TheFitzyreport

MAD world

Posted on October 2, 2014 by TheFitzyreport

The Smithsonian is probably one of the better reasons – apart from attending the inauguration of the first black president in American history – to go to Washington. But last weekend the Smithsonian was live in NYC with open days at all their affiliated museums. With the opportunity to visit the Society of Illustrators ( including comic and cartoon art ), the Noble Maritime Collection on Staten Island, or to swing by the Ukrainian Museum with the largest collection of hand painted eggs in the world, Sean and I decided instead to go MAD.

The Museum of Art and Design sits on Columbus Circle and is a center for the contemporary handmade crafts of American artists. More than just an exhibition space, MAD ‘celebrates the creative process’ by exploring the transformation of materials into art and design. And contemporary is the pivotal description here. There are working studios for artists, exhibitions, films and forums – and currently there is a choreographed performance called ‘Some Cleaning’ wherein the interior of the current exhibition is actually cleaned. So there is much to challenge and inspire.

The craft of Joyce J Scott in her about-to-open exhibition of Maryland to Murano is an absolute gem. She uses beading on a very sophisticated level to communicate thoughts about the interrelationship of family, race and politics. The work is exquisite in detail and in the words of the curator, challenges the perceived differences between art and craft, between politics and adornment. On another level, the MAD Biennial, representing dozens of New York artists and the many mediums they work in, was more of a 2014 time capsule of ideas, from illustration to illusionary shoes and a little refreshment on the side. The whole place was a MAD experience, but I still plan to go to Washington…

Posted in art & inspiration, events, Uncategorized | Tagged MAD NYC | 6 Comments

Climate Change Rally

Posted on September 25, 2014 by TheFitzyreport

The nations of the world could not have been better represented nor more united than they were in the climate change rally on the weekend. From my vantage point in Columbus Circle I was surrounded by an incredible energy of activity and commitment. There were movie stars and politicians, brass bands and jugglers, grandmothers, flower children, social organizations, and many individuals taking the opportunity to comment while the world was watching. It was politics but it was also fun and the spirit of the day in the midst of 400,000 people was extraordinarily that of community. In the earth’s name there were t-shirts that said ‘it’s not warming, it’s dying’, groups of teachers and students urged education with banners that simply said ‘teach science’. Hilary was supported and opposed, Cuomo was urged to stop the fracking, De Blasio to stop the grocer giant Direct Fresh from building on Indian land. ‘There is no Earth B’ featured next to ‘meatless Mondays’, ‘Miami is drowning’ and ‘ISIS may not kill you, but Monsanto certainly will’.

But it was not simply a few banners and clever slogans. There were bicycle powered monoliths, feathered indigenous people, birds flying from a giant nest – one man built a huge collection of windmills ( with regulation cardboard poles so they would meet march requirements ) that he gave away for a donation to the cause. Another man, with a picture of Martin Luther King on his back, played his guitar and sang songs from the sixties, people meditated in a mass overlooking from Central Park, color coded groups sang, danced or just looked for directions, and there were many people walking on their own, making their own statement. There was thought, inspiration and passion. But it was the camaraderie of the crowd that made it so special.

News crews from France, Japan and England were seeking comments and interviews. It was an event for all nations, and there was no mistaking where certain people came from. That black, red and yellow flag representing custodians of 60,000 years could only belong to one proud race. And to my delight there was a more. I saw the sign, called out ‘Aussie, Aussie, Aussie’, there was a beaming smile and snap, the agenda is on record!

