Arch Tour Fest 2:15PM: Gardenhouse

Photo Credit: Nic Lehoux 

Arch Tour Fest: Gardenhouse | 2:15PM

This tour is SOLD OUT

This is an in-person tour. Attendees will be required to show proof of vaccination. Please read and check the agreement and safety boxes in the registration. Additional information regarding the tour and check-in process will be emailed directed to registrants 24 hours before the event. Tickets are non-transferable.

View the list of all Arch Tour Fest LA tours

Arch Tour Fest is presented by LG | Business Solutions

CES Learning Units: 1 LU

Take a tour of Gardenhouse, a distinct vision of the future of architecture and design and for the creation of natural living environments in an urban context. The first project in the United States from world-renowned visionary Ma Yansong, Beijing-born founder and owner of MAD Architects, completed in collaboration with Executive Architect Gruen Associates, Gardenhouse brings inventive, contemporary design to the West Coast while preserving the subtle, long-cherished elegance of Beverly Hills. Born from Ma Yansong’s core “Shanshui City” design philosophy, the ideal that humans and nature should be more emotionally connected especially in high-density cities, Gardenhouse represents the notion that architecture and nature can redefine and inspire the concept of home.

Comprised of 18 unique residences that resemble a modern-day hillside village, Gardenhouse seamlessly blends the beauty of nature with harmonious architectural design set against the Beverly Hills skyline with views spanning from Century City to the Hollywood Hills. Gardenhouse is an immersive experience for residents and visitors, with expansive spaces which bridge indoor and outdoor living areas, secret gardens, a reflecting pool and a two-story living art wall, the largest in the United States. More than a collection of residences, Gardenhouse is a confluence of design, nature and home.

Located at 8600 Wilshire Boulevard in California’s Beverly Hills, “Gardenhouse” is a mixed-use scheme consisting of 18 residential units above ground floor commercial space. Evoking the lush landscape of Beverly Hills, the scheme becomes a “hillside village” with residential units “growing” from the building’s living green wall. Peaking above the landscaped envelope, a cluster of white façaded, irregular-shaped windows, and gabled-roof structures create a dynamic neighborhood, and a playful, witty, though simple homage to the iconic hillsides of Los Angeles.

Residents of “Gardenhouse” are welcomed via a ground-floor entrance along Stanley Drive, off Wilshire Boulevard. The entrance adopts the atmosphere of a cave digging into the hillside; a dim, surreal environment where residents are led on a journey through a “fairyland” of light, shadow, and the sound of water. Further ahead, the softness of the cave meets a bright conclusion, with natural light flooding through a connected water feature from the courtyard patio above. Standing beneath this threshold, visitors marvel at a framed view of sun, sky, landscape, and water: a living painting removing people from the reality of the city.

Developer: 8600 Wilshire Boulevard, LLC
Executive Architect: Gruen Associates
Design Architect: MAD Architects
Interior Designer: Rottet Studio
Landscape Architect: Gruen Associates
Structural Engineer: John Labib Associates
MEP: Breen Engineering
Civil Engineer: Kimley-Horn Associates
Acoustics: Schaffer Acoustics Inc.
Graphics, Signage, Wayfinding: Follis Design
General Contractor: DHC Builders
Living Wall Installer: Seasons Landscaping

Tour Led By:

Andrew Rahhal, Assoc. AIA, Associate, Gruen Associates
Andrew Rahhal, Assoc. AIA joined Gruen Associates in 2014 and became an Associate of the firm in 2018. Unique designs have benefited from his significant role and hands-on participation on projects including the ASCE-award-winning Universal City Station Pedestrian Bridge at Metro’s Red Line and the Gardenhouse mixed-use project—recipient of the 2019 ACEC Distinguished Award of Merit and three design awards from AIA|LA, SCDF and the Los Angeles Business Council. Andrew’s leadership during the Construction Administration Phase for Gardenhouse ensured that the design team’s vision was realized.

Flora Lee, Associate Partner, MAD Architects
Flora Lee, Associate Partner at MAD Architects, has over 12 years of design and project management experience and has overseen several of the firm’s award-winning complex and large-scale projects. A Korean-American Architect and Georgia Tech alumna, Flora has been part of realizing MAD’s projects around the world. Based in MAD’s Beijing office from 2007 to 2012, she relocated to Paris to manage MAD’s UNIC residence project from 2012 to 2014, and has been in Los Angeles since 2014 to help establish a new office and lead MAD’s first U.S. project, Gardenhouse. As Associate Partner, Flora is an integral part of the executive project management team and oversees all projects at MAD’s Los Angeles office including Gardenhouse, an 18-unit luxury condominium in Beverly Hills; Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, a new world-class museum in Los Angeles; 8447 Santa Monica Boulevard, a mixed-use residential development in West Hollywood; and a confidential single-family residence in Bel-Air. Flora’s ambition is to design innovative architecture while enhancing people’s lives and experience with the built environment. She is a strong advocate for MAD’s design visions and works alongside MAD’s architects and designers to develop futuristic, organic, technologically-advanced designs that embody a humanistic connection with nature.

Learning Objectives:
1. Participants will explore outdoor strategies and design features to promote natural living environments in an urban context.
2. Participants will learn how to analyze Townhome, Villa and Roof “Aluminum Composite Material” cladding system and inherent constraints.
3. Participants will learn how to use various water conservation strategies, to maintain a sustainable project through landscape features and the largest living wall in the US.
4. Participants will learn how to utilize natural light and circulation with large scale openings to bridge the gap between nature, and Architecture, while being conscientious of acoustical requirements for a residential building in an urban environment.