The only residence designed by Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei is for sale.
The 4,000-square-foot complex in Ancram, New York, is about two hours north of New York City by car, and it was commissioned by a couple who loved the artist’s work. In collaboration with Basel, Switzerland–based HHF Architects, Weiwei delivered the main house in 2006 and a slingshot-shaped guest house two years later.
The main residence is clad in corrugated iron, and sports three bedrooms and three bathrooms, as well as floor-to-ceiling windows and a fireplace of the same height. The program is divided between four timber-frame boxes of equal size, but two staircases and ceilings of different heights disrupt the boxes’ rigidity and promote interior fluidity. Once can find the requisite pool and fancy appliances (Boffi in the kitchen, for example).
The guest house, meanwhile, is clad in Cor-ten steel and features two bedrooms and two bathrooms slotted into its curving form. White angled wall dividers break up the timber-paneled living spaces and create plenty of space for art displays. Each of the Y-shaped structure’s “poles” offers a different view of the property, which covers 37 hilltop acres.
According to SFgate.com, the original owners sold the house in 2013 because they didn’t visit it enough. The home’s current owners are selling and moving overseas.
Interested buyers have to pony up the big bucks: The house is on the market for $5.25 million.
