SNAKE Q&A 004: Intramural Shop
Vintage dealer Bijan Shahvali on employees-only gear, RL cutlery, a monthly flea, trash & more
Now at Snake: Every other Friday or so an interview with a person in good standing of the newsletter whose taste in vintage, furniture, collectibles and adjacent fields is worth celebrating and learning from. Expect sellers, buyers, set decorators, artists, adjacents, etc…
here’s the fourth…
Bijan / Instagram / Brooklyn NY / Vintage seller from LA based in NY attempting to raise the market perception of Getty Center tees to reach that of MoMA tees /
Bijan runs Intramural (IG above) which specializes in higher level, sometimes literary vintage. Much abounds: an Intramural-Herman Miller popup at the HM store on 251 Park Ave S. starting Thursday; a spring exhibit with GOAT, and a high/low collab coffee with Homecoming, the Greenpoint store. Check it all out. (Intramural web store here)
SNAKE Q&A 004
Fav flea market?
Rose Bowl.
Best flea market day ever—what did you get?
Sometime last year at Rose Bowl, I found a tee from the now-shuttered book store I went to growing up.
Best eBay purchase?
A pair of deadstock jeans from the clothing company my Dad and uncle started and ran in the 90s. Unfortunately they didn't fit me, but did give it away to my cousin so it's still in the family.
Second-best: an employees-only Herman Miller monogram luggage set from the 80s.
Best Craigslist find?
A mid-90s Jerry Seinfeld for Colgate poster promoting flossing in its original dentist office frame. Guy listed it as a “Jerry Steinfield” poster.
Best LiveAuctioneers find?
Roy Lichtenstein ‘Save Our Planet Save Our Water’ lithograph from 1971.
IG seller account you hang out on/look at their stuff the most?
@procell da 🐐 no 🧢.
Thing you most regret passing on?
Panavision Statue of Liberty tee.
Best thing you got for insanely cheap?
Nest Magazine Issue #1 for like a dollar.
Best thing you overpaid for?
College.
Favorite piece of furniture you own?
George Nakashima bookshelf.
What’s one thing you own that you won’t ever sell?
2000 tour tee from Iranian popstar Googoosh.
Piece you have now that you despise and want to replace?
My white Kartell Componibili 2 tier unit. I’ve tried it in every corner of our apartment and feel like it throws off the feng shui wherever it is.
Who do you think sold more records: Nelly Furtado or Three 6 Mafia?
Probably Nelly, but she never won an Oscar.
Secret spot that you love but won’t tell anyone about (please describe as judiciously as possible while omitting any identifiable characteristics)?
Trash days in “old money” neighborhoods.
Rarest/most canon vintage thing you have but never wear?
I have a couple Bill Traylor tees from the 1990s that I think are really special but never wear.
Most jealousy-inducing thing you’ve seen? (e.g. I saw a guy in Foremost jeans once in 2012 and I’ve never gotten over it)
Anytime I see a Portishead “Dummy” tee. The more worn out, the more jealousy-inducing.
Favorite Russian novelist?
Nabokov.
Is there a field of collecting are you looking to get into in the near future? (Furniture era/paper/autographs/stamps/model trains/computer shirts/90s Harley shirts/digital watches/lighters/slot cars/faberge eggs/Amish quilts etc)
Invitations from fashion shows and night clubs in the 90s.
What’s the item that’s been on your watchlist the longest without you having pulled the trigger?
These Ralph Lauren ‘Harbour’ utensils. [since sold—Snake]
Is the best vintage/furniture online or in the wild?
It’s both.
Has all the cool shit been discovered? (Yes or no answer only)
No.
Any vintage accounts you want to rep or boost? Furniture? (feel free to include local spots)
@geoffsnack, @chadsenzel, @veryspecial, @commonusebooks, @highvalleybooks
Follow Bijan and Intramural Shop on Instagram