The Steel House, an architectural wonder that is equal parts home and art piece, has been a central part of Lubbock, Texas folklore for decades. A rusted-colored steel pod resting on four legs, the late Robert Bruno’s uniquely designed home has been compared to the homes of James Bond villains by Dallas Morning News architecture critic Mark Lamster. Now the legendary Steel House has hit the market.
Listed at $2 million, the three bedroom and three bathroom home is newly renovated. It has 2,450-square-feet of living space, with unique design throughout.
Much like the outside of the southern home, the Steel House interior is full of unique shapes and bending curves. Every room of the home is improved by a touch of abstract architectural inspiration. Zillow Gone Wild, a 1.8-million-follower Instagram collection of the world’s most unique homes, called it “probably one of the most unique properties we’ve ever seen.”
Commenters reacted to the posting with surprise and local tales of their own about the famous home.
“I grew up in Lubbock and we would go up and see this house before it was finished,” Amanda commented on Zillow Gone Wild. “Teenagers would hop in it to look.”
“10/10 would Airbnb,” Brandi Ithal added.
Bruno, the home’s architect, moved into the Steel House during the final months of life, Texas Monthly reported. Having penned his first drawings of the home in 1973, it ultimately took over three decades to construct the Steel House. The home is made of quarter-inch Corten steel, a metal more common is modernist sculpture than architecture. By the time the building was done, the monumental home weighed 110 tons.
Near the end of his life, Bruno spoke to the Texas Country Reporter about the construction of the home — which was completed almost entirely single-handedly by the artist.
“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?” He said. “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.”
