By Marianne Cotter

When architecture enthusiast Jim Goldstein finally had the satisfaction of seeing his Beverly Hills home redone by renowned architect John Lautner (www.johnlautner.org), he so enjoyed living in the space that he asked Lautner to work the same minimalist magic in his nearby Century City office. "I was spending long hours at the office at that time," says Goldstein, "and wanted it to have the same wonderful architectural feel of my home."

A 900-square-foot rectangular space on the 20th floor of a very conventional building, Goldstein's office had little to recommend it designwise except a commanding ceiling-to-floor view of Los Angeles. Lautner (who has since passed away) had never designed an office before. He came up with a plan that transformed the rectangular space by changing the angles of the walls, designing innovative lighting to reflect off the copper walls and doors, and repeating the sharp angular shape of the slate floor pieces in the furniture and in the rug under the executive desk.

A sloping slate wall separates Goldstein's private desk area from the public reception area. The top of the wall is glass, from which light projects upward and reflects off the ceiling in both directions. The sleek, angular furniture, made of Douglas fir and gray leather, is built into the walls and floors.

While Goldstein's office was completed in 1989, the modernist style holds up exquisitely, proving that design excellence always begets classic design.