Slide 1 of 18: Last year, his younger (and less wealthy) brother “James” Wang Zhonglei sold what is arguably one of L.A.’s most beautiful estates to Garmin heir Ken Kat, so it’s no surprise that billionaire Wang Zhongjun, also known as Dennis, has his own L.A. property that ups the luxe ante by several notches. And with a name like “Elementi,” it’s also “natural” that many of nature’s components are on full display at the house, which is a contemporary SAOTA-designed showpiece now on the market in Beverly Hills’ exclusive Trousdale Estates neighborhood. For $65 million, or the Bitcoin equivalent, a buyer will receive a soaring open-air central courtyard bolstered by 20-foot stone waterfall cascading from an exterior moat, passing through a suspended main-level dining room and then into a partially subterranean courtyard, where the water encases and nourishes a 150-year-old, 15-foot olive tree imported from Tuscany that had to be transplanted into its Zen-inspired surroundings using a 110-ton crane and 15-person crew. Such extravagance defines this Trousdale property, which recently completed six years of construction by L.A.-based custom home builder Luxford Investment Group. Luxford is led by developer Michael Chen, although records indicate the home’s ultimate owner — and likely funder — is Wang, who Forbes has described as “one of China’s richest movie moguls.”
The 60-year-old is also a trophy art collector who paid $61.8 million for Vincent van Gogh’s “Still Life: Vase With Daisies and Poppies” in 2015. There are no van Goghs at this property, but the hillside abode carries a striking, sculpture-like façade and an entryway that is quite the production — complete with a floating marble walkway that traverses over water and underneath a tunnel before leading to a wooden pivot door that opens to reveal jaw-dropping city and ocean vistas. Once inside, a whopping 18,000-plus square feet of open living space greets with a double-height marble atrium highlighted by the aforementioned olive tree, along with a waterfall, sliding walls of glass and a custom floating spiral staircase. Venturing further, one discovers a sleek gourmet kitchen sporting high-end Gaggenau appliances,
Dada cabinetry and a 14-foot leathered marble island (plus a separate butler’s kitchen with a pair of Viking stoves), while a grand great room showcasing a linear gas fireplace covered in black marble from Italy and custom Minotti furniture spills onto a terrace boasting a 17-foot-long fireplace. Just off the great room is a cantilevered master retreat decked out with dual marble-laden baths (one equipped with a walk-in-shower topped by a skylight and the other with an Italian-made soaking tub by Pibamarmi that’s been fashioned entirely of stone), a massive Rimadesio/Moltini closet and 400-square-foot terrace with a private Jacuzzi.