Starkey House, Residential modernist house in Duluth, US
The Starkey House is a residential modernist structure in Duluth positioned on a hillside overlooking Lake Superior. It features two rectangular volumes with extensive windows and wooden support columns, with board-and-batten siding on the upper level and glass sunshades protecting the lower section.
Marcel Breuer designed the house in 1954 for June Halverson Alworth, who later took the name Starkey through marriage. The project emerged during a defining period of Breuer's career as a modernist architect.
The house embodies mid-century modernist design principles through its separation of living spaces from sleeping areas, a layout that shapes how the rooms feel and function. This arrangement reflects the lifestyle ideas of that era and remains visible in the way the spaces connect.
The property is most easily accessed from the hillside where the upper level begins. The extensive windows throughout provide views from multiple vantage points, and moving through the interior involves navigating between different height levels.
A separate garage structure made from fieldstone and painted brick complements the main building and forms a cohesive ensemble on the property. This outbuilding is often overlooked but demonstrates Breuer's attention to detail across the entire composition.
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