Duende With Brett Warren
Duende With Brett Warren
A pleasurable show and tell with the New York-based photographer.
I am so delighted to introduce my friend Brett Warren to the newsletter today. Brett is an incredible photographer in New York (and beyond!) with clients like Vogue, Pamela Love, W Magazine, Oscar De La Renta, Billy Reid and many many more. We met while both living in Nashville, and I’ve had the great pleasure of working with Brett on various shoots over the years. He brings a sense of fantasy, creativity and imagination to each and every project. “I am not sure where in life I picked it up, but ‘show and tell’ is one of my favorite things to do with friends when they come over and ask about certain things. It's one of the most enjoyable mediums to give people context clues about what makes you tick. When I moved to New York, I knew I wanted to be super intentional with my space, to create a sanctuary from the day or world outside,” shares Brett.
Brett’s NYC home is filled with things that fascinate him — an ongoing work in progress as he continues to define what he wants his space to look and feel like. He photographed his Duende pieces for the collage on film, and I am obsessed with how it all came together.
Excuse me while I lift my jaw up off the floor.
Find Brett elsewhere:
Instagram
Website
Enjoy,
Elise
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Byredo, Trois Encens
Home fragrance is one of the most important things to me. Oftentimes, when I barrel into the apartment, I am looking to instantly change my mood or create a polarizing atmosphere from that of the day. These incense scents are so unique to me, not for everyone, as they can come across as reasonably strong, but they have an enchanting after-effect that usually sticks around for a few hours. I included this Walt Whitman book underneath because it's so pleasing, and I cannot separate them.
ferm LIVING, Lemon Hook + Sea Glass Beads
I have been on the hunt for items to place around the home that are a little more natural to contrast my chrome bender of 2022. This strand of giant sea glass beads caught my eye from a street vendor in Brooklyn, and I realized it would be the perfect item to hang on this Lemon Hook by Helena Rohner in the hallway of my apartment. The sun comes through the hallway around 5pm and completely sets the beads aglow for about 30 minutes. A real treat if you catch it.
Marni Market, Blanket Caddy
This blanket caddy makes me smile. It's a bit of an absurd shape and kind of feels like it could get up and walk at any moment. You will notice this is a bit of a theme in the apartment.
Hem, All Wood Walnut Stools
I have this circular concrete dining table and wanted to keep that going on beneath the table. Walnut is a favorite of mine, and these adjustable stools are the perfect solution for a small NY apartment. When not in use, I tuck them all under the table.
Salvador Dali, Purgatory Canto #21, The Divine Comedy (Field 195), Lithograph Print
I have wanted one of these lithographs for some time and encountered some pretty high prices. Dali's surrealist work has greatly inspired many of my still-life images. I am obsessed with fragmentation, repetition, and mutation. I found this commercial reproduction that is licensed by Dali that was created, I think, around the ‘70s, and there are several of these floating around the internet. I found this one on Etsy, and the seller has somehow located many of these vintage prints. I have my sights set on one of the much larger editioned prints.
Serapis, Rustoleum Jacquard Throw
I was looking for a throw for my bed, and I am always seeking something a little off the beaten path. I encountered this throw inspired by the moss, barnacles, and rust that form on the bottom of ships and knew it would be a nice contrast to all the neutral things I had going on in the bedroom.
Elise McLauchlan, Donut Bowl
This little bowl sits on the coffee table in the living room and is the perfect shallow vessel for collecting the remotes and such. I am very into anything that is pumped up and looks inflated, especially when it's created out of natural materials.
Marcel Breuer, Wassily Chair
This was one of the first pieces I bought when I decided to stretch out and work towards filling my home with things that fascinated me. I encountered this Wassily chair, recovered in Calf by Claude Home. I grew up spending the summers with my cousins at my grandparent's dairy farm. That said, I have a particular affection for calf print, and this chair was the perfect way to bring that into my home.
Bloc Studios, Studiopepe Marble Vases
These are my favorite "new" pieces. The relationship of chemical compounds inspires the vessels, so all three pieces are interactive and interchangeable. Each week I stop by the bodega and see what flowers I can throw in here, and it's fun to assemble the vases in different variations depending on that week's selections. I hope to have these forever.
Alvaro Ucha Rodriguez, Stainless Steel Sconce
Our neighborhood is lucky enough to host Lichen, a unique home furnishing store that has its own line of products, as well as sourcing some really special vintage ones. This stainless steel sconce caught my eye and reminded me of origami, something my dad taught us as kids after a trip to Japan.
Antique Maritime Prints
I found these prints in an antique shop in Provincetown, MA, last summer. The Airbnb we stayed in had these incredible rounded wooden frames, so I knew they had to be housed in the same. I searched and found these on Etsy.
