Blog Archives

"Watching the Clock" Loft Artists Association

2/25/2016

"Still Falls the Rain" Fabian Cortes Acrylic on Canvas

Fairfield County "It!"

had the pleasure of attending

"Watching the Clock"

at the

Loft Artists Association

“How did it get so late so soon?” ― Dr. Seuss

“A man who dares to waste one hour of time has not discovered the value of life.”
― Charles Darwin, The Life & Letters of Charles Darwin

This time-filled beauty is called "Horatia"

In Italian the meaning of the name Horatio is: Timekeeper. Derived from the Roman clan name Horatius. The close friend of Hamlet in Shakespeare's tragedy.

The feminine version of the Timekeeper.

She also conjures up within me Frida Kahlo.

Christa Forrest "Horatio" mixed media on wood panel

"People like us, who believe in physics, know that the distinction between past, present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion." - Albert Einstein

Phyllis Sinrich "Afternoon in Paris" archival pigment photograph Jullliette Tebraani "The Clock at theMusee d'Orsay" oil on aluminum

The two versions of the clock at the Musee D'Orsay illustrate to me Einstein's quote above
as to whether time is concrete or not......

“Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin.”
― Mother Teresa

The Metropolitan Museum of Art also has a time exhibit currently on display.

This is one of my favorite pieces. It is Diana the huntress in her chariot clock from 1610.

The chariot, when wound up, was designed to move across the table of a court dinner. Diana's eyes dart back and forth, the leopards gallop forward and the monkey's arm moves up and down.

At the end of her ride she shoots the arrow!
Hopefully not in someone's face.

Time is clearly "In"
if both The Metropolitan Museum of Art and the
Loft Artists Association
are spotlighting it in their exhibits!

Check out "Watching the Clock" thru March 13, 2016.
The gallery is open Sat & Sun 1P - 4:30P.

Time to go,

"It!" Woman Kyle

"Elegance is never out of style" Metropolitan museum of art "jaqueline de ribes - The Art of style"

2/19/2016

Fairfield County "It!"

went to the

Metropolitan Museum of Art

to view

"Jacqueline de Ribes

The Art of Style"

"Style is what makes you different; it’s your own stamp,
a message about yourself.” Jacqueline de Ribes

It took Jacqueline de Ribes, 87, eight years to agree to this exhibit.

The Met curator, Harold Koda, eventually convinced her the show would not be about ego, but of childhood passion blossoming into reality.

Upon entering the Costume Institute at the Met, there is a large screen with several scenes from different periods of her life. One of them is an adorable picture of young Jacqueline with her sister dressed in burlap sacks. Youthful couture.

Jacqueline was born to an aristocratic French family and later married a Count. That sounds very enviable, but her childhood was challenged by the early loss of her beloved grandfather, and World War II, where she personally witnessed numerous atrocities at the hands of the Nazi's.

She finished her education at a convent, where she was put in charge of the school plays, which included designing wardrobe for the shows.

Jacqueline bought many of her clothes from the top designers, such as Jean Paul Gaultier, Yves Saint Laurent, Balmain, Emanuel Ungaro, Guy Laroche, House of Dior, Bill Blass, Valentino, and Armani. She also frequently asked them to alter their vision to include her ideas.

She was listed on the International Best-Dressed List, at twenty-eight and inducted into its Hall of Fame in 1962.

“I was always timid about going to Chanel, though, I was afraid she wouldn’t agree to my meddling.” Jacqueline de Ribes

She wore this see-through dress to the ballet, at 73, designed by Yves Saint Laurent in 2002. Sequined over certain body parts, she paired it with a chinchilla wrap.

This gown is one of my favorites, found in the black and white evening wear section of the exhibit. I love the drape and flow.

“Elegance is the art of being astonishing without creating astonishment.” Jacqueline de Ribes

One of the early masquerade balls she attended was in Venice, the Beistegui Ball, after she married the Count when she was nineteen. Before marriage, women were not allowed to go to balls only debutante parties.

