What We Keep: Advice from Artists and Designers on Living with the Things You Love

by Jean Lin

Gallerist Jean Lin presents an interior design book for collectors, would-be collectors, and design-loving hunter/gatherers who crave objects of beauty to display in their homes

Learn the refined art of display and get an insider’s education in collecting from gallerist Jean Lin. Follow in her footsteps and tour the unique and beautiful homes of more than a dozen dedicated collectors. Whether you are starting a new collection or wish to display an existing one, each chapter offers inventive ideas for styling and displaying favorite objects, along with a primer on materials, studio visits with ceramicists, textile artists, and woodworkers, and wisdom from some of today’s most fascinating artists and makers. Includes a foreword written by Asad Syrkett, editor in chief of Elle Decor.

Featured artists
Mira Nakashima (@georgenakashima1)
Aleishall Girard Maxon (@aleishallgirardmaxon)
Noguchi Museum Director Brett Littman (@NoguchiMuseum)
AD 100 and Elle Decor A Christine Gachot (@gachotstudios), Leyden Lewis (@leydenlewisdesignstudio), Michael K Chen (@mkcarchitecture), Workstead (@Workstead), and Ghislaine Vinas (@ghislaine_vinas)
TWA Hotel designer Adam Rolston/INC (@inc.nyc)
Architect Preeti Sriratana/Modellus Novus (@mndpc_ny)
Fashion designer Carly Cushnie (@carlycushnie)
Glass artist and winner of Netflix Blown Away, Deborah Czeresko (@dczeey)
Architect Worrell Yeung (@worrellyeung)
Ceramicist Stephanie Shih (@stephaniehshih)
Top Chef and James Beard winner Kwame Onwuache (@chefkwameonwuachi)

Genres: Art

208 pages, Hardcover

Published May 14, 2024

Reviews

[Deborah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an aesthetically pleasing book, and it is also informative and enlightening. I was expecting photographs of beautiful art collections and was delightedly surprised with the descriptions of materials, such as wood, textile fibers, and sterling silver. The importance of sustainability comes through loud and clear, too.
I love that the book is divided into sections by elements: wood, fire, earth, metal, and water. Within each section, Lin showcases a number of diverse designers and artists, including backstories and personal comments about their collections. Her narrative is light, sprinkled with humor and her own points of view. I found that this book had a sort of meditative effect on me; reading sections of it at the end of the day was very relaxing. My biggest takeaway: when choosing “what to keep,” be true to yourself and honor your personal connections with objects.

[Mary Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun and interesting interior decorating title which is a great read for those interested in learning about art collecting and the lives of creative people. It seemed very freeing to me and inclusive for anyone trying to design a home with a collection in mind. The styles mostly skew modern but a takeaway in here for almost anyone looking for inspiration. Not a how-to.

[Ronda Canary · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ugh

[Relyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Enh. Not much eye candy. Not really inspiring words. Just... enh.

[Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Genuinely beautiful and interesting coffee table book