Fisher Island, Perfected
Live on the world’s most private island. Estate-style homes on Fisher Island’s pristine shoreline, steps from the exclusive Fisher Island Club, with its award-winning golf course, tennis facilities, spa, beach club and restaurants. The Residences’ unprecedented amenities and white-glove service set a new standard, with five-star dining, resort-style pools, and a waterfront lounge. It’s the pinnacle of coastal living, minutes from Miami but a world away.
FOUNDER | EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
SARAH G. HARRELSON
EXECUTIVE EDITOR
MARA VEITCH
HAMPTONS EDITOR
JACOBA URIST
EDITOR-AT-LARGE
JULIA HALPERIN
FASHION EDITOR-AT-LARGE
ALI PEW
SENIOR CREATIVE PRODUCER
REBECCA AARON
SENIOR EDITOR
ELLA MARTIN-GACHOT
ASSISTANT EDITOR
JAYNE O’DWYER
ASSOCIATE DIGITAL EDITOR
SOPHIE LEE
ART DIRECTORS
ALEXANDER WOLF, CHAD POWELL
JUNIOR ART DIRECTOR
HANNAH TACHER
COPY EDITOR
EVELINE CHAO
CHIEF REVENUE OFFICER
CARL KIESEL
PUBLISHER
LORI WARRINER
DIRECTOR OF BRAND
PARTNERSHIPS
DESMOND SMALLEY
PUBLIC RELATIONS
ETHAN ELKINS, DADA GOLDBERG
MARKETING COORDINATOR
SOPHIA FRANCHI
PREPRESS/PRINT PRODUCTION
PETE JACATY
MORE THAN ANYTHING, SUMMER IS about coming together. Whether it’s piled into a car headed to the beach or squeezed alongside friends who become family at a dinner table, a feeling of buoyant, camaraderie defines the season. In the Hamptons, that festive spirit is anchored by the deep sense of kinship the area’s long-standing communities have fostered over decades. From surfers to farmers to artists, the East End is home to an abundance of cross-pollinating crowds. In this issue, guest-edited by the indomitable architect and Hamptons icon Peter Marino, we take a look at a cross-section of creatives who are leaving their mark on the socioculral landscape out East. Artists including Enoc Perez, McArthur Binion, and Alice Aycock give us an inside look at their idiosyncratic artistic practices—and the throughlines that have informed them. Southampton collecting doyenne Mar Morosse speaks to the importance of her salon-style gatherings. Lauren Santo Domingo sits down with Athena Calderone to distill the ingredients behind a successful East End bash. Contributing Editor Karen Wong chats with three architects who built homes out East about the enduring appeal of Modernism in the region. Art-world couple Brian Donnelly and Julia Chiang interview each other on the occasion of their concurrent Parrish Art Museum solo shows. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. The issue is packed with what we love most about the Hamptons: lively conversation, an eye for beauty, and a hunger for simple pleasures. We hope it’ll nourish you through the rest of the summer and beyond.
18 INSIDER TRADING
The Hamptons’s warm-weather residents and year-rounders weigh in on the sights, smells, and rituals that define the season.
20 THE ART DIET
We’ve narrowed down a long list to a few shows that can’t be missed.
22 FASHION FOR THE DOPAMINE DRESSER
Late summer can devolve into a muted humdrum, but seasonal dressing doesn’t have to.
24 MATERIALS, MATERIALS, MATERIALS
In his new book Ten Modern Houses, Peter Marino offers an exclusive peek at his most luxe residential projects.
26 A SANCTUARY IN SOUTHAMPTON
The Southampton African American Museum’s current artist-in-residence, Alvin Clayton, presents a show that interrogates the role of art in social change.
27 A SENSE OF BELONGING
Artist Alice Aycock tells CULTURED about the rituals that shape her summers out East.
28
STEP INTO THE SALON
36
RESTING STATE
This summer, Ghanaian artist Gideon Appah is introducing his dreamy practice to the storied Watermill Center.
38 THE HAMPTONS ACCORDING TO PETER MARINO
The indefatigable architect reveals his favorite spots to refuel and recharge out East.
40
A NEW WAVE OF MODERNISM
Contributing Editor Karen Wong spotlights three of the most compelling additions to the area’s architectural ecosystem.
44
HUSBAND-AND-WIFE ARTISTS JULIA CHIANG AND BRIAN DONNELLY INTERVIEW EACH OTHER
Ahead of their parallel solo exhibitions at the Parrish Art Museum in Water Mill, the busy couple carved out time to talk shop.
46 THE ART OF LIVING WELL
Hamptons royalty Joey Wölffer shares the little moments and everyday luxuries that punctuate her busy days and precious downtime.
47
MARTHA STEWART MISSES THE HAMPTONS. THE FEELING IS MUTUAL.
A longtime denizen of the East End, collector and professor Mar Morosse is keeping Southampton cultured with her artist salons.
30 ALL TOMORROW’S PARTIES
Fashion and hosting powerhouse Lauren Santo Domingo lets CULTURED in on her cheat sheet to making the most out of a Hamptons summer.
32
DRESSING EAST
Historian Natalia Mehlman Petrzela unpacks the sartorial touchpoints that have defined how Hamptonites dress over the decades.
34
MEDITERRANEAN BLUES
This season, escape to the South of France with Diptyque’s sea-salt-scented body spray and cerulean vases.
The patron saint of good living offers CULTURED’s design editor-at-large, Colin King, a peek inside her seasonal rituals.
48
HOME FOR THE SUMMER
CULTURED spotlights four residency programs fostering a freer, weirder, and more diverse artistic ecosystem out East.
50
JUMPING INTO THE ABYSS
As he prepares for a fall show, Enoc Perez is commencing his annual summer migration to his hideaway in East Hampton.
52
PETER MARINO HAD ‘AN AMAZING POCKETBOOK.’ THEN HE STARTED COLLECTING MCARTHUR BINION’S ART.
This summer, the architect is organizing an exhibition at his Southampton foundation of work by
his longtime friend.
Architect Peter Marino in the Hamptons. Photography by Manolo Yllera.
Sarah Harrelson and friends celebrating Reza in Sagaponack. Photography by Carl Timpone/BFA
French Minimalist Abstraction:
Buren, Barré, Morellet & Toroni Sayar & Garibeh, New Works Katie Stout, New Works
INSIDER TR ADING
AS THE LAST MONTHS OF SUMMER ROLL IN, THE HAMPTONS’S WARM-WEATHER RESIDENTS HAVE SETTLED IN RIGHT ALONGSIDE THE YEAR-ROUNDERS. HERE, MEMBERS OF BOTH CAMPS WEIGH IN ON THE SIGHTS, SMELLS, AND RITUALS THAT DEFINE THE SEASON.
TODD SNYDER
DESIGNER OF EPONYMOUS LABEL , BRIDGEHAMPTON
What, or who, are your cultural touchstones in the Hamptons?
Writers, artists, and architects from the 1950s and 1960s. Driving the same roads and seeing where and how they lived fuels my imagination. I grew up in Iowa, so there’s also something about seeing farms and eating fresh produce that tastes like it’s supposed to. What smells, sounds, and textures do you associate with your life here? You simply can’t duplicate the sound of ocean waves crashing. Full stop. I love that feeling of climbing over a sand dune in the morning and smelling the ocean for the first time. It’s amazing how much it becomes a part of your life and you suddenly become dependent upon it.
What’s your greatest seasonal indulgence while you’re in the Hamptons?
That’s an easy one. I live very close to Wölffer Estate Vineyards.
What are your favorite local shops?
In Sagaponack, Wyeth has an extraordinary selection of mid-century modern furniture, where I find myself happily lost for hours picking up pieces for my home and stores. On the weekends, I stop by BookHampton to grab my next beach read or catch up on which authors are visiting. Of course, I would be remiss not to mention my favorite menswear shop in East Hampton, Todd Snyder.
Favorite Hamptons-based artist to drop by for a studio visit?
She doesn’t have an open studio in the Hamptons, but I wouldn’t turn down an invite to Cindy Sherman’s house.
ROBERT LONGO
ARTIST AND FILMMAKER, EAST HAMPTON
What, or who, are your cultural touchstones in the Hamptons?
Abstract Expressionist artists who used to live and work out East. I feel their ghosts and see their work in nature. Which East End art shows are you looking forward to this summer?
Julian Schnabel at Guild Hall. What smells, sounds, and textures do you associate with your life here?
The air is extraordinary. The collision of
TERENCE CONNORS PHOTOGRAPHER AND FILMMAKER, MONTAUK
What, or who, are your cultural touchstones in the Hamptons?
That list is extensive—it’s one of my favorite things about living out here. Steinbeck, Vonnegut, Capote, Albee, de Kooning, Pollock, Avedon, Warhol, Peter Beard, Lou Reed!
The idea of soaking in that history and witnessing the light and sound they were inspired by feels wonderful.
What era of Hamptons living are you most nostalgic for?
Probably the ’60s, when Montauk was an under-the-radar hamlet—driving east and seeing acres and acres of corn and potato fields, and fewer homes.
What’s your favorite restaurant out East? What should we order?
The Dock. Order nachos for the table, a small Bud, and a fishwich.
Any East End art shows you are looking forward to this summer?
I love what Dalton [Portella] is doing with 484 Gallery, bringing local artists together. Best way to spend a summer evening?
There are a few ways to do it, but a great afternoon surf followed by cooking at home on the fire with friends and watching the sunset sounds ideal. How has the Hamptons scene changed in recent years?
More options. Businesses seem to be ever-rotating, which is, in a sense, exciting because we’re always looking forward to what might open nearby.
forest and ocean is unlike any other place. What era of Hamptons living are you most nostalgic for?
I came out here regularly to surf when I was young. Forty years later, my wife Sophie [Chahinian]—director of the Artist Profile Archive—has brought me back here.
What’s your greatest seasonal indulgence while you’re in the Hamptons?
Less clothing, slightly more socializing, and more time outside.
How has the Hamptons scene changed in recent years?
It’s gotten harder to avoid the parade of “you are what you have” syndrome.
“THE AIR IS EXTRAORDINARY. THE COLLISION OF FOREST AND OCEAN IS UNLIKE ANY OTHER PLACE. ”
— ROBERT LONGO
Terence Connors
Robert Longo
Todd Snyder
“IN THE 1970S, ANDY WARHOL AND PAUL MORRISSEY BOUGHT THEIR MONTAUK COMPOUND. I WAS THERE ALMOST EVERY WEEKEND, HANGING OUT WITH HOUSEGUESTS LIKE MICK AND BIANCA.”
— BOB COLACELLO
HANNAH BRONFMAN
ANGEL INVESTOR AND DIGITAL CREATOR, AMAGANSETT & BRENDAN FALLIS
DIGITAL CREATOR AND FOUNDER OF FALLIS STUDIOS, AMAGANSETT
What, or who, are your cultural touchstones in the Hamptons?
Hannah Bronfman: Brooke Garber
Neidich is part of what defines the Hamptons for me. Brooke was recently honored by the Whitney Museum; she has been a trustee for years and runs her late father’s jewelry brand, Sidney Garber. She happens to be a second mother to me, and her house in Wainscott is the dreamiest—filled with incredible art, impeccable flowers, and interesting company around an intimate dinner table. Did we even summer in the Hamptons if
BOB COLACELLO
WRITER AND EDITOR, SOUTHAMPTON
What era of Hamptons living are you most nostalgic for?
In the 1970s, Andy Warhol and Paul Morrissey bought their Montauk compound. I was there almost every weekend, hanging out with houseguests like Mick and Bianca.
What’s your favorite restaurant out East?
What should we order?
Sant Ambroeus Southampton. Order linguine cacio e pepe.
How do you hope to see the community in the Hamptons evolve? Not too much.
ADAM BROWN
FOUNDER OF ORLEBAR BROWN, STOREFRONT IN EAST HAMPTON
What drew you to open a store in the Hamptons?
New York has always been very important to us, and it wasn’t a difficult jump to realize that a lot of those customers were going to the Hamptons on the weekends or for vacations. There are just some places that innately reflect a brand. For OB, East Hampton is one of those places. What smells, sounds, and textures do you associate with life here?
A beach just has that smell. It’s a lovely thing. Saltiness combined with suncream, the wind, sound of the water, and the soft movement of the sand between your toes.
Favorite Hamptons-based artist to drop by for a studio visit?
Sanford Biggers.
What, or who, are your cultural touchstones in the Hamptons?
The Peter Marino Art Foundation in Southampton. The Church in Sag Harbor. Dia Bridgehampton.
