Set closer to the cliff than most homes in the Sea Ranch, California community, the Standing Wave house opens itself fully to the Pacific Ocean, bringing forth the daily movements of water, light, and sound close to home. Owned by Ivy Ross, Google’s Chief Design Officer for Consumer Devices, the beachside abode reads less like a private residence than a living experiment in how space can shape feeling.
Ross partnered with architect and designer Suchi Reddy to reimagine the interiors, continuing a creative dialogue that has unfolded over more than a decade. Their shared interest lies in neuroaesthetics – the study of how environments affect emotional and physical well-being – and Standing Wave becomes a built expression of that. Rather than adding architectural flourish, the transformation focused inward: the existing floors and ceilings were preserved while walls were repositioned, rooms resized, and sightlines recalibrated to boost views of the ocean, rocks, and sky.
The new layout carefully balances privacy and public spaces. The primary bedroom and study now sit at opposite ends of the house, offering moments of retreat, while the kitchen has been repositioned to support gatherings without dominating it. Outfitted with Henrybuilt cabinetry, it acts as an anchor, allowing attention to drift toward a custom crystal display that reflects Ross’s long-standing fascination with natural forms and energy. That interest comes more into focus in the study, where light pours in across a curated collection of crystals sourced over years of travel, their geometry echoing the rhythms of the coastline beyond.
Throughout the home, sensory experience is treated as a design material in its own right. Light is shaped and softened; sound is invited to resonate. A sound tube instrument by Wolfgang Deinart – created to explore vibration as a form of listening – adds an aural layer to the study, reinforcing the idea that perception extends beyond the visual. Artworks personally selected by Ross, including pieces from Eileen Fisher’s Waste No More project, bring texture, history, and intention into the living spaces.
The entry sequence offers a framed glimpse of the ocean as soon as one steps inside. The fireplace has been streamlined into the wall, creating space for sculptural focus rather than visual noise. In the primary bathroom, a Japanese soaking tub and sauna face the water, transforming daily rituals into acts of restoration. The guest bathroom’s soaring ceiling is outfitted with a custom light fixture by Reddy, its colored plexiglass insert casting a subtle, shifting glow that gently re-scales the room.
Even the guesthouse has been given equal attention, updated with a new kitchen and bath to ensure visitors experience the same sense of care and connection. Drawings by Lawrence Halprin, Sea Ranch’s founding landscape architect, appear as a quiet nod to the site’s origins and ethos.
To learn more about Ivy Ross’s Sea Ranch home, Standing Wave, by Suchi Reddy, visit reddymade.design.
Photography by Adam Potts.
