Hip to Venice

Photo by Martin Péchy, courtesy of pexels.com

 
Hip to Venice

by Sweiskloss
September 11, 2025
From the craftsman cottages on the canals, to colorful beach houses on the oceanfront walk, to warehouse conversions on Abbott Kinney, Venice Beach architecture is an eclectic mix of styles that reflect its bohemian spirit. This summer, Venice Beach celebrated 120 years as a vibrant seaside neighborhood.

“Residence on the Canal, Venice, Calif. 1916,” Werner von Bolstenstern Postcard Collection/courtesy of the Dept. of Archives and Special Collections, William H. Hannon Library, Loyola Marymount University, etandoesla.com

Founded by wealthy tobacco mogul Abbott Kinney in 1905 as the “Venice of America,” the beach resort town was inspired by Venice, Italy. Kinney’s plan was to drain the marshes and wetlands and create a network of canals, with gondolas, bridges and Venetian-styled structures. Ocean water filled the central lagoon and original 16 miles of canals.

Lagoon, Image courtesy of westland.net

With attractions such as a miniature railroad, a roller coaster, three piers with amusement park rides, a ship restaurant, a dance hall, and a salt-water plunge where “visitors were given the choice of heated or ocean temperature bathing” (beaches.lacounty.gov), Venice soon became a popular tourist destination. Emulating the Italian city’s famed promenade, the boardwalk emerged as a “cultural hotspot, attracting artists, musicians, free sprits seeking inspiration in its bohemian atmosphere” (venicebeachhouse.com).
Following Kinney’s death, Venice began to decline. Two fires devastated the piers. The city became unmanageable with the explosion in population, and in 1925 it became part of the City of Los Angeles. With the popularity of cars, the canals were filled to create roadways, leaving only six canals remaining. The blackouts of World War II also affected the seaside amusements, with only daytime use allowed. By the 1950’s Venice had become known as the “slum by the sea” (california.com) with the canals in disrepair and the area considered undesirable.
Yet, the spirit of Venice persisted, as cheap rents and bungalow housing attracted “young counterculture artists, poets and writers … the 50’s Beat generation, the hippies of the 60’s [and] the New Agers of the 70’s and 80’s” (beaches.lacounty.gov). The 1970’s Venice reemerged as “Dogtown,” a mecca for the skateboarding culture and subsequent graffiti artists. “With its supply of vacant lots, inexpensive land, and creative residents,” Venice architects began to adaptively reuse buildings in the late 70’s and 80’s and find “creative ways to push architectural boundaries” (laconservancy.org). A major restoration project in the 90’s renovated the canals and restored the sidewalks and pedestrian bridges.

Today, the area’s patchwork of architecture styles reflects its colorful history, creative residents and sprit of experimentation.
Along the canals, charming craftsman style bungalows (simple lines, natural materials) stand alongside Mediterranean style homes (stucco exteriors, red tile roofs, arched doorways) and modern glass houses (clean lines, glass and steel, and open floor plans).

Warehouses and factories near Abott Kinney Boulevard and Rose Avenue have been converted into live/work lofts, design studios and galleries. Bold and colorful shops and homes with painted murals decorate Ocean Front Walk.

Norton Residence
Norton Residence, designed by Frank Gehry for artist Lynn Norton and her husband writer William Norton, is a three-story collage of volumes, shapes, and colors. It incorporates a variety of materials “from concrete block and stucco to glazed kitchen tile and timber logs, in shades of sky blue, green, light yellow, orange and red” (laconservancy.org). Its prominent feature is the one-room studio perched on a post in front of the main house and is a cheeky reference to William’s previous job as a lifeguard. In contrast, next door sits The Snipper House, a Modernist contemporary steel-and-glass colorfully purple box.

Indiana Avenue Houses / Arnoldi Triplex
Labeled the “three little pigs” the Gehry and Arnoldi designed Deconstructivist triplex features a unit clad in sky blue stucco, one in unstained plywood and one covered in green asphalt roof shingles.

Winward Circle Trio
Winward Circle was the original location of the lagoon in the Venice of America development. Although none of the original buildings remain, the current mixed-use structures deigned by architect Steve Ehrlich “aim to resurrect the energy of the past” (laconservancy.org). These include:
Race Through the Clouds on Main Street, features an undulating steel rail that weaves around the building evoking the tracks of the original roller coaster that stood there. Also on Main Street, Ace Market is reminiscent of the dredging machines that dug the canals. The decorative elements of the Arts Building on Windward Avenue hark back to the Hotel Antler which occupied this site.

Hopper House
Designed for longtime Venice resident Dennis Hopper, Brian Murphy’s structure is dominated by a corrugated metal façade that hides the spacious, quirky light filled interior – a funky glass bathtub, open motorcycle parking area, a bridge connecting the living room and kitchen with the bedroom. Hopper purchased Gehry’s Arnoldi Triplex nextdoor to create a compound with studio, office and living spaces.

700 Palms
Known for his sleek glass buildings, architect Steven Ehlrich’s personal residence is a two- story eco-friendly structure that blurs the lines between indoors and outdoors with many windows and raw materials including metal and concrete. The home features three courtyards, flexible spaces, exterior sunshades, solar thermal energy and electric power making it a net zero energy home.

Bay Cities Garage

Photo courtesy of live-laconservancy-wp

This 1912 brick warehouse building has served as a flexible space for creative companies most notably the offices of Charles and Ray Eames. While its interior has been redesigned throughout the years, the original walls and roof trusses have been maintained.

Binoculars Building
Located on Main Street, Gehry partnered with artists Oldenburg and Brugge to create this distinctive space featuring a giant 45-foot-tall sculpture of binoculars, which served as the main entrance. Originally designed for the ad agency Chiat/Day, it is now home to Google.

Venice Arcade
Part of the original Venice of America, the arcade along Windward Avenue features distinctive columns and capitals reminiscent of its namesake.

Walk streets

Images by Krystal Chang, courtesy of justamoment.in

Walk streets built for a pedestrian lifestyle were a central feature of Kinney’s original design. Each house has its front yard and entrance off a narrow path. The walk streets are an escape from the noise and crowds and create a personal yet communal space. (justamoment.in)

Venice Beach architecture is more about personality and experimentation rather than uniformity. The city’s artistic and eccentric spirit permeates its nonconformist architecture, colorful murals and creative conversions.
 
Laura McMahon