What smells, sounds, and textures do you associate with life out East?
Ocean waves rolling into the beach. Scent of lilacs in spring. Glorious colors of hydrangeas and rhododendrons a little later. What’s your greatest seasonal indulgence when you’re in the Hamptons?
Driving to Rhode Island via the Shelter Island and Orient Point ferries for a Hamptons break.
What’s your greatest seasonal indulgence while you’re in the Hamptons? Sleep.
What era of Hamptons living are you most nostalgic for?
I first went to the Hamptons in the late ’80s and couldn’t believe such a place existed. There seemed to be a perfect balance between undiscovered and developed, craft and commercial. It was different then—but I’m not someone who resists change. Of course, first impressions are critical to forming any relationship.
Best way to spend a summer evening? Sitting solo staring out to sea, going somewhere noisy and fun (usually someone’s house), or sitting on straw bales on a Friday night at the Marders open-air cinema.
we didn’t have dinner at Brooke’s?
Favorite Hamptons-based artist to drop by for a studio visit?
Brendan Fallis: Daniel Arsham. He has a garage where he’s customizing his latest Porsche and a bank of all his work. It’s unreal.
What’s your greatest seasonal indulgence while you’re in the Hamptons?
Bronfman: The zucchini bread from Vicky’s Veggies is dangerous. I could eat a whole loaf in one sitting if left unattended. I also love the olive loaf from Carissa’s the Bakery with any sort of tinned fish. Last but not least, I never eat as much pizza as I do in the Hamptons, now that Fini is in town. How do you hope to see the community in the Hamptons evolve?
Bronfman: I love how many young families are out East, particularly in Amagansett. It’s so nice to head to the Square and see all the little kids running around.
Adam Brown
Bob Colacello
Hannah Bronfman and Brendan Fallis
The Art Diet:
Eric Fischl, A Day at the Beach, 2020.
Photography by Melanie Crader, and courtesy of the artist and Guild Hall
“A DAY AT THE BEACH” BY ERIC FISCHL
Where: Guild Hall
When: July 17– September 1
Why It’s Worth a Look: Painter, sculptor, and longtime Sag Harbor resident Eric Fischl travels south of the highway to exhibit at East Hampton’s Guild Hall. In his new interactive work, the public is invited to create their own “paintings” by moving pre-cut magnetic figures across a painted beach landscape—one way to enjoy a day at the beach without bringing home any sand.
Know Before You Go: Fischl is deeply embedded in the Sag Harbor arts scene, having grown up on Long Island and helped found the local arts organization the Church.
Claire Oswalt, TBT, 2024. Photography courtesy of the artist and Broadway East Hampton
7 Essential
Shows to See During the
Second Half of
the Summer
THOSE SPENDING THE SEASON OUT EAST WILL FIND NO SHORTAGE OF ART TO BE VIEWED, ACQUIRED, AND DISCUSSED. HERE, WE’VE NARROWED DOWN THE LONG LIST TO A FEW SELECTIONS THAT CANNOT BE MISSED.
“DRAW ME A CLOCK” BY CLAIRE OSWALT
Where: Broadway at 87 Newtown Lane, East Hampton
When: July 27– September 1
Why It’s Worth a Look: Can’t sleep? Neither can Claire Oswalt. Inspired by her own insomnia, the Austin-based artist began painting abstract clock faces on canvases, alluding to the popular clock-drawing that doctors administer to test for brain dysfunction. The result is rhythmically charged images that are closer to dreams than waking nightmares.
Know Before You Go: Of the works, Oswalt writes, “The pictures themselves are in no way resolutions, but possibly an attempt to see more.”
“WOMEN
LAUGHING SALAD”
BY PABLO BARBA
Where: A Hug From the Art World at 87 Newtown Lane, East Hampton
When: July 27– August 31
Why It’s Worth a Look: Inspired by the meme “Woman Laughing Alone With Salad,” Pablo Barba humorously illustrates the possibilities extended by a single prompt. In his third exhibition with the gallery, Barba’s oil paintings astutely comment on the endless production and nonsensical mutation of images generated by A.I. Know Before You Go: Influenced by 17th-century geselschapje Dutch paintings, Barba’s work treads on the boundary of gluttony and chaos as he overlaps historical archetypes of figurative painting with themes from digital culture.
“ALL THE THINGS” CURATED BY ERIKA RANEE
Where: The Arts Center at Duck Creek
When: July 13 – August 11
Why It’s Worth a Look: Six creatives blur the boundaries of their surfaces in this group exhibition. Refusing to abide by the definition of painting, artists including Mike Cloud, Jeanne Reynal, and Leeza Meksin reconfigure stretcher bars—traditional materials of support—to serve as key focal elements in the artwork.
Know Before You Go: The Arts Center at Duck Creek is situated in Springs, East Hampton, a creative enclave that artists like Jackson Pollock, Lee Krasner, and Willem de Kooning once called home.
“CASTAWAY” BY HO JAE KIM
Where: Harper’s
When: August 10 – September 11
Why It’s Worth a Look: The 2000 movie Cast Away serves as the basis for Ho Jae Kim’s investigation into the relationship between artists, their work, and their studios. Though an unlikely choice, the movie allows Kim to view his own studio as a kind of deserted island, offering both solace and exile to the artist as he contemplates the nature of his craft.
Know Before You Go: Of the exhibition, Kim writes, “Artists desire to be rescued in some way or form … However, parallel to the desire to escape, the island also has beautiful elements that keep artists in their studios. A studio is a place of nourishment and hardship, where satisfaction and anxiety are perpetual.”
“TEN WOMEN & TEN HAEFF”
Where: Onna House
When: July 20 – September 3
Why It’s Worth a Look: The sculptures of seven women artists, including Lisbeth McCoy and Mia FonssagrivesSolow, and the environmental works of three more—Jill Musnicki, Marie Lorenz, and Mary Mattingly—come together in Onna House’s vast sculpture, painting, and garden show, spanning the property. Additionally, the stunning early paintings of German postwar painter Ingeborg ten Haeff will be making a rare public appearance. Know Before You Go: Ten Haeff, the show’s namesake, was once married to the original architect of Onna House, Paul Lester Wiener.
“LITTLE IMAGES” BY HAN QIN
Where: Pollock-Krasner House and Study Center
When: July 13 – October 31
Why It’s Worth a Look: In reference to Lee Krasner’s “Little Image” paintings of the 1940s, Han Qin executes her own search for “home” through a series of drawings, sculptures, paintings, installations, and personal artifacts. Exploring home as a domain of both refuge and restraint, Qin’s work evokes the cultural and artistic dilemma of belonging.
Know Before You Go: The exploration of the meaning of home is doubly poignant here, as the Pollock-Krasner House and Study Center is the real-life former residence of artists (and husband and wife) Jackson Pollock and Lee Krasner.
Han Qin, Ride the Wave, 2024. Photography courtesy of the artist and the Pollock-Krasner House and Study Center
Artwork by Mia FonssagrivesSolow. Photography courtesy of the artist and Onna House
Ho Jae Kim’s studio.
Photography courtesy of the artist
Pablo Barba, three women with salads, 2024. Photography courtesy of the artist and A Hug From the Art World
Leeza Meksin, Front Door to the Past (False Doors), 2019–23. Photography courtesy of the artist and the Arts Center at Duck Creek
LATE SUMMER CAN DEVOLVE INTO A MUTED HUMDRUM, BUT SEASONAL DRESSING DOESN’T HAVE TO. HERE, CULTURED ROUNDS UP THE END-OF-SUMMER MUSTHAVES THAT WILL PUT A LITTLE EXTRA PEP IN YOUR STEP.
Those who prefer a less structured stripe will be drawn to the Italian house’s Intrecciato offering. More natural than the much-beloved Andiamo, the Kalimero gives its pastels a little heft while remaining delightfully bright. Available at BottegaVeneta.com FOR THE PARTY HOPPER
BY ALI PEW
Add some romantic flare to your farmers’ market commute. Fashioned by Maison Tamboite—a century-old bike maker still operating down the street from the Bastille in Paris—the frame boasts fashion and functionality outfitted in the maison’s monogram tile print. Available at select boutiques FOR THE GAL ON THE GO
The Italian house went all in on candy stripes this summer with its annual redesign. Boasting a bevy of crocheted accessories and summer staples, it’s sure to provide last-minute essentials for many a sartorial Hamptonite.
Delicate baroque pearls add a subtle seaside touch to any outfit. Available at BottegaVeneta.com FOR THE WANNABE MERMAID
SHOPPER
THE BEACH BUM
The classic beach bag gets an elevated edit with this sherbet colorway from the historic maison. Available at select boutiques
Inspired by retro seaside hotels, this piece is sunshine in a suit. Available at EresParis.com
Barbie dreams do come true, this time while catching some waves. The maison’s monogram tiles are featured on the top of the board while a tropical motif graces the bottom. Available at LouisVuitton.com
CHANEL COCO BEACH COLLECTION
The maison gives Mediterranean chic extra flair with their latest collection. In baby pink and creamy white, stripes are both sweet and sporty, the cuts themselves remaining oh-so-functional, too. Head to the house’s annual East Hampton pop-up, located in a quintessential gray shingle home, for the true East End experience. Available at select boutiques and Chanel.com FOR THE SPORTY SWEETHEART
Materials, Materials, Materials
IN HIS NEW BOOK TEN MODERN HOUSES , PETER MARINO OFFERS AN EXCLUSIVE PEEK AT HIS MOST LUXE RESIDENTIAL PROJECTS.
BY LYDIA LEE
PETER MARINO IS THE GO-TO architect for luxury clients including Chanel, Dior, and Fendi: Fifth Avenue and Rodeo Drive are dotted with his designs. But in his newly released book Ten Modern Houses, the veteran designer offers a look at a lower-profile side of his practice: private residences. Spanning the past decade, the book features nine completed homes around the globe as well as a series of projects in progress—contenders for the tenth home.
With more than 200 photographs, many never-before-seen, an introduction from veteran architecture editor Pilar Viladas, and accompanying text by author Sam Lubell, Marino presents in-depth case studies of his designs. Each one lifts the curtain on his keen attention to siting, functionality, and, most importantly, materials. “My world is very much about materials, materials, materials,” Marino says in a statement. “The houses are about new combinations of stones, woods, metals, and glass.” His designs become an extension of the land they live in, from Turks and Caicos to Aspen to Southampton. In Faqra, Lebanon, for example, Marino erected columns made from limestone native to the region, creating what he calls a “geological wonderland.”
While showcasing his long track record of innovation, the Phaidon-published book also looks to the future in the final chapter on unfinished homes. In his current work, Marino is focusing on ease and making spaces that fit an indoor-outdoor lifestyle—a natural disposition for the longtime Hamptons devotee.
“The houses are about new combinations of stones, woods, metals, and glass.”
— PETER MARINO
Peter Marino–designed home in Miami, 2017. Mobile by Alexander Calder alongside artwork by Alberto Burri, Lucio Fontana, Paolo Scheggi, and Agostino Bonalumi.
Peter Marino–designed home in Grace Bay, Turks and Caicos, 2020.
A SANCTUARY IN SOUTHAMPTON
FOUNDED IN A FORMER BARBERSHOP, THE SOUTHAMPTON AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSEUM HAS BEEN A SITE OF INSPIRING AND SUBTLE MOVEMENT-MAKING FOR 20 YEARS. ITS CURRENT ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE, ALVIN CLAYTON , IS TAKING OVER THE GALLERY THIS SUMMER WITH A SHOW THAT INTERROGATES PAINTERLY FORM AND THE ROLE OF ART IN SOCIAL CHANGE.
BY EVAN NICOLE BROWN
IN 2004, an erstwhile Southampton barbershop and beauty salon—opened in the 1940s by Emanuel Seymore, a Black barber with an entrepreneurial spirit who had migrated north from the Jim Crow South—was transformed by village local Brenda Simmons into the Southampton African American Museum.
Committed to preserving and promoting the area’s Black cultural history, SAAM is anchored by a permanent presentation on the building’s top floor dedicated to barber shops and beauty parlors—including Seymore’s own—as sites of community building, featuring ephemera from the barbershop and the neighborhood juke joint that was once next door. This summer, the museum’s rotating exhibition space hosts a solo exhibition from SAAM artist-in-residence Alvin Clayton.
Clayton’s show, “Reflection of Time: Through the Eyes of a Caribbean-American Artist,” on view through Nov. 17, is in keeping with the museum’s site-specific exploration of place and belonging, and how the history of migration across the African diaspora—both forced and chosen—has resulted in a culture that is vibrant, far-reaching, and rooted in an ability to create and find community in any environment.
