With its bold architecture and sweeping views of Snow Canyon, Lorna Mildice and Andy Brown’s St. George home is the height of livable desert-modern design. Photos by Robert Peterson, Styled by Courtney Favini. Ancillary photos by Mitchell Rose.
An exceptional site deserves an equally extraordinary residence. This was Lorna Mildice and Andy Brown’s perspective when the couple signed on a team of pros to conceive and construct their new dwelling, overlooking the captivating Snow Canyon State Park in St. George’s Ledges Golf Community. Known for its striking red rock formations, sandstone cliffs and expansive desert vistas, the location inspired them to craft a one-of-a-kind home. “We aimed for something truly unique” elaborates Mildice, and that’s precisely what they achieved.
Craving a desert sanctuary designed for both relaxed living and entertaining, the couple enlisted the expertise of architectural designer Nathan Kerr, builder Brian Geer and interior designer Liz Tate. The trio closely collaborated with their clients to create an exceptional dwelling that, as Kerr underscores, “definitely reacts to the surrounding views.” Despite its jaw-dropping landscape, the site widens at the front and tapers toward the rear—a less-than-ideal shape for optimal rear views says Kerr, project lead with McQuay Architects. Responding to the wedge-shaped property, he cleverly formed, organized and pivoted the home’s geometry, creating a site-focused, angled layout derived from the owner’s carefully conceived floor plan. “Lorna and Andy brought a lot to the table,” Kerr says. “Their experience with having built several custom homes benefited our design process. They are very well-researched, and they know their stuff.”
The site not only influenced the home’s angles but also its elevation. To enable contractor Brian Geer to construct the home at a height that best captures scenic views above the berms and fairway in the rear and the quiet street out front, he raised the grade’s finish floor elevation by two feet. Consequently, design adjustments were necessary to ensure the dwelling’s height didn’t exceed the maximum building height regulations. “We had to strike the right balance to optimize the views without compromising on building height,” Geer explains. The architecture also played a significant role in achieving this equilibrium.
A mix of flat and shallow-shed roof lines kept the structure’s height in check while delivering a signature mid-century modern element to the design. Others include spans of floor-to-ceiling glass, clean object lines, clerestory windows and nature-inspired materials that celebrate the landscape in all its glory. “We didn’t intentionally set out to create a mid-century modern vibe,” Kerr explains. “It was, however, a symbiotic agreement of what we liked. Andy, Lorna, and I put our unique spin on it.” That spin encompasses everything from deep patios and trellis-patterned screening to double overhangs that accentuate exterior openings and cantilevered roof lines much like double-matting does to beautifully framed art. “It’s an architectural theme repeated throughout that lends itself to the home’s implied mid-century modern silhouette,” Kerr says.
and edge-to-edge windows visually links the space to the landscape and outdoor living areas behind the house.
The home itself is a series of angles that define the exterior and allow the interior spaces to pivot across the floor plan, framing endless views and fostering effortless movement throughout. Geer integrated structural supports and exposed beams within the home’s intricate framing to make room for the expanses of glass that define and open the architecture from every angle. The covered front entry, for example, is an interplay of floor-to-ceiling windows with an integrated door and a tile-clad pillar notched with a raised inset firebox. The eye moves through the entry’s transparent wall, across the open great room and out of a combination of clerestory windows and a broad wall of glass to the breathtaking landscape beyond. The homeowners continually marvel at the scene. “The light and views are remarkable, and they change throughout the day,” Mildice remarks.
For the interiors, Tate repeated many of the same materials she and Kerr selected with Mildice for the exterior, fostering a sense of continuity and smooth transition. Stone-tiled walls and columns, for example, move seamlessly indoors, while black tile resembling hot-rolled steel clad the courtyard fireplace and is also featured on the monolithic, two-sided fireplace dividing the great room and lounge.
Wood, with its warm tones and organic grains, also played a key role in the design. Tongue-and-groove Thermory ash planking is introduced above the courtyard’s water feature and then dramatically repeated on the great room’s soaring pitched ceiling, continuing seamlessly onto the soffits of deep, exterior eaves. Custom walnut cabinetry, modern furnishings and unique elements like a wave-patterned screen in the guest bathroom repeat the warmth of wood as it harmonizes with the architecture. Tate employs repetition to establish consistency while emphasizing the importance of “reinventing elements within the edited palette to prevent monotony.” The designer applied this principle through an engaging mix of modern light fixtures, texture-rich fabrics and shapely furnishings.
As the sun dips below the horizon, casting hues of pink and gold across the desert sky, Mildice and Brown’s vision stands as a testament to the seamless integration of thoughtful design with the natural beauty of their surroundings. Their resort-like home, a masterpiece of architectural ingenuity and aesthetic grace, embodies their shared passion for effortless living. With its flowing floorplan, expansive patios and inviting spaces, it serves not only as a sanctuary for desert living but also as a vibrant hub for entertaining surrounded by breathtaking beauty.
