Architectural Record invited leading architects and educators from across the United States to nominate what they consider the most significant works of American architecture for “For the Semiquincentennial, Practitioners and Scholars Survey 250 Years of American Architecture,” a feature marking the country’s 250th anniversary. 

Thomas Robinson, FAIA, Founder and Principal of LEVER, selected Schindler Chase House (1922) in West Hollywood, California, designed by Rudolph M. Schindler. Robinson notes that the house broke with convention through its flat roof, exposed concrete and wood, and open plan that merged interior and exterior spaces. He describes it as a work inspired by California’s landscape that has influenced multiple generations of architects and represents a synthesis of cultures, landscapes, and ways of living that deserves recognition as part of the nation’s shared history.