5.21.2011

the collector robert isabell

 I never met
Never sold him something directly.
But he ended up with plenty 
of my finds over the years,
mostly through auctions because
he was a BIG auction buyer. 
I think it was
fitting that his whole collection ended up at 
Sotheby's in 2009
after his sudden and unexpected death.
He was a truly great collector,
and the home he created in the middle of the city
was magical and otherworldy,
especially
considering it was in 
Greenwich Village,
and not some tiny French village....

Handsome bugger....

Photo of his home before he went apeshit
buying at auction.

Love the Luis Barragan-esque stairs

Entering another world....





He loved the paintings of 
Sotheby's didn't.
They didn't include a single one in the sale,
even though they were featured prominently in the home.

The Johnny Swing sofa went NUTZ.
I think it hammered at 85,000,
meaning someone paid over 100k for it.


Another Robert on the mantel.

Go Robert go!
That was my Don Drumm cabinet to the left.

That lucite and steel walkway 
connected 2 parts of the building.
So cool.


Tons-o-stuff!
But looking good....

The poor man's Bertoia,
Klaus Ihlenfeld. 


Smokey Tunis and Serge Mouille,
you don't get much more
diverse than that....

Time to go, way too soon, but time to go.......

Robert Isabell
1952-2009

More here and here....

3 comments:

  1. best blog yet... ran into a few of those Johnny Swing pieces in santa fe... I couldn't get to them saw them in an art gallery storage space while pressing my greasy face against the window... the piece i could see were 100k plus so doubt there were any bargains... I like Klaus Ihlenfeld more than bertoia, well unless it's a greally big bertoia!

    ReplyDelete
  2. beautiful post- His habitat was unique and so unlike what one might expect-but beautiful.

    ReplyDelete