For sisters Ana Zampino O’Neill and Sarah Bauer, the idea behind Atelier Modern began with a simple question: What if discovering great art felt less intimidating, and a lot more personal?
Located in Larchmont, New York, Atelier Modern brings contemporary art into conversation with interiors and objects for everyday living. Collectors, families, and curious newcomers can explore without feeling like they need to know the rules before walking through the door.
For O’Neill, that philosophy grew out of years spent around the auction world, where she was drawn to encountering important works in person, different from viewing art from a distance in a museum. That stayed with her after she relocated from Manhattan to Larchmont. When she and Bauer created Atelier Modern, they wanted to preserve that sense of discovery while removing the barriers that can make traditional galleries feel inaccessible.
The result is a space designed to encourage people to linger, look closely, ask questions, and figure out what they personally respond to.
Art That Belongs in Real Life
Atelier Modern doesn’t treat art as something separate from the rest of a home. Paintings and sculptures are presented alongside decorative objects, including limited-edition pillows, hand-blown glassware, and distinctive serveware.
“Ultimately, you want art to tell a part of the story of your home,” O’Neill says. “It should be something you are proud of and enjoy living with every day.”
Rather than four pristine walls where visitors observe from a distance, O’Neill approaches the gallery more like a home, one where art interacts with furniture, objects, and daily life. That distinction matters most for visitors who might be interested in collecting but have never considered themselves “art people.” Families can visit together, children can experience contemporary work firsthand, and the gallery and its receptions remain free and open to the public.
Finding the Work That Finds You
Not everyone walks through the door knowing exactly what they want, and O’Neill believes that uncertainty can be part of the fun. Instead of starting with a checklist of established tastes, she encourages clients to see a range of work and notice what catches them emotionally.
Sometimes the best way to make that decision is to take the art home. Atelier Modern lets clients live with a piece before committing: seeing it against a particular wall, under a home’s natural light, alongside furniture already there can completely change how someone feels about it. A piece that seemed perfect in the gallery may not work in a specific room; another may suddenly feel indispensable once it’s in the home. For O’Neill, that’s exactly how collecting should work: the goal isn’t to tell someone what to like, but to help them discover it for themselves.
A Gallery With a Local Point of View
Atelier Modern has a distinctly contemporary sensibility, but its connection to the surrounding community matters just as much. Like O’Neill, many artists have left Manhattan for neighboring communities throughout Westchester, and now have the chance to show their work closer to home, in Larchmont, rather than only in the city. For residents who’ve left New York but still want culture and sophisticated contemporary art in their lives, Atelier Modern offers another place for those interests to thrive locally.
Putting Artists First
O’Neill has been deliberate about creating an environment where artists feel supported rather than controlled. She is invested in an artist’s long-term success, not just the sale of a single piece. That commitment extends into the community: O’Neill co-chairs the burgeoning Larchmont Arts Festival, and Atelier Modern sponsors the nationally recognized Armonk Outdoor Art Show, bringing people together to experience and celebrate art at varying levels.
Redefining the Gallery Experience
At its heart, Atelier Modern is built around a simple belief: art should be part of life, not something people need permission to enter. The gallery isn’t trying to replace museums, auction houses, or traditional galleries. It offers another point of entry, centered on hospitality, interiors, and discovery.
That is the world Ana Zampino O’Neill and Sarah Bauer are building at Atelier Modern: a place where the distance between art and everyday life disappears.
