Detail image of the custom vitrine in the front window of the Irene Neuwirth boutique features creatures by artist and set designer Shona Heath draped in jewels. Photo courtesy
Studio and Boutique Tours
Irene Neuwirth in New York is a Wonderland
The interior décor sparkles with jewels and narrative details
October 4, 2023—Just about this time last year, Irene Neuwirth was posting all kinds of images on Instagram in New York alluding to the effort going on behind-the-scenes of building-out her New York boutique. No surprise, renovation in the Big Apple can be a colassal pain. But the jewelry designer wasn’t just doing a standard store. She was creating a story of the city and her brand with the award-winning interior decorator Pamela Shamshiri of the Los Angeles based design firm Studio Shamshiri who is known for infusing décors with narrative.
In a recent interview for W about a just released book on her work Shamshiri: Interiors, Pamela explained “Whether it’s the story of a hotel, or a home, or a new business, it’s all a story. And the more detailed, and communicative, and succinct we can be, the better.”
Irene and Pamela started telling the jewelry designer’s story through interior décor in 2014 when they collaborated on the dreamy, cozy, chic and colorful Irene Neuwirth boutique on Melrose Place in West Hollywood. For New York, which is obviously a very different city than Los Angeles, Irene and Pamela found unique ways to pay tribute to the Big Apple while maintaining the signature sense of whimsy and warmth that can be found in the store on the west coast.
A jumping off point of inspiration was the beloved bronze sculpture of Alice in Wonderland having a tea party with the Cheshire Cat, Mad Hatter, Dormouse and the White Rabbit located nearby in Central Park. Irene and Pamela envisioned the store something like the fantastical journey Alice took through the looking glass, but in their case it was Manhattan’s Upper East Side. They added in animal friends and a elements found in a garden, infusing a sense of whimsy to the tony neighborhood.
On the cusp of the one-year anniversary of the boutique in Gotham, Irene Neuwirth on Madison Avenue and 74th Street has become a favorite haunt of jewelry lovers on the Upper East Side as well as visitors to the city.
Read on to find out about the stories and details of the design.
A 14-foot high, hand cast and hammered metal palm tree by artist Chris Wolston with coconut lights is the central focus of the vista looking from the front of the store to the back. The sculpture is a hat tip to Irene’s hometown of Los Angeles.
The green rug by Studio Shamshiri for Christopher Farr is a reference to the expanses of grass in Central Park. A pattern of inverted constellations punctuate the textile and add a touch of the night sky.
Books and objects decorate one of the shelving units in the boutique.
In the reflection on the mirror you can see a vintage modernist table and chairs by Alessandro Mendini.
A detail view of the front showing the custom designed fringe chandeliers hanging over the parallel rows of jewelry display pedestals.
Tassels hang from the jewelry drawers on the walls. And the wall vitrines are framed in wood, lined in blue silk and decorated with Shona Heath creatures draped in jewelry.
Detail of a wall vitrine with a Shona Heath turtle and flower sculpture covered in Irene Neuwirth jewelry.
A spiral staircase with a swirling optical black and white pattern, custom painted by JJ Snyder Studio, is in the back of the store.
A monumental diorama by Shona Heath accents the back wall. In front of the diorama is an oculus display table.
Detail of the monumental diorama by Shona Heath located on the back wall.
Indian garden paintings, surrealist gardens and Tim Walker photographs were a few of the artist’s sources of inspiration for the diorama.
A detail photo of the sky blue oculus display table shows how sections can be pulled out like draws to remove the jewelry.
View of the spiral staircase with an optical black and white pattern, custom painted by JJ Snyder Studio, from the lower level.
The intimate space has pale blue walls and dusty rose wall-to-wall carpet.
A painting by Irene Neuwirth’s mother, Geraldine, decorates one side of the living room style space in the lower level of the boutique.
The centerpiece of the lower level is a Jules sofa by George Smith. A vintage Lovers coffee table by Philip and Kelvin Laverne and a custom screen by Peter Pilotto surround the seating area.
A work of art from photographer Victoria Sambunaris hangs above the sofa.
Related Stories:
All About Irene Neuwirth’s Mother
The Backstory of Ruth Negga’s Oscar Tiara
The Tiffany Archives Book Is A Gem
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