This attractively boxy, well-preserved post-and-beam house sits at the edge of a forest preserve in the old established neighborhood of Poppleton Park, in Birmingham, Michigan, well outside the blighted areas of nearby Detroit. The established area is booming with McMansions popping up overnight, replacing houses like this one, but this classic survives. Still a pleasant area to take a stroll in and wave "hi" to neighbors - or to walk down the street for dinner and a movie, Birmingham offers contrasting glimpses of Americana. Neat historical kinds of post-war memories are represented - and the kind of yuppiefication indicated by, say, 10 Starbucks within 5 miles and lots of baby strollers.
When friends in the area first showed me the house back in 1999, it was smaller and more hidden, a bit more mysterious, and at tremendous risk of being bought as a teardown. Luckily, the story doesn’t turn out that way - at least not yet. The house was bought, restored and added onto, and kept in loving modernist hands. Known as the Dinkeloo House, it’s well worth a look.
Architect John Dinkeloo designed the house for himself in 1951, in collaboration with his partners, Eero Saarinen and Kevin Roche. One of the earliest projects worked on by all three men, the house is a remarkable example of post-war architectural expression, presaging the more famous works to come from their firm. Dinkeloo was a technical expert in the fields of construction and technology, while Saarinen and Roche were architecture designers. Born in Holland, Michigan in 1918, Dinkeloo studied at the University of Michigan School of Architecture, then worked for Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill. In 1950, he joined Saarinen’s office the same year as Kevin Roche, and became a partner in 1955. The team became a huge success, making a lasting impression on modern architecture.
After Saarinen died in 1961, Dinkeloo and Roche completed the ten major projects the firm had underway, including the Saint Louis Arch, the TWA Terminal at JFK International Airport in New York, Dulles International Airport outside Washington, D.C., John Deere and Company Headquarters in Moline, Illinois, and the CBS headquarters in New York. In 1966, they co-founded their own firm, Roche-Dinkeloo & Associates, based in Hamden, Connecticut. Simple designs and skilled use of technology were their trademarks. The partnership ended with John Dinkeloo’s unfortunate death in 1981, the year before Roche won the Pritzker Architecture Prize, one of the many prestigious awards he has received during his career. In his acceptance speech, Roche honored Dinkeloo by saying he was "a dear friend for thirty years, without whose strength and skill and many talents this work would never have happened."
The Dinkeloo House looks today much as it appeared originally, with an exposed post-and-beam ceiling, open spaces, and walls of glass. Recently updated with modern conveniences, the house now has a little more space than Dinkeloo’s original plan, and of course, the current owners have added some personal touches. The house now features four bedrooms, 3-1/2 baths, a living room, family room, kitchen and breakfast room as well as a formal dining area, and private master suite, all on the upper level, comprising approximately 3047 square feet. There’s also a walk-out lower level with approximately 960 square feet. The exterior red glazed brick surrounding the carport was part of an experimental application of the brick used on the GM Tech Center in Warren, Michigan, designed by the Saarinen office around the same time. The current owners have kept that brick, and added skylights over raised red painted dormers, along with a decorative fish pond and waterfall to the front, keeping all additions consistent with the original design scheme. And, of course, they furnished the house in mid-century modern style. Eames, Bertoia, Saarinen.... Thonet, Herman Miller, Knoll, Heywood-Wakefield.... the house "shows" like a modern design museum.
As much as the current owners have loved restoring and augmenting the Dinkeloo House, they have decided to offer it for sale. A lucky new owner will get not only one of the most architecturally significant modernist houses in the Detroit area, the purchase will also save this classic from the teardown that could befall it in this neighborhood. If you’re interested, get busy. For once, a modern dream house with an impeccable architectural pedigree is available - you can’t say nobody told you.
For more information, or to make the Dinkeloo House your home, contact the realtor:
Susan Keim (license #225779)
re: MLS #23055011
500 S Old Woodward tel: (248) 988-2243 email: keimsoldmine@aol.com All information furnished regarding the property for sale, rental, or financing is from sources deemed reliable. No representation is made as to the accuracy therefore, and it is submitted subject to errors, change of price, rental, or other conditions, sale, lease or financing, or withdrawal without notice.
SOURCES:
Personal interviews with Susan Keim and Nicholas Leo http://www.greatbuildings.com/architects/Roche-Dinkeloo.html http://www.pritzkerprize.com/roche.htm
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