Category: Design

The Herman Miller Pop Up Shop in Soho

The Collection’s final, vital elements are wholly new works from Herman Miller to be introduced this Summer and beyond. In the queue are designs by Ayse Birsel and Bibi Seck, Leon Ransmeier, Sam Hecht and Kim Collin, to enhance and extend The Collection’s reach and service to virtually every space in modern life.

Right foreground: Eames lounge chair and stool upholstered in white

Not simply an exercise in nostalgia, however, the collection also includes recent award-winning contemporary designs by some of today’s best known practitioners from Italian alliance partners Magis and Mattiazzi. These highly respected design houses represent the work of Konstantin Grcic, Jasper Morrison, the brothers Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec, Steffano Giovannoni, Nitzan Cohen, Naoto Fukasawa, Marcel Wanders, Sam Hecht and Kim Collin.

 Eames Arm Chair
Mattiazzi Chairs

The Collection includes familiar and well-loved pieces from the company’s early collaborations with the giants of 20th design, many reintroduced after decades or freshly reinterpreted with new materials and manufacturing technologies.

 Eames Dinning Room Chairs and Table

Names like Eames, Nelson, Noguchi, Girard, Bennett, and Burdick are the foundation for this pop up shop. The shop marks the first public display of the renewed Herman Miller Collection, a comprehensive portfolio of products that offers the ability to create complete environments—from the backyard to the boardroom—with solutions that serve commercial, home, and hospitality spaces. Taking its cue directly from the 1952 writings of George Nelson, Herman Miller’s then director of design, the portfolio represents “the continuing creation of a permanent collection designed to meet fully the requirements for modern living.” 
Eames Chairs and table
The Herman Miller Pop Up Store which is now open in Soho until July 1st is one of the most ambitious pop up store around. During their opening party, over 800 guests gathered together in order to observe and absorb design at its finest. Every piece of furniture and accesory from Charles and Ray Eames, George Nelson, Isamu Neguchi, to Girard, have a story of its own. Herman Miller, the American furniture company have always been ahead of the pack by introducing their customers with nothing less but the finest modern furniture in commercial interiors and modern spaces since the 1930s. This particular exhibition officially introduced Herman Miller Collection to the largest metro market in North America. They even have a popular shop filled with design accessories – from Maharam pillows upholstered with George Nelson’s fabrics to my favorite Eames Black Birds. While the Pop Up Shop is intended to serve as a showroom for the commercial architectural and interior design community, it is also open to the public seven days a week. The carefully curated portfolio combined existing and newly reintroduced iconic modern furniture pieces, as well as the contemporary work of some of today’s best known designers, as well as a total of 200 product families, including several pieces previewed in advance of their retail availability this Fall. The flow of the shop’s vignettes made me want to explore the space even more, and I appreciated how these museum quality pieces represented both residential and commercial applications, which provide solutions for casual office environments, executive offices, meeting rooms, dining rooms, living rooms and even outdoor environments. The product display and the shop is located at 68 Wooster Street (between Spring and Broome) in the heart of SoHo.  For more pictures of the exhibition, please visit our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/highendweekly. And don’t forget to Like US too!

Furniture Design Trends for 2012

Furniture design moves at a different pace to fashion design. People want their furniture to last, and particularly in a time of economic austerity, few people want to see their furniture as just a throwaway, fashion influenced trend. That said, things always grow and change, and furniture trends tend to follow not just changing tastes, but changing needs as the ways in which we live our lives alter over time.
 Tangerine Tango – The 2012 Color of the Year

So, while you might not find sudden changes to furniture fashion, with Italian sofas on-trend this year and French chairs the next, trends do develop. Here are some of the furniture design trends we predict for 2012.
Recycled Furniture 
In keeping with current concerns about the environment and the need to conserve precious resources, the recycled furniture movement is growing. All kinds of surprising things can be made into something new. The most obvious is furniture made from reclaimed wood, with the rough-hewn qualities it has creating interest. More adventurous souls could seek out furniture made from crushed cans and reformed into chairs and tables, or perhaps furniture made from old surf and skate boards, such as pieces by Zanini de Zanine Caldas. If you have the design and building skills, you could even make your own. Another route is to look for materials reclaimed from old buildings and house clearances and use them as the centerpiece for something new.
Eco-Friendly Furniture 
In keeping with the above, designers and manufacturers are increasingly keen to show that their furniture has good eco-credentials. For example, the use of sustainable woods and fabrics which have not been treated with harsh chemicals both increase a piece’s cool factor. Untreated furniture is often the most eco-friendly, and many people are looking for furniture that does not use harmful chemicals in its manufacture. Some of this kind of furniture can be at the top-end in terms of price, as manufacturers compete for scare sustainable resources. Others, such as cushion covers made from un-dyed hemp, can be very cheap and accessible. 