In order to make a statement, she designed the dress(es) and brought two identically clothed and masked Italian princesses as her escorts. Her gifts of creativity, elegance and intrigue fully in motion.

Jacqueline says of this ball,
“and now I am told I’m its
‘last survivor’!”

Later, in the 1980's and 1990's Jacqueline created her own couture collection.

A fabulous exhibit!

Open until Sunday, February 21, 2016.

"It!" Woman Kyle

"knee-deep in daisies with you" curtain call theatre's "barefoot in the park"

2/18/2016

Fairfield County "It!"

had a wonderful time at

Curtain Call Theatre's

production of

Neil Simon's

"Barefoot in the Park"

Curtain Call is celebrating its
25th Season!

Here is the list of shows:

Mary Poppins
Bonnie & Clyde
Calendar Girls
The Hostage
Blithe Spirit
City of Angels
Company
Little Shop of Horrors
The Sisters Rosenweig

After six days of honeymoon at the
Plaza Hotel
where Corie (Sarah Sherwood) and Paul (Robert Rosado) never leave their hotel room until the day of checkout,

they move into a
sixth floor, walk up,
kind of one bedroom apartment,
complete with a hole in the skylight.

Corie tries to seduce, yet again, her husband Paul, a lawyer, while he tries to focus on preparation for his first case.

Upon climbing the six story staircase (seven if you include the exterior stoop) past all the other residents apartments, Paul concludes the building is full of nut cases.

That conclusion is furthered when Corie meets the eccentric epicurean neighbor, Velasco, that lives in the attic above them. Due to lack of money/eviction he needs to climb through Corrie and Paul's bedroom (or is it a closet) window and walk along the outer edge of the building to enter his abode.
Ever playful and curious, Corrie decides to invite him to dinner and also invites her mother. Instead of dining in, Velasco whisks them off on a ferry to Staten Island to introduce them to a restaurant with
Albanian food and Ouzo!

"One drink can make you sick.
Two starts you on the road to recovery."

Except the next day you cannot make a fist?!

The table turns for Corrie when Paul and her mother start exhibiting their own versions of zany behavior.

Many of us (thirteen) have seen the delightful movie version with Jane Fonda and Robert Redford.

All of us thought the acting was well done
and
very much enjoyed the show.

Sarah is a convincing Corie and did not miss throughout.

A fun evening.

We decided to leave with our shoes on despite the
Kweskin Theatre's
charming park-like location.

Thank you Curtain Call Theatre!

"It!' Woman Kyle

Rocking with Green Eyed Lady!

2/10/2016

Fairfield County "It!"

had a blast watching

Green Eyed Lady

"Rock"

The JHouse - Greenwich

Jenn Eckart
is the
Green Eyed Lady.

Having a great voice and playing the bass guitar in a rock band as a woman is relatively rare.

Here is Jenn's top 10 list of comments made to her at clubs that reveal people's hidden assumptions regarding female musicians:

10. "I've never seen a female bass player before."
9. "Can I carry that bass for you? That's too heavy for you to be carrying around. You should let the bass player carry their own guitar."
8. "I am cliche. You, on the other hand, are not cliche."
7. "So you are female, you are talented, an ectomorph and anatomically correct. How come you are not nationally famous?" (thank you for that one!)
6. "Are you here to see the band?"
5. "So your band doesn't have a bass player?"
4. "Oh...is the band going to let you sing with them tonight?"
3. "I see you, I see the drummer, I see the guitarist...so where's the bass player?"
2. "You're here pretty early....you must be a serious groupie."
1. "You're carrying equipment...you must be married to someone in the band."

Click below to see her sing LANDSLIDE

Rick Lewis plays lead guitar and
is another very talented vocalist.

