Influential Desert Modernist’s Palm Springs Home Springs Back to Market

One of the most influential practitioners of the style that came to be known as Desert Modernism is William F. Cody. Born in Dayton, Ohio, in 1916, Cody received his architectural degree from USC, and post-graduation, did a stint in the office of Cliff May, the “father of the modern ranch house.” Following World War II, Cody began getting commissions in Palm Springs as the town was becoming an increasingly fashionable resort for the show business crowd and other well-to-do leisure-seekers. By 1950, Cody’s desert-based workload had grown to such a degree that he relocated his practice and his family from Santa Monica to Palm Springs.

Along with various country clubs, residences, hotels, library, and church projects, the architect designed a house in the desert community that would be the Cody family residence for decades. Spotlighted in the September 1952 issue of Arts & Architecture, the 3,038-square-foot home’s design incorporates Douglas fir tongue-and-groove ceilings, cedar wall paneling, Italian marble and granite, and a multitude of glass walls looking out to numerous courtyards and atria, each of which have been meticulously landscaped with creosote and organ pipe cactus. Other highlights include an outdoor shower and a bomb shelter.

In May of 2022, the Cody abode was purchased for a little over $2.5 million by Paula Bueso-Inchausti and Guille Castaneda, husband-and-wife architects from Spain and partners in the design-build firm Nomos RED. Originally based in Palm Desert, the couple’s business has become increasingly Silicon Valley-centric, leading them to lease the Cody residence out for short-term rentals and events, most recently an exhibition of modernist art and furniture curated by Laguna Beach gallerist Peter Blake.

The aforementioned exhibition, ongoing by appointment through March 25, is also serving as a springboard for the three-bedroom, three-bath home’s return to market. This week, the pedigreed property, located on one-third of an acre in the Sunrise Park neighborhood came back up for sale with a $3.25 million asking price.

Keith Markovitz of TTK Represents at Compass holds the listing.