Category Archives: Art

A look at local, regional, and global art – and of course, the art I create too!

May 28, 2011 · 11:10 pm

Vegan Posse on Broadway

My post title is a ripoff the title of a song (Posse on Broadway) on Sir Mix-a-Lot’s debut album, Swass. I just couldn’t resist. Sir Mix-a-Lot is a Seattle native and wrote the song about our Broadway, not the one in NYC.

The Seattle Broadway in the Capitol Hill neighborhood is where hubby and I spent the day. We lived in Capitol Hill when we first moved in together. It’s an eclectic, artsy neighborhood, and home to Seattle’s gay scene.

We first stopped at Highline, a vegan bar and diner, hubs had a bloody mary and biscuits and gravy. I had a tofu scramble and French toast. I like Highline. It’s got a punk rock, blue-collar vibe with no pretense.

Then we walked around the perimeter of a construction site. Perhaps not the most interesting thing in the world—unless you’re in Capitol Hill. The plywood walls that blocked off the 100′ hole in the ground (there’s an underground light rail tunnel being developed) were peppered with art. This must be a city-sanctioned project; every piece was attributed to an artist. My favorite was a mosaic by Cameron Larson made of bottle caps:

I liked the humor in the huge, wooden newspaper mural by Amanda Moore:

And Tim Marsden’s “Boom” made an impact:

On the way back to my car, we found a medicinal marijuana dispensary. They were closed:

Top: Old Navy
Pants: Bluenotes
Clutch: Crystalyn Kae
Scarf: Boutique in Portland
Socks: The Gap
Shoes: Bamboo

Sock and sandals are a “fashion don’t” but I’m liking the combo. I think this looks best with chunky heels though. Flats might look frumpy and delicate heels might look out-of-place unless the socks are thin. Do you dare wear socks and sandals? What other “don’ts” do you try?

Ivan Grundahl Night Model

I few months ago I bid on an amazing Ivan Grundahl coat on eBay. Much to my surprise, I snapped it up for about $140. It retailed for much, much more, but a brick and mortar store was selling last year’s inventory online.

Ivan Grundahl is a stellar Danish designer. The lines are sharp, the silhouettes are dramatic. His work is often asymmetrical. It’s deconstructed yet simple. To me, the pieces are very artistic.

I wore the coat to a movie a few weeks ago. Last night, out of the blue, my husband said, “can you put on that coat and come with me?” It was after ten pm and I wondered what he was up to. He grabbed his camera and tripod, an umbrella, and a stool, and took me to Ballard, a Seattle neighborhood.

He hoisted me up onto a loading dock by a set of train tracks and set up a shot. He wanted a model for an idea he had. Here’s what he created:

The photos are not manipulated. I love how they almost look black and white, but aren’t. Because we were out after dark, he used an exposure that opened the shutter for more light. The photos are slightly grainy, but that’s one of the things I love about them.

On the way home, we stopped in the Cascadia neighborhood and he took this shot:

Then we found an empty parking lot downtown Seattle, and he took a few more shots:

Finally, I convinced him to join me. He set the timer and we posed for a few shots together:

Usually, I’m the one with the tripod and timer. For this blog, I’m my own photographer. So it was nice to be a model for a night and follow someone else’s direction.

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Tagged as fashion, Ivan Grundahl, photography, Seattle, style

May 20, 2011 · 12:39 am

Leaving Santa Fe

All good things must end. And so my trip to Santa Fe came to a close. It was a fabulous city, and a great location for a long weekend of art, shopping, food, and friends.

The day before we left, my friends and I tallied up the jewelry we’d purchased during our stay. It was impressive.

We found great pieces by local designers. Turquoise was the big hit, but we snapped up pieces in amethyst and other materials too. The morning of our departure, Cheryl and I wandered from our hotel, the Inn at Loretto, to the open-air artist market next door and bought even more jewelry.

We met two artists who collect semi precious stones and polish and refine them. They will wrap any piece in silver and create a ring or a pendent. Cheryl had a turquoise ring made. They made me a pendent. Here’s my pendant, and a trilobite fossil pendant I picked up from them as well.

The jewelry shops are pricier than the street vendors, but even by street vendors prices, these guys were reasonable. The pendants were $30 each.

In my rush to get authentic Southwest jewelry while I could, I snapped up a few pieces of Native American jewelry from another artist. His prices were terrific too, and all the pieces are made by him. I bought a bracelet, two necklaces, and three pair of earrings. Their style was similar to a bracelet (also in the following picture, in the upper-right corner) I bought earlier at the Farmers’ Market.

