In residence
I first came across illustrator Jeremiah Goodman’s work in Milan in 2005. I was in between shows during the city’s Fashion Week and decided to make a stop at 10 Corso Como – the multi-brand boutique that’s the height of chic in a country oozing with style. I wandered through the book section and chanced upon an oversized monograph of his work, titled Jeremiah: A Romantic Vision.
I was immediately hooked, for page upon page were glorious artistic renderings of impossibly chic rooms of an incredible list of celebrities and personalities – from creative types like Cecil Beaton and Diana Vreeland to boldfaced names like President and Mrs Reagan and Baron and Baroness Philippe de Rothschild. Jeremiah’s work is a unique exploration of art and interior design and fashion – combining multiple disciplines into canvases washed with colour and detail with brushstrokes that are at once beautiful and romantic. I purchased the book immediately and lugged all 15 pounds of it to the rest of the fashion shows I still had to sit through that day – and subsequently hand-carried it back to Hong Kong on my return home.
Years later, I had the privilege of meeting Jeremiah in person when I interviewed him for The Huffington Post. I had been invited to visit him in his New York apartment, where his living room doubled as his artist’s studio. His table with his brushes and paint was set in front of a bank of floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the East River. The apartment was flooded with natural light and all around the apartment were little moments and vignettes created from furniture and accents, and all sorts of bibelots Jeremiah has collected over the years.
I met him when he was 89 years old and we instantly became friends; he’s now 94. I visit him every so often and he always regales me with stories of his fabulous adventures and friends – a roll call of names I only ever used to read about. And I’d like to think that he’s telling stories of me, as his friend, to his other fabulous friends.初次認識插畫師Jeremiah Goodman作品時為2005年的米蘭。當年我正參加城中時裝周接連舉行的活動展覽，心血來潮，決定到雲集多個品牌的精品店10 Corso Como走走，欣賞滿有非凡時尚風格的國度。我不停在典藏部來回遊走，巧合地找到他名為Jeremiah: A Romantic Vision的超大型專著作品。
我立時被迷住了，翻閱著一頁又一頁精彩的藝術風內文，細看多位名人紅星無可比擬的時尚家居單位繪畫——當中包括Cecil Beaton、Diana Vreeland、列根總統伉儷、Baron和Baroness Philippe de Rothschild。Jeremiah的作品對藝術、室內設計和時裝作有趣特別的研討，結合多向性學術，以色彩和筆觸細節描繪出美麗而浪漫的效果。我立刻購下書本，帶著重15磅的它欣賞餘下的時裝展——最後當然帶著它返回香港。
數年後，我有幸跟Jeremiah親身見面，並為The Huffington Post跟他進行訪問。我獲邀到過他的紐約單位，那兒也兼作其藝術工作室。書桌、畫筆和油料擺放在落地玻璃窗沿，並眺望東河。單位湧進源源不絕的天然光，四處可見從傢具與重點裝飾營造而來的小花飾，訴說動人時刻，全部均由Jeremiah多年搜集得來。
跟他認識時，他已年屆89歲，我們立時結成好友，今天他已來到94歲了。我不時到訪探望，他自會跟我分享精彩的遊歷故事和朋友——大量都是我只聽聞過的人物。但願他也有跟朋友和對方名人朋友分享我的故事吧。