Revivalist South, Work by Jordan Wright Patterson
I met Jordan while working with a client on a shoot and have been fascinated by her work ever since. I finally got one of her pieces, and it's found the perfect spot in the apartment... another one of those moments where the sun illuminates all the depth of the piece for a brief moment in the day.
Alexander Girard for Vitra, Girard Wooden Dolls
These items have found me and have been gifts by dear friends. They each hold significant meaning to me, and I have a handwritten note by my friends that gifted these to serve as a reminder of their symbolism for different chapters of life.
Souda Home, Concrete Candelabra
Another inflated object, it's a theme. We bring this out for special dinners, and it is a really fun piece to commemorate those dinners where you want to create more of a moment. Also great because you can peer through as not to obstruct any views of your table mates.
Antique Books + Alabaster Bookend
If you are over, we are most likely, at some point, going to crack open a book. I have been working on my collection and once again find this to be a really fun way to connect with friends and loved ones. I often treat this as a library and "check out" books from myself to pour through on my studio floor. Something I can always make more time for. This bookend was found at another great antique shop in Provincetown.
Isamu Noguchi, Akari UF1-H Light Sculpture
This little lamp feels as if it could crawl away at its own free will at any moment. My favorite thing about this, other than the glow, is that it has such a character to it. This typically sits perched above some books on my desk.
Tiny Things
These little bits find themselves on a shelf, beside a pot, or just sitting atop a book. I have always loved little tchotchkes, and it's been fun to play around with where they wind up. The ceramic rosette reminds me of the flowers made of buttercream icing my grandma would always have on her birthday cake, fresh from Kroger. The little Bode parrot pin makes its way on a jacket occasionally or in the mouth of a tiny vessel. Foxes have long been a spirit animal of mine, and my friend Kelsey brought me this from a trip.
Brett Warren, Print of Rachel
I don't have much work hanging in my home, but this one was so special and represents a lot to me. This image is the result of a day where I trusted myself and all the creatives on set aligned, and we found this simple, striking moment with Rachel. Once, a friend described her as a comet en route to Earth, and happily, I haven't been able to see anything else since.
Ceramic Horse Candlestick
My friend Ellie gifted me this. The other side to my summers as a kid was spent at my other grandparent's farm, where they had Tennessee Walking Horses, Spotted Saddle Horses, and a mule named Coco that all the cousins would ride. We frequently attended weekend horse shows, and my dad would show the horses on behalf of the family. This is another friendly little reminder of that sweet spot.
Hand-Carved Wooden Chain
This has become one of my most cherished items. Each time I would visit my Great Aunt Bea's house, I would often stare and inquire about this chain. She lived on the mountain, and her pastor... who was also a barber... and an avid whittler, created this for her by carving one single piece of wood to form the interlocking chain. One day she told me to take it off the wall and enjoy it... as long as I didn't tell anyone she gave it to me. I'm breaking the rule, but she would love for everyone to hear this story. This hangs on the wall next to my bed to remind me of family, and also a great reminder to consider time... and how long it sometimes takes to make something truly unique.
Collection of Fragrances
My friends know that if I were not a photographer, I would work in a lab in Paris creating fragrances. I have been accumulating quite a collection and often share these with whoever enters the door before heading out to dinner. I love discussing reactions with friends and the memories related to scents. I was telling my friend Charlie about how my mom would wear Dior Poison to church on Sundays, and after tracking it down somehow, made one of the most memorable birthday gifts.
Glass Bits
These little trays find their way around the apartment and continue the fascination theme. Rui is a designer I have been following for some time, and in my opinion, they adapted their ready-to-wear line into some of the most unique and exciting home goods. The crochet techniques in the clothing cling to the glass like sea life, adorned by tiny brass beads and pearls. The pink piece is one I found at a junk store while shopping for still-life props.
ferm LIVING, Distinct Side Table
This object sums up so many things I like about the entities that fascinate me. Natural stone is combined with some man-made acrylic stone that feels like a fantasy element. Pistachio acrylic stone rose granite, and travertine... like Neapolitan ice cream.
Duende is the mysterious power of art to deeply move a person. It means a quality of passion and inspiration. With this bimonthly feature, we celebrate and honor our most meaningful possessions that go far beyond the physical — preserving memories, shaping identity, encouraging ritual, embodying experiences and loved ones. The things that surround us are not simply functional, beautiful, or aspirational, but encompass a soul and presence all their own. View past publications here.
Photo Credit: Duende custom collage designed by Meg Towle, incorporating Brett Warren’s pieces that he captured on film.