Born on the island of Trinidad, Clayton grew up drawing—“but in the era I was born in, you couldn’t tell your parents you wanted to be an artist,” he says. This passion for art was somewhat suppressed until Clayton, who eventually moved to New York and worked as a model for Wilhelmina and Ford Models in the 1980s and ’90s, was on a job in Paris and decided to visit the Musée d’Orsay—an outing that sparked a lifelong love affair with the paintings of Henri Matisse.
“The colors just spoke to me as a Caribbean person, and the patterns in his paintings were so reminiscent of growing up with my grandmother and the patterns of [her] tablecloth and the linoleum floors,” Clayton mused. The artist first taught himself how to paint by copying Matisse’s works. “There was a simplicity in his work that I felt that I could emulate,”
he says, adding that his work as a model for photographers like Annie Leibovitz and Bruce Weber also impacted his understanding of portraiture. “I see how they look at subjects; the complexity of a painting comes from where shadow is cast, or what light you choose to put on someone’s face or in the background.”
“Reflection of Time” is the manifestation of Clayton’s goal to show work in museums this year. (In 1992, the Lee Arthur Gallery in SoHo first presented 27 of Clayton’s paintings, with 19 of them selling in the first two weeks, thus activating his career as an artist in earnest.)
The 25 oil paintings at SAAM, which Clayton says grapple with “the absurdity of racism,” mark a significant turning point in the artist’s work as more overtly socially conscious. “After the George Floyd murder trial [in 2021], my work changed. I started asking: What is the purpose of this painting? Who am I trying to reach and why? ” The show also explores the artist’s distinct relationship to American history and culture as a Caribbean-born Black person. “The way that I look at things … is very much through a different lens,” Clayton says. “So [this show] is basically my journey that I’m trying to express.”
The Southampton African American Museum is ultimately a sanctuary for the multifaceted: From Seymore’s initial vision as owner and barber to Simmons’s stewardship as founder and activist, and now Clayton’s presence as artist and entrepreneur (his restaurant Alvin and Friends is located in New Rochelle), SAAM is a well of inspiring, subtle movement-making.
“SAAM is the first African-American site to be historically designated in the village of Southampton, and it’s the first Black barbershop to be transformed into a museum in the country,” Simmons says. Clayton, for his part, hopes this show honors the richness of Black history, but also the power of recognizing shared experiences across differences. “I really want to dig into our humanity,” he concludes, “At the end of the day we have more that joins us than that separates us.”
Alvin Clayton, The Black Church, 2024.
Alvin Clayton, The Power of Dance, 2024.
A Sense Of Belonging
ALICE AYCOCK WASN’T ALWAYS CONVINCED THE HAMPTONS WERE FOR HER. “I HAD VERY DEAR FRIENDS WHO WOULD ALWAYS GO OUT THERE,” SHE REMEMBERS. “AND I WOULD SAY, ‘I’VE GOT TO WORK IN NEW YORK, I’M NOT DOING THAT.’” THINGS CHANGED WHEN THE SCULPTOR, NOW 77, HAD A SON. “I WAS WORKING ALL THE TIME AND NOT HAVING REAL DOWNTIME WITH HIM,” SHE CONTINUES. “SO I TOLD THEM, ‘SHOW ME THE HAMPTONS.’ THEY TOOK ME AND MY 2-YEAR-OLD SON OUT, AND I JUST FELL IN LOVE. IT WAS A FEELING OF ‘I BELONG.’” THAT SENSE OF KINSHIP WITH THE EAST END REMAINS POTENT FOR AYCOCK, WHO HAS A HOME OUTSIDE SAG HARBOR AND IS A VITAL VOICE IN THE REGION’S CREATIVE COMMUNITY. HERE, THE ARTIST KNOWN FOR HER UNTAMABLE SCULPTURES AND SITE-SPECIFIC INSTALLATIONS LETS CULTURED IN ON THE RITUALS THAT SHAPE HER SUMMERS OUT EAST—AND WHAT SHE’S COOKING UP IN THE STUDIO THESE DAYS.
BY ELLA MARTIN-GACHOT
Your sculpture Twister Grande (tall) has been installed outside the Church in Sag Harbor since 2021. What did the conversation about siting it there look like? Since around 2010, I’ve been working on a series of sculptures with complex curves—sometimes referred to as “Twisters”—which reference wind and water and the body in motion. Their compositions are a counterbalance to the rectilinear grid that we use in much of our architecture and our cities. The Church is an example of classical Greek Revival architecture. When it was renovated, the architect, Lee Skolnick, kept the bones of the structure beautifully. I was very pleased with the point-counterpoint relationship of Twister Grande (tall)’s curves which reference the architecture of the Church as well as the creative energy that takes place within the building that has been reconfigured as a place for the arts. What summer rituals do you have out East?
I really enjoy being with my friends in a casual, relaxed way. For me, Sag Harbor has the historical memory and scale of “Main Street, USA,” and I love all the little stores and the restaurants and the vernacular architecture as well as the sense of a creative community. I’ll often buy my fish near Long Beach at Serene Green Farm. My son learned to sail when he was very young at the sailing club off Bay Street. He now has his master’s degree in turbulence theory and fluid dynamics, and he’s a major surfer. There’s nothing like the water for emotional sustenance. Do I go to the beach the way I used to? Probably not. It once was a daily ritual. In the summer, the car would almost drive itself to the beach. And besides my work, I have very few hobbies, but I love gardening in the Hamptons. What are you growing this season?
I always grow my dahlias, which the rabbits are eating. I have peonies flowing down the hill in rows in the late spring. This is not a garden that is maintained every time a leaf falls. It is very trial and error. Right now it is the day lilies and the hydrangeas. The garden is a way for me to get a kind of nourishment that the city can’t provide. What has time in the studio looked like for you lately? At this point in my career, I am looking back over approximately 50 years. I’m still working, of course, but at the same time, I have been engaging in an introspective critique and looking at the work that I have done almost from when I began my career as an artist. There’s always been this thread throughout the work about wind, interference patterns and movement, and
the relationship between nature and technology. I would call it a very complex, constantly shifting Venn diagram. You can’t quite pin it down. In the world that we inhabit, I’m not interested in literal interpretations. I’m interested in digging down, down, down. What is the overriding compositional system that we have to come to terms with living in the world? How do we survive it? I don’t know, but what I do know is that it feels even more complex than ever.
I would like to make what I call the “last big piece,” a big undertaking that would take a number of years and would reference complex causality and randomness as well as movement. We are more than ever immersed in this complex causality and randomness—what I like to call the necessary structures and the contingent events. The “Twisters” are a static example of that—they’re not moving, but they’re different from every point of view, which is really important to me. You can’t get it by just looking at it from one point of view. You also can’t remember it perfectly. You have to go back and look again and again.
You’re working with Art Omi in Upstate New York on a pavilion that will house your work in their new Chatham art center, part of a wider initiative of artist-architect pavilions they’re breaking ground on this summer. What has it been like to work on that project, and to collaborate with the Chicago-based architecture firm Jahn?
I started going upstate to Art Omi in Ghent, which my friend Francis Greenburger founded, many years ago. We
rebuilt one of my early underground pieces there, and I’m now on the board of Architecture Omi. One day I asked Francis, “Do you have an old barn somewhere? I have all these pieces in storage, and I’d like to get them out.” And he said, “Well, why don’t we think about an idea I’ve had for a long time, which is to build a number of art pavilions?” He showed me a site in Chatham, approximately 200 acres. When you stand there and look out at the Hudson Valley and mountains beyond, it’s like an American paradise. To plan my pavilion at Art Omi Pavilions, I initially took the dimensions of several early pieces that I wanted to rebuild. I tried to understand how those pieces would fit within the space, then I designed the shell of the building conceptually. I thought, With this incredible site, I want to honor the terrain and the environment. So the roof on one side slopes all the way down almost to the ground. It references old Long Island potato barns. Rows of glass in the center of the roof reflect the clouds and the sky. On the exterior, the building reflects the sky and the earth. Inside, it is a very simple, flexible, open and tall industrial warehouse space.
We partnered with Philip Castillo at Jahn for my pavilion. He brought all of his expertise and his team to do the work that makes a conceptual design become a reality. Everyone who has worked with me on this project has been amazing. My job now is to come up with the art. I have this little mantra… I’m a big fan of Tom Waits, and there’s a song called “Tom Traubert’s Blues.” It’s about, “Okay, I did that. How about this next thing? Give me one more shot to make it better. I know how to do it this time.” He sings, “And it’s a battered old suitcase to a hotel someplace / And a wound that will never heal.” It’s like each time you think, That works okay, and then you say to yourself, No, I’ve got to try this one more time. That’s what this project is about.
Alice Aycock, Twister Grande (tall), 2019. On loan to the Church in Sag Harbor, NY.
COLLECTOR QUESTIONNAIRE
STEP INTO THE SALON
A LONGTIME DENIZEN OF THE EAST END, COLLECTOR AND PROFESSOR MAR MOROSSE IS KEEPING SOUTHAMPTON CULTURED WITH HER ARTIST SALONS, A MAINSTAY OF THE TOWN’S ART SCENE.
BY SOPHIE LEE
CURATOR, ADVISOR, AND BARUCH COLLEGE PROFESSOR
Mar Morosse has spent much of her life interrogating art. Having worked with such illustrious international institutions as the Louvre, the Musée d’Orsay, the Spanish Royal Trust, and Sotheby’s—and earned PhDs in both Madrid and Paris—Morosse has since earned a reputation on the East End for her home salons, which present a tantalizing mix of dinner party and gallery opening. This summer, Morosse’s home will play host to works by Pierre d’Argyll and Bernardi Roig. In a dispatch from Southampton—where Morosse and her husband, William Morosse, spend the season—the doyenne of art out East shares her thoughts on the local scene, the first piece she ever bought, and how to curate the perfect summer evening (hint: lots of paella and flamenco).
What do you think makes the Hamptons art scene distinct?
There’s a rich history of painters who have lived and developed their art in this area. Institutions like the Parrish Art Museum, the Pollock-Krasner House, and Guild Hall are testaments to a long tradition that includes both international and local art. The Hamptons are fertile ground for creativity, offering immense potential and abundant artistic results. What is the first piece you ever bought?
The first piece I ever bought was a drawing at a sale—I recognized it was a Degas. I tend to work with artists I admire, and that’s a key way I build my collection. Occasionally, I delve into auctions when I see a fantastic opportunity. As my husband, a former bond trader, always says, “Buy what’s cheap and sell what’s rich.” Which artist are you currently most excited about and why?
This summer we are excited to feature two remarkable artists at the salon. The first is Pierre d’Argyll, a French artist based in Madrid, who will be presenting a series of “Society Portraits.” These portraits will depict various figures from the life of the Hamptons. D’Argyll brings a fresh perspective, unconnected to the local context, and his extraordinary use of collages made from recycled mixed-media paper creates a unique beauty.
The second is Bernardi Roig, an exceptional artist whose work has been on display at the Phillips Collection in Washington, DC, since April. He is showcasing a series of 55 drawings about the lost head of Francisco José de Goya. The story behind Goya’s missing skull is well-known: He was buried in the Chartreuse cemetery in Bordeaux in 1928, and the Spanish consul proposed repatriating his body in 1898. Upon
opening the tomb, they discovered Goya’s body was missing its head, likely taken for scientific study. The Spanish government’s response was pragmatic: “Send Goya, with or without head.”
Roig’s work, inspired by this eerie piece of history, has been acquired by the Phillips Collection. Here in the Hamptons, he will be creating something that connects with the space and his Spanish heritage. This blend of historical intrigue and artistic brilliance makes both artists’ contributions highly anticipated. How has the local art scene influenced your collection?
It has heightened my awareness of the relationship between art and the market. Being in the center of the art world, the East End holds significance as a recreational retreat for Manhattanites. I appreciate this attitude, as I believe art should be a source of enjoyment and pleasure. Does your work as an art history professor impact how you look at potential acquisitions?
It influences me profoundly. My life has been dedicated to reading, studying, and writing about art. This deep immersion allows me to see potential acquisitions through a rich and informed perspective. In many ways, I breathe art.
Can you tell us about the salons you host at home?
I aim to promote intellectual conversations about art and its impact on society. Another aspect of the salon is to create enjoyable experiences, such as hosting large dinner parties with good wine and food—incorporating live music, shows, and short artist talks.
