance of Scandinavian practicality and a Californian spirit of innovation, ensuring the renovation is both restrained and playful. His design philosophy emphasizes concept-driven rigor and an economy of means, which is evident in this project’s delicate and precise interventions that honor the historical significance of the home while making it relevant and functional for contemporary living.
The house was originally owned by biochemist Clinton Ballou and his wife, Dorothy, and they lived in it for more than 50 years. Ten years ago, a job opportunity brought Stephanie-Dolores Henkle and Jordan Crane to the San Francisco Bay. They found the three-bedroom, two-bathroom mid-century modern house in Berkeley Hills, which was designed in 1956 by Roger Lee.
Henkle and Crane spent a few years living in the house to get acquainted with the landscape, light, and building's quirks before deciding to renovate. They scored the house after beating out 13 other bidders. Mork-Ulnes found a kindred spirit in Roger Lee, who died in 1981, and aimed to keep Lee's original intent in the renovation.
Now, Henkle, Crane, and their American pitbull terrier, Shotsi, are enjoying the home's warmth and comfort, especially in the evenings with the fireplace on and the sun setting. Construction on the home started slowly due to the pandemic and was completed in 2022. Mork-Ulnes hopes to have dinner with Henkle and Crane in the future.
The renovated mid-century modern home, now owned by Henkle and Crane, seamlessly integrates various aspects of contemporary lifestyle, including fashion-and-beauty with the playful and unexpected bathroom tiles, food-and-drink through the preserved timber-clad kitchen and hidden cocktail bar, home-and-garden as the interior-exterior connection is emphasized, and travel with the home's design inspired by the fiery sunsets over the San Francisco Bay. The architect's philosophy ensures the renovated home is both restrained and innovative, embodying a balance between Scandinavian practicality and a Californian spirit.
