It is an excellent example of the mid-twentieth century architectural movement known as the International Style, interpreted by architects like Marcel Breuer, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Walter Gropius and Philip Johnson for buildings constructed in America following World War II.

It is the work of a master artist of the second generation to be influenced by this school, the Swiss architect and designer, Otto Kolb.

[2] The Horner House is designed into the landscape and reflects a movement toward increased ecological and environmental awareness in the second half of the twentieth century.

The overall design of the house is straightforward: glass, redwood and pine lumber, transits with some aluminum and brass flashing.

The roofs are flat; built-up with paper, tar, and gravel and in some cases, on the terraces, the addition of pine duck boards.

The rest of the main floor includes a kitchen, bathroom and small study or guest room.

The glass was shipped from Pittsburgh, on special order, by rail and delivered to the contractor at the site for erection.

[2] As stated above, the exterior materials used in the Horner House include naturally bleached heart redwood, bevelled joint cladding, always used vertically, and plate glass.

The two-story core of the main house contains manufactured casement windows, transite spandrels and heads with redwood corners and facias.

For example, an interior ventilation system, based on narrow, below-window hinged wooden panels, has been permanently closed and is rarely used today, but a workable transom survives over the front door and the south plate glass windows.

[2] The other two structures, which comprise the residence, are detailed similarly to the main building, but they do not include any large paned (floor to ceiling) glass windows.

In addition, a timber frame was constructed on the north elevation of the guesthouse to provide a screened patio and outdoor shower.