I'm quite hesitant to mention this for fear that my reason for bringing it up will be grossly misunderstood, but the setup this article describes bears an uncanny resemblance to locations used by the adult entertainment industry. Both cases share the theme of a constructed fantasy life, a life that we as image consumers must realize is not real yet nevertheless choose to buy in to on some level.<p>This penthouse is not real; rather it exists beyond reality. The fantasy it expresses is what we imagine luxury and the good life looks like, rather than how such a life actually looks. But now that this penthouse does physically exist—now I can go take pictures of myself in it and now that people are actively decorating their own luxury apartments to look like it—how can you say that it is not real? How can you claim that it does not accurately reflect what luxury and the good life really are?<p>This whole hot take is basically a regurgitation of some of Baudrillard's ideas btw. I keep coming back to his concept of hyperreality because it seems so relevant today, and this is an area that I hope to keep exploring. Ahh, if only I could reserve a photoshoot there...
This reminds me of an article on The Verge two years ago documenting the semi-intentional convergence of interior design [1]. Admittedly, there was a focus on spaces like short term rentals and coffee shops, but the effect seems translatable; we seem to be converging on sterile, "personalized but not personal" designs.<p>I'm curious if, similar to the dislike many have for the unrealistic airbrushed images of the human form, we will arrive at a place where these sterile, fatastical spaces are no longer in vogue. In many ways, it encourages a similar level of unhealthy pursuit of the unattainable.<p>[1] <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2016/8/3/12325104/airbnb-aesthetic-global-minimalism-startup-gentrification" rel="nofollow">https://www.theverge.com/2016/8/3/12325104/airbnb-aesthetic-...</a>
I believe that this article is meant to invoke horror and show how artificial the penthouse and the industry it upholds by using words like "picture perfect" or "spotless". Personally, I'm all for it because the penthouse is just another step to making professional looking shots more accessible and attainable for the average person. As the article notes: "some were even booking hotel rooms or making covert visits to furniture stores to get their work done."<p>Instagram is no longer a platform for uploading amateur photos. It's become its own industry now and we should be treating it as such, and not just shaking our heads.
I don't get it. It looks similar to a lot of AirBnbs I've rented. The furniture isn't really to my taste but it has that "clutter-free living space that isn't actually lived in" air about it.<p>If anything the NY Times have just bought into the owner's marketing hook, line and sinker and have regurgitated a press release on their behalf.<p>Or is this presented here for our daily social media 2 minutes' hate?
What’s old is new again: there is absolutely no difference between this and a suburban interior built inside of a Hollywood soundstage.<p>Advertising: It’s the same. But different. But still the same.
I wonder how many luxury AirBnbs are rented a night at a time for this same purpose. If I wanted to do marketing product shots for Instagram style adverts that's probably where I'd go.
The photos look just like any catalog or magazine shoot, i.e. not having what I assume would be Instagram's charm of spontaneity and reality (I don't follow Instagram).
I'm from Spain and I am in love with Spanish country houses. I find the rawness and authenticity of those house much more beautiful than this manicured fabricated penthouse. There is an almost primal appeal to the houses of old people who don't know what Instagram is, and wouldn't give a shit otherwise; people only concerned with the pragmatism of every day life. I wonder if one day someone will decide to package and sell them as the fantasy of living the simple life.
The penthouse in question reminds me of how houses are staged. It looks sterile and as the article says, "free from the clutter of everyday life".