Modern houses photos, Modernist homes architects, 20C property images, Famous residential designs

Modern Houses – 20th Century Homes

20th Century Home Images, Examples of key Properties & Discussion on Modernist Housing Design

post updated 28 July 2024

Modern building designs

Modern Houses Introduction

Modern Architecture became linked to a certain genre of building and thus over time wasn’t really ‘modern’ anymore. Thus Modern Houses (or Modernist Houses) suggests a certain style, not simply a ‘contemporary’ or ‘current’ construction.

Arango Residence design by John Lautner architect:
Modern Houses - Arango Residence by John Lautner
photo : Sara Sackner

Modern Architecture was associated with some great architects and some powerful countries and companies. It became the equivalent of the Classical Style in the Georgian period, ie the establishment architecture, the status quo. Since the seventies architecture styles have become more fractured and we have – amongst what could be termed contemporary architects – post-modernists, neo-modernists, deconstructivists, contextualists, expressionists and so on.

Modern American Houses – post from March 17th, 2016

Famous Modern Houses

Philip Johnson Glass House, New Canaan, Connecticut, USA
Johnson House New Canaan
photograph : Simon Garcia | arqfoto.com
Philip Johnson Glass House – various news updates
The Glass House was the start of Philip Johnson’s fifty-year odyssey of architectural experimentation in forms, materials, and ideas, through the addition of other structures. These include the Brick House/Guest House, Pond Pavilion, Painting Gallery, Sculpture Gallery, Ghost House, Library/Study, Da Monsta, and the methodical sculpting of the surrounding landscape. Today, The Glass House is still one of the most popular architectural attractions in Fairfield County Connecticut.

March 25, 2024
Case Study House 18, Pacific Palisades, California, USA
Architect: Rodney Walker
Case Study House 18 Pacific Palisades LA
photo : Jimm Simmons
Case Study House 18, Pacific Palisades, LA
Los Angeles loves its mid-century modern homes. Starting in 1945, Arts and Architecture magazine sponsored some of the modern movement’s most famous architects, including Richard Neutra, A. Quincy Jones and Pierre Koenig, to create a series of home designs that could be easily replicated for the postwar housing boom.

November 3, 2023
Gordon & Hildred Goetschel House, Glendale, California, USA
Design: Ray Kappe FAIA
Gordon & Hildred Goetschel House, Glendale, CA
photo : Cameron Carothers
Gordon & Hildred Goetschel House Glendale
This 20th Century Southern California property has been meticulously restored by HabHouse, known for their sensitive rehabilitations of architectural treasures, preserving original details and revitalizing the pool with modern amenities.

July 23, 2023
Pasadena Mid-Century Home, Pasadena, California, USA
Architects: A. Quincy Jones
Mid-Century Home Pasadena California
photo courtesy of Concierge Auctions
Pasadena Mid-Century Home Pasadena
One of the busiest architects of America’s mid-century modern school, A. Quincy Jones designed over 5,000 structures. He elevated the tract house in California from a simple stucco box to a carefully designed home integrated into the natural landscape.

Sep 7, 2022
Koenig Beach House, Malibu, Los Angeles, Southern California, USA
Koenig Beach House Malibu California
photo by Simon Berlyn, Courtesy The Agency
Koenig Beach House, Malibu
One of the world’s most famous mid-century modern architects, the University of Southern California’s distinguished professor, Pierre Koenig, got his bachelors from USC’s School of Architecture and went on to teach at the venerable institution for forty years.

Apr 15, 2022
Charles Du Bois Home, Palm Springs, Southern California, USA
Mid-Century Modern Home Palm Springs California
photo Courtesy of The Agency
Mid-Century Modern Home Palm Springs California
Southeast of Los Angeles and northeast of San Diego, the desert oasis of Palm Springs has been a fashionable resort town since the early 1900s but experienced a modern architectural boom following World War II. Reflecting the optimism of the atomic age, the Mid-Century Modernist school of architecture is known for clean lines, geometric shapes, and functional materials with an emphasis on steel, glass, and concrete.

