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A Brighton artist sick of the cost of housing in her hometown has created a unique and mobile exhibit for the Artists Open Houses Festival in the city this month.
Faced with high rents and some of the most expensive house prices in the UK, Bryony Devitt decided to channel her frustrations into an art project exploring the housing crisis.
Her portable Open House is a dolls’ house on wheels – filled with custom-made miniature artworks by local and international artists.
Bryony said: “Seeing how the housing crisis is impacting people of all ages across our community was really getting me down.
“The Portable Open House is my response to those feelings, celebrating creativity and not letting it keep me down.
“It has been a cathartic experience – total escapism but also a great way to get people involved and talking about the issue.
“I’d recommend getting on the property ladder to anyone… You’ve got to start small right?”
According to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics, the average UK private rent increased by a record 9.2% in the last year.
The average price paid by first-time buyers in Brighton and Hove dropped by 5% – to just under £370,000.
But for some, prices remain utterly out of reach – with 35 people found sleeping rough on a single night in the city in March, double what it was in the same month two years ago.
Art inspired by the homeless, raising money for the Sussex Nightstop charity, is also going on display at another new Open Houses venue – nearby Cardinal Newman School.
Pupil’s work is mixing with professional donations in a “community response” to the issue.
Bryony’s portable open house features guest work from as far afield as Norway and Chile.
Her exhibition will go on a tour across the city over the four weekends of May, including at the Spiegel Garden, Preston Park, Fiveways, Hove, Seven Dials, Hanover and Kemptown.
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