A sculpture-turned-residence with a fascinating backstory has a new future in store in the Texas town of Ransom Canyon.
Outside of Lubbock, this staggering structure has long been a local landmark, and now it’s available to purchase as a three-bedroom.
“The house is extremely unique and who else can say they have lived in a sculpture,” Courtney Bartosh of Monument Realty, who holds the $2 million listing, told The Post of what’s known as the Robert Bruno Steel House.
The modernist masterpiece was built over the course of some 35 years by the sculptor Robert Bruno, who passed away at age 64 in 2008, leaving his opus of an occupancy to his only child, Christina.
Christina then sold the creature-like creation to Bartosh, who brought the less-livable-than-lookable domicile up to code and turned it into an Airbnb, which currently rents for $592 a night.
Bruno had no such plans for profit, only passion when building the space, which is now listed as having three-bathrooms, central air and 2,450 square feet of livable space.
The structure is built out of Corten steel. Haley D. Photography
House or sentient being? Haley D. Photography
The abode has long been a local icon. Haley D. Photography
There is not a square room in the place. Haley D. Photography
One of three bedrooms. Haley D. PhotographyIndeed, in his decades building and rebuilding the dreamlike entity, Bruno would often change his mind and tear apart full sections, rebuilding significant portions of the house per his whims, according to Texas Monthly.
“It would have been a lot easier to have a master plan from the beginning, but it wouldn’t have been better, just different, okay?” Bruno reportedly told the Texas Country Reporter shortly before his death. “Easy isn’t the only thing that matters, and if easy really mattered very much to me, I sure as heck wouldn’t be doing this. This is about spiritual values. The objective was not to move in and have a place to live; I can do that anywhere. The objective was to do something.”
Despite having been working on the space since 1973, Bruno only used it as his home at the end of his battle with colon cancer, in his final months of life.
The property needed extensive interior renovations to be brought up to code. Haley D. Photography
The Bruno Steel house’s namesake broke ground on the property in 1974, according to Texas Monthly. Haley D. Photography
A living area. Haley D. Photography
A terrace. Haley D. Photography
The kitchen. Haley D. Photography
There are three bathrooms in all. Haley D. Photography
Behold: A 110-ton home. Haley D. PhotographyAnd while Bruno is now gone, the house he built expects to watch the Earth turn for many a year to come. The behemoth — which weighs some 110 tons, making it heavier than a Boeing 757 — is built out of quarter-inch Corten steel, a material known for forming a surface-only rust which protects it from the elements, ensuring its longevity, Texas Monthly reported.
As the artist and Lubbock native Jeff McMillan told the publication, “After the apocalypse, the Bruno House will still be there.”
