Tuesday, April 7, 2015

ON FILM: A Picture of Eileen Gray

Update: On April 13, 2015, the NY School of Interior Design
wil host a panel discussion entitled "Eileen Gray -- Why Now?".
Details here

Left: Eileen Gray; right: actress Orla Brady

Recently released, with March 2015 premieres in Dublin, Cannes, New York and London ... 
a biopic about seminal Modernist designer Eileen Gray, and her turbulent relationship with famed architect Le Corbusier. Gray created her stunning and now-iconic E1027 house on the French seashore in 1924; it is now recognized by many as the first Modernist house ever built. 

Called "The Price of Desire", the film casts Le Corbusier as Gray’s rival (in a fit of pique, he defaced the E1027 house with his infamous sexually graphic murals), but also presents him as an admirer who tells “the story, from his point of view, of how Eileen Gray came to be the most important, inspirational and innovative architect of their generation, and gives her back the right to be recognized for that work.”

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Link here to read my article Eileen Gray: from Shadow to Light, published in Modernism magazine 
(Spring 2011 issue.)


Rue de Lota apartment designed by Eileen Gray
 with her Pirogue sofa


    Eileen Gray Rivoli Tea Table
E.G.'s much-reproduced E1027 table --
now even Target makes it!

Link here for interview with film maker Mary McGuckian


Friday, April 3, 2015

EVENTS: MAD MEN returns on April 5; NYC celebrates


At last, the long-awaited final half-season of AMC TV's Mad Men will begin on April 5. The show has been a singular cultural phenomenon, in no small measure because of its meticulous recreation of the look of Sixties decor and fashion -- that furniture! those dresses! 

New York City, home of the "Mad" in the show's title (i.e., Madison Avenue) will pay homage to Mad Men's closing weeks in a variety of special events, to wit:

•  A jazzy exhibition titled “Matthew Weiner’s Mad Men” opens March 14 at the  Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria.


 This three-month exhibition vividly brings the show’s wardrobe -- and much of its creative process -- to life. More than 25 ensembles developed by Mad Men's costume designer, Janie Bryant, will appear alongside large-scale sets (including Don Draper’s office, and the kitchen from the Don & Betty's Ossining home), props, advertising artwork and other ephemera from the show’s design departments. 

The exhibition will feature screenings of 10 films creator Matthew Weiner considers 
essential for Mad Men fans, including The Apartment.

Link here to a NY Times article: 
The Most Memorable Costumes of Mad Men Get the Museum Treatment

                 Mad Men' s leading ladies, dressed to kill

                                                                                      Megan's "Zou Bisou Bisou" dress, season 5 premiere  

“To see a costume in full action on screen and then see it standing still,” says Bryant, 
“is a whole different kind of visual experience.”

•  Mad Men Dining Week: 
How to Eat and Drink Like Don Draper


From March 23-29, 33 of NYC's classiest restaurants participated in 
Mad Men Dining Week. Each offered either a two-course prix-fixe menu 
or two cocktails inspired by the 1960s, at a cost of $19.69 (the year Don Draper's 
"final act" -- whatever that means -- takes place.) Booze OR food -- your choice.

AMC President Charlie Collier commented, 
"The men and women of Madison Avenue inspired Matthew Weiner’s story, and we couldn’t imagine 
a better way to celebrate than by eating, drinking and raising a glass together in their honor.”

Don drinks his favorite cocktail -- ironically, an Old Fashioned.
The drink has made a big comeback since Mad Men's 2007 premiere.
Recipe:
3 oz bourbon
1 sugar cube
2-3 dashes Angostura bitters
2 orange slices (not if you're Don Draper)
Maraschino cherry garnish (definitely not if you're Don Draper)

Cheers, Don Draper and Co.!


Late-breaking Mad Men news


• The Brooklyn Academy of Music will host a two-day “Mad Men at the Movies” festival, April 22-23. Matthew Weiner or a cast member will attend each screening to discuss that film.


• Weiner spoke on March 29 at the Museum of Jewish Heritage, and will do another talk on April 28 at the 92nd Street Y.

• The New York Public Library will host a “Mad Men” event after the finale in May, and will publish a “Mad Men” reading list, based on 25 titles mentioned during the show’s run.


• On March 21, Weiner, Jon Hamm and cast members Christina Hendricks, Vincent Kartheiser, January Jones and John Slattery sat on a panel at Alice Tully Hall for the Film Society of Lincoln Center. Topics included favorite episodes, and the Film Society also sponsored a free two-day screening of some of Weiner’s own favorites. 





