Donald and Helen Olsen House, Modernist residence in Berkeley Hills, California.

The Donald and Helen Olsen House is a 1954 International Style house on a slope in the North Berkeley Hills near John Hinkel Park. Its main floor sits above ground level to catch views of San Francisco Bay and the Golden Gate Bridge, though mature trees now obscure them. The National Park Service describes its design as displaying the geometries, ethos, strict formalism and rigor of the International style.

Architect Donald Olsen, who studied under Walter Gropius at Harvard University, designed this International Style residence in 1954 as his own home in Berkeley. The house was built during a period when modern architecture was transforming California's building culture.

The house contains a mural by artist Claire Falkenstein, a detail worth looking for inside the residence. It is one of the few artworks tied to the building, which was designed in 1954 by architect Donald Olsen as his own home.

The house stands on a slope in the North Berkeley Hills near John Hinkel Park. Its main floor was raised above ground level to catch views of San Francisco Bay and the Golden Gate Bridge, though mature trees on the property now block much of that outlook. The surrounding streets climb the hillside.

The main floor is elevated on supports creating covered parking underneath, an inventive feature for its era. This raised position also means the original views of San Francisco Bay have shifted over time as surrounding trees have grown.