Explore the Extraordinary at Michael Weems’ Collections

Palm Springs is a fabulous collection of contradictions. We are relaxing yet fun-filled, sea level with a dramatic dash of mountain views, and endlessly flirty without being overly aggressive.

And our unique dichotomy is on full display in the Michael Weems Collection.

His store is conveniently located in the epicenter of downtown, but you will feel as though your imagination is being whisked away to France and/or back in time to a midcentury Babylon. From delicate designs to brash collectibles with a dash of NSFW, Weems is deliriously indefinable.

“It’s hard for me to peg down because I do so many kinds of things,” he explains. “I do these really irreverent coasters with horrible little sayings on them.

Elegant Glassware

And then I do this beautiful new Michael Weems Collection of elegant glassware and crystal, which heralds back to my time to before my gallery.”

“I had worked for Tiffany and Gucci for years and after my tenure at Tiffany and Company, I realized that I wanted to bring art to the table. So I taught myself how to etch and carve glass.”

Clearly, Weems had a knack for couture.

“My first client out of the gate was Saks Fifth Avenue and it went from there and I sold to the best stores in the world, including all the guests for the Bush White House… So when Bush or John Ashcroft, his attorney general would travel to France, they would give a piece of my work to Jacques Chirac or the president of Japan or the king of Saudi Arabia. And it was really, really flattering.”

As he reminisces, Weems finally drops the ultimate mic: “Oprah was a client,” he beams.

Welcome to Palm Springs

“So it was really a lovely thing, but when I moved to Palm Springs, I was like, I just need to be here and have a gallery. I don’t want to travel anymore. I don’t want to do this anymore. We were making 350,000 pieces of glass a year in my studio and I wanted to do something else. And that’s what brought me to Palm Springs. I wanted to have a gallery. I wanted to just be quiet, not ever have to get on a plane for years and just relax and do a different kind of artwork. And for 15 years, that’s what I’ve done.”

He still savors the moment when he fell in love with our humble hamlet.

“It was in April, I was lying at a pool and there was still some snow in the mountains. And I’m lying there and it was warm and sunny and the sun was perfect. It’s so different than an east coast sun and of course, humidity. And I was like, you know what? This is fantastic. I need to be here. It just felt like home.

But Weems didn’t regard the transition lightly. “It took actually 14 years beyond that to move to Palm Springs and I didn’t know a soul. I left a relationship to come here because my partner didn’t want to come. And I was like, I just need to be there. So I’m moving. I made it happen and I just absolutely love it. I still love it. I’ve always loved it.”

Happiness

Weems divulges his enduring life mission. “I love to bring happiness to people’s homes. Everybody comes into my gallery, they have a good time, they laugh. It’s fun and that’s the goal. If I’m not doing that, I’m not happy and it’s not worth it because people are on vacation to have fun.”

Sealing his love letter to our fair berg with a kiss, Weems concludes, “I’m always honored when people come into my gallery because they don’t have to come in. They could go anywhere. There’s tons of things to do in Palm Springs.”

And your itinerary starts here:

Michael Weems Collection

384 N Palm Canyon Dr. – (760) 534-1805

By Kevin Perry