Posted in events, Uncategorized | Tagged climate change rally nyc, Tony Abbott NYC | 2 Comments

Full kilt

Posted on September 25, 2014 by TheFitzyreport

Contemplating a wee dram in a Scottish bar in the middle of Times Square while the highlands and the lowlands voted on where they stood as a nation was a memorable pause. Whisky is Scotland’s third biggest source of revenue and after Thursday night, it may even overtake oil. It was a great day for the Scots – yes or no – if the sense of excitement in St Andrews was anything to go by. As one of the few Scottish pubs in the city, the 46th street tavern was a hub of anticipation. An NBC crew took up residence in the street outside as a local lawman & his mount looked about optimistically for curbside refreshment. Televisions broadcast commentary from behind the bar but there was little chance of early reports being heard above the crowd. The woman next to me was looking for a real Scot – ‘I can never understand what they say’, she said, ‘but I love the way they talk’. While the message in the Times by Alan Cumming earlier in the week was enough to encourage the Queen to delay her annual Gala at Balmoral, just in case, the result was not yes we can. But the spirited conversation about identity and independence is on-going and who knows who the Scots may inspire…. Australia…?

Posted in events, Uncategorized | Tagged Scottish independence NYC, St Andrews Pub NYC | 5 Comments

Petrossian perfection

Posted on September 11, 2014 by TheFitzyreport

In the midst of the mayhem that bustles relentlessly along Seventh Avenue between Times Square and Central Park, there is an oasis that could easily remain the secret place of a few. Without wishing to ruin it for these regulars, the Petrossian Cafe has a mezzanine of small tables pocketed behind the austere offerings of the gourmet frontage where you can pause for lunch or afternoon tea. From the window, caviar and champagne appear to be the order of the day – and they certainly could become so, but tea and tarts were more to our mood yesterday.

The cafe shares the same kitchen that serves the fine dining Petrossian restaurant next door on the corner of 58th and 7th Avenue. This elegant establishment is the flagship for the French family who’s name it bears – along with their legacy of being purveyors of the best caviar in the world for almost four generations. To the great benefit of the cafe, this reputation means the food is exquisite. The pastry on my tart was politely crunchy with sumptuous fruit and a perfect chocolate button to finish. The tea was real, the coffee served in silver pots. And this being New York, you can cafe casually, and then spend $12,400 on a kilo of caviar to take home….

Posted in Food, Uncategorized | Tagged Petrossian | 5 Comments

Buses and birthdays

Posted on September 10, 2014 by TheFitzyreport

It must be the year for vintage buses and birthdays. Outstanding in Madison Park on the weekend was a double decker bus posing for photographs and once again welcoming people to have a seat, if not a ride, after 60 years of retirement. The advertisements adorning the interior were as much a sign of the past as were the size of the seats and the staircase – digital age bottoms are clearly not a good fit for the past. But there were plenty of people to celebrate the 200 years of Madison Park in this now, again, very trendy part of NYC. Just over the road from the Flatiron Building, across from Eataly & Marimekko on Fifth, around the corner from Maison Kayser on Broadway, and home to the perpetually queued Shake Shack, the Park was full of people playing croquet, wearing period costume and learning how to skip rope.

Antique bottoms and buses have been on my mind. In October my primary school in Ungarra, South Australia, will celebrate 100 years. Looking at the picture of our old school bus, and we children in front, makes me feel about that vintage. Although it was only yesterday. I don’t know that the Yaranyakka bus will be restored for the October long weekend deadline, or that there will be skipping ropes included with the activities, but I do know there will be no need for instructions. We can thank R G Martin and a rich rural education for that…

Posted in events, Uncategorized | Tagged Ungarra Primary School | 1 Comment

Summer sizzle

Posted on September 9, 2014 by TheFitzyreport

There were at least three smoldering jazz bands, one banjo player plucking his way to the summer music festivals in Australia, a video team recording a trio of enthusiastic Irish dancers and a group of unseasonably dressed Amish Mennonites, all competing for cultic currency in the park on Saturday afternoon. But in the hottest week of a belated summer, the only place to be was the children’s water fountain playground. Fortunately all the children were running amuck with oversized water pistols at the time, so this adult could commandeer a little cool….

