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Pour Your Consideration: Loewe Reimagines the Teapot
Each April during the Salone del Mobile furniture fair, Milan buzzes with hundreds of design installations, from brands large and small. Not to be outdone, fashion brands always put on a more experimental show during this important cultural event, and Loewe is no exception. For their ninth exhibition, the craft-conscious house is presenting “Loewe Teapots” at the legendary Palazzo Citterio until April 13, 2025. At the center of it all in the venue’s minimalistic underground space, 25 artists, designers, and architects are presenting unique and exquisitely crafted takes on the humble kitchen tool. The show includes international names many design aficionados will recognize, like architect David Chipperfield, furniture powerhouse Patricia Urquiola, and product design legend Naoto Fukasawa.
The one-of-a-kind objects include an elegant white pot covered in porcelain flowers by Fukasawa, and a pair of unmistakably intricate ones by South African ceramic artist Madoda Fani (better known for his work shown through gallery Southern Guild). In addition, the brand is also displaying its own selection of homewares including leather charms, tea cosies, and a special edition Earl Grey tea candle made just for the occasion. Beyond the covetable objets, Loewe fangirls and boys take note: a signature tea blend called Fiori e Sapori was created in collaboration with London’s Postcard Teas, and is available for purchase at the Postcard’s boutique, as well as online. —Dan Rubinstein
An Upstart Gallerist Shares His Favorite Shops Around the Globe
Over the years, I have met certain well-traveled folks who have amassed a little black book of knowledge and addresses that I covet. Whether it’s restaurants or galleries or shops, I go to them for the ultimate insider track. One of those people is my friend Conor Burke, an Australian with an excellent eye and a wicked wit. We met when we both worked at the travel company Prior, where he served as creative director. I was always excited to see what fantastic souvenir he picked up in the markets of Mérida or some tiny stall deep in the alleyways of Jaipur. The man knows how to shop.
Like so many bright, young aesthetes, Burke started in the art department of Vogue Living and eventually became the market editor and a contributing editor for interiors at GQ Australia. When he moved to the U.S., he worked with photographer Martyn Thompson at his design studio, which specialized in decorative arts and objects—from jacquard and printed fabrics to wallpapers and ceramics. When the pandemic happened during his time at Prior and there was no opportunity to travel, he tried his hand at decorating, and it spurred his passion for vintage-furniture shopping. Today, in addition to starting Studio Santos, where, alongside his partner Vanessa Montenegro, he develops events and experiences for brands in the travel and hospitality space, Burke plans to open Gallery Folly next month. The Chelsea space will feature design pieces sourced in Europe from the likes of Josef Hoffmann, Lisa Johansson-Pape, Guillerme et Chambron, Roger Capron, and Axel Einar Hjorth. I asked Burke, an avid globetrotter for both business and pleasure, to give me his favorite shopping spots (plus his go-to hotel) in four of his favorite cities. —Maura Egan
Madrid
“Cocol, located in the La Latina neighborhood, is the best handcraft store in Spain. They carry the Spanish candle brand Vila Hermanos that I love. It’s hard to source back home, so I always stock up here. Ask about their vintage ceramics at the back of the store, too. The family also runs Olofane, an antiques store filled with treasures like 19th-century French side tables, chandeliers, and hand-painted screens. But my favorite stuff is their own one line of sconces and shades that are new but have a vintage quality to them. Le Bélier Antiques is a great address for sourcing antique plaster models, gilt mirrors, and ceramics; it’s one of the many antiques stores in El Rastro, which I find best to visit on Saturday outside of the bustle of the Sunday flea that takes over the neighborhood. I love everything about this Four Seasons, which, since it opened in 2020, has really reinvigorated the downtown barrio of Puerta del Sol. It’s got everything required to become a modern grande dame of Madrid—a touch of glamour, history, and a perfect location in the center of town.”
Athens
“I was already so inspired by the Benaki Museum’s collection that I was a little giddy by the time I got to the gift shop. I was delighted to discover their collection of replica vessels in silver, ceramic, and bronze. A store called It’s a Shirt offers the perfect cotton poplin shirts in solids and stripes. They’re incredibly light and cool, and the crisp fabrics are perfect in summer. The legendary antiques store Martinos Antique and Fine Art Gallery is heaving with great pieces. The terra-cotta pottery from the island of Skyros and the ceramic tables by Greek artist Eleni Vernadaki are standouts. I loved the colorful vacation jewelry at Hermina Athens—the one-of-a-kind pieces showcase a mix of metal, charms, beads, and chains. If you check in to Mona, you’re staying in the thick of it. The hotel is a softer take on industrial style, with flowing drapery, an appropriate nod to its past as a former textile factory.”
Melbourne
“Pan After is such an exciting store to walk into—I discovered so many new brands and designers with a unique point of view, all with a strong embrace of color and craft. Cibi is the kind of shop where you feel the urge to start all over again with your kitchen utensils, tableware, and textiles. They have a great edit of homewares and designs from Japan. Have lunch while you’re there, too. The creatives behind Oigall Projects have such a great take on contemporary design and craft. Their approach doesn’t feel boxed in by adherence to a specific aesthetic, so it’s always interesting to see who they work with. Each time I’ve been in Melbourne, I’ve missed the opening hours of Ma House Supply Store, but I love peering through the window to appreciate the wonderful eye of the owner. The hotel Melbourne Place manages to feel contemporary in design and architecture while also hitting a nostalgic tone through its color palette and materials. Ask for one of the Urban Corner rooms.”
