- Unusual New Plymouth home is overflowing with colour and art.
- Paintings, treasures and sculptures create a gallery-like atmosphere.
- It is on the market for sale, seeking just under $1m.
When Glenis Wilkinson was growing up she wasn’t allowed anything on the walls of her family’s home, in case it “attracted dust”.
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Wilkinson has made up for that in spades as an adult, with a home overflowing with art. Her collection was helped along by her artist son, Seth.
Nearly every room of the home at 75 Morley Street, in New Plymouth, is adorned with stunning paintings.
Seth first put brush to canvas as a child and studiously taught himself how to paint. When he shared his very first piece of art with his family, they were blown away. “When he finally unlocked his bedroom door and I went in and saw the first painting he ever did, I cried. I was like, ‘Oh my God, my son just did that’,” Wilkinson told OneRoof.
The downstairs lounge is home to the vendor’s favourite painting. "It looks almost haunted," she says. Photo / Supplied
For years there was paint and chalk everywhere in the house. “His art is so unique. He loves to use colour,” Wilkinson said.
Her favourite painting takes pride of place in her downstairs lounge. “[It’s] a big painting of a face that looks almost haunted,” Wilkinson said. “It looks like despair. That painting speaks to me because of the eyes. I’m his biggest fan. I absolutely love his work.”
Seth, who is all grown up now and lives in Hamilton where he is a tattoo artist, isn’t the only artist in the family. Wilkinson’s sister also taught herself how to paint and her work now adorns the bathroom and other parts of the house. “I said to my sister, ‘Teach me how to paint’. We used to go places when she was here and have a dabble. I said to her, ‘Every painting I ever do, I’m going to frame it’. So that’s what I do.”
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As well as the family art, there are many treasures Wilkinson has collected, from op shops and even a Downer skip, where she picked up many retired street signs.
Every last artifact in the home has a story. “Every single picture and thing in this house, even if it has come from an op shop, I can tell you where, when and why I got it. Pretty much everything has a story.”
When Wilkinson goes on holiday, she’s more likely to be found collecting pumice for a sculpture, than shopping. “I don’t want jewellery or clothing. I collect stones and rocks and skulls and feathers. Stuff like that. I make my own sculptures.”
The five-bedroom home sits on a 1052sqm section and has an RV of $980,000. Photo / Supplied
Pretty much everything in the house has a story, the vendor has told OneRoof. Photo / Supplied
Wilkinson also upcycles furniture, which can be seen in the listing photos of her home on OneRoof.
Unsurprisingly, visitors to the home are wide-eyed when they see her collection. “Everybody that comes in just goes, ‘Oh, my gosh, it’s like an art gallery’. It’s a feast for the eyes.”
One of Wilkinson’s favourite spots, however, is the garden. “The garden has been a labour of love. You don’t know you’re in town. Every window I’m looking out of now, all I can see is just greenery. The wood pigeons come It’s just amazing.” Her collection spill over into the gardens, with pots and sculptures.
Wilkinson and her partner Gavin Knudsen have decided it’s time to downsize to a more manageable home after 18 years at the property, which is for sale seeking offers over $969,000.
She laughed when she said that the real estate agents had asked her to declutter the home before they photographed it for sale.
Property Brokers agent Cindy James said there was scope to rent out the downstairs part of the house, which had a separate entrance, and highlighted its appeal as a multi-generation home. “That house screams family,” she said.
The couple realise that their home won’t be for everyone. “I think it’s such a unique home. Somebody with the same feeling about things like we do will see the house and go, ‘Oh my gosh, I love it’.”
- 75 Morley Street, in New Plymouth, is seeking offers over $969,000
