In 2004, real estate agent Forrest Gregg sold his very first property at 9435 Inwood Rd. At the time, there wasn’t much going for the Sunnybrook Estates address. “It was truly an overgrown lot,” he says. But the new owners, an architect and a builder, “both had a great eye for design.” An empty canvas was perfect for them.
Avid art and car collectors, the couple wanted a home that could display both. Around the time they bought the home, they visited a friend in Houston. That friend lived in a converted warehouse that looked more like an art gallery than a traditional house. They loved it, Gregg says. They were excited with “the concept of living in a gallery space, but also having some warmth of a conventional home.”
The resulting home is just that. The owners commissioned Phoenix-based artist Peter Deise to craft artistic sculptures, as well as functional pieces like the front gate. In their open-concept great room, the owners created separate room vignettes to display large-scale art. The room’s towering 18-foot-tall walls and exposed corrugated steel ceiling add to the “living art gallery” feeling.
While the home’s interiors are primed to display the owners’ vast trove of art work, the garage is a gearhead’s dream. There are two, actually, with a lift and a glass door to the pool deck for showing off cars during parties. The owners currently keep seven cars here, but Gregg estimates one could fit up to 11. Between the two garages, there’s an owner’s lounge to relax, admire the vehicles, and host friends. “This garage is truly set up for entertaining,” Gregg says.
At 5,272 square feet, the house is certainly large enough to cater to the owners’ hobbies. But it’s not overwhelming, Gregg says. “Although the scale of it is big, I feel like there’s just a calming element about the house.” The owners used organic materials like Corian kitchen counters and rough-hewn stacked limestone on the exteriors to embrace the park-like outdoor space. They wanted to keep the property’s organic feel while maintaining a modern aesthetic.
At the end of the day, though, everything’s meant to showcase the art. “It’s a really happy house because the art,” Gregg says.
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