Nielsen Pool House

Last updated
Nielsen Pool House - Front PNG.png

The Nielsen Pool House is Riverside City Landmark #134, the former residence of noted architectural engineer Svend Nielsen. The home was designed and engineered by Nielsen, who began construction in 1964. Nielsen and his family resided in the home from its completion in 1966 until 1988. [1] Nielsen and his wife were immigrants from Denmark and the home is quintessentially representative of Mid-Century Modern architecture. [2] As a representation of Mid-Century Modern Architecture, the home features ribbon windows, soffit lighting, built in units, a flat roof and multiple sputnik light fixtures.

Contents

History and architecture

The most impressive feature of the home is the indoor swimming pool (hence the name "Nielsen Pool House"). The swimming pool room is atrium style and features expansive windows. The pool room is central to the design of the home with the bedrooms and bathrooms and living areas having direct access to the pool. The room is 2000 square feet, with the 15'x40' swimming pool located in the center. The ceiling over the pool is approximately 18' high and features retractable 10' foot sliding panels on tracks, which allow the roof to be opened to the sky. The back wall of the room consists of floor to ceiling windows and a sliding glass door which leads out to a wrap around deck and overlooks the lake on the 12th hole of the Victoria Country Club Golf course. According to Svend's son, Jack Nielsen, the enclosure of the swimming pool was not original to the home but was always a planned feature and was completed in approximately 1971.

In addition to the architectural significance of the swimming pool room, the home is built onto a slope with the latter fourth of the foundation suspended by concrete pillars 20 feet above grade. The slope itself was tiered at the time of construction, featuring trees and plants that offered over 50 varieties of fruit and vegetables, including citrus and avocado, however, much of this was allowed to die due to lack of adequate irrigation. The living area of the home is essentially one story with an additional bedroom and three car garage as a walkout basement underneath the home built out from the slope.

The interior of the home is listed on county records as 2,880 square feet, however, taped measurements come in at 3,342 square feet. The home features a large living room, family room, dining room, 6 bedrooms (including the walkout bedroom adjacent the garage) and four bathrooms. The area of the swimming pool room is not included in the home's living area.

Svend Nielsen sold the home in 1988, whereupon it changed hands several times until being acquired in 1995. The home was in poor condition at this time and expansive renovations were done in 1980's-1990's style, including new windows, stucco, and interior finishes such as white and green ceramic tile. In 2015, the home was purchased by the Cloake family, who remodeled the home in a style consistent with its Mid Century Modern heritage. Renovations included new paint, landscape and interior finishes, including wood floors and natural slate. In some cases, the original home finishes were able to be salvaged, such as the original VAT in the dining room and original subway tile in all the restrooms (tile had been left under newer tile installed in 1995). As a result of their renovation efforts, the Cloake's were awarded a Renovation Award by the Old Riverside Foundation in 2016. The home was the first mid-century modern home to receive an award in the history of the old Riverside Foundation.

On September 13, 2016, the Riverside City council voted unanimously to name the home a Riverside City Landmark (#134); The Nielsen Pool House due to its significance in being designed and built by Svend Nielsen as well as its representation of Mid Century Modern architecture. [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robie House</span> U.S. National Historic Landmark in Chicago

The Frederick C. Robie House is a U.S. National Historic Landmark now on the campus of the University of Chicago in the South Side community area of Hyde Park in Chicago, Illinois. Built between 1909 and 1910, the building was designed as a single family home by architect Frank Lloyd Wright. It is considered perhaps the finest example of Prairie School, the first architectural style considered uniquely American.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coonley House</span> United States national historic place

The Avery Coonley House, also known as the Coonley House or Coonley Estate was designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Constructed 1908–12, this is a residential estate of several buildings built on the banks of the Des Plaines River in Riverside, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. It is itself a National Historic Landmark and is included in another National Historic Landmark, the Riverside Historic District.

<i>Domus</i> Roman urban house of upper classes

In ancient Rome, the domus was the type of town house occupied by the upper classes and some wealthy freedmen during the Republican and Imperial eras. It was found in almost all the major cities throughout the Roman territories. The modern English word domestic comes from Latin domesticus, which is derived from the word domus. Along with a domus in the city, many of the richest families of ancient Rome also owned a separate country house known as a villa. Many chose to live primarily, or even exclusively, in their villas; these homes were generally much grander in scale and on larger acres of land due to more space outside the walled and fortified city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Château de Madame du Barry</span>

The Château de Madame du Barry in Louveciennes, in the Yvelines département of France, is a château constructed at the end of the 17th century. It was then expanded and redecorated in the middle of the 18th century by Ange-Jacques Gabriel for Madame du Barry. The estate's most famous building is the Pavillon de Musique, a music and reception pavilion constructed by Claude Nicolas Ledoux (1770–71). The pavilion sits in the middle of a park that was designed in the 19th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dr. Willard Van Orsdel King House</span> United States historic place

The Dr. Willard Van Orsdel King House is an historic U.S. home in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. It is located at 1336 Seabreeze Boulevard. It was built in 1951 and is an architectural example of the Mid-century modern design movement. On February 21, 2006, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gerald B. and Beverley Tonkens House</span> Historic house in Ohio, United States

The Gerald B. and Beverley Tonkens House, also known as the Tonkens House, is a single story private residence designed by American architect Frank Lloyd Wright in 1954. The house was commissioned by Gerald B. Tonkens and his first wife Rosalie. It is located in Amberley Village, a village in Hamilton County, Ohio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Riverside Art Museum</span> American art museum in California

Riverside Art Museum is an art museum in the historic Mission Inn District of Riverside, California. The museum is a non-profit organization which focuses on addressing social issues and offers art classes as well as other events in order to inspire and build community.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nuits (Irvington, New York)</span> Historic house in New York, United States

