Fitzpatrick-Leland House

1936

Fitzpatrick-Leland House
Mulholland Drive and
Laurel Canyon
Los Angeles, CA 90046

Originally designed by R.M. Schindler as a model home in 1936, the Fitzpatrick-Leland House serves as the MAK Center’s Study Center. The mid-century architectural work is home to an international residency, research library, and curatorial headquarters. Through intimate programming and research-based residencies, the Study Center cultivates interdisciplinary inquiry and engaged dialogue centering on contemporary issues relating to art and architecture.

The Fitzpatrick-Leland House is currently available for visitations and tours. Admission is free. For more information please email office [at] makcenter.org.

ABOUT THE FITZPATRICK-LELAND HOUSE

The Fitzpatrick-Leland House commands a strong presence along the slope of Laurel Canyon and Mulholland Drive, as the three-story terraced scheme captures the eye with its interplay of protruding canopies beneath. Schindler’s subtle composition of interlocking volumes dominates the experience of interior spaces. 

The dramatic L-shaped home was originally commissioned by developer Clifton Fitzpatrick as a speculative house, a real estate promotion to attract buyers to the new housing tracts on the hill. Following numerous changes of proprietors and various modifications Schindler’s architecture would scarcely be recognizable today, had it not been acquired by Russ Leland in 1990 who, working with architect/contractor Jeff Fink, restored the building and recovered much of its original design. Through his efforts, Leland successfully recaptured the spirit of Schindler’s vision. In 2007, he donated the building and property to the MAK Center, insuring its legacy as a historically significant work of architecture.

The home’s light-filled spaces and expansive grounds provide an ideal setting for residency and small-scale programs. From 2008-10 the Fitzpatrick-Leland House served as a base for the MAK Center’s Urban Future Initiative (UFI), a fellowship program in which cultural thinkers from diverse nations entered into dialogue about urban space with Los Angeles scholars and practitioners. Since then, the MAK Center has dedicated the house to small-scale events and the lodging of international cultural researchers visiting Los Angeles for artistic and scholarly pursuits.

RESIDENCIES

From 2008-10 the Fitzpatrick-Leland House served as a base for the MAK Center’s Urban Future Initiative (UFI), a fellowship program in which cultural thinkers from diverse nations entered into dialogue about urban space with Los Angeles scholars and practitioners. The fellowship provided for two month residencies at the Fitzpatrick-Leland House to promote meaningful exchange between cultural thinkers and Los Angeles practitioners in order to explore the complexity of "the city" in relationship to the built environment, growth and migration, economics, politics, gender, and the natural environment. The fellowship’s mission was to cultivate visionary conceptions of the urban future.

Since then, the MAK Center has dedicated the house to small-scale events and the lodging of international cultural researchers visiting Los Angeles for artistic and scholarly pursuits. In 2021, the MAK Center initiated the Designers-in-Residence program in partnership with the Danish Art Foundation. The Designers-in-Residence program takes place June - December 2022, with the residents closely integrated into the MAK Center’s programming.