Maui Wowie: Colorful, Italian-Designed Home Is Listed for $4.5M
Realtor.com
International designer and architect Ettore Sottsass designed only seven homes during his storied career, and one is for sale.
Even better, it’s on the lush island of Maui, in Kula, HI.
The eye-popping property is a colorful, geometric wonder.
“It’s actually a very famous house, and a world-renowned property, and is designed by a very famous architect from Italy,” says listing agent Dean Otto, with Keller Williams Realty Maui. “It’s one of the most famous properties, definitely in the state of Hawaii, if not one of the most famous architectural masterpieces in the country.”
The 2,470-square-foot abode was built in 1997 and is listed for $4.5 million. Along with pioneering design, the property offers ocean and mountain views on a half-are lot.
ExteriorChris Archer/ Kupono Photography
Set on a half-acreChris Archer/ Kupono Photography
Walls of glassChris Archer/ Kupono Photography
Sottsass designed only two homes in the United States. His other sculptural design is located in Woodside, CA.
He was known for bold colors and also designed furniture, home items, and iconic innovations, including a typewriter for Olivetti.
‘Work of art’
“Every part of that house is a work of art,” Otto says. “Everywhere you look, something [is] designed by Sottsass.”
Indeed, the architect even designed the home’s custom-made furnishings, dishes, silverware, and lamps.
His fingerprints are all over the exterior, too.
“He actually came over during the building of the house and designed the landscaping and picked the plants,” Otto explains.
ExteriorChris Archer/ Kupono Photography
Landscaping chosen by the architectChris Archer/ Kupono Photography
KitchenChris Archer/ Kupono Photography
‘It’s like a museum’
The furnishings are available for sale separately, but Otto notes that the seller hopes the buyer chooses to purchase them.
“There’s just no way I could see it being separated—it belongs together,” Otto insists. “It’s one museum piece. It’s one work of art. To take the interior design out of it wouldn’t make any sense at all. It would be a tragedy if it was purchased without all of the interior.”
The whimsical home, which has three bedrooms and 2.5 baths, was built by Sottsass because of an existing relationship with the homeowners, according to the listing agent.
“The owners are actually designers themselves, and they were in that world of design,” Otto says. “The owners say this home should really be a museum at some point. … They’re very passionate about it.”
Otto says they’re selling the house to renovate and live in a single-story home on a nearby lot.
BathroomChris Archer/ Kupono Photography
BedroomChris Archer/ Kupono Photography
StaircaseChris Archer/ Kupono Photography
Indoor-outdoor spaceChris Archer/ Kupono Photography
Bold design
Sottsass died in 2007, at the age of 90. He founded the Memphis Group, an Italian architecture and design collective with a postmodern and collaborative twist. Most of the pieces the group designed had clashing colors and bold design.
The same can be said of this house, which has received worldwide attention.
“It was on the cover of Dwell [magazine] and has been in every major publication and in every museum that’s model- and design-related,” Otto says. “It’s published everywhere. There’s no property that has accolades like this property. It’s very unique to be able to represent a property like that.”
He believes the perfect buyer will value the home for everything it represents.
“If you’re an art collector or someone that really appreciates art and design and style, there’s no other house for you,” Otto says.
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