Rick can duplicate the sound of numerous
famous artists,
one minute he may sound like
Joe Walsh and
the next
Jimi Hendrix.

Rick is also a songwriter and producer.

Check out his body of work at

ricklewismusic.com.

The trio is complete with drummer:
Tommy Nagy.

Green Eyed Lady specializes in
both
classic & contemporary rock,
and rocked the night away with one fun song after another!

When they played
"Brown Eyed Girl"
my numerous brown eyed girlfriends gleefully
danced away near the stage.

Click below for clips of music from Green Eyed Lady

The crowd was clearly having fun!

A great evening with a great band - Green Eyed Lady!

If you do not already follow them, go see them soon!

Click here for a list of where they are playing.

"It!" Woman Kyle

Will you be my "Valbella"?

2/10/2016

Fairfield County "It!"

had the pleasure of dining at charming

Valbella

in Greenwich

Valbella has sister restaurants in Midtown & the Meatpacking District
in NYC.

Valbella is an elegant upscale Italian restaurant located in a 19th century building in Riverside, Greenwich.

The main floor dining area is bright with natural light and white linen tablecloths and the downstairs delights as you dine within the wine cellar.

Here is a cozy corner, perfect for great conversation with a party of four, surrounded by wine in the cellar dining area.

It was not vacant long.

The overall restaurant was packed on a Saturday evening.

I started off with the

Aragosta con Brie

Danish lobster tail sauteed with Grand Marnier
served over baked Brie
crusted with almonds

A decadent delight.
The Danish lobster was tender and mildly sweetened by the Grand Marnier
and paired tastefully with the almond crusted brie.

One of my friends decided she was going to splurge on the

Costoletta alla Capricciosa

Breaded veal chop,
pounded thin
topped with arugula, diced tomatoes and onions

Another one of us was thrilled with the

Linguine con Frutti di Mare

Sauteed lobster, crabmeat, shirmp and fresh herbs in a
plum tomato fra diavolo sauce.

The al dente linguine thoroughly buried under the plentiful seafood.

Did someone say souffle?

A lovely time at a renowned Greenwich Italian restaurant!

Ciao,

"It!" Woman Kyle

Picasso Sculpture - MoMA a feast for the Eyes!

2/3/2016

"Bust of a Woman" 1931

Fairfield County "It!" attended the Picasso Sculpture exhibit at the Museum o f Modern Art (MoMA).

There are a few hours left to attend this extraordinary, comprehensive and amazing exhibit.

If you can, go! It ends Sunday, February 7, 2016.

I renewed my membership before we went, which allowed us to walk into the exhibit without waiting in the long line.

MoMA set it up as not only a spectacular exhibit of Picasso's sculpture, but also added mystique to the identification of the sculpture.
In order to determine what you were viewing you had to match a sketched outline located in the handout to find the name and description of the art work.

I loved the approach and deciphering what piece I was looking at!

Head of a Picador with a Broken Nose.
Barcelona 1903
Early Works & the First Cubist Sculptures
1902 - 1909

Glass Absinthe - Painted Bronze with absinthe spoon
Paris 1914
The Cubist Years
1912 - 1915

Here is a painted bronze
Glass of Absinthe.
The distilled spirit was quite the rage in Paris in 1914.

The classic French absinthe ritual involves placing a sugar cube on a flat perforated absinthe spoon, which rests on the rim of the glass containing a measure or “dose” of absinthe. Iced water is then very slowly dripped on to the sugar cube, which gradually dissolves and drips, along with the water, into the absinthe, causing the green liquor to louche (“loosh”) into an opaque opalescent white as the essential oils precipitate out of the alcoholic solution. Usually three to four parts water are added to one part of 68% absinthe. Historically, true absintheurs used to take great care in adding the water, letting it fall drop by single drop onto the sugar cube, and then watching each individual drip cut a milky swathe through the peridot-green absinthe. http://www.absinthespoon.com/rituel.php

I am seeking an absinthe spoon, in order to replicate the experience!