Nuits, also known as the Cottenet–Brown House, is an Italian villa-style house located in the Ardsley-on-Hudson section of the village of Irvington, New York, United States. It is a stone Italian villa-style house built in the mid-19th century. In 1977 it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Miller House (Columbus, Indiana)</span> Historic house in Indiana, United States

The Miller House and Garden, also known as Miller House, is a mid-century modern home designed by Eero Saarinen and located in Columbus, Indiana, United States. The residence, commissioned by American industrialist, philanthropist, and architecture patron J. Irwin Miller and his wife Xenia Simons Miller in 1953, is now owned by Newfields. Miller supported modern architecture in the construction of a number of buildings throughout Columbus, Indiana. Design and construction on the Miller House took four years and was completed in 1957. The house stands at 2860 Washington St, Columbus Indiana, and was declared a National Historic Landmark in 2000. The Miller family owned the home until 2008, when Xenia Miller, the last resident of the home, died.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adamson House</span> Historic house in California, United States

The Adamson House and its associated land, which was known as Vaquero Hill in the 19th century, is a historic house built by Rhoda Adamson and gardens in Malibu, California. The residence and estate is on the coast, within Malibu Lagoon State Beach park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Randall Fawcett House</span> House in Los Banos, California

The Randall Fawcett House is a Frank Lloyd Wright–designed Usonian home in Los Banos, California. The home was designed in 1955 and completed in 1961.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old Gym</span>

The Old Gym is a historic building at Washington & Jefferson College in Washington, Pennsylvania. It currently houses a modern exercise facility featuring cardiovascular, resistance, and strength-training equipment. The building also features a three-lane indoor track suspended above the main floor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Normandy</span> Apartment building in Manhattan, New York

The Normandy is a cooperative apartment building at 140 Riverside Drive, between 86th and 87th Streets, adjacent to Riverside Park on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. Designed by architect Emery Roth in a mixture of the Art Moderne and Renaissance Revival styles, it was constructed from 1938 to 1939. The building was developed by a syndicate composed of Henry Kaufman, Emery Roth, Samson Rosenblatt, and Herman Wacht. The Normandy is 20 stories tall, with small twin towers rising above the 18th story. The building is a New York City designated landmark.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">W. B. Thompson Mansion</span> Historic house in New York, United States

The W. B. Thompson Mansion, also known as Alder Manor, is a historic home located on North Broadway in the Greystone section of Yonkers, New York, United States. It is an early 20th-century mansion designed by Carrère and Hastings in the Renaissance Revival architectural style. In 1982, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William L. Thaxton Jr. House</span> House in Houston, Texas

The William L. Thaxton Jr. House is a large single-story Usonian house, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1954 and built in Houston, Texas in 1955. The Thaxton House is Wright's only residential project in Houston. Thaxton was a successful insurance executive and commissioned Wright to design a work of art that would also be suitable for living and entertaining.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dr. Robert Hohf House</span> Historic house in Illinois, United States

The Dr. Robert Hohf House is an International Style residence near Kenilworth, Illinois, United States. Built in 1957, it was designed by George Fred Keck and William Keck, Architects, in collaboration with Evanston Hospital surgeon Dr. Robert Hohf. It is considered a particularly fine example of post-World War II architecture around Kenilworth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Svend Nielsen (architect)</span> Danish architect

Svend Nielsen (1919–2013) was a Danish born architect and architectural engineer. Nielsen with his partner, Carl Johnson, founded the firm Johnson and Nielsen. Nielsen was influential in the construction of many important structures in Southern California, including the Discovery Cube in Orange County, the Coussoulis Arena in San Bernardino and, most famously, the Forum in Inglewood, CA, which was the first structure of its kind to be built without support pillars. The engineering of the Forum was quite a feat as the structural design allowed no obstructed seats in the entire arena.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lescaze House</span> House in Manhattan, New York

The Lescaze House is a four-story house at 211 East 48th Street in the East Midtown and Turtle Bay neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City. It is along the northern sidewalk of 48th Street between Second Avenue and Third Avenue. The Lescaze House at 211 East 48th Street was designed by William Lescaze in the International Style between 1933 and 1934 as a renovation of a 19th-century brownstone townhouse. It is one of three houses in Manhattan designed by Lescaze.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zigzag House</span> Residential home in Sarasota, Florida, U.S.

The Zigzag House (1959) is a residential house in Sarasota, Florida, United States. It was designed by architect Tollyn Twitchell in the style of the Sarasota School of Architecture: the style is also referred to as a mid-century modern. The home has been named for its zigzag roofline which resembles saw teeth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walter Douglas House</span> United States historic place

The Walter Douglas House, in Bisbee, Arizona, was built for Walter Douglas in 1908, who was the general manager for the Phelps-Dodge Company. It was the first house built in what was then Warren, Arizona, which was Arizona's first planned community, and was the largest home in the community. Designed by the architectural firm, Trost and Trost, it is a Crafts/Mission Revival Style house. The house has 11 bedrooms, a library, a billiards room, a basement, several school rooms, six fireplaces with Grueby tile, leaded-glass windowns and maple flooring. It also has three apartments ; and 10,000 square feet (930 m2) of patio space. Throughout the years, the house has served several different purposes. Initially it was a private residence for Douglas. Then it was carved into apartments and at one point served as a lodge. In the late 1900s it was renovated as a private residence once again.

References

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Nielsen Pool House at Wikimedia Commons

33°57′35.04″N117°21′36.83″W / 33.9597333°N 117.3602306°W / 33.9597333; -117.3602306