During my last visit to San Diego, my brother led our young families on a hike down the Ho Chi Minh Trail to Black’s Beach in La Jolla.  After climbing, slipping and sliding down the rocks along the trail, we veered south at the beach to avoid the supposed nude beach to the north.  After walking along Torrey Pines City Beach, my brother asked if we wanted to walk a bit further to see what he referred to as the Mushroom House.  Fortunately, we all agreed as we quickly and unsuspectingly found ourselves stumbling upon a relic of American Brutalist and Late Modernist Architecture.  

 

After testing the patience of my family by taking an hour to explore and photograph the 30’ wide circle, we went back home to do some research.  The Architect Dale Naegle designed the Bell Pavilion for Sam Bell in 1968.  The structure served as a guest house and a space for respite offering 180 degree views of the Pacific at the base of a 300’ cliff and a short tram ride.  

 

While the building’s siting is pristine, and its connection to the site is very poetic (it can only be accessed from the beach at low tide), I found myself most struck by the quality of craftsmanship that has stood the test of time for 60 years.  The building is currently abandoned, but the concrete of the house itself would look new after a quick clean.  Integral beams in a concrete floor plate that radiates from a central column would get you laughed at by a concrete contractor these days.