370 W Del Mar Boulevard Pasadena, CA 91105

Charles and Henry Greene, Architects, 1906, Garrett Van Pelt, FAIA, 1929, The Dr. W.T. Bolton House. Few architects have defined Southern California vernacular architecture more than Charles and Henry Greene. With their ability to blend Asian, British, and South Asian designs during the burgeoning Arts and Crafts movement in the United States, the Greene's forged their names in the annals of architectural history by designing some of the most significant architectural works in the country, including Pasadena's Gamble House and Blacker House, both of which were completed after the Greene's finished the Bolton House. Consistent with their work, the Bolton House is both sculptural and organic. The soft edges, calm colors, exotic woods, simple joinery, and lack of superfluous ornamentation reinforce the Greene's belief that conspicuous consumption and pretentiousness found in the revivalist architecture being constructed throughout the region is an assault on the natural environment. Perhaps Charles Greene said it best that their goal was to 'make necessary and useful things pleasurable' which, perhaps, is the fait accompli they had in mind for the Bolton House and their subsequent works of art. The Bolton House has received a few modifications since the 1906 completion. Other longti