The story of the Constance Perkins House in Pasadena, California (plate 1), one of Richard Neutra’s “acknowledged gems,” began with a verbal sparring match between architect and client that was typical of both of them. In 1952 Perkins, a professor of art at Occidental College, organized a conference there on the art and architecture of the Southwest, and she invited the most distinguished people she knew to serve as panelists. These included Grace McCann Morley, director of the San Francisco …