An Early Love of Art and SoHo Pays Off

When Anthony and Katrin Sosnick bought their 3,000-square-foot SoHo loft six years ago, they wanted to create a “warm, contemporary” feel. With an elevator that opens right into the apartment, brand new stainless steel kitchen appliances, and an exposed HVAC system, the contemporary part was already taken care of. What was lacking was the warm element, and so they went to work filling the space with their own personal treasures, in the form of bright, colorful works of art.Mr. Sosnick, the founder and president of Anthony for Men, which owns and markets three men’s grooming brands, was introduced to art and the SoHo neighborhood at an early age. “I loved it here as a kid,” Mr. Sosnick, who grew up in Detroit, said. “My father was an art collector as well, and he used to take me to the galleries. I always wanted a loft with high enough ceilings and plenty of space for art.”The three-bedroom, three-bathroom loft, which he shares with his wife and their 4-1/2-year-old twins, Ethan and Lucas, has 12-foot ceilings, stark white walls — providing the perfect contrast to dark cherry mahogany floors — and plenty of light.Mr. Sosnick, 38, who is on the board of the Whitney Museum of American Art’s print acquisitions committee, possesses what he calls “a passion for art from the 1960s.” When he first began collecting, just after high school, he primarily bought prints. Jasper Johns, Cy Twombly, Roy Lichtenstein, Robert Rauschenberg, and Frank Stella prints are still displayed prominently in his apartment.Now his collection has grown to include paintings by Cecily Brown, Terry Winters, and a self-portrait by Chuck Close. A pail by Jeff Koons stands next to the fireplace.Mrs. Sosnick, 39, who runs investment consultants Rondeel Research Group, defers the design, and art collection, to her husband. “Tony did the design work,” she said. “The apartment really reflects his sensibilities.”The Sosnicks’ art has a personalized feel, with some of the pieces made specifically for them. In the apartment’s entranceway hangs a wedding present from artist and friend Jane Hammond, a work of ink on rice paper. Ms. Hammond’s signature style is to employ small figures to create an image; for the Sosnicks, she used a tied knot, a heart, fireworks, and a home to represent the couple’s marriage.Above the marble kitchen counter hangs a marriage contract, or ketubah, made of leather, which was designed by the artist Terry Winters and given to the Sosnicks as a gift. While the Hebrew text resembles that of a traditional marriage document, an abstract black painted border reflects Mr. Sosnick’s taste for modernity. “I like to think of it as a fusion of the old and new,” he said, pointing out that, as an American, he comes from the New World and his wife, who is German, hails from the Old World.Mr. Sosnick also has a penchant for miniatures, many of which he’s collected during his travels. He has collections of matchbooks, miniature liquor bottles, and miniature instruments; displayed prominently in the entranceway of the home, on perfectly organized shelves, is a miniature chair collection started by Mr. Sosnick’s father.Mr. Sosnick is helping to instill a love of art in his children, as well. The focal piece of the children’s room is a representation of a cowboys and Indians scene by the abstract artist Inka Essenhigh. On the wall of their playroom hangs Mr. Sosnick’s newest acquisition, a four-piece wooden wall installation he bought at Art Basel called “Enjoy it…while it lasts,” by Timothy Berg, which depicts a bright orange Creamsicle in four stages of being eaten.The twin boys also are encouraged to create their own art. On the wall of their playroom, adjacent to the Creamsicle piece, hangs a framed work of art featuring various pieces the boys have made, which the Sosnicks shrank down and made into a collage. And they are always encouraged to create more — their playroom table can be drawn on, and they have a magnetic chalkboard that they draw on, too.Mr. Sosnick and his wife are philanthropists and are active in their downtown community. Fortunately, the apartment’s open plan makes it an ideal space for entertaining. “I’d say we have a party about once a month, and we can have around 150 people at a time,” he said.But the personal touches are what make the home truly welcoming. Sushi lovers themselves, the couple added another level to their marble countertops, which serves as a sushi bar. Mr. Sosnick designed European oak benches to sit on, which go underneath the bar.The dining room area features a large, dark European oak table that comfortably seats 10. The piece is so big that when the couple tried to move it in, it didn’t fit in the elevator and Mr. Sosnick had to rent a crane to lift it in through the window.The couple’s additions and renovations — which included redoing all the base moldings, cabinetry, and countertops, redoing the bathrooms, and even removing original doors and replacing them with floor-to-ceiling models — took 31/2 weeks. Thanks to 12 years of experience as a real estate developer (which included design and construction of unique spaces), Mr. Sosnick had plenty of contacts to help out. “We got an 18-wheeler and just loaded everything onto it,” he said.While Mr. Sosnick says he would consider moving to a bigger place, he said his wife “would stay here forever.”Regardless, space constraints would never deter him from collecting more art. “I will never not buy something because there’s no wall to put it on. I buy what I love,” he said. “People complain that prices for art have gone up so drastically, but it doesn’t matter to me; that won’t stop me from buying art. For, me it just means higher insurance payments,” he said with a laugh.

An Early Love of Art and SoHo Pays Off

An Early Love of Art and SoHo Pays Off

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