The Bride Wore a Three-Piece Gown for Her Surrealist Wedding at Her Family’s Sculpture Park in Amagansett
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In 2008, eighth grader Gaby Novogratz did something bold: she friended Zach Spohler, a cute boy from another New York private school, on Facebook. For nine months, they scrolled through each other’s tagged photos and wrote on each other’s “walls.” Finally, after what Gaby calls some “expertly orchestrated high school scheming,” they met for the first time outside the Pinkberry on 82nd Street and 2nd Avenue. Then, they promptly kissed around the corner.
Their official first date, however, happened as seniors in high school. Zach asked Gaby to dinner at Bubby’s in Tribeca. They both ordered the burger...despite the fact Gaby hadn’t eaten red meat in years. (“I was so nervous that I told the waiter, ‘I’ll have what he’s having,’” she says, laughing.) Soon after, they had another date back at Pinkberry—where Zach asked Gaby to prom.
Fifteen years later, Gaby, the founder of digital shopping encyclopedia The (Shop) Archive, and Zach, cofounder of cannabis aperitifs brand Artet, flew from their home in Los Angeles to visit family in New York City. On a warm spring night, Zach asked Gaby if she wanted to get a drink with his brother uptown. As they walked up 2nd Avenue, Zach stopped her in front of a heart-shaped floral installation. It’s then Gaby realized they weren’t just on 2nd Avenue—but on 82nd and 2nd. Zach got down on one knee right in front of the old Pinkberry. “I felt a lot more relaxed this time compared to the first two times I had propositioned Gaby,” Zach says.
In June 2024, the couple threw a three-day wedding at the bride’s family home in Amagansett, planned by Melissa Sullivan of Studio Sully. It began on Thursday with a rehearsal dinner in the Novogratz’s backyard, where Gaby wore a 1999 Chanel runway gown sourced by Tab Vintage. “It is objectively the coolest dress I have ever worn,” she says. The groom, meanwhile, opted for a custom white suit from Bode with embroidery that told the story of their relationship. (“Dare I say that Zach almost out-dressed me on our wedding weekend,” Gaby says.)
After the speeches, guests boarded buses to local dive bar Stephen Talkhouse—another special place to the couple, as it’s where their parents first bonded over tequila shots. The bride changed into a strapless dress from The Row so she could dance well into the morning.
On Friday, they transformed the Novogratz pool into their own beach club, complete with striped red-and-white cabanas and an Artet bar. Gaby wore a bikini under a sheer lace maxi dress by tailor Bill Bull, a friend of Gaby’s who she also describes as her “most intimidating fashion critic.” They served pizza and wine—which came with a custom label that said “Gautier Clyde”.
“We both have middle names that we love, but never really had any good use for—which I guess is a common plight for middle names everywhere,” Gaby explains. “At some point, we started using ‘Gautier Clyde’ in little places around the wedding like pool towels, matchboxes, and such. You could say that it became our little cheeky wedding brand.”
The next day, the couple married among the wildflowers in their sculpture park designed by Bas Smets. “He meticulously walked the landscape with us, carefully choosing the perfect clearing where we could create our ‘chapel en plein air,’” the bride says. “Surrounded by so much natural beauty, the park had an atmosphere that was both intimate and expansive. It felt like the perfect place to host such a meaningful day in our lives.”
Gaby walked down the aisle in a custom three-piece drop-waist gown with a bubble hem by Danielle Frankel to “Gigue 6.6,” Peter Gregson’s modern cello recomposition of Bach’s final suite. (Both the bride and groom played cello growing up and have maintained a strong love of classical music ever since.) Zach waited for her in a Ralph Lauren tuxedo and a vest made from Dior scarves under an Alexander Calder–inspired chuppah. “Since we were getting married in an art park, the idea of incorporating a piece of art into our ceremony felt so fitting. It wasn’t just a backdrop, but a unique structure that added to the overall experience, blending art and nature in a way that felt deeply personal,” says Gaby. “The chuppah symbolized not only our connection to one another, but also the creativity and intentionality we wanted to weave throughout the day.” Zach’s triplet, Lindsay, officiated their ceremony as their family and friends watched on from abstract floral chairs as well as wire and wooden benches. After a ceremony where Gaby felt that “time stood still,” the two kissed as the soft golden-hour sun shone overhead.
