HANDLE WITH CARE: Most people would balk at having skateboards and handcrafted stemware in the same room.
But that’s exactly why Sarah Andelman wanted to put the two categories together in “Attention, Fragile!,” the holiday retail pop-up that she curated on the first floor of Sotheby’s new Paris headquarters.
“Any movement or momentum and something can be broken, that’s what made me think of putting them together,” the brand consultant told WWD during a walkthrough of the space, which opened Thursday.
Running until Dec. 20, it offers works of art, glassware, collectible skateboard decks and a selection of holiday-minded gourmet treats, alongside a sampling of the auction house’s fixed-price luxury goods from the likes of Hermès, Rolex and Chanel.
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Sotheby’s wanted to kick off its retail offer in Paris with a metaphorical bang – and who better for the task than Andelman, previously the purchasing and image director of cult concept store Colette, said Marie-Anne Ginoux, managing director of Sotheby’s Paris.
Auction houses are “a world of their own,” one she hadn’t explored in depth before curating an auction for Pharrell Williams’ Joopiter platform, Andelman said. It’s their pandemic-driven evolution that particularly stood out to her.
“What struck me when I went on Sotheby’s ‘buy now’ section is that you had the same products you’d find on StockX, like sneakers and skateboards,” she continued. “I felt they were talking to two completely different markets.”
When Sotheby’s came calling, it felt apt to offset the traditional image of auction houses as purveyors of major art and classic luxury items with skateboard culture.
Plus, “[Sotheby’s] reminds me a bit of Colette…in the way it transforms non-stop,” Andelman said.
On the walls are a multitude of skateboard decks, including a trio featuring the work of John Baldessari and a Pantone-themed series of five imagined by Ryan McGuinness and produced by Supreme in 2000.
Carefully arrayed on transport crates are glasses by New York-based designer Jonathan Hansen, who has collaborated with the likes of Thom Browne and Ralph Rucci; Maison Balzac, a 12-year-old label founded in Australia by French-born Elise Pioch Balzac, an Hermès alum turned buyer turned tableware maker; and French designer Sam Barron, who teamed up with Italian master glassmaker Massimo Lunardon for “French Kiss,” a series of 30 unique glasses imagined for this pop-up.
In the salon usually dedicated to retail appointments, Andelman set an installation and selection of goodies from Thai artist PZ Opassuksatit – with a pair of Picassos on the wall.
While the overarching idea is “bringing together crushes,” Andelman said she was also keen to offer products that can’t be found elsewhere in Paris, and keep a broad-ranging mix of expensive and more affordable items.
Alongside decks and artwork that could set you back five figures are “Skateboard Culture,” a newly released book written by skateboarding insider Morgan Bouvant and journalist Sébastien Carayol; a selection of treats such as sweets from Palomas, a Lyon-based chocolatier that’s all the rage among the Paris fashion set; and prize-winning olive oil from La Cavalerie, an estate in Provence that belongs to Cosima Ungaro, the daughter of the late Emanuel Ungaro.
Ahead of the holiday season, she also curated a selection of gifts that range from Just An Idea books to necklaces by Berlin-based jewelry label Avgvst; ceramic objects depicting stationery by French label En Vrac, and a golden waffle by Belgian fashion designer Jean-Paul Lespagnard.
There will also be a series of events throughout the pop-up, including a olive oil and chocolate tasting on Nov. 30 and a skateboard-themed book signing with Raphael Zarka, Fred Mortagne and skateboarder Ed Templeton on Dec. 8.
