News Flash
Selby Avenue Condo Saved!
We are very pleased to announce that the landmark Selby Avenue Condominium, which Charles Moore designed and inhabited during his decade in Los Angeles, will be preserved. Friends of the Foundation have purchased the architect’s home and pledged to renew and preserve this astonishing work of architecture. Charles Moore designed the triplex just after he moved from New Haven to join the faculty of UCLA, establish the architecture firm Moore Ruble Yudell, and shape the Urban Innovations Group. Moore’s Condo is a work of spatial genius, in which a mere 1,100 square feet unfolds around a 3-story staircase, leading up to a palisade of an architectural library, ascended by yet another stair. The Selby Avenue Condominium is now the 4th landmark the Charles Moore Foundation has led the effort to preserve. In the coming months and years, we will share the story of how this Los Angeles gem will be renewed and made a place of continuing life. We are so grateful for Katharine Welsh, James Trulove, Mallory Duncan, and Stephen Harby, who all helped make this preservation achievement a reality.
Life
Charles Moore
Charles Willard Moore was born in 1925 in Benton Harbor, Michigan. A former school teacher, Moore's mother recognized his gifts early on, and through encouragement in self-education and frequent trips across the United States, the young Moore developed a remarkable sense of place aided by a photographic memory. Learn more...
Austin · Santa Monica Canyon · The Sea Ranch
Great places deserve our care and attention.
Charles Willard Moore (1925-1993) was an extraordinary person—an architect, educator, and writer who carried entire generations in new directions. The Charles Moore Foundation cares for several of his architectural masterpieces as "living places", where it organizes educational programs, activities, and preservation projects. Learn more...
Places
Living Places
The Charles Moore Foundation preserves the Moore/Andersson Compound in Austin and the Burns House in Santa Monica Canyon. (In 2022, the Charles Moore Foundation's helped ensure the preservation of Charles Moore's iconic Unit #9 of The Sea Ranch Condominium in Sonoma County.) These are no mere house museums. They are living places where preservation and enthusiasm for architecture, music, design, and art is made a daily reality for visitors from all over the world. Learn more...
After
BeforeCube Loft, west elevation: before and after re-cladding. Drag to compare.
Preservation
Preservation
Great places deserve our care and attention. Preservation is a daily reality, and we do most of the work with our own hands! Learn more...
Programs
Programs
The Charles Moore Foundation is truly a "do it yourself" place, where we accomplish much of the preservation work with our own tools, hands—and backs! Many individuals and companies support our efforts. We abide by Charles Moore's observation that great buildings benefit from energy and care and attention. The more you put in, the more they give back. "Bread cast on the water," he famously quipped, "float back club sandwiches." Learn more...
Collections
Archives, Collections, & Libraries
Charles Moore, like Hadrian, was an inveterate traveler and collector. Starting from a young age, he amassed a stupefying array of folk art and souvenir toys, a collection emblematic of his ultra wide field of vision. The Charles Moore Foundation cares for this sensational collection as well as important libraries. The Foundation also assists with the development of Charles Moore's archival resources, located at various universities. Learn more...
Visit
Visit Us
Flat screens and pages printed with photographs can be stimulating and full of information, but places are best experienced in person.
We welcome visits. Learn more...