Elevated Art And Custom Finishes Define This Desert Gem

When people click, they click. So, when a Midwest couple decided to build a vacation retreat in Scottsdale, they returned to the architect of their Minnesota residence, Charles R. Stinson. But what they didn’t expect was just how much they would love the new place. “This was meant to be their getaway,” the architect notes, “but it’s become their year-round home now!” It’s easy to understand why. “The house really embraces the site; it feels like you’re in the desert all by yourself,” he adds. And with a celebrated golf course literally in their backyard, the kids come to stay—and play—often, much to the delight of their parents. 

Stinson found the property for the couple and walked the site at sunrise, sunset and after dark to develop a plan for how the structure would best rest on the land. “We went over the program together, and the clients loved the use of stone and how it blends with the site,” he explains. Large overhangs protect the dwelling from the sun and help define exterior spaces. Inside, ceiling heights vary dramatically, creating a sense of shelter in some areas and a soaring feeling in others. “With the clerestory and transom windows, you feel like you’re up in a tree with light streaming through the branches,” Stinson says. 

“But this was a challenging house to build because of its precision,” the architect continues, noting the talents of father-son general contractors Jim and Chris Manship. “It’s essentially a modern post and beam with terrazzo floors.” Designed primarily on one level, the dwelling sits at a raised elevation to optimize views and “make you feel like you’re floating,” Stinson adds. An incredible sense of transparency pervades the rooms, perhaps nowhere more striking than in the kitchen, where large windows overlook a raised cactus bed straight out to the motor court. “The owners can wave at guests as they arrive,” Stinson says. Built by friends for friends, the residence includes a cleverly hidden lower level with additional guest space and a bunk room. 

Aside from creating welcoming rooms focused on the views, Stinson also needed to allow for enough wall space to display the couple’s art collection. “The owners have a real love of the arts,” designer Chuck Thiss explains. “They have a collection at their Minnesota residence but bought and commissioned new pieces for this home,” he adds, noting bronze sculptures by Tom Corbin as well as paintings by Giovanni DeCunto and Hessam Abrishami.

In the living and dining room, Stinson and Thiss created an easy yet glamorous spirit with an ochre-driven palette and luxury elements, such as tables by veneer artist Thomas R. Schrunk (an architecture school classmate of Stinson’s) and handwoven silk rugs by Stephanie Odegard (a friend of the couple’s). “We had the rug plan done before the house was even started,” Thiss says. “They’re like jewelry for the spaces.” Picking up the gold tones in the glossy Mozambique wood used for the cabinetry and wall paneling throughout, the floor coverings “lift the more muted palette,” Thiss adds.

On the pool terrace, accessible from all the main-floor rooms, Stinson devised a covered “great room” with a kitchen, lounge area and dining table, as well as multiple sitting areas that encourage stargazing. And by bringing the landscape up onto the terrace with stone and cactus beds abutting the glass walls, “the structure looks as though it grew out of the site,” he says. “Our job was to nestle the home into its surroundings,” adds landscape designer Donna Winters. “We sculpted the property, adding boulders to overcome drainage challenges, and chose native plants in a simplified palette, creating organized groupings of barrel cacti and agaves.” She also brought in large specimen saguaros to frame views on each side of the dwelling and mesquite trees to screen and soften the edges of the grounds.

“This house respects the site because there’s nothing we can do that’s as powerful as the view,” Stinson says. “The family’s Minnesota home belongs to the lake, but this one belongs to the desert.”