Lacquered wooden door with carved detailing. 98 x 30''.

This would have perhaps been the door separating two rooms of the single unit, a door to a lounge, or possibly even the door to a communal eating space.

This door has been consigned by Mr. Jim Georgiou, an accomplished man who had been a previous tenant at the Chelsea (along with his dog, Teddy). Unfortunately, Jim ended up having to leave his beloved home at the hotel, winding up on the street. During this time, he would occasionally return to the Chelsea, to use the restrooms. This was during the beginnings of the renovations on the building. It was as a result of one of these forays into the Chelsea that Jim recovered the doors. Mr. Georgiou recognized the doors' importance as symbols of the accomplished and controversial figures that lived in the hotel when it was a bohemian haven.

Jim Georgiou is now no longer without a home, but certainly remembers his time on the streets. Per his request, a portion of the proceeds from the auction of the doors will go to City Harvest, the non-profit organization that pioneered food rescue in 1982. This year, City Harvest will rescue 59 million pounds of nutritious food and deliver it to 500 community food programs across New York City, helping to feed the nearly 1.3 million New Yorkers facing hunger.

This item is being sold without reserve.

Although the attributions of the Doors of the Chelsea to their associated icons have been made based on extensive research of material written on the figures of the Chelsea, as well as interviews with previous residents and employees of the Hotel, and many of these attributions are borne out by various sources, no definite attribution is possible. As such, each door is purchased "as is" and neither Guernsey's nor the consigner is able to provide any warranty or representation confirming the provenance of any door. See Section 1 of the terms and conditions of sale. No statement by anyone or in the catalogue, in any advertisement, or which is made at the sale, in the bill of sale or invoice, or elsewhere, shall be deemed a representation or guarantee of attribution or an assumption of liability.

Statement from consigner Jim Georgiou:

The journey of these iconic Chelsea Doors began with my arrival at the hotel on September 9th, 2002. For the next decade, while I lived in the building, not only was I witness to the magic of these hallowed halls, but was able to share thoughts, feelings, and anecdotes - a living history of the building - with my neighbors. These people were instrumental in unveiling the rich legacy behind these doors, allowing me to proceed with inspiration towards gaining a clearer and more elaborate story of the 'dream palace.'

Once I left the hotel, and had access to years of old-timers sharing their memories within its walls, this became the basis for how to proceed with what turned out to be exhaustive research. The angles and tributaries to this research are multi-dimensional, and in light of continuing valuable revelations could be on-going. However there is a timeline and we have come to the end of it. What I am disclosing here is a definitive list which includes some of the most important people of the 20th century. In some cases, I did not have strong enough information to make a solid attribute to a specific door. In other cases, there were numerous potential attributions based on the transient nature of hotel living, but only few could be captured definitively like moments frozen in time.

That said, this amazing roster makes it crystal clear that every one of these doors is a precious artifact of an epoch never to be witnessed again. The magic, the fantasy...the impossible realities lie within them all...