One of our favorite summer events is a paella and flamenco evening, but we also explore various themes like landscapes and romantic chamber music, classical guitar, and Renaissance drawings. These
“My life has been dedicated to reading, studying, and writing about art. This deep immersion allows me to see potential acquisitions through a rich and informed perspective. In many ways, I breathe art.” MAR MOROSSE
gatherings offer a unique blend of cultural enrichment and social enjoyment. What was your biggest influence in fostering your passion for art?
My father. Although he was a physician by training, he was also an insightful intellectual and a talented artist. Our family life revolved around intellectual discussions rather than watching TV, and we often had extensive conversations about art and history.
Later, I went to Paris to study art history, where I met Yves Bonnefoy. His insights profoundly shaped my
understanding of art history. Both my father and Bonnefoy have significantly influenced my work and my love of art. What feelings would you like your collection to inspire in the people who experience it?
I would like it to inspire a sense of beauty and happiness in those who experience it. Art is a profound way to navigate life’s journey, and my hope is that an art collection provides a sense of joy, inspiration, and a deeper appreciation for the beauty that surrounds us.
Mar Morosse at home sitting on a chaise lounge by Jean Prouvé. Paintings by Pierre d’Argyll.
ALL TOMORROW’S PARTIES
FASHION AND HOSTING POWERHOUSE
LAUREN SANTO DOMINGO LETS CULTURED IN ON HER CHEAT SHEET TO MAKING THE MOST OUT OF A HAMPTONS SUMMER.
LAUREN SANTO DOMINGO’S trajectory from Vogue’s fashion closet to co-founder of luxury nerve center Moda Operandi is sartorial lore. The entrepreneur and socialite’s influence extends far beyond best-dressed lists and board rooms, however: Her design lens has taken on a domestic bent as she has become synonymous with legendary dinner parties in Manhattan and seasonal bashes out East. (Moda Operandi also expanded to include homewares in 2018.)
This passion for hosting was cemented last year when Tiffany & Co. appointed Santo Domingo as the artistic director of its home category, an occasion to dig into the archives of one of the rare American luxury brands and reimagine them for the 21st century. Here, the cultural powerhouse and part-time Southampton resident sits down with interior designer Athena Calderone to share her tips and tricks for making the most out of an East End summer.
ATHENA CALDERONE: Your Southampton home feels historic with a nod to New England architecture. How did the region inspire your vision and design approach?
LAUREN SANTO DOMINGO: I worked with Gil Schafer to create a house that felt native to Southampton. [Long Island] was settled by both the Dutch and the English. While many of the historic Dutch-style houses are the most popular, I was drawn to the New England side of the island and drew my references from there.
CALDERONE: My Amagansett home has always been a grounding seaside reprieve from our hectic lives in the city. How has this home influenced the way your family connects and unwinds?
SANTO DOMINGO: I had an idyllic childhood in Connecticut, with freedom to roam and test my independence. I’m hoping for my children to feel the same freedom and joy during their summers. Our family has been coming out to the Hamptons since I was in my 20s, and we have had the same friends and traditions here since then.
CALDERONE: What are your favorite places to visit when you’re in Southampton?
“I SUPPOSE I DRESS MYSELF THE SAME WAY I DRESS A TABLE. FIRST, I ASK MYSELF, ‘WHAT IS THE LEVEL OF FORMALITY OF THIS EVENT?’ I TRY TO HIT THE RIGHT NOTES OF POLISH AND SOPHISTICATION BUT ALWAYS HAVE FUN.”
— LAUREN SANTO DOMINGO
SANTO DOMINGO: To eat, Sip’n Soda in Southampton and the concession stand at Coopers Beach—our favorite beach—are our regular family spots. For a coffee, it’s Sant Ambroeus. I love to visit the studios of Dan Flavin and John Chamberlain for art, and the Peter Marino Art Foundation is a spectacle for design.
CALDERONE: You are renowned for your legendary outdoor entertaining in
Southampton. What do you love most about hosting here and why?
SANTO DOMINGO: I love having people over—mostly so I don’t have to leave the house! My husband enjoys cooking, I enjoy setting the table and doing the flowers, and we both enjoy long nights with friends.
CALDERONE: What is one hostess gift you are always happy to receive?
SANTO DOMINGO: Fresh, seasonal flowers or produce. Amber Waves is my favorite spot. Anything from L’Épicuriste and its shop, the Bouwerie, which has highly curated vintage finds.
CALDERONE: There is a distinctive elegance to your tabletop design—do you follow any rules when setting a table?
SANTO DOMINGO: When I eat outdoors, I am happy to use pieces from my ceramic crockery collection. When I eat inside, I insist on porcelain, crystal, and candlelight.
CALDERONE: Do you see any parallels between how you set a table and how you dress?
SANTO DOMINGO: I suppose I dress myself the same way I dress a table. First, I ask myself, “What is the level of formality of this event?” I try to hit the right notes of polish and sophistication but always have fun. Most of all, I try to be original.
CALDERONE: What are a few things every host should consider when planning a gathering?
SANTO DOMINGO: I have a vast set of tablecloths that fit my table perfectly. I always get small potted plants in sets of threes. For most meals, I just pop them on the table with two hurricane lamps in-between and a scattering of sparkling silver pieces throughout. It’s the perfect mix.
“I LOVE HAVING PEOPLE OVER—MOSTLY SO I DON’T HAVE TO LEAVE THE HOUSE!”
— LAUREN SANTO DOMINGO
DRESSING EAST
NATALIA MEHLMAN PETRZELA —HISTORIAN AND LONGTIME SEASONAL DENIZEN OF SPRINGS—UNPACKS THE SARTORIAL TOUCHPOINTS THAT HAVE DEFINED HOW HAMPTONITES DRESS OVER THE DECADES.
BY NATALIA MEHLMAN PETRZELA
SUMMER IN THE HAMPTONS —an airy phrase that evokes sweeping beachscapes and verdant lawns. Yet the summer months out East can reach near-Manhattan levels of frenzy, packed with bonfires, garden parties, and snaking lines for anything from beach parking to a lobster salad to-go. This brew of balmy ennui and high-octane activity reaches its ultimate expression in the form of Hamptons fashion. Back in 1979, Cosmopolitan gushed over the East End’s masterful mix of opulence and understatement. Today, its various aesthetic lineages have been replicated around the world. Here, CULTURED breaks down the origins of the looks that define America’s most exclusive escape.
THE ARTIST UNIFORM: Amid the stiff blue blazers and golf attire of the mid-century country club set, artists like Jackson Pollock and Helen Frankenthaler injected the Hamptons with a casual, and at times quirky, functionality. Photographed in his Springs studio in 1950, Pollock wore the plain crewneck undershirt, jeans, and loafers that were practically his uniform— caked with paint if he had been working, and well suited for riding the bicycles he and his wife, fellow artist Lee Krasner, favored when money was tight. Today, this insouciant aesthetic has become so ascendant even among the area’s highest rollers—Christie Brinkley, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Alec Baldwin—that it hardly clocks as a bohemian style.
LANGUOROUS LOUNGEWEAR: Big and Little Edie were already East End lore when Grey Gardens, a documentary about the socialite mother-daughter duo by the legendary Maysles Brothers, came out in 1975. In the decades since, the astonishment that Jackie O.’s own aunt and cousin lived in squalor in an East Hampton mansion has morphed into a fascination with Little Edie’s scrappy aristocratic sensibilities. In the film, Edie lazes about in the remnants of her designer wardrobe, whimsically repurposing silk scarves as headwraps, a fur coat as a robe, a crocheted throw fastened with brooches as a skirt. Her blurring of the luxurious and the louche remains a mainstay of East End fashion, even upheld by Grey Gardens’s current tenant: designer Liz Lange. Loose, breezy caftans in rich fabrics that could be confused for nightgowns; silky pajama sets in floral and ikat prints, worn with heels or a swath of gold accessories, as Gwyneth Paltrow did at one Goop event in Amagansett— these are the pasteurized progeny of Little Edie’s legacy.
LESS
IS MORE: Once upon a time in the 1970s, a new species appeared en masse on an Amagansett beach: singles. These upwardly mobile young people spent summer days flirting and tanning before heading back to the “grouper homes” where they rented a room, or a bed, for the weekend. According to the New York Times, a “skimpy bikini” was the outfit of choice for the women of this scene, a stark contrast with the heavily adorned swimwear it supplanted. Showing skin stuck. Sag Harbor designer Shoshanna Gruss’s cherryprint bikini is one iconic example: Released in 2001 and immortalized on Sex and the City, it’s synonymous with the casual summer fling.
WHITE-OUT: Billionaire Michael Rubin’s lavish “white parties,” which attract the likes of Kim Kardashian, Tom Brady, and J.Lo to his Bridgehampton mansion, are the most recent example of a monochrome mandate that’s infiltrated the Hamptons for centuries. Tennis may be at the root of the dress code’s popularity out East: Exclusive tennis clubs founded in the 1800s, like Southampton’s Meadow Club, enforced strict dress code regulations—to keep players cooler and mask unsightly sweat—long after other spots around the country relaxed them. It’s no surprise that head-to-toe white, signaling the sort of spotless ease often associated with affluence, is still one of the East End’s signature looks.
FROM TOP:
Photography of tennis player Florence Sutton, 1910s; Photography of Edith “Little Edie” Bouvier Beale from the poster for documentary film Grey Gardens, 1975; Photography of Jackson Pollock and Lee Krasner in their studio by Hans Namuth, 1950.
AUGUST 3
LLEWELLYN SANCHEZ-WERNER
PIANO RECITAL AND WORKSHOP
Beethoven, Chopin, Gershwin
AUGUST 16
JOG BLUES BAND
Featuring Andy Biskin (clarinet, bass clarinet), Ikhlaq Hussain (sitar), Jake Charkey (cello), Joel Bluestein (electric guitar), Jonathan Rose (bass, harmonica), Mir Naqibul Islam (tabla), and Siddartha Mukherjee (vocals)
AUGUST 18 & 25
YOUNG CONCERT ARTIST PERFORMANCE SERIES
Featuring Oliver Neubauer (violin), Hanzhi Wang (accordion), Anthony Trionfo (flute), Karen Lindquist (harp), and Michael Yeung (percussion)
AUGUST CONCERTS at LONGHOUSE
MUSIC IN SANCTUARY
Mediterranean BLUES
THIS SEASON, ESCAPE TO THE SOUTH OF FRANCE WITH DIPTYQUE ’S NEWEST OFFERINGS, INCLUDING A SEA-SALT-SCENTED BODY SPRAY AND CERULEAN VASES.
the warmer months, are inspired by the same Mediterranean beaches the French writer famously featured in her 1954 novel Bonjour Tristesse.
This summer, the iconic Parisian brand channels the French Riviera with a collection of decorative objects— including a sea-blue matchbox, perfect for lighting up your Vogues the old-fashioned way—and a limited edition set of fragrances, body and hair mists, and candles.
The collection uses scent—our most powerful memory sense—to evoke “the beauty that springs from a thousand details: sunbathing alongside turquoise water, taking a break under colorful umbrellas with your feet in the sand, cooling yourself with the fresh and juicy notes of Ilio, preparing fun dinners,” says Jessie Dawes, chief marketing officer of Diptyque Americas.
While Diptyque has long been a staple of Left Bank chic—the first shop opened in 1961 at 34 Boulevard Saint-Germain, in the heart of Paris’s 5th arrondissement— the label has deep ties to the Mediterranean. Desmond
summers in the South of France as a youth. It was the strength of these early memories, along with a love of nature—shared with Coueslant and Montadre-Gautrot, who grew up in present-day Vietnam and Fontainebleau, respectively—that first motivated the trio to bring Diptyque to life. This vision remains true today: “Diptyque draws on our founders’ original sources of inspiration,” says President of Diptyque Americas Julien Gommichon, “to dream up enchanting, one-of-a-kind fragrances and items in small assortments.”
The founders’ adoration for the scents, hues, and textures of nature is reflected in the brand’s latest releases. The decorative objects collection—itself a nod to Diptyque’s original Saint-Germain shop, which sold fabrics, jewelry, ornaments, children’s toys, and even vinyl records—features pieces that marry the expansiveness of the outdoors with the comforts of home. The Medicis Vase, a signature Diptyque object, now sparkles in Mediterranean blue, its color mimicking the tantalizing
Desmond Knox-Leet in the 34 Boulevard Saint-Germain shop.
depths of a dreamy swim spot. “During summertime, the boundaries between indoors and outdoors melt into perfect harmony,” says Dawes. “Every element stimulates the dialogue between the home interior and the great outdoors.”
