A San Antonio mansion recently listed for $2.1 million offers the rare chance to own home that’s both modern and steeped in the city’s architectural history.
Ken Bentley was one of the architects behind some of San Antonio’s most iconic structures and landmarks, as one of the designers of Hemisfair, St. Mary’s Hall and Trinity University’s Laurie Auditorium.
Bentley also worked with one of the most prominent architects in San Antonio, O’Neil Ford, who oversaw the revitalization of La Villita and helped design parts of both UT-San Antonio and Trinity University. After his work on St. Mary’s Hall, Ford invited Bentley to join his architecture firm and took an interest in his work.
“Some people are one in a million, but O’Neil was really one in a hundred million in his gifts of understanding function, the correct spirit and the right materials,” Bentley once told a real estate blog. “Everything O’Neil ever did looks as if it belonged there; as if it evolved there; as if it grew out of the ground.”
As Bentley’s talents matured, the student became the master. And as it turns out, his houses are some of his most beautiful achievements.
Perched atop a hilltop on 5.85 acres near the Dominion, this modernist domicile has sweeping panoramic views, from the Texas Hill Country to the San Antonio skyline.
Inside the four-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bath home, walls of windows frame the vista perfectly under 18-foot-high vaulted ceilings. Natural light spills onto native hardwood floors throughout.
Like the other great masters of San Antonio architecture, Bentley has clearly thought out every detail in this structure, placing an emphasis on the purity of function as beauty.
Dual primary suites — one on each level — offer the option of multi-generational living, with the one upstairs opening onto a balcony with a breathtaking view.
But, really, there is no shortage of views with this property — to be sure, the views are the main attraction. The landscape, clearly the fulcrum of every design decision, can also be enjoyed from a resort-style pool, hot tub and multiple levels of decks.
Like many Mid-Century Modern and Prairie-style architects in Texas and beyond, Bentley places an emphasis on working in harmony with the natural world.
This includes the Texas-native white oak selected for the flooring and double vanity in the spa-like en suite bathroom, where even more views of nature can be enjoyed from a soaking tub. It also extends to the xeriscaped grounds, which offer low-maintenance tranquility thanks to a synchronicity with nature, rather than fighting against it.
Finally, the zen-like emphasis on nature can experienced in the inner courtyard, which makes nature the heart of the home.
This home is listed by Blake Foote with Compass RE Texas LLC – Austin.
All photos and listing info via Realtor.com.
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