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Most of us would think twice before inviting a stranger into our home.

Justin Low, 49, apparently has no such reservations.

In fact, the Singaporean marketing and communications executive welcomed more than 200 visitors, including complete strangers, into his condo apartment for an art exhibition last November.

And he's doing it again this year.

Speaking to 8days.sg, Justin recalls how surprised he was by the turnout previously.

"Complete strangers RSVP'd and walked through my front door. That was probably the moment I realised the idea had a life beyond my immediate circle. People were genuinely curious about encountering art this way," he tells us.

This year, Justin is back with the second edition of his exhibition, “No Straight Lines”, which opened on October 17 and features works by 13 artists from Singapore and overseas.

Rather than displaying the pieces in a traditional gallery, Justin wants visitors to experience the art in a lived-in home, where they can take their time looking at the works and discussing them.

But instead of simply hanging the artworks on his walls, Justin decided his apartment needed a complete makeover.

So he painted virtually the entire place yellow.

"We knew that if we were inviting people back into the same apartment for a second year, we couldn't simply hang different works on the same walls and call it a new experience. The space needed to change and evolve too," he explains.

Professional painters completed the job in a day, though Justin admits he was quite taken aback when he saw the finished result.

"My first reaction was 'OMG! It is SO yellow!'. There is a huge difference between looking at a colour swatch and standing in an entire apartment surrounded by that colour. I felt like a mouse in a slab of cheese!" he laughs, adding that he'd be repainting the walls back to their original off-white hue after the exhibition.

Justin declined to reveal how much he forked out to hold the exhibition, though he shares that it is entirely self-funded. "My ROI is seeing people discover artists, engage with the work and, ideally, place those works with collectors," he explains.

What is it like holding an art exhibition in your home that you're also living in? 

Justin, who lives alone, says during the exhibition, he continues going about his daily routines.

"Once the visitors leave, it becomes my home again. I eat surrounded by the exhibition, walk past the works in the morning and see them at night when the apartment is quiet," he shares.

Prior to the launch of the exhibition, though, Justin had to do some serious rearranging.

Almost his entire personal art collection comes down, valuables are packed away and furniture is moved to accommodate the exhibition.

Visitors can explore most of the apartment, though his bedrooms remain strictly off-limits.

And for anyone thinking of simply showing up at his doorstep, visits are managed through RSVPs, with Justin or exhibition producer Chua Ching Yi present to oversee things.

His neighbours, thankfully, have been understanding too.

"We are conscious that this is still a residential building, so visitors come in controlled numbers, and we try very hard to ensure that the exhibition does not become disruptive to the people living around me," he says.

Still, opening his home to strangers means giving up some privacy. So what does he miss most?

"Probably the ability to look terrible in my own home without worrying that someone is about to ring the doorbell!" he jokes.

"But more seriously, you do temporarily lose that sense of home and privacy. For several weeks, it becomes a project,” he added.

And with a full-time job to juggle, much of the preparation happens during evenings and weekends, with artworks arriving, furniture being moved and endless WhatsApp messages about installations and deliveries.

To Justin, all that hassle is worth it when he sees how people respond to the exhibition.

"Because visitors can experience the works at an intimate scale, it encourages a different rhythm of looking and lingering,” he says.

For Justin, seeing strangers feel so comfortable in his home made all the effort worthwhile.

Of course, inviting strangers into your home comes with its own surprises, and Justin tells us about a visitor who apparently felt really at home. 

"Maybe for one person, he got too comfortable being in my apartment and was constantly digging his nose while walking around. I promptly passed him a tissue paper and aggressively vacuumed my apartment after he left," Justin recalls.

Thankfully, apart from that rather memorable guest, visitors were generally respectful of his personal space.

Photos: Justin Low, August Sim, Phillip Huynh

"No Straight Lines" runs from Oct 17 to Nov 1, 2026, and is open Thursdays to Sundays. Those interested in visiting can RSVPhere.