Living the Modern Dream: Herb Greene’s Cunningham House

by Lynne Rostochil

When local orthodontist, Dr. Earl Cunningham, and his wife, Martha, decided to build their dream house in the newly-platted golf course neighborhood, Quail Creek, in the far northwestern stretches of Oklahoma City, they turned to OU architecture professor Herb Greene, who was wrapping up his six-year career in Norman before moving on to teach at the University of Kentucky.  During their initial meetings with the architect, the Cunninghams requested a design that would showcase the couple’s extensive art collection, featuring works by Picasso, Max Ernst, and Georges Braque, along with their Danish Modern furnishings and collection of Finnish rya rugs.  Mrs. Cunningham was also the owner of Cunningham Books, located in the brand new and ultra modern Penn Square Mall, and she requested that there be plenty of shelving for her vast collection of art books.  Finally, according to Greene, Mrs. Cunningham “was interested in a house that could make an important philosophic statement but did not want a traffic-stopping curiosity. Both owners wanted to avoid upsetting the neighbors,” most of whom were building more traditionally styled homes in Quail Creek.

Greene’s split-level design creatively fulfilled all of their must-haves while taking full advantage of the Cunningham’s sloped golf course lot.

(Herb Greene collection)

In his design, a tilted plane roof arches downward in front, revealing a low-slung and very subtle façade that gives the appearance of a simple, one-story ranch that blends in perfectly with the surrounding houses.  The home’s big drama is in the back where the roof curves upward, exposing the home’s full, two-story height and showcasing the grand, floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the golf course.

(Herb Greene collection)

(Julius Shulman)

Sculptural screens in front of the windows both add visual excitement and provide privacy:

(Julius Shulman)

(Lynne Rostochil)

Mr. Cunningham didn’t want to worry about mowing the 15-foot-high embankment in back, so he decided to face the slope in the same red brick as the house, giving the space a sense of order and formality while also drawing the eye toward the home’s boldest external feature, the windows and screens.

(Lynne Rostochil)

Inside the open plan home, a 65-foot-long bookcase runs the entire length of the second-level walkway and overlooks the living areas below.  Here’s a vintage photo of the entry showing the split-level design and bookcase taken by Julius Shulman and the same view when I toured the house in 2012:

An alcove stretching the width of the house breaks up the shelves and provides a cozy reading and meditation space. Other interesting features include the master bedroom with a natural, multi-hued rock floor…

(Lynne Rostochil)

… and an accordion door that opens the room up to the living spaces below and the stunning golf course view beyond:

(Julius Shulman)

(Lynne Rostochil)

The drama continues downstairs in the dining/reception/living areas with high, high ceilings and curved walls overlooking the golf course view:

(Julius Shulman)

How great are those curved walls and that wood ceiling?

(Lynne Rostochil)

Also, the living room’s anchor and showpiece is a two-story tall concrete fireplace that is reminiscent of a Soleri bell and is framed by the same red brick as used elsewhere on the home:

(Lynne Rostochil)

After the nearly 4,000 sf house was completed in 1964, Julius Shulman came a-calling to photograph Greene’s latest and perhaps most elegant architectural creation.  One eye-popping shot of the back of the house at dusk made the front cover of the May 1965 issue of Progressive Architecture:

(Julius Shulman)

The home also appeared in the same magazine in 1968 and in Architectural Digest in 1971.

Except for a garage conversion soon after it was built and a kitchen update, the Cunningham House remains in remarkably pristine condition today and is certainly one of Oklahoma’s lesser known but most impressive architectural delights.

(Lynne Rostochil)

Oh and there’s a pool behind that green fence that my son, Will, fell madly in love with.

(Lynne Rostochil)