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Selected Works

A modern house elevated on a platform with large glass windows and red vertical paneling. It is surrounded by tall trees and greenery, with a patio area featuring outdoor furniture underneath the house.
A black and white photo of a modern house with a large glass front facing a yard with a lawn and trees. A vintage car is parked on the driveway, and large trees with sprawling branches are in the background.

1954, Oakland, CA

His first house after graduation shows all of the defining Thorne elements: a difficult site used for a virtuous steel structure, offering a house with a high degree of privacy. Brubeck had some reservations about the deeply cantilevered bedroom wing, so his family only moved in after Thorne spent a few nights in the house.

Brubeck House

1954, Atherton, CA

Built for an art dealer, the flat site—studded with several old oak trees—led Thorne to place the living room on the upper floor so the owner could enjoy views of the treetops, reversing the usual concept of a downstairs living room and upstairs bedrooms.

NAIL HOUSE

Floor plan blueprint showing various rooms including bedroom, study, utility, dining, living room, kitchen, breakfast room, cave room, porch, and outdoor landscaping with trees and plants.

1955, El Cerrito, CA

This house was built for Eugene Lawlor, Dave Brubeck’s lawyer. Massive steel beams spanning the house’s long direction are supported outside on reinforced concrete block walls.

LawLOR House

A vintage outdoor patio scene with a round table and four chairs with orange cushions, surrounded by greenery, and a group of people seated and conversing near steps and bushes.

1957, Oakland, CA

The structure is formed by 7-moment frames, so none of the exterior and interior walls are load-bearing. It is Thorne’s only house purposely designed for helicopter landings, which are seen as the future mode of transportation. In the 1970s, Sly and the Family Stone band members resided here.

Sequoyah House

Sketch of a modern, flat-roofed house with rooftop amenities, a chimney, and surrounding trees, located on Jaronì Drive in Oakland.

Baldinelli House

A modern house with a balcony, large windows, and a roof extension, surrounded by trees and shrubbery, with a curved driveway and landscaped garden in the foreground.

1957, Oakland, CA

1959, Berkeley, CA

The view of the San Francisco Bay from the living room on the upper floor is the reason for placing the main floor upstairs. On the ground floor is a small office for the original owner, psychiatrist Adamson.

Adamson House

Construction workers standing on a balcony of a modern house elevated on supports, with trees and rocks in the surroundings.

1959, Huntington Lake, CA

Only one tree had to be removed to build this house in the Sierras. The rocky ground would have customarily required costly (explosive!) excavation, but the house rests on a grid of steel beams with only four supports.

bartlett house

Sketch of a modern steel-framed house surrounded by green trees and bushes, with a detailed interior view of a house with large windows and a balcony, depicting the house's architectural design and landscaping.
A black and white outdoor sketch of a modern multi-level house with a large deck in front, surrounded by trees and rocks.

1962, Mill Valley, CA

The rooms are arranged in a semicircle to offer an almost 360-degree view, with most rooms having decks on both the valley and hillside. After a fire, it was rebuilt with some modifications.

Dennis House

Black and white photo of a modern house's outdoor patio area with lounge chairs, small tables, potted plants, and large glass sliding doors leading inside.

1962, San Rafael, CA

More about Case Study House #26…..

case study house #26

1962 , Oakland, CA

logan house

Modern house built on a hillside surrounded by rocks and desert vegetation, with a curved driveway and large floor-to-ceiling windows

1962, Apple Valley, CA

This house in the high desert was part of the area’s ambitious development plans in the 1960s.

Hull House

View of residential backyard with lush green plants along a concrete pathway, modern house roof, and distant mountains under cloudy sky.

1963, Portola Valley, CA

Built for a Bethlehem Steel executive as a personal residence. The glazing in some areas (clerestory) is frameless, suggesting a borderless indoor/outdoor environment.

norton House

Nighttime scene of a building with a balcony and plants, cars parked below, and a person in the water.
Interior view of a modern building with a high wooden ceiling made of small bricks, large windows letting in natural light, a green potted tree, and an open kitchen area with chairs and a table.

1963, El Cerrito, CA

hahn house

thorne Family residence

A modern house with large glass windows is surrounded by lush green trees and shrubs, with a small pathway leading to the entrance on a sunny day.

1964, Oakland, CA

1964, Napa, CA

Built for a prominent Napa family who owned a local steel mill, the Streblow residence is one of Thorne’s largest residences. The topography influences the arrangement of rooms, with rock surfacing in certain rooms. Casey Kawamoto, a student of Thomas Church, designed the landscape.

Streblow house

A house with a garage door, residential building, and large glass extension on top, surrounded by trees and bushes, under a clear blue sky.

1968, Oakland

This intriguing project enhanced a nondescript 1953 house by adding two pavilions: a spacious one for the living room in front and a smaller one for dining at the back. Sharing the same height, these pavilions created a striking new eastern roofline.

Given their modest size, rough-cut redwood proved to be a more economical and natural choice for the structure than steel and also complemented the original 1968 forest-inspired color scheme. "It was like I was floating on air," exclaimed the homeowner upon completion, standing at the top of the new living room. (Quote: Oakland Tribune, 1/11/1970)

Windows on nearly every side created this magical effect. It also showered several sculptures by the renowned Bay Area sculptor Haig Patigian (1875-1950), the owner’s uncle, in a very good light.

Dallas E Wright Pavillion

Interior view of a room with a staircase and a criss-cross wooden ceiling with a skylight. The staircase has carpeted steps and a wooden handrail, leading to an upper level with a white wall. Large windows reveal greenery outside.

1970 & 2000, Kensington, CA

Known for its superb acoustics, this triangular-shaped house is placed dramatically over a creek, with a glass floor offering views of the ‘below yard.’ Long-time owner and composer Herbert Bielawa wrote a few jazz pieces inspired by the house and its architect. Read more.

music house

Empty outdoor patio with wooden tables and black metal chairs, covered area with a curved wooden roof, and a beige building with multiple windows.

1975, UC Berkeley, CA

Cory Hall cafe

Modern two-story house with a wooden exterior, large black garage doors, and front bushes, located on a street with trees and power lines.

1980, Palo Alto, CA

Soriano/EichLer Addition

Modern octagonal house with a circular roof and glass walls, parked cars nearby, surrounded by trees and overlooking a scenic valley with mountains in the distance under a clear blue sky.

2000- today, Oakland, CA

Thorne's unique 360-degree symmetrical design was a collaborative effort with his close friend Ed Baker, who served as the client. Inspired by the concept of an open umbrella, Thorne revisited his theme of a spacious, open-plan space under a single roof (similar to the Music House, Thorne Residence, and Eichler Addition). This design features a central, motorized skylight to enhance the sense of openness and symmetry further.

The large space on the upper floor combines all social spaces (living, cooking) and more; here, it is used to drive in and display the owner’s Porsche. The fully glazed space and surrounding deck offer a panoramic view of the Bay. The lower floor (not fully completed yet) accommodates the bedroom suites.

The materials used here are fireproof: steel, concrete and glass; a good choice for the Oakland Hills.

millennium house

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