Houston, Harris County
A significant example of the International style of architecture, the 1950 Neuhaus House has a strong horizontal emphasis and expression of private and public space, as well as an integration of living space and landscape. Architect and Houston native Hugo Victor Neuhaus, Jr. (1915-1987) designed the home for himself. He graduated from Yale University in 1938 and then attended the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University, where the faculty included noted European modernists Walter Gropius and Marcel Breuer. Following graduation in 1941, Neuhaus served in the U.S. Army Air Force, and he returned to Houston and wed Mary Wood Farish, widow of his cousin William Stamps Farish, Jr. Neuhaus joined the office of C. Herbert Cowell where he partnered from 1949 until the firm dissolved in 1962. During his early years with Cowell, he became the local associate architect to renowned designer Philip Johnson, who had strong ties to Mies van der Rohe, a preeminent innovator of the International style. Neuhaus' design for his own home shows a strong reflection of the modern styles he was exposed to at Harvard and to the work of van der Rohe. The house features planes of solid brick and glass walls. Through the large windows, the indoor rooms share visual space with a plunge pool and terraced outdoor living areas, designed in collaboration with Houston landscape architect C.C. "Pat" Fleming. The Neuhaus home, one of several celebrated Neuhaus designs, was frequently represented as a shining example of Houston's modern architecture, a legacy that continues today. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 2005