About the book Artists’ Handmade Houses is a collection of 13 homes handcrafted by the finest artists and craftsmen in America, including George Nakashima, Henry Varnum Poor, Sam Maloof, Wharton Esherick, and Russel Wright. Built over the course of 75 years, from the late-19th century to the mid-20th century, these homes were each designed and built by the artists as an expression of their aesthetic sentiments, and in many cases, as extensions of their artwork. As such, these private domains are utterly unique and deeply imbued with each artist’s singular vision and talent. A few of the homes have been awarded National Historic Landmark status, and several are open to the public, while still others have sadly fallen into disrepair or are now in the hands of new owners. In a few cases, the photographs in this book represent the last record of the house as created by its artist resident.  Artists’ Handmade Houses:  ”Freeman’s ability to capture details . . . coupled with a good eye for scale, gives the reader a true sense of place; Gotkin’s insightful text is an added delight, deepening readers’ appreciation of the design that makes each home so unique.”  -Publishers Weekly.com  About the author Don Freeman’s photographs appear regularly in The World of Interiors, Vogue, House Beautiful, and Vanity Fair, among others. He has published two books and is based in New York.  Michael Owen Gotkin is a landscape architect and city planner in New York City. His articles have appeared in World of Interiors and Pin-Up.

Wendy’s newest book was released in October 2010, The World of Gloria Vanderbilt, and her design-world coverage can be found in her weekly New York Magazine features and in the Design Hunting newsletter on nymag.com.

NY Magazine's 2010 design issue: Evan and Oliver Haslegrave

brooklyn modern: You are the design editor for New York Magazine, one thing I notice about your coverage is that you feature a broad range of styles, can you describe how you define “New York Design.”  Or more specifically what do you see as the most influential thing now?

Wendy Goodman: I feature a broad range of styles because I am interested in the most personal points of view of how people live in the city, so any and all styles interest me as long as the execution is personal and somewhat ingenious. As New York magazine is a general interest news magazine geared specifically to New York, I look for what I feel is most creative and innovative in residential living here. Decorating and trend spotting is for shelter magazines, not that we don’t’ keep up and track that as well, it is just that the more personal a design story is, the more interesting it is-it’s never about how much money people have, but rather what their passions and initiatives are, and how they express that at home.

NY Magazine: Brooklyn designers MADE

brooklyn modern: How did you first become interested in design? You have one book out on Tony Duquette, do you have plans for any others?

Wendy Goodman: My second book, The World of Gloria Vanderbilt, was published by Abrams October, 2010. I started my career as a fashion editor, although as a sort of renegade one, as I worked freelance for Harper’s Bazaar and the New York Times Sunday magazine at first. Then I went on to New York magazine and was the Fashion Editor there in the late ‘80’s.

It was during that time that I was taken to lunch by the fashion designer, Pauline Trigere at La Grenouille restaurant. I was mesmerized by the scale of the rooms in what had originally been a carriage house for the Plant mansion across the street (now the Cartier building) as well as the fantastic paintings on the walls. I discovered all sorts of wonderful stories that had happened over the years there through Charles Masson whose family owns the restaurant. I eventually did a story on the family, and the artist, Bernard Lamotte who lived and painted there, so that coupled with other events in my life inspired me to shift gears and devote myself to design on a broader scale in respect to how people live.

brooklyn modern: There is a very strong online community, especially in New York. How do you see the relationship between a print publication’s coverage and sites like Apartment Therapy, Brownstoner and Cool Hunting

Wendy Goodman: There are so many fantastic sites and they are all are so good! It does make it more of a challenge to get to projects first as ‘the scoop’ has always been an editorial imperative, and it still is, only now it is a double whammy: on top of print, you have to scoop the blogs and sites too!

NY Magazine: Brooklyn designers Lyndsay Caleo and Fitzhugh Karol

brooklyn modern: I notice both in your newsletter, “Design Hunting,” and in the magazine you have been focusing a lot on the current DIY/artisan scene in Brooklyn? When did you first notice this new wave of young designers and style in Brooklyn?  And as a follow up, how do you find these small, design-centered Brooklyn folks?

