via www.bravotv.com
I was reading the comments on the Apartment Therapy post "Are you watching 9 by Design on Bravo?" and was completely annoyed by the devolved trolling about kids and overpopulation and complete lack of serious discussion about what the show is really about. I, for one, watch and love the show. Here is my reply to Apartment Therapy's question:
The Novogratz's are fascinating people. Utterly fascinating. One
article about them printed a while ago (NYTimes or perhaps The New
Yorker) compared them to Nicole and Dick Diver, a couple in F. Scott
Fitzgerald's Tender is the Night, which reminded me of one of my
favorite lines from the book:
"Her naivete responded whole-heartedly to the expensive simplicity of
the Divers, unaware of its complexity and its lack of innocence, unaware
that it was all a selection of quality rather than quantity from the
run of the world's bazaar; and that the simplicity of behavior also, the
nursery-like peace and good will, the emphasis on the simpler virtues,
was part of a desperate bargain with the gods and had been attained
through struggles she could not have guessed at."
Much of the Novogratz's history as a couple is available to read on the
internet, and can be read about in their book Downtown Chic, so I won't
repeat too much here. But it is important to note that they both came
from large families. This is obviously a cultural factor in their own
decision to have a big family.
But what I find even more fascinating is the Novogratz family history,
and its history of success. I'm not sure what sort of success Cortney's
side of the family has, but it's probably quite impressive as well.
Robert's siblings range from a very successful venture capitalist,
Michael Novogratz, to best-selling author and TED speaker Jacqueline
Novogratz, "founder and CEO of Acumen Fund, a non-profit global venture
fund that uses entrepreneurial approaches to solve the problems of
global poverty," says her wikipedia file. And there are several other
siblings as well, perhaps just as successful if not as public.
What is it about their upbringing that makes them all so successful? I
would love to learn more. For some reason, I also thought I read
somewhere that their grandfather was an artist, but I can't find mention
of it anywhere now, so I'm not sure that's true.
One thing is clear in watching the show: They know how to maneuver and
negotiate and thrive in a very difficult environment: New York City,
real estate and development, lots of kids, and being successful design
professionals without having degrees. They are opportunistic in the
most creative of ways. Sure, they probably have opportunities available
to them that most of us wouldn't have, including access to people with
money, but opening just a few doors can lead to myriad more, and they
seem to be on a bit of a roll now. That is impressive.
Back in the early 2000's I went to a few of Robert's New Year's Eve
parties and they were quite the NYC fabulous events (except for the
liquor lines and the getting home afterwards). Having worked with one
of his relatives (not sure if it was a younger brother or cousin), I get
a kick out of watching and listening to Robert. My co-worker was
hilarious, a really sincerely nice person, and lots of fun, plus he knew
where the good parties were. So I get the sense that the Novogratz's
would be great fun to know, too. Authentic.
While watching the show or reading their book you won't get much design
"how to", you will see their negotiation skills and their creative
intuition at work. And that is downright inspiring.
