(Image: Kayla Rocca)
Integral House is probably the most spectacular private residence in Toronto, but it’s also going to be one of the hardest to sell. Its original owner, math textbook magnate James Stewart, had the 17,000-square-foot Rosedale home built to his exact specifications, without a thought for resale. Now that the house is officially up for grabs, it’s completely unlike anything else on the market. Strange curves create rooms within rooms, and floor-to-ceiling windows allow for panoramic ravine views interrupted only by graceful white-oak slats.
It’s not a home for just anyone: the place was designed by Shim-Sutcliffe Architects for Stewart’s lifestyle, evidently a peculiar one involving a lot of work from home and quiet study, punctuated by occasional gatherings in the voluminous living room, a two-storey atrium designed to accommodate 150 to 200 guests for drinks, dinner and performances. Absolutely everything—from the French limestone flooring to the doorknobs—was custom-made to reflect his two great loves: calculus and music. The rooms are so large and oddly shaped that even some of the furniture had to be made to order, and the interior’s extreme austerity means the smallest amount of clutter would stand out like pet hair on a $5,000 pant leg. In all of this there are only four smallish bedrooms. Stewart built a home for a super-wealthy person with toweringly high standards but simple appetites, a rare and paradoxical personality type.
The search for such a buyer is, blessedly, not Stewart’s problem—he lived in Integral House until his death in 2014. The people who do have to worry about finding someone willing to pay the $28-million asking price—the realtors of Trilogy Agents —held a preview event at the property on Wednesday night. Here, some pictures we took while we were there:
313475 Only two of the house's five storeys are visible from Roxborough Drive. (Image: Kayla Rocca) https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-11-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-11.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-11.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/real-estate/look-inside-integral-house-rosedales-28-million-modern-mansion/slide/integral-house-1-2/ integral-house-1-2 0 0
(Image: Kayla Rocca)
313476 The two-storey living room has French limestone floors, custom-designed white-oak window slats, a commercial-quality wet bar and enough room for 200 guests. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-21-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-21.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-21.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/real-estate/look-inside-integral-house-rosedales-28-million-modern-mansion/slide/integral-house-2-2/ integral-house-2-2 0 0
313477 A view from the living room, looking up toward the entrance. The walls are polished concrete. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-31-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-31.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-31.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/real-estate/look-inside-integral-house-rosedales-28-million-modern-mansion/slide/integral-house-3-2/ integral-house-3-2 0 0
313478 The stairway to the upper floor is lined with panes of blue glass. (Stewart collected fine glass artwork, and blue was his favourite colour.) https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-41-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-41.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-41.jpg 800 1200 [] https://torontolife.com/real-estate/look-inside-integral-house-rosedales-28-million-modern-mansion/slide/integral-house-4-2/ integral-house-4-2 0 0
313479 The upper-floor hallway. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-51-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-51.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-51.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/real-estate/look-inside-integral-house-rosedales-28-million-modern-mansion/slide/integral-house-5-2/ integral-house-5-2 0 0
313480 The master bedroom has wrap-around windows with electronically controlled drapes, a wood-burning fireplace and a row of built-in closets with doors custom-designed to blend in with the walls. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-61-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-61.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-61.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/real-estate/look-inside-integral-house-rosedales-28-million-modern-mansion/slide/integral-house-6-2/ integral-house-6-2 0 0
313481 The master bedroom's en suite bathroom has a tub sunk into its Carrera marble floor. A round skylight admits some natural illumination. There's a towel bar, a urinal and a toilet in here somewhere, but they're hidden from view. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-71-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-71.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-71.jpg 800 1200 [] https://torontolife.com/real-estate/look-inside-integral-house-rosedales-28-million-modern-mansion/slide/integral-house-7-2/ integral-house-7-2 0 0
313482 Stewart's office is on the lower level. Its floor-to-ceiling windows look out over the Don River Valley, giving it one of the most pastoral Toronto views money can buy. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-81-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-81.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-81.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/real-estate/look-inside-integral-house-rosedales-28-million-modern-mansion/slide/integral-house-8-2/ integral-house-8-2 0 0
313483 The office bookshelves are, of course, filled with calculus textbooks—the former owner's stock-in-trade. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-91-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-91.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-91.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/real-estate/look-inside-integral-house-rosedales-28-million-modern-mansion/slide/integral-house-9-2/ integral-house-9-2 0 0
313484 Next to the office is a small art gallery. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-10-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-10.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-10.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/real-estate/look-inside-integral-house-rosedales-28-million-modern-mansion/slide/integral-house-10/ integral-house-10 0 0
313485 The doorknobs used throughout the house were custom made. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-111-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-111.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-111.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/real-estate/look-inside-integral-house-rosedales-28-million-modern-mansion/slide/integral-house-11/ integral-house-11 0 0
313486 The house's many bronze banisters are covered in smooth leather, so they're warm to the touch. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-12-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-12.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-12.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/real-estate/look-inside-integral-house-rosedales-28-million-modern-mansion/slide/integral-house-12/ integral-house-12 0 0
313487 Only from the rear is it easy to tell how huge the house actually is. It sits directly on the ravine. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-13-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-13.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/integral-house-13.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/real-estate/look-inside-integral-house-rosedales-28-million-modern-mansion/slide/integral-house-13/ integral-house-13 0 0