While browsing the outdoor market, I met Takako, a Japanese expat living and designing in Santa Fe. I bought one of her fantastic silver and amethyst rings.

My other pieces, that I’d purchased earlier in the trip, include a fair-trade, hand-woven bracelet by Lilybead…

And an enameled metal necklace from Dancing Turtle Studios. I found their booth at the Farmer’s Market too.

I really enjoyed meeting the artists who created these pieces. The jewelry is a souvenir of my trip and will always be special to me because each piece has a story behind it.

The end of our trip wasn’t all about bling. Before we left Santa Fe, Autumn made delicious, refreshing drinks for the four of us. We named it The Blue Loretto. Here’s how to make it:

Four parts Trader Joe’s Sparkling Blueberry Flavored Juice Beverage
One part Vodka
Fresh blueberries
Ice

Directions: Throw all the ingredients in a glass and enjoy. Simple!

I miss Santa Fe. The sun, the art, the adobe architecture, the friendly people. All of what the city offers makes me want to go back. I hope you get to visit too.

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Tagged as bracelet, earrings, fashion, jewelry, necklace, Santa Fe, style, travel, turquoise

May 19, 2011 · 1:06 am

Santa Fe Art Walk

Canyon Road is Santa Fe’s premier art district. It’s an old part of town and boasts over 100 galleries (and a smattering of shops and restaurants). It’s an incredible place. The rows of adobe houses-turned-galleries offer art to view and purchase. Of course there is classic Southwest art, but there are a lot of other styles too: abstract, photorealistic, sculpture, glass work, jewelry, pottery and more. Truly something for everybody.

To me, even the buildings on Canyon Road are pieces of art. I photographed the structures on the walking tour I took with my friends. It didn’t hurt that the weather was perfect.

On our walk, I noticed an unusually large quantity of animal sculptures. Mostly horses and cattle, with some bears and rabbits thrown in the mix. These animals seemed representative of the local fauna.

Yes, Laura, Cheryl, and Autumn are following the herd. It takes two to tango and apparently three to can-can. Well, four can play that game.

Dress: Forever 21 via thrifted
Wrap: NYC Street Vendor
Sunglasses: Target
Shoes: Timberland

Leave it to me to shift the conversation to fashion. Today, however, I saw a fashion/art connection, as you can see by the dresses at various galleries.

Canyon Road was probably the highlight of my trip. At lunch, I had the best veggie burger in the world at The Tea House. It was homemade and so delicious. They make a mean latté too. On the way back, I couple of other pieces of art captured my attention: The honeycomb and bee pattern is similar to the dress Laura wore yesterday.

Glass is a popular art medium in the Pacific Northwest and that’s probably why these sculptures drew me to them.

Prices for art ranged from less than $100 to well into five digits. There was a variety of things to look at and a few pieces I could actually afford. Mostly, I found the day inspiring. I’ve already pulled out my paints and canvases and have a few plans. Just in case my plans fall through, I wrote down the number of one of the galleries. There’s a wonderful abstract painting at a manageable price—and they ship.

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Tagged as art, art gallery, Canyon Road, fashion, painting, photography, Santa Fe, sculpture, style, travel

May 1, 2011 · 12:01 am

Weekend day trip

I’ve been really into moss lately. I know that sounds weird, but I love it. The color, the texture. It’s nature’s velvet. Fortunately, in the Pacific Northwest, there’s no shortage of moss. So today, on my mini road trip, I took pictures of mossy things. Here’s what I wore, followed by the pictures I took.

Jacket: Doki Geki
Scarf: Street vendor in Seattle
Jeans: Citizens of Humanity
Shoes: Aerosoles

I wore a purple velvet jacket and a denim-blue and white scarf. To brighten up the outfit (and not have everything matchy-matchy), I contrasted the look with bright yellow shoes. If you had told me at this time last year that I’d be the proud owner of yellow shoes, I wouldn’t have believe you. I love these heels! They’re comfortable and cheery and go with a lot.

Mossy trees near Duvall

A surprising art installation in the woods

An old mossy wagon near Woodinville

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Tagged as art, fashion, moss, style, velvet, yellow shoes

April 3, 2011 · 6:14 pm

National Tweed Day

I’m not making this up. Today is National Tweed Day. Now, I’m not a stodgy old professor so I don’t have any tweed jackets with patches on the elbows. But I do have a pair of thrifted tweed shorts. So in the spirit of old fabrics and old things, I wore my tweed shorts to Pacific Galleries, an antique mall in Seattle’s SoDo neighborhood.

