The brawny materiality of Hsu McCullough’s composition buttresses the all-important indoor-outdoor connection, with certain elements (flooring of irregular Indian black slate, a spine wall of seeded stucco) slipping inside to out. Throughout the house, moody materials—such as black brick, tile, and painted boards of reclaimed wood—are juxtaposed with planes of white oak, walnut, unfinished sheet brass, and slabs of Calacatta Viola marble. “We weren’t afraid of dark moments to underscore the moments of dramatic natural light,” McCullough says of the architectural chiaroscuro. “We use creative daylighting to nurture different kinds of experiences from one area to the next.”
McCullough’s audiophile propensities come to the fore in a series of artworks and built-ins, including a shelving system of cold-rolled steel and black walnut for thousands of records in the living room; a pixelated portrait of The Notorious B.I.G. he created with 1990s MiniDiscs in the dining area; and another portrait, this one of James Brown, crafted from hundreds of old cassette tapes. Like Hsu McCullough’s architecture, the meticulously fabricated artworks have a playful edge that invites and rewards close inspection. The couple’s home eloquently affirms the last of Vitruvius’s three virtues for every well-designed building: delight.
This story appears in AD’s February 2023 issue. To see the see this Los Angeles home in print, subscribe to AD.