New Retro Furniture 
There is a definite trend for low-slung, retro-style furniture that makes use of glass and metal to create a very 1960s to 70s look. Sofas and chairs increasingly have low seating heights, and so coffee tables are lowered to match. Many designers are making heavy use of glass too, so those low tables may well have glass tops, and those low beds have glass headboards. This kind of furniture has a lovely, relaxed feel: it harks back to the comforting confidence of another age, while also injecting a bit of modern edginess into a room. 
Brightly Colored Furniture 
Furniture in bright colors catches the eye and can act as a focal point in a room. In particular (and mirroring catwalk trends) acid yellows, and bright purples can be seen everywhere. This is a great trend if you don’t have a big budget to work with, as you can change some fabrics or add a big, statement picture to achieve it. And of course, if you are able to spend more, it allows you to really go all out to achieve a new, bold look. 
Neutrally Colored Furniture 
This might sound as if it contradicts the above, but actually, it works in harmony with it. After all, you can only have so much color in one room. It also works as part of the eco-friendly trend, with un-dyed fabrics worked in. As well as un-dyed fabrics, colors like gray, taupe, cream and stone work well and can be combined with many brighter colors for a great all-round look. Neutral colors can help keep things clean and light, and allow you to display art or photographs without worrying about color clashes.

Photo courtesy of Roche Bobois
Modular Furniture
Modular furniture isn’t new, but it is growing in popularity. And it doesn’t just have to mean modular sofas: anything which can be combined with something else to give it a double use comes under this trend. Modular furniture allows you to re-jig a room instantly, so you could go from having scattered chairs which separate a room into areas for different activities, into having a single cozy centerpiece for family and friends to gather on and around.
Contributed by Izzy Woods

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The Weekender: The Winter Antiques Show & The Bard

The Importance of Being Fashionable
A couple of days before I went to a Press Preview at the Bard Graduate Center, I had no idea who Jane Harding was. Although the actress was not so well known here in the United States, back in France, she was all the rage. It is said that during her lifetime, Ms. Harding was one of the most photographed women in the world. Enter Staging Fashion, an “absolutely required” exhibition for fashionistas, and those who are so enthused by the celebrity culture.

Woman’s Hat by Joseph G. Darlington and Co. Philadelphia, circa 1908 – 10.

Straw, silk flowers and leaves.

The show is mostly about how celebrities like Jane Harding, Lily Elsie, and Billie Burke dominated the fashion scene back in the early 20th Century. They managed to do so by one important medium – Photography. Carefully staged photographs represented a vital self-promotional tool by which the actresses asserted their status as Fashion Arbiters. Sound very much like our current culture right? Back then, the images by Harding emphasized an image of an attractive, elegantly dressed, and poised woman, who offered herself for admiration and at the same time, scrutiny. A close collaboration between photographers and actors was crucial back then as it is today. The promotional interest between the media to its public is phenomenal and is ever increasing. In this sophisticated exhibition, Fashion and Theater came together beautifully to form a brilliant and lasting marriage.

January 18 – April 8, 2012
The Bard Graduate Center
18 West 86th Street
New York City

Left: Reutlinger Studio (French, 1850-1937). Postcard of Jane Hading in La Pompadour, ca. 1901. Hand-colored photograph with glitter. Private collection. Photographed by Bruce White. Right: Foulsham & Banfield (English, 1906–1920). Postcard of Lily Elsie in The Merry Widow, ca. 1907. Private collection.
Photographed by Bruce White.
Advertisement for Rogers & Thompson’s Soirée Silk featuring Billie Burke. Photograph by Sarony Studio. From The Theatre (September 1916): 165. Private collection. Photographed by Bruce White.
Jane Hading: Paul Boyer. Jane Hading in Plus que Reine. Cover of Le Théatre (May 1899). Private collection. 
 Photographed by Bruce White.
Postcard of the Théâtre du Vaudeville and the Boulevard des Italiens, ca. 1905. Hand-colored photograph. Private collection. Photographed by Bruce White

All photos courtesy of the Bard Graduate Institute.
© All Rights Reserved
The Winter Antiques Show 2012

The illustrious Winter Antiques Show opens today at the Park Avenue Armory for the 58th Year in a row. This year, be prepared to get reacquainted with old dealers and meet new ones. Jonathan Boos is displaying an impressive collection of Alexander Calder’s standing mobiles.

