For mothers and daughters and sisters and maternal ones, this is your day. No matter where you are, celebrate, you are much loved….
Music under New York
B.B.King is a classic name in blues music, both for the man himself ( he still performs at 87) and for his namesake on 42nd street. His club is home to the Harlem Gospel Choir on Sundays as well as a constant line up of Soul, R&B, and Groove. Manhattan Transfer, David Cassidy and The Animals headline in tandem with Buckwheat Zydeco and Swing Out Sister. The performance we scored tickets for this week was not quite so iconic, although Coco Montoya used to play with John Mayall and had a real following in the crowd. The blues guitarist opened with a slow ballad that worked as a distraction to the flickering of torchlight as waiters checked for empty glasses, but then he hit his stride with a blues number that had the crowd moving. Unfortunately the mood didn’t last so Sean and I headed out into the energy of a perfect Spring night.
One of the great joys of living in this city is the unexpected things that happen. You’re never quite sure what you’ll find and often the best moments are those you stumble upon. On that night we wound through the tourists spilling out from Times Square, the street artists creating art with spray paint and chisels, police loitering on horseback and vendors roasting nuts – with other nuts doing their New York thing. We stopped to take a photo of an installation that particularly appealed to me of heart shaped planes that ‘reference the love found in contemporary relationships that often requires people to be separated from their families or loved ones’. At that same moment Cuba Gooding Jr suddenly appeared behind us – he had just emerged from his performance in ‘A Trip to Beautiful’ and there we were at the stage door of the Stephen Sondheim Theatre. He signed some autographs, pulled up his hoodie, and in the company of a minder, melted into the crowd. There was no time to cry out ‘show me the money’ so we carried on past the ping pong players in Bryant Park to home.
Music on the street can be as extraordinary as any you will find in a concert hall. With so many talented artists in NYC looking for a break or just wanting an audience, the performances you find in transit will stop you in your tracks. I saw this happen with an opera singer in the subway under Grand Central Station last week – one young woman turned the madness of peak hour into a transfixing emotional moment. Similarly yesterday I encountered the Ebony Hillbillies bringing southern magic to the subway. That’s the second time I’ve seen them – it must be a regular Wednesday gig – and the second time I’ve been late this past week. Music under New York is in many ways as amazing as concerts in Carnegie Hall or the lincoln Center. You probably won’t see B.B.King there now, but you may have once…
Spring in Central Park
It was a day of superlatives in Central park. Spectacular weather, glorious sunshine and joyous smiles on happy faces. After wonky Spring weather started, stopped and waylaid the blooming schedule of thousands of plants around the city, it was pure luck that everything came together yesterday for that one perfect day before delicate rainbow colours give way to lush summer greens.
Everyone talks on a day like this, even the horses had something to say when we rode in. The Park Rangers were plodding along on what looked like Clydesdales, but in fact they were Percherons, an old European breed known for their gentleness and strength. Hundreds of years ago they were the preferred horse of Knights, the idea of which, added to the magic of Bach lilting through the air, created romantic visions of Richard Gere and Sean Connery sallying forth to save the day. Gwendolin was nowhere in sight, but the inspiration was flowing and (under my bicycle helmet) I could feel the wind billowing in my hair as we cruised up the newly planted rhododendron drive to the Conservatory Gardens.
The gardens are on the upper east side of the park and showcase thousands and thousands of tulips and daffodils in the midst of cherry blossoms, lilacs and a magnificent towering wisteria sculpture. People wander in amazement, taking photographs where their eye can’t believe a deep red and white tulip with a blue and yellow core. Or the smell of those lilacs, or the pink blossoms falling like confetti with a passing breeze, or the colour of the petals as the sun rolls around and lights them up. It is all you can do to be there and infuse the beauty. For Nothing is as beautiful as Spring…. a strain of the earth’s sweet being in the beginning, in Eden garden…..
Screaming around NYC
There has been a lot of ( official ) screaming around NYC in the past few months. The inspiration may have come from the sale at Sotheby’s last year of Edvard Munch’s The Scream for $120M, which made it the most expensive artwork ever sold at auction. This version of the iconic piece has been on view at the MOMA over the winter, but if you missed it, there is another interesting exhibition at Scandinavia House on Park Avenue. Munch and Warhol are sharing the limelight in The Multiple Image, where you can see four pieces of Munch’s work ( The Scream, Madonna, The Brooch. Eva Mudocci, Self Portrait ) and Warhol’s interpretation of it. Both men were printmakers and both were self promoting – gaining more than just 15 minutes of fame. But presenting them together in a conversation about ‘art’ perhaps needs another Norwegian voice to balance the picture. Arvid Andreassen has created a collection of parodies of Munch’s Scream as a very entertaining tribute to the original artist on his 150th birthday. I’m not sure what Munch would think, but I am sure he will get the last laugh…
Posted in art & inspiration
Tagged Arvid, Munch, Scandinavia House, The Multiple Image, Warhol
2 Comments
What a Ball!
The Pierre Hotel was an appropriately grand venue for the American Scandinavian Foundation Spring Ball on Friday night. The hotel was once home to Elizabeth Taylor, Al Pacino danced the tango in the Cotillion Room during filming of ‘The Scent of a Woman’, and the largest, most successful hotel robbery in history happened at the Pierre in 1972 (apparently the robbers tipped the hotel staff before they departed, clearly not wanting to break all the rules…). So when I was invited by the Foundation to be part of the PR team for the Ball, it was with great anticipation of just who might walk through the door.
My initial post was on the 5th Avenue entrance where the unmistakable parade of gala goers could ascend to the party either with high heeled relief in the elevator, or through the magnificent painted environs of the stairwell. Glasses of bubbles anticipated the arrival of the Queen of Norway, as did the protocol approved photographers. My iphone was not on the list, but I did capture a quick word with Bill Cunningham, who was being enthusiastically welcomed by reporters when I suggested to him that he might upstage the Queen. At 84 and forever on the move from one fabulous social event to the next, he retorted ‘Never let anyone make a film about you! It becomes impossible to work! ‘. Clearly a photograph with him was out of the question, especially as Queen Sonya, resplendent in red, was making her entrance. It was time for dinner.
Scandinavian hospitality overflowed from the ballroom to the