Marcel Sedletzky

Marcel Sedletzky
Born	Marcel Eugen Sedletzky March 29, 1923 (1923-03-29) Volgograd, Russia
Died	1995 Santa Fe, New Mexico, US
Occupation	Architect
Years active	1958-1984
Spouses	Gunnel Maria Roden Barbara Carol
Children	3
Buildings	Esther M. Hill House Jackson House

Marcel Sedletzky (March 29, 1923–1995) was an American architect who lived in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. During the post-war era, he emerged as one of the architects and designers contributing to Carmel's architectural landscape from 1958-1974. His was known for his design aesthetic that came from his European training and influence drawn from Modernism, combined with elements from the American Craftsman and Third Bay Tradition.

Early life

Sedletzky was born on March 29, 1923, in Tsaritsyn (now Volgograd), Russia, a Russian port city on the Volga river. His Polish father was Apollon Sedlecky, a landscape architect, and his mother Elena was a Russian physician. In 1933, Sedletzky's father was forcibly taken away, by uniformed Bolshevik soldiers, to Siberia, potentially due to being an intellectual, a foreigner, or both. In the face of turmoil, Sedletzky and his mother sought refuge escaping Russia with only two suitcases to their name. Their path led them through various places including Poland where the family lived. Sedletzky received his education in Poland and when they moved south, he attended the German-run Real Gymnasium for Men in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. Subsequently, in 1941, he successfully completed his studies, obtaining a Matura degree, which is comparable to two years of junior college in the United States. During World War II, he and his mother were drafted into the Germany army and worked behind the front lines.

Eventually, in 1946, he found himself at the Technical University in Graz, Austria, where he pursued an interest in engineering and industrial design, with an emphasis on architecture. He engaged in at least one workshop with the Swiss-born architect of reinforced concrete buildings, Le Corbusier.

After two years at the school, while working in Zell am See as a junior draftsman, Sedletzky and his mother left Europe on a ship bound for New York City in 1949. They then went to Indianapolis and worked as domestics for the attorney Warrack Wallace and his wife. With the Wallaces' help, Sedletzky gained admission to the University of Cincinnati, despite his limited English skills. In 1950, at the age of 27, he entered an accelerated program established to allow men whose academic pursuits had been interrupted by the war to move more rapidly through course work and on-the-job training. Sedletzky graduated in June 1952 with a B.S. in Architecture.

On September 15, 1951, he married his first wife Gunnel Maria Roden (1931-1999) in Los Angeles, California. She was Swedish woman several years his junior who had come to Cincinnati to study art. They had three children during their marriage. They divorced in December 1971. He married Barbara Carol on November 9, 1974 in Tulare, California.

Professional background

Having earned his degree in architecture, Sedletzky moved to Los Angeles, California. He joined the planning office of Victor Gruen Associates, based in Los Angeles, California. In 1956, he earned the title of associate planner. In 1957, upon obtaining his California architecture license, he designed a Hollywood Hills residence for the Shevtzoff family.

Carmel-by-the-Sea

In 1958, Sedletzky made the decision to leave Victor Gruen Associates and join the small architectural firm of Robert C. Jones in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, to be closer to his mother, whose second husband was an instructor of Russian at the Defense Language Institute in Monterey. During his time with Jones, Sedletzky designed a drive-in at Fort Ord. This building featured a parabolic roof and a towering wall of glass, a stark departure from the conventional drive-in designs of that era.

In 1960, Sedletzky departed from the Jones firm to venture into private architectural practice called Marcel Sedletzky:Architect & Planners at Flanders Drive, which he held for fourteen years. He then decided to share an office space on Ocean Avenue with Kipp Stewart, a planner.

Esther M. Hill House

Front view of the Esther M. Hill House

In 1964, Sedletzky constructed the Esther M. Hill House, situated on Scenic Road and Santa Lucia Avenue on Carmel Point, with a view of Carmel Bay. It is a 3-module house, consisting of two stories, situated on a 40' x 100' lot along an east-west axis. Each module serves a specific function and features a diamond cross gabled roof with a pyramid skylight at the peak. The design incorporates fixed pane glass windows that extend from the overhanging roofline down to concrete walls. A stone chimney rises vertically from the South elevation of the front (west) module, which serves as the living room. The central module houses the kitchen-dining area, while the third east module accommodates the bedrooms and bathrooms. The garden and deck area surrounding the house is enclosed by perimeter walls with sloping cornices, mirroring the pattern of the house roof.

The Esther M. Hill house blends geometric forms with natural materials found in the American Craftsman tradition. Embracing the essence of Mid-century modern architecture, the residence has an open plan and is an example of the Third Bay Region style.

Jackson House

The Jackson House, was built in 1962 in Carmel Meadows, overlooking Point Lobos, is widely regarded as Sedletzky's masterpiece. Drawing inspiration from the architectural principles of both Le Corbusier and Frank Lloyd Wright, along with Sedletzky's own creativity, this 3,600 square-foot residence is a testament to his vision.

Gansa House

In 1967 Sedletzky designed the 1500 square-foot Gansa House, with an unusual parabolic roof in Seacliff built at a cost of about $47,000. Alex Gansa, a physician, commission the house in 1966 as a weekend retreat for his family. To protect the house from storms, Sedletzky and a structural engineer decided to pour concrete columns in the sand.

Casa Concha

He purchased a lot on the beach to build a house for himself and his wife, Casa Concha, in a Mexican fishing village of Bahía Kino, Sonora, Mexico. Upon retiring from teaching in 1992, they permanently moved there.

Educational positions

In January 1972, Paul Neel, a close friend who served as the director of the architecture program at Cal Poly in San Louis Obispo, extended an invitation to teach a class, a position he held for 18 years, eventually obtaining tenure. This decision, however, necessitated pursuing an advanced degree. Consequently, he attended UC Berkeley's Masters in Architecture program in January 1973 and graduated in December of the same year. In March 1974, he became an Associate Professor of Architecture at Cal Poly. Later that year, Sedletzky closed his architectural practice in Carmel and relocated to San Luis Obispo with his second wife, Barbara.

Death

Sedletzky died in 1995.

Legacy

The Marcel Sedletzky Archive (1946-1995) is a collection at the papers achieved at the McHenry Library at University of California, Santa Cruz. The collection encompassing various facets of Sedletzky's career. It comprises his architectural projects and teaching slide collection, along with architectural renderings and plans. Additionally, the archive preserves an assortment of project photographs, offering a visual record of his work. While primarily centered around his professional endeavors, the archive also includes a selection of personal papers and project correspondence, providing insights into his thoughts and processes.

Bill Staggs wrote the book Marcel Sedletzky, Architect and Teacher, about Sedletzky and his renowned course on architectural perspective. It took him three years and conducted interviews with his second wife and three children, as well as with some of his former clients and students.