Wachtel Studio-Home and Eucalyptus Grove, Los Angeles Historic Cultural Monument #503
Built: 1909 Declared: 10/09/1990
This was the second studio home for pioneering Plein Aire painters, Elmer and Marion Kavanagh Wachtel. Elmer Wachtel designed this craftsman house with a large two-story studio living-room, complete with skylight. He planted eucalyptus trees around the house and used them frequently in his paintings. He is sometimes referred to as ‘The Father of the Eucalyptus School’ of Plein Aire art. Plein Aire is an impressionist style that deals mostly with landscapes and it was in the Arroyo Seco that this style found its first true home. Marion was known for her watercolors and her sculpture. The Wachtels moved to the Linda Vista area of Pasadena in 1919, but many critics consider their 13 years on Mt. Washington as their most creative period.