First offering since 1978: The Galka Scheyer House, 1934. Richard Neutra, Architect. Second story addition in 1936 by Gregory Ain, Architect. Dubbed the “Maven of Modernism” and given the nickname “Galka” (inquisitive crow) by Alexej von Jawlenski, Scheyer broke the proverbial glass ceiling in the art world long before the term was used. Overwhelmed by Jawlensky’s “hunchback” painting she first saw at a 1915 exhibition in Lausanne, Switzerland, the pair developed a close friendship that lasted until just before her death in 1945. That friendship led to Scheyer’s formation and naming of the “Blue Four” artists that also included Lyonel Feininger, Wassily Kandinsky and Paul Klee.

A German emigre, Scheyer lived at Rudolph Schindler’s Kings Road House in 1931, where she met former tenants Richard and Dione Neutra. She hired Neutra in 1933 to design and build (with Gregory Ain) a truly “modern house” to be used as a residence and gallery for the art she was promoting and collecting. Archival images show Scheyer sweeping the front steps, hanging sage, lecturing on modern art, and hosting the avant-garde filmmaker Maya Deren, the artists and visionaries who visited the house are endless. Scheyer hand picked the site, named the street Blue Heights Drive and lived among the clouds until her death in 1945.

Approaching the private drive today, one sees Neutra’s signature spider leg immediately, and it is easy to imagine what Scheyer felt she could create with Neutra at the apex of this hill. The previous owner saw the spider leg accidentally in 1978 while driving around Los Angeles looking for architecture and knew the house would be his. Scheyer’s collection is housed permanently at the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena. The residence includes: 2 bedrooms, 3 baths, gallery style living room, separate office, built-ins, side patio, bonus room with bath and sauna, spacious storage area, workshop and laundry adjoins the garage. The breadth of the sweeping views, from Downtown to the ocean, should be experienced first hand.