Marc Chagall’s Former Studio in High Falls: $240K

  |  April 6, 2023

We are close to wrapping up our week of under-1,000-square-feet homes with a gem: This High Falls cottage was once the studio of artist Marc Chagall.

Built in 1900, the two-bedroom, one-bath house was a refuge for Chagall in the 1940s after the death of his wife and a new romance with his married housekeeper-cum-mistress. The exterior is gray asbestos siding with white trim. Flowers and greenery grow with abandon around the Rosendale cement foundation.

The interior has seen better days, but the history of the place may convince the new owner to hesitate changing a lot of it. Cedar shakes climb up the walls in the living room, which has a wood floor and tall windows.

Thick ceiling beams and rafters are exposed, adding to the rusticity of the place.

The staircase leading upstairs has an Arts and Crafts simplicity.

The kitchen, though, is a different story. It’s got a 1970s ethos that we’d have little problem updating: Thick, faux brick on the walls combine with a black-and-white tile floor and a mix of white and black appliances.

It’s certainly a jumble of styles here, with oak lower cabinets that are falling apart, a warped, butcher-block counter, and heavy, dark, definitely-70s upper cabinets.

The two bedrooms upstairs need updating, as well. But the primary bedroom has a nice skylight.

And the big window in the other bedroom lends a lot of light.

The home is heated with oil, but there’s a pretty, cast-iron woodstove to supplement that heat.

This c.1940s photo shows Chagall, third from left, on the property.

The house measures just 840 square feet, and sits on a half-acre on the edge of the Mohonk Preserve. It’s just 10 minutes to Accord and provisions at Accord Market.

If you feel like flexing your own paintbrush here in honor of Chagall, find out more about 420 Mohonk Road, High Falls, with Elizabeth Perez of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices. Hudson Valley Properties.

Read On, Reader...