What does it take to build something to last for centuries? What if you started with an artistic sensibility, understanding that good art is timeless, then backed that up with good engineering, sound construction methods and a dedication to detail?

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That's the goal and philosophy behind the home on the corner of 44th s.w. and s.w. Brandon which, while initially puzzling is clearly a work in progress with a very active mind behind it.

From the street the casual observer can see a female figure with wings atop a chimney, a figure carved into one of four tree stumps, a large mound overgrown with vegetation out front, and thick, smooth cement retaining walls with curves and cutouts.

The home also appears unfinished with an older roof, and walls awaiting siding.

John the owner (he prefers to remain somewhat anonymous) invited the West Seattle Herald in for a tour recently and revealed some of what he has had the time, inclination and money to work on over the project's history.

John's sense of what buildings should be is almost a total rejection of conventional American building ideas. He has travelled a lot and was in Varazdin, Croatia where he encountered a woman whose family home was there but who also lived in New York. She was in the process of buying the home from her father. "It's the sort of home that takes the better part of a block. It has three and a half sides with a courtyard and an archway." The compound is home to several generations in the family. They had a conversation about architecture and the differences between older methods used there and more modern practices.

The castle there, called Patacic-Puttar Palace was, according to John attacked with cannonballs in the 1650's "The walls were so thick that the cannonballs didn't break it, they went into the wall and stuck. They had varnished over them to show them off. It says 'my walls are thick enough' you should go away'. " The woman's family home was by comparison, very new, "It's only 275 years old," John related.

These ideas of sustainability, longevity, and craftsmanship coupled with art and a sense of humor are what keep John going. When he has the time and resources he carries out a phase of his long term plan.

"What does it take to have a house survive for 500 years? What methods, materials do you use? In exploring these questions pouring the foundation, creating the retaining walls and rebuilding the chimney became incremental steps.

The home is a craftsman style house, built in 1927 that was originally located a block and a half away, on California Avenue. Prior to the move 13 years ago a lot of prep work was done. "I moved 600 yards of dirt from the site before pouring the foundation," John said. The foundation has double the normal amount of rebar (steel reinforcement) as does the retaining wall on the southern side of the house. The walls are not traditional six inch walls, instead they are ten (or in some cases eight ) inches thick. "The footings under these walls are massive," John said, "There is forty yards of concrete in each footing." The basement floors are 5 inches thick then thicken out to 17 inches thick at the edge and also required forty yards of concrete. "It might be the most solid basement in Seattle that's not a commercial building," he offered. Around the inside basement walls are 140 pieces of art inset including footprints, hearts, butterflies, plants, cats, and even tools. "Why do something that doesn't have art?" John said.

What you can see from the outside is not immediately understood.

The figure on the chimney is a "Chimney Pot" in the form of a fairy (modeled after a real human figure). It's functional as well since it extends the length and improves the chimney's draft. It was made by a company in England called No. 9 Studio UK and is frost proof ceramic.

The chimney itself was painstakingly built of clinker brick, with many fused bricks placed in strategic courses to permit the structure to be climbed. Much of the brick literally came from the Seattle Fire of 1889 in which the heat was so intense that it warped and fused bricks. There are 16 tons of total materials in it and it took five months to complete.

The trees out front used to be Spanish Elms but when they were invaded by the beetles that cause Dutch Elm disease the City of Seattle demanded that they be taken down. John chose instead, (since he loved the trees) to turn it around and make it a positive outcome. He stripped them of bark (thus ending the insect problem), retained tall stumps and began having them carved into mythological characters. So far only the minotaur figure is complete.

The retaining walls incorporate round pillars (with wiring) and were built with cutout details. The concrete is almost completely free of air bubbles giving the walls an amazing smooth surface.

The mound in front of the house is literally the dirt excavated from the south side of the house that will be replaced behind the retaining wall.

There's a lifting bar over the driveway with a 5000 pound (center span) capacity to lift things out of a truck.

Inside the house architectural drawings lie open on a table and reveal the amount of detail and planning that has gone into what John is attempting to create with some unique elements.

John has built a complete climbing wall. It is well lit, surfaced in a proprietary climbing wall compound that flexes under pressure, with a wide variety of holds that extend around the wall of an interior stairwell. He refers to himself as an "industrial climber" and said, "I've been inside the roof of pretty much every arena in the country. I did a lot of climbing of actual industrial structures for what I used to do for work."

The fireplace (including the firebox) and hearth inside have been rebuilt using a beautiful stone called Opera Fantastico. John cut it into six inch tiles to color match another part of the hearth.

Because he has a functional workshop in the basement with a 3000 pound band saw he also needed an enormous organizational center for small parts along one wall. Other walls sport long shelves that sag under the weight of engineering manuals, and art books.

There is even a room for rent in the house. This room is unique and the product of a lot of discussion between John and others who sought to create a space that honored the architectural integrity of the house but went beyond it. The chandelier is a reproduction but beautiful, with golden figures dangling lights from their outstretched arms, but that's not the lighting highlight. Around the room, in a furniture quality recessed cove is a set of multi-color LED lights, controlled by wall switches that let you control the exact mix of colors and luminance. The closet is open and built to accommodate women's clothing with very specific measurements for shelf heights and has gilded shelf supports. There are three wall sconces, two from the Montmarte in Paris and one that is hand carved by a sculptor in Australia.

How do the neighbors feel about the house? We didn’t do a door to door survey, but two of them who were outside during our tour did say they “loved” the fairy on the chimney.

Is the house overbuilt? "No, John insists," This is the way houses ought to be built (…) The problem in America is, we build crappy stuff and you have to take it down. There's no reason to do that. The product that's going to go on the roof has a 140 mph wind guarantee and a 100 year wear guarantee. This stuff actually lasts 100 years."