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Sandra and Andrew are selling seven murals by famous artists with a “house thrown in for free”, for $7 million.
But they’re also comfortable if the new owner wants to paint over the top of them.
“When someone buys the house, it’s their house, it’s their wall,” Andrew King said.
He’s selling the Victorian mansion at 3 Crimea Street, St Kilda with partner – in art and life – Sandra Powell.
“Part of the idea of street art is the freedom that it gives to people to go up and paint … sometimes on other people’s walls,” he said. “One can hardly complain when someone paints it out.”
The house is listed for expressions of interest from $6.5 million to $7.1 million.
The former Buddhist Ashram features murals by Rone, Adnate, Pure Evil and Vexta, some of whom stayed in the converted stables as the couple amassed the largest collection of street art in the southern hemisphere. These are heartfelt works by people they consider friends.
“Of course, I’ll be upset because some of them [are special] … Especially this one, which was painted by a genius,” he said, gesturing to the enormous finger-gun mural by Kid Zoom in the open-plan dining area. Powell noted she could recognise the artist’s bitten nails.
In an era of “quiet luxury”, when prestige homes are frequently listed with warm white or beige interiors, the house stands out as a distinctive reflection of its vendors.
Experts don’t always suggest this approach to home sellers. Painting walls a neutral tone and paring back character are strategies that buyer’s agent and WBP Group chair Greville Pabst generally recommends to owners looking to sell.
He said it was clear the home’s selling point was the art, but it limited them to a small buyer pool.
“It’s a specific taste, and you’ve got to find someone who appreciates that,” he said. “And not just someone who appreciates it, but someone who will pay a premium for it.”
The couple have already tamped down some of the home’s creativity since the start of the campaign, after feedback from early inspections that the house felt both claustrophobic and too much like a gallery.
“I think that we took about 70 paintings out of the house,” Powell said, noting only about a tenth of their 3000-work-strong collection was spread across the home’s six bedrooms, three bathrooms and living areas.
That collection includes around 40 works by Banksy, which are also no longer on display – this time at the urging of their home and contents insurers.
The couple’s agent, Sam Hobbs at Jellis Craig Port Phillip, said the property would appeal to anyone interested in a prestige heritage home.
“It’s not that unique if you take out all the art,” he said.
“It’s a beautiful Victorian mansion that was renovated 18-odd years ago, with big rooms, on a good-sized block with rear access … People can look past the artwork.”
Pabst admired the home’s character, but said it was competing in a tough market.
“Anything in this price bracket, $5 million to $8 million, is tough to sell at the moment,” he said. “You could be in a quiet leafy street in Middle Park or Albert Park for that price.”
Hobbs was “thinking outside the square” to target buyers, particularly on social media, who might not think to look for this kind of property in St Kilda.
For Powell and King, who bought the property in 1988 for $811,000, there are two questions: where are they headed next, and what happens to the art?
After 38 years in St Kilda, the pair are crossing the river to downsize into a penthouse apartment in Fitzroy.
“St Kilda has changed a lot over the years,” Powell said. “And we don’t want to live in Brighton, Armadale or Malvern. Fitzroy … it’s got a sort of similar vibe.”
She said they decided to move “while we still can”: Powell and King are in their 70s.
As for the collection, the pair are hoping to secure backing for a CBD space where it could be permanently exhibited, ideally close to street-art hotspot Hosier Lane.
“Our ultimate aim is to have Melbourne recognised as the street art capital of the world,” King said. “We need a permanent centre where the art can be celebrated.”
While the murals will stay, the pair do have one condition of sale – a section of ceiling in the stables, with the tags of the artists they’ve supported in residence, will go with them.
And while the pair are pragmatic, Powell did have some words of caution for anyone planning to buy and paint the walls a safe off-white.
“Can you imagine if you had bought Sidney Nolan’s house, or Albert Tucker’s house, and just painted over it?”
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