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House Beautiful has revisited its 1979 Design House of the Year, a Las Vegas home organized around a central pool and courtyard. The archive report describes how architect William Turnbull Jr., interior designer Ristomatti Ratia and the magazine’s editors used shade, water, fabric and trellises to shape the house for its desert setting.
House Beautiful has revisited its 1979 Design House of the Year, a home in Las Vegas, Nevada, whose plan placed a pool and garden courtyard at the center of daily life. The archive feature recounts how architect William Turnbull Jr., interior designer Ristomatti Ratia and magazine editors designed the house to respond to desert heat through shade, water and rooms oriented toward the courtyard.
The home was presented in the magazine’s May 1979 issue as a design project intended to inspire builders. House Beautiful says the site was sandy and treeless, and describes the pool, palm and courtyard as visible from every room. A garage facing the street served as a buffer, while masonry walls enclosed a series of outdoor areas, including private decks, a “mirador” and a swimming grotto.
According to the archive account, Turnbull used standard builder’s materials, adapting them with features such as battens and latticework. The design team paired tall ceilings and exposed beams with fabric canopies and trellises that filtered sunlight. The magazine characterized water and shade as ways to make the desert setting more comfortable; the feature does not provide measured temperature or energy-performance data.
Ratia, then creative vice-president of Marimekko, designed custom furniture and brought the company’s floral and grid patterns into the interiors. Details included a tented dining area, bright textiles, a kitchen connected to the courtyard and other rooms, and a raised platform bed with storage in a children’s room. The project was co-sponsored by the American Wood Council; builders named in the report were Connie Sommers, Duane Daum and Ernest Becker of Rancho Bel Air, Nevada.
A Desert Plan Built Around Water
The archive feature matters as a record of how a major magazine framed residential design for a difficult climate in 1979. Rather than treating the Las Vegas setting as an afterthought, the plan made the courtyard pool the organizing feature, linking views and circulation across the house. The article offers a concrete example of how spatial layout, shade and outdoor rooms were brought together in a design project aimed at builders.
It also documents the period’s mix of practical and decorative choices: familiar construction materials alongside patterned textiles, lattice, canvas tents and custom furniture. Those details show what House Beautiful selected to represent aspirational home design at the time. The report describes the house as a way to soften desert conditions, but does not establish how well the design performed in practice or whether its ideas were adopted widely.
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The 1979 Magazine Project
The original story, written by Susan Grant Lewin, introduced the residence as House Beautiful’s Design House of the Year. The magazine says its editors collaborated with Turnbull, Ratia and designer Michael Haskins. The aim, as described in the archive material, was to create a house that could inspire builders while adapting a home to a sun-exposed Nevada site.
The current feature is part of House Beautiful’s Archive Dive series, introduced by editor in chief Jo Saltz as a recurring look at past magazine stories and their continuing relevance. The archive entry revisits the original project rather than announcing a new construction, sale or renovation. Its account focuses on the original design and surviving magazine material, including photographs and plan details.
“Every month, we’ll dig up a favorite story from the past.”
— House Beautiful editor in chief Jo Saltz, introducing the Archive Dive series
The Home’s Current Condition
The archive feature does not establish whether the house still exists in its original form, who owns it, or whether it has been altered since 1979. It also provides no current inspection, operating data or account from residents. Claims about cooling effects are presented as design intentions and descriptions in the original magazine coverage, not as independently measured results.
The available account does not say whether the original building plans, materials or furnishings remain accessible, or whether the house can be visited. It is therefore unclear how much of the 1979 project survives today and how its design has held up in the Las Vegas climate.
Further Archive Details to Watch
House Beautiful presents Archive Dive as a monthly series, with past stories selected from the magazine’s archives. The feature does not announce a restoration, public tour or new reporting project about the Las Vegas house. Readers can expect the series to revisit other historical design stories, but no future subject or publication date is specified in the supplied material.
Key Questions
What is House Beautiful revisiting?
The magazine is revisiting its 1979 Design House of the Year, a home in Las Vegas featured in its May 1979 issue.
Who designed the house?
The project involved architect William Turnbull Jr., interior designer Ristomatti Ratia, designer Michael Haskins and House Beautiful editors. The original report also names builders Connie Sommers, Duane Daum and Ernest Becker.
What was distinctive about the layout?
The rooms were oriented toward a central courtyard with a pool and palm. The plan also included enclosed outdoor spaces such as decks, a mirador and a swimming grotto.
How did the design address the desert setting?
The original report describes the use of water, trellises, lattice and fabric canopies to create shade and shape outdoor and indoor spaces. It does not include measured data showing how much these features changed temperatures or energy use.
Is the house still intact or open to visitors?
The archive feature does not say whether the home remains intact, who owns it now or whether it is open to the public. Its present condition is not confirmed in the supplied report.
Source: housebeautiful.com
