Boroughs & Burbs, the National Real Estate Conversation

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The Value of High Style

The Value of High Style is where we talk to a top designer and a top art collector, two men who make their living knowing the difference between good and great, as we try and understand the relationship of great design with real estate.  

John Barman has been honored as one of the AD100 by Architectural Digest, one of “The City’s Best 100 Architects and Designers” by New York Magazine, and his work has been featured in the New York Times, Esquire, Interior Design, Traditional Home, and W, among other publications. His renowned clientele includes Wynton Marsalis, George Stephanopoulos and Alexandra Wentworth, Leonard and Allison Stern, Bryant Gumbel, Stone Phillips, Neil Simon, and Larry Silverstein. Barman was born and raised in New York City, and graduated from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania before turning to interior design and founding his eponymous firm.

Our second guest, Richard Grossman, is best known as the President of Brown Harris Stevens where he manages all of the regional offices. What most people don't know about Richard is that he is a collector and expert in the subjects of midcentury modern architecture, contemporary and midcentury modern furniture and contemporary art at the very highest levels. We've all heard of the mythical Ferrari in the barn stories. Richard lives that myth. He and his husband Adam discovered a long- abandoned and crumbling apartment in the famed midcentury-modern Butterfield House, purchased it and undertook an extensive 2-year restoration. He has promised to give us a glimpse of the apartment during the show. What I want to know from Richard is where is the line between doing it for the passion versus making a wise investment? What is the value of a name brand architect or a name-brand designer? How has that changed? We want to understand Richard's process of choosing architects and designers, what went right, and what can we learn from his experience. Lastly, I want to point out a recent story in the Wall Street Journal that quotes Richard entitled, Custom Art is Helping High-End Homeowners Paint a Clearer Picture where he is quoted as saying, “Art by a well-known artist can also lend a cachet to the property, which is particularly important in higher-end listings . . . Walking into a home with high ceilings and a 9-foot high Christopher Wool painting in the foyer is very dramatic—and it certainly says someo