First stop, the Manhattan home of Marc and Livia Straus, collectors, museum founders and most recently, gallerists, who have merged their private and public lives for the love of art. Since 1966, the couple has amassed work from over thirty countries, consistently identifying distinctive talent, with early acquisitions such as a Jeff Koons Basketball and Robert Gober Sink, demonstrating their keen eye and exploratory spirit. The Straus’s, whose extensive acquisitions have been included in Art & Antiques “Top 100 Collections”, will share their collector’s story, as well as their desire to take their passion public: in 2002, the Straus’s founded the Hudson Valley Center of Contemporary Art in Peekskill, NY to exhibit emerging artists from around the world and to support the commercially challenged community with educational programs; in 2011, Marc opened Marc Straus Gallery on Grand Street, on the Lower East Side.

Next, we will Uber to the charming townhouse home of Susan Eley, where the gallerist resides with her family and which, since 2006, has simultaneously housed her salon-style gallery, Susan Eley Fine Art. In this special setting, Eley will offer an alternative to the standard white box gallery as a way to appreciate contemporary art. We will view her current show and discuss how she manages her space and stable of artists.