A modernist house designed by Donald Olsen for UC Berkeley physicist Arthur Frederic Kip has come to market in Berkeley, California, listed with District Homes for $1.425 million. Designed in 1952, the Kip House stands on a wooded slope opposite John Hinkel Park at 775 San Diego Road. Olsen arranged its rooms across several levels, beginning with the kitchen and dining room at the entrance. A raised living room and study occupy the level above, with two bedrooms below.

The kitchen opens to the dining room and continues out to a secluded garden. Large glazed walls overlook the surrounding trees, bringing views of the landscape into the main living spaces. A red balcony projects from the upper floor. At 1,904 square feet in all, the property has three bedrooms, two bathrooms and a study on a 5,706sqft plot. According to the listing, it is being offered for sale for only the second time in its history.

The house was designed early in Olsen’s career, before he established his own practice in Berkeley. Its split-level arrangement responds to the sloping site, connecting the different living spaces without separating them into conventional storeys.

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