Posted in Fun, Uncategorized | Tagged NYC summer | Leave a comment

From Bondi to Brooklyn

Posted on September 9, 2014 by TheFitzyreport

There are no longer any lamingtons in the cake display, and flat whites are off the list at Toby’s Estate. It is some time since I visited Toby’s first foray into NYC in Williamsburg and found these vestiges of home. But the only connection to the origins of Toby in his new spot on Fifth Avenue, is a blend of coffee called ‘Woolloomooloo’. There is also a single origin bean called ‘Abakundakawa’ and another called ‘Borboya Yirgacheffe’, so spelling bees and sentimental blokes will have their hands full. Toby’s literally joins Strand Books as tenants of Club Monaco in the Flatiron District, so you can ponder over that potential purchase of apparel with a strong coffee and advice, appropriately, from the economic or the fashion sections. Either way you can’t lose. The staff are definitely Brooklyn, but the style of coffee is unmistakably Australian.

Posted in coffee, Uncategorized | Tagged coffee NYC, Toby's Estate | Leave a comment

FlyNYC

Posted on August 26, 2014 by TheFitzyreport

Autumn breezes blew early on the Hudson on the weekend bringing much laughter and loftiness to the west side. Just down stream from the infamous marina where male divorcees from the boom & bust eighties were still floating on their half of the family fortune, kites filled the sky in celebration of FlyNYC. Superman ducked and dived with octopuses, dragons and giant squid, as handmade white kites headed for the heavens. There were tears when only the string returned, but not for long – there’s not much a mobile pizza oven can’t cure.

Disguised as a day for children, the festival saw many big kids ‘getting it started’ and, with kites launched, not wanting to hand back the controls. Casting from the gusty vantage of the pier, kites entangled strings and people as the wind blew upriver. The Shinbone Alley Stilt Band just managed to stay upright, while Batala, the AfroBrazilian Samba Reggae drumming band, created their own ground swell. Having opened for the Rolling Stones 50th Anniversary tour, they bought fantastic energy and color to the day, dancing their way up and back along the pier. You can’t beat an all women band with a honky tonk history. Especially the grandmothers!

Posted in events, Fun, Uncategorized | Tagged FlyNYC | 2 Comments

Berlin Wall, NYC.

Posted on August 14, 2014 by TheFitzyreport

August is the season like no other in NYC to find travelers with map in hand gazing upwards in search of landmarks. But this vertical city creates a challenge in finding even a colossus like the Empire State Building – especially with the disorientation of emerging from a subway station and not being able to establish the direction of uptown, downtown, east or west. So it is with pleasure that I return the favor so happily given to me on the road, by speaking or signing the way forward. Doing this with relative ownership of the neighborhood made it even more ironic that an Australian should suddenly be giving me directions not just in New York City, but to the Berlin Wall in New York City.

Five segments of the Berlin Wall are mounted in a public courtyard on East 53rd Street between Fifth and Madison. One side – what was the west side, is covered in graffiti and the other – the east side – is untouched. Like a work of art the wall is a backdrop to people having lunch or walking past with a coffee. A porter swept up around the wall this morning as someone has probably done since it was installed 24 years ago, but never did before that. He might have been shot if he tried. In 2014 Manhattan is not the only place in the world that boasts a segment of the wall – pieces can be found all over Europe, North & South America, Africa and Asia. But the good news is that there is plenty of room for the next wall that comes down. Let’s hope it is soon!

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments

Katharine Hepburn Garden

Posted on August 10, 2014 by TheFitzyreport

Just around the corner from the United Nations on East 47th street is a hidden garden. You can walk past a hundred times – as I have done – and not realize the significance of the space, where a local resident, who also happened to be a famous movie star, is honoured by a garden she inadvertently helped to create. Katharine Hepburn lived in Turtle Bay for many years, where she was an activist for the greater environment and wasn’t afraid to get her hands dirty. What better tribute than a plaque is this, a place to pause, to sit on her garden bench and share a moment of inspiration…