Art and Jessica Martinez never imagined they would own a home in the Valley. Their Silver Lake condo suited their urban lifestyle: strolling around the reservoir, walking to the local grocery store and frequenting their favorite tiki bar, Tiki-Ti.
But the pandemic made them rethink everything. Stuck at home, they dreamed of a single-family home with outdoor space to entertain friends and, eventually, start a family.
After months of searching, they stumbled upon a 1953 ranch-style home in Van Nuys designed by modernist architect Kenneth Lind. They saw an opportunity to enjoy more space, restore the home’s original mid-century charm and add personal touches to make it their own.
The exterior of the modernist ranch house, originally designed by Kenneth Lind.
“I had a hunch,” Jessica says, recalling the visit. “As soon as you walk through the front door and see how this house opens up to the courtyard and all the light coming in, it just felt like an instant hit.”
They learned that Lind designed the house for Mel Sloan, a professor at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, and his wife, Rita, who raised their three children there. The Martinezes felt a connection: Art is a podcaster and Jessica is a feminist scholar and professor in a gender studies program.
Despite being certain this was “the one,” the couple also feared they were in for a treat. The 1,800-square-foot home, with three bedrooms, two-and-a-half bathrooms and a separate 550-square-foot studio, would require major renovation. The lot was also 10,000 square feet and covered in plants.
The couple wrote an emotional letter to the sellers (the Sloan children), won a bidding war and bought the property for $1.05 million. Then they imagined their new life in Van Nuys: a pool in the backyard, a gym in the studio and space to entertain.
During the inspection period, a neighbor on Nextdoor alerted them to interior designer Jared Frank, whose clients include musician Reggie Watts, actor Matthew Gubler and filmmaker Jon Watts.
“There was a spark and he confirmed to us a shared logic on how to approach a renovation,” Jessica says of Frank. Frank explained that if they were going to buy this house, they needed to respect the architecture and its history. They would find period-appropriate finishes and that would take time. The Martinezes also expressed their love for Tiki-Ti to Frank, who began thinking about how to bring a version of this style into the house.
Jessica and Art Martinez stand in front of the tiki bar, designed to remind them of their favorite tiki spot in Silver Lake.
The renovated dining room.
A guest room was converted into a nursery in preparation for the arrival of the couple's son.
Escrow closed and Frank got to work the day the Martinezes got the keys. From then on, it took the Martinezes four and a half months to move in. The restoration, which ended up costing $150,000, included updating the plumbing and electrical systems and replacing the roof, which was a lasagna of old ceilings stacked on top of each other. Meanwhile, the Martinezes and Frank made important decisions quickly, choosing the paint color for the wood-beamed ceiling, flooring, and appliances, for example, knowing that the product would take a while to arrive because of especially prolonged supply chain issues and high demand due to the pandemic renovation bubble.
Unlike many mid-century renovations, the Martinezes didn't knock down any walls. Since the house already had a fairly open floor plan and surrounded the light-filled courtyard, they thought it unnecessary.
The contractor asked them if they wanted to move the washer and dryer to another space in the house or enclose them to hide them. Jessica drew on her work as a feminist researcher and recalled how these machines changed life in the 1950s. She kept them in the center of the house as a way of acknowledging the past.
In the living room, Frank (who is also a furniture designer) designed a custom-made 18-foot sofa that evokes mid-century glamour. Tables, pendants and sconces came from online sellers like 1stDibs, Chairish and Etsy, and were sometimes shipped from overseas.
The exterior door of the modernist ranch house originally designed by Kenneth Lind. The renovated bathroom picks up on the blue and orange theme of the house's exterior. The renovated kitchen.
Frank even gave the couple their own tiki bar in the house to replace Tiki-Ti. In the entryway, he used tropical-themed grasscloth wallpaper and 1960s glass pendants to display the couple's barware and Tiki-Ti memorabilia.
In the kitchen, bold-hued Big Chill appliances from the 1950s-inspired Retro collection continue the retro vibe. A cozy nook with period-appropriate chairs and a breakfast table has become the Martinezes' favorite spot to play “a good, meaty board game” like Betrayal.
Outside, Frank designed a pool that began behind the separate studio (which the Martinezes converted into a home gym) and curved toward what they affectionately call “the meadow.” Here, they planted a drought-tolerant mix of California dune grass, mondo grass, and poppies along with birds of paradise, pink camellias, and the former owners’ pineapple guava tree. Frank tapped Los Angeles painter Jessalyn Brooks to paint a colorful mural on the cinder-block wall that backed up the pool.
“It was incredibly rewarding to restore a piece of architecture to its original glory while simultaneously reimagining it to my clients’ specific needs and desires,” says Frank.
After the Martinezes moved in, they received a letter from one of the original owners' sons regarding the Japanese maples on the property.
“He said, ‘I hope you make the house yours in every way, but I secretly hope you keep those trees because they were a gift from my dad to my mom,’” Jessica recalls.
The outdoor patio of the modern country house.
(Emanuel Hahn / For The Times)
The backyard pool, with a mural created by Jessalyn Brooks.
As always, the Martinezes are in charge of caring for the trees, just as they had discussed with Frank on the first day. They have hired three arborists to treat the maples for bark beetles and soil bacteria. “We have taken the fact that we have been entrusted with the care of Rita’s trees very seriously,” says Jessica.
And despite initial concerns about the grocery store’s proximity, Art still finds himself walking to his own. It’s no longer across the street, but the couple is finding meaning in talking to their neighbors about gardening — something they never did in Silver Lake. In October, the couple found out their first child will soon join the family, which includes a Chihuahua and a rescued cocker spaniel mix.
“It’s going to be a very happy summer,” says Jessica. “We are so excited to experience this long-awaited transition in the comfort and beauty of this home.”
