Schindler never played by any rules but his own. Each of his houses bear the mark of an independent intelligence seeking new boundaries in architecture, seizing every opportunity to provide a liberating experience in space through complex geometries. Located in Hollywood Hills' Outpost Estates , the 1941 Druckman radiates pure Schindler. In original condition with minor alterations, it exemplifies his supple mastery with a hillside site. Light plays through different openings, each view of sky and nature carefully framed. Three-dimensional sculpture is transformed into functional built-in cabinetry and bookcases that appear exactly where needed, as though anticipating one's path. Every detail is considered, beginning with the rhythm of the joints on the pathway that run up the adjacent garage wall. The secluded walkway leads to what appears to be a one-story house, set back from the street in a thicket of greenery. The entry opens to a landing with a choice: go up, where the warmth of the living space, kitchen, bedroom and study, awaits upstairs, a peek of the exposed roof framing and light spilling over a cabinet above, or down, to other bedrooms and storage below. A polished wood floor and wall planes of old-growth rotary-cut plywood, refurbished to a rich brown, are a striking contrast to white walls, rafters, and beams. In the living area, a group of large windows below a wide clerestory opens to views, fresh air, and the greenery below. Defining a key datum line, a strong tie beam contains a uplight that defines the asymmetric triangle of the roof, one of the many original hidden lights serving way finding and defining space. A recessed trapezoidal clerestory offers yet another source of sunlight. The stucco cladding of the fireplace (that doubles as an outdoor fireplace with a generous terrace) has been only slightly altered, stopping halfway to meet the smooth red brick of the fireplace and hearth. The later kitchen's details and woodwork were based on Schindler's and opens to the original built-in table and bench seating; remarkably, the bathrooms throughout are intact. Beyond the kitchen, a balcony railing is framed with wood. The bedrooms on the lower floor feature large windows and more built-in cabinetry and bookcases, with additional storage and a laundry room cut into the hill. At the bottom of the site lies probably one of Modernism's most beautiful pools, a secret oval emerald gem (family lore attributes it to Richard Neutra) set amidst the trees.
