• R 20th Century

  82 Franklin Street, 212-343-7979; R20thcentury.com

  There are still plenty of stores where aspiring design-mafia types can pick up an Eames chair or a Saarinen table. But vintage-modern hounds who long ago moved on to less predictable labels stop first at R 20th Century. While other dealers increasingly rely on pickers or eBay, Evan Snyderman and Zesty Meyers personally search the globe for stock, which they sell to museums worldwide. True, major names are represented (like Verner Panton), but R’s owners are passionate about bringing recognition to unknown designers. They’re currently hot on Wendell Castle (represented by 30 pieces), Brazilian Sergio Rodrigues (an exhibit is set for fall), and Poul Kjaerholm. Of course, the shock of the old doesn’t come cheap: Prices range from $200 for Scandinavian ceramics to $85,000 for a rare Panton lamp.

From the 2004 Best of New York issue of New York Magazine