As founder of tech startup ArtBinder, a digital platform for galleries, artists, and collectors, **Alexandra Chemla’**s daily grind involves straddling two very different worlds. There’s the tech world that most of her team inhabits—practical, no-frills, and notoriously casual—and then there’s the art world from which her clients hail—glamorous, artistic, visual. Her wardrobe, by necessity, reflects that dichotomy.
“I always have to be prepared to spend five hours with engineers in front of a screen and then go to a fancy gallery opening immediately afterward,” she says. It isn’t easy, but Chemla’s managed to find common ground. “I didn’t realize this until I started ArtBinder but technology is very creative,” she says. “It is similar to what I love about art; they’re both about innovation and pushing boundaries and questioning norms and existing boundaries.” Here, she tells us how she maintains an artful wardrobe balance from the office to the art fair.
Day to Day I dress more like an art world gallerist than a Silicon Valley exec because that was the industry I’ve always wanted to be a part of—my passion has always been art. When I was in college, I thought I wanted to be a museum curator. I never took a tech or business class. After I graduated I started working at an art gallery and it was there that I came up with the idea for ArtBinder, while working as the front desk assistant.
We’re a tech company, but I m surrounded by creative, art-world people. That has a huge impact on how I like to dress. Because I’m also sitting with engineers all day and working long hours, I have to be comfortable. I usually aim to strike a balance between casual and fancy: either black Rag Bone jeans, or my aunt actually has a line called Avenue Montaigne that I always wear because they’re the best-fitting, most flattering pants ever. They look nice and professional but they’re also supercomfortable.
And then I’ll wear a crisp white tee or a black tee. The key to making a T-shirt look appropriate for work is to pick one that’s not too thin or transparent. Something that has structure. I love LnA T-shirts, but I also like American Apparel and Hanes, which just get better the more I wear and wash them. I tend to wear a lot of black and white, but this summer I’m trying to incorporate more color in my wardrobe. I walk a lot during the day because our office is in Chelsea, walking distance to a lot of our clients: I wear sneakers, or a pair of slippers my mom bought for me in Morocco; I also love Charlotte Olympia and Miu Miu flats. One of my go-to bags is Prada, it used to be my mom’s travel bag but I use it as an everyday bag. I’m someone who carries her whole life with them.
At Night
Because my main outfit is so basic, I’ll use accessories to keep things interesting. I’m lucky, my sister [Alison Chemla] is a jewelry designer so it makes it supereasy. I put on some of her pieces and it’s like oh, suddenly I have an outfit. I usually have a lot of necklaces on and more often than not, they
re tangled—I happen to think they
re cute that way. And I wear bracelets and earrings every day too. For evening, if I’m wearing a fancy dress I might want that to be the focus so I’ll take off my necklaces. Or I’ll swap out my studs for statement earrings.
And I’ll usually change into heels—I’m becoming more and more drawn to fun statement shoes, especially because if it’s one of those nights where I had to go straight from the office, I can put them on and make the outfit about the shoes. Charlotte Olympia and Prada are perfect for that kind of thing. If I have time to change, I like a pencil skirt and a cute crop top for evening; I really love Miu Miu this season, and also Wes Gordon and Marni. I think the most important thing for night is something is flattering on your body type.
Art Fairs
I always wear flats to art fairs because it’s a lot of walking. I love the way a little miniskirt looks with a cute pair of sneakers—again, combining casual with dressy. If I wear nicer pants, I’ll wear it with a T-shirt. If I have a nice jacket on, I’ll wear it with a pair of jeans.
What the Client Sees
I do think that wardrobe plays a part in the way that you
re received professionally. When I’m meeting with clients it’s important that I look like someone they can trust, someone that’s reliable. I can’t be wearing a ripped T-shirt. But if I’m too buttoned up, it gives the wrong impression because first of all, it’s inauthentic. And secondly there’s a perception in the art world that if you’re really buttoned up, it’s like you’re putting up a front, like what’s behind all those layers?
You never want to wear anything too distracting. I took a public speaking class and my teacher told me that whenever we spoke we should always wear black and no jewelry because anything like a dangly earring can distract from what you are discussing. So it’s a balance: not too fancy, not too casual; not too distracting, not too boring. At the end of the day, I want to look like myself.
