Real Estate Art: 713 Booth Street

 Robert Boyd

I am working on some new posts, but I hope this real estate art post will satisfy my few remaining readers for a little while. This is a very interesting house on the near northside, traditionally a very Hispanic neighborhood. I downloaded the map so you can see where it is:

As you can see, it is right across Little White Oak Bayou from Hollywood Cemetery and quite close to Moody Park. I don't know what kind of house you would expect in that neighborhood, but I am willing to bet that it would not be this.

That is one moderne pile of blocks!

If you are flipping through HAR.com, as I enjoy doing, and you want to guess what kind of house will have interesting art hanging inside, this is the kind of house that you would guess. And in this case,  you'd be right! As usual, I didn't recognize most of the art (and mostly it is not photographed to show off the art--these photos serve an entirely different purpose). But I think I know the artist behind one of the pieces.

In this photo, we can see two paintings. On the right, we see a large abstraction that reminds me a little of Richard Diebenkorn, but is obviously not a Diebenkorn. But the painting on the stairs is, I think, by Lucas Johnson, the late Houston-based painter. I definitely could be wrong, and would appreciate finding out for sure from any of you eagle-eyed readers if it is or if it's not. Johnson was a beloved member of the local art scene. He died in 2002 from a heart attack that he suffered while on a boat fishing with fellow artist Jack Massing. 

I don't recognize any of the other art in the house, but you might! If you do, please identify it in the
comments below.

Update: The blue painting here is by Stanley Boxer (according to Bronwyn Lauder).

I would kill for a library like that!

Another view of the library. And the painting, which appears to have paint drips or possibly loose threads hanging down look very familiar--but I can't identify it. Update: The orange painting is by Robert Goodnough (according to Bronwyn Lauder).

It has been suggested that this piece is by Deborah Roberts.

It appears that there is an easel in the background on the right of this photo. Perhaps the owner of this house is a Sunday painter?

Real Estate Art: 3201 University Boulevard

 Robert Boyd

When this house was listed, it created a lot of interest on Facebook. People who live near Rice University have long been curious about this house, which I've always privately referred to as the Death Star.

So now, we have an opportunity to see this monstrosity from the inside. And you can buy it for just $4.3 million. Not surprisingly, there is interesting artwork inside, although I could identify none of them.

The first piece is this enormous stone face. Here are a few more views of it.

The interiors are pretty low color. And most of the art seems subdued and grey, mostly abstract.

There you have it--all the artworks I could see in the photos shown on the listing on HAR.com. None of these seem familiar, although the giant head reminds a little of Jaume Plensa, the Spanish sculptor who has pieces at Rice University and at Buffalo Bayou Park. 

Do you, dear readers, have any idea who created this artwork.

One last image--the back yard. It looks less Death Star than suburban office park.

Real Estate Art: 47 Grand Regency Circle

 Robert Boyd

47 Grand Regency Circle is a mansion in the Woodlands, a planned community north of Houston. It can be yours for just $6,495,000. The art in the photos is not particular interesting as art, but it is interesting to see what a wealthy oil zillionaire chooses to decorate his house with.

This painting is the most interesting piece of art shown in the photos. It has an regionalist feel, similar to Thomas Hart Benton. With its oil field roughneck subject matter, it reminds one of Texas regionalist artists like Jerry Bywaters and Alexandre Hogue. I can't identify the painter by looking at it, but I do wonder if it is contemporary pastiche of regionalism. Can any of my readers identify it?

One can almost make out the signature on this one, but I can't read it.

I'm assuming that the photo in the center is of the couple who owns this house. It feels a little self-absorbed, but if I were a late 18th/early 19th century English lord, I would love to have a portrait of myself by Gainsborough, Reynolds or Romney. I was intrigued by the Van Gogh self-portrait to the right. It can't be an original--is it a framed poster? A painted duplicate?

Another photo portrait decorates the bathroom.

It's hard to see, but there is a sexy photo of the lady of the house (I assume) that wouldn't be out of place on the walls of a dude's college dorm.

I did like the way this black wall in the breakfast room was designed to be written on. The portrait of the woman's face is interesting.

Real Estate Art: 9030 Sandringham Drive

 Robert Boyd

This mammoth mansion can be yours for just 20 million dollars. You can show all the art you want, and presumably if you could afford this manse, you could afford any art you want. And the current owners have an art collection, but I couldn't recognize any of the pieces.

 

The figure on the right hanging upside down by his feet is striking, but I have no idea who it was by.

This colorful painting of a face pops in this somewhat drab interior.

Here we can see the artwork in the bathroom mirror. A closeup photo of a lightbulb could almost be a Chuck Ramirez photo.

Another image of the hanging man sculpture.

Can you readers identify any of this art? Please respond below!

Real Estate Art: 2521 Westgate Drive

 Robert Boyd

This house is on the edge of River Oaks and can be yours for just four million dollars. The current owner has packed the house with art. I can't identify any of the art, although a couple of pieces might be photos by MANUAL (Ed Hill and Suzanne Bloom). 

I wish I could see this extremely colorful painting head on. I have no clue who painted it, but it's a bold statement.

UPDATE: Both Scott Gilbert and Alison de Lima Greene identify the tall blue and green painting on the right as by Liz Ward.

The work over the mantle is the first piece that I thought might be a MANUAL.

Most of the art here has been 2-dimensional, but here is a sculpture.

I think the photo of books over the bed is by MANUAL.

Yet another bright-colored painting that flies off the white wall. UPDATE: Alison de Lima Greene tells me that this is a Michael Kennaugh painting. Interestingly, Kennaugh, MANUAL, and Liz Ward are all represented by Moody Gallery. I wonder if a close examination of some of the other art in this house would show that they are by other artists represented by Moody Gallery.