Originally gifted by the artist to a family who cared for his mother in the 1950’s, these pieces were kept there for over 50 years and now are ready to embrace a new home. Highlights from the show included a rare and important African-American Pictographic Plantation desk, ca. 1870, from Madison, Mississippi. This particular desk is attributed to “Willie” Howard, a favored slave at Kirkwood Plantation, owned by pre-Civil War Governor McWillie. Art Deco dealer, Maison Gerard, have several new acquisitions from Leuleu. They are exquisite and offer themselves as perfect additions to any art deco collector. Another exciting dealer to look for is Keshishian. Mr. Eddy Keshishian, a carpet dealer from London, is exhibiting a jaw-dropping Art Deco carpet made for the Maharajah of Indores palace. This magnificent piece demonstrates the widespread appeal of Art Deco design, which was originated in France and quickly spread as far as India. Go inside the show, by visiting us on Facebook, for more photographs. The Winter Antiques Show benefits the East Side House Settlement which was founded in 1891 to help immigrants and lower income families on the East Side of Manhattan. In 1962, it moved to the South Bronx where it serves 8,000 residents annually within one of America’s poorest congressional districts, the Mott Haven section of the South Bronx.

My Fair Ladies
Quintessential Victorian fairies from the 19th Century
Clockwise: From Nicholas Grindley Works of Art, Ltd. A ceremonial fan of circular leaf shape made of three boards crudely joined together and carved on the face with radiating ribs with an incurved lip at the top. Thai, 18th – 19th Century. Egyptian gilded and painted cartonnage mummy mask. Ptolemaic Period, c. 4th – 3rd century BC, from Rupert Wace Ancient Art. Foreground – One of three remarkable series of Alexander Calder standing mobiles (untitled) from Jonathan Boos

Photos property of High End Weekly™

Americana Week: January 17 – 29, 2012

Your Guide to Americana Week

Monday, January 16
Metropolitan Museum of Art
New American Wing Galleries for Paintings, Sculpture, and Decorative Arts Opens
1000 Fifth Avenue
New York City

Sotheby’s Preview
Important Americana: Furniture, Folk Art, Silver, Porcelain, Prints and Carpets
1334 York Avenue

Tuesday, January 17
Hayes Fine Arts Building
The Modern Art of Antique Quilts

Fisher Heritage Specialty
305 East 61st Street
New York City

Bohemian National Hall
New York Ceramics Fair
Opening Night
5 p.m. until 9 p.m.
321 East 73rd Street
New York City

Christie’s
Preview of Important American Furniture and Folk Art
Rockefeller Center
New York City

Christie’s
Preview of Chinese Export Art
Rockefeller Center
New York City

Bonham’s
Preview of Fine American and European Furniture and Decorative Arts
580 Madison Avenue
New York City

Keno Auctions
Auction: Important Americana, Paintings, Furniture and Decorative Arts
48 E 84th Street

New York City

Sotheby’s
Preview: Americana: Furniture, Folk Art, Silver, Porcelain, Prints and Carpets
1334 York Avenue
New York City

Hayes Fine Arts Building 

The Modern Art of Antique Quilts
A Fisher Heritage Specialty 
305 East 61st Street
New York City
Wednesday, January 18
Metro Show Opening Night
7 p.m. until 9 p.m.
125 West 18th Street
New York City

Christie’s 

Preview: Important American Furniture and Folk Art
Rockefeller Center
New York City

Christie’s
Preview: Chinese Export Art

Rockefeller Center
New York City

Bonham’s 

Auction: The Mapping and Discovery of America
580 Madison Avenue
New York City
Bonham’s 
Preview: Fine American and European Furniture and Decorative Arts
580 Madison Avenue
New York City

New York Ceramics Fair 

Lecture: Searching for Pots: 40+ Years Above and Below the Ground
12 Noon
321 East 73rd Street
Lecture: Getting the Blues: Cobalt Ornament on Tin-Glazed Earthenware from Around the World 
2 p.m.
321 East 73rd Street
New York City

New York Ceramics Fair 

Lecture: The Impressionists 
Dishes: Ceramics in the Florence Griswold House and the Odd Way They Were Collected 
4 p.m.
321 East 73rd Street
New York City

Sotheby’s

Preview:  Important Americana: Furniture, Folk Art, Silver, Porcelain, Prints and Carpets
1334 York Avenue
New York City

American Folk Art Museum
Music:  2 p.m. until 3 p.m.

