Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/130754
MARKET PLACE We asked four savvy design collectors to share when they began buying vintage, what they're on the hunt for and the one that got away. Orgone Stretch lounge by Marc Newson. AL EIBER When did you purchase your first vintage piece and what was it? Twentyfive years ago—Russel Wright spun aluminum pieces. My wife and I would not pay more than $5. How have those pieces fared since? The pieces are now worth between $100 and $1,000. What piece do you regret not purchasing when you had the chance? Any piece from Marc Newson. What are you always on the hunt for? Shiro Kuramata. Among the more contemporary designers, who do you think will be the next Royère? Joris Laarman. Which designers do you feel are the most solid investments? Newson, Kuramata, George Nakashima Is your collection focused on one decade or region? Post World War II design, mostly Italian. Is there an undervalued designer now? Gaetano Pesce. When did you purchase your first vintage piece and what was it? My first purchase was either a 1930s mirrored metal table by Jacques Adnet or a table by Gio Ponti. This was 25 years ago. I loved them both at the time and still do. How have they fared since? I rarely deaccession anything, so I have never tried to sell either of those pieces, but clearly the market for both has gone up in the last few decades. What piece do you regret not purchasing when you had the chance? Joaquim Tenreiro's three-legged chair. What are you always on the hunt for? I am always looking for red-and-black vases by Napoleone Martinuzzi or extraordinary Hus (Chinese ivories from the Ming Dynasty). Among the more contemporary designers, who do you think will be the next Royère? I don't think any of them will be the next Royère. Royère designed entire lifestyles, and it's a different world now; people buy objects and furniture, not lifestyles. Which designers do you feel are the most solid investments? Tenreiro or any great, known furniture maker from the 18th or 19th century. Do you have a guiding principle in developing your collection? Buy the very, very best you can afford. This Gio Ponti table was one of VeneKlasen's first purchases. 66 CULTURED Floor lamp with one cone shade and one Cobra shade by Greta Magnusson Grossman. MONA PERLHAGEN When did you purchase your first vintage piece and what was it? Three Grasshopper lamps at Bukowskis auction house in Stockholm. What piece do you regret not purchasing when you had the chance? Greta Magnusson Grossman's desk with the little bookshelf attached and the dressers. What are you always on the hunt for? Lamps. Which designers do you feel are the most solid investments? Many of the French designers. Is your collection focused on one decade or region? We collect 18th century and 20th century. Is there an undervalued designer now? Grossman and Kerstin Horlin Holmquist. When did you purchase your first vintage piece and what was it? In the early 90s I bought a Grasshopper lamp for $500 at a Dusseldorf antique market. The dealer claimed it was a Bauhaus design of unknown origin. How has that piece fared since? It now has 20 to 30 times the value. What piece do you regret not purchasing when you had the chance? A double-standing lamp with black and white shades. What are you always on the hunt for? Unique examples of Art Deco as well as genuine mid-century pieces. Which designers do you feel are the most solid investments? Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann, Jean-Michel Frank, Pierre Chareau, Hans Wegner, Pierre Jeanneret, Jean Prouvé and Charlotte Perriand have proven to withstand the flavors of the day. Is your collection focused on one decade or region? I have learned that picking pieces from different decades and mixing them to become a unique ensemble gives me the greatest satisfaction. Is there an undervalued designer now? Alvar Aalto is still vastly underestimated in my opinion. He deserves to be recognized more. Bridge FB 11 office chair by Jean Prouvé. PHOTO BY SHERRY GRIFFIN (GROSSMAN) MAREK LIEBERGERG GORDON VENEKLASEN