Mar 8, 2022
Richard Neutra Hilltop Home, Tujunga, Southern California, USA
Design: Richard Neutra
Richard Neutra Hilltop Home Tujunga LA
photo : Cameron Carothers
Richard Neutra Hilltop Home, Tujunga L.A.
Richard Neutra was one of America’s most important modern architects from the 1920s to the 1960s designing famous homes such as the Kaufmann Desert House in Palm Springs for Edgar J. Kaufmann (who also commissioned Fallingwater in Pennsylvania), the Julian Bond House in San Diego, and the Kronish House in Beverly Hills.

Dec 15, 2020
House of Tomorrow – Elvis Presley’s Honeymoon Home, Palm Springs, Southern California, USA
House of Tomorrow Palm Springs
photo : Rodeo Realty
House of Tomorrow, Palm Springs

Jan 30, 2020
The Butterfly and the Dodecagon Residence, Southern California, USA
Design: Scrafano Architects
Butterfly Dodecagon Residence Los Angeles California
photograph : Catherine Tighe
The Butterfly and the Dodecagon Residence in L.A.
This is a mid-century modern residence, originally one-story and built in 1960, is located high in the hills overlooking the city of Los Angeles.

Modernist Houses – Recent Home Additions

May 10, 2017
Midcentury Modern House, San Carlos, California, USA
Design: Klopf Architecture
Midcentury Modern House
photo © Mariko Reed
Midcentury Modern House
The previous owner of this 1960s modern home covered over the walls of glass with plywood and installed a massive awning at the rear of the house, blocking out most light and connection with the outdoors. The original interior had a maze-like layout starting with a small entry area and moving into too many hallways.

Jan 15, 2016
Norman Lykes Home, Phoenix, Arizona, USA
Design: Frank Lloyd Wright
Date built: 1959-67
Norman Lykes home in Phoenix
image : Wikimedia Commons
Norman Lykes Home Phoenix
This curvaceous 20th Century Arizona residence is a good example of the architect’s late-career style, exemplified by the David and Gladys Wright home. The asking price is $3.6 million, and includes the original furniture.

20th Century Homes – Modernist Housing

20th Century Homes – older posts from e-architect, some absolute Modernist housing classics featured!

Apr 20, 2012
Martin House Complex, Buffalo, New York, USA
Design: Frank Lloyd Wright
Martin House Complex by Frank Lloyd Wright in Buffalo
photograph : Biff Henrich / courtesy MHRC
Martin House Complex Buffalo
This is viewed as the most substantial and highly developed of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Prairie houses in the Eastern United States – the property has National Historic Landmark status.

18 Nov 2011
Capel Manor House Guest Pavilion, Kent, England, UK
Design: Ewan Cameron Architects
Capel Manor House Pavilion, Horsmonden home, Kent
image from architects
Capel Manor House
The brief was to design a guest pavilion comprising 2 bedroom suites that would sit adjacent to an Italianate orangery from 1860, on the grounds of Capel Manor House, an iconic modernist pavilion designed by Michael Manser in the late 1960s.

Jul 26, 2011
Houses of Sagaponac, Long Island, New York, USA
Bachman Wilson House, NJ designed by celebrated American architect Frank Lloyd Wright:
Bachman Wilson House by architect Frank Lloyd Wright
photo from Brown Harris Stevens
Houses of Sagaponac
Luxury real estate firm Brown Harris Stevens announces “Houses of Sagaponac,” a modernist residential development. The project features a series of houses created by internationally recognized architects who were given the directive to achieve design excellence and push the envelope of contemporary architecture resulting in a community by and for thinking people.

