HOOK

It's a place to foster crea5vity, read a book, exchange ideas, feel the energy, lie in the sun, and sip iced tea in the shade amongst the hostas and the bleeding hearts. Observe, admire and just breathe. Breathe the scent of honey suckle. Prepare meals with family over wine and enjoy the freshest of food or local fa- vorite Hudson Valley restaurant haunts. And if the culinary arts are more your thing, then surely the kitchen here is a canvas to create. The cookbooks on the shelf aren't just for show, but to inspire guests to pre- pare meals in the seemingly simple yet grand kitchen that's complete with three commercial ovens and two dishwash- ers. Stocked with enough wine glasses for 100 (kahng has hosted weddings on property in the art gallery barn) silver pla6ers and pewter candle holders, the stage is set for fine dining and entertaining but with a down-to-earth vibe that's decidedly "upstate." With five bedrooms and three and a half baths the home has been a guest favorite for friends to gather, family reunions, retreats and girls' get- aways. But the pulse of the place comes from kahng's original pain5ngs that hang throughout the house. Each room is ou4i6ed with proper gallery rails that allow for easy hang- ing and cura5ng. The pain5ngs rotate rooms and o%en change, depending on what pieces are sent out to galleries featuring kahng's work. Her subject of choice is animals but elevated by a sense of social commentary. Taking inspira- 5on from the portraits of nobility from the Renaissance and Baroque era, kahng adorns the animals with gems and jew- elry befi7ng of kings and queens. And gilded hand-carved frames finish the look. The work is meant to challenge the human percep5on of animals and our responsibility to the environment. Transla5ng that same sen5ment to the home, every touch point inside the house has a connec5on to nature and the environment. The beds are dressed in natural fibers, the table napkins are linen, fresh flowering branches from the grounds bring the outside in and guests are encouraged to cook with the fresh herbs and vegetables from the gardens. A stay here embraces it all. So, channel your inner ar5st, writer, gardener or chef. Convene your closest crew and head to Hopewell Junc5on, the house of kahng is here. www.gemmakahng.com www.airbnb.com/rooms/20871180?check_in=2024-06- 02&check_out=2024-06- 07&guests=1&adults=1&s=67&unique_share_id=21cf4e90- eb96-4286-b9ec-a0e6f99ff7b5 2024 | HOOK MAGAZINE 25 The living room is reminiscent of a Venetian grand salon where art history books coexist with upstate journals, dual crystal chande- liers hang and a full-sized piano graces the room just waiting to be played.

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