Cliff May (1909-1989), despite never becoming a registered architect, is said to be “the father of the California ranch house.” His homes during the 1940’s and 1950’s captured the essence of how earlier settlers lived under the California sun. He designed and built over 1000 custom houses beginning with his first at age 23.

In a recent MHM slide show featuring the photography of the now deceased Julius Shulman, we looked back at perhaps the greatest modern architectural photographer. As you might expect the paths of Shulman and May did cross. The above photo taken by Shulman is Cliff May’s 1954 Long Beach house (reproduction photo quality is diminished).

Now we present a retrospective of Cliff May houses in photo as a follow-up to our look back at the brilliance of Julius Shulman and his amazing career (he accepted commissions into his 90’s).

The photos of Cliff May houses presented in our slide show are from a collection by Realtor and modernist architecture enthusiast Doug Kramer (photo credit Rochelle Kramer). You can learn more about Cliff May and the California ranch house at Doug Kramer’s Rancho Style website.

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