So I put my organizing hat on and 12 of us came from Vancouver, 2 from Berlin, 2 from Amsterdam, 2 from Memphis, 1 from Florida and about 10 from NYC to make this great gang that hung out over 10 days with art, music, walks, sailing, eating, drinking and partying.
Everyone took care of their own accommodations so we had people in Brooklyn, Lower East Side, Soho and we were in the West Village in a fabulous apartment with a spiral staircase to the deck, lent to us by a friend.
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| Arnt barbecuing chicken and veg skewers for a final dinner with the leftover gang |
this is next door to our building
BROOKLYN
We started in Brooklyn at our very generous friend Michael's 5 story brownstone for a brunch and to make a plan of attack. Our list of fun was so great that we ended up with most events having 10 to 20 people at each. I had never been to Brooklyn and was pleasantly surprised with the neighbourhood feel, direct train from our stop in the Village and architecture. Pauline, Simon and Michael hosted a delicious brunch and we hung out for quite awhile before taking a walk through Dumbo and then up onto the Brooklyn Bridge to Manhattan.
This is Soloman who after his kids grew up started coming to the Bridge and taking photos of people and printing them right there with his portable printer. He took one of some of our group.
MAY 8 is my birthday and we started the day with a walk down to
Canal Street and then back to Washington Park via Italy Town.
All sorts of architectural surprises.
This was Donald Judd's studio but it was closed.
That night Kathy and Leif hosted the birthday party with
lots of great food and music in the dining room!
at this age we do not need presents but I was pretty chuffed to receive
this painting from our cousin Kaja (Norwegian) but lives in Berlin
These are the 8 birthday people. I brought aprons as gifts
which say YVR NYC AMS for all the cities we came from.
we all fell in love with Pinkney from Memphis. Turned out he taught in places where
Peter had taught and was friends with my friend Cheryl in France...small world!
new addition to our family is Arnt's gal pal Michelle
Michelle and Donald shaking a leg
Peter squeezing my head for some reason! and the lovely Sibeal.
Arnt and I dancing to My Funny Valentine sung by Kaja from Berlin.
PK in her party dress
the boys singing it up
Sharon belting it out!
Rob and Evan playing the bananas???
son and father dueling guitars
Donald and Jeffryn
I asked Evan and Scout for a recommendation for music and they said definitely Vince Giordanno who has had a big band in NYC for 40 years. The club Iguana is itself an institution with Mexican food and quite a few famous types in the audience...costumer of big films, film historian Wasserman, a Brazilian sax player, etc. My nephew played a song with them and knocked it out of the park!!
Evan on sax and singing.
this is part of their sheet music...they have to be quick to find the music as
there is not necessarily a set list. Apparently they have 60,000 songs!
Vince's metal stand up bass.
Evan and Vince (he gave me a CD for my birthday)
My brother in law has a Concordia yawl 41' wood sailboat that is 60 years old. He brought it down from New Rochelle with Simon, Arnt and Rob as crew. 13 of us sailed by the Statue of Liberty.
On the way down the East River they saw this giant barge and
could not figure it out....turns out it is a prison....so sad.
here is the Polaris crew
This was the whole point...sail past the Statue of Liberty.
That boat is about 65' and ours is 41'
Arnt as crew
the view of Manhattan
Leif on tiller.
Rob and Rob
not a view you get every day
heading back up the east river to home berth
this is the new home where Polaris will stay on a mooring for the summer...nice digs!
Arnt and Leif and Russy Dog did an over night later that week.
The full moon on the way to home birth.
I really wanted to visit some art studios. One of our group Pinkney
http://www.pinkneyherbert.com was up from Memphis for a few months at a studio he
was renting from friends and painting up a storm. He kindly invited us to his studio and
organized a studio visit in DUMBO with about twenty artists having an open studio night.
barber shop next to Pinkney's studio in Long Island City
this is the building where he and his partner live and his studio is on the main floor
fern garden outside the studio
court yard outside the studio
Pinkney telling us his process with Janice looking on.
She is his administrator much like what I do for Arnt.
the tools
this piece is about the city with all the layers of architecture, roads, buildings
the studio
a bit stark but I like the look of this building
Arnt found a bit of graffiti and some sculpture
We went to the Socrates Sculpture park but the show was not that great...a lot of concrete goats with rebar decorated with assorted items. I did like his Apollo sign though. The artist Nari Ward won the $100,000 Vilcek Prize for an immigrant who has contributed significantly to American culture. http://socratessculpturepark.org
a sculptor's outside work yard
fantastic sculptor's studio
Next up was the lovely Noguchi Museum www.noguchi.org
I have been there a couple times before but was great going
with other people and seeing it through their eyes.
I really like his galvanized metal pieces which I had not seen before.
This show in a separate room was a combo of Robert Stadler
with works from the Noguchi collection.
