Rudolph Schindler

Rudolph Schindler’s is a case of an architect that adhered to the spirit of his time, created an architecture that focus on space, strived for the rigor of construction method while always aware and maintain its cheapness. A formula in stick built construction his European modernist approach in design combined with the American / Californian spirit (the do-it-yourself spirit of the wood and stick frame construction) provided Schindler the source of creativity and freedom not found in any European context. In his own words: “.. in my own house, introduced features which seemed to be neccessary for life in California: an open plan, flat on the ground, living patios, glass walls, translucent walls, wide sliding doors, clerestory windows, shed roof with wide shading overhang, these features have now been accepted generally and form the basis of the contemporary California houses.”

Rudolph Schindler (1887-1953)

Schindler is an understated architect ahead of his time who was educated in the modernist architecture of the early of the 20th century and to apply his architectural thoughts in California which was considered “West of East”, a term refer to the irrelevant cultural setting of the West coast at the time.

Contemporary of Schindler was Irving Gill who was also himself a distinguished modern architect in Los Angeles. Gill built modern homes, undecorated and white boxes even before Adolf Loos (a source of great influence of the course of modern architecture in Europe). Gill and Schindler didn’t make the modern architecture exhibition - the Moma International Exhibition curated by Philip Johnson in 1932. Richard Neutra and Schindler both acknowledged Gill as a master himself, however, the more publicized and charismatic Adolf Loos had the support of his followers in modernist Europe while Gill practiced in LA which is again, “West of East”.

Irving Gill Dodge House 1914 (left) and Adolf Loos Steiner House 1910 (right)

Schindler's work in California were the opposite of irrelevant. His own residence “King road house” built in 1922 was before even most iconic modern house of the European masters such as Villa Savoye of Le Corbusier in 1929, or the Tugendhat house of Mies van der Rohe in 1928, or the Fansworth house in 1945, and most pre-Usonian F.L. Wright's houses.

In the King Road House, Schindler used the pinwheel plan which were not seen before, until the Bauhaus school building designed by Walter Gropius in Weimar, Germany (1925)

Schindler's King Road house House 1914 (left) and the Bauhaus school 1919 (right)

Schindler's King Road house House 1914

Schindler created a proportion system based on 4 feet module even before Le Corbusier’s modular system based on the golden proportion. The “Schindler frame” is not just about proportion but mainly was about the method for wood framing construction. Using the American balloon stick framing system, Schindler standardize his technique regarding length, spacing and position of wood framing base on a grid system to clearly communicate with contractor, offer a more precise way of building and expedite the construction process. The Schindler Frame that he devised helps to facilitate the ease and speed to construct his architecture.

The Schindler's Frame

Schindler architecture is a mixture of modernist background with the organic influence of FLW While coming from European modernist background, Schindler architecture didn’t adhere to the strict modernist vocabulary. He detested the International style popularized by Philip Johnson. Schindler architecture could be said to be influenced by a mixture of Frank Lloyd Wright (he worked for Wright for a few years in his early career) and early modernist philosophy. The organic way a building should be designed from exterior to interior and of different scale even to the furnishing to respond to the site, and the modernist philosophy is to produce a clean aesthetics and construction that affordable to the mass.

Schindler architecture is a reflection of his time while maintain the human and personal scale not found in the strict modernist works of his contemporaries. He once pointed out the difference between civilization and culture: “one is of human enterprise struggle to make their surroundings, one is the development of a human”. Schindler denounced international style because it only count the civilization part and ignore the culture. Thus, the International style reduces architecture to functionalism of universal means and method.

Wolf Residence (1938)

Schindler: the Space architect. Interestingly, Schindler’s first manifesto written when he was a student in Vienna, called “Modern architecture: a program” composed of 4 stanzas, the first one declared the obsolete of past architecture before 19th century. For him, modern architecture is free of mass material, no longer be dictated by massive wall and structure, it become an architecture of space. It would be important to point out that even though these ideas are very popular among modern architecture, in Schindler case, he had already formulated these ideas among the earliest time in the development of modern architecture.

Dedicated to provide an affordable architecture by self-contracting and use of material. Early concrete frame construction proved expensive for his client due to material and lack of experience from contractors, he moved to wood frame with stucco outside and plaster inside in the search for cheapness. Moreover, in most of his jobs, Schindler acted as contractor for his projects in order to cut cost and to control quality and was licensed as both architect and contractor.

As a contractor, he managed subcontractors himself. As an architect, his drawings were drafty, mostly because he only needed them to pass permit. He preferred to work on site, sketch and direct subcontractor in person as his details got more complex. That is an aspect that distinguish Schindler from any other modern architect, to be hands-on, to be understanding and communicative with builders, to be loose on ideology and craftsmanship but nevertheless so engaged with what is being built.

According to Schindler: “Good draftsmen mostly bad architect, cannot think in 3 dimensions, his hand leads him astray. Good architect has no time to think of drawings, he does not see the lines, he only sees his conception back of the line”.