This Biophilic Mansion in the Beverly Hills of Southern Portugal Can Be Yours for $26 Million
The Golden Triangle, a.k.a. the Beverly Hills of Southern Portugal, is the unofficial term for a group of ritzy resort communities in the scenic and famously sunny Central Algarve, between Faro and Albufeira. The area provides an always-on-holiday lifestyle, and, though investment in real estate is no longer a qualifying option, it has been a discreet magnet for those taking advantage of Portugal’s Golden Visa Residency Program.
The somewhat under-the-radar area, prized for its natural beauty, includes the prestigious Quinta do Lago resort, which borders the Ria Formosa National Park. There are a trio of golf courses and a country club or two, along with a private lagoon for nautical sports as well as direct access over a long duckwalk to a pristine stretch of white-sand beach with a beachfront restaurant.
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A recently completed home in Quinta do Lago, a bold, sinuous concrete, copper, and glass structure, sits on a nearly three-quarter-acre parcel with long views that extend over the lagoon to Quinta do Lago Beach. Known as Bailarina Villa, the extraordinary property has floated onto the market for €24.5 million (or about $26.1 million). Measuring more than 12,000 square feet—and nearly 17,000 square feet when including the terraces—there are a total of six bedrooms and eight bathrooms.
Evoking the daring designs of visionary American architect John Lautner, the biophilic home is absolutely unlike any of the surrounding residences, which are a cross-section of tile-roofed Mediterranean mansions, from Tuscan villas to Spanish haciendas. The muscular, curved concrete shell, an attention-drawing cipher from the leafy street, is sliced by a series of slender vertical windows and embellished with copper accents. A cluster of lighted orbs at the top of a gentle ramp signifies the entrance, a massive, two-story-tall wooden door that pivots open to a view through the house and over the surrounding landscape.
The fortified street façade gives way to radical transparency. Throughout its three stories, retractable glass walls bulge and curl into one another, effectively blurring the ability to accurately discern indoor spaces from the sweeping terraces. Underwater walls of glass in the swimming pool further enhance the interplay between interior and exterior spaces, while the extensive use of hardwoods and other natural materials, including verdant living walls of foliage, connects the home to its natural surroundings.
Among its highlights are an atrium-style foyer with a floating staircase illuminated by a massive domed skylight; a channel of water that cuts through the living room; a dining room table that seats 20; a lavish games/billiards lounge; and a spa complex with a cold pool and sauna. The primary bedroom is a private retreat with a spa-style bath.
Water cascades over the curving edge of the mosaic-tiled swimming pool into a vast, shallow pool on the lower level, over which lily pad-like overlapping circles of concrete steppingstones meander over the surface to a sunken lounge with a fire pit at its circular center. A party-sized spa is positioned beneath the roof’s curved overhang on the uppermost floor, while a bed hung from chains sways gently in the coastal breezes while taking an alfresco nap. The whole shebang is capped by a rooftop deck designed for both daytime and nighttime entertainment. There’s a large bar area and a fire pit with cushioned built-in seating, as well as a second spa, all with panoramic views.
Bailarina Villa is represented by Markus Canter at Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties.
Click here for more photos of Bailarina Villa.
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