Home revamped, transformed into piece of art in Sharpstown area

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Inside a house that once teetered on the edge of demolition, Alexander Squier has found inspiration.

"I'm treating it as a relic, as a ruin that would have the same romantic impact as Machu Pichu or anything that's like an old ruin, or building," said the Houston based artist.

Squier is building an entire art installation in the house that until recently was filled with debris. There were old Christmas decorations on the walls, years of dirty dishes in the kitchen, and the back yard was four feet deep in junk. Then, Mike Prentice decided to buy the house. He had an idea: turn it into the focus of his "Seeds of Sharpstown" project.

"It's to add a cultural event basically to an area that didn't have a good reputation," said Prentice, who owns dozens of homes in the Sharpstown subdivisions in Southwest Houston. "The buzz in Sharpstown is that something is happening."

Prentice owns around sixty homes in Sharpstown. Most of the homes are rentals. However, when he began rebuilding and expanding the homes from the ground up, he found young families eager to snap up the affordable homes located close to town. That's when Prentice realized there was an opportunity to re-invigorate an entire community.

"If we can get people from all over Houston to talk about Sharpstown as a wonderful place to live, as a clean place, and green place and so close to the centers of town," he said, his voice brimming with eagerness.

To get that point across, Prentice began the Seeds of Sharpstown project. He found Squier and basically gave him free range on the house in the 7800 block of Fondren. Over the past few months, Squier went through all the junk in the home, and curated some pieces into small displays. He's taken 72 cinderblocks he found in the backyard, and installed them as a slanted wall in the home. There is also a video installation with drone footage of Sharpstown.

"I'm hoping there is somewhat of a wow factor," said Squier. "But mostly, that people can put together that this is reflecting into a greater context into Sharpstown."

The art installation opens on Wednesday, October 28th at four p.m. It will run on weekends through next January.

"It's actually an art event, a cultural event, in Sharpstown," said Prentice," which has never been done."

Go to seedsofsharpstown.com for full tour information.