Green elements in sea of hues

When artist Nancy Louise Jones and her husband, entertainment executive John Richard Diaz, bought a 1,000-square-foot tear-down in Mar Vista five years ago, they didn’t know that they would transform the property -- for $2.5 million -- into this ancient-Mexican/Modernist fusion of architecture. The hacienda, where they “work, live and play,” Jones said, was designed by the late artist and architect J. Frank Fitzgibbons.

The enclosed compound, dubbed Casa Moderna, includes a great room; a large, high-ceilinged studio for Jones’ work; an office with a full bath and steam shower for Diaz; a side yard for entertaining; and a large backyard with drought-tolerant landscaping.

Fitzgibbons was a Modernist who employed steel, concrete and glass in the construction. Light pours into the house, whose interior is painted vermilion, marigold and cobalt blue. Jones and Diaz, who are environmentally conscious, installed a roof made of industrial metal decking, and “we don’t ever have to paint this place again,” Jones said of the exterior steel-troweled stucco.

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To submit a candidate for Home of the Week, send high-resolution color photos with caption and credit information on a CD and a detailed description of the house to Sharon Bernstein, Business, Los Angeles Times, 202 W. 1st St., L.A., CA 90012.

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BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX

Casa Moderna blends new, old

Location: Mar Vista area of Los Angeles

Asking price: $3,995,000

Previously sold: For $750,000 on Dec. 4, 2003.

Size: There are three bedrooms and 4 1/2 bathrooms in 4,800 square feet. The lot is 16,000 square feet.

About this home: The property is hacienda-style with courtyards, water and bright colors. Surrounded by an 8-foot-tall redwood fence, the house is entered through a gate, then a courtyard.

The studio, which is attached to the house, fronts the street and is connected to the living quarters by an art-adorned hallway. The great room consists of an open kitchen and living and dining areas, which face the courtyard through a 10-foot-high wall of glass with sliding doors. The indoors and outdoors blend into one seamless space.

Additional features: The upstairs bedrooms share a “split bathroom,” one with a sink and toilet, the other with a sink and shower. The master suite has a full bathroom with his-and-hers sinks, toilets and walk-in closets. The professional kitchen has a 12-foot-long island with cooktop and seating area. The granite countertops are black and burgundy-colored; the cabinets are made of rifted white oak. The home’s floors are polished, steel-troweled concrete with inlaid aluminum strips used as crack preventers; they resemble terrazzo tile. The side yard has a lap pool and spa.

Around the neighborhood: Thirty single-family homes sold in the 90066 ZIP Code in September, according to MDA DataQuick. The median sale price was $745,000. There are 85 single-family homes listed for sale in Mar Vista. The least expensive, at $389,500, has two bedrooms and one bath in 840 square feet. The most expensive is this week’s featured home.

Listing agent: Dimitri Velis, Hilton & Hyland, (310) 278-3311