THE MAKING OF VOLUME II

Content has been a major focus for us at LES from the start. Not just any content, but that which educates and inspires. Content that makes us feel connected to others and the world. Content that feeds our visual desires. When I founded LES Collection, I didn't intend to create a printed publication, but one early summer afternoon, while I was painting, I realized that a print publication featuring our artists was the perfect way to spread the word about our launch. So, I dove into the creation of Volume I with little to no knowledge about producing a printed publication. The collaboration between our incredibly talented creative team and our artists was invigorating. I am not going to lie; we made some mistakes, and it was a major learning process. But the final results were better than I could have imagined. There is a special joy in creating a printed publication, something you can hold and run your hands through. I pictured people all over the world learning about LES for the first time, lying in bed on a bright morning, sipping tea or coffee and leafing through the journal, falling in love with our artists in the same way I had.

Given the success of Volume I, the decision to make Volume II was a no-brainer. We had learned so much from our mistakes with Volume I, and I knew we could create something even better. Volume II would allow us to showcase new categories of creative characters. While Volume I focused on our artists with stunning visuals and compelling stories, Volume II explores another side of our business: vintage and collectible design. Collecting vintage has long been a passion of mine, and when I sought to create LES Collection, I started there while building out our roster of artists. The greatest joy of that journey has been building relationships with other dealers and vintage enthusiasts.

In Volume II, I expanded our horizon; we reached outside of the LES roster of artists to vintage dealers like Jerry Gomez Galvis and Joaquin Molina from Objet LA/NY, avid collectors of vintage and lovers of collectible design. They let us into their home to capture their stunning collection. We also spoke with Toby Ziff from Two Poems about a group of vintage dealers in London changing how vintage is collected and sold, reinvigorating the trade.

Home tours are something I have always loved, and I knew we had to share the homes of our artists. For Volume II, we traveled to Ohio to shoot the home of Kristin Yezza, who has created specific works for every inch of her home. Closer to home, we shot Janie Kruse Garnett's modern Dumbo apartment filled with antiques passed down through generations.

We also engaged some of our favorite collaborators, such as Eve Singer from BROYT, event planner and avid vintage collector who shares her best tips for spring entertaining, and stylist Kim Mupangilaï, who we brought on to style our spring editorial shoot.

I hope that we can continue to inspire and educate, bringing you visuals and stories that energize the creative part of your mind. Thank you to all the incredibly talented creatives that played a role in this Volume and to all of you for taking the time to read the stories we so carefully crafted.

Photograph by Max Burkhalter

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