Performed by jazz guitarist Bill Wurtzel
Hayes Fine Arts Building
Fisher Heritage Specialty
Show: The Modern Art of Antique Quilts
305 East 61st Street
New York City
Thursday, January 19
Winter Antiques Show 
Opening Night Party
5 p.m. until 9 p.m.
Park Avenue Armory
643 Park Avenue @ 67th Street
New York City

Christie’s 
Auction: Silver Auction

Rockefeller Center
New York City
Sotheby’s 
Auction: Important Americana: Furniture, Folk Art, Silver, Porcelain, Prints and Carpets
1334 York Avenue
New York City

Christie’s

Auction: Important American Furniture and Folk Art
Rockefeller Center
New York City

Christie’s 
Preview: Chinese Export Art

Rockefeller Center
New York City
Bonham’s 
Auction: Fine American and European Furniture and Decorative Arts
580 Madison Avenue
New York City

New York Ceramics Fair 

Lecture: Going Beyond Chromium Green: Overglaze Enamel Formulations and the Dating of Factory and Hausmaler-Decorated Meissen Ware 
12 noon
321 East 73rd Street
New York City

New York Ceramics Fair 

Lecture: American Blues: Printed Pottery Celebrating a New Nation
2 p.m.
321 East 73rd Street
New York City

Sotheby’s

Preview: Important Americana: Furniture, Folk Art, Silver, Porcelain, Prints and Carpets
1334 York Avenue
New York City

Hayes Fine Arts Building

A Fisher Heritage Specialty
The Modern Art of Antique Quilts
Show: at 305 East 61st Street
New York City
American Indian, circa 1900s
via The Financial Times: How To Spend It
Friday, January 20
Christie’s
Auction: Important American Furniture and Folk Art
Rockefeller Center
New York City

Christie’s
Preview: ‘Chinese Export Art

Rockefeller Center
New York City
Sotheby’s
Auction: Important Americana: Furniture, Folk Art, Silver, Porcelain, Prints and Carpets
1334 York Avenue
New York City

Antiques at the Armory 

Stella Shows
10 a.m. until 7 p.m. 
69th Regiment Armory
Lexington Avenue at 26th Street
New York City

Hayes Fine Arts Building

A Fisher Heritage Specialty
The Modern Art of Antique Quilts
305 East 61st Street
New York City
Saturday, January 21
Christie’s 
Preview: Chinese Export Art 
Rockefeller Center
New York City

New York Ceramics Fair

Lecture: From a Mere Lump of Clay: Harry Potter and Ceramic Technology
12 noon
321 East 73rd Street
New York City

New York Ceramics Fair 

Lecture: Hot Plates: Every Dish Tells a Story
2 p.m.
321 East 73rd Street
New York City

New York Ceramics Fair 

Lecture: A Variegated History: Tortoiseshell Earthenware in Colonial America
4 p.m.
321 East 73rd Street
New York City

Antiques at the Armory 

Show: 10 a.m. until 7 p.m. 
69th Regiment Armory
Lexington Avenue at 26th Street
New York City

Americana and Antiques at the Pier 

Show: 9 a.m. until 5 p.m.
Pier 92
New York City
Sunday, January 22
Christie’s 
Preview: Chinese Export Art
Rockefeller Center
New York City

Antiques at the Armory 

Show: 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. 
69th Regiment Armory
Lexington Avenue at 26th Street
New York City

Americana and Antiques at the Pier

Show: 10 a.m. until 5 p.m.
Pier 92
New York City
Monday, January 23
The Modern Art of Antique Quilts 
Show: A Fisher Heritage Specialty
Hayes Fine Arts Building 
305 East 61st Street
New York City
Christie’s

