The most distinctive element of Paul Rudolph's beachfront Walker Guest House on Sanibel Island, painstakingly replicated by the Sarasota Architecture Foundation, is probably the large square panels, or privacy flaps, which Timothy Rohan explains on Curbed:
Controlled by an ingenious, sailboat-like rigging system, the adjustable panels acted as giant shutters that could shade and protect the house's transparent expanses from sun and rain. Hinged at the top rather than the side, the shutters were abstracted versions of the hurricane shutters found throughout the Caribbean. The shutters were counterbalanced by ball-shaped, iron weights. Painted red, they gave the house its joyful, toy-like character. And while the pictures are great, watching it in action is a thing of beauty. And also weirdly a little hypnotizing.
· Paul Rudolph Midcentury Marvel Recreated Down to Last Detail [Curbed]
· A Florida Midcentury House Unlocks the Era—and Its Architect [Curbed]