Hands down, Lionel Morrison is one of the most talented architects not just in North Texas, but in the world. Every day I get to admire his work as I pass one of his masterpieces at 6645 Northaven Road.
Come to think of it, having great architecture in our midst is like making art galleries out of our neighborhoods. We drive, we walk (when it’s not so dang hot), we bicycle, and we Uber/Lyft down the streets. It makes the hours of our lives a little better to have beautifully designed buildings around us, like art.
It’s even better when you can (somewhat) affordably call one of those houses home.
Art House was designed by Morrison and is one of the most highly respected small-scale condos in town. Units seldom come to market.
In fact, Morrison lives there, right across from this very unit that just hit MLS: 3740 Holland Avenue, Unit 3B.
The interiors are packed into a contemporary art box in one of the city’s most difficult to get into environments: there are only eight homes in the three-story building, which has a private exercise studio for owners’ personal use.
Unit 3B has sweeping, floor-to-ceiling windows with incredible tree-top views, and 10-foot-plus-tall, all museum-finish walls. Light pours in from those windows and well-placed skylights. Not only is the location of the building sheer perfection — off Oak Lawn near Turtle Creek in a vortex of great restaurants with easy access to Turtle Creek or the Dallas Arts District — the Oak Lawn/Uptown community is the easiest for launching north, going south and east, and minutes from Love Field. Which is why the building is so popular for lock-and-leave living.
“There is incredible privacy here, and it’s a very quiet building,” says Dave Perry-Miller Real Estate listing agent Tricia Weiner. “You are in a private residence, but it feels like you are in a hotel because the entire floor plan is built around the open-air atrium courtyard. That is one reason why it is so difficult, and rare, to find a home here.”
And the home is almost like a private museum, with highly polished concrete floors that gleam like marble, museum-finished walls that crave your art collection thanks to the carefully engineered LED wall lighting and abundant wall space.
Even the laundry room looks like a museum.
This artful house at 3740 Holland Avenue boasts 2,550 square feet with two bedrooms, a study, two full baths plus, one-half bath for guests. It has an open-air center courtyard, and a beautiful, peaceful fountain. Though there are at least a dozen restaurants right out the front door, go ahead, make Thanksgiving dinner. The kitchen is a chef’s dream with gleaming stainless steel countertops, Carrara marble backsplash, large breakfast island, and Miele/Sub-Zero appliances.
This home is also loaded with storage space, from the custom rift-cut white oak kitchen cabinets, two huge walk-in closets in the master, even a large storage closet in the first-floor, two-car garage.
Speaking of the master suite, this one competes with many I’ve seen in giant single-family homes. It is designed to maximize the owners’ comfort with a little decadence thrown in: The over-sized bedroom leads to a spa master bath with center soaking tub, huge walk-in shower, and dual vanities. Guest will be totally comfortable in the second bedroom with en suite bath. And the study (partitioned off the main living area) is where you can hide paperwork, chat on the phone, or enjoy a good book.
Tricia Weiner at the Dave Perry-Miller In Town office is asking just under $1 million for this architectural wonder, pricing this Art House at $925,000. HOA dues are $900 a month.
Zero upkeep, zero exterior maintenance — just live, love, and go!