Maison Louis Carré, Bazoches-sur-Guyonne, France
Dates built: 1956-1959/63
Design: Alvar Aalto architect
Modern Houses - Maison Louis Carré Bazoches-sur-Guyonne France
photograph © Martti Karpanen, Alvar Aalto Museum
Maison Louis Carré
In 1959, the French art dealer and collector Louis Carré moved with his third wife Olga into the house designed by Alvar Aalto about 40 km southwest of Paris. Combining architecture, furniture and landscape, Maison Louis Carré is the architect’s only remaining building in France and one of his most remarkable private houses.

Villa La Roche, Paris, France
Date built: 1925
Design: Le Corbusier + Pierre Jeanneret
Maison La Roche Paris Modern Houses
photo © Karavan
Villa La Roche : Le Corbusier design – added 12 Jun 2011
This Modernist city home was designed for a Swiss banker and art collector: it is a good example of Le Corbusier’s architecture. The entire building is an art gallery, an ‘architectural promenade’ – a theme inspired by Le Corbusier’s visit to the Acropolis in 1911.

Miller House, Columbus, Indiana, USA
Design: Eero Saarinen – opens to public – added May 2011
Miller House Columbus
photo Courtesy of the Indianapolis Museum of Art
Miller House Columbus : Eero Saarinen design
Miller House is one of the country’s most highly-regarded examples of mid-century Modernist residences and was designed by Eero Saarinen, with interiors by Alexander Girard, and landscape design by Dan Kiley. Members of the Miller family donated the house and gardens, along with many of its original furnishings, to the Museum.

Modern houses often feature sleek, minimalist designs that blend functionality with aesthetic appeal, and a well-constructed deck is a key element in extending the living space outdoors. You may check the Deck Builders in Toronto on how they specialize in creating custom decks that complement these contemporary homes, using advanced materials like composite decking.

Major Modern Homes

High & Over, Buckinghamshire, England, UK : 1930s house design by Amyas Connell architect – added 25 Jun 2010
Dates built: 1929 – 1931
High & Over Modern Houses
photo : Morley von Sternberg
High and Over house – one of the first Modern houses in England
The design evolved as a Y-shaped plan to optimise views and sunlight for the property. There were no modern houses of quality in England at the time, but the architect had toured Europe and was aware of developments there. Concrete was the material that was regarded as ‘modern’ and the house was designed in concrete, but had to be redesigned as concrete frame with brick infill before local builders could face it. It was all rendered over to look like concrete.

10 Mar 2010
Villa Savoye, France : pictures of key Le Corbusier house as a ruin
Villa Savoie - Modern Houses
photo © Isabelle Lomholt
Villa Savoye – famous Modern House, in France
The house demonstrates the ‘Five Points’ that Corb placed central to his work, briefly piloti, fenetre longeur, free plan, active roof space and free facade. He was very focused on proportion of mass and space and keen to meld lessons from Classical architecture with modern technology exploited in cars, ships and planes.

Further down this page we list classic Modern Houses by major architects, including Le Corbusier, Mies Van der Rohe, Frank Lloyd Wright, Alvar Aalto, Pierre Chareau, Adolf Loos, etc.

Modern Houses Selection

20th Century Homes Selection – in approximate order of importance

Farnsworth House, USA
design by Mies van der Rohe architect
Farnsworth House, Plano, Illinois
photo by Carol M. Highsmith, courtesy wikimedia commons
Farnsworth House

Arango Residence, Acapulco, Mexico
design by John Lautner architect
Arango Residence Marbrisa house
photo : Sara Sackner
Arango Residence

Villa Müller, Prague, Czechia (formerly Czech Republic)
design by architect Adolf Loos
Adolf Loos Building Prague - Modern Houses
photograph : Martin Polak
Villa Müller Prague

Tugendhat Villa, Brno, Czechia
design by Mies van der Rohe Architect
Tugendhat Villa, Brno, Czechia - Modern Houses
photo from architects
Tugendhat Villa Brno

Casa Mila, Barcelona, Catalonia, north east Spain
design by Antoni Gaudí, Architect
Casa Mila - La Pedrera Barcelona by Antoni Gaudí
photo © Adrian Welch
Casa Mila La Pedrera

