Property of Mr. and Mrs. Arthur U. Hooper, Baltimore, Maryland | architect Marcel Breuer

10/27/2025 10:19:00 AM

Mr. and Mrs. Arthur U. Hooper’s house at Baltimore, Maryland, forms an index to the rapid change in our pattern of living. Only in the United States, where standards of comfort and convenience advance daily, could a house grow old in 26 years. Built in 1925, it was considered modern as the minute in every way. But by 1948, although still in good shape, overhauling was indicated. The Hoopers asked architect Marcel Breuer to do the job. First on the list was bigger and better quarters for their two little girls (preferably near the ground level). The solution they hit on was a new wing adjoining the master bedroom at one end, the play yard at the other. A new garage tucks in underneath. The garden door became the main entrance (it is near the garage) and with the kitchen door moved around to the side, the second-story passage forming a roof overhead, this makes a pleasant outdoor anteroom. The old entrance is now a paved terrace. Inside, the house is basically unchanged but a re-organized kitchen, a modern color scheme and carefully planned storage facilities have readjusted this 26-year-old house to today’s more practical living.