The Cubist Years 1912 - 1915

is also the era that Picasso created a number of musical instrument sculptures such as this guitar.

Picasso, gifted this guitar to MoMA.

Still Life with Guitar
Paris 1913
The Cubists Years, 1912 - 1915

Metamorphosis I, Paris
Bronze 1928
The Monument to Apollinaire
1927-1931

Here is

Metamorphosis I

with her alluring gaze.

Woman in the Garden.

Head of a Warrior
Boisgelouip, 1933
The Boisgeloup Sculpture Studio, 1933 - 1937

Woman in the Garden
Paris 1930
The Monument to Appollinaire, 1927 - 1931

Later we greeted
Head of a Warrior,

a gift of Jacqueline Picasso

in honor of MoMA's
continuous commitment to
Pablo Picasso's
art.

The strutting handsome Cock.

Cock
Boisgeloup, 1932
Thje Boisgeloup Sculpture Studio, 1933 - 1937

Little Girl Jumping Rope
Vallauris
1950 - 1954
Vallauris amd Cannes Assemblges, 1952 - 1953

We bumped into this delightful young lady,

Little Girl Jumping Rope.

Reminiscent of when children reached for a jump rope to have a fun time

versus playing games on a phone.

Woman Reading

reminded me of Lewis Carol's early drawings of
Alice in Wonderland
with an elongated neck

which was recently exhibited at
The Morgan Library
to celebrate her 100th birthday.

Women Reading
Vallauris
1951 - 1953

The Bathers: Women Diver, Man with Folded Hands, Fountain Man, Child, Woman with Outstretched Arms & Young Man
Cannes 1956

Here are

The Bathers

inspired by beach scenes from Cannes in the 1950's.

Interestingly, as Picasso skillfully and actively sculpted throughout his career, he never really promoted that part of his art until he agreed to his first sculpture exhibit in Paris in 1966.

In the main gallery,
full of one fabulous painting after another,

we bumped into this hooded figure perfecting his or her
clearly talented sketch of
Picasso's

Les Demoiselles d'Avignon.

What an exquisite Exhibit, MoMA!

"It!" Woman Kyle

tribeca Grill - Nyc restaurant week

2/3/2016

Fairfield County "It!"

went to storied

Tribeca Grill

for

Winter NYC Restaurant Week 2016.

Tribeca Grill opened just over
25 years ago.

Robert De Niro bought the building and asked Drew Nieporent, owner of fabled and now sadly closed restaurant Montrachet, if he would like to partner on a restaurant.

De Niro wanted to create a restaurant where people could meet & talk.

Here is the lighting in the bar and main dining room.
olé!

TriBeCa
Triangle Below Canal Street

is full of cobblestone streets, yet when you look South the sky is full of downtown Skyscapers, such as Freedom Tower.

A unique visual:

Historic TriBeCa
blended with
21st Century Wall Street

We were seated in the charming back room where the walls are covered in art.

Quieter than the main dining room and easy to talk with your table-mates.

Here is a picture of our wall companions!
We were clearly
"too over dressed"
to partake in that conversation.

During restaurant week,
Tribeca Grill
offers for dinner
3 courses, with 3 choices each, for $38.

Here is one of the first courses
French Lentil Salad
with
Goat Cheese
Roasted Root Vegetables
Sherry Dijon Vinaigrette

The creamy goat cheese married well the lentil and root vegetables while the tang of the Sherry Dijon
brightened the overall combination.

I had for my main course the Hampshire Pork Chop
with
Brussel Sprouts,
Pickled Mustard Seeds
& Black Garlic

It was perfectly cooked and paired wonderfully with a rarely drunk
Manhattan cocktail.

The Dessert

Tahitian Vinalla Creme Brulee

Worth every caloric bite!

To another 25 years - Tribeca Grill!

"It!" Woman Kyle