Shirt: Ann Taylor (thrifted)
Shorts: Old Navy (thrifted)
Tights: Hue
Clutch: Shiraleah
Shoes: Frye (clothing exchange)
Necklace: Mary Kay

Possibly the best part of this outfit is that it cost a total of $59. I’m forever indebted to my friend, Angie, for bringing these great Frye shoes to a clothing exchange. And since the shorts were $4, I took a chance on them. I might not otherwise try this look, but the cost was low enough. Turns out I do like it and I will wear some combination of shorts and tights again.

Oh, and the antique mall: It was huge. 22,000 square feet of everything under the sun. Estate jewelry, old signs, books, and lamps. Mid-Century furniture, Nineteenth Century art. You name it, they’ve got it. My favorite was a sad little figurine sitting on a chamber pot, clutching her gut. Judging by the cork in her head, she doubles as some sort of vessel or chalice. Perhaps filled with a remedy for what ails you. I can’t make this stuff up.

But I can make up a poem! And to celebrate National Poetry month, I have. I’m sorry, in advance, that’s it’s in such poor taste and so poorly executed:

Stomach Ache
by Jean White

Whether from food or by drink,
Or a bug from a friend,
When gut rot afflicts you,
Seems it just won’t end.

But remember the pain,
Will eventually stop.
First grab a bucket
or sit on the pot.

April: National Poetry Month

To celebrate National Poetry Month, I’ll be including a poem in each of my April posts, starting with one of my favorites, by e.e. cummings:

in Just-
spring when the world is mud-
luscious the little
lame balloonman
whistles far and wee

and eddieandbill come
running from marbles and
piracies and it’s
spring

when the world is puddle-wonderful

the queer
old balloonman whistles
far and wee
and bettyandisbel come dancing

from hop-scotch and jump-rope and
it’s
spring
and
the

goat-footed

balloonMan whistles
far
and
wee

The visual artist in me loves the placement of the words on the page and how the poem takes on new meanings in the way it appears. The writer in me enjoys how cummings creates rhythm and patterns and new meanings by combining words.

Rainboots: Steve Madden

There’s something about poetry that stirs my soul.

It nourishes like a good meal, refreshes like a dip in the lake, and reaches into me and finds emotions I didn’t know I had. Apparently, it drives me to write in similes too!

Whether you know it or not, poems are familiar to all of us. A poem is the lullaby your parents sang to you when you were an infant, the nursery rhymes you recited on the playground, and the songs you sing in your car as you listen to the radio on the way to work.

Do you enjoy poetry? Share your thoughts!

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Tagged as art, e.e. cummings, National Poetry Month, poetry, rainboots, style

March 29, 2011 · 7:13 pm

The Art of Feminism

Last week, I almost walked into Gloria Steinem’s office. Well, almost.

See, I was wandering around Seattle taking pictures of people when I came across a couple of stylish guys in front of an art gallery. I asked to take their picture, and they kindly obliged.

What I neglected to do was enter the gallery and check out the exhibit. When I arrived home I went to the gallery’s site and found, to my surprise, their current show is a feminist retrospective titled “Art and Artifacts from the Office of Gloria Steinem.”

Needless to say, I returned to Form/Space Atelier the following week to see what I had missed. The gallery is a small space, tucked into the lobby of the Low Income Housing Institute. The exhibit includes objects gifted to the gallery by the office of Gloria Steinem. It was as much a gallery as it was a museum.

An installation piece at the entry displayed an old typewriter with a seemingly endless roll of paper feeding through it—and I’m sure that’s how it felt to begin letter-writing campaigns—an endless job. The piece included two chairs with two coats hanging over them—to me, that represented the collaborative nature of the office.

I saw copies of letters Gloria Steinem wrote to people such as Jesse Jackson, and I saw prints of the iconic power stance of Steinem and Dorothy Pitman. Seeing the two women, whose backgrounds are very different, working together at the intersection of civil rights, women’s rights, and community activism helped me see the feminist movement as more inclusive than people give it credit. It reminded me that women’s rights are important to everyone and the results benefit the community—and country—as a whole.

As a quick primer, Steinem and Pitman cofounded the Women’s Action Alliance in 1971 and are longtime friends and speaking partners. They both work tirelessly to fight sexism, racism and classism.

