Ferragamo Women's new flagship in Milan.
Photo: Courtesy Ferragamo
The Artful Life: 7 Things Galerie Editors Love This Week
From Ferragamo’s new Milan boutique by Vincent Van Duysen to the unveiling of this year’s Pritzker Architecture Prize Laureate
Yokosuka Museum of Art. Photo: courtesy of Tomio Ohashi
1. Architect Riken Yamamoto Awarded 2024 Pritzker Prize
Architecture’s most prestigious award—the Pritzker Prize—has been bestowed upon architect Riken Yamamoto, who heads up Japanese studio Riken Yamamoto & Field Shop. Born in China, Yamamoto relocated to Japan in the late 1940s and established his practice in ’73, starting off designing single-family residences that featured clever use of light and limited space. He went on to receive larger commissions (including public housing, educational facilities, civic spaces, and urban planning) that challenged traditional notions of transparency, using glass and terraces to explore public and private realms, thus fostering civic engagement and a sense of community. This year’s prize was selected by a jury helmed by Chilean architect Alejandro Aravena, the 2016 laureate, who remarked: “One of the things we need most in the future of cities is to create conditions through architecture that multiply the opportunities for people to come together and interact. By carefully blurring the boundary between public and private, Yamamoto contributes positively beyond the brief to enable community.” —Geoffrey Montes
Norki armchair and Thierry Lemaire console on view as part of Invisible Collection's installation at Phillips Los Angeles. Photo: Rodrigo Rize for Invisible Collection
Garcé & Dimofski sofa and cocktail table with a Haos floor lamp on view as part of Invisible Collection's installation at Phillips Los Angeles. Photo: Rodrigo Rize for Invisible Collection
2. Invisible Collection Debuts Year-Long Residency at Phillips Los Angeles
Following previous installations at Sotheby’s in Manhattan and Phillips Southampton, Invisible Collection unveiled a year-long residency at Phillips’ Los Angeles gallery during Frieze Week. On the West Coast, the online design gallery—helmed by Galerie Creative Minds Anna Zaoui, Lily Froehlicher, and Isabelle Dubern-Mallevays—will display “French Bloom” a curated assortment of exceptional pieces from their roster of French talents, including Pierre Bonnefille, Thierry Lemaire, and Garcé & Dimofski, as well as a rotating presentation of visually arresting creations, like pink and gold disco balls handmade by Studio MTX. “We’ve always seen the U.S. as a second home for us, a place with a large community of enthusiastic collectors and design connoisseurs who really appreciate and understand what Invisible Collection is about,” Dubern-Mallevays says in a statement. “I have a special fondness for L.A.; I love the city’s dynamic ethos, the way it merges Hollywood glamour and modernism, always open to change and experimentation. I can’t wait to start the conversation and see how the French aesthetic we champion will blend into this environment.” —Jill Sieracki
A work by Rachel Lee Hovnanian. Photo: Courtesy of the artist.
3. Rachel Lee Hovnanian Explores Themes of Disconnection at Palm Beach’s County Gallery
Miami-based artist Rachel Lee Hovnanian is unveiling her latest series of paintings at County gallery in Palm Beach this week. Titled “Beyond the Hedges,” the new show, which runs from March 8 through 22, features nine large-scale oil paintings depicting aloof figures against vibrant, David Hockney-esque pool and garden settings. Also on view are a series of works depicting women’s robes fading into the patterns and garden hedges. The viewer is invited to delight in the visual mashup of images–drawn from printed photographs and advertising to scenes of nature—as they begin to sense the feelings of fear, loneliness, and uncertainty lying beneath the perfect scenes. “The happiness derived from constant technological connectivity and communication results in the deterioration of genuine human experiences and meaningful connections,” says the artist in a statement. “In this hyper-real world, we may have lost touch with our real selves. The constant texting and consuming have possibly left us feeling empty, isolated, and disconnected leading to a spiritual aloneness… I hope that this work shares the power of our sense of community belonging and our need for meaningful relationships.” —Lucy Rees
Ferragamo Women's new flagship in Milan. Photo: Courtesy Ferragamo
4. Ferragamo Unveils Milan Boutique by Vincent Van Duysen
Formerly located in Milan’s storied Palazzo Carcassola Grandi on Via Montenapoleone, luxury fashion house Ferragamo has now unveiled a stunning new flagship dedicated to its womenswear collections. Respected talent Vincent Van Duysen and Ferragamo’s Creative Director Maximilian Davis collaborated on the ultra-chic space, which features mixed materials including Venetian stucco walls, stone floors, and a neutral color palette to envelop the brand’s wide selection of shoes, handbags, accessories, and clothing on display. In addition to luxe furnishings, more artistic and design-forward touches can be found throughout each of the rooms, including tables by Andrea Anastasio, up-cycled pieces by JoAnn Tan, as well as a striking blue ceramic wall alcoves and table by Andrea Mancusom, which were shown by Nilufar Gallery in 2022 as part of Analogia Project’s Acquario collection. —Shelby Black
