Canyon to Coast

Architect Mark Singer Shows Off Laguna’s Finest Views

The house’s courtyard centers around a contemporary-style pool and spa.
by J. Michael Welton, OCEAN HOME MAGAZINE

LAGUNA BEACH, Calif. – A new home on the Pacific designed by veteran oceanfront architect Mark Singer balances privacy with wide-open vistas of sea, sand, and sunsets.

As far as walls go, this one, at 992 Oceanfront in Laguna Beach, CA, is a monument to multi-tasking. This wall doesn’t merely support the roof above. It serves as a shield from surfers and beachgoers hustling along a heavily traveled walkway to the south. It creates a comforting enclosure for a private courtyard with an infinity pool and spa, all tucked in between a garage to the east and living quarters to the west. Its windows above open up to the courtyard and pool below. And best of all, it’s a foil to some of the finest ocean views on this planet.

Stone masons built the wall using rough-cut, buff-toned Texas limestone, carefully eschewing the traditional use of grout between joints. It runs perpendicular to the Pacific Ocean for 126 feet east to west, along the southern elevation of the new home there. Directly opposite it are the wide-open views that make this home, priced at $15 million, even more memorable.

“It’s simply breathtaking,” says realtor Jacqueline Thompson. “From almost every angle in every room, you can see straight to the ocean and to the crashing waves. But there’s a lot of privacy.” “It’s only steps to the ocean,” says architect Mark Singer, who designed and built it last year. “You can go down for a swim and come back for a shower—or go for a swim, ocean to pool.”

This is a home that’s simple and clean in its celebration of what’s outside, and like its long-running wall, it’s happy to play second fiddle to its place in the sun. The entire design is dedicated to the concept of creating privacy while organizing and capitalizing on open space to the west and north.

“When you have a painting on your wall, the frame around it enhances it,” Singer says. “This house enhances the ocean experience by framing it in its simplicity.”

Inside the home’s 4,300 square feet, the look is stripped-down and contemporary, allowing sunlight to dominate during the day. Even the fireplace in the master suite, where the limestone wall comes to its end, is low-key, encouraging the play of natural light and shadows upon it.

Singer, who’s been specializing in oceanfront architecture for 30 years, likes to juxtapose the contemporary and the antique in his designs. He deliberately limited his material palette in this home to enhance its sense of elegance. Aiming for a look that is peaceful and sculptural, he splurged only on items like a primitive, Spanish-style garage door made of cedar imported from the forests of western Canada.

It’s all sited on a steep lot, with a house that moves in sections down to the ocean. It starts with the garage standing 52 feet above sea level, then the courtyard at 35 feet, and then sloping down to the living quarters at 23 feet. The lot is 50 feet wide, and the home itself is 40.

“The public spaces are wide and flow very well,” Singer says. “It’s a perpetuating experience that pulls you through. And as you move through, your questions [about the design] get answered, so that you understand the whole thing.”

That limestone wall serves as guide and interpreter all along the way, until your eyes arrive at the sun setting over Catalina Island. “People’s mouths drop,” says Thompson.

And for good reason.

LAGUNA BEACH, Calif. – 这栋房产的庭院是由J. Michael Welton所打造，围绕着中心的泳池与温泉，这套房产就是登上杂志的坐落于Laguna Beach,加利福利亚的992 Oceanfront。这套新建成的房产紧邻海边，是由著名海边建筑师Mark Singer精心打造，它保证住户的隐私的同时又让居住者可以亲临大海，沙滩和日落。

992 Oceanfront的打造是一个惊人之举。这套房产的建筑非常复杂，房产的外壁墙面不仅仅支撑着整套房产，它还起到了隔离的作用，可以使您与外面的冲浪者和海边嬉戏的人们保持一个足够的距离，保证您的安全与隐私。房产中也为您提供了舒适的私人庭院，庭院中还有您的私人游泳池和温泉，中心庭院坐落于西面的车库和东面的起居室中间。房产内的落地玻璃窗可以打开直接通往您的庭院和游泳池。这套房产最值得赞叹的地方就是在您的家里，您就是可以欣赏到全世界最美好的海景。

浅黄色来自Texas的石灰岩打造的墙面使这套房产避免使用传统的水泥浆，所以接缝处不会有很难看的水泥浆的缝隙。这套房产还具有非常优越的地理位置，它与太平洋从东到西呈垂直，坐北朝南的位置会为您提供很好的日照与阳光。直接面对太平洋，这套房产的价值并不在于它的豪华装修，更在于它为您带来的舒适和难得的住房体验，每天欣赏到太平洋壮丽的海景会使您忘记一切烦恼，这套房产现在的售价为一千五百万美金。

房产经纪人Jacqueline Thompson曾说过: “992 Oceanfront这套房产给人的第一印象就是壮观并且令人激动。在您拥有您私人空间的同时，您可以直接欣赏到太平洋和它波涛汹涌的美景。建筑师Mark Singer说道：“它离大海只有一步之遥。您可以去大海里畅游一番回家直接冲洗，或者您可以直接在家里的游泳池里游泳放松。”这套房产建造的理念就是为居住者提供一个简单而舒适的家，在保证您隐私的同时，您又可以最近距离的接触大海，您可以在沙滩阳光下度过您慵懒的下午，也可以随时回到家中休息放松。

Singer说过：“打个比喻来说，如果您的墙上有一幅画，那画外面的框架就是用来保护，加强它的。这套房产就对太平洋的海景起到了一个加强的作用。”这套房产总面积为四千三百平方英尺，因为它的地理位置，您会享受到全天的日照，夕阳西下的时候也不会有夕晒的问题。从房间的每个细节您都可以感受到我们的用心，例如主人套房的壁炉和墙面，我们都采用纯天然的石灰岩进行打造，它不仅低调而且还不会破坏天然阳光所带来的氛围。992 Oceanfront这套房产的首席建筑师已经从事海边建筑有30年之久，在他的设计中您可以感受到当代与传统设计的美妙结合。他尽可能的减少了化学材料和颜料的使用，目的是为了凸显这套房产的天然和优雅。为了使整套房产看起来非常的雅致，他尽量使用原始和天然的材料，例如有着西班牙风格的车库门都是采用从加拿大森林的进口的原材料而打造。

的，慢慢地越来越接近大海。房产的打造是由车库开始的，车库距离海平面有52尺之高，接下来是距离35尺的庭院，然后缓缓的到达23尺高的起居空间。整个地面宽度为50尺，而房子本身只有40尺宽。这一设计使得整套房产不显得拥挤。建筑师Singer说道：“这套房产就是一个奇迹，一个难能可贵的设计，当您参观完整个房子，您就会明白所有的一切，对于这套房产的设计您不会再有任何问题。”Jacqueline Thompson也表示：“房产外壁石灰岩打造的墙就像一个向导也像一个翻译员，当您顺着它走到房屋里面，看到太平洋和卡特琳娜小岛的美景时，您一定会为这套房产感到惊叹，您一定会爱上这里的美好。”