Zimmerman House, Manchester, New Hampshire, USA
One of many Modern houses by Frank Lloyd Wright
Zimmerman House
picture © Adrian Welch
Zimmerman House

Frognal Road House, Northwest London, England, UK
design by Max Fry Architect
Frognal Road House, Hampstead Modern home
picture © Nick Weall
Frognal Road House

Beckhard House, Glen Cove, USA c.1964
design by Herbert Beckhard
Beckhard House, Glen Cove, USA
photo K. Wheeler

Rebhuhn House, Glen Cove, USA c.1938
design by Frank Lloyd Wright
Rebhuhn House, Glen Cove, USA
photo : Erik H. Neil

The Rink, Gifford, East Lothian, Scotland
Design: Campbell & Arnott Architects
The Rink, Gifford, East Lothian, Scotland
picture from houseowner

Lismhor House, Edinburgh, Scotland
Design: Kininmonth & Basil Spence

More Modern houses online soon

Modern House : Key architects + titles of some Classic Modern Houses

Modernist Housing Design

New House Designs : contemporary houses as opposed to simply 20th century property

World Architects – principal designers:
Marcel Breuer, Le Corbusier, Antoni Gaudi, Arne Jacobsen, Philip Johnson, Edwin Lutyens, Rennie Mackintosh, Richard Meier, Jorn Utzon, Mies Van der Rohe

Comments on the Modern Houses page welcome : info(at)e-architect.com

Prague Modern Buildings – Modernist house by architect Mart Stam:

Modern Houses – No Images

Maison de Verre, Paris, France
Date built: 1932
Design: Pierre Chareau, Architect
Maison de Verre : aka Maison Dalsace / House of Glass – this Modern house appears in most key books on the History of Architecture

This page is about ‘Modern Houses’, not simply ‘Contemporary Houses’ or ‘Current Houses’. However, below are selected contemporary buildings (these now appear in full on the New Houses page).

More Modernist houses online soon

Modern Cambridge Houses, England, UK
11 Wilberforce Road home by David + MM Roberts:
Modern Cambridge House 11 Wilberforce Road by David + MM Roberts
photograph © AW

Property design by Trevord Dannatt Architect:
Modern Cambridge home by Trevor Dannatt Architect UK
photograph © AW
Cambridge House – for more properties

European Modern Houses

Personal Note from the e-architect Editor:

My visit to Aalto’s Villa Mairea, finding the owners of the house were on holiday (shown round by the gardener) on a scholarship to study Modern Finnish Architecture in 2001 at the age of 19, has to be the highlight of my years as an architecture student.

Later, whilst working for Eva Jiricna Architects a group of us visited the office’s work in Brno and to see one of Mies van der Rohe’s best houses, the Tugendhat Villa. Mies designed many houses earlier in his career whilst in Europe. The Tugendhat Villa is one of the best modern houses I’ve visited. Adrian Welch, Architect

Architectural Designs

How to become an architect in UK

Major Architects + Titles of some Classic Modern Houses – property additions welcome

New Houses

American Houses

Contemporary Houses

1960’s Modern House, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia
Design: Jamison Architects
60s Modern House
photo : Remco Photography
60s Modern House on Gold Coast
‘60s Modern’ is a renovation project. It is the upper unit of an original early 1980s duplex building.

Martini House in Palm Springs, Modern Home

Jun 14 2021
Modern Hollywood Hills House
Design: Mutuus Studio
Modern Hollywood Hills house Los Angeles
photography : Kevin Scott
Modern Hollywood Hills House

An unusual property in Barcelona:

Casa Batllo, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
A celebrated Catalan house by Antoni Gaudí architect
Casa Batlo Gaudi building Barcelona - Modern Houses
photo © Adrian Welch
Casa Batllo

Modern Houses in British Columbia, Canada

Buildings / photos for the Modern Houses20th Century Properties page welcome