Mother’s Day 2025: Homes designed by architects for their mums

The completion of the Rose Seidler House in 1950 marked the beginning of Harry Seidler's influential architectural career in Australia. Designed at the request of his mother, Seidler, who had trained under Walter Gropius of the Bauhaus movement, embraced the opportunity to design a modernist home in Sydney.

The house stood out amidst the bushland, featuring unconventional elements like multiple doors and a skylit bathroom that puzzled the building inspector. However, it was the architect's vibrant mural on the sun deck, reflecting his experiences in Brazil, that captivated visitors and garnered fame for the house. With its departure from traditional Australian suburban homes, the Rose Seidler House became a significant representation of modern architecture.

The house, now owned by the Historic Houses Trust, stands as a public museum, celebrating Seidler's legacy and showcasing the evolution of modern architecture in Australia. The success of the project led Harry Seidler to establish a permanent presence in Australia, shaping the country's architectural landscape.

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Charles Gwathmey, raised in an artistic household, designed his first project, the Gwathmey Residence and Studio, for his parents in 1965. Inspired by Le Corbusier, Gwathmey created a modernist home in Amagansett, New York, characterised by solid shapes and small windows.

The house, designed to resemble a sculptural form, considered daylighting and site orientation. Serving as both a summer residence for the family and a career-launching canvas for Gwathmey, the house propelled him into the world of architecture and design. 

Following its completion in 1967, Gwathmey established his own design practice in New York City and went on to design homes for prominent figures like Jerry Seinfeld, Steven Spielberg, and David Geffen. The Gwathmey Residence and Studio remains his most influential work, now valued at US$9.25 million and recently restored before being listed on the market.

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The Vanna Venturi House, completed in 1964, defied the prevailing architectural style of its time and is considered the first postmodern house. Designed by Pritzker Prize winner Robert Venturi for his mother in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the house intentionally broke away from formal symmetry with non-uniform windows and a split gable roof. Inside, the traditional layout of corridors and rooms was eschewed for open spaces with limited partitions.

This groundbreaking design marked the emergence of Postmodernism, as Venturi had the freedom to explore new ideas thanks to his mother's role as the client. Vanna Venturi herself became an iconic figure in architecture, with the house bearing her name.

Notably, she desired all her rooms on the ground floor, while Robert lived and worked upstairs until his marriage to Denise Scott Brown in 1967.

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Designed by Richard Rogers and his then-wife, Su Rogers, 22 Parkside in Wimbledon, London, was created for Rogers’ parents and is now recognised as a landmark of British high-tech architecture.

Built in the late 1960s, the single-storey house features a bright yellow-painted steel frame and full-height glazing at both ends, creating a transparent, light-filled interior that blurs the boundary between inside and out. Moveable partitions allow for flexible, open-plan living, while solid side walls ensure privacy. 

The property includes a separate flat and pottery studio for Rogers’ mother, arranged around a landscaped courtyard. Originally envisioned as a prototype for prefabricated, affordable housing, the house’s innovative use of industrial materials and modular design directly influenced Rogers’ later, iconic works like the Pompidou Centre.

22 Parkside has been Grade II* listed for its architectural significance and, after a careful restoration, now serves as a residence for Harvard Graduate School of Design fellows.

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Richard Meier’s very first private commission was a deeply personal one: a single-storey modernist home in Essex Fells, New Jersey, designed for his parents, Jerome and Carolyn Meier.

Conceived as “a Miesian brick house under a Frank Lloyd Wright roof,” the house blends Meier’s signature clean lines and geometric rigour with warmth and domesticity.

Completed in 1964, its curved brick walls create a cocooning sense of enclosure, while expansive glass panes open the interior to sweeping views of the adjacent golf course. An interior courtyard offers a private oasis, and a mature rooftop garden is cleverly concealed from view.

The house’s built-in cabinetry and glossy floors reflect Meier’s meticulous attention to detail. Though the Meier family sold the home in 1980, it remains a pristine example of midcentury American modernism and a clear indication of  Meier’s early talent.

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