Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn, the 58-year-old founder of the influential Salon 94 gallery, describes her Upper East Side townhouse as something of a laboratory—a testing ground for her curatorial fixations and artistic affinities. During a recent walkthrough of her home, the seasoned curator explained how some pieces from her personal collection eventually make their way to her nearby gallery, while others remain in her private living space. Greenberg Rohatyn, who is widely recognized as a pioneering force in merging the worlds of design and fine art, has spent over three decades refining her skill for placing unlike objects together in compelling combinations. Her home serves as both sanctuary and experimental space where she can explore how different artworks communicate with one another across styles, periods, and sensibilities.
Greenberg Rohatyn's curatorial approach is rooted in creating unexpected dialogues between objects of different speeds and different sensibilities. In one corner of her home, a ceramic vase by Kenyan artist Magdalene Odundo rests atop an ornate antique Beaux-Arts French wine cooler she recently inherited from her parents, who were themselves seasoned art dealers. Beside this pairing sits a faintly humorous, gloopy sculpture gifted to her by architect Gaetano Pesce. The grouping feels both charming and assertive, emblematic of her commitment to discord. "I don't ask anybody what they think the Pesce looks like with the Odundo. I actually don't care," she laughs. "That's kind of rude to say, but it's very specific. My job is to think in a much more forward manner about putting unlike objects together."
Throughout her career, Greenberg Rohatyn has championed the work of numerous contemporary artists, including Huma Bhabha, Marilyn Minter, and Laurie Simmons. Her home reflects these relationships, featuring pieces that carry deep personal and cultural significance. One powerful work by Karon Davis, titled "Beauty Must Suffer," addresses the experiences of Black ballerinas who must "pancake" their toe shoes to match their skin tone since brown toe shoes are only available by special order. The framed piece includes cotton flowers referencing both cotton-picking and the cotton ballerinas use in their shoes, which often becomes bloodied after performances. "When we did this at the gallery, we had so many Black dancers come by and tell us their stories," Greenberg Rohatyn recalls. "One sat down with her legs wide open, her elbows down on the ground just crying, talking about pancaking."
The collection includes several pieces that highlight Greenberg Rohatyn's long-standing relationships with artists and her appreciation for craft. A Maria Pergay stainless steel ring chair, inspired by the designer peeling an orange for her son, demonstrates how domestic moments can spark iconic design. A David Hammons "Basketball Chandelier," which was the first artwork installed in the house 23 years ago, showcases the artist's status in self-representation. A David Wiseman bronze chair with upholstery imitating moss represents the artisanal quality she values—everything made in his Los Angeles studio, including his own foundry. A Daisy Youngblood "Little Gorilla" sculpture, which the collector pursued for many years, explores themes of loneliness and mortality with an anthropomorphic quality that makes viewers confront their own humanity.
The home also features works that play with materiality and perception. A Sterling Ruby tray represents the artist's exploration of basic ceramic techniques, while a Rick Owens antler chair made from treated plywood challenges notions of luxury and modest materials. A Huma Bhabha sculpture combining styrofoam and cork appears violent and heavy but is actually light and malleable, smelling deliciously of cork. A Gaetano Pesce silicone sculpture, soft to the touch but imitating glass, sits near the Odundo vase, creating a dialogue between quick poured processes and years of coil-based ceramic work. "Each object has its own speed and charisma and attitude," Greenberg Rohatyn explains. "I'm only talking about how the objects function amongst other objects."
For Greenberg Rohatyn, her home functions as a small laboratory where she can test curatorial ideas before presenting them to the public at Salon 94. "If something can hold its place, and be autonomous and have its own integrity, then that means it's a working object," she says. "It's communicating at its own speed with its own language, but it's able to carry on a conversation amongst other very charismatic objects." This approach has made her one of the most respected figures in the contemporary art world, known for her ability to identify and champion important artists while creating unexpected connections between disparate works. Her townhouse stands as a testament to the idea that a private collection can be both deeply personal and professionally influential, shaping how we understand and experience contemporary art today.
