Speechless in Santa Monica.

I stepped onto the beach in Santa Monica and I was immediately in awe. The sandy beach was vast; it stretched out as far as the eye could see. The sand was so thick, deep and clean, quite a contrast to the pebbles I try to love back home in Brighton, England. The pier is scattered with talented (and no so talented) buskers; playing old school love songs, with what sounded like all the longing and passion and heartache they could muster. There were a few tourists and some international students but the beach is so vast, it would take quite a few to become crowed.

I have always had a love for beautiful homes and buildings designed so innovatively. When I saw the beach houses in Santa Monica my eyes tried to jump from their sockets. The architecture was original and had a somewhat whimsical air to it. They are brightly colored; some have original spiral staircases and they have the ocean at their doorstep. 

 There are many aspect to the United States that I love, the homes are out of this world, I quite often take walks around Long Beach as I find it helps me think of new ideas, but more often than not, I find myself standing outside people’s houses with my mouth gaping open, or sometimes with my camera out, making sure I get a shot of the house in the right light and of course on its best side!

I feel this article would not be complete without mentioning the penultimate Santa Monica beach house: The Annenberg Community Beach house; a georgian mansion with thirty-four bedrooms, three stories, guest houses and two swimming pools, 'An estate that would have no rivals'.

Built by Williams Randolph Hearst for his mistress Marion Davies in the 1920’s this was to be ‘An estate that would have no rival’. 

Davies became an elite hostess; the beach house became a hub for Hollywood celebrities and industry leaders.

During the 1940’ the house was sold and then leased to the city of Santa Monica. Years later, thebeach house was restored, using private funding, as the city was unable to fund the restoration at the time. The Annenberg Community Beach House is now open to the public as a place to swim and relax.

 

Although I greatly appreciate modern architecture, I was a little disappointed to find that they had not kept more of the original features. 

 

Annenberg Beach House early 1920's

Annenberg Community Beach House 2013

By Amber Williams

www.bearlainternationalstudies.com

If your heart is set on studying Architecture in the United States then you may find this URL helpful: America’s Best Architecture Schools 2014, survey produced by Design Intelligence. http://www.di.net/articles/america-s-best-architecture-schools-2014/

These are a few more photographs I took of Santa Monica...enjoy!