A Craig Ellwood Home Demolition

Curated Mid-Century Modern Home Listings from the Across the Country

Apr 22, 2024

In a previous post, we highlighted the architectural genius of Craig Ellwood. Ellwood designed some 98 architectural works before he passed away in 1992, 58 of which were standalone houses. One of those gems was reportedly demolished earlier this month, creating quite the stir online.

Fridays on the Homefront — The Zimmerman House. Photo by Julius Shulman © J. Paul Getty Trust. Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles

Niche-architectural publications and mainstream media outlets alike reported that actor Chris Pratt and wife Katherine Schwarzenegger had demolished the $12.5m mid-century modern home they had recently purchased in Los Angeles’ Brentwood neighborhood. The couple reportedly plan to build a “15,000-square-foot farmhouse-style mansion” on the premium lot. The comment sections on these posts (and Twitter aka X), are absolutely lit.

The demolished home’s creator, Craig Ellwood, was born Jon Nelson Burke in Clarendon, Texas before moving to Los Angeles as a child. Inspired in part by a local liquor store, Lords and Elwood, he took the name Craig Ellwood. Ellwood worked as a construction cost estimator and studied structural engineering through UCLA extension night school. Although not technically an architect, Ellwood started to receive commissions to design private residences based on his reputation in the industry. Still fairly green in his career in custom home design, Ellwood became a recruit of Entenza’s Case Study Program. Case Study House No. 16, built in 1952, followed shortly after. It was the first of three houses Ellwood created for the Arts & Architecture magazine program. Today, house #16 is the only of the three still intact.

The demolished home in question, known as the Zimmerman house, was an early Ellwood design, built in 1950. The structure, named for Martin and Eva Zimmerman, had long ago been featured in Progressive Architecture magazine and photographed by Julius Shulman. According to US Modernist, the 2770 sf. structure was sold in 1968 and 2004, before the most recent off-market sale to Jurassic Park actor Chris Pratt and wife Katherine Schwarzenegger.

Adriene Biondo summed things up succinctly: “At the same time as architectural homes are being marketed as high-end, collectible art, others are being torn down to build new. Perhaps a Historic-Cultural Monument designation could have saved the Zimmerman house, or allowed the necessary time to delay demolition. Tragically, calls for preservation fell on deaf ears.”

What do you think about the situation? Fair game for private property, or a crime against the arts? Let us know in the comment section.

Demolition aftermath. Photo by Adriene Biondo

Living room of the Zimmerman House designed by Craig Ellwood (Los Angeles, Calif.), 1953. — The Zimmerman House. Photo by Julius Shulman © J. Paul Getty Trust. Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles

“I was never tied to standard detailing or inhibited from trying out new methods. When you haven’t been taught that some detail is impossible, you approach it with confidence and innocence.”
Craig Ellwood