A few years back, Kanye West visited Japan’s “art-island” Naoshima – designed by one Pritzker Prize-winning architect named Tadao Ando – and has been obsessed with aspects of it since, particularly the island’s James Turell sculptures.
The rapper, who also seems to be a low-key architecture buff, just snapped up one of the few private residences designed by the Japanese starchitect – a three-story concrete-and-steel structure in Malibu, California – in an off-market deal. The price tag? A whopping $57.3 Million! But, apparently, the deal was a steal, considering it was initially offered at a mind-blowing $75 Million last year, per the Wall Street Journal.
The house, which sits on an almost-5,700 square foot beach-front lot, took seven years from planning to completion, with the concrete compound’s structure reportedly made of 1,200 tons of poured concrete, 200 tons of steel reinforcement, and 12 pylons driven 60 feet into the ground as part of its foundation keeping it from sinking in the sand – the whole project was commissioned by its previous owner, retired Wall Street financier Richard Sachs.
The eye-catching exterior is ultra-minimalist but on a massive scale with a somewhat raw industrial edge, showcasing imposing slabs of concrete, steel and walls of glass. There are no photos of the 4-bedroom, 4.5-bathroom home’s interior online, however, Los Angeles-based architecture firm Marmol Radziner, who collaborated with Tadao to build the home, describes the décor as minimalist “yet warm.”
Each of the three floors are designed with a specific purpose in mind – the lowest floor houses three bedrooms, each with their own ensuite. The middle level is for the living space – living room, kitchen and powder room – while the top floor is occupied by the penthouse master suite. A large outdoor deck also has an area for sunbathing as well a lounge area with fireplace. Massive glass doors also offer breathtaking ocean views.
The overly minimalist aesthetic isn’t new for Kanye – their Hidden Hills home, which he renovated closely alongside architect Axel Vervoordt, appears to be designed in a similar vein.
The Malibu property is the latest addition to Kanye’s real-estate portfolio, which also includes two ranches in Wyoming, a condo in Calabasas, two condos in New York City, as well as 300 acres of vacant hillside land in the outskirts of Calabasas.
