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Home Designer News Architect Design Marmol Radziner Associates The Outside Inside

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If you want to learn more about the philosophy of architect Ron Radzinger, just look at his own home in Venice, California.

Radzinger is a partner in the prestigious architectural firm Marmol Radziner + Associates (MRA), which he established in 1989 with Leo Marmol. Their firm is involved in a wide range of design projects, including architectural design, programming, master planning, historic restoration, landscape design, interior design, and furniture. They’re leaders in the prefab movement. They also specialize in restoration work of houses originally designed by legendary architects. Most of their work includes high-end custom site-built residential projects in California for celebrity clients such as Tom Ford (formerly with Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent), actors Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher, and musician Anthony Kiedis.

MRA is highly recognized in the architectural field for their work in innovative design, research, and precision. They have won several awards in their twenty-year long history, including the American Institute of Architects Honor Award for their restoration of the Kaufmann Desert House in Palm Springs, originally designed by Richard Neutra in 1946. They were awarded Business Week Magazine’s International Design Excellence Award (IDEA), and in 2004, were named the American Institute of Architecture’s Firm of the Year.

Radziner, MRA’s principle designer, was educated in the 80s at the California Polytechnic State University and the University of Colorado. He is a member of the prestigious College of the Fellows of the American Institute of Architects and was inducted into the Interior Design Hall of Fame in 2009. MRA’s webpage states that Radzinger is involved with “developing solutions that provide a unique architectural identity and forge strong connections between interior and exterior spaces.”

This is exactly what Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher states MRA did for their luxurious family home in Beverly Hills. It was important to the couple and to the designers that the integrity of the existing home remain while altering it to fit the needs of the couple’s large, extended family. They also wanted to retain a strong connection with nature that surrounds the home. As Moore stated, “You feel the outside when you’re inside. The house is part of nature.” Radziner agreed, stating that one of the firm’s goals for the design of the home was to make its inhabitants feel like they were hanging in the trees.
It makes sense, then, that when Radzinger designed his own home for his young family, he would follow similar techniques. When he re-designed the house in 2003, it consisted of expansive interiors, including an outdoor dining area with a big fireplace—a contemporary update to the California Modernist ideal of indoor-outdoor living made popular during the mid-20th century.

When the neighboring lot came up for sale, Radzinger bought it to create even more outdoor space for him and his family. He was able to add almost 1,500 square feet of indoor space, open-air living and dining areas, a garden, and a pool.

Radzinger’s architectural values, and the values of his entire firm, are apparent in every home and building they design. The firm combines modern design and architectural concepts with traditional designs.