Auction:  Chinese Export Art

Rockefeller Center
New York City

Life size Nubian Goat Sculpture on Wheels
Photo courtesy of 1stDibs
Tuesday, January 24 – Saturday, February 25

1stDibs

Folk Tales: Bringing Folk Art Home Exhibition & Sale
The New York Design Center
200 Lexington Avenue
New York City

Christie’s
Auction: The Peter H B Frelinghuysen Jr Collection of Chinese Export Porcelain
Rockefeller Center
New York City

The Modern Art of Antique Quilts

Show: A Fisher Heritage Specialty
Hayes Fine Arts Building 
305 East 61st Street
New York City
Wednesday, January 25
National Academy Museum and School 
Exhibit: The Annual: 2012
1083 Fifth Avenue
New York City

American Folk Art Museum 

Music: 2 p.m. until 3 p.m.
Performed by jazz guitarist Bill Wurtzel
The Modern Art of Antique Quilts
Show: A Fisher Heritage Specialty
Hayes Fine Arts Building 
305 East 61st Street
New York City
Thursday, January 26
New York Historical Society Homes of Early New York
Lecture: Birth of an American Style
6:30 p.m.
170 Central Park West
New York City
For tickets inquiries, contact: East Side House Settlement | 718-292-7392

Winter Antiques Show Young Collector’s Night

Park Avenue Armory
643 Park Avenue @ 67th Street
Show: 7 p.m. until 9 p.m.
New York City

Outsider Art Fair

Preview
7 West 34th Street
New York City
Friday, January 27
National Academy Museum and School The Annual
Exhibit: 2012
1083 Fifth Avenue
New York City
The Modern Art of Antique Quilts
Fisher Heritage Specialty
Show: at Hayes Fine Arts Building 
305 East 61st Street
New York City
Saturday, January 28, 29
National Academy Museum and School
The Annual: 2012 Exhibit
1083 Fifth Avenue

 Bringing Home A Legend 

A handful of rare and historical objects will go on view, during Americana Week in New York City. This time honored tradition kicked off yesterday at Keno Auctions with a gallery talk entitled American Still Life Painting in the 19th Century by Doctor William H. Gerdts.
This lecture marked the beginning of a series of high profile art fairs, auctions, and showroom events. Americana Week is in fact two weeks of sales, viewings and symposium devoted to three centuries of American craftsmanship in all its forms, including important furniture, decorative arts, and of course, folk art. Young and old collectors will become transfixed by an impressive mix of the finest museum quality art, and antiques. Yours truly will make the rounds to most of these events, shopping for clients, and gathering materials for you lovely readers out there. I’m looking forward to a couple of impressive lectures and auctions at Christie’s as well as the January 24th event at 1stDibs entitled: Folk Tales – Bringing Folk Art Home.
Life Guards from Just Folk 
(Michael and Gael Mendelsohn Collection)
Iconic Figures
Cover photo: Marionettes, also from Just Folk 
Extremely Rare 34 Star Flag
Used as a national parade flag during the Civil War period it features four different size stars on a blue canton, Jeff R. Bridgman American Antiques
Above photos courtesy of 1stDibs
All right reserved

This will be an important selling exhibition of rare and extraordinary examples of American Folk Art and Ephemera curated by five of the country’s leading Americana specialists, and 1stdibs dealers including Jeff R. Bridgman American Antiques, Just Folk and Judith and James Milne. Ames Gallery and A Bird in Hand will be displaying their antiques as well. Folk Tales is a group show of independent dealers from across the United States who will highlight collectible quilts, weathervanes, flags, outsider and tramp art, game boards, original-surface painted furniture, trade signs and one-of-a-kind pieces, all of which offer a fascinating view into the American decorative past. This show will include a broad range of items priced from the affordable (under-$500) to pique the interest of the budding collector to museum-quality to satisfy the ardent enthusiast ($100,000).

