"Eighteenth century American furniture and the design of the architects Greene and Greene are my special love."
-Barbara Streisand
Career
The architectural firm of Greene & Greene was established in Pasadena in January 1894, eventually culminating in the designs of their "ultimate bungalows." The 1908 Gamble House in Pasadena, a primary example of this design, is generally considered to be one of the finest examples of residential architecture in the United States. Two other landmark ultimate bungalows were the Robert R. Blacker House in Pasadena and the Thorsen House. Such homes were completely custom affairs, where the vast majority of elements— light fixtures, furniture and even woven textiles— were created for each specific room.
After 1901, the firm began developing their distinctive stylistic elements, which would finally come together in a cohesive whole between 1907 and 1909; the Greenes soon developed a personal idiom within the Arts and Crafts aesthetic. In 1905, the Greenes began an association with Peter Hall as the primary contractor for their major commissions; in 1907, Hall's brother, who ran a millwork shop, began producing their decorative arts and furniture designs. In 1911, the Greene's worked on one of their largest designs, the Mortimer Fleishhacker House and estate in Woodside, California.