In the Frame: Colby Mugrabi

What are you working on currently?

Colby Mugrabi: ‘I launched my business mmERCH mid-April with our Genesis Drop, and we are gearing up for our next drop, a collaboration with someone from the Web3 space, this September. Our quarterly drops are comprised of two different unique moments. We’re also working on some exciting digital products and are launching a secondary product line at the end of this year.’

What ritual or routine keeps you going?

CM: ‘My routine entails waking up between 5:15am and 5:45am — since my three-year-old started sleeping in a “big-girl” bed, she comes in early in the morning. Spending the morning with my two girls is one of my favorite parts of the day. I then read all the different newsletters I subscribe to, whether it be tech, fashion or art focused, to stay up to date on current events. Exercise is also very important to me.’

What work of art made you see things differently?

CM:
‘I will never forget the first time I saw the Jeff Koons’s Balloon Dog. There was a Koons retrospective at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, where I grew up, in the early 2000s. I went with my parents when I was very young, and I vividly remember seeing the Michael Jackson and Bubbles sculpture, as well as Rabbit. The orange Balloon Dog was the cover of the show’s invitation, and I had that invitation in my room my entire adolescence. I took it with me to college. It still sits in my office.

‘It’s a testament to how multifaceted Jeff’s work is. As a child, I thought I understood the work, and that as I grew up and continued encountering it, I understood that there were a lot more layers. He’s so methodical about the references and emotion behind his work, so his art can speak to people at any stage in their life.’

What would you like to see happening more in the digital art and fashion space?

CM:
‘It’s been exciting to see how the overall sentiment has evolved towards digital assets with physical twins. When I first conceptualized mmERCH around three years ago, we were at the height of the bull market, and everyone was telling me, “You don’t need to do physicals. The future is digital.” I think there’s actually been a recalibration of interest in the importance of physical goods, which was core to the original mmERCH vision. In my mind, it is about physical-digital as future product offerings, so from the NFT and Web3 world, I’d like to see more acceptance and interest in physical assets; from the traditional fashion world, I’d like more acceptance and interest in digital twins, whether it be in the form of NFTs or Digital Product Passports.’

Which artist or designer do you wish you knew more about?

CM:
‘I’m very interested how artists work together, whether it’s a fashion designer and an artist or a fashion house and an architect. What excites me is uncovering different historical collaborations and collaborations today. I always find Salvador Dalí really captivating — I never get sick of hearing interesting stories and facts or discovering his projects and bodies of work. I feel similarly about Cristóbal Balenciaga in the history of fashion.’

Which artists are you watching right now?

CM:
‘I find the way Kim Asendorf utilises AI in his work to be really interesting. He traverses the digital and physical space and plays with technology in very conceptual, captivating ways. His employment of generative systems to create his abstract imagery is also very close to my heart, given how we use generative algorithms with mmERCH.’

Last gift you gave?

CM:
‘For my husband’s birthday, I gave him a vintage Louis Comfort Tiffany frame with a photo of our daughters in it.’

Your favourite view, anywhere in the world?

CM:
‘Looking out at the sea in Antibes in the South of France, where my husband and I got married.’

Favourite exhibition this year?

CM:
‘A few weeks ago I saw See Stop Run (a survey of Christopher Wool’s work from the past decade) downtown in the Financial District. He chose to exhibit his work on the 19th floor of what seemed to be an abandoned office space. It was so well done, super well installed and a great backdrop and environment for his work.’

Top picks from Christie’s right now?

CM:
‘I wrote an article about this trunk, which was commissioned by industrialist and photographer Albert Kahn, on my website Minnie Muse a few years ago. For his fall/winter 2014 collection, Nicolas Ghesquière (who has served as Louis Vuitton’s Artistic Director of Women’s Collections since 2013) introduced one of his trademark handbags, the Petite Malle, meaning “little trunk”. The bag is based on Kahn’s trunk — the three Xs at the bottom corner (of both the trunk and the bag, were actually Kahn’s signature.

‘I love any antique classical jewellery. Christie’s recently sold a carved agate ring that was really beautiful. I loved the gold band that it was set in. To think it was from the 3rd century BC is wild, which is often how I see a lot of the jewellery in these sales. It’s amazing to see how modern they look.’