The mountains of Arizona do not give themselves away easily. They ask for patience. For restraint. For the kind of vision that doesn’t just build a house but coaxes one from the land itself. Award-winning architect Charles Stinson knew this the moment he first stepped onto the rugged site. He walked it at dawn and dusk, grabbing handfuls of dusty red earth, pebbles and sand, and declared it his palette.
What rose from that mountainside is a home, of Stinson’s Minnesota-based clients, that feels unearthed rather than constructed. It’s terraced into the slope rather than perched atop, blending so naturally with the desert that it seems inevitable — as though the mountain had been holding space for it all along.
“The concept came from standing right there on the site, putting my arms out at 45 degrees and saying, ‘This is what we want to do,’” Stinson recalls. “The main house right here in the center, and the pool cantilevering out. The home literally embraces the view.”
Photography by Paul Crosby
That embrace is felt even before you enter. The drive winds upward, carved into the terrain, until you reach a moment of quiet drama: a suspended catwalk overhead connects the main house to the guest suites and art studio. You dip under its shadow, then emerge into a sunlit auto court tucked against the hillside. Here, cars disappear behind nearly invisible garage doors, leaving just you and the mountain.
The abode exposes itself in layers. Thin horizontal rooflines and long limestone walls step gently into the slope. Glass ribbons catch the light and reflect the desert sky, softened by cactus gardens and palo verde trees. Stinson calls it “a desert ship” — something you can walk over, through and around, as if tracing its outline against the horizon.
Inside, the reveal is an adventure. The great room rises like a modern desert pyramid, with walls of Western Window Systems glass nestled within stone. No corner columns interrupt the view (an idea sparked by the clients), leaving only horizon, sky and the sparkling infinity pool glinting as it stretches toward the valley below. The effect is a kind of spatial exhale, as if the house itself is breathing with the landscape.
Every detail heightens that sense of harmony. The rooflines echo the layered hills, with deep overhangs that shade glass and terraces from the desert sun. Inside, the palette is quiet and tactile: oak cabinetry, custom rugs and soft desert tones that flow from room to room. Breezes slip through naturally, and lighting is placed with care and in accordance with the valley’s tight building restrictions, just enough to guide the way but never enough to drown out the night sky. Stargazing remains an unbroken ritual.
The home invites movement and exploration. Terraces step up the hill, creating a rhythm of indoor and outdoor spaces. Shaded paths become desert walkways that encourage you to wander. The pool itself cantilevers out over the landscape, doubling as a shield from the road and neighborhood below and as a way to hold the view in place. Even the roof becomes part of the experience: Stairways lead you up to walk along its edge, tracing the horizon in every direction.
Landscape Architect Shane Coen helped make the home feel born of its site. He visited the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix with the clients to understand what they responded to firsthand — a process that shaped the layered garden strategy. Close to the house, plantings are both structured and sculptural. There’s a grid of 1,000 Mexican fence post cacti, terraces punctuated with palo verde and teddy-bear cholla that feels loose and wild. Beyond the immediate footprint, the design relaxes, letting native desert vegetation take over in a natural rhythm. Rainwater harvested from the mountain feeds the irrigation system, keeping the gardens thriving with minimal intervention and in a self-sustaining loop.
Behind the effortless look was painstaking precision. “The house has such long, straight lines that every fascia and every panel had to be perfect,” says Project Manager Chuck Thiss, who is no stranger to this level of expert architectural craftsmanship. Even the HVAC system required careful coordination, as ductwork was woven through razor-thin rooflines without compromising the structural design. Materials were selected for both performance and beauty: pale Mexican limestone that stays cool underfoot, light-reflecting roofing and stainless-steel rail caps that remain touchable even on the hottest days.
Secondary spaces are treated with the same level of care. The guest suites are a retreat in their own right, with a private rooftop terrace and garage. The office floats above the great room, visually connected yet tucked away for privacy. No matter where you stand — terrace, staircase, auto court — the home frames a view meant to be savored.
For the clients, this abode offers both a desert escape and a feeling of home. Their daughter first encountered Charles Stinson’s work and was drawn to his ability to create modern houses that feel warm and livable. When they acquired this property, they knew it needed a design that respected the mountain while giving them a true sense of place.
“They were very involved in the process,” Stinson says. “Every decision was collaborative, from the cornerless glass to the art placement to how the light moves through the rooms. It was a true partnership.”
That partnership extended to everyone on the team: Stinson’s design vision, Coen’s horticultural expertise, Thiss’s project management and the skilled artisans’ execution of every detail. “The amount of coordination was top tier,” says Thiss. “This house wouldn’t exist without everyone constantly talking through challenges and solving them together.”
The result is a home that holds the mountain gently, never trying to dominate it. It’s a place to watch the sunrise burn off the night, listen to the desert hum after dark and feel the day’s heat radiate off the limestone as the stars appear one by one. It’s a house meant to be walked over, through and around — a home that feels, as Stinson says, “just right.”
Project Partners
Architect: Charles R. Stinson and Chuck Thiss, Charles R. Stinson Architecture + Design
Builder: Red Moon Development + Construction
Interior designer: David Scott Interiors
Landscape architect: Coen + Partners
