Biscayne Bay, Florida. Property of Mr and Mrs. Ralph W. Adler. Rufus Nims and William Jameson, architects.

8/10/2025 10:35:00 PM

On a man-made island in Biscayne Bay, Florida, architect Rufus Nims and William Jameson built for Mr. and Mrs. Ralph W. Adler the unique house you see here. Its skeleton consists of eight concrete columns on which two concrete slabs appear to float. The slab at half-mast forms the floor of the living quarters; the upper one is the roof from which various elements, such as the fireplace flue and the wall panels, are unexpectedly suspended. As the walls carry no structural weight, they can devote themselves to ventilation and transparency, letting in doorfuls of air and making the Bay the focus of interest from every room. On the water side, this is achieved by alternating floor-to-ceiling fixed glass panels and adjustable metal jalousies. On the land side, wood wall panels are hung at the corners of the house. Above and below them, sliding glass panels give ventilation and balanced light which, spilling over ceiling and floor, minimizes the walls and gives the occupants a sensation of being suspended in space. Throughout, storage cabinets take the place of partitions. One of them forms a complete kitchen, compact as a piece of furniture. The swimming pool is in view from all rooms.

In every room of the Adlers' house, you have the feeling that you can look through and beyond. The furniture also subscribes to this disembodied mood by having the smallest possible contact with floor or walls and being set on a chalk-white carpet over which floor-level windows spread an expanse of light. An L-shaped bench which supports a two-sectional couch squares off the seating arrangement around the central, glass-topped wrought-iron coffee table.