Artful Home | Josh Young
Intro: When two podcasts collide, magic happens. Welcome to Dinner Party, the podcast where I bring together my two hit shows, cookery by the book and decorating by the book around here. We're all about cooking, sharing stories behind recipes, and creating a cozy home. I'm your host, Suzy Chase, a West Village wife, mom and home cook. Inspired by Martha Stewart, trying to live in a Nora Efron movie, surrounded by toile, plaid, cookbooks, decorating books and magazines, cooking in my galley kitchen and living my best life in my darling New York City apartment in the cutest neighborhood in the city, the West Village. So come hang out and let's get into the show.
Josh Young: So my name is Josh Young. I'm an artist and designer based in Washington DC and my new book is Artful Home.
Suzy Chase: You like a lot of us loved curating environments in your childhood bedroom. Now, where did you grow up?
Josh Young: So I was born and raised in Pennsylvania, born in a very small town called Williamsport, which is kind of in the center of the state, but I spent most of my childhood near the Wilkesboro Scranton area. And my family, I mean, it goes back generations in Pennsylvania, oddly enough now most of them are in the southeastern part of the state. So whenever I go visit, it's usually in and around the Philadelphia area, but so much of growing up there still stays with me. I think I write in the book too, how the landscape, the history, the quaintness of that specific part of Pennsylvania where I grew up, I think could be still seen in my work today. And growing up in small towns, there's not much going on. So I think that allowed my mind to wonder. I used to dream a lot about bigger and better things and far away places, and I tried to create my own world in the childhood rooms that I was growing up in.
I said, and wrote in the book how at one point I was completely fascinated. I was probably, I think nine years old. I was fascinated by Paris, all things Parisian. I think the live action movie of Madeline may have came out, I think that was 1999, and was just enamored. Obviously. It was completely different from where I was growing up, and I loved the culture, the art, the way they dressed. So in my room, I mean truly, whether it be finding french flags or creating a life-size, Eiffel Tower or the room just transformed into Paris. I remember taking my mom to Michael's and sifting through the posters trying to find old black and white photos of Paris from the 1920s and having it framed. But I was always trying to create my own world, and more than that, trying to create a feeling of something, the room itself would evolve. So during Christmas every year I would completely transform the room into some Christmas village. It was just a fun way of expressing myself. And I think the thing I wanted to do, and I mean it's still can apply today with my homes. When you walked into my space, you were instantly able to understand who I am as a person, my creative point of view, and again, trying to create an overall feeling for you when you walked in. So again, from age six to now, that still applies.
Suzy Chase: I feel like the overall vibe that I got from your book, your interior design vibe is definitely colonial.
Josh Young: Yeah, again, I think that a lot of that has to do with where I grew up. I've been fortunate, I'm 34, but in my life I've lived in some really cool places for long periods of time. I moved to Milan when I was 19. I lived there for six years, spent time in New York and Chicago and a lot of really fun, energetic places with amazing, incredible design scenes and on the cutting edge of everything. But so much of my design roots are still rooted to your point in classical elements, even 18th century roots. And I think that's from where I grew up. I mean, when you go to the local deli or you go to the post office, everything was from the 17 hundreds. So I had a very early on appreciation for that specific period. I mean, you take school field trips to Philadelphia and I mean, it's in my roots. So I think no matter what space I'm designing or what room I'm trying to put together, there are always stylistic elements that I try to pull. I mean, the queen and chair behind me, it's literally from 1780. There's always these pieces within my spaces that have early American roots.
Suzy Chase: Do you have any early American pieces from your family, from the Young's?
Josh Young: I have some. I'm looking over there. I have a large decanter and urn that date back to the early 18 hundreds, but my family has true deep roots in the us. So on my mom's side, whatever it is, great, great, great, great was Robert Morris, who was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. And I remember going to my great grandmother's house growing up and seeing his Bible, which was later given to a museum on my dad's side. It was all Amish. That truly when we would date it back was early 17 hundreds. So again, it's just a part of me. I think keeping no matter how modern of a space or having certain elements still from that period helps ground it for me. It keep it my own and then I can evolve and add in different elements and pieces from different periods as I go. But yeah, I think that's just the through line.
Suzy Chase: Okay. Speaking of this book, so when considering writing your first book, what were you thinking about?
