KDHamptons

KDHamptons: How long have you been coming to the Hamptons? Why do you love it so much? Do you have a favorite season?

Arthur Elgort: A long time, since 1971 more or less and I used to rent with my future wife Grethe in Sagaponack and then I got tired of renting so I bought a house on Meadow Lane. Went looking all over never expected to be in South, then the realtor took us down Halsey Neck lane with all of the branches hanging over and I bought it without even going inside the house because of the horizon – I said, “I’ll take it” and the realtor said “what’s your bid?” and I said “whatever”. I didn’t realize I was supposed to name my price, so I just paid whatever it was listed for without ever stepping foot inside. Couldn’t get a building permit to make it bigger as the family began so I bought the house next door and again I bought it for full price again so we didn’t take the risk of losing it. I love the Hamptons so much because you can see people if you want or you can see nobody. A lot of my friends are there that I don’t get time to see if I’m in the city, but you have the choice to see people or not. I was married on the deck of the house. We don’t come out all year round anymore, just in the spring summer and fall. In the beginning of having the house there was no heat so the pipes would freeze and my wife, Grethe, would go under the house with a hair dryer trying to unfreeze the pipes so we could stay out there as long as possible. I like it in the summer now because once your children grow up you don’t go as much anymore on the weekends because you have to watch your children and they only want to go during the summer. I would go there all the time if we could.

KDH: Will you please describe your Hamptons home and decorating style?

AE: It’s a real beach house, a conglomoration of all sorts of stuff, lots of instruments and right on the water.

KDH: What is your favorite Hamptons restaurant? Do you have a favorite dish and drink?

AE: Cappuccino at Sant Ambroeus and the weekend fall buffet at the Southampton Bath and Tennis Club. For takeout we love picking up food from La Parmigiana. Also, we even like Sip and Soda because I like the Malted Milkshakes (I’ll go in there just to have a malted). We really miss John Ducks.

KDH: Could you describe your perfect Hamptons day in detail for KDH readers?

AE: Wake up, take a swim in the pool which I keep very hot, take some pictures on the deck by the water especially of my kids, go for a cappuccino at Sant Ambroeus or a coffee at Tates (where my kids like to go), go to the club for lunch with the family, then in the afternoon I find somebody to take pictures of, maybe visit my friend Marianna in Water Mill, edit my photos and put them into Hessel albums, go to Morris Photo to drop off the latest rolls and chat with Jim, the owner, and then dinner outside on our deck or screened in porch with the family and sometimes some guests.

KDH: Personal style: do you have a Hamptons “uniform”? You are constantly surrounded by fashion~ which designer do you wear the most?

AE: Pink Brooks Brothers shirts, LL Bean T-Shirts, and Brooks Brothers or LL Bean pants. My favorite winter fashion item is my French beret and plaid pants, which I get custom made in Scotland.

KDH: What is the greatest part about your job? If you could snap your fingers and instantly have another career~ what would be your dream job?

AE: I meet new people all the time and I like to talk to them and then I always remember them because I take their picture. I like photography so I wouldn’t want to have any other career. In fact, I like it so much that my daughter Sophie is now a photographer, and my son Warren is becoming a film maker.

KDH: Do you have a “best kept secret” place to shoot in the Hamptons? Please share one?

AE: Yes~ but I’m not going to share it, maybe you’ll see it in a photo if you look very carefully.

KDH: What did you do for your Hamptons holiday season? Travel or stay out East?

AE: We spent it in New York City. My son Ansel [pictured left] was in a show, Guys and Dolls, at La Guardia Arts High school. He was playing Sky Masterson so we went to all 8 performances and shot two dress rehearsals. Then we had family over for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and 12 more for boxing day and it was nice to see my mother-in-law on one couch and my daughter on the other.

KDH: If you could photograph anyone [dead or alive] who would you choose?

AE:  Louis Armstrong and maybe Sidney Bechet~ who were both before my time.

KDH: What is your favorite magazine?

AE: Gramophone magazine, I read it religiously.

KDH: Who is your favorite model to work with right now?

AE: Karlie Kloss because she’s got the body of a dancer and she can jump and she’s a nice girl whom I’ve known since she started and she hasn’t changed that much.

KDH: Whose photography inspires you most?

AE: Irving Penn, Dick Avedon and Cartier-Bresson because they’re good and they did something with themselves.