ny places

New york: latest hotel/inn




finally an old world feel of a charming inn in the city that is rather sick of modern (i mean cheap) pads. eric goode the man behind clubs like the old b-bar, and his partner sean macpherson the creator of maritime and the disneyland of a hotel called “the bowery hotel” have opened a 15-room inn by the name of lafayette house. the hotel/inn is charming but unfortunately lacking the extra details one would want for this price. expect little service, i.e. forget room service, concierge, and the like, after all its an inn not a hotel, but the basics are there; complimentary internet, plush towels, 500 count linens, large rooms, and ofcourse what every new york pad needs, a fireplace in every room. located in NoHo, between lafayette and bowery on 38 east 4th street, the rooms boost no great views but they contain a nice mix of old (including nicely done bathrooms, lovely antiques and even stationery printed to look aged around the edges! that’s a bit lame ok!) as well as new amenities (flatscreen, iPod-ready clock radio and condoms — 3 for $15). the five-story row-house has no elevator (not even a super dwarf sized one like those in paris), but a porter will be available to carry luggage if you happen to arrive during his work hours 8-8. rates for a standard room start at $375 a night which is rather steep given the lack of service but a nice deviation from the usual balazs’ plastic shoe box. a classic new york find: partially perfect / slightly over priced. by dd

CATEGORIES: hotels, ny places

On Kawara’s mad epic sculpture


“right now at David Zwirner Gallery, you can dip into one of the weirder artistic rivers of the last 40 years and behold—or participate in—on kawara’s mad epic sculpture–performance One Million Years. the japanese-born, new york–based artist’s rarely seen work is centered around a desk and two chairs in a windowed booth at the center of the otherwise almost empty zwirner gallery. during business hours, two volunteers sit inside the room. one man and one woman take turns reading progressive dates going one million years into the future or into the past. several fridays ago, i spent an hour reading the 875 years between a.d. 38,658 and a.d. 39,533. it was one of the odder hours i’ve ever spent in a gallery.” JS for New York. by dd

CATEGORIES: art, ny places

where are you stranger?

just heard that our native-godfather of grand words. mr. leonard cohen, is back, and after 15 years will perform at the beacon theater in new york city on february 19th, 2009. now of course as much as i love his words… and even his music, i simply can’t bare to attend any show that is anywhere larger than the old knitting factory. in a strange way it’s like being with 500 strangers, making love to what you felt was always just yours. it’s selfish i know, but great music is like that. that said i’m sure it will be amazing, so get those tickets before pp buys them all. by dd

CATEGORIES: clips, ny places

The perfect gift – le labo

le labo store on elizabeth street, new york city


each winter the task of gift hunting weighs upon us and we run around new york looking for that perfect gift. this last winter I met the frenchman, fabrice le labo, one of the founders of le labo fragrances. charming as you’d expect from a young frenchman, but also quite intellectually aware and a lovely candidate for a drink, at least in my book.

the shop on elizabeth street is unassuming, like most shops on my old street where I lived for 12 years before i moved to tribeca. but inside you’ll find a dashing selection of scents not only custom made but also bearing your very name. i had one of my dear clients from LVMH here from paris and guess what she asked for upon her arrival? to have her favorite scent picked up for her at le labo. our intern of course obliged. the reason? the only place le labo is available in paris is at the overplayed glam store colette. But now you can walk into their NY or Tokyo stores and get the full experience. for unfortunate uptowners there’s barneys but who shops there anymore? maybe mark borthowick ; ) by uh

CATEGORIES: beauty, fragrance, ny places

sugimoto 7 days / 7 nights



worth checking out the Sugimoto show at Gagosian. nothing new but still one of the best, some of the night shots are almost 100% black but you still want them so bad that you feel possessed…
the book, printed for the show, is great too. the design reflect the setting of the gallery, well done! by pp

CATEGORIES: art, books, ny places

Hiroshi Sugimoto at gagosian gallery

“Naming things has something to do with human awareness, with the separation of the entire world from you. So with the Seascapes, I was thinking about the most ancient of human impressions. The time when man first named the world around him…”
–Hiroshi Sugimoto

“7 Days / 7 Nights,” an exhibition of fourteen photographs from the Seascapes series by Hiroshi Sugimoto in an architectural setting of his own design. On exhibit through December 20 2008. Opening reception for the artist: Thursday, November 6th, from 6 to 8pm by dd

CATEGORIES: art, ny places, photography

Zaha Hadid Chanel Pavilion in Central Park


Not sure what was more stunning on that crisp Friday the Zaha Hadid modular space ship Pavillion for Chanel or the Autumn leaves in Central Park NYC? Given that the tickets were sold out at 8:15 (damn those early-bird fashion victims) and I can’t get out of bed before 10:00 on such day off, I will have to say the the winner was hands down the Autumn leaves. Of course a retched camera can never capture the beauty of those colors the way they were in that sunlight but it will have to do for now. The lunch at the boat house was the natural alternative at that point and once again it did not fail me. A very civilized way to dine on a day like that.

by dd

CATEGORIES: design, ny places