In celebration of its new downtown flagship store, Barneys New York held its “The Black Leather Jacket” auction in partnership with Christie’s to benefit two iconic New York nonprofit institutions: The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender (LGBT) Center, and art-space White Columns. The opening of the luxury retailer’s downtown flagship on 7th Avenue between 16th Street and 17th Street marks the return of the store to the same block that the company was founded on in 1923, and where it maintained an iconic presence through the late 1990’s.
The auction items - one of a kind leather motorcycle jackets - have been designed by artists and designers such as Anicka Yi, Dan Colen, Glenn Ligon, Helmut Lang, Kim Gordon, Nate Lowman, Rob Pruitt, Ugo Rondinone, Azzedine Alaia, Alexander Wang, Givenchy by Riccardo Tisci, Isabel Marant, and Joseph Altuzarra and will be available for browsing and bidding at https://onlineonly.christies.com/s/the-black-leather-jacket/lots/224 until March 22nd. All proceeds will be donated to The LGBT Center and White Columns.