It's a Small, Authentic (and Expensive!) World

Photo for NYT by Justin Mott 

This morning during my routine dose of world news a certian article caught my eye. The New York Times Home and Garden feature had a particularly interesting title, "Trophy Hunter's With Their Eyes on Interiors". Click. The next 15 minutes I oogled over the telltale stories of designers who go to the ends of the earth, on an out of this world budget, to make sure their client's homes are unique in every sense of the word. Flying to India to pick up the specific, "just right" glaze? Sure. Nicaragua to select the perfect terracotta tiles? Why not. 

It seems as though, when money is no object, one can find the means to own almost whatever their home desires. I guess this is nothing new in how the world works. Not even political unrest can keep these globetrotting, adventure seeking designers tamed. I do envy their spirit in the thrill of the hunt, but can't help to ask myself when has this world become so small that we are depleting cultures of the indigenous items that make us all unique? Don't get me wrong, I love when an object's history tells a story and it is this lifecycle that provides the narrative we all desire. I am sure these ancient artifacts are going to magnificent, stately homes, I just hope that when the next design trend comes along they aren't all packed up and stored away in some Long Island storage unit only to be forgotten about once again.

Read the article here.