Design Leadership Summit 2010

I am still on a high from the last few days in Venice. If the city alone were not intoxicating enough, I had the wonderful privilege of spending time with 200 of the top US architects and designers. The Design Leadership Summit is an invitation-only event hosted each year by Peter Sallick, Keith Granet and Meg Touborg. First held in 2003, it brings together a community of design leaders for the purpose of learning, support and inspiration.

It goes without saying that being a speaker on a panel with Michael Bruno, Jill Cohen, Stephen Drucker and Giulio Capua was amazing. But to hear Nicky Haslam, Axel Vervoordt and Matteo Marzotto speak was simply astounding. Combine the fantastic speakers with a dinner at the historic Palazzo Corner Spinelli that houses the beautiful Rubelli Collection, a cocktail reception at the The Peggy Guggenheim Collection hosted by Director Philip Rylands, a cocktail reception at the breathtaking Fortuny Gardens and a dinner at the Fortuny Museum hosted by The Riad Family and it would not be an understatement to say that it was beyond my wildest dreams.

The panel sessions and talks were inspiring and very informative—ranging from How to Develop Social Media Strategies for your Business to Insights and Outlook for Affluent Consumer Purchase Behavior. I am working to get the notes on some of these to share with all of you.

A huge thank you to Peter Sallick, Meg Touborg and Dana-Christine Colla of Design Investors and Keith Granet of Granet and Associates for inviting me to the Design Leadership Summit in Venice. You all are the best. I have posted more photos on AlltheBestPortfolio.com

A special thank you to the Venetian fabric house Rubelli for hosting our Sunday night dinner at their beautiful palazzo.

The lovely Amy Lau, Paul Hooker; President of SFERRA and Aaron Stewart; Creative Director for SFERRA

One of the highlights of the trip was meeting so many interesting and talented people. One of my favorites was Malcolm James Kutner - my new best friend and design crush.

For me, the most magical moment was the cocktail reception at the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. The collection is housed in the Palazzo Venier dei Leoni, an unfinished 18th century palazzo which was never built past the ground floor level. The courtyards between the main buildings act as sculpture gardens.

The 1948 bronze "The Angel of the City" by Marino Marini is positioned at the front of the palazzo, facing the Grand Canal. It is rumoured that this nude originally possessed a screw-in, erect penis so that it could be removed in order to avoid offending VIPs. This may very well be an urban myth, and I would love to hear from any of you who know more about Marino Marini’s work.

Fortuny hosted a cocktail party in their gardens before dinner at the Fortuny Museum. The weather was absolutely perfect!

The attire for the evening was cocktail chic and for the men scarves were all the rage. Don't they all look sharp!

The newly renovated Fortuny headquarters. The interiors were recently designed by Barry Dixon in collaboration with the Riad Brothers Mickey and Maury.

One of my favorite people in the world, the brilliant Brad Ford.

Two super talents Brooke Giannetti and Darryl Carter

Heading to the Fortuny Museum to hear Axel Vervoordt speak, followed by a private dinner. It felt a bit like being on a pilgrimage. A bittersweet end to a perfect few days.