Home Comforts: Maureen Paley on crystals, cocktails and random acts of kindness

Maureen Paley has always been ahead of the curve. The gallerist is a real trailblazer, known for being among the first to exhibit contemporary artists in the East End. Perhaps it’s not so surprising then, that her Home Comforts are perhaps more unusual than most. That said, we’re pleased we’re not the only ones who have to hide the chocolate…

My most recent home improvement has been…

Adding Tangerine quartz crystals to my collection, to increase positive energy in the home and lift one’s spirits. Tangerine quartz is meant to be the crystal of the soul. It protects you from negativity, while opening up the path for future hopes and desires. It works with the sacral chakra, promoting creativity and helping you to accept any changes or transitions in life. I found mine in a shop called She’s Lost Control in Broadway Market, very near my home.

 The latest addition to my wardrobe is…

A pair of gloves by Maison Fabre, with a flame motif at the wrist. I seem to have accumulated a glove collection over the years. Maison Fabre in Paris has a wonderful selection. I own a number of pairs from there that I alternate and love to wear. Sometimes it’s the accessories that make a wardrobe personal, adding charisma in the detail.

The most useful item in my kitchen is…

The first is my Dualit ‘Architect’ kettle. I love the functionality of its simple cylinder shape. Each morning, even in warm weather, I drink a litre of hot water with freshly squeezed lemon and ginger, as a tonic to start the day.

The second is a window. Looking out into my back garden is a pleasant way to begin my morning, rain or shine.

What’s always in my fridge…

Lemons and ginger root – as mentioned above. Also, various face potions and serums that need to be chilled.

The prize bottle in my drinks cabinet is…

Roku Japanese gin. I love the bottle as much as the gin. I combine it with Fever-Tree’s tonic waters. In Japanese, roku translates as ‘six’ – the number of special botanicals, sourced in Japan, inside every bottle. Gin is almost medicinal given all the botanicals, I think…

The spirit is crafted by Japanese artisans, using a centuries-old tradition and a meticulous attention to detail, and its taste is smooth, a perfectly subtle balanced mix.

Hanging on my walls is…

Art from all over the world; works I have collected for years by my gallery artists; and an adored folk-painting by the Reverend Howard Finster, called The Garden of Eden, which was purchased long ago from the Museum of Everything. I have always collected work from fellow gallery colleagues’ artists too. I like to curate what I hang on my walls, so that each piece seems to be in an intimate conversation with all the others.

The knick-knacks on my mantelpiece are…

Many things have been brought back to sit here, including gods and goddesses, originally from India and often found at the wonderful Blackout Shop in Brighton. There are various votive offerings, particularly of eyes, hands and sacred hearts, which I’ve sourced over the years in places I have travelled to; some have been given to me as gifts. There are also some some black English Arts and Crafts twisted-wood candlesticks, which I found in Hastings at the amazing AG Hendy & Co.

The books on my shelf right now are…

A real mix: C is for Curator: A Life in Art, by Bice Curiger; Wolfgang Tillmans: A Reader; Souvenir by Michael Bracewell; Voltaire’s Candide; and I have just added Jarvis Cocker’s new book, Good Pop, Bad Pop. My books tend to be strewn on the floor rather than on a shelf so I can see the covers, which I often like as much as their contents. Conor Donlon’s bookshop is a particular neighbourhood favourite for inspiration.

The music on my stereo…

Chet Baker Sings. Darondo’s Let My People Go. Ethiopiques Vol. 21 Emahoy (Piano Solo) by Tségue-Maryam Guèbrou. Nina Simone’s And Piano! Henry Purcell, Dido and Aeneas. (watch my moves) by Kurt Vile. Hildegard von Bingen’s The Fire of Creation.

Growing in my garden is…

A silver birch tree from the New Forest that I planted myself in 1980. It was a gift from a friend’s mother who lived there. I have a fig tree and an olive tree too, plus lots of lavender, ivy and a tiny oak that I planted from an acorn vase.

Hidden away in my cupboards…

Dark chocolates – a guilty pleasure – are in one; all manner of recycled wrapping papers and ribbons that I can never bear to throw away and always reuse in another; and my favourite Duralex drinking glasses in yet another.

On my to-do list…

Random and unexpected acts of kindness. Plus: travel – to Basel in Switzerland this June for Art Basel, in which I participate each year; to New York for Wolfgang Tillmans’s solo exhibition opening at MoMA New York in early September; and to one of my most favourite cities, Vienna, for the opening of a solo exhibition by Rebecca Warren at The Belvedere in mid-July.

Artwork credit

Rebecca Warren, Bohemian Rhapsody III, 2000 © Rebecca Warren. Collection Maureen Paley