Chelsea Hotel List of 'Significants'
r-resident
g-guest
v-visitor
c-collaborator

Mark Twain-g
W.E.B. DuBois-
Virgil Thompson-r
Bob Dylan- r
Jackson Pollock-g-v
Jimi Hendrix-r-g-v
Thomas Wolfe-r
John Sloan-r
D.W. Griffith-v
Ornette Coleman-g-v
Charles Ives-v
Maurice Grosser-r<
H.L. Mencken-g-v
Bela Bartok-r
Tennessee Williams-r-g
Jim Morrison-g-v
Leonard Bernstein-v
Leonard Cohen-r
Janice Joplin-r-g
Dylan Thomas-r-g
Carl Van Vechten-v
Charles James-r
Andy Warhol-v-c
John Cage-v
Isabella Rossellini-r
Joni Mitchell-r
Bill Graham-g-v-c
Herbert Huncke-r-v
Roger Waters-g-v
Nico-g-v-c
Arnold Schoenberg-v-c
Madonna-r-v-c
Sir Thomas Beecham-v
Humphrey Bogart-g
Shirley Clark-r
Moby Grape-g-v
Liam Neeson-v-c
Tom Waits-r-g-v
Arthur Miller-r
The Rolling Stones-g-v
Peter Bartok-v
Jefferson Airplane-v-c
Aaron Copland-v-c
Vali Myers-r
Quicksilver Messenger Service-g-v
Prince of Wales-g
William S. Burroughs-r-g-v
Lillian Gish-g-v
Marcel Duchamp-v
Willem de Kooning-r-g-v
Abdullah Ibrahim aka Dollar Brand-r
Goddard Leiberson-v
Grover Cleveland-v
Igor Stravinsky-v
W.H. Auden-r-g
Albert King-g-v-c
Henry Cowell-v
Titanic Survivors-g
Bette Davis-r-g
Jimmy Rowles-r-g
Martine Barat-r
Edgard Varese-v
Robbie Robertson-g-v
Iggy Pop-r-v
Eugene Berman-v
Nadia Boulanger-v
Timothy Leary-g-v-c
Elvin Jones-g-
Grateful Dead-g-v
William Porter aka O. Henry-r-g-v
Storme DeLarverie-r
Jack Kerouac-r-v
Grace Slick-g-v
Dasheill Hammett-g-v
Bernard & Judith Childs-r
Ethel Barrymore-g-v
Marilyn Monroe-r-g-v
Jaco Pastorius-v-c
Roy Harris-v
Mick Jagger-v
Dennis Hopper-r-g-v
Gerald Busby-r-c
Vernon Duke-v
Yves Tanguy-v
Julio di Diego-r-g
John Cale-r-g-c
Robert Mapplethorpe-r
Greg Corso-r
Edgar Lee Masters-r
Moe Asch-v-c
Grace Slick-g
Brian Jones-g-v
Pierre Boulez-v
Joseph Szigeti-v
Gore Vidal-g
Elia Kazan-g-v-c
Vladimir Horowitz-v
William Saroyan-g-v
Carl Ruggles-r-g
Bob Marley-r
Lee Jaffee-r
Hall Overton-v
Leopold Stokowski-v
Larry Rivers-r
Iggy Pop-r-g-v
Christo/Jean Claude-r
Orson Wells-v
Peggy Glanville Hicks-v-c
Annie Russell-g-v
Sean Penn-c
Don Cherry-r-v
Arthur C. Clarke-r
George Kleinsinger-r
Allen Ginsberg-r-g
Edie Sedgwick-r-c
Peter Fonda-g
Grace Jones-r-g-v
Eric Clapton-v
Jessica Mitford-r
Sam Shepherd-r-v
Mary Pickford-g-v
Jerry Garcia-g-v-c
Isadora Duncan-g-v
Viva-r
Arnold Weinstein-r
Sathima Bea Benjamin-r
Philip Taafe-r
Charles Bukowski-r-v
Sarah Bernhardt-g
Joe Andoe-r
Christopher Isherwood-r
Robert Crumb-r-g-v
Guy Harloff-r-c
Patti Smith-r
Kevin Eggers-r
Richard Hell-g-v
Chick Corea-r
Bettina Grossman-r
Harry Smith-r-c
Gore Vidal-g-v
Tallulah Bankhead-v
Sterling Hayden-v
Juliette Hamelecourt-r-c
Kathryn Dunham-r-g
Julian Schnabel-r-g-v
Samuel Barber-v-c
Kenneth Noland-r
Angela Davis-v
Lillian Hellman-g-v
Richard Bernstein-r
David Diamond-v
Simone de Beauvoir-g
Phil Lynott-r
Rene Ricard-r
Nat Hentoff-v
George Antheil-g-v
Norman Gosney-r
Rita Barros-r
Lou Reed-v-c
Lillian Russell-g-v
David Remfry-r-c
Frank Knox Morton Rehn-r
Martin Scorsese-v-c
Faye Templeton-r
David Diamond-v-c
Robert Lambert-r-v
Nicola Z.-r
Paul Bowles-r-g-v
George Balanchine-v
Peggy Guggenheim-v
Phil Ochs-g-v-c
Robert DeNiro-v-c
Tony Notaberradino-r
Mildred Baker-r
Elaine Dundy-r
Walter Piston-v
Alphaeus Cole-r
William Schuman-v-c
Quentin Crisp-r
John Hammond-v-c
Jean Gray-r
Roger Sessions-v
Gus Hall-r
Dee Dee Ramone-r
Charles Melville Dewey-r
Raymond Foye-r
Salvador Dali-g-v
Peter Walker-r
Dave Van Ronk-g-v
Chester Arthur-v
Ed & Debbie Hamilton -r-c
Theodora Keough-r
Brendan Behan-r-g-v
Scott Griffin-r
Gil Scott Heron-r
Ethel Barrymore-r-g
John LaTouche-r
Philip Ramey-v
Patrick O'Neil-r
Elliott Carter-v-c
Robert Fine-v
Elizabeth Gurley Flynn-r
Joe Gould-v
Joseph Cotton-v
Joseph Cummings Chase-r-g
Robert Carse-r
Tim Sullivan-r
Deborah Harry-g-v-c
Mary Fanton Roberts-r
Edith Piaf-g
Jeff Beck-g
Warren Bower-r
Joseph O'Neil-r
Carl Sandberg-g-v
Marc Blitzstein-v
Agnes Boulton-r-g
Leon Dabo-r
Eva Tanguay-g-v
Zito-g-v
Theodore Dreiser-g-v
Jasper Johns-r
Jonas Mekas-r
Sophia Danza-r

Bibliography

Interviews with: Jerry Weinstein (Chelsea Hotel Front Desk Manager 1979-2007, in possession of Chelsea front desk registers), Chris Von Hummel (resident), Raymond Foye (resident starting in 1976), Kyle Taylor, Rita Barros (resident), Francis Love (habitué), Timur Cinquente (desk worker/bellman), Rick Librizzi (tenant, 30 years), Norman Gosney, Storme Delarverie, Lola Schnabel, Dan Cohen, Maureen Meloy, Zev Greenfield, Drew Straub, Arnold Weinstein. Also with the help of: Stanley Bard, David Bard, Michelle Bard, Gerald Busby, Michelle Zalopany, Arthur Weinstein, Colleen Weinstein, Dahlia Weinstein, Jon Berg, Susan Reiner, Debbie Martin, Ed Hamilton, Scott Griffin, Steve Willis, Brian Bothwell, Meli Pennington, David Remfry, Martine Barat, Arthur Nash, Tim Sullivan, Carolyn Hansberry, Judith Childs, Tony Notaberradino, Mark Timmerman, Richard Markowitz, Merle Lister, Gerard DeColl, Abel Ferrar, Kevin Eggers, Dan Courtenay, Laura Kaplan, Robert Lambert, Sathima Bea Benjamin, Abdullah Ibrahim, Sakwe Ibrahim, Jeanne Gray, Joe O'Neil, Joe Andoe, Ivan Cordoba, and Julio Valdeon.

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