I’ve known Buck and Darryl for a little while now, so I’ve seen their apartment take shape over the three years since they moved in, yet I never considered the idea that perhaps there was a solitary driving force behind its ever changing aesthetic until recently when I went to take photos of it for Eye Spy.
Darryl: I guess you could say that this apartment is meant to be enjoyed while high.
Buck: Yeah, I mean we’re stoned a lot.
Maybe this is something you’d think would be hard to miss but I always figured the constant design fluctuations were a symptom of the space being a hobby, not an intentional plan to create an experience. Either way, I do find myself musing over its many, many elements every time I’m here and now you can too. And it is with that, that I invite you to “come along for the ride” (sorry, I needed something to go with the picture above) in Buck and Darryl’s Williamsburg, Brooklyn abode.
Click on me to make me bigger!
As soon as you enter the building you’ll find teasers to what’s waiting for you inside their front door. All of these things have been placed outside of the apartment in the hallway that they share with other tenants.
Although both have contributed in different ways to the appearance, it’s Buck who’s mainly responsible for the decor. Most of the photos he’s taken himself.
Me: Where do you get your sensibility from? I know your mom is artistic. Is it from your parents?
Buck: It’s from pot brownies.
Me: That’s a better answer. Can I write that?
Buck: Sure. I mean on a serious note, I would say that psychedelia and trippy things always stand out to me. So yeah in a way it is drug influenced. But I also do it sober.
The first photo is a picture that Buck took. It shows their friend Joe in the reflection of Darryl’s sunglasses. Click on it for a better view.
Me: So Darryl, does Buck ever allow you to put anything up?
Darryl: Uh….no. I can make suggestions.
Buck: I think it’s Darryl’s tolerance, that he allows me to do it, which makes me get more into it.
Me: So Darryl, what have you done then?
Darryl: I make the brownies for him.
Me: Is that all?
Darryl: I also painted. I put up shelves, assembled furniture.
Darryl: I had these jugs made. You can put that in your article. Then people will say “Nice jugs”. It’s funny cause it’s like, another word for tits, you know?
Me: This old camera is one of my favorites.
Darryl: Who gave that to you?
Buck: Uh, Jen. I just like the camera though. It’s not like it’s sentimental to me.
Darryl: (Yelling from the kitchen) He has no emotional attachment to it WHAT SO EVER!
Me: Darryl, what do you think about all of these knick knacks?
Darryl: I have a love/hate relationship with knick knacks.
Buck: When we were kids he’d always come over and my mom would have stuff out. He’d always be playing with them. I’d be like “You like them.” and he’d be like “No I don’t!”
Darryl: I like the knick knacks but they elicit a very familiar feeling of clutter because I lived in a place that was always a mess. So I like the stuff, so long as it’s clean and organized.
Me: Were all of these National Geographics at your mom’s house? Is this the clutter you were talking about?
Darryl: Those are actually from Buck’s house.
Me: So did your parents hold onto everything too?
Buck: They did have them on a shelf in our basement and I told them what my idea was to do with them and they were fine with it. But I think my brother was like “So what’d you do with the magazines?” I mean, he’s not a hoarder, but he will keep shit. I’ll be like “Dude, they were on a dark shelf in our basement, no one was looking at them and now they’re on the wall.” But he’s like “You threw the magazines away?” and I’m like “Yeah. One was like a 1983 article on Honduras. Do you want me to bring it back for you?”
Me: Your place is like an advent calendar. Every time I open a cabinet there’s a picture waiting for me. What’s that all about? Did you see that somewhere?
Darryl: I think it’s cause he ran out of walls.
Buck: I just always like having stuff to look at. When I go to people’s houses that don’t have anything on the walls, I’m like God, how do you do that? How do you not put stuff up?
Me: You mean you even like to just come home and sit here and stare at the walls?
Buck: Oh my God. Yes. For hours. And if I’m a little fucked up I’ll look at the clock and it’ll be four in the morning and I’m like “Go to bed!”
This is a beverage napkin from a local bar.
Outdoor space where we live is hard to come by so I’ve always thought the deck was one of the coolest parts about their place. Darryl and a friend built the whole thing themselves. He’s especially proud of the one foot X four foot shed that he attached. It may not seem like much, but in New York, we’ll take what we can get.
Me: Well thanks so much guys. I really appreciate you letting me come here and snoop around with my camera. In closing, how do you think you’d describe your apartment overall?
Darryl: Two straight dudes. One gay cat.
Me: The cat is gay?
Darryl: I hope so.
