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"I decided to paint a tree on the door, then it grew really quickly"
The artist Emily Powell has painted the walls of her home and turned it into a work of art. Now she is selling it. The house is in Brixham, Torbay, and has an asking price of £2 million as "a complete, immersive artwork" in a road where the average house sells for £200k. Powell says she will come back every ten years to retouch the work. There is a 15-minute video interview and tour by Lick Decorating. Her website.
posted by paduasoy on Dec 04, 2025 at 1:40 PM
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Outsider art...but inside!
posted by kozad at 1:47 PM
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kozad: "Outsider art"
Powell went on to study at Norwich School of Art for her formal training with a sabbatical at the Ecole Régionale des Beaux-Arts de Rouen (2008-2011). She featured in a BBC documentary about the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, and has guest lectured for Sotheby's Institute of Art.
posted by signal at 1:59 PM
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My eyes!
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 2:15 PM
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Hmmm, it's not impossible that this might sell at the price she's asking for, but it's unlikely... good luck to them though!
posted by The River Ivel at 2:26 PM
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(Sorry - she'll come back every five years, not ten.)
posted by paduasoy at 2:27 PM
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Gorgeous.
posted by wicked_sassy at 3:11 PM
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Hm. It thought I'd either love it or hate it, but I am a bit neutral. Maybe none of the subjects really reach me. But talk about pricing yourself out of the market! The folks that can pay ten times the average price and are willing to live in the neighborhood seem like they'd be few and far between. But I wish her well in her sale. Very interesting post.
posted by Gilgamesh's Chauffeur at 3:58 PM
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The idea of buying a house for, what, 10x the market rate in a given neighborhood, with the understanding that you can never redecorate, seems kind of nonsensical. It's great that she made her house into an interesting and satisfying place for herself, but in a way it's no different from anybody else's very personal design choices.
Maybe I'd feel differently if I actually liked any of what she did, but it really didn't suit me at all. (I will spend my 2 mil elsewhere). But no, I don't think it would be different if somebody had decorated a place in a way that suited me really well. I still wouldn't want to live in a house I couldn't change, after paying a premium to buy it. I think she's off the rails if she thinks anyone will really take her up on it. I think that if she wants to preserve the art, it would cost a lot less than 2 million dollars to, say, remove the walls with art on them and then repair the walls.
posted by Well I never at 4:40 PM
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Oh my word. That is an epic piece of work. I wonder if the house will sell, because that is a massive commitment for an artwork (requiring all the upkeep of an actual house without being really useable).
The goal of preserving house decor/paint forever strikes me as odd, but maybe I am just feeling guilty for not honoring the artistic vision of the last residents of my place? I painted over a very nice mural and just about everything else too. Or maybe it's my sense that a house has its own history and life, a bit separate from its inhabitants? When the owner moves on, maybe the house should too...
On the other hand, it's rough trying to make a living as an artist, and she's just gotten a ton of good publicity and visibility from the proposal, so good for her.
posted by mersen at 4:56 PM
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Even the ceilings! I'd go mad.
posted by lapispimpernel at 5:13 PM
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This feels like a good candidate for a B&B - while it's not exactly my style, it would be fun to hang out here for a weekend with friends. She's already got a list of animals to find for a treasure hunt!
The red ceiling does give me some Chagall vibes, which are very happy-making.
posted by rrrrrrrrrt at 6:13 PM
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I wonder if she talked to a real-estate agent at all.
posted by Aardvark Cheeselog at 11:48 AM
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It's listed with an estate agent (Chesterton's), Aardvark Cheeselog.
posted by paduasoy at 12:54 PM
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Is the valuation really overstated that much? Maybe double the market rate, but not ten times? It looks as if £200k in Brixham only gets you two bedrooms in a back street: this has five bedrooms and a balcony with an impressive sea view. Still radically overpriced as a house, of course, rather than a work of art.
Of course, if she were Banksy...
posted by Phanx at 8:41 PM
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