New York
November 6-10, 2025
Salon Conversations
Salon Conversations, our signature panel program, offers a platform for thought-provoking, in-depth discussions that foster education and insight, bringing together design luminaries, editors, tastemakers, and industry leaders.
Decisions, Decisions: Museums Collecting Design
In the second edition of this discussion series, an all-star team of American curators discuss collecting practices at their respective museums. While their institutions differ in terms of philosophy, guidelines, patronage and budget, they are alike in being shaped by the vision of not only the present curator, but of generations who came before. In this conversation, we’ll explore contrasting case studies of how a museum's permanent collection can be built over time. Learn about acquisition decisions, the role of patrons and committees, and how you can get involved in this important support structure for the world of design.
Moderator
James Zemaitis, a private dealer and curator of 20th-century design
Panelists
Alisa Chiles, The Sydney and Frances Lewis Family Curator of Decorative Arts, 1890 to the Present, at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
Rachel Delphia, The Alan G. and Jane A. Lehman Curator of Decorative Arts and Design at the Carnegie Museum of Art
Paul Galloway, Senior Collection Specialist at the Museum of Modern Art
Mentorship and Legacy: Building the Next Generation of Gallerists
While mentorship has long been central to artistic practice, its presence within the gallery world, especially at the intersection of art and design, remains less defined. This conversation examines what mentorship really looks like in today’s art and design landscape: does it truly exist in a meaningful way? How are younger gallerists being guided, supported, and prepared to build sustainable careers and businesses?
Bringing together established and emerging gallery leaders, this dialogue will explore how knowledge, networks, and experience are (or aren’t) passed on within the field—and what new structures might be needed to foster a more collaborative, inclusive future. Panelists will discuss the challenges of entry into the market, the role of fairs and institutions in supporting new voices, and how mentorship can help preserve both craftsmanship and innovation across generations.
Moderator
Lora Appleton, Founder of the Female Design Council
Panelists
Isabela Milagre, Founder of Bossa Furniture
Anna Wozniak-Starak, Founder of Craftica Gallery
Mia Karlova, Founder of Mia Karlova Galerie
Simon Stewart, Founder of Charles Burnand Gallery
The State of the Market
This panel will provide an in-depth look at the current landscape of the art and design market, addressing the most pressing trends and developments shaping the industry today. The discussion will cover the influence of shifting global economies and their effects on art valuation and collecting behaviors. Panelists will explore emerging collecting patterns, from new demographics to innovative collecting practices, and how digital technology and innovation are transforming sales, provenance, and access. Attendees will gain valuable insights into the opportunities for growth and the challenges that collectors, investors, and industry professionals face in a rapidly evolving environment. With diverse perspectives from auction houses, galleries, and private dealers, this conversation aims to illuminate the future of art and design commerce and inspire strategic adaptation amid ongoing change.
Moderator
Christina Ohly Evans, US Correspondent at Financial Times HTSI
Panelists
Jodi Pollack, Chairman and Co-Worldwide Head of 20th Century Design, Chairman of Major Collections at Sotheby's
Jill Newhouse, Founder of Jill Newhouse Gallery
Dana Kraus, Founder of DK Farnum
Art and Passion in the Gilded Age: The Extraordinary Collaboration of the Architect Stanford White and the Sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens
Kim Heirston joins Henry Wiencek to discuss his new book, Stan and Gus: Art, Ardor, and the Friendship that Built the Gilded Age. The title chronicles the complex collaboration between architect Stanford White and Augustus Saint-Gaudiens, sculptor of monuments.
Stanford White was a louche man-about-town and a canny cultural entrepreneur—the creator of landmark buildings that elevated American architecture to new heights. Augustus Saint-Gaudens was the son of an immigrant shoemaker, a moody introvert, and a committed procrastinator whose painstaking work brought emotional depth to American sculpture. They met when Stan was walking down the street and heard Gus whistling Mozart in his studio. Over decades, White would sustain his friend's troubled spirits and vouch for Saint-Gaudens when he failed to complete projects. Meanwhile, Saint-Gaudens challenged White to take his artistic gifts seriously. So it went amid brilliant commissions and sordid debaucheries, culminating in White’s murder by an enraged husband in 1906.
In Stan and Gus, the acclaimed historian Henry Wiencek sets the two men’s relationship within the larger story of the American Renaissance, where millionaires’ commissions and delusions of grandeur collided with secret upper-class clubs, new aesthetic ideas, and two ambitious young men to yield work of lasting beauty.
Moderator
Kim Heirston, Founder of Kim Heirston Art Advisory
Panelist
Henry Wiencek, Historian