Art

Ethereal Angkor

By Jenny Bradley

I have to share with you a new book that is on my list of new favorite things. It’s John Mcdermott’s, Elegy: Reflections of Angkor (McDermott Gallery, hardcover, $75).

If you’ve been to Cambodia, it’s a must-have. If you haven’t, it will persuade you to get there. And soon. I’ve tried for years to describe to people what it is about Angkor that puts it smack dab at the top of my favorite places list. McDermott’s book communicates visually what I have not been able to communicate verbally.

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Strength in Numbers

By Doris Athineos

For decorative arts devotees, nothing is better than finding lots of fine furnishings and art all under one roof. Better if the roof covers all periods and styles as well as (clearly marked) reproductions and contemporary craft.  Look no further than midtown Manhattan where you’ll find Center44 (222 East 44th Street), a few blocks west of the United Nations.

Proprietors Paul Plumadore and Jim Tindell are the kind of people who make the business of buying and selling antiques pure pleasure. They’ve invited 75 dealers to display furnishings in room-like settings and the results create sparks of brilliance. Mod, see-through lucite chairs rub up against a 300-year-old walnut chest-of-drawers. Fornasetti plates (by Rosenthal) rest on a metal table fashioned from discarded oil drums. The decorative mix, from old Ethiopian crosses to Italian modern (Gio Ponti chairs) reflect the way we live now.

Paul, a former dancer with the Paul Taylor Dance Company, designed the look of the Center while Jim handles sales southern style–friendly and gracious (chalk it up to Alabama where he was born).  Shoppers include a-list designers Bunny Williams, Kelly Wearsler, Amy Lau and Albert Hadley to name (drop!) a few regulars.  The atmosphere invites meandering (and so does the shop layout). Introduce yourself to Paul and Jim before you begin. They can help, but you’re free to browse. Most of the individual dealers leave it up to Paul and Jim to handle sales. Don’t be surprised if a few hours pass before you come up for air. And prices? Affordable. Visit and tell us what you find. Center44 earns four acanthus leaves * * * *  (And the super-groovy hanging lights throughout the block-long showroom are among the best we’ve seen anywhere in NYC.)

Scavenger Chic

By Doris Athineos

At the Collective, a new restaurant in Manhattan’s meatpacking district, discarded junk was turned into art by crafty artisans who were recruited on Craig’s list.

On a recent visit, we found a claw-foot bathtub transformed into a sofa; chandeliers made of wooden and plastic hangers; tables made of Scrabble letter tiles and paper cutters, and polished floors made of salvaged wood by Brooklyn-based designers Nightwood.

The design firm iCrave created the assemblage and the vibe is upscale downtown chic. And it’s happening all over the country, but my guess is that the recycle aesthetic was born in Brooklyn and other communities where young, creatives nest. Another look we love is by textile designer Lori Weitzner who created wallpaper from recycled newspaper woven together. Doesn’t Lori’s wallpaper look like grass cloth?  Bonus-you can still read some of the words.

Creating decorative arts from things others have discarded seems right now. Show us your best recycle design.

Paris Window Shopping

By Candace Manroe

Just returned last week from the big French furniture and fabrics market, Maison de Objet, in Paris, overwhelmed by so many gorgeous products I think you’ll love. I’ll be posting in multiples, with pics…way too much to share in a single blog.

First, I want to show you the coolest thing I saw OUTSIDE the showrooms. It’s art displayed in the window of an antiquarian book shop in the St. Germaine area, near our hotel.

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