Josh Young: For me, the way the whole process kind of happened was it was during Covid and I was talking to a dear friend of mine, Michelle Adams, on the phone. And this was during a period where things were just crazy in a good way for my studio because interior designers were busy with homes and clients. So I was getting commissioned and I was kind of in this creative rut in conversation with her. I was just like, I think I want to do something else. Obviously it would still maintain my studio, but I need something to challenge me creatively. She had been asking me to do a book for years. I think it was just the right time in the right place, and she was really my introduction to my literary agent in conversation with her as we were starting to flush out what the book would be about.
Again, more than even a monograph or a portfolio, I really wanted it to be a deep dive look into my work and my creative point of view, both on and off the canvas and how the two are so closely related. Because again, the reason why we bought our townhouse when we did was because we knew we could design an entire floor to be dedicated to my studio space. I live, breathe, eat, sleep, my work. So I really wanted to showcase whether it be in our country property or a townhouse or a former Chicago apartment, how even the different settings, you can still see my overall point of view applied. And that's actually how those chapters and more or less the structure of the book was formed. I was talking to my literary agent. She's like, well, how would we divide this up into chapters? Would it be based on season or would it be based on location?
And I kind of went back into thinking about what people typically ask me about whether being in my homes or complimenting my work. And it's always, what is it that I do that they can look at something that I've created and know that it's mine without necessarily knowing that it's mine. And my whole thing was there is this almost like this checkoff list, whether I'm sourcing, whether I'm purchasing things, whether I'm creating that I go through to make sure that there are certain elements that are applied in it's palette, texture form, layers in a sense of nostalgia. And in just casual conversation with my agent, Berta, that's kind of how the chapters then were formed. I wanted the book obviously be visually beautiful and inspiring, but I also wanted it to be a takeaway for people to, after reading the book and reviewing these chapters, to have a sense of their own checkoff list. What elements do you use that when you're stepping back and reviewing the things such as your work or again, how you purchase or how you source, what are those key elements that you continuously return to? And within that, that's almost like the structure of your own creative point of view.
Suzy Chase: So you think when we're out shopping or looking for something or on Pinterest, then we should be able to tick off the boxes of palette, texture, form layers and nostalgia?
Josh Young: To or identify what, again, maybe yours is color, maybe yours is more about pattern. What is it that, what are those common themes that always keep reoccurring when you're attracted to something or when you're creating something, what is that return? And for me, having identified that is almost in some parts what makes it truly yours. And again, that formula, for me at least, that's that formula to always have a direct attachment to me as the artist or as the creative. So it's more so about getting into the thinking process of identifying those types of things.
Suzy Chase: And I do think it is what you keep going back to, what are you drawn to? Because so many people are like, I don't know what my interior design style is, but if they just thought about it, I think they'd get it.
Josh Young: And being cognizant of it. And again, it's just, it's noticing when it's becoming repetitive or there's a certain pattern there that's so informative and so eyeopening to recognize again, what is it that makes you tick? What are the things that you continuously return to your point, when you brought up my love of colonial pieces or 18th century identifying that and noticing that it's so helpful in the process of creating then because I know that there are what's going to make me happy or what I'm going to resonate with is utilizing or incorporating things from that period.
Suzy Chase: So tell me about your homes in DC and Virginia.
Josh Young: Yeah, so we moved to DC kind of on a whim during Covid. I wanted to move back east to be closer to family. So we moved from Chicago and it was a dream of mine to always own a historic townhouse brownstone in the city. And we kind of just stumbled upon the one that we have now. It's in Capitol Hill, and it's from 1885. And we just fell in love with it because of its old bones and also to the potential that it could have for us to make it our own. But from a practical standpoint, we loved it because the third floor was the perfect place for me to renovate and create my own studio space within the house as I, I've always been someone that wants to have my workspace within the same space that I live, just from the accessibility standpoint and also to just the, I don't know, have the two worlds kind of collide shortly after moving here and loving it.
We obviously spent time doing day trips around DC and I had so many of my followers and clients that knew I lived in the area. They're like, if you haven't, you need to go visit this town called Middleburg. It's only an hour and 20 away. We think you'll love it. And my mom was actually visiting one weekend, and we went out there, and to your point, we drove through the town. It's this, it's almost like Cotswolds, but this beautiful landscape, Quaker stone homes, colonial period estates just kind of lined the streets, and it's truly, it felt like an experience. And I called my husband Ignacio. I'm like, so you know how we've been looking for a weekend place or a holiday place? I'm like, I think I found the location for that. So we began looking and truly the only thing that I requested from our realtor was just that I really, because of growing up in pa, I really wanted the home to be obviously from the 17 hundreds, and I wanted it to have that Quaker stone facade.