The same hue appears on the collection’s Ribbed Candle Holder, an ideal addition to a dinner party table or outdoor patio, which projects a fluttering, wave-like blue-green light when filled with a lit candle. Coco Brun, a multidisciplinary artist from Brittany, also contributed to the collection in the form of the Traveling Single-Stem Vase, which includes a sheath with leather offcuts and a vase fashioned out of borosilicate glass. The vase, as its name suggests, exemplifies the collection’s spirit of wanderlust: “Nomadic objects,” Dawes says, “to take everywhere, all the time.”
Diptyque’s summer collection—available at the brand’s East Hampton locale—conjures a sunny atmosphere. The bright twinge of sea salt lingers in both the Summer Body Spray and the Ilio Refreshing Face and Body Mist, evoking memories of beach days past. Fresh, juicy notes of prickly pear enliven the fragrance, while bergamot and jasmine bring nuance and a delicate floral counterpoint to awaken the senses.
With striking designs by French artist Alexandre Benjamin Navet, the collection is a perfect complement to any summer adventure—from lounging poolside with Sagan’s simmering novel, to dining by candlelight while your favorite Serge Gainsbourg record spins.
Notes from Knox-Leet’s herbarium.
Citronnelle candles from Diptyque’s summer collection with artwork by Alexandre Benjamin Navet.
RESTING State
THIS SUMMER, GHANAIAN ARTIST GIDEON APPAH IS INTRODUCING HIS DREAMY PRACTICE TO THE EAST END WITH A FELLOWSHIP AND EXHIBITION AT THE STORIED WATERMILL CENTER.
BY ELLA MARTIN-GACHOT
WHEN WE SPEAK, GIDEON APPAH has just landed in New York for his first visit to the United States. The next day, the Ghanaian artist would make his way to the East End to begin a six-week-long fellowship at the Watermill Center, the renowned arts incubator founded by avant-garde polymath Robert Wilson just over three decades ago. Appah packed light: He limited his artistic equipment to some extra brushes and a laptop. A suite of empty canvases awaited him out East. The 37-year-old Accra native didn’t quite know what to expect from the Hamptons, but he was going in with a supple attitude. “I’m very, very open to what happens at Watermill,” he tells me over Zoom. “I’m ready to explore.”
Since his arrival on the international scene at the tail end of the last decade, Appah has cemented his place as an essential alchemist of fauvist traditions, African popular culture, and relaxed portraiture. In his sweeping paintings, figures slalom through modes of repose—from languorous cigarettes to family gatherings to beachside capers. These polychrome dreamscapes caught the eye of Pace, which added him to its roster in 2022 and is helping to support his fellowship at Watermill, intended to be the first in a series of such collaborations. When I ask him if joining a mega-gallery has brought unwanted pressure on his practice, Appah shakes his head. “[Early on,] I spoke to [Pace CEO] Marc Glimcher, and he told me, ‘You don’t have to feel pressured into making work. Just relax and be creative,’” he remembers. “I just need to make sure that I make good work. That’s the bottom line: good work.”
That result can’t be rushed, and Appah speaks candidly about getting stuck (although he’s been feeling less so these days). In his eyes, time away from a painting can be as fruitful as forcing it into existence, and every so often a subtle change in posture will do the trick. “Sometimes I just need to sit in a chair in front of
“I just need to make sure that I make good work. That’s the bottom line: good work.”
GIDEON APPAH
the canvas for a while—relax with the work, sit with it, take [my] time,” he explains. Like with any residency, however, Appah’s time in Water Mill would be limited: He had six weeks to create the body of work that will debut at the annual benefit and populate the center’s main gallery through Oct. 12. Over Zoom, he tells me he’s matching that temporal challenge with a proportional one: He planned to treat his smaller canvases like his monumental ones during the residency, by packing the same amount of visual information into them. He had this spark in London after seeing a series of works by the late still-life master Giorgio Morandi. “The work could fit into your suitcase, but its appearance is beautiful. So I said, ‘Let me try,’” Appah reasons. “What will that bring me? What kind of feeling will I get from them?” East Enders will be able to witness the answers to those questions this summer, perhaps even taking one home in their luggage at the season’s end.
Gideon Appah, White Mountain, 2023.
XICAN-A.O.X. BODY
rafa esparza, Corpo RanfLA: Terra Cruiser, 2022–2023. Courtesy the artist and American Federation of Arts
Xican-a.o.x. Body is organized by the American Federation of Arts. The exhibition has been co-curated by Cecilia Fajardo-Hill, Marissa Del Toro, and Gilbert Vicario. The Pérez Art Museum Miami presentation was organized by Gilbert Vicario, Chief Curator, with the support of Fabiana A. Sotillo, Curatorial Assistant. Major support for the exhibition and catalogue is provided by the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and the Terra Foundation for American Art. At PAMM, Xican-a.o.x. Body is presented with lead individual support from Patricia and William Kleh.
THE HAMPTONS
According to Peter Marino
THE INDEFATIGABLE ARCHITECT REVEALS HIS FAVORITE SPOTS TO REFUEL AND RECHARGE OUT EAST.
Peter Marino cuts a memorable figure at Manhattan social events, where his omnipresent leather pants, leather cap, and bare arms are more Tom of Finland than Tom Wolfe. In the Hamptons, where he and his family have kept a weekend house since the mid-1990s, Marino lets his softer side out to play—even if the uniform is the same. He spends his afternoons tending to his garden, playing tennis, and visiting the local animal shelter. The architect, who has maintained a vibrant practice since the ’70s and specializes in super-sleek and art-filled boutiques for luxury brands like Tiffany & Co. and Chanel, is the guest editor of CULTURED ’s second 2024 Hamptons issue. Here, he shares his favorite East End haunts.
BY PETER MARINO PORTRAIT BY MANOLO YLLERA
6 3 5
1–2. I can’t not mention stopping at Chanel’s boutique on Newtown Lane or Louis Vuitton on Main Street in East Hampton.
3. The Milk Pail at 1346 Montauk Highway in Water Mill is a farm stand with a nice variety of local products. We like to buy fresh apple cider here in the fall, along with donuts and pies. A great place to go apple picking.
4. Marders, a plant nursery on Snake Hollow Road in Bridgehampton. I usually make a trip to Marders on Saturday mornings. Charlie Marder has been running this institution since the 1970s and knows so much. They have all sorts of flowering fruit trees and a garden shop, too.
5. I’m very inspired by classical music and often treat my projects as a composer would approach the creation of a piece of music. Bridgehampton Chamber Music Festival hosts a delightful summer series of concerts around the East End. Listening to a piano quartet play Beethoven and Mozart on a warm summer night is heaven.
6. Nicholas Kilner at 197 Madison Street in Sag Harbor. I like to stop at this 20th-century Italian design gallery in case I see something for one of my clients. A desk from Kilner’s ended up in Tiffany Landmark, the Fifth Avenue flagship store I designed for the brand that opened last spring.
7. Peter Marino Art Foundation Bookstore at 11 Jobs Lane in Southampton. We sell my miniature bronze boxes, made in a forge in France, as well as a selection of art and photography books and unique objects that could make very cool hostess gifts or wedding presents.
8. Tennis East , a shop on 73 Main Street in Southampton. This is where I buy my rackets and get them restrung. Exercise is an important part of my routine; every weekend includes tennis.
9. Herrick Hardware is at 41 Main Street in Southampton. Locally owned, it has anything you could be looking for— and we can always find what we need. The staff is friendly and helpful.
10–11. For kids, Stevenson’s Toys & Games at 69 Jobs Lane in Southampton. This toy store is family-owned and has a large arts and crafts section. I used to take my daughter Isabelle here when she was little. Afterward, stop for ice cream at The Fudge Company down the street.
12. ARF Thrift and Treasure Shop at 17 Poxabogue Lane in Sagaponack sells new and gently used furniture, home decor, and clothing to support the rescue of cats and dogs at the local ARF Adoption Center. I’m a longtime supporter of ARF, and my daughter is on their board. Last summer, we spontaneously adopted two cats named Peter and Wendy, who are brother and sister. We have to call him “Peter-cat” for obvious reasons!
1. Chanel 2. Louis Vuitton 3. Milk Pail 4. Marders
5. Bridgehampton Chamber Music Festival
6. Nicholas Kilner Gallery’s Quarter Lounge by Johnny Swing
7. Peter Marino Art Foundation and Peter Marino bronze artwork
IN THE HAMPTONS, A NEW WAVE OF MODERNISM
OUT EAST, A NUMBER OF CONSTRUCTIONS ARE REDEFINING THE LANDSCAPE—BOTH LITERALLY AND ARTISTICALLY. HERE, CONTRIBUTING
EDITOR KAREN WONG SPOTLIGHTS THREE OF THE MOST COMPELLING ADDITIONS TO THE AREA’S ARCHITECTURAL ECOSYSTEM.
BY KAREN WONG
NEW YORKERS LOVE complaining about the Hamptons: The snail-paced weekend traffic to the farmers’ market. The finance bros DJing until the wee hours of the morning. The McMansions replacing modest beach cottages. Despite all the aggravation, this strip of Long Island remains a magnet for architectural experimentation by brave homeowners and daring architects.
The historical significance of the region’s modernist movement is well documented in Jake Gorst’s film Modern Tide: Midcentury Architecture on Long Island (2012), and books by Alastair Gordon (Weekend Utopia, 2001) and Paul
Goldberger (Houses of the Hamptons, 1986). In 2020, the interior designer Timothy Godbold founded the nonprofit Hamptons 20th Century Modern to protect mid-century structures from being demolished. Today, architects designing homes on Long Island must contend with the legacies of Andrew Geller, Charles Gwathmey, and Philip Johnson alongside the wetland conditions of the peninsula and the myriad needs of the commissioning client.
In the following pages, Contributing Editor Karen Wong lifts the curtain on the architects behind three 21st-century Hamptons houses that broke new ground.
We are unlikely to find another house named after the owner’s favorite weed strain. The Blue Dream strain, a sativadominant hybrid, combines Blueberry and Haze to relaxing and euphoric effects. The same can be said of the East Hampton home Charles Renfro and the DS+R team designed for his late friend Julia Reyes Taubman—a once-ina-lifetime client who was courageous, insightful, and full of laughter.
Reyes Taubman, who passed away in 2018, and her husband Robert Taubman spent years interviewing architects, many of whom completed schemes that were ultimately set aside.
In 2011, mutual friends introduced Reyes Taubman to Renfro, and the two formed a strong bond based on trust and a shared sense of humor. “She had me design a handrail nearly 60 times. When we hit the mark, she gleefully shouted, ‘That’s the one; let’s wrap it up!’” Renfro recalls.
“SHE HAD ME DESIGN A HANDRAIL NEARLY 60 TIMES. WHEN WE HIT THE MARK, SHE GLEEFULLY SHOUTED, ‘THAT’S THE ONE; LET’S WRAP IT UP!’”
— CHARLES RENFRO
DS+R presented four schemes, dubbing the winning option Ravioli House (it was later renamed Blue Dream). The house’s undulating ground level was the “public” floor that mirrored the dunes on the property, while the roof served as a “pocket” to house all private spaces. Throughout the design process, Reyes Taubman pushed Renfro constantly to “do better.” After years of collecting contemporary art and design, her insights, he says, were often spot-on. Innovation has always been a hallmark of DS+R’s built work, including the High Line and the Shed in New York and the Broad in Los Angeles (which recently announced an expansion to be helmed by the original architects at DS+R).
Blue Dream, 2017
CHARLES RENFRO, PARTNER, DILLER SCOFIDIO + RENFRO (DS+R)
They did not disappoint on Blue Dream, their first private residence, either. Appropriating technology from a Seattle fighter jet manufacturer, the home’s roof, made of resin and foam, is dense and lightweight, allowing for a column-free interior.
If there is such a thing as cosmic modernism, the Blue Dream is its poster child. Inspired by the surrounding dunes, beach, and water, the house’s form is otherworldly—straight out of a futuristic Hollywood film. At the same time, the lack of ornamentation and emphasis on light and informal living are in keeping with modernist traditions. The effect of this unexpected combination? Uplifting equilibrium.
SO–IL architects Florian Idenburg and Jing Liu were close friends with filmmakers Dana Ben-Ari and Nikola Duravcevic before the prospect of a family house in Long Island became a shared obsession. With their young kids in tow, the two couples set off on weekend treks to explore various towns, and to experience the area’s light from day to dusk. Each of these four outspoken creatives are a force unto themselves. Add Duravcevic’s artist brother to the mix, and you have one boisterous dinner party.