EDRA & Zimbabwean artists Moffat Takadiwa and Julio Rizhi. Photo: Courtesy EDRA
EDRA & Zimbabwean artists Moffat Takadiwa and Julio Rizhi. Photo: Courtesy EDRA
5. Edra and Creative Art Partners Launch Pop-Up During Frieze L.A.
An immersive fusion of art and design has popped up in one of L.A.’s buzziest residential projects, 8899 Beverly (designed by Olson Kundig), just as tastemakers arrived in town for Frieze Los Angeles. A collaboration between Diva Group’s Italian brand Edra, the agency Creative Art Partners, and Eclat creative director Hanane El Moutii, the installation is perched in the West Hollywood development’s sprawling penthouse and features sculptural furnishings by Campana Brothers and Francesco Binfaré, plus a stellar collection of art by artists Moffat Takadiwa and Julio Rizhi, who both hail from Zimbabwe. Stop by the stellar show through the end of the month to experience the creative dialogue firsthand. —G.M.
Interior view of the newly renovated Gable and Lombard Penthouse at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles. Photo: Courtesy of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel
Interior view of the newly renovated Gable and Lombard Penthouse at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles. Photo: Courtesy of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel
6. Hollywood Roosevelt’s Penthouse Suites Undergo Glamorous Renovation
One of the most iconic marquees in Los Angeles, the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel has hosted a who’s who of Tinseltown since it first opened in 1927. Declared a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument, it continues to draw a chic crowd who soak up the sun around its iconic pool or view artworks at signature events like the recent Felix Art Fair. Now, the boutique hotel is drawing design-minded overnight guests with a renovation of two of its signature suites—the Gable and Lombard Penthouse and The Johnny Grant Apartment. Conceived by Los Angeles designer Kevin Klein, the spacious accommodations nod to the glitz of the city’s golden age with rich Italian marbles, dark stained walnut and oak wall panels, antiqued mirror details, warm plasters, and hand-painted ceiling murals, some of which were uncovered during the restoration. Vintage furniture is mixed with contemporary pieces, while thoughtfully considered accoutrements, such as a curated library or fully stocked bar, add to the cinematic atmosphere. The two units share access to a spacious rooftop terrace with panoramic views of that other famous landmark—the Hollywood sign.—J.S.
“And Other Illusions” exhibition at Baxter St at the Camera Club of New York. Photo: Pao Houa Her
“And Other Illusions” exhibition at Baxter St at the Camera Club of New York. Photo: Pao Houa Her
7. Photographer Pao Houa Her Presents Inaugural Solo Show in New York
Photographer Pao Houa Her‘s first solo exhibition, “And Other Illusions,” is now open at Baxter St at the Camera Club of New York as part of the 2023 Next Step Award in partnership with Aperture and 7|G Foundation. Her’s powerful images of the Hmong diasporic communities feature traditional painted backdrops of mountain vistas and vibrant silk flowers popular within the Southeast Asian culture. Drawing a lot of inspiration from the Hmong’s oral history and honoring it’s people, the works show a vast array of genres and photographic techniques from collages to lenticular works. The show is accompanied by a new monograph published by Aperture called My grandfather turned into a tiger …and other illusions, which includes works from the artist’s career spanning from 2016–22. The exhibition is on view until March 20. —Stefanie Li
Cover: Ferragamo Women's new flagship in Milan.
Photo: Courtesy Ferragamo
