On the Market: An Artist’s Compound in Penngrove
Author:Philip Ferrato
Sometimes, we want to make our own places to live that are just as individual as our professional careers. Artist/entrepreneur John Holmes did just that at his compound in Penngrove, in Sonoma County, but he hasn’t had much luck selling it.
The basics: four bedrooms, four baths, plus one half-bath and a studio in a compound of structures on forty-three acres, asking $5,300,000. Not so basic: The main house has one bedroom and one and one-half baths while the others (also with baths) are arranged independently around the property, all of which is on a hillside covered in old oaks and coastal meadow. The interior spaces are big, recalling loft and urban industrial spaces built in the 20th Century; cement floors, industrial metal windows and trussed ceilings, while other details are artisanal, like the cast-bronze branch across the door and the immense chimney. And the kitchen looks ready for some serious cooking.
More pictures at the listing. The now-defunct (and much-missed) Metropolitan Home Magazine once judged Holmes’ compound “one of the best” homes in the country, plus the house received something called the Golden Trowel Award. On the market since sometime in late 2008, the asking price has been reduced from $7,600,000.
Listing: One of top 10 homes in America! [Sotheybys]