In the early 20th century, Southern California was one of the regions where living spaces for a new era were proposed. The mild climate of this area, which fostered the custom of enjoying outdoor life, attracted pioneer architects such as R.M. Schindler or Richard Neutra, as well as people who were looking for new casual lifestyles. What the architects proposed was the indoor-outdoor connected living space brought about by the integration between architecture and built-in furniture (e.g. couches). During this time, Japanese culture and design had a strong influence on these architects working in California. In Japan, there is a deep history of people thinking about the connections between human living space and nature. In this talk, I introduce a case study of living spaces in Southern California, examining the Kings Road House by R.M. Schindler (Los Angeles, 1921-1922) in contrast with traditional Japanese residential architecture in terms of a human perspective. *Aspects of Japanese Studies showcases the research being done by members of the CJS community. Faculty, graduate students and alumni of CJS present a casual 15-minute online talk on their current work or key research topics in Japanese Studies. Talks are followed by questions and answers.