The MAK Center‘s  Silver Lake/ Los Feliz house tour yesterday helped once again put to rest the fallacy that Modernist homes have to be cold boxes with no regard for their contexts. On the contrary, the homes by Schindler, Ain, Ellwood, Soriano, and Harris focus on natural materials and highlight their landscapes: framing fantastic views, incorporating  secluded gardens, and opening up with cross breezes, open courtyards, and double-height windows. Our favorite houses, Schindler’s Howe House (1926, just painstakingly restored by preservationist Michael LaFetra) and Ellwood’s Moore House (1965), induced zen-like contemplative states with their breathtaking landscapes, light-filled interlocking spaces, and warm wood cladding. And who knew that Soriano’s Schrage House (1952) had a waterfall and a killer model train setup in its garden?