A priceless Keith Haring mural gives this TriBeCa triplex a layer of soul

In the late 1970s, while still a student at the School of Visual Arts, Keith Haring experimented with his now unmistakeable contours across the entryway of a student exhibition space in TriBeCa, part of the American Thread Company building at Broadway and Sixth Avenue. The chamfered-corner Gilded Age building was then in its raw, pre-gentrification state, and as soon as it became useful, Haring’s proto-characters, rendered in shoe polish and alcohol, were covered over and temporarily forgotten. What became of Haring and his career is now inked in art history.

In the ensuing decades, a soaring triplex apartment grew up around the space, and in 2001 Haring’s mural was discovered and authenticated during a renovation by a previous owner. Now the current owner, the tech executive Adam Zoia, is selling the property for $25 million. The address, 260 West Broadway, is part of the 1896 Renaissance Revival building.

Agents at Compass Real Estate, where the seven-bedroom, nine-bathroom maisonette is listed, say they haven’t had the mural appraised and can’t say how much of the price tag accounts for the hand-painted foyer. ‘They sell for millions on their own of course,’ says Ian Slater of Trove Partners, part of Compass, ‘it’s basically impossible to appraise. It’s worked into the value of our ask.’

But it brings a palpable energy to what is, essentially, a lofty white box. At 8,000 square feet over three levels, the interior has been renovated to a level-five finish by Sottile & Co, retaining only some mouldings, friezes and original windows in the great room. The custom white-oak flooring is new; kitchen and bathrooms have all been reinstalled with custom millwork and marble, as one would expect from a luxury Manhattan property. The personality comes from Haring’s work — a riveting story that can be reinterpreted over and over.

Decorating around the work will be an opportunity for a lover of 20th-century art history.

Interested parties can find the listing here.

Read next: An 1840 artist’s home-studio is for sale on Romney Marsh

Peek inside a former artist’s house on the Rive Gauche