metal house, antonito

acrylic on wood panel, 2025

Visiting Antonito is not significant. If you drive through town you might feel dry, depressed, and wondering why the smoothie shack is closed. But venture off the main drag by three streets and you find yourself in front of architecture that does not exist anywhere else in the world: the metal house in Antonito was crafted over decades by a Veteran who is as resourceful as he is maximalist. Hub caps, cans, bottles, bikes, and metal planks have created a house that smacks of a Disney castle, at least from a distance. Approach it closer and you will find odd signage, a floral hedge, and an ever-changing house emerging above the neighbors’ dusty homes in a building code-free municipality. Creativity without limits makes for a memorable pit-stop on a family road trip. I had to paint this house: it is the most authentic and bold architecture in Colorado.