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A Modern Oasis In the Middle Of Yucca Valley: The Black Desert House Is Stylish Inside and Out.






The “Black Desert House” is a modern architectural home available to rent for professional Fashion, Editorial, Film and Advertising photo shoots, movies and commercials. Sadly, it cannot be rented as a vacation home. The 1,570 square foot home is fully furnished with designer decor and lighting and located about 2 hours outside of Los Angeles in Yucca Valley.







The secluded site offers ample parking with nearby lodging for staff and crew. Nestled in spectacular surroundings the Black Desert Home has 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a laundry room, carport, kitchen, living and dining rooms, and is fully air conditioned. The home also has a 30-ft long, 8-ft deep black bottom swimming pool with an outdoor hot and cold shower.






Conceived by Creative Director Marc Atlan — in collaboration with Oller & Pejic and Moderne Builders — the “Black Desert House” was spatially designed to capture every facet of the surrounding beauty, at all moments of the day. Majestic yet minimal, sophisticated yet primally simple, the “Black Desert House” offers an unforgettable and timeless experience of sensory inspiration.




Soaring panes of glass frame 70 miles of unspoiled Mojave Desert landscape; an ever-changing panorama of shade, color and light as the sun shifts westward. Articulated around a central courtyard, the 3-bedroom sleeping area opens onto the skewed rectangle of the deep, black-tiled pool.






The surrounding terraced patio is sheltered between the house and the towering boulder formation which, after dark, is strikingly illuminated from below.









The architecture spirals down to the level of the kitchen and dining room, for all intents and purposes the central cockpit of the house, and then descends via deeply tiered steps into the vast sunken living room. Black walls, midnight quartz, high-gloss anthracite and darkened steel form the backdrop for sporadic bursts of color.












Site Plan:


Floor Plan:


East and West elevations:


Specifications:

ROOMS:
Living Room
Dining Room
Kitchen
1 Master Bedroom with en-suite Bathroom
2 Guest Bedrooms
1 Guest Bathroom
Laundry Room
Carport

SQUARE FOOTAGE:
2.5 Acre Lot
1,570 Sq. ft. Residence
4,850 Sq. ft. Total Usable Space including:
- 1,380 Sq. ft. Pool & Lounging Area
- 740 Sq. ft. Dining Patio
- 630 Sq. ft. Inner Patio
- 530 Sq. ft. Carport

FURNISHINGS:
Ingo Maurer “Zettel’z 5” chandelier.
Andrée Putman “Morgans” polished aluminum chair.
Philippe Starck “Miss Sissi” white table lamps.
Marc Sadler “Giunco” white floor lamp.
Warren Platner “Knoll” dining table.
Konstantin Grcic "Stool One” red bar stools.
Philippe Starck “Masters” black dining chairs.
Elizabeth Paige-Smith “Blow” orange side table.
Antique Louis XV silk & gilt armchairs.

POOL & OTHER:
30-ft long & 8-ft deep pool w. outdoor H/C shower.
Terraced patio with multiple sunning platforms.
Air Conditioning throughout the entire house.

LANDSCAPING & OUTDOOR LIGHTING:
Spectacular landscape lighting & architectural hardscaping.
Plants are primarily High Desert native species i.e.: Joshua tree, juniper, pinyon pine, incense cedar, desert willow, etc.
Sculptural olive trees in entrance patio.

LOCATION:
2-hr. drive from Los Angeles.
30-min. drive from Palm Springs Intl. Airport.
20-min. drive from Desert Hot Springs.
10-min drive to Joshua Tree National Park.

More information about Marc Atlan Design, Inc. here
structural engineering: castillo engineering
energy analysis: alternative energy systems
general contractor: moderne builder

All information and images courtesy of The Black Desert House website. Photos © Marc Angeles and Nikolas Keonig, 2013

Vanity Fair's 2014 Hollywood Issue Cover, Close Up & Behind The Scenes.




On February 11th, The 20th Hollywood Issue of Vanity Fair hits the newsstands. Photographed by Annie Leibovitz, the magazine celebrates a year of spectacular film with a group of distinguished actors on the cover as it has done annually for the past two decades.

Left half of the full shot:

Right half of the full shot:


This is the most racially diverse cover ever for the annual Hollywood Issue, which includes six actors of color - a nod to both Hollywood's embrace of more racially diverse films and roles as well as to progress for Vanity Fair who has been criticized in the past for being both "too white' and 'too sexist." Of the 19 previous Hollywood Issues, the majority of actors gracing the covers have been white, although occasionally an asian, latino and/or black actor has been featured among the group. But to have six black actors on the cover is a welcome record for Vanity Fair.

The cover as it appears closed and the full fold-out:



The cover, a three-panel foldout, features Oscar nominees Julia Roberts (August: Osage County), Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave), Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club), and Lupita Nyong’o (12 Years a Slave), as well as Idris Elba (Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom), George Clooney (Gravity), Michael B. Jordan (Fruitvale Station), Naomie Harris (Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom), Brie Larson (Short Term 12), Chadwick Boseman (42), Margot Robbie (The Wolf of Wall Street), and Léa Seydoux (Blue Is the Warmest Color).

Individual close-ups:








Some still shots from behind the scenes at the photoshoot:




A video of the photoshoot:


The magazine will be on national newsstands on February 11.

Vanity Fair

Angela Nocentini Creates Couture Made With Magis Adhesive Tape.




Angela Nocentini, a sculpture teacher at the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence, is known for her fashions made with recycled trash and waste to emphasize her environmental concerns. To illustrate the use of tape as a reusable resource, she collaborated with eco-conscious Italian adhesive tape company Magis S.p.A. (not to be confused with Magis Design) to create these fashions using their products.


















At Magis the respect of the environment has always been one of their main concerns and they have been investing in new technologies with low environmental impact and in the use of renewable energies.

In their production they use highly recyclable materials such as polypropylene, paper, cartons and solvent-free adhesives as hot melt and acrylic water based emulsions.



About Magis
Magis, founded in 1983, was one of the first companies in coating polypropylene film with Hot Melt glue and to experiment with a form of printing called Sandwich, protected between the film and the adhesive. Thanks to these innovations, Magis has shortly become one of the leading companies in Italy, and soon after in the European and International market.

Magis is located in Cerreto Guidi on a production plant of more than 28.000 sqm.Thanks also to numerous investments, new machines and skilled personnel, Magis is able to guarantee the highest flexibility to all its customers and the best quality of the products. Nowadays Magis is one of the leading companies producing customized packaging materials and is ISO 9001:2008 certified.

original images courtesy of Magis, but have been highly altered in color, contrast and cropping by If It's Hip, It's Here


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