The resulting combustion of energy and ideas led to a fruitful collaboration that prioritized exploration. When Ben-Ari and Duravcevic became pregnant with a third child, conditions shifted, and the timeline was extended. “A house is a personal representation of a family’s spirit rather than that of an individual, so the composition is layered and constantly changing,” Idenburg says.
Settling on a 20-acre plot on the North Fork, SO–IL arrived at a compound-
“A HOUSE IS A PERSONAL REPRESENTATION OF A FAMILY’S SPIRIT RATHER THAN THAT OF AN INDIVIDUAL, SO THE COMPOSITION IS LAYERED AND CONSTANTLY CHANGING.”
— FLORIAN IDENBURG
like plan for the home: Four wings, each containing a different domestic function, meet at a central core for dining and reading. Every architectural feature combines style and substance. Pitched roofs are a common vernacular in these parts due to centuries-old farming traditions established by Indigenous communities and the preponderance of barns. At the house, deep roofs form generous overhangs, creating a
Duravcevic–Ben-Ari House, 2019
FLORIAN IDENBURG, FOUNDING PARTNER, SO–IL
porch around the structure’s perimeter. Meanwhile, a seemingly decorative stainless steel double trellis with a large picture window framing the view is actually a crucial structural element holding up the roof.
The Duravcevic–Ben-Ari House was SO–IL’s first private home outside New York City—so Idenburg felt considerable pressure. After all, the North and South Forks are dotted with modernist masterpieces, and private homes remain the most accessible and iconic typology every architect wants to conquer. A local favorite of Idenburg’s is Paul Rudolph’s under-recognized Deane Residence.
Built in the late ’60s overlooking the Long Island Sound, the multilevel house’s facade is defined by an oddly shaped hexagonal armature extending a portal of interiors bathed in light. Rudolph’s project is distinguished by unexpected ingenuity, a trait prevalent in SO–IL’s expanding oeuvre of museums, residential highrises and—let’s hope—its future slate of private homes.
Morris Cove House, 2023
PAUL MASI, PARTNER, BATES MASI + ARCHITECTS
In 1996, a Harvard Graduate School of Design student named Paul Masi met 70-year-old architect Harry Bates. The Long Island statesman, who died in 2022, had moved his practice to Southampton in the 1980s after working for the legendary Gordon Bunshaft at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. The two hit it off. In Masi, Bates found a mentee to whom he could pass the torch. The younger architect now oversees a 20-person firm headquartered in East Hampton that has, over three decades, presided over the construction of dozens of stunning Long Island homes.
One standout in the firm’s crowded portfolio is a guest house on Morris Cove, completed in 2023 in Sag Harbor. The clients tapped Bates Masi to replace the previous guesthouse on a neck of land surrounded by water. The structure features five elevated pavilions, including a living room with water views to the east and west, all connected by an
overarching roof. The roof’s extra height hides the mechanics—a common tactic to guard against flooding. Typically used for decking, ipe hardwood siding clads the exterior and some of the interiors, integrating the indoors and outdoors and amplifying the house’s connection to the cove. “A home that has a performance aspect in improving the environment is really important—in our opinion timeless—because basically it’s a part of the context of the place,” says Masi.
Three interior courtyards perform triple duty, offering skylights, a terrarium filled with native plants, and rainwater storage where soil, gravel, and sand slow runoff during storms.
These lightwells are clad in copper, which develops a patina reflective of the flow of water and the passage of time. The Morris Cove House will evolve and mature with time, bearing the imprint of each generation that inhabits it.
“A home that has a performance aspect in improving the environment is really important—in our opinion timeless— because basically it’s a part of the context of the place.”
— PAUL MASI
Husband-and-Wife Artists
Julia Chiang and Brian Donnelly Interview Each Other About Life, Love, and Work
AHEAD OF THEIR PARALLEL SOLO EXHIBITIONS AT THE PARRISH ART MUSEUM IN WATER MILL, THE BUSY COUPLE CARVED OUT TIME TO TALK SHOP.
JUDGING STRICTLY FROM
THEIR ART, Brian Donnelly and Julia Chiang are not an obvious match. Donnelly, known as KAWS, makes a range of multimedia work, from pint-size toys to monumental sculptures, inspired by comic books, Pop art history, and streetwear culture. Chiang makes intricate ceramics and paintings of organic forms and overlapping pools of color. With a shared attention to detail and affection for bright hues, they aren’t quite opposites—but they are far from self-evident companions.
That only holds true in art, however. In life, the couple have been together for 15 years and share two children. This summer, their work lives will come together when they are the subject of parallel solo exhibitions at Water Mill’s Parrish Art Museum. To mark the unusual occasion, CULTURED asked Chiang to interview Donnelly and Donnelly to interview Chiang. Here, each reveals a few bits about themselves that the other never knew.
JULIA CHIANG ASKS BRIAN DONNELLY
Julia Chiang: Did you ever imagine we’d be showing at the same time in the same place?
Brian Donnelly: I kind of knew it would happen eventually, but I think we usually make a point not to overlap our work lives. This came about pretty organically, and I’m happy that we can be in the same place at the same time for once!
Chiang: It’s funny because we don’t visit regularly out here, and when we come out, we always are in traffic right in front of the Parrish. We’ve gone in sometimes without planning to, and it has always been so memorable seeing friends by chance or discovering an artist we didn’t know.
Donnelly: I do hope there are a lot of families that unexpectedly walk into our shows. We often use museums as a destination, with our kids not knowing what exhibitions are up. I like that element of surprise.
Chiang: Does what you make have a sense of place? Not necessarily human qualities but a connection to where it is? I think all the artwork while at the Parrish must feel good, taking in the light. When it leaves here, the work will have had a nice retreat.
Donnelly: Ha, yes, that’s part of the reason I titled my show “TIME OFF.” It came from one of the sculptures in the show that has a particularly relaxed presence, but I also think time off is something I need at the moment. So, we can enjoy a week or two out East, but the works can stay the whole summer and come home and tell us all about it.
Chiang: You’ve often said that you weren’t a great student and you put it all into making art. If it didn’t work out you weren’t sure what you would’ve done. Looking back, did you imagine life as an artist would be like this?
Donnelly: I didn’t know anyone working in the arts when I was young. As a kid, you’re pounded with this narrative of the starving artist. I always imagined I would have to find some job to subsidize the art I was interested in making.
Chiang: We talk about bravery a lot with our little kids. Back when you started doing graffiti, did you think you were brave? When we’re young, we feel a bit indestructible.
Donnelly: I did feel indestructible when I was younger. Having kids humbles you a bit— suddenly, you’re responsible for someone other than yourself. I’ve become a bit more guarded, but I like to think when I take risks now, it’s for the benefit of all of us.
Chiang: I remember the first time I saw you speak about your work at the New Museum. We didn’t know each other back then. I was really impressed with how confident you
were—crossing into the gallery world and knowing what you wanted to do. Often, artists are expected to be lost and insecure, and you were just bold and funny. Is that confidence what has allowed you to push boundaries in your work? Is your openness to many different modes of making an effort to connect with many walks of life?
Donnelly: Wow, we should do interviews more often, you never share kind words like that! You were impressed? That was 24 years ago. See, I always knew you liked me before we started dating.
Back to your question. It’s not that I’m confident in everything I do, it’s more that I’m curious about all these things and people in different fields. The art world can feel like one
“ART ALLOWED ME TO BE OKAY WITH LOVING SOMETHING WITHOUT UNDERSTANDING IT.”
— JULIA CHIANG
“THE ART WORLD CAN FEEL LIKE ONE SMALL BUBBLE, AND IT’S A FASCINATING ONE. BUT THERE ARE SO MANY OTHER INTERESTING BUBBLES OUT THERE.”
— BRIAN DONNELLY
small bubble, and it’s a fascinating one. But there are so many other interesting bubbles out there.
Chiang: It makes me think of your toys, your editions, your many books, your clothing… You reach so many people. You grew up in Jersey City not regularly visiting museums but connecting strongly to publications. Do you think many people find their way to a museum or gallery these days through someone or something in popular culture?
Donnelly: Yes, there has been a long history of art cross-pollinating with music and fashion. Think of someone like David Bowie or artists Tadanori Yokoo and his many collaborations with Yohji Yamamoto, Dondi with Malcolm Mclaren, Futura 2000 with the Clash. But it’s only in the last decade or two that the general public has taken interest in the artists behind their favorite album art or clothing collection. As a result, that public is turning up at museum shows or gallery exhibitions.
Chiang: What about your own collecting? You’ve always collected. It has been limited by how much you can spend at different times in your life, but truly guided by passion, instinct, and gut connection. That visceral, immediate urge—do you think it’s connected to how you make your art too?
Donnelly: I think it’s a good distraction from the work I make. It must somehow inform my art, but I also like the fact that I can have several deadlines and still find time to go down the rabbit hole figuring out the history behind a work I’m interested in.
Chiang: Your work is so detail-oriented and precise. Is there a part of your life that you allow to be a mess?
Donnelly: I’ll plead the fifth on this one.
BRIAN DONNELLY ASKS JULIA CHIANG
Donnelly: Let’s start with the work you’re including in this exhibition. Is it mostly paintings?
Chiang: Mainly paintings and a few groups of ceramic pieces. All the paintings aside from one were made for this show.
Donnelly: When did you start focusing on painting more than sculpture?
Chiang: I started having some fun with gouache and watercolor around 2008, and by 2012 was mostly painting. We became closer friends in 2009, and you encouraged me to let go of the question of whether you’re a sculptor or painter—to just make what you want to make.
Donnelly: You were a ceramics major when you went to New York University. What made you focus on that medium? Were there many opportunities to exhibit ceramics, and was there a community around that medium?
Chiang: I really stumbled into the ceramics department there. I was an art history major, and as a break from studying over light tables and slides—the kids are like, What? Slides? This was 1996—I asked if I could take studio art classes. There were only a few that nonart majors could take, and ceramics seemed the most exciting. I pretty much lived in the studio until I left school.
Back then, ceramics were kind of shunned as a craft material. We were looking at artists like Ruth Duckworth, Peter Voulkos, Robert Arneson, Ken Price, Beatrice Wood… all amazing and it felt like they were unknown to non-ceramics folks. I loved the ceramics community, and mainly applied for ceramic residencies after school. We all felt a bit like outsiders, and I’m so thankful I had that support as I found my way.
Donnelly: What are some of the challenges and rewards of working as an artist?
Chiang: I never thought I’d be a “capital A” artist, you know? I knew I would always make things, but I didn’t know I could make a life of it—to live a dream you never even had because you didn’t even know to dream it.
Donnelly: What role does intuition and experimentation play in your work?
Chiang: A lot and a little! I go into making with a plan, and then I let the material selfdirect—more so lately with pouring paint. I feel more open to experiment and let the material do its thing with ceramics. The nature of it is to be kind of out of control.
Donnelly: You’re involved with Apex for Youth [an organization that empowers underserved Asian and immigrant young people in New York] and a few other youth-based organizations. How did art help you growing up in New Jersey?
Chiang: Apex for Youth is so important, and even though it doesn’t focus on art, it focuses on overall confidence and growth, and without that, it’s hard to see what you’re capable of. I grew up in a small town but was fortunate to have parents who believed in the importance of learning about one’s culture and beyond. We took regular trips into the city to visit Chinatown and the Met. I don’t think we ever did one without the other. Art allowed me to be okay with loving something without understanding it.
My dad loves to make things, always tinkering. He taught me that it’s better to try to make or fix something than to buy it new. I grew up in a pretty strict household and drawing, collaging, making things was my safe space. I never could get in trouble if I was making something. I would sit on the newspaper rack, and my sister’s piano bench would be my desk. That was my zone. There are photos of me smiling there, crying there, always with a pile of papers and stuff in front of me.
Donnelly: Can we talk about your titles? At what stage of the work do you attach a title to the piece?
Chiang: My titles are silly a lot of times. For some, I just like the way they sound. They do connect to the work for me, but it’s okay if they’re just absurd to someone else. I want my titles to say something but not say it all, you know? I write notes all the time. Over time, they become titles.
Donnelly: What else are you getting into this summer?
Chiang: Lots of fun running around with the kids. Continuing to work on my upcoming show with the Modern Institute in November. And, hopefully, our first family trip to mainland China for your project in Shanghai!
Photography by Shaniqwa Jarvis
THE ART OF LIVING WELL
HAMPTONS ROYALTY JOEY WÖLFFER SHARES THE LITTLE MOMENTS AND EVERYDAY LUXURIES THAT PUNCTUATE HER BUSY DAYS AND PRECIOUS DOWNTIME.
