In the mid-20^th century, the mountain-ringed desert landscape of Palm Springs became a mecca for Modernist design, many of those commissions fueled by well-to-do and celebrity clients. Top Southern California architects built here, including Neutra and Lautner. But an important figure whose work remained unrepresented was Ray Kappe, a Los Angeles architect of formidable talent, who sometimes flew under the radar. Finally, last year—about a half-century overdue and almost two years after his death, at age 92—Palm Springs became home to a Kappe house.

The project was a collaborative effort between Ray and his son Finn Kappe, a Santa Monica–based architect. The two had successfully joined forces before. This time, “Ray only did three drawings—a schematic plan, section, and elevation, all on yellow trace, but with a clear vision for the entire project. The DNA was all there,” says Finn, who worked out the details, developed the final documents, and managed the construction, which was well under way before his father’s death. “Ray had a consistent language of architecture—and, it turns out, I’m pretty fluent in ‘Kappe.’ ”