Do you care about houses?

Illustrious biographer of interior decoration Mario Praz divided people into two camps: those who care about the appearance of their homes and those who don't.

Praz elaborates:

"I am suspicious of the taste of a professor of Italian literature who can dwell under the same roof with a living room 'suite' in the most rickety Liberty style. I imagine that he must feel towards Petrarch the same indifference that allows him to tolerate such a desecration."

and explains:

"...'tell me how your house looks and I'll tell you who you are'...For a man may realize the impossibility of giving any grace or elegance to his external appearance, even with the aid of the most expert tailor, and he may therefore give up dressing with care; but he can always, even if he is deformed, project about himself his ideal of harmony and beauty so that his spirit may be constantly reflected in it."

What say you? If you are reading this, then chances are you are in the camp that cares about houses, but is this a fair classification? For my part, I find Praz' passion for interiors reassuring in knowing that I'm not alone in giving a lot of mental space to a subject many find frivolous.

Excerpts from An Illustrated History of Interior Decoration; all images of the Museo Mario Praz, Rome, Italy by Massimo Listri