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In 1964 the Coyote Wild Fire swept through Santa Barbara and destroyed many homes including the Van Bergen's. In Van Bergen's own words: Though they were "...completely wiped out", the Van Bergens "...escaped any personal injury". Unfortunately "All drawings, records, books, pictures, models, etc. went 'up in smoke'".
Not to be deterred, they rebuilt on the same foundations. Without cutting up and filling land on the hillside, the home was built to conform to the terrain. Perched on the side of a mountain, the circular veranda gives panoramic views of the Pacific, the yacht harbor and Mesa Headland to the south.
The house consists of a bedroom wing, a garage on a lower level and a 19 x 19 square foot living room (its slanted roof rises six feet above the rest of the house).
The exterior is stucco with gun metal trim and rust colored doors. Inside the walls and ceilings are finished with sand finish plaster. the interior colors were beiges, olives, rust and gold and light-finished Lauan Mahogany woodwork and built in cabinetry with furniture - all in a very "1960s" style. In the living room there is a circular raised black concrete hearth flanked on either side with tall painted panels (by Nancy Brigham, the Van Bergen's daughter). The panels are topped by wedge shaped clerestory windows.
The photo above is of the house after the fire and had to be taken from a helicopter.
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