DUMBO
the visitors
This artist had fake animals and then embroidered on top.
the thing you don't see when you see the artist's work in a gallery....the tools!!
landscapes
fabulous textile pieces
prints
this little precise house
another house
sculptor
assemblage artist....game pieces in a giant cross...be still my beating heart
at the end of the block is a great river walk with
places to sit and a carousel in a glass house
THE SUBWAY
there is a love hate with the subway....you can get anywhere for very cheap including across
or under rivers....sometimes the stations are fabulous and sometimes they are kind of smelly
subway police ride
my nephew Miles celebrated his 26th birthday out at his parent's beach
house in Lido.....we all took the train out and with his family of uncles,
aunts, cousins and of course his grandparents Francis and Thomas.
Miles
Rob and Leif
Kathy
enjoying food, slideshow, drinks, friends and family
a few of the boys headed to the beach for football despite the relentless rain
the last few days we were in NYC it got very hot
so jumping in the fountains had to happen
family photo before we go
one more subway ride to JFK
This is part one of our trip....the next part is all about the art we saw.
I love New York and this was one of the best trips. Talk soon!!
Rina, Rob and Pauline
On our walk to Dumbo we saw some interesting architecture.
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| Why is that bricked in? |
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| skinny house |
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| detail of wall above |
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| I might be inclined to change my name from this. |
STREET SCENES
Vodka Distillery
DUMBO
Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass. Old warehouses now turned into luxury apartments, lots of tech start ups, art galleries and still some artist's spaces. The most expensive place to live in Brooklyn.
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| the oh so important balcony |
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| creepy piece of ceramic |
cheetos?
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| love that extension |
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| went to the DUMBO flea and there was a pair of airport seats by Eames...very comfy |
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| The boys of Brooklyn! |
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| the gang on Brooklyn Bridge |
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| there are amazing musicians in the subways |
Canal Street and then back to Washington Park via Italy Town.
All sorts of architectural surprises.
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mask bongs???    |
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| I would love to see this as a giant sculpture. |
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| elevator door in the MoMa gift store |
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| glass insets on the steps |
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| Sharon and Rob in Washington Square |
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| famous 4th Street basketball court |
lots of great food and music in the dining room!
this painting from our cousin Kaja (Norwegian) but lives in Berlin
which say YVR NYC AMS for all the cities we came from.
Peter had taught and was friends with my friend Cheryl in France...small world!
I asked Evan and Scout for a recommendation for music and they said definitely Vince Giordanno who has had a big band in NYC for 40 years. The club Iguana is itself an institution with Mexican food and quite a few famous types in the audience...costumer of big films, film historian Wasserman, a Brazilian sax player, etc. My nephew played a song with them and knocked it out of the park!!
there is not necessarily a set list. Apparently they have 60,000 songs!
My brother in law has a Concordia yawl 41' wood sailboat that is 60 years old. He brought it down from New Rochelle with Simon, Arnt and Rob as crew. 13 of us sailed by the Statue of Liberty.
could not figure it out....turns out it is a prison....so sad.
here is the Polaris crew
Arnt and Leif and Russy Dog did an over night later that week.
The full moon on the way to home birth.
I really wanted to visit some art studios. One of our group Pinkney
http://www.pinkneyherbert.com was up from Memphis for a few months at a studio he
was renting from friends and painting up a storm. He kindly invited us to his studio and
organized a studio visit in DUMBO with about twenty artists having an open studio night.
fern garden outside the studio
court yard outside the studio
She is his administrator much like what I do for Arnt.
a bit stark but I like the look of this building
Arnt found a bit of graffiti and some sculpture
We went to the Socrates Sculpture park but the show was not that great...a lot of concrete goats with rebar decorated with assorted items. I did like his Apollo sign though. The artist Nari Ward won the $100,000 Vilcek Prize for an immigrant who has contributed significantly to American culture. http://socratessculpturepark.org
a sculptor's outside work yard
fantastic sculptor's studio
Next up was the lovely Noguchi Museum www.noguchi.org
I have been there a couple times before but was great going
with other people and seeing it through their eyes.
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| one of my favourites |
This show in a separate room was a combo of Robert Stadler
with works from the Noguchi collection.
DUMBO
I did not get the artists names but took pics of some I like and some was odd.
This building has the top floor for artists residencies.
the view
the lobby
the visitors
This artist had fake animals and then embroidered on top.
the thing you don't see when you see the artist's work in a gallery....the tools!!
landscapes
fabulous textile pieces
prints
this little precise house
assemblage artist....game pieces in a giant cross...be still my beating heart
places to sit and a carousel in a glass house
THE SUBWAY
there is a love hate with the subway....you can get anywhere for very cheap including across
or under rivers....sometimes the stations are fabulous and sometimes they are kind of smelly
my nephew Miles celebrated his 26th birthday out at his parent's beach
house in Lido.....we all took the train out and with his family of uncles,
aunts, cousins and of course his grandparents Francis and Thomas.
a few of the boys headed to the beach for football despite the relentless rain
the last few days we were in NYC it got very hot
so jumping in the fountains had to happen
family photo before we go
one more subway ride to JFK
This is part one of our trip....the next part is all about the art we saw.
I love New York and this was one of the best trips. Talk soon!!
Dear Val,
ReplyDeleteTruly a well documented trip. LOVE IT!! Glad you had a well deserved celebration.
Love to you and Arnt. Hope to see you soon.
Thanks for sharing Val -- the voyeur in me loved it!
ReplyDelete