Stockholm
“Outside of the museum-quality pieces for sale at Jackson Design, it’s an inspiring place to visit to see how pieces are displayed. The last time I visited, there were pewter pieces from Svenskt Tenn set in a perfectly purple room that was giving me David Lynch vibes. For me, wandering Svenskt Tenn itself is one of the most dazzling store experiences in the world. It’s like shopping in another era. Like their products, every surface and detail is beautifully considered. The jewelry at All Blues is sleek, contemporary and has a great sense of scale—jewelry imbued with confidence and cool. You can find great prices on sample and out-of-season pieces from a fashionable and eccentric Swedish label at Our Legacy Work Shop. There are so many great shoes and coats. At Ett Hem, you’re here to soak up Ilse Crawford’s flawless understanding of comfort, color, and materials—this is an extremely chic hotel.”
Amy Sherald Lands in New York; San Francisco Remembers an Inspiring Mind; Coast-to-Coast American Openings
New York, “Amy Sherald: American Sublime” (Opens April 9)
In 2018, Amy Sherald was acclaimed for her portrait of First Lady Michelle Obama, cementing her reputation as a painter critically shaping American identity. A realist painter like Edward Hopper, Andrew Wyeth, and Alice Neel, Sherald addresses a glaring lack of Black representation in the country’s art history. Her portraits of Black Americans—from First Ladies to people she encounters on the street—are instantly recognizable for their vibrant colors and grayscale skin tone. This much-anticipated show comes from San Fransisco’s MoMA, with 50 paintings from nearly the past two decades of Sherald’s groundbreaking career. whitney.org
Los Angeles, “Reza Aramesh: Fragment of the Self” (Opens April 11)
The figures in Reza Aramesh’s work don’t smile politely. Rather, they express agony, surrender, and defiance. Born in Iran and living in London, the artist confronts painful realities of war and violence by focusing on visceral body language and expressions. In Study of the Vase as Fragmented Bodies (2021), Aramesh paints Greek vases with images of subjugated bodies drawn from news reports. In other works, Aramesh renders life-size sculptures of vulnerable men blindfolded and with their hands tied behind their backs. Aramesh debuts in Los Angeles with four unflinching new works, spanning sculpture, drawings, silk embroidery, and marble sculpture. nightgallery.ca
Los Angeles, “Robert Irwin in Los Angeles” (Until June 7)
Perhaps more now than ever, we need the work of Robert Irwin. Ingrained in the late artist’s simple works is the quiet tranquility we have lost to cell phones and screens. Early in his career, Irwin was painting delicately calculated abstract works. But by the ’60s, the artist found himself more interested in what was happening outside of the canvas. He shifted to designing uniquely site-specific works, like a luminous gauzy sheet hung at Dia Beacon, or a square drawn on the ground in string at the 1976 Venice Biennale. This is the gallery’s first show of the California-born artist since his death in 2023, and it focuses on paintings and sculptures from those pivotal years in the ’60s and ’70s. pacegallery.com
New York, “Martha Rosler: Truth Is/Is Not” (Opens April 10)
Since the 1960s, this 81-year-old Brooklyn-born artist has been making art political. Her photography, video, sculpture, and installations speak to contemporary social issues like civil rights, anti-war efforts, and women’s rights. Her best known work, House Beautiful: Bringing the War Home, is a series of pointed photo collages that juxtapose scenes of the Vietnam War with glossy magazine ads. She revisited the series in the early 2000s during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Underlying Rosler’s diverse oeuvre is an awareness of how mass media shapes the truth. Bringing together works from across her career, this is Rosler’s first solo exhibition with the gallery. galerielelong.com
San Francisco, “Ruth Asawa: Retrospective” (Until Sept. 2)
Born to Japanese immigrants, the late artist Ruth Asawa grew up picking vegetables on her parent’s farm in southern California, drawing in between her chores. In 1942, the wartime internment of Japanese Americans interrupted her childhood. She later went on to study at the experimental Black Mountain College under Josef Albers and Buckminster Fuller. But Asawa’s drawings are less famed than the droplet-like woven wire sculptures she began making in the early 1960s, which were inspired by Mexican basket-weaving techniques. Asawa spent the rest of her life in San Francisco, where she dedicated herself to arts education and dotted the city with public sculptures. The first retrospective after her death in 2013 is duly held in the city she most left her mark on. Asawa’s oft-overlooked drawings, prints, and paintings are presented alongside her celebrated wire sculptures. sfmoma.org —Vasilisa Ioukhnovets
It’s that time again: On this special episode, Dan reports from the yearly Milan Design Week where Giulia Molteni takes the temperature of the global design scene and re-introduces a chair from 1973 by Tobia Scarpa.
For nearly 20 years, this celebrated designer has independently crafted womenswear deeply rooted in research and a vibrant narrative. On this season finale, Dan speaks with Erdem about his upbringing across continents, his creative process, and more.
The Design Museum explores the history of swimwear, from Victorian bathing dresses to iconic "Baywatch" speedos. Plus, an accomplished Indian painter arrives in London, and more openings.
