„Stilts“ are the homes of „death wish“ owners, say self-proclaimed experts. The idea of houses on chicken legs appeared already in fairy tales and continued until the architectural fashion of the 1920s. They have their admirers even today, even if they cause dizziness and fear in some individuals.
However, houses on chicken legs were also designed by Le Corbusier or the Soviet constructivists. They were supposed to be protection against cold and moisture. High supports created the illusion of flying above the ground. In Los Angeles, a visit to some of these houses can test those who suffer from vertigo. However, their owners consider them to be much less threatening and more peaceful than Hollywood cinematography portrays.
Houses on stilts frighten and attract.
Buildings built on rolling hills and on the coast of the ocean fearlessly show their foundations, at other times they discreetly hide them. They are not afraid of steep terrain or heights to offer their owners maximum space, comfort and unique views.
Houses on stilts have a simple concept: basically, they are „boxes“ on slender, cross-braced columns. They are extremely dramatic because they are built over a steep escarpment or defy the waves of the Pacific. The most famous buildings are those that jut out from the edge of mountain ridges above canyons and ocean shores.
For residents without a fear of heights or tsunamis, they offer wonderful „perches“ above the city or views of endless sea waves. Their apparent dangerousness has also made them movie stars, typically depicted as homes for troubled souls, such as the drug dealer in Lethal Weapon 2, or the gambling addict in The Gambler and the voyeuristic Tom in Body Double.
In addition, on the Hollywood silver screen, houses on chicken legs, or stilts, serve as a powerful visual in disaster movies, when hills collapse, water floods homes, and earthquakes and the end of the world need to be considered.
