Shamir Shah Goes West to Update a San Francisco Home

Shamir Shah Design has left its signature imprint all over the Manhattan residential map. So much so that when a sophisticated, world-traveled couple visited a lower Park Avenue loft principal Shamir Shah had created for friends, the pair was determined to bring the designer West—specifically to San Francisco, where a recently purchased Pacific Heights house was in need of a gut renovation. “All the things he did—art, furniture, textures, textiles, scale—spoke to each other,” the wife says of what initially attracted them to Shah’s distinctive style. An ensuing dinner party established that designer and clients had mutual respect and the right chemistry—prescient planning since the project took six years to complete, thanks to COVID erupting during the construction phase.

“We do interiors and architectural design,” Shah says of his practice, “mostly in New York, where we generally don’t work with an architect on smaller residential projects.” Thousands of miles away, San Francisco’s infamously labyrinthine permitting process presented another story: “We needed a local architect to shepherd the renovation through the building department, take charge of the house’s core and shell, and work in a truly collaborative spirit.” Enter Geddes Ulinskas Architects. In a flip of the usual procedure, it was the designer who brought on the architect after diligently interviewing three other prospects. “We enhanced each other’s roles,” principal Geddes Ulinskas reports, lauding the thoroughness of Shah’s drawings. “He produced a brilliant package that was a fantastic way of communicating and transmitting his passion for the project to the entire team.”

The Home Renovation Features Seismic Upgrades

The house, originally a 4,000-square-foot, three-level, wood-sided structure dating to 1947, was lackluster in design and substandard in construction. What it did have was location. At an elevation of 340 feet, the site offers panoramic views of San Francisco Bay. And in a city given to a mélange of residential styles, the property was located in a cul-de-sac of pedigree modernist houses by Gardner Dailey, Joseph Esherick, and William Wurster. In fact, the enclave is up for listing on the National Register of Historic Places.

The second level is given over to private quarters: the main suite, two bedrooms, one doubling as a larger office, and a sitting room. The penthouse, which opens to a roof deck, is designated as a game room while more things recreational—a gym and a capacious wine cellar—join two additional bedrooms, a laundry, and a mudroom in the basement.

“In general, our work is quiet and serene,” Shah says of the furnishings and materials, which are frequently custom and used plentifully “for a rich, layered approach.” Pale creams and grays dominate the color palette, while bronze is the metal of choice. A characteristic vignette centers on the living room fireplace, which is surrounded by planes of travertine and flanked by a pair of oak-lined niches with custom bronze pedestals topped by Ju Ming sculptures, part of the family’s art collection.

“We wanted large walls for art,” Shah continues. Whether existing, purchased, or commissioned, the pieces were curated by the designer. An impressive Max Neumann canvas, one of the first works acquired and a Shah favorite, anchors the living room. A pair of Julian Watts stained-maple bas-reliefs adorn the adjoining wall, across from which hangs a Katherine Hogan wire sculpture, a ghostly presence reminiscent of the late San Francisco artist Ruth Asawa’s iconic pieces. Arguably closest to home is the commissioned site-specific mixed-media work spanning a media-room wall. Made of canvas, burlap, rope, and wood, it’s by Malcolm Hill, Shah’s life partner.

Inside the Curated, Art-Filled Home by Shamir Shah Design

shamir shah design: nely cuzo; cailen messersmith; olivia manzano; wendy wahlert

geddes ulinskas architects: alla agafonov; roma olišauskaitė

lutsko associates landscape architects: landscape consultant

jon brody structural engineers: structural engineer

matarozzi pelsinger builders: general contractor

todd merrill studio: custom sofas (living room)

through fair: floor lamp

through ralph pucci international: daybed

through galerie bsl: loveseat

la cividina: armchair

argosy designs: custom pedestal

Woven: custom rugs (living room, media room)

neolith: sintered stone (kitchen)

Holly Hunt: sconces (stair), chairs (dining room), armchairs (media room)

through maison gerard: sconce, shelf (entry)

Lindsey adelman studio: pendant fixture (entry), chandelier (dining room)

bddw: table (dining room)

chris french metal: custom front door (exterior)

amuneal: custom coffee table (media room)

emmemobili: table (penthouse)

dwr: chairs

garde: pendant fixture

phillip jeffries: wallcovering (bedroom)

bruno moinard éditions: armchairs (bedroom), sconces (penthouse)

B&B Italia: sectional (penthouse)

galanter & jones: seating (terrace)

erickson æsthetics: chair (office)

caste design: tables

Sacco: custom rugs

Resawn Timber Co.: accoya siding

amari: windows

benjamin moore & co.: paint

Clive Wilkinson Architects Builds a Breezy Abode in West Los Angeles

Los Angeles–based architect Clive Wilkinson is best known for his experimental, experiential workplaces. His namesake Culver City studio has put its mark on such entities as Maquarie Group in Sydney, Microsoft in Vancouver, BMW Research and Innovation Center in Munich, Publicis and the Barbarian Group in New York, and, closer to home, the Santa Monica College Center for Media & Design and its adjunct, KCRW Media Center for public radio. But guess what? “I’m really interested in doing more residential,” the Interior Design Hall of Famer confesses.