January 24 – February 25, 2012

1stDibs at New York Design Center
200 Lexington Avenue, 10th Floor
@ 33rd Street
New York City
Free and Open to the Public
Monday – Friday: 9:00AM – 5:00PM
Saturday 10:00AM – 5:00PM

Industrial Clocks by George Nelson

He was widely known as one of the founding fathers of American modernism, who was also admired as the creator of beautiful and practical things. As an interior designer, I appreciate the aesthetics of George Nelson’s designs, and make use of them whenever the project calls for it. Yes, I’m much enthused with his industrial clock designs, but do not want to over look his architectural contribution; his iconic furniture designs, like the 1956 kangaroo chair, his sling sofa and coffee table, and of course, his ever more popular steel legged chairs. 
A room with a view: The George Nelson retro modern chairs (circa 1956)
are a perfect compliments to his industrial clocks. Photo via Archzine

The settees, the bedroom pieces he designed while working with the Herman Miller company in the 1940s will forever remain in the archives as a notification of what great design really signifies. George Nelson was an amazing industrial designer with a vision that left an imprint and is still carried out by today’s top 21st Century Product Designers.
Futuristic!
George Nelson’s Clocknik Table Clock
Message in a bottle
George Nelson Design for Herman Miller Clock Company, circa 1950

Round and Around We Go
Top: Re-issued by Vitra, The Wheel, circa the 1950s, or 1960s. Right: Ball Clock, circa 1964
Bottom: Tripod Clock, circa 1947. Right: An extremely rare Vintage George Nelson Clock
Spoonfed
George Nelson Spoon Pendulum Clock

Forward to a new Modernism

The Essensials
Top:  George Nelson: Architect / Writer / Designer / Teacher/ Full color, extensively illustrated, this book from the Vitra Design Museum is a fitting tribute to this seminal figure. With eight essays by German and American design historians, the publication deals with all of the areas of his work, many of which are presented here for the first time. Bottom: Building a New Europe: Portraits of Modern Architects (Yale School of Architecture) covers a series of articles from the 1930s, as Nelson eloquently introduced astonishing buildings and fascinating personalities from across the Atlantic to wider American audiences.
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Top 10 Places to Shop in 2011

Clockwise: Art Deco Furniture from Maison Gerard, OC Concept Store, Arabesques Earrings, Kiki de Montparnasse, Starlet Robe, Fine stationary from Mrs. John L. Strong.

From Top: Darcy, White & Silver Wallpaper ($70/Roll). Bottom from Left: Jana Paintable. Right: Arches Paintable Wallpaper ($30/Roll).

Handblown Czech glass from Artel.

Diamond 18k Rose Gold Bracelet from High End Weekly’s Amazon Store.

Top Left: Bookmarc by Marc Jacobs on Bleecker Street. Right: Flowers by L’Olivier. Bottom: Red Velvet cupcakes from Cannelle Patisserie, Jackson Heights, NY.

NOTE: Please notify us directly, if you believe that certain images on this post are alleged to infringe upon the copyrights of others, according to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Thank you.

Design Masters at Phillips de Pury

Phillips de Pury’s Design Masters auction took place last evening to a stunning result of $4,914,925. The crown jewel was the gonse chairs by Emile-Jacques Ruhlmann. This was a magnificent triumph for Art Deco. 
Stunning Results: Emile-Jacques Ruhlmann. Pair of “gonse” armchairs, 1930-1932. Lacquered wood, fabric. Underside of one frame branded with “Ruhlmann”. Estimated at $600,000 – $800,000. Realized at $1,426,500



Over the last few years, the results for auction houses world-wide have proven that Art Deco ruled supreme. Another significant factor came to light as a result of the Design Masters sale. It became quite obvious that a continuing strong appeal and results for French mid-century design is in demand, and that Phillips de Pury is the market leader in Italian glass. Exceptional prices for works by glass masters Carlo Scarpa and Fulvio Bianconi (realized prices totaled $287,000) came up in the very top.

George Nakashima
Early “Conoid” bench with single free-form arm, 1961
American black walnut, hickory, three East Indian rosewood butterfly keys. Underside signed in black marker with “Reed.” Together with a copy of hte original order card and a letter of authenticity from Mira Nakashima.
Estimate at $100,000 – $150,000
Realized at $230,500
Dagobert Peche
Rare table lamp, 1921
Ash, ash-veneered wood, fabric.
Estimate at $120,000 – $180,000
Gio Ponti
Monumental chandelier, for the Hotel Parco dei Principi, Rome 1964
Rosted glass, brass, manufactured in Italy. Certificate of authenticity from teh Gio Ponti Archives.
Estimated at $80,000 – $120,000
Jean Royere
Extremely rare “Oeuf” chest of drawers, ca. 1958
Ash, Ash-veneered wood, fabric
Estimate $120,000 – $180,000
Realized at $158,000
Photos courtesy of Phillips de Purry

