The house that beer built

This is the house that beer built, or to be more specific the house that 50,000 beer cans built.

The Beer Can House (Photos by David Brown of dabfoto)

The house, which is in Malone Street in Houston, Texas, is the creation of retired upholsterer John Milkovisch, who started the project in 1968.

It started when he began laying thousands of marbles, rocks and metal pieces into concrete and redwood around his home to create “unique landscaping features.” Milkovisch completely covered his front and back gardens because he “got sick of mowing the grass”.

Once the outside was done Milkovsich turned his attention to his house and decided to add an aluminium siding, that became an aluminium can siding and gradually the whole house became covered in beer cans.

Take a look through the following pictures to find out more about the Beer Can House.

After completing his garden John spent the next 18 years working on covering his house with flattened beer cans, he said later: “I guess I just thought it was a good idea. And it’s easier than painting.”

Gradually the house has disappeared under a cover of flattened beer cans for both practical and decorative reasons. Garlands made of cut beer cans hanging from the roof edges not only made the house sing in the wind, but also lowered the family’s energy bills.

John is said to have considered his work an enjoyable pastime rather than a work of art, but Ripley’s Believe It or Not estimated that over 50,000 cans have been used in this monument to recycling.

Image credit: Milkovisch family

By way of a comparison here is the Milkovisch home before John started his beer can project back in 1968.

The house and landscape are covered with a wide variety of beer that John drank, although he did get quite a bit of help from his neighbours and his wife Mary. And when asked what his favourite beer was, his simple reply was always: “Whatever’s on special”.

Image credit: Milkovisch family

The Orange Show Centre for Visionary Art bought the Beer Can House after John and Mary has passed away and the group has started a comprehensive plan to restore the site and renovations are continuously underway.

John considered his work an enjoyable pastime rather than a work of art, but he did enjoy people’s reaction to his creations. He once said: “It tickles me to watch people screech to a halt. They get embarrassed. Sometimes they drive around the block a couple of times. Later they come back with a car-load of friends.”

The Beer Can House is now a tourist attraction and is currently open for its summer schedule Wednesday – Friday from 10am – 2pm, and Saturday – Sunday from 12pm – 5pm. Always weather permitting.

John was said to often be dismissive of the art side of his home, he once said: “Some people say this is sculpture but I didn’t go to no expensive school to get these crazy notions.”

John used various parts of aluminium cans to make the right shapes that he needed for his home. He wired the bottoms into long chains and dangled them from the eaves. Along the sides of the house, he alternated strands of pull-tabs, bottoms, and flat screens made from the labels. In other places, he made the tops of the cans spin inside an outer ring of narrow metal and looped them through the trees in the backyard.

John’s wife Mary was very supportive of her husband’s project, saying, ““He didn’t think anybody would ever be interested in it. He just loved drinking his beer and just loved being outside and cutting up the beer cans.”