Storied property called Atlanta’s first modern home up for grabs

Josh Green

Thu, 11/21/2024 – 17:43

Set among rolling hills near Atlanta Memorial Park, the former personal residence of the mind behind some of Atlanta’s most distinctive modernist landmarks has come to market for the first time in years, sporting a fresh interior and other updates.

Marketed as the city’s “first authentic modern residence” and a home “of unparalleled architectural significance,” 1028 Nawench Drive was designed by late, noted Atlanta modernist architect Joe Amisano as his own retreat.

The project, set on 2 acres between Howell Mill Road and Interstate 75, was finished in 1969.

Amisano, a Prix de Rome–prize winner who died at age 91 in 2008, left an indelible mark on Atlanta. He designed Lenox Square mall, the Memorial Arts Building at Woodruff Arts Center, the wedge-shaped 31-story Peachtree Summit tower downtown, Fernbank Science Center, and Peachtree Center MARTA station, among numerous other works that still stand, including other Buckhead dwellings that look cutting-edge today.

Docomomo once described Amisano as “one of the dominant urban form givers of 1960s to ’80s Atlanta.”

The 1969 property’s white façade contrasts against trees in all seasons on Nawench Drive. Bartolotti Media; courtesy of Atlanta Fine Homes Sotheby’s International Realty

Bartolotti Media; courtesy of Sotheby’s International Realty

Constructed of concrete and angled to overlook a neighboring brook, Amisano’s Nawench Drive residence includes four bedrooms and five bathrooms in 4,088 square feet. A two-car garage is set at the end of a sloping driveway, and a constellation of clear glass blocks punctuates a main façade.

The high-ceilinged interiors were updated and reworked by architect Frank G. Neely in a way that, according to sellers, imbued the property with modern conveniences while retaining attributes of the past.

Arrangement of concrete walls opening to a creek at the former personal home of noted Atlanta modernist Joe Amisano. Bartolotti Media; courtesy of Sotheby’s International Realty

Bartolotti Media; courtesy of Sotheby’s International Realty

Highlights include a sleek, two-story great room, walnut cabinetry, a huge elevated patio (with waterfall staircase to the stream), a spa-like primary suite with views of woods, and a rare in-house dog spa.

Calling a revised piece of Atlanta history home, on this much Buckhead acreage, doesn’t exactly come cheap. The home listed at $2.49 million in late October and remains at that asking price. (Records indicate it last traded for $650,000 in 2012, prior to renovations.)

The property, situated in the Morris Brandon Elementary School district, is listed with Chase Mizell of Atlanta Fine Homes Sotheby’s International Realty.

Find more context and a quick tour of highlights in the gallery above.

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Images

The property’s 1028 Nawench Drive location, between Interstate 75 and Howell Mill Road. Bartolotti Media; courtesy of Sotheby’s International Realty

The 1969 property’s white façade contrasts against trees in all seasons on Nawench Drive. Bartolotti Media; courtesy of Atlanta Fine Homes Sotheby’s International Realty

Arrangement of concrete walls opening to a creek at the former personal home of noted Atlanta modernist Joe Amisano. Bartolotti Media; courtesy of Sotheby’s International Realty

Bartolotti Media; courtesy of Sotheby’s International Realty