That was a lucky thing indeed for one couple making the move from Chicago to L.A. They decided to approach Wilkinson about designing a new-build after touring his former West Hollywood dwelling during their real estate hunt; at the time, it was one of only two he’d ever completed. (He’s since wrapped another ground-up residential project plus the renovation of a John Lautner property, and has two more houses and a development in the works.) The pair had been through the construction process before, having previously commissioned a contemporary town house in Chicago’s Bucktown neighborhood. “So we cold-called him,” the husband remembers. Turns out Wilkinson was game, and the trio proved simpatico: “We creatively and passionately connected with this guy,” the client says. “In Clive, we met someone who shared our vision of how to live here.”

That included, naturally, the desire for an easy indoor-outdoor rapport. It’s a SoCal cliché, but interpreted here with plenty of ingenuity (we’ll get to that). There was also the need for a home office, a six-seat screening room, a principal and two guest bedrooms so the couple’s three grown kids could rotate visits, and a meditation room. A pool, too, of course. Further, the roof had to be flat, not just as a nod to the modern idiom but also to accommodate solar panels.

The clients presented Wilkinson with a favorable site, a traditional rectangular plot in West L.A. flanked by single-family residences adhering to zoning’s 20-foot height limit. “Personally, I like these little generic lots,” the architect notes. “They provide the opportunity and the challenge to create a sense of openness and flow while working within tight spatial constraints.” Wilkinson chose not to build to property-line boundaries, instead opting to surround the structure with abundant breathing room—a device that allowed for a better connection with the elements. The house reads as a series of interlocking volumes, with the voids in-between them forming sheltered exterior spaces, a configuration that alludes to the courtyard typology so prevalent in the California vernacular.

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At 3,000 square feet, the house is rather compact. Wilkinson’s boldest stroke is visible from the concrete-paved entry path. Jutting out in front of the slatted cedar-and-steel front gate are two rectangular volumes. One is a windowless board-formed concrete box that encases the screening room. Its counterpart, clad with standing-seam aluminum panels, accommodates the two-car garage, made narrow and tandem-style to de-emphasize its presence. (The house’s only intentionally “rough edge,” per Wilkinson, is the charred Japanese cedar siding at rear.)

Inside, the duality dissolves into one cohesive plan. Just past the Bento box–like cedar-walled entryway that Wilkinson likens to “a room of its own” is the bright and airy living area—a decidedly unexpected contrast to the opaque face the dwelling presents to the street. Sliders within a dark-anodized-bronze framework render distinctions between indoors and out a mere technicality. The double-height living space leads to two “wings” that wrap around the back courtyard: one containing an open dining-kitchen expanse, the other housing the primary bedroom suite with adjacent meditation room overlooking a side court. Oak stairs lead up to a mezzanine providing access to the guest suites. The larger of the two boasts a bonus. It opens to a quasi-outdoor space: a roofless sunroom, enclosed by cedar slats, that perches atop the garage.

When furnishing their Chicago home, the clients went single-stop shopping at the city’s Luminaire showroom, purchasing pieces by esteemed designers such as Piero Lissoni, Antonio Citterio, Poul Kjærholm, Jeffrey Bernett, and Lievore Altherr Molina—all of which came with them to L.A. (Also making the trip safely from Chi-town: the meditation room’s 7-foot-high wooden Buddha.) For fill-in pieces once they settled in and determined their exact needs, the couple got lucky once again: Luminaire had recently opened a grand, two-floor corner location in nearby West Hollywood. Rounding out the picture-perfect mise-en-scène are photographs by Elger Esser, Matthew Pillsbury, and Vik Muniz. “They have good taste—and good art,” Wilkinson notes of his clients.

One thing the husband enjoys most about his new house is his “commute.” In this car-culture city, it’s the very antithesis of the norm. Rather than endure the daily frustration of once-again-stalled bumper-to-bumper traffic, all he need do is head upstairs and stroll across the al fresco catwalk connecting the bedroom mezzanine with his dedicated workspace. Sometimes he doesn’t even make it that far. The interstitial garden terrace with bench seating beckons and becomes the day’s work-from-anywhere setting.

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Danielle Shaffner, Ben Kalenik, David Burns: Clive Wilkinson Architects

Gs Landscape Architecture Studio: Landscape Design

C.W. Howe Partners: Structural Engineer

Jtmec Corporation: Mep

Porro Through Luminaire: Table (Dining Area)

Sing Welding: Custom Gate (Front Court)

Liteline Through Digital Decora: Downlight

Arcadia Custom Through Taylor Brothers Architectural Products: Pivot Door

Through Luminaire: Lounges, Sofa, Side Tables (Living Area); Bed (Bedroom)

Vauni: Fire Box (Living Area)

Eco Outdoor: Tile Flooring

Northern Wide Plank: Wood Flooring

Unique Garage Door Through Truteam: Garage Door (Exterior)

Voguebay: Flooring (Terrace)

Lightology: Lighting Pendants (Living Area)

Union Rustic: Bench (Bedroom)

Baldwin: Door Hardware

Fleetwood Windows & Doors Through Taylor Brothers Architectural Products: Windows, Sliders

Taylor Metal Products: Metal Cladding

Resawn Timber Co.: Charred Siding

Lutron: Downlights

Dunn-Edwards: Paint