It's just nostalgic for me. We found this property, we called it Sycamore House. Again, the reason why I loved it, similar to our townhouse, the original bones were still in place. There was still space for us to create it and make it our own. I don't know, the property just spoke to me. I loved it. I loved that it was almost like in a really fun way, such a great juxtaposition to our city home. But yet there was still these similarities of the old bones and the character and the charm just in a different setting.
Suzy Chase: So I saw some guy on YouTube talking about the color yellow in decorating, and he leans towards the buttery yellow to steer clear of the primary color feeling. I see you have two different shades of yellow in your entry hall, I believe, and you're also your living room. So talk a little bit about the decision making process when you chose these colors and how yellow has always been special to you. And this is in Sycamore House, right? The yellows?
Josh Young: Yes, true. Yeah. It's funny, during the process of, I always say s restoring out renovation, but when we were storing parts of Sycamore House and we were going through the process of deciding what rooms would feature wallpaper, what rooms will we paint, what I wanted yellow to kind of be like a primary color that we used. Yellow has always been one of those colors that I've always gravitate towards. I joke about how when I was a kid, I had my yellow gap, sling backpack, and my yellow coat, we always gravitate towards a certain color, and yellow was always mine, that it's kind of, it can be sometimes a polarizing color. You either love it or hate it, but there's something about it that I find vibrant and youthful and warm, and I always somehow seemed to return to it. And with that, because that's how it makes me feel, I knew that I wanted some of the rooms to feature that color. When you walk into Sycamore house, just the way that it's laid out, obviously the rooms are broken up into, it's not an open floor plan. And I really wanted there to be a gradual, almost like ombre effect when looking through one room into another and then into another where you could see that palette kind of deepen in color,
Suzy Chase: You mean darken?
Josh Young: Yeah, and just the way that the, it's hard to describe sometimes, but because of certain windows are smaller than others, so the light infiltrates differently in parts of the room than others, and throughout the day that it shifts and evolves. But I wanted to utilize yellow because I love how it brightens the room, but it also to adds a sense of warmth that I thought could be very transitional throughout the seasons and just played also too well with the overall landscape. It's hard to describe, but it's always based and rooted in feeling, like I said, I just love the warmth that it brings, and I love that it has this glow at night. And yeah, sometimes when people walk in, they're like, oh, I would've never have thought to paint it. Or actually, in the process of painting the room that color, they're like, you're out of your mind. But I just love it.
Suzy Chase: And it's a neutral
Speaker 2: With everything.
It is. It's a neutral. And I also think too, that's always been my approach with color is to each own, but my whole thing has always been, and some people will be like, are you afraid? I'm not afraid of color. I love color, but the way that I utilize color is just different in the sense that I love dedicating a singular color to a space and really playing that out from a palette standpoint. So gradually adding in different shades or tones of that specific color and doing so, and pairing that with contrast or other neutrals, that color to your point, almost just takes on almost on as a neutral because there's no competition within it. It becomes its own focal point.
Suzy Chase: You say a room full of perfectly smooth surfaces, offers no surprises. What are some easy ways we can incorporate texture into our space?
Josh Young: I've always been someone, when I walk into a space, my eyes are, I've always been keen on adding decorative accessories or accents that feature a variety of different textures and materials. So I think if I'm adding, for example, on a dresser, an assortment of shells that have one specific texture, maybe nearby on the coffee table, I'll look for something like woven trays or just something to add in those variations. And again, it's almost like that checkoff list, right? When I'm putting together a space, when I'm adding into certain elements, I'm doing this mental checkoff of what materials am I using, what textures are being featured, what colors are being featured. I don't want it to become too scientific or too much of a formula, but I think it's important to, again, be cognizant of that because I think incorporating that type of diversity within a space is truly what allows it to be harmonious almost for it to become a feast for the eye visually.
Suzy Chase: So at Sycamore House, you have portraits everywhere. So what attracts you to a certain portrait? Is it the face? Is it the colors?
Josh Young: I've been obsessed with portraits since I was a kid. For me, it was just such a portal to the past. It was obviously because there wasn't photography back then, it truly is looking into the past and looking into, I don't know, someone that previously existed. There's something magical and there's a certain mystique behind it. So many times, the portraits that I pick, whether it be my husband or friends or even my assistant, will be like, really? You want to incorporate that one? But it could just be a smirk. It could just be the way that they're looking. It could be something that maybe perceived as odd with their facial features, but I've always seemed to gravitate towards the more cheeky or the more unexpected portraiture. It's funny, we'll go to some auctions and whenever they're featuring a large swath of vintage portraits, I always seem to gravitate towards the one that are never bid on. And again, I think it's just because there's an oddity to them that I find endearing.
