History
The estate was previously owned by the Gavit family and called Cuesta Linda. They had landscape elements, garden structures, and the main residence designed in 1919 by architect Reginald Johnson in the Mediterranean Revival Style. The Gavit family commissioned architect George Washington Smith from 1921-1927 for additional landcape buildings and residence alterations in the Spanish Colonial Revival Style. His work included the water garden pool house and the form and pink color of the estate's distinctive walls.
The gardens were created over four decades by Madame Ganna Walska (1887-1984), an opera singer, who owned the property as a private residence from 1941 until her death in 1984. Assisting Madame over the years in landscape planning and garden design were: Peter Riedel, Ralph Stevens, Lockwood DeForest, and Joseph Knowles among others.
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