Ann Marshall and Scott Blackwell with their Lab, Sophie
The couple’s folk-art collection could fill a museum.
In the gallery-like dining room, built-ins display sculptures and smaller works
A coffee table made out of beadboard epitomizes the couple’s laid-back, Americana style. “It’s been painted five times and scratched up; you can put your feet on it,” Ann says. “The running theme to everything we do is approachability.”
One of Scott’s favorite large-scale paintings presides over the hearth. The handiwork of his friend, the late Purvis Young, it depicts two angels watching over the Overtown neighborhood of Miami, where Young resided.
pop art: Mr. Coke (marker and acrylic on wood) by the late Georgia artist Howard Finster; his Elvis at 3 painting on plywood stands near sculptures by Burgess Dulaney of Fulton, Mississippi, on the living room mantel (opposite, bottom right).
An avid baker, Scott spends a lot of down time here, surrounded by memories of old friends, including Alabama artist Mose Tolliver, whose works flank the arched doorway, and Louisiana’s J.P. Scott, whose carved and painted boats anchor above the cabinets.
Two fireplaces cozy things up in the ship-like kitchen; the hearths are historic, but the clean-lined surrounds and mantels feel modern.
A guest room plays host to several paintings by Jimmy Lee Sudduth, of Alabama, including Sawmill above the fireplace and Musician above the bed.
The colorful table was crafted by B. F. Perkins of Alabama.
Mississippi artist Sarah Mary Taylor’s Statue of Liberty hand-sewn cotton quilt brightens up a simple wooden desk.
A neutral palette allows the colorful artwork—including a painting by Lorenzo Scott of Atlanta and quilt by Maggie Lou Williams of Bowman, South Carolina—to command visual attention.
A close-up of a mixed-media work by Earl Simmons of Bovina, Mississippi
