Film photos and an interview from my studio visit with ceramist, Angel Oloshove, on M&S’s blog here.
La Grande Vitesse
Last month in Grand Rapids, Michican, quietly wandering around the Calder sculpture, La Grande Vitesse. We were pretty stoked to have the entire plaza to ourselves.
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For my second test of these tiny pieces (still unnamed) I used a rougher textured clay. Dreaming of a wall covered with these?
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A couple of months ago, BJ and I visited our friend and nearby neighbor Bradley at his studio located at the University of Houston. It came at the tail end of his MFA thesis show, and we were so excited to see his sketches and other show going on upstairs. Stepping into his space, I was immediately flooded with memories of my undergrad studio and I hit with a little bit of envy. I miss having a small space, piles of books, scraps and little mementos that seemed to precious to throw away but their fate still undecided. I love his use of color and pattern, refreshing take on still-lifes, and the textures of his collage and paintings especially those made by scraping thin lines into the wet paint. The first piece is one our favorites, a sweet save the date Bradley created for his and Whitney’s upcoming wedding. Check out more of his work here. As I approach my two months of summer break, I feel motivated to carve out a space of my own and create.
All photos taken with my phone*
Hoop Dreams
Hoop Dreams has been on my mind lately for several personal reasons: last weekend, BJ and I watched it on our drive up to Austin, Kevin Durant’s awesome MVP speech and shout out to his mom, I’m still bummed from the Rocket’s upset loss in Game 6, I’ve been reflecting on my first year teaching at an all boys Catholic school. Below is a clip from one of my favorite scenes, Sheila’s Graduation.
from Robert Ebert & Martin Scorsese: Best Films of the 1990s
ROGER: To me the greatest value of film is that it helps us break out of our boxes of time and space, and empathize with other people — it lets us walk in someone else’s shoes. “Hoop Dreams,” made by Steve James, Frederick Marx and Peter Gilbert, gave me that gift.
MARTIN: Well, I think it’s a extraordinary film. I mean, you have real people becoming dramatic characters. You follow their lives like everyone’s life I think is a drama in a way. And the dedication of the filmmakers was remarkable. It reminds me Goes back to Flaherty where they live with the people and stay with them for years. Again, this is a new way, a new interesting look at story telling. And what’s great too is you begin to see the relationships in the family and how they change, the boy and his father.
ROGER: When we reviewed the movie on this show Gene Siskel said that the best scene for him was where the mother turns out to have been attending nursing school —
MARTIN: Oh, that was a great scene!
ROGER: — and she has her graduation. And he says, “That’s where the crowd should have been, not at the basketball game.â€
MARTIN: Just catches you, that scene.
Paul D’amato’s Here Still Now series includes photos documenting the decline and demolishment of Chicago’s notorious housing project, Cabrini-Green, which is where William Gates, one of the main subjects of Hoop Dreams, also resided. The other photos in the series are equally touching, beautiful, and sincere.
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Luling, Texas. Inspired by Lee Friedlander New Orleans, LouisianaÂ
san antonio
I haven’t been back to San Antonio in probably more than 10+ years, but during my Spring Break, we decided on a whim to take an overnight trip. San Antonio made for the perfect destination: it was only a little over 3 Â hours away, the crowds were either at SXSW, Galveston, or the Houston Rodeo, and BJ has never been even though he’s lived in Texas for more than 5 years now.
We booked a room at the Hotel Havana, and it was the perfect place for a mini escape! It had beautiful natural light with skylights above the bed, Turkish rugs, boldly patterned bathroom tiles, and pops of pink, turquoise, and warm yellow in all the right places. As much as I love minimal white spaces, color will always win me over. I left inspired to find ways to make our space more relaxing, which can sometimes be an uphill battle with our limited amount of light and ever growing clutter. But I’m determined.
Below are some photos I took with my phone. Last set of pictures are from our BBQ stop in Luling on a way back home.
new york
Due to some issues with timing, I broke my buying trip into two separate weekend visits so that I didn’t have to take time off from work. With 4-5 trips under my belt, it has gotten a little easier (especially when BJ or Trang go too), but I often still feel like a newbie learning the ropes, being assertive, etc. I’m sure more mistakes will be made along the way, but I’ve gotten more comfortable with taking my time, trying things on, looking at details, and sticking with my instincts. I still think back to my first time buying, wondering why the heck I choose a chunky knit, almost floor length, coat for our Houston winters. I almost did a dance when we sold it – not to a Houstonian, go figure, but a lovely visitor from Germany where I’m sure it would get much more use. This time around, I had a better idea about what does well for us, which of our customers would really love a particular style, and how to filter through all the trends. It’s still hard though, specially for Fall/winter collections where I’m immediately drawn to everything wool, heavy coats (like the one above by Feral Childe), and basically anything that would only get 1-2 weeks wear in Houston. A few things that stood out to me were layering pieces like the denim crop top from Rachel Comey, a 2 piece jumper from Black Crane (the collection keeps getting better and better with new fabrics each season), and pretty prints from No.6 like the one above.
Going on two very short trips was a bit of a crazy idea, but I managed to carve out a bit of time and treat myself to non work related activities (even though my skin, sleep, and body are making me pay for it now). Before it all passes me by, I wanted to write down some of my memories: eating Shake Shack while it’s snowing around us, sitting window side at the Butcher’s Daughter watching the first snow fall do a sort of dance in the wind — it was so beautiful, randomly running into and meeting for the first time Julia from Rennes and her husband while reading at McNally’s bookstore, spending time with my brother in law Jeff, forcing myself to enjoy eating dinner alone, sleeping over with my friend Jen in the loft (the view!) her boss rented and enjoying bombolonis at Bottega Falai before our first appointments, grabbing brunch with Beth, and escaping for a bit with BJ – sometimes it’s exactly what we needed.
weekends
Our weekends are now even more treasured since BJ went from freelancing full time to working at his new job. Neither of us are morning people, but we try to wake up early, put in some time at the store, and do as much as we can together (without feeling guilty if we don’t. I’m the worst). Our hours during the weekdays are so different, and one of the perks I miss from BJ’s previous looser schedule was we could sometimes meet up for lunch or just catch up for a bit in the middle of the day.
Lately, we’ve been organizing the house, loading up on plants, trying new restaurants, and taking walks to the Menil when the weathers nice. We took Igby and my sister’s new dog Missy there last weekend, and they were finally tolerating each other. All of us were so excited. We thought it would take a least a year given Igby’s diva reputation in our family. This weekend was extra special. Our friend and one of BJ’s best friends, Ben, came down for a visit. We haven’t seen each other in almost 4 years, and its sometimes sad to think about how spread out all your friends are post college. I am the worst at keeping in touch, but hopefully, this year, I can make it out to see my old friends.
We usually end our night by watching a movie or putting one on in the background while we work (Trader Joe’s popcorn tastes just like the movie theater’s. I already bought two bags in less than 1 week!). A few nights ago, we saw Enough Said again, which has to be one of my favorite movies of 2013 along with Short Term 12. As much as my night owl habits are ingrained in my DNA, I’m going to try waking up a little earlier during the week too. I really need that quiet time to focus and settle down, and if I remember, maybe add lemon water into my morning routine. Anyways, I hope everyone has a great week.
+ Igby dog watching at the Menil
+ Good Dog Houston. One of our favorite trucks has a brick and mortar now.
+ Cleaning and adding plants. Loving my gifted silk trout sachet.
Cutie and the Boxer
I loved it.