Organic modernist condo keeps it weird in South Austin

Austin might have overplayed its “keep it weird” hand long ago, but it can still be fun to revisit things we’ve kept that way, especially if they’re for sale.

This one-story pod, now a detached condo in South Austin’s Bouldin Creek neighborhood, was designed by local architect John Covert Watson, a onetime student of Frank Lloyd Wright’s who later moved toward a more organic style that evolved out of modernism. Watson was from an old Austin family and is credited with helping preserve the area around Hamilton Pool; more upscale and impressive examples of his organic architecture can be found in his Mushroom House in Lakeway and the Grotto Dome in West Lake Hills. Regardless of their size and location, all combine the architect’s groundbreaking formal and structural techniques with the funky, natural approach endemic to Austin and other places in the 1960s and 1970s. You know—when things were weird.

Built in 1978, this structure is perhaps more humble than some of Watson’s builds, but it has the basic characteristics that continue to charm fans of his style. It’s also in a convenient, central location in a leafy neighborhood and on a corner lot across the street from Ricky Guerrero Park.

The 1,310-square-foot house features an open kitchen/living area space with high, curved ceilings and lit by a custom, central skylight. It has bamboo, tile, and carpeted floors.

The home has two bedrooms and one bathroom, which features a hand-built sunken shower.

The detached condo has a private, fenced yard and one off-street parking space.

• 1012 Brodie Street Unit A [Blairfield Realty]