What truly endures in a world saturated with fleeting images? Designers Patrick McGrath and Michael Bargo, long-time friends, embarked on a quest to answer this very question, culminating in a unique exhibition that challenges our perception of timelessness. Their answer? The objects they've lived with, cherished, and collected over the years. McGrath's passion lies in Roman, Pre-Columbian, and Chinese antiquities, while Bargo is drawn to mid-century French design, particularly the works of Jean Prouvé.
These seemingly disparate collections are now on display at McGrath's recently opened downtown New York gallery. "The pairing felt both timely and inevitable," McGrath explains, showcasing juxtapositions like a Pierre Patout bookcase displaying Teotihuacan and Olmec masks. Bargo adds, "There's a tension there—it’s these really rarefied objects from both spectrums: beautiful museum-quality antiquities, and then these raw, industrial pieces of furniture that were designed for the everyday man."
But here's where it gets interesting: the exhibition also features photographs of interiors by Bruce Weber. Imagine a Prouvé daybed, graced by an oversized photograph of a Grecian-style statue from Chatsworth, the English estate of the Duchess of Devonshire. Behind a pre-Columbian torso and mask, you'll find Weber's photographs from Manuel Alvarez Bravo's house. And a Roman bust sits in front of a snapshot of Sofia Coppola’s Los Angeles office, a visual representation of control versus chaos, as McGrath sees it.
Weber, intrigued by the project, approached it with his signature style. "I just take pictures inside places that I like, where I want to sit down on the couch or go to sleep on the sofa," he says, whether it's Cy Twombly’s residence in Gaeta or Jil Sander’s home in Hamburg. Of Coppola’s office, Weber recalls, "It was a mess—and I loved it. I don’t want to redecorate the place."
"Bruce shoots things in a really raw, romantic way," Bargo observes. "I feel like so frequently, interiors photographers only shoot things in a straightforward, glossy, everything-styled-perfectly way. The beauty of his are that they are of a surfer’s shack in Montauk that on the surface has zero appeal whatsoever."
Bargo and McGrath were given access to Weber's extensive archive, facing the challenge of selecting just 20 images. Surprisingly, their choices largely aligned. "Everything just seemed to make sense," Bargo notes, highlighting the cohesive nature of the work.
McGrath identifies a common thread throughout the exhibition, which is open until December 3rd: "The antiquities are literal, historical icons; the Prouvé furniture started off as very utilitarian, modernist furniture and now has become the premier icon of modernism; and Bruce is one of the most iconic photographers of the 90s," he says, noting that this particular body of Weber's work is relatively unknown. For Weber, "these pictures were of people who were my friends, not just people I worked with," he says, fondly recalling visits with Iman, David Bowie, and the late model Stella Tennant at Chatsworth.
"There’s a beautiful narrative in the sense that it's very personal for us," says Bargo.
"It's the antithesis of this Instagram age," McGrath adds. "Furniture that has stood the test of time and for the antiquities, these are things that are still so beautiful after tens of thousands of years. There’s something about the permanence."
And the ultimate testament to a successful show? It took only two hours to install. "We barely even spoke," McGrath says.
What do you think? Does this exhibition successfully capture the essence of timelessness? Do you agree with the pairing of seemingly disparate objects? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
