A Family Home Mixes Antiques and Cutting-Edge Artwork
An East End couple lovingly curates vintage decor and limited-edition, post-graffiti prints
Jo Arnott and Clay Rochemont have created a home that merges vintage treasures and street art with playfulness and personality. Together, they hunt for pieces that tell stories: she found a teak Scandinavian chair at Value Village and reupholstered it with a vintage Canada Post bag, while he parted with a cherished painting to buy the Banksy Grannies silkscreen that now hangs above the fireplace. One of their favorite finds, a library table from Machineage Modern, still bears gum stuck to the underside—a relic they don’t mind adding to, as their children happily doodle on its repainted white surface.
Jo’s thrifting journey began in Toronto’s west end, where she tagged along with her parents to garage sales, sparking a lifelong passion for unique finds. Now a doula, she also supplies vintage goods to local store Good Neighbour. Clay, who grew up in Toronto before diving into the graffiti scenes of Los Angeles and San Francisco, later returned to curate street art exhibitions in the city. As a creative strategist, he’s organized shows in large industrial venues like the Evergreen Brick Works, bringing his connections with artists into every curation.
Their Leslieville home reflects their blended sensibilities and fuels their sons’ imagination. With art that provokes thought and carefully revived vintage pieces, the home is a cozy gallery of memories that continues to evolve.
Jo Arnott’s love of globes and Kewpie dolls – and Clay Rochemont’s love of Banksy – is clear atop the fireplace. Baskets and blankets from Goodfolk.
A quick glance around the open concept main floor reveals connections between her antiques and his collection of street and post-graffiti art. An old detergent tin’s vintage typography is echoed by retro tattoo designs – original ink drawings by Mike Giant – that line the stairs. Sitting on a repainted side table, knick-knacks from another century hold their own near a 2014 tile print of an 8‑bit ghost, by the artist Space Invader, that hangs over the TV.
In Noell’s room: a prized print of circus animals gone rogue by Josh Keyes. Mini Solair chair from Studio Pazo; duvet by IKEA.
Upstairs in the boys’ bedrooms, the fusion of old and new styles bumps up against the added dynamic of grown-up versus child-like sensibilities. Rochemont points to five-year-old Noell’s favourite piece: a print featuring circus animals set free, which looks straight out of a 1950s storybook. Titled Exodus (by Josh Keyes) it is whimsical, but it also has a darker side: the lion tamer’s gear is scattered on the ground as if he was recently eaten.
Part of Arnott’s globe collection sits underneath a Curiot painting entitled “New Slaves.”
“I like the stories behind the things,” says Arnott. “They’ve had so many lives.” Be it a weathered fish box picked up from the Aberfoyle Antique Market or a painting by Rochemont’s latest discovery, there’s always something new – even if it’s old – to find here. With that, Noell announces his own contribution to the family collection. As serious as a seasoned museum curator, he gestures to the side of a wooden dresser that is visible only from his bed: a Transformers sticker is stuck there. His dad couldn’t be prouder.
A teak Scandinavian chair found at Value Village is reupholstered with a vintage Canada Post bag. The ink drawing that lines the stairs is by Mike Giant.
Jo Arnott’s Tips for Thrifting:
- Go early on a weekday (avoid weekends).
- Be prepared to dig and see things for their bones.
- Don’t be afraid to barter.
Find vintage children’s clothing hand-picked by Jo at Good Neighbour.
Clay Rochemont’s Tips for Collecting:
- Research online forums, galleries, and auction results.
- Don’t be afraid to see what is left over from an artist’s gallery show.
- Get to know a good framer.
Visit Clay’s curating website, clayrochemont.com
Originally published in our Spring 2015 issue as Art House.