BY JAYNE O’DWYER
JOEY WÖLFFER is an East End Renaissance woman.
Juggling numerous titles—including entrepreneur, equestrian, and designer— the multihyphenate has made a name for herself by expanding her family’s oenological legacy on a 175-acre estate in the Hamptons. As co-owner of Wölffer Estate Vineyard, which she took over with her brother, Marc, in 2010 alongside partner and winemaker Roman Roth, she helped launch the now iconic Summer in a Bottle rosé and paved the way for a veritable Wölffer universe. When she isn’t focused on the winery, she spends her time overseeing Wölffer Estate Stables (she’s a champion equestrian), designing for her namesake fashion label, and running her store in Sag Harbor.
This summer, Wölffer will ring in a decade of Summer in a Bottle with the launch of the winery’s Sauvignon Blanc. She’s also launching a seven-piece jewelry collection with John Hardy that evokes the essence of the Hamptons. Clearly, Wölffer knows a thing or two
about luxury—and how to create space for it amid the clamor of the everyday. Here, she sits down with CULTURED to talk about sauvignon blanc, finding balance, and walks on the beach.
You recently unveiled Summer in a Bottle sauvignon blanc. What’s the story behind this new wine?
The sauvignon blanc varietal is perfect for this region and client. The ocean breeze makes for incredible, food-friendly wines. We’ve been tasting sauvignon blanc for years but have really homed in on quality and freshness. As we’ve expanded as a winery, we pay close attention to everything that goes into growing sustainable, high-quality wines. It’s easy to get caught up in growth, but we stay true to who we are as a brand and a family. My greatest lesson is never to lose sight of that. How do you find balance with so many different roles?
I am more productive when I’m busy. I also have the most hardworking and devoted teams. I am nothing without the
people who support me in my work life, equestrian life, and personal life. Describe your ideal day in the Hamptons. What are the little luxuries throughout that day that you love?
My perfect day includes a workout or a run, a ride with my kids, working with my team at the winery or store, and a sunset dinner with my family at Long Beach in Sag Harbor. Working out is essential to my focus and a luxury that motivates my day.
What product do you use every day out East that instantly improves your mood?
Natura Bissé vitamin C serum and my Tally Health supplements!
What is a splurge you reserve for special occasions?
Getting my hair done. (It takes forever because I have so much hair!)
Who is a wellness provider you swear by in the Hamptons?
I love Ludmila [Daletskaya] at Knockout Beauty and all the wonderful ladies at Beautiful Nail Salon in Bridgehampton.
Tell us about a hidden gem in the Hamptons that you visit to put some pep back in your step.
A swing through the Parrish [Art Museum] makes me grateful to live in such a creative community.
What do you do when you need to feel grounded?
Ride my horse. They don’t care what’s going on in your day—you need to be focused to ride!
What’s your favorite smell?
Sage.
What is the best thing you’ve put on your face recently?
Saie liquid bronzer [Dew Bronze]. What is your favorite luxury that costs less than $20?
Vertly Lip Butter from the ONDA pop-up at Shop Joey Wölffer.
What’s a wellness ritual you think is overrated?
Massages. I hate them.
What is the most luxurious thing in your life that’s free?
Beach walks in the early evening.
Joey Wölffer visiting the family’s Provence winery.
The Wölffer Estate vineyards in Sagaponack, New York.
Martha Stewart Misses the Hamptons. The Feeling Is Mutual.
THE PATRON SAINT OF GOOD LIVING OFFERS CULTURED ’S DESIGN EDITOR-AT-LARGE, COLIN KING , A PEEK INSIDE HER SEASONAL RITUALS—AND WHAT SHE MISSES MOST ABOUT EAST END SUMMERS.
BY COLIN KING
MARTHA STEWART really needs no introduction. When we speak, the 82-year-old media mogul and doyenne of all things domestic is sitting outside her Bedford estate in a parked Polaris. It’s not even lunchtime, and she’s already tended to her farm, taken several appointments, moved some furniture, done Pilates, and delivered bagels to either her team or her animals (it’s unclear who she means by her “gang”).
As Stewart prepares to release her 100th book this year, she found a rare moment in her exceedingly packed schedule to chat about the current “Martha-sance,” why she doesn’t DM, and the secret behind her famous dinner parties—all while attempting to take a photograph of a chipmunk in her garden.
Colin King: There’s been an undeniable “Martha-sance” recently. How do you feel about your place in the zeitgeist?
Martha Stewart: That’s a nice word! I’ll have to add that to my vocabulary. It’s fun because I’m one of those people who, I hope, is leading the way in terms of our thoughts about geriatric people—showing that one can continue to be productive, useful, and creative if one keeps going and has personal drive. People appreciate that. A lot of people my age and even younger admire the fact that I am very energetic. So that’s what it’s all about.
CK: I’m one of those admirers! How do you feel about the design world today?
MS: Wait, I have to take a picture of this chipmunk. I’m sitting outside, and one of my evil chipmunks is sitting on the edge of a beautiful flower pot. I’m going to get its picture right now.
[Martha accidentally hangs up while trying to photograph the chipmunk.]
CK: Did you get the picture?
MS: I’m sending it to you right now.
CK: [Laughs] Great! You recently returned to the cover of Sports Illustrated for its 60th anniversary issue. How has it felt to tap into a new facet of your image, and what are your thoughts on the “summer body”?
MS: Well, everybody wants to look good while they’re sitting at the pool, windsurfing, or paddleboarding. So it’s time to shape up a little bit, starting like right now. That’s not the only reason I go to Pilates three times a week and kill myself, but it’s certainly healthy and appealing to many people. Everybody should take care of themselves physically. It will add to longevity, good health, and non-absenteeism at work.
CK: So, if you spontaneously have a free summer day, how are you spending your time?
MS: I garden! I have a huge garden in Bedford and a huge garden in Maine. My days begin and end with gardening, and with animal care. I do have help, but I still oversee the operations of the farm.
Today is Friday, and I had a lot of appointments this morning—a visit with the septic tank man, a viewing of a new electric lawn mower. Then I moved a tremendous amount of furniture into a house on the property that I’m trying to make into a guest house. And what else did I do today? I went to Pilates. What time is it?
CK: It’s only 12:45 p.m.
MS: I’ve done a lot today.
CK: Complete this sentence: “It’s not a Martha Stewart summer without…”
MS: It’s not a Martha Stewart summer without my grandchildren, my daughter, and a house full of friends in Maine.
CK: Beautiful. I know you sold your Hamptons home. Is there anything you miss about the area?
MS: Oh, I miss everything. I love swimming in the ocean, and in Maine we don’t have giant waves like we had in
“IT’S NOT A MARTHA STEWART SUMMER WITHOUT MY GRANDCHILDREN, MY DAUGHTER, AND A HOUSE FULL OF FRIENDS IN MAINE.”
— MARTHA STEWART
East Hampton. I’m on Mount Desert Island and the waves are much smaller. We do swim in the ocean there, but it’s colder—not as cold as it used to be! Maine offers so much in the way of hiking, and I can horseback ride there. There are two very difficult climbs that I try to do every single year: Beehive and Precipice. You can’t stop doing that stuff.
CK: Is there a Hamptons legend of yore who you wish you could have met?
MS: I would’ve loved to have met Jackson Pollock. My grandson who’s 12 identified Jackson Pollock as his favorite artist when he was 4 years old. He just responded to that art at the Whitney Museum, and those are the kinds of things you keep in mind.
CK: What’s one thing you’d still like to achieve?
MS: Immortality!
CK: What is your biggest contribution to culture?
MS: I have taught people to look at their homes not only as shelter, but as a place to enjoy. What we have created in terms of information and inspiration has been valuable to a very wide audience. For that, I’m really grateful.
HOME for THE SUMMER
GENERATIONS OF ARTISTS HAVE MADE A HOME IN THE HAMPTONS, BUT ITS INSULAR LOCATION AND CULTURE CAN MAKE ACCESS TO THE COVETED LOCALE QUITE DIFFICULT. YET AMONG THE EAST END’S LAVISH PROPERTIES AND ELITE INSTITUTIONS, SEVERAL ORGANIZATIONS HAVE COMMITTED TO WELCOMING ARTISTS FROM AROUND THE WORLD FOR SEASONAL RESIDENCIES. BELOW, CULTURED SPOTLIGHTS FOUR RESIDENCY PROGRAMS FOSTERING A FREER, WEIRDER, AND MORE DIVERSE ARTISTIC ECOSYSTEM OUT EAST.
BY REBECCA GOODMAN AND LEILA SHERIDAN
THE WATERMILL CENTER, Water Mill
Great art is about the process as much as the product. The Watermill Center’s Artist Residency Program embodies this idea well. Its open-ended format omits the pressure of a culminating show, instead providing “artists with the time, space, and freedom to develop their practice in a communal environment that encourages experimentation,” explains Director of External Affairs Jillian Maxwell. Emphasizing creation as an iterative process, residents are encouraged to share their work as it develops through rehearsals, workshops, and artist talks.
The selection process for this expansive program is conducted by an international committee of Watermill Center alumni, many of whom have been frequenting the interdisciplinary campus since it was established in 1992. Founded by avant-garde artist and theater director Robert Wilson, the Center has hosted more than 1,500 artists from more than 90 countries to date, over the course of over 250 residency cycles. A list of past residents reads like a Rolodex of culture-shapers—Carrie Mae Weems, Anne Carson, Oliver Beer, and Kader Attia have all left their trace on the space.
During their stay, residents have access to the Center’s abundant on-site resources, including 20,000 square feet of design spaces and outdoor stages spread amongst 10 acres of Shinnecock ancestral land. Their locus is a former Western Union research facility, abandoned since the ’60s and reimagined by Wilson as a petri dish for creativity. In this idyllic setting and among fellow artists, residents are afforded the space to expand and experiment, returning to their lives and practices with a renewed sense of possibility.
Rehearsal for a talk with horses, 2024, by artist-inresidence Sara Stern.
THE CHAMBERLAIN ESTATE,
Shelter Island
Choreographing a ballet is as beautiful and intricate as it is demanding and agonizing. In his latest piece— developed while working as the inaugural artist-inresidency at the Shelter Island outpost of the John Chamberlain Estate—Casanova Sorolla is exploring the infamous “beauty is pain” dichotomy. The Peru-born, Vienna-based artist has dedicated 12 years to translating dance into other artistic mediums, a process that has led him to engage with career performers who reveal “personal stories connected with their injuries, pains, and experiences that are not usually told.” This month, New York City Ballet Principal Dancer Sara Mearns performed choreography by Bobbi Jene Smith for Sorolla’s culminating show, where he then interpreted the dance live with pigment on paper.
“By hosting artist residencies, we pay tribute to Chamberlain’s spirit and dedication to pushing artistic boundaries, while fostering experimentation in contemporary arts,” explains Alexandra Fairweather, the estate’s director. Sorolla credits his experience out East with bolstering his creative process, preparing him for this demanding interdisciplinary undertaking.
“Leaving Brooklyn and watching the natural landscape become increasingly intense as I approached the ferry,
then crossing the water to arrive at Shelter Island— filled with singing birds, lush trees, and an unusual peace—is incredibly inspiring,” he says. If art indeed imitates life, the scenic setting of Casanova’s summer hideaway will no doubt filter into his alreadyincandescent practice.
MA’S
HOUSE, Southampton
On the Shinnecock Indian Reservation in Southampton, an apple-red barnhouse set back from traffic and other distractions offers BIPOC artists an escape into nature. In two-week stints, residents embed themselves at Ma’s House, a communal art space where the kitchen doubles as an exhibition venue. “We offer that artists may rest the whole time, read a book at the beach each day, or crank out as much work as they like,” says founder Jeremy Dennis, Ma’s grandson, who transformed the home where he grew up in 2020.
Loretta A. Silva, also known as “Princess Silva Arrow” and “Ma” in her family, was a member of the Shinnecock Indian Nation, and had hoped for her home to one day become a museum. “We ask artists to learn about or create work inspired by Shinnecock land, history, and
House in Southampton on the
current issues, or by tribal members they meet during their time here,” Dennis explains. “The Shinnecock Nation is largely rendered invisible and overshadowed by the Hamptons. Many people summer or live here for decades and never know of our existence or attend our powwows or other public engagements.”
The Ma’s House residency began in August 2021 and has since hosted more than 40 artists—including multimedia artist Simón Vega and painter Nanibah Chacon—who lead workshops, erect installations, or offer performances. “Being on the Shinnecock Reservation is unique because the land, water, and air are shared by all tribal members,” Dennis concludes. “It’s a whole different way of living and stewardship that visiting artists get to observe and appreciate.”
