Logo with geometric shapes and text "Case Study: Adapt"

  • Ten of Los Angeles’ top architecture firms have come together to reimagine the future of residential design, blending climate resilience, affordability, and style to define a new era of California living—what we call New Century Modern.

    Our Case Study: Adapt™ homes will be thoughtfully designed under 3,000 square feet – with ample landscaped defensible space – challenging the notion that a home’s value is measured by its size rather than its innovation and livability.

    Each architect will be paired with a commissioning fire-impacted family in the Palisades or Altadena, with construction beginning as soon as feasible.

    The project will be showcased by Architectural Digest – from design development phase through to building and completion – bringing international attention to this visionary approach.

    Case Study: Adapt™ is a nonprofit initiative, currently pending 501(c)(3) status.

  • Los Angeles has long been the epicenter of architecture and design. Eighty years after the Case Study Program’s inception, the city’s devastating fires highlight the urgent need for a new design philosophy. The initiative challenges this new generation of architects to create homes that honor the original program’s innovation, elegance, and accessibility while addressing the current and future reality of our changing climate.

    Case Study: Adapt™ aims to inspire a new architectural era—one that merges timeless design with climate resilience. By developing build-ready, stylish, and sustainable residential designs, the program seeks to reinforce Los Angeles as a community-centered, accessible, and forward-thinking city.

  • Exactly eighty years ago, the mid-century Case Study Program (1945–1966) launched in Los Angeles as a groundbreaking architectural initiative led by Arts & Architecture magazine. It commissioned visionary architects—such as Richard Neutra, Charles Eames, and Pierre Koenig—to design and build innovative, affordable homes that responded to post-war housing needs. Many of these houses still stand today, including the iconic Eames House (#8) and Stahl House (#22), showcasing open floor plans, new materials, and seamless indoor-outdoor living that shaped modern residential design.

    Now, Case Study: Adapt™ (CSA) applies the same experimental ethos to create resilient, stylish homes for today’s climate challenges. While the original program redefined modernist design in Los Angeles, CSA explores sustainable solutions for contemporary needs, proving that exceptional architecture remains vital across generations.

the architects

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Due to high demand, any new applications will be placed on a waitlist for future consideration. Thank you for your patience—and for sharing your story with us.