R M Schindler (1887-1953) was a pivotal Modernist architect who remained largely unrecognized by the critical establishment of his time. A pragmatist and theoretician, Schindler designed more than 500 projects - over 150 of which were built - mostly in the Los Angeles area, where he settled in 1920. Trained in Vienna and influenced by two teachers, Adolf Loos and Otto Wagner, Schindler emigrated to Chicago in 1914, hoping to work for Frank Lloyd Wright. By 1918 he had attained that goal, and two years later he moved to Los Angeles as project architect for Wright's famous Barnsdall House. In his own practice, which began in 1922, Schindler synthesized the ideas of Loos, Wagner and Wright into his own original and distinct approach, which he called 'space architecture'. This book focuses on Schindler's influences and on an analysis of his buildings. It includes rare archival material and new photography by Grant Mudford, as well as over 150 redrawn plans, sections and diagrams.