In his upcoming book, “California Homes II,” architect William Hefner showcased six years of work, ranging from modern and sleek to historic and rural, all celebrating his holistic approach to the design and spirit of Southern California.
The namesake William Hefner’s studio, located in Los Angeles, has increased the reach of modern projects and opened an office in Montecito, while expanding its horizons across the canyon cinematic landscape, palisade, and majestic Old Hollywood environment, “as Hefner wrote in the book, which features architecture, design interior and landscape design by the company, founded in 1989.
“We have 10 projects in it, and I spent almost two years working on every detail,” Hefner said of the 400-page work to be released this month. His predecessor, “California Homes,” also from the Images Publishing Group, came out in 2013.
Hefner described his style, whether contemporary or traditional design, as a combination of luxury and simplicity – “designed and controlled” but not hard.
“There’s nothing monastic about what we do,” Hefner said. “There is enough detail and complexity that occurs visually so that it feeds you.
“I care more about things that are classic and timeless than trendy, if possible,” he added. “I really like trying something that we’ve never tried before, but calling it something that will resonate for people.”
Such is the case with one of the ambitious projects featured in the book, Brise Soleil, which is playful but neat. The modern Beverly Hills dwellings have heat-shielded metal grilles, oddly pink and mint glass panels, and a large L-shaped pool wrapped around the back room, creating an 82-foot swimming track.
“When we asked the owner what he was looking for, he said,” I just want something really out of the box. “I mean, what client told you that? That was a real dream project,” Hefner said.
Another example, Romero Canyon in Montecito, is the realization of a more personal dream for architects, which was shared with his late wife and longtime creative partners, Kazuko Hoshino. He died in April.
A rural family home embraced by the Santa Catalina Mountains and 200-year-old California oaks, grouping the surrounding buildings into a complex to share with family and friends.
How did you start as an architect?
When I was little I used to sketch floor plans; it is a no-brainer, it seems like what I will always do. I finally graduated from UCLA and for eight years I designed tall buildings around the world for an international company called Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. It was a good education, but that was not what I liked, so I began to do home work. Nearly 30 years – a long time.
Where do you get inspiration for your work?
Maybe traveling; remember the times when we could do that? After graduating from school, I lived in Greece for one year, and as a child lived in Ireland for the summer. Kazuko and I were married for a while before we had children and would go and go whenever there was a kind of pause at work. Because he is from Japan, we often travel through Asia – Vietnam, Singapore, Bali. And also in Europe.
Tell about your environmental buildings and sustainable architectural practices.
Sustainability is important to us, and we are fortunate to get good lessons about the green buildings and home designs that we build [actor and passionate environmentalist] Ed Begley Jr. It was really fun because he had very high goals – everything must be sustainable and out of reach. Planting and watering is fine only if growing food; we have rainwater catchments, gray water, lots of solar panels and battery backup. It was like a postgraduate degree, by the way, and an extraordinary learning experience that I have tried to apply to other projects over the last few years.
You also do historical restoration work.
I have lived in Hancock Park for the last 25 years, and it is very satisfying to take a house that is almost 100 years old and modernize a little floor plan, without losing character. I think we have done more than 20 restoration projects in the last few years for myself and others – my historical background in art paid off by doing that. This is a very pleasant part of our practice, and much better in terms of environmental impact.
How did you and Kazuko meet and finally work together as a designer?
We met about five years into my own practice. After five years of marriage, I dare to ask the question “what if we work together”, because a little afraid of everything. I think the proposal is riskier than the first. The office was growing, and I couldn’t really cover the interior, architecture and landscape myself, so it was the right time. Then he came in and headed the law firm.
