A Midcentury Masterpiece Apartment in Austin Asks $770K

ByMyProperty Life

Unit No. 3 in the Harwell Harris–designed Cranfill Apartments still shines from a mid-2000s restoration by Alterstudio and Mell Lawrence Architects.

The star of each unit is the double-height living room, featuring a dramatic wall of windows framed by exposed masonry block walls. Shown here, Unit No 3. was restored several years ago by Ernesto Cragnolino of Alterstudio and Krista Whitson of Mel Lawrence Architects, who used the apartment as their personal residence.

The landmarked Cranfill Apartments in Austin, Texas, are considered some of the best work of modernist architect Harwell Hamilton Harris. Built in the late 1950s, the two-story triplex is organized around a majestic live oak, with loft-like living spaces and dramatic walls of windows. Unit No. 3, the largest of the three, was recently listed for sale—offering an interior that was lovingly restored by its former architect-owners.

A massive oak tree is the focal point of the communal entry courtyard. The apartments were originally designed by Harwell Hamilton Harris for Thomas Cranfill, an English professor at The University of Texas at Austin courtyard.
The star of each unit is the double-height living room, featuring a dramatic wall of windows framed by exposed masonry block walls. Shown here, Unit No 3. was restored several years ago by Ernesto Cragnolino of Alterstudio and Krista Whitson of Mel Lawrence Architects, who used the apartment as their personal residence.

The star of each unit is the double-height living room, featuring a dramatic wall of windows framed by exposed masonry block walls. Shown here, Unit No 3. was restored several years ago by Ernesto Cragnolino of Alterstudio and Krista Whitson of Mel Lawrence Architects, who used the apartment as their personal residence.

Read another article:Design Trends for Creating a Vacation Vibe at Home

Photo courtesy of The Value of Architecture

Ernesto Cragnolino, a partner at the local firm Alterstudio, and his wife, architect Krista Whitson of Mell Lawrence Architects, purchased the building in 2004. Saving the interior from unsympathetic developers, the couple spearheaded the restoration of each unit, calling the one currently for sale their home for nearly 10 years. The duo also led efforts to have the building designated as national, state, and local historic landmarks in 2013.

The windows create a connection with nature uncommon in the middle of Austin. Biographer Lisa Germany described the apartments this way: “Hidden behind a conventional house on a remote street, the concrete block apartments held out Harris’s favorite surprise: a rich and private exposure to nature. Quiet and elegantly functional, they are among his best work.” 

Read another article:Hot Trends: 20 Best Farmhouse Style Kitchens in White and Wood

Photo courtesy of The Value of Architecture

See the full story on Dwell.com: A Midcentury Masterpiece Apartment in Austin Asks $770K
Related stories:

  • Singer Nate Ruess and Fashion Designer Charlotte Ronson List Their Swoon-Worthy NYC Pad for $3.85M
  • A Victorian Button Factory Is Reimagined as a Trio of Timber-Clad Lofts
  • Wanna Feel Like It’s 1952 All the Time? Consider Moving Into This Midcentury Time Capsule

Similar Posts

  • Best Cart-Style Open Islands for the Small Kitchen: Smart Space Savers

    We are always looking to save space around our home; even if we do not happen to live in a small or modest residence. The general tendency among us is to fill up the empty space around us with decorative and furniture pieces as time passes by. Sure, de-cluttering and decorating discipline helps. But you […]

    You’re reading Best Cart-Style Open Islands for the Small Kitchen: Smart Space Savers, originally posted on Decoist. If you enjoyed this post, be sure to follow Decoist on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest.

  • Lighthus

    Take a journey to the woods and trek through the forest. For every step you take, listen. A far cry from the city, the suburb- the familiar. Not there, but here. Be present. The house is a not a house. Nor are you, you. Here, it is different. The grazing of light gently paints the surfaces of the atrium. The windows are open fully; no, rather, nature, in all its sublime invites itself into the traveler’s abode, filtering the morning light – its rays carrying forth the scent of the pine forest beyond. Your coffee isn’t the same anymore. The slow drip of time are now ever evident, the light, pronounced. Your movements occupy the passage of time. Cooking around the kitchen island elevates an appreciation for nature’s bounty. As there is slow food, there is slow space, slowness, silence. The house weaves through the forest. Nature shapes the house, the house shapes light, and the light shapes us.