Suzy Chase: I love that. Do you ever try to figure out who they were?
Josh Young: I don't. I don't. And it's funny, I'm not interested either. I allow, it sounds so silly, but I want to have an idea of who they are in my own head and not taint that by actually doing the historical research. Some people walk into our homes, they're like, oh, these are kind of creepy. But I just love them. I mean, I'm truly looking at six of them while I'm talking to you and just in our hallway alone. But that has always been something that I've collected and I've gravitated towards even as a young teenager, and obviously didn't have the means to purchase them, but I would print them out and have them framed. I've always loved them.
Suzy Chase: And some of your early work, you had slashed portraits too.
Josh Young: Yeah, and in a weird way, that's how I've painted since I was five years old. I mean, I've always been an artist. My parents built me my first studio when I was 13. It's just again, it's always been in me. But that was a series of my work that really seemed to be the thing that kind of took off and allowed me to get more exposure, if you will. And it was that years ago, I would experiment with them. I would go down to the nevi in Milan, which there's an antique market once a month, and sometimes I could find whether it be prints or actual portraits, very inexpensive. And I would play with abstract collaging or elements on them just to make them feel a little bit more current or again, just create a certain sense of juxtaposition or tension within. And when I would start to do a slash across the eye, which was nothing more than just really shifting the focal point from the eyes to other features, and again, just creating a certain amount of tension in the piece, I would just start sharing it on social media at a time when I had 200 followers, if you will, and my inbox and my email just started flooding.
Like, hi, I love that. Can I purchase that? Are these available? So I clearly knew that there was something there that people were drawn to. And I think it was just that. I think that it was taking these in a very simplistic way, taking these vintage maybe once forgotten, maybe once, perceived as grandma type pieces. And by simply adding a very vibrant, colorful slash, I don't know, it shape shifted. It almost created a conversation because obviously one of the first things people would've asked is why. So right then and there, it was already mission or an achievement to get people to converse or to be curious about them.
Suzy Chase: And it is interesting. I was looking at some of your artwork, your slashed portraits, and so often you stare at the eyes. I did. And you're right, you have to look at other things. How is their head shaped, their lips, their nose. It's interesting how it changes what you look at.
Josh Young: Well, and again, it's not to go too deep, but it's something that I think about as it's you're then that much more aware of their facial expression and therefore maybe what they're feeling or thinking while being painted. Again, is there a smirk? Is there a scowl? Is there, I don't know. That's just me. But that was one of the fun things when I finally landed on that specific element that I started to notice that I was more aware of those qualities.
Suzy Chase: On page 248, you write, "I don't think I'm alone in saying that some of my happiest moments have been made around the table." I love that. Can you talk a little bit about that?
Josh Young: Well, I think it's true. I think that that's one of the reasons why I love to entertain, right? It's to not only create a space and a moment with people that I love or appreciate, but also to share a meal together in conversation. And I don't know, there's something magical about that. Just gathering around the table with people that you love and having them experience from the food that they're eating to again, the overall room and atmosphere and vibe and the music you play. It's such a fun way of experiencing a moment with someone that you can create memories with. I can't tell you how many times we have certain friends that we will think back or joke about a past dinner party that we had that was so much fun, and it's such fun and easy thing to do
Suzy Chase: Now to my segment called The Perfect Bite. So what is one dish that you would consider the most perfect bite?
Josh Young: I mean, I make it, which is funny because I really don't cook that often, but when I do make Beef Bourguignon , it's really good. And it's like right now I only do it during the fall and the winter months, but I love it. And that seems to be a favorite of friends and my husband too. So I think when I'm in the kitchen and I'm making that, it's yum.
Suzy Chase: So where can we find you on the web and social media?
Josh Young: Yeah, sure. So my website is Josh Young Design House. That's where you can find a lot of my new pieces and collections that I'll release on social media. I am at J Young Design House on Instagram.
Suzy Chase: Awesome. Well, thanks so much, Josh for coming on Dinner Party podcast. This book is stunning.
Josh Young: Thank you. I really appreciate that, and I appreciate the opportunity of having me.
Outro: Okay, so where can you listen to the new Dinner Party Podcast Series? Well, it's on Substack SuzyChase.substack.com. You can also subscribe to Dinner Party for free on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Additionally, the episodes will be available on both Decorating by the Book and Cookery by the Book. Long story short, you'll be able to listen to it virtually everywhere. Thanks for listening. Bye.
