One of the first house projects designed by the firm, the Topanga House appears as a pristine geometric object resting on a steep hillside. A factory-built box of galvanized steel panels encloses two moment frames that span the length of the house. The canopy door pivots horizontally to frame the valley below.

The house is poised on the side of a steeply terraced site opposite a storage and mechanical structure embedded in the hillside. Its design consists of two parts: a site-build retaining wall that forms a plinth and a single structural bay of a Butler building. Exploring the paradox of standard vs. custom, the box can be erected in five days despite the strict constraints and specifics of what was a difficult site. Challenging the perception that site work is by necessity customized, by utilizing ready-made elements through pre-fabrication building technology the firm was able to create a simple structure that exists across a spectrum of possibilities. An early study in refractory building envelopes, the shell also guards against the oppressive heat and brush fires of its environment.

The firm received a Citation for the house from Progressive Architecture in 1992. The model and original drawings are in the permanent collection of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.