Wendy Goodman: Brooklyn has been such a hot bed of great design studios and designers for a while now. I began covering the Brooklyn Designs show from the beginning and then became a juror, which I love as meeting and discovering new designers is the best. I am out on the street, and in the subway scouting and scouting…ear to the ground, and everywhere else, is how I find my stories and moving fast when I get a lead. There isn’t anyplace I won’t go.

brooklyn modern: There are several strong influences on the Brooklyn scene, the work of mid-century designers, new technologies in sustainability and the re-use of materials, a return to handcrafted furniture, and a new ‘cult of the artisan.’  Where do you think these ideas originate, and how did Brooklyn become the DIY/artisan ground zero?

Wendy Goodman: I think Brooklyn became the artisan ground zero as the real estate allowed artists and designers to have access to great studio space in the way that SoHo and the Lower East Side did back in the ‘60’s. But all that will change as real estate prices make it prohibitive for financially challenged young emerging talent to have places to experiment and work. The scene will move to the next emerging neighborhood.”

brooklyn modern: You have covered most of the best of Brooklyn Designers, what are your favorites?

Wendy Goodman: There are so many!  I love Uhuru and MADE, Grow House Grow, Eric Manigian, Flavor Paper, Eskayel…  to name but a few of the plethora of great talent out there.

One of Goodman's favorite paintings by Sebastien Stoskopff

The Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce wouldn’t be able to attract an audience for a “Brooklyn Manufacturing Expo” outside of their own staff so every year they host the BKLYN DESIGNS exhibition. Walking around the exhibition though you are struck by how design, and by extension designers, drive manufacturing. With the collapse of manufacturing in the United States over the last few decades it’s hard to fathom just how many jobs we had in Brooklyn making things. All of the work was not only designed here in Brooklyn but as a matter pragmatism, most of it is made here.

Here are a few of my favorite things.

Tree table and stool by April Hanna

April Hannah gets the chutzpah award. She’s an artist who three months ago when she applied for a booth, saw a need, had an idea, and a couple of cardboard models. Twelve weeks later, her Tree Table Collection is debuting here. The collection, shown with a few of her artworks, as a sort of visual DNA, is smart, cohesive, well crafted (thanks in part to a brother who according to Hannah “can make anything”),and built with kids and the environment in mind.

Jeff Mayer’s bench and growing family

Jeff Mayer’s 718 Made in Brooklyn is “form follows environment”. His design and manufacturing is a direct outgrowth of his lifestyle and Brooklyn aesthetic. He’s a former professional bmx racer, a lifelong skateboarder, and denizen of the public transportation system. All of these things come through in the objects, clothing, and furniture he designs and manufactures.

Christina Fesmire’s Fugle Swing

Pratt Institute seeks to instill in all graduates aesthetic judgment, professional knowledge, collaborative skills, and technical expertise. Their booth there was evidence of a promise fulfilled. The quality of the designs and the execution did not suffer by comparison with their professional counterparts by any means. I was particularly taken by Tobin Spann’s spare, simple, beautifully executed Surface Series furniture. My other favorite work was Christina Fesmire’s Fugle Swing. Both of those students have bright futures ahead of them as long as we can get this economy moving again.

Sit and Read,

Invite Details:
To coincide with the launch of its Spring 2010 line, Unis is proud to offer an exclusive collection of furniture and housewares from Sit and Read. The collection includes a limited series of vintage chairs reupholstered in remnant fabric from the Unis Spring collection.

Please join us for cocktails and music at the Unis Flagship Store, at 226 Elizabeth Street in Manhattan, on Thursday, April 22, from 7 to 9 p.m. to preview the collection and help celebrate our collaboration!

Industrial Steel Table from Sit and Read: $850 ($950 w/ Umanoff stool)

Click to download pdf.

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