Jetsetting with The Artling's Talenia Phua Gajardo

SINGAPORE — Part Chilean and part Singaporean, the 30-year-old behind an online platform to sell and promote Asian art, The Artling, is a restless traveller and entrepreneur who has gone on to set up another venture with Luxglove. Think of it as eBay or Carousell, but way upgraded and curated — a marketplace for luxury watches, and luxury and vintage items. Gajardo is not stopping there.

This weekend, she brings the Luxglove Classic Car Weekend to Dempsey, where visitors can check out vintage wheels such as the 1959 Porsche 356A and 1978 BMW M1 along with talks on collecting watches and even rare whiskies. Gajardo travels almost every two to three weeks to visit art fairs, galleries and dealers for both The Artling and Luxglove. “It’s important to meet some of our sellers in person and to get to know them, to be in touch with the scene and to be on the ground so that we are tuned in

Q: Why did you decide to organise a classic-car weekend?

A: This is something that I have been dreaming of doing for a while. I’m personally very passionate about cars, especially classic and vintage ones, and I found that there was a large and expanding community of car lovers here. It is a great way of getting everyone together for a fun weekend.

Q: Do you personally collect anything?

A: Most of my collectibles are art and design items. And I enjoy picking up art and jewellery during my travels.

Q: Where are some of the best destinations to go shopping for collectibles?

A: I think the international fairs are great places to pick up items and they are a good excuse to visit a city. Two fairs that I visit and recommend are the Art Basel and Art Central in Hong Kong in March, and The European Fine Art Fair in Maastricht. Go to flea markets, too. The Le Marche aux Puces de Saint-Ouen is an amazing flea market in Paris for furniture and design collectibles while Alfie’s Market in London is good for antiques, jewellery and modern design items.

Q: Tell us about your best vacation.

A: The best trip I’ve had so far would have to be my honeymoon, which was an epic art pilgrimage to Marfa in Texas, commonly referred to as “an oasis in a desert town”. It took forever to get there but it was well worth the trip! Marfa is renowned for its amazing art collection and installation projects that were initiated by American minimalist artist, Donald Judd in the early 1970s. He built a non-profit art foundation, The Chinati Foundation, on the land he purchased for himself and his fellow artists with the specific intention “to preserve and present to the public permanent large-scale installations by a limited number of artists”. Seeing the artworks in that stunning desert landscape was an unforgettable experience, and I would highly recommend it.

Q: What are your travel shopping tips?

A: Quality over quantity, always. Do your research and map out your shopping trail beforehand. Save your locations on Google Maps so you can return to your discoveries or share them with others. Bring a spare hand-carry bag in case your new purchases don’t fit into your suitcase, and go with a shopping buddy who has the same shopping stamina as you. SERENE LIM

The Luxglove Classic Car Weekend will be held at Asiatique Collections, 14A Dempsey Road, Sept 24 and 25. This event is open to the public.