About
Along the Lake Michigan shoreline in the quiet North Shore suburb of Fox Point stands one of Wisconsin’s most unusual artistic landmarks: the Mary Nohl Art Environment, better known locally as the “Witch’s House.” The property was home to artist Mary Nohl (1914–2001), a formally trained sculptor and silversmith who earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago before returning to Milwaukee to pursue a life devoted almost entirely to art. After inheriting her family’s lakeside home in the 1960s, Nohl began transforming the property into a sprawling folk-art environment. Over several decades she created dozens of sculptures (strange concrete heads, animals, fish, and surreal human figures) constructed from stones gathered along the beach, driftwood, glass, and salvaged materials. The yard and interior of the house gradually became an immersive artwork, with hundreds of pieces filling the landscape and even the rooms themselves.
To neighbors and curious teenagers who glimpsed the bizarre statues through the trees, the place seemed mysterious and unsettling. Rumors spread that a witch lived in the cottage by the lake, giving Nohl the nickname “The Witch of Fox Point.” Stories circulated that the statues were enchanted or that the eccentric artist practiced dark magic. In reality, Nohl was simply a fiercely independent artist who lived alone, traveled widely, ran her own pottery business, and devoted her life to creating art outside the conventions of the mainstream art world. The nickname persisted for decades, though Nohl herself occasionally leaned into the legend with a sense of humor, even embedding the word “Boo” into the stones at her doorstep.
Today the house remains standing on Beach Drive and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. After years of debate about the property’s future, Fox Point approved a designation allowing the site to function as a cultural space, meaning limited educational visits and small events can now occur there under controlled conditions. While the home itself is only occasionally accessible, much of Nohl’s artwork, including pieces removed from inside the house, can be viewed by the public at the John Michael Kohler Art Preserve in Sheboygan. There, visitors can explore reconstructed rooms and collections from Nohl’s extraordinary creative world, preserving the legacy of the artist once whispered about as Milwaukee’s most famous “witch.”
Photos
Mary Nohl House – The Witch of Fox Point
Mary Nohl in her yard, 1994