Dorothy Pitman Hughes is a writer, speaker, activist and a lifelong champion for women, children and families. She organized the first battered women’s shelter in New York City.

Gloria Steinem is a writer and best-selling author, lecturer, editor, feminist activist and organizer, and co-founder of Ms. magazine.

I’m glad I had a chance for a do-over. I went back to see what I missed the first time I walked past the gallery. The experience reminded me to keep my eyes open and see the signs of art and feminism and community collaboration that are all around me.

The show runs through April 17th.

This is a fifth group post organized by the Feminist Fashion Bloggers. To see what others wrote, check out their posts.

Sources:
http://www.formspaceatelier.com/index.php
http://liftdontseparate.org/about.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gloria_Steinem
http://jacksonville.com/ “Q&A with Author and Activist Dorothy Pitman Hughes” by Cristin Wilson, Jan 27, 2011

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Tagged as art, art gallery, Dorothy Pitman Hughes, feminism, Feminist Fashion Bloggers, Form/Space Atelier, Gloria Steinem, Seattle, style

March 24, 2011 · 11:34 pm

PhoDOGraphy: Frankie’s New Pet Cam

My dog Frankie is now a photographer (a phoDOGrapher, if you will). And this is his very first ever exhibit. I read about Cooper the photographer cat last year and thought I could try something like that with Frankie. I bought a pet’s eye view camera from eBay and away we went. Here’s his adventure in his own words:

Yay! Jean’s taking me out. It’s playtime. But this traffic light is taking forever and she won’t let me run across the street. And just look at that hydrant. It needs me.

Finally. What’s this? Oh no! Playgrounds are for those horrible two-legged puppies. I can’t stand human puppies. So shrill and unpredictable. I’m getting outta here.

I know that building! That’s where humans go to mark their territory. This means we’re really close to the dog park. Hurry Jean, we’re almost there!

We’re here! I’m finally untethered from that leash! Time to run! And sniff. What are those scents? Mmm. Delightful. Earthy, pungent. I like them all. So much information. I can’t take it.

Running, running, turning in circles. Whee!

Whoa. I’m kinda dizzy now. I don’t feel so well. Why did I do that? I’m almost 48 years old. Where is my dignity? Hey, is that Ricky?

Ricky! Nice threads. I like the jacket. No really. It suits you. It’s a bit retro. 70s in a cool sorta way. No, it doesn’t make your tail look fat. Yeesh that guy is insecure.

I think I know that woman. She’s got treats. Wait for me! I’m starving. No really. I haven’t had food in forever! Jean doesn’t really feed me. Nope. She’s bad that way. What do you mean you don’t believe me? What? I am not pudgy. I’m a bit big-boned, but…

Hey, is that guy taking my picture? Oh yeah, well two can play at that game. I’ll take your picture then. Oops. I think he saw me. Time to go!

Excuse me. Pardon me. Coming through.

Let. Me. Out.

Freedom! Time for a nap.

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Tagged as art, dog park, dogs, pet camera, photography, style

March 20, 2011 · 3:25 pm

Public Art Walk

Yesterday’s post was about the stylish people I ran into while wandering around Seattle. Today, I’ll let you know what I was up to when I wasn’t taking their pictures.

Mr. Jean of all Trades and I decided to take advantage of the beautiful day. We parked at the edge of Belltown and explored the Olympic Sculpture Park—a wonderful public space with outdoor seating, paths and sculptures. It’s part of the Seattle Art Museum (SAM).

Blazer: Laundry by Shelli Segal (thrifted)
Skirt: UNA Hand-crafted Fashion
Sunglasses: Target
Scarf: Kensington Market vendor, Toronto
Socks: Emily the Strange
Boots: Na-Na (via Hot Topic)
Purse: Sandra’s Satchels (gifted)

We walked down First Avenue, each with a camera, and took pictures of interesting signs, buildings and things. We continued past Pike Place Market, and ended up at the Seattle Art Museum. We didn’t go into the SAM this time, but we’re members so we’ll be back soon.

On our way back to the car, I found the stylish people I photographed for yesterday’s post. Then, my husband and I went to another Seattle neighborhood—Ballard—for an early dinner at India Bistro. I saw a lot of people in Ballard whose pictures I wanted to take, but I thought I shouldn’t jump up from dinner and run into the street with my camera.

I now know that the people passing through Buffalo Exchange are excellent street style candidates—and why not? It’s a great second-hand shop where stylish people in the know go to get great finds. More about them another time.