 For actor Michael Keaton, renovating a house isn’t much different than making a movie. “They’re both productions,” he explains. “You have to coordinate everyone, there are defined roles and everybody has to know the central idea.” As Keaton has led both types of productions, he’s speaking from experience. Known for roles from Batman to Beetlejuice, the charismatic actor just made his directorial debut at the Sundance Film Festival with The Merry Gentleman, in which he also stars. And when he decided to renovate his Los Angeles house, he assembled a talented crew that included designer Audrey Alberts, architect Gus Duffy and contractor Gordon Rattigan to help achieve the idea he had in mind.
“The house is one of those really simple ranch-style California houses,” says Keaton, “and I didn’t want to try and make it something that it wasn’t. I wanted to use the bones of it and improve it, take it to another level.” He also wanted the space he had to be better organized and to fill in what he didn’t have with a few additions. The house was conventionally arranged with the public spaces clustered in the center and the bedrooms lined up on one side, but he hoped for a layout that would create a private master suite, more usable public areas and connections to the outside wherever possible. 
“It wasn’t a bad house,” says Alberts. “It was just ordinary, and Michael wanted to make it more interesting.” As the somewhat rural sensibility of the structure resonated with Keaton, who has roots in the East and a ranch in the Rocky Mountains, Alberts helped devise an overall design language inspired by a “modern barn” aesthetic.
To that end, the exterior stucco was replaced with more appropriate clapboard, and when it came to reworking the interior, the architect gave the central core a straightforward two-room-deep layout. “We really liked the scale and the balance of the living room,” says Duffy, “so that was our keynote.” Next to the living room the former dining room was repurposed to create a graceful entry that allows for a clear visual pathway from the front door to the back yard, and a small media room was put in next to it. Down the hall and positioned to take in views of the back yard are the dining room and the kitchen, which was expanded to include a built-in banquette and space for gathering.  Following the natural grade of the site, a hallway off the kitchen steps down to a wing that was added to accommodate his gym, his son Sean’s room and the utility spaces. “I always wanted this house to be in zones,” says Keaton, who now has a private zone on the opposite side of the house, where the master suite was extended. His bedroom was enlarged, and the bath was relocated to open to a small outdoor deck. Alberts united all of the zones by using the same hardwood floors throughout and washing the structure with a bright white paint.
Alberts also vaulted the ceilings in the living room, kitchen and master bedroom to heighten the rooms. “Michael doesn’t like very large rooms,” says Alberts. “But this brings a sense of scale that a typical flat ceiling doesn’t have and still keeps the rooms feeling intimate.” Barn doors—a creative alternative to pocket doors—slide to close off the kitchen and media room when needed, and Alberts updated all of the cabinetry and fireplace mantels to be “classic but minimal,” she says.  The furnishings fall into a similar category. In the living room, contemporary Holly Hunt chairs are paired with a sofa from A. Rudin and a Chinese low table. The color palette is kept neutral and calming, as it is in the dining room, where a custom-finished table is surrounded by high-back wicker and leather chairs. A Gérard four-poster in the master bedroom gives a traditional form a modern edge. Artwork by W. Eugene Smith, Russell Chatham, Charles Lindsay and others whose art Keaton has accumulated over the years lends a personal perspective. “Michael has a wonderful eye for photography,” says Alberts. “He has pieces that’ll pull you across the room.”
Despite his hectic schedule, Keaton remained very involved with the project. “It’s fun,” he says. “Building houses is basically playing in the dirt for grown-ups, and it’s also where you live. How you live and where you live are important. Housing is a primal thing: You’ve got food, you’ve got sex and you’ve got shelter.” Though Keaton’s interest in the house went beyond meeting basic needs, that attitude kept him engaged from the big picture down to the smallest decisions. “I’m visual to a fault,” he admits. “You have to design for how you live, and the details matter. It drives you crazy in the short run, but if you don’t mind doing the work, you’re always glad you did.” |