FOLLY TREE ARBORETUM, Springs
When his parents moved out of his childhood home in 2013, Tucker Marder transformed their late-19thcentury Springs farmhouse into a creative oasis. The Folly Tree Arboretum, in addition to offering a collection of enticingly idiosyncratic foliage and a robust slate of public programming, is welcoming its fourth cohort of resident artists this summer.
After Marder and his partner, Isla Hansen, both participated in a residency in Florida, the pair set about formalizing their own program. “We really wanted to promote those who were countering the overarching trend towards ecological hopelessness. We’re working optimistically and exuberantly,” he explains. “A few ideas that we wanted to make sure were part of the Folly Tree residency are: no expectations of finishing work, that we pay artists to come, and that we don’t have an application process.”
The arboretum serves as an informal site for inspiration and meditation, or a studio fostering a series of new works. To ignite curiosity, Marder loves “taking residents to favorite walking spots, visiting special old trees, and surprising them with how weird and rural the East End can be.” He adds, “It’s very rewarding to share a place you know very well, and to see it through new eyes.”
This year, Miami-based sculptor and installation artist Lee Pivnik, Los Angeles–based media artist Alice Yuan Zhang, and DC-based community-engaged artist Naoco Wowsugi have made the trek out East. After only a few weeks among the trees, “the experience of time takes on a magical quality,” Wowsugi notes, “echoing Einstein’s notion that time is an illusion.”
Past residents spending the summer at Folly Tree Arboretum.
Self-portrait by Casanova Sorolla on Shelter Island.
Ma’s
Shinnecock Indian Reservation.
JUMPING Into the ABYSS
AS HE PREPARES FOR A FALL SHOW, CELEBRATED ARTIST ENOC PEREZ IS COMMENCING HIS ANNUAL SUMMER MIGRATION FROM LONG ISLAND CITY TO HIS HIDEAWAY IN EAST HAMPTON. CULTURED ’S NEW YORK ARTS EDITOR JACOBA URIST CAUGHT UP WITH HIM FOR A CONVERSATION ABOUT MAKING WORK IN PRIVATE, HIS PAINSTAKING PROCESS, AND MORE.
BY JACOBA URIST PHOTOGRAPHY BY LEO PEREZ
BUILDINGS TOOK ON A PROFOUND SIGNIFICANCE for Enoc Perez—and many of his fellow New Yorkers—in September of 2001. Suddenly, says the artist, “We were so painfully aware of architecture meaning something.” Known for sought-after, sepiadrenched paintings and oil stick drawings of the international-style hotels that dot his native Puerto Rico, Perez came to New York to attend art school in 1986 and never left. “They’re like Duchamp’s readymades,” he says of the structures he’s drawn to, from Puerto Rico landmarks to New York skyscrapers. As functional as they are, the buildings represent utopian ideals of progress—subjects he seeks to elevate in his compositions. Perez describes a similar light bulb moment in 2016, when he discovered the aesthetic “gold mine” that is diplomatic architecture and began painting his series of U.S. embassies, from Ho Chi Minh City to Baghdad. “The whole idea of America came into question,” he says of the political symbolism of such structures after Trump’s election. Against the backdrop of vintage travel posters, palm trees, and Pop art, Perez has a signature, melancholy-suffused style. Among his most poignant works are a series of Bacardi still lifes—the artist calls them self-portraits—painted during a rock-bottom period before he became sober. Fifteen years ago, Perez bought an East Hampton home, where he holes up to work for the entire summer season. Before migrating out East, he invited CULTURED into his New York studio to talk about his South Fork routine and the body of work he’s making for his upcoming show at Adrian Sutton Gallery in Paris this fall, a European outpost for Perez’s work alongside Galerie Enrico Navarra and Ben Brown Fine Arts in London.
In your new paintings, you’ve superimposed a huge car and lips on two of your canvases, taking your Pop art influences to another level. What was the inspiration? Every time I come into the studio, it’s like jumping into an abyss. On the way down, I hope to grab onto some kind of breakthrough as I go. That doesn’t happen every day, so I try different things. For example, with this car painting, I was playing around with this app my children were using to make mashups on their phones. I had some paintings I wasn’t
“AT THE END OF THE DAY, MY JOB AS AN ARTIST IS TO MAKE YOU LOOK AT MY WORK. I WANT TO PAINT COOL SHIT THAT I’D WANT TO HAVE ON MY WALLS.”
— ENOC PEREZ
completely sold on that I had put aside. I said, “Let’s see how they work against another image.” The car says “se vende,” “for sale” in Spanish, which is something I saw all the time growing up in Puerto Rico. The painting underneath the car was based on a vintage Pan Am Caribbean travel poster. It’s my way of working at collage. I’m not someone to glue something on canvas. I have to paint it. But at the end of the day, my job as an artist is to make you look at my work. I want to paint cool shit that I’d want to have on my walls. How do you work differently during East Hampton summers than in your Long Island City studio all year?
My studio in the Hamptons is really a two-car garage that a friend of mine made into a more dignified place. I work fully here from June to August. For the first seven summers, it was a completely secret studio—I loved that. Nobody saw what I did, so I learned how to make sculptures out here. The first person I had dinner with when I bought the house in East Hampton was artist David Salle, who lives nearby. He invited me out to sushi with Eric Fischl. They are heroes of mine from when I came to New York from Puerto Rico in 1986. I felt, Wow. It has been a privilege to know the artists out here. Our house is this bohemian escape for us. I like gardening. It’s very much like the dreams you see in pictures, Picasso with his children running in the studio. In East Hampton, I’m living this dream that I saw other artists live.
Puerto Rico’s paradisal modernism fuels your visual language. How does the East End’s landscape affect your perspective?
In 2021, Guild Hall in East Hampton approached me to do an exhibition. I jumped on it because I wanted to do a show about Hurricane Maria and Puerto Rico. It’s something I felt would be understood in the Hamptons because it’s a beach culture that is also affected the same way. People in the Hamptons have a beautiful, natural environment that they too care deeply about. Meanwhile, my big 2022–23 survey at Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico in San Juan was originally scheduled at the Museo de Arte de Ponce, but when earthquakes and Maria damaged their building, thankfully the museum in San Juan has a great curator, Juan Carlos Lopez Quintero, who wanted to do the show. I don’t feel there is a distance between me and my painting. I’m very conscious that you’re judged against your own work. At 56, I’ve been around the art world long enough not to take anything for granted.
Enoc Perez, Untitled, 2024.
Enoc Perez, Ponce Intercontinental Hotel, Puerto Rico, 2022.
Peter Marino
Had ‘An Amazing
ocketbook.’
Then He Started
Collecting McArthur Binion’s Art.
This summer, the architect is organizing an exhibition at his Southampton foundation of work by his longtime friend.
BY MARA VEITCH
Architect Peter Marino and artist McArthur Binion have been haunting the New York art scene since the 1970s. Thanks to a meal at the old Grill Room in the Seagram Building and an introduction from an ex-wife, the two finally met face-to-face, marking the start of a decades-long friendship. Marino had been a longtime admirer of Binion’s autobiographical abstractions—he already owned five by the time they met for the first time. In the years since, his holdings have only grown. This summer, the pair will reunite for “McArthur Binion” (July 20–Sept. 28), a show of 13 of Binion’s paintings at the Peter Marino Art Foundation in Southampton, New York. To mark the occasion, they hopped on a video call to discuss their long relationship, the horrors of Zoom, and what it was like to be an artist before, in Binion’s words, “there was something called the art world.”
McArthur Binion and Peter Marino with Binion’s Visual:Ear (Dagon AD), 2023.
“In those days, artists still paid for things with art.”
PETER MARINO
Peter Marino: McArthur, are you there?
McArthur Binion: This is me. I am here.
PM: You’ve gotta press some buttons somewhere, buddy.
MB: I know, I’m pressing the buttons now.
PM: Don’t you have a bright young assistant, McArthur, like I do?
MB: She’s on vacation. [Binion chuckles]
PM: Oh shit.
MB: I’ve only used Zoom seven times.
PM: Zooming is better than sex, McArthur.
MB: No way. Fuck Zoom. [Binion and Marino laugh]
PM: Well, McArthur, I had the pleasure of visiting you in Chicago last summer, and I bought some works—kind of like cookies hot out of the oven. They were so fresh, they were still hot. I decided to do a show because McArthur was a teacher to these young bucks like Sanford Biggers and Rashid Johnson, who had their own shows at my foundation. And yet the teacher had somehow been left out. I hope it doesn’t happen to me.
MB: It happens. But the thing that I recall is that I actually met Peter through my ex-wife, Carla Jean Mayer. When I first joined [my gallery] Lehmann Maupin [in 2018], we had a meal in the Grill Room.
PM: It was terribly posh. Can you imagine having an artist like you and me at the Grill Room?
MB: You were seated across from Carla and I was at another table and she introduced me to this guy who owns five of my paintings, and I was like, Whoa, who is this dude? Then I ask around, and it’s clear that he has an amazing eye, an amazing collection, so from then on I felt really excellent about giving you my paintings.
PM: I used to have an amazing pocketbook until I started collecting McArthur, you know. [Binion chuckles] They got me really good with this one, McArthur: History. Of. Application. One., 1978. That’s in my room in Southampton. I don’t know if it’s going to be in the show—it’s a little too good.
MB: I had been saving that piece for a long time. In the ’70s—you and I are around the same age—I had an opportunity to become a substantially well-known artist, and I declined it because I felt deep down that I wasn’t ready yet. I was also invited by someone to join her gallery that recently got out of jail. I’m not naming any names PM: We know who she is.
MB: I’m sure you do. What I want to say is that I want to bring something actually from my life, from reality, and then juxtapose it with the legacy of painting.
PM: You bring a lot from your life, McArthur. You bring your handprint to all of the paintings. Each of them has a print of your hand, and you bring your love for a lot of Black musicians—some known and some, lesser-known. I buy your paintings because they’re aesthetically fantastic, but I like your hand all over the work and I like your references to the Black jazz artists.
MB: I’m attracted to jazz because of the abstraction. The first mention of “Visual:Ear,” the series of 12 paintings that you are referring to, was for my graduate thesis in 1973 from the Cranbrook Academy of Art. It’s really taken
McArthur Binion, Self:Portrait, 2022.
“We were involved before there was something called the art world.”
McARTHUR BINION
me 50 years to realize it. You’re exhibiting the first three of the series. At the end of the day, I’m turning 78 on Sept. 1, and at this point in my life I don’t have to be smart anymore. I can just make art.
PM: McArthur, I haven’t been smart for years. I can’t believe you waited until 78 to stop being smart. [Marino and Binion laugh together]
MB: I’m very happy I did… I remember everything! I came to New York in August of 1973 with $95. I was able to start working as a young artist right away at a pretty high level, because I was introduced to New York by someone I had met in graduate school named Dan Flavin. I would meet him and [the Canadian-born sculptor] Ronnie Bladen every other Monday night in Max’s Kansas City, because Monday nights were when the artists came out.
PM: Well, when you come to the Hamptons, I’m going to take you to Bridgehampton. There is an old Baptist church that’s been turned into the Dia art museum, which has a permanent installation of Dan Flavin. I didn’t realize that you and Dan Flavin even knew each other.
MB: When I was in school, the artist in residence was a second-generation New York painter named George Ortman. He invited Flavin and some other people out, and I met them. I remember I was having my first one-person show, and Flavin said that he would come back for my opening. I was like, “Ah, he’s not coming back.” He showed up to my opening. It was wild.
PM: That’s a very nice beginning.
MB: But you know, Peter, I had a seat—not in the arena, outside the arena—but I had a bird’s-eye view. There was nothing called “the art world” until the 1980s. So we were involved, Peter, before there was something called the art world. It was just us.
PM: Well, I remember Max’s Kansas City very well. That’s when I met Warhol and the whole group because we would all go there and it was a blast. In those days, artists still paid for things with art, if you can believe it. Today, nobody does anything like that. Although, I was told that my dentist has taken paintings from several artists instead of money, for drilling cavities.
MB: At Max’s Kansas City, one night I saw [American poet] Robert Creeley and [Venezuelan-American sculptor] Marisol drunk crawling on the floor. [Binion laughs] PM: I’m not gonna name anybody I saw crawling under the tables…
MB: I’m sure you saw a lot more than that
Portrait of Binion by William Jess Laird.
McArthur Binion, History: Of: Application: One, 1978.
By appointment in Bridgehampton | July 2024
