McClean Design Creating the Contemporary House

The first book on the architect's custom-built residences in California, tailor-made to the highest specification one could ask for.

This collection of visionary residences takes us on a tour of the height in luxury, designed to accommodate all amenities available--from the indoor gym and hair salon to the movie theater, champagne vault and wine cellar, cigar room, and wellness room. California Living looks at McClean's rise to prominence, from his first Bird Streets home in the Hollywood Hills to houses that drew attention from the likes of fashion designer Calvin Klein and the record-setting Bel Air home of Beyoncé and Jay Z. In addition to incorporating water in all of his designs, he makes extensive use of glass to eliminate the barrier between the indoors/outdoors. His sleek designs seamlessly integrate the outdoors taking advantage of the spectacular views and landscapes.

After an illustrated introduction, the portfolio section of twenty-four magnificent ultra-modern homes describes each house in detail with sketches and site plans, explaining the architect's work. McClean offers his reflections on these beautiful projects and the design strategies behind their creation, all completed in the past fifteen years. McClean Design has grown into one of the leading contemporary residential design firms in the fashionable areas of Los Angeles and Beverly Hills, with projects throughout the Western United States and beyond to Hawaii and British Columbia.

Paul McClean grew up in Ireland where he attended the Dublin Institute of Technology, graduating with honors in architecture in 1994. During this time he traveled and worked for award-winning architectural practices in London, Dublin, and Sydney. After graduation he arrived in Southern California and worked for various local architectural firms before establishing McClean Design in 2000. McClean is a member of the American Institute of Architects and works primarily in California and Hawaii.

Philip Jodidio was born in New Jersey in 1954. He studied art history and economics at Harvard before moving to Paris, where he was editor in chief of the French art monthly Connaissance des Arts from 1980 to 2002. Jodidio has written over 90 books about contemporary architecture and art including Tadao Ando: Venice, Tadao Ando at Naoshima, Tadao Ando Modern Art Museum of Ft. Worth, and I. M. Pei: The Complete Works for Rizzoli.