Among the items in a Chatham, New York pop-up created by Maira Kalman, the artist, cartoonist and author, that you’re unlikely to find in your average store is a long fanciful piece of embroidery by Maira called Heaven Help Us. It features a few red poppies, helpfully captioned; a lighthouse on a cliff; a figure slumped over in what I interpret to be existential malaise; a fluffy dog that looks suspiciously like Maira’s pooch; a couple of ladies wearing fancy hats; and a fellow in Renaissance garb holding a staff that might be a musical instrument.
It reminded me of the pre-show curtain for David Byrne of the Talking Heads’ American Utopia on Broadway. And for good reason. Maira designed that, too. What Byrne’s lyrics and Maira Kalman’s art have in common is a seeming randomness that coheres in amazing ways. The glue in both cases, of course, is the observant, deadpan, self-confident world view of the artist.
There’s no reason that the pop-up makes sense by conventional standards. (It runs in Chatham in support of the Shaker Museum through July 5th; then two other well-known artists, first Paula Greif and then Kiki Smith, will contribute their work while Maira continues to curate the shop.)
For example, I’ve never visited a general store that includes posters quoting Marcel Proust - “For a long time I used to go to bed early,” reads one - stationery, red rubber balls that were a hit with my grandchildren, dish towels, Swedish fish, a cotton nightgown decorated with a single small bird, ginger snaps, and a pair of sweat socks printed with the last words of Irish poet Seamus Heaney to his wife. “Noli timere.” Be not afraid.
There’s also a made to order dollhouse size children’s toy museum, designed by Maira’s son and artistic collaborator Alex Kalman. “I wanted the space to make you feel good about yourself and the world,” Maira told me as we sat outside the shop on the first truly warm day of spring. “Not in a sentimental way. Someplace outside of the norm but also very grounded.”
When Kalman was approached by Claudia Gould, the executive director of the Shaker museum, and asked whether she had an idea for a temporary installation, Maira promptly responded, “A shop. I have always wanted to have a shop.” Maira had done the murals for the restaurant at the Jewish Museum in New York City when Claudia served as director there.
The artist traces her affection for retail to her childhood in Tel Aviv where small stores sold everything from clothes, to pencils, to postage stamps. “It was kind of a utopia of merchandise,” she remembered.
The front of the pop-up - it draws on the historic Shaker tradition of public-facing stores where the religious sect shared their goods for purchase with “the world” — is the shop and comes stocked with several of Maira’s books. They include The Principles of Uncertainty, based on her New York Times columns, that takes on life’s big questions with a light touch. It’s our family’s go-to house gift. The two back rooms are an art gallery that juxtaposes paintings Maira created for the show in conversation with pieces from the Shaker museum’s 18,000 piece collection. The museum’s permanent home, currently under construction, is scheduled to open in Chatham in 2028.
The Shaker objects shine in their characteristic simplicity, elegance and utility. For example, a ceiling broomstick with a super long handle, a delicate orchard ladder, and a five-tiered egg crate. “To have both the essential and the beautiful combined in every single thing is really inspiring,” Kalman said.
The pop-up is open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Like any self-respecting artist Kalman’s creation remains a work in progress as new ideas percolate. “Perhaps,” she said, pausing to summon her Shaker muses, “there could be a mending group gathering now and then.”
Ralph Gardner Junior is a journalist who divides his time between New York City and Columbia County. More of his work can be found in the Berkshire Eagle and on Substack.
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