Jeff Koons Plate Launch and Signing at Bernardaud

Famed visual artist Jeff Koons at Bernardaud.
Jeff Koons

Jeff Koons Plate
Michel Bernardaud, Jeff Koons
Jeff Koons 
 Atmosphere
Eva Lorenzotti, Liz Swig
Jean Shafiroff, Jeff Koons
Doreen Remen, Jeff Koons, Yvonne Force Villareal, Casey Fremont 
From Left: Claudette Blackwood, Anne Marie Kishbauch, Michel Bernardaud, Jeff Koons, George Kakaty, Corinne Oats, Staff
Jeff Koons, Michel Bernardaud
Photos courtesy of Billy Farrell Agency

Tableware Designed With an Eye on Peace

From celebrated French porcelain tableware company Bernardaud, and the Art Production Fund came a collector’s item plate conceived by leading artist Jeff Koons. The design of this special edition Limoges porcelain plate is a direct reference of Jeff Koons “Popeye series” sculpture Acrobat, an inflatable lobster balanced atop two readymades, a trash can and a chair.

The idea behind this picture brings to mind the classical concept of beauty through the equilibrium of mind and body. I can’t think of a better porcelain company than Bernardaud, who over the years have had some of the most successful collaborations with top artists as Roy Lichtenstein, Cindy Sherman, George Segal, Joeph Kosuth, Arman, César, Pae White, and James Brown, to present this unforgettable piece which bears the image  of the shape of a peace sign And the fact that the graphics are in black and white (we get enough colors from our food) makes the patterns even more striking. The project was made possible through a gracious contribution from Sotheby’s.

Bernardaud is a family owned-and-operated business which was founded in 1863 in Limoges, France. The trendsetting company is recognized worldwide for its commitment to the French traditions of refinement and creativity in the crafting of porcelain tableware, jewelry and interior design pieces. 
The 10.5″ limited edition plate retails for $98.00 and is available for purchase through www.worksonwhatever.com. Information on local stores is available from 800-884-7775.

Jeff Koons Plate
Photos courtesy of Bernardaud

Pavilion of Art & Design at The Park Avenue Armory




November 11 – 14, 2011

Since its grand opening in Paris 15 years ago, the Pavilion of Art & Design fairs, better known as PAD, have been closely associated with presenting works of art of the highest quality which have been vetted by distinctive panels of experts. This year, PAD brought their “oeuvre d’art” to the prestigious Park Avenue Armory.
Galerie Downtown

This inaugural fair brought together 49 international galleries who are exhibiting works of Modern Art, Design, Decorative Arts, Photography, Jewelery and Tribal Art. The exhibit is inviting and full of design inspirations.  Many of the dealers are carrying some of the most exquisite pieces that I’ve ever laid eyes on.
One such dealer is Galerie Downtown.  Its owner, François Laffanour created the gallery with a thoroughly avant-garde brief: the rehabilitation of 20th century architects’ furniture which had sunk into oblivion. He is championing the works of two pioneers of 20th century Decorative Arts: Jean Prouvé and Charlotte Perriand (joint founder of the Union des Artists Modernes with Le Corbusier in 1929), as well as that of Serge Mouille and Isamu Noguchi. I like the fact that these blue-chip artists were passionate about freedom, they were able to re-invent far more than a way of life or a way of dwelling, rather a life project, no less, a manifesto of the period’s technical and scientific modernity. Charlotte Perriand once said “What interests me is people. Spare lines whose functional quality goes hand-in-hand with everyday gestures, and simple materials (wood, metal, bamboo) combined with a keen sense of detail contributed to the refinement of their works”. This in fact is a huge interest of mine as well.

For this first Pavilion of Art and Design, the French architect Jean de Piépape exclusively designed Galerie Downtown’s stand with all the geometry and subtlety that are the hallmarks of his reputation. His deft selection of furniture and objects include a seating and a staircase by Jean Prouvé, a bench, seats and shelves by Charlotte Perriand.

Park Avenue Armory
643 Park Avenue
(67th Street)
New York, New York 10065
212-744-8180
Hours:  11 AM – 8 PM

Jean Prouvé
Circa 1942, Dining table
Charlotte Perriand
1955, “Shadow” chair
Pierre Jeanneret
Ca. 1955, Armless easy chair
Charlotte Perriand
1961, Bench with drawer box