Collecting the Contemporary with Paul Johnson

Thank you, Paul Johnson for a stunning, passionate, inspiring presentation at the concluding session of the fall 2017 edition of the program ‘Collecting Design’ at the New York School of Interior Design this morning. Johnson, who founded his Johnson Trading Gallery in 2000 can be credited as one of the pioneers, those dealers who have moved from vintage to contemporary, who have helped endorsing this territory, and who have promoted the power of combining vintage and contemporary in shaping the best interiors of our time. His taste has been shaped and perfected over these years, clearly filtered through an immense experience and exposure to design. He has a strong preference for one-off, the unique, those forms that never repeat themselves, design which is stimulating, crafted, and exciting; those preferences have also come to capture his program. In the past year, Johnson has begun a successful collaboration with Salon 94, establishing Salon 94 Design, and this new chapter in his career is heavily enriched by the fine art program of Salon 94. Its first solo exhibition, ‘Boulders’ presented a new project by Brit cutting-edged designer Max Lamb, resulting of his personal pilgrimage to the mountain landscape surrounding the Italian village of Carisolo, an exploration of the waterfalls and river ways of Adamello (all images). Thank you, Paul for highlighting your own voice to the discussion of collectible contemporary design, and for demonstrating the significance of exposure to design in the process of shaping one eye. Registration to the spring season, of Collecting Design, which begins on February 20th is open now.