Sunset Homes: a house designed by Roscoe Wood | Redondo Beach, California

A garden court and translucent walls contribute most to the spaciousness and livability of this small house on a narrow lot in Redondo Beach, California. Imagine it on any small subdivision lot, flat or sloping, and you have an answer to the problem of opening a house to the delights of the outdoors but still keeping it private from close neighbors.

The house has a steel pipe frame to float the front section over the sloping site. The rear section has concrete blocks helping to anchor the house to the slope. With only two windows on the south side, it is still pleasantly light inside because of the translucent wall (burlap embedded in glass-fiber-reinforced plastic, with an outer layer of glass to prevent weather deterioration). Louvered windows catch the prevailing sea breeze helping to control the heat on hot summer days. The windows form the upper section of window wall facing the sea.

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source: Sunset Books - Sunset Homes 1967