A Preview of The Spring Show NYC

With Mario Buatta at Doubles (photo by Ann Watt)
Your loyal correspondent was invited last week to a luncheon at Doubles, the private club at the bottom of the Sherry-Netherland Hotel on Fifth Avenue. On my way in I ran into my friend decorator Mario Buatta and we headed down to the small, intimate club which has a bar and two dining rooms. The occasion of the luncheon was a preview of The Spring Show NYC, a brand new antiques show mounted by the Art and Antique Dealers League of America which will be running April 28-May 2 at the Park Avenue Armory.

After a drink at the bar, guests sat down to tuck into lunch and hear a little bit about the upcoming antiques show which will be sponsored by 1stdibs.com. Geared for a young, new audience, sixty dealers will present furniture, accessories, and art from around the world. Our friend Lars Bolander will design the fresh and bright mise-en-scene, which to you and me means the visual look of the show.

After the brief run-down and a couple of questions, table conversation resumed when suddenly the woman sitting next to Mario Buatta let out a shriek and jumped out of her seat. Mario, who is known for his funny high jinx, had wound up a big, black, plastic cockroach and sent it whizzing past her plate.

The opening night preview of The Spring Show, to be held on April 27th at the Park Avenue Armory, will benefit the ASPCA and have, fittingly, an animal theme. The honorary co-chairs of the Connoisseur Committee are the glittery Manhattan couple Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner. Get out your spring finery.