Thursday, April 2, 2015

ODD BITS: A Rube Goldberg-inspired Passover happening


This witty bit of Passover fun was created by students at 
the Technion, Israel's most prestigious technical institute. Here they 
use modern design to tell an ancient tale.

Above: The parting of the Red Sea ...
In the background is a toy Ferris wheel that pulls a string, 
lifting a mini pyramid and revealing a seder plate underneath.

Baby Moses floating in the bullrushes


 The burning bush
(It can double as a bowl for your matzah ball soup)

You can watch the entire video here.
Happy holiday, happy spring!

°   °   °     
And, in parting ...


Charleton Hes-Peep as Moses
(thanks to blondieandbrownie.com for this image)


Wednesday, March 25, 2015

JEWEL BOXES: Boca Raton, FL: stellar destination for architecture & design

We were drawn recently to the sleek and stylish Boca Raton Museum of Art
located in trendy Mizner Park, by The Wandering Veil -- a large-scale exhibition of 
shimmering painted fabric by Israeli artist Izhar Patkin. 
First, though, a bit of wandering outside ...

                                                         A quiet corner of Mizner Park 


A stop for coffee and pastries at très élégante Le Macaron ...



                And on to the Boca Raton Museum of Art


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                                                                                     Ballerina panel, ink on tulle, by Izhar Patkin

The Wandering Veil isghostly, mesmerizing visual narrative of Israeli and Jewish 
history -- everything from the story of modern-day Tel Aviv to extinct birds to 
Cervantes' hero Don Quixote. It is told through murals of softly pleated tulle, 
printed in black ink; the story they tell seems to whisper to the viewer 
gently, yet insistently. Interspersed within the fabric art are 
sculptural works in glass, and oil painting on wire mesh 
that reproduces the look of Oriental rugs. The exhibition runs through April 5.


Above and below: Panels from The Wandering Veil


To hear a conversation with the artist, originally broadcast on 
WAMC/Northeast Public Radio, link here.

Below are some fanciful objects from the museum's permanent collection ...

Mobile by Dutch artist Fré Ilgen
                                                                                                     

    Swarovski crystal tree by Wendy Wischer, 
       from Angels & Ancestors I series, 2007

from the museum's extensive collection of black & white portrait photos


                                                                   Raoul Dufy, Le Jardin à Caldes de Montbui, au Soleil      
 [The Garden in the Sun at Caldes de Montbui], 1945-46 
                                                                                                            

We rounded out our day with a leisurely drive through Boca's dreamy 
Old Floresta neighborhood.




Created in the mid-1920s by Florida's premier designer Addison Mizner, 
this area of Boca is a perfect marriage of landscape and architectural form. 
Palm trees and cycads harmonize beautifully with stucco archways, 
balconies and wrought iron gates. Some homes are designed 
in a Mediterranean style, others are Modernist; 
some artfully combine the two.





Old Floresta was declared a Historic District in 1990, 
insuring that its splendid homes and charming narrow streets 
will be protected from further development.

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Saturday, March 14, 2015

JEWEL BOXES: The Norton Museum in West Palm Beach, FL


   Persian Sea, Chihuly glass ceiling
A standout installation at the Norton Museum
Photos by Michael Schonbach, unless otherwise noted

During a recent visit to South Florida, I spent quite a few enjoyable hours at the Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach. Their special exhibition "Coming Into Fashion: A Century of Photography at Condé Nast" was the big draw for me, but I discovered that their regular collection and the venue itself are stellar as well! The Norton is located at the heart of the city's arts district, where we found numerous shops, galleries and cafés. 


Norton Museum, West Palm Beach, Florida

A luminous three-story atrium features a cantilevered spiral staircase. 
Photo courtesy of Norton Museum


              Entrance to fashion photography exhibit


John Rawlings, American Vogue, 1943 © Condé Nast 


American Vogue covers, 1960s -1970s © Condé Nast 

1960s supermodel Verushka   © Condé Nast 
            Love, Solve Sundsbo, 2011
         Photo courtesy of Norton Museum

And from the museum's permanent collection:


Frank Stella, Yazd II, 1968


Wayne Thiebaud, Neopolitan Pie, 1963



Above and below: West Palm Beach Arts District 

    Design Within Reach studio on Clematis St.

Lunch at Pistache Bistro
Unfortunately, it was a bit early for ...


Maybe next time. :-)