The Art of Living: 5 inspiring homes designed by artists
For our month of art, craft and architecture, we’ve curated a selection of the most inspiring houses designed by artists.
House, Rachel Whiteread
This public sculpture by artist Rachel Whiteread memorialised the interior of a condemned terraced house in Mile End, East London. A cast of the negative space, Whiteread was awarded the Turner Prize shortly after its creation in 1993. The ‘House’ stood for eleven weeks but was controversially demolished in 1994 following the intervention of the local council and chairman of the planning committee.
The Block, Donald Judd
In 1973 Donald Judd acquired a complex of buildings in downtown Marfa, Texas. Within the fabric of the existing buildings and two aeroplane hangars, Judd established a family residence with a separate bathhouse, multiple installation spaces and expansive personal library of more than 13,000 books. Known as ‘The Block’, the arrangement of living and working spaces are said to embody Judd’s concept of a permanent installation. Guided tours are available through The Judd Foundation.
The Wagon Station Encampment, Andrea Zittel
Part of A-Z West, Andrea Zittel’s wider experiment into modes of living, the futuristic Wagon Station Encampment provides points of refuge in the Joshua Tree National Park, California. Exploring the relationships between structure and limitations, freedom and security, Andrea Zittel’s artistic practice challenges our perceptions of spaces, objects and day-to-day living. Details of monthly tours and residencies are provided at High Desert Test Sites.
A House for Essex, Grayson Perry
Designed by Grayson Perry and FAT Architecture, the house is an artwork in itself, and also a setting for a number of Perry’s tapestries, ceramics and other works. An homage to the life of a (fictional) local woman, Julie, it has been described as a ‘secular shrine’ and is periodically open as a holiday let through Living Architecture.
The Wharton Esherick Studio
Known as the ‘Dean of American Craftsmen’, the artist-craftsman Wharton Esherick developed his home and studio over the course of his lifetime and the building reflects the evolution of his sculptural style. Situated near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, it was approached as a complete artistic environment with craftsmanship in every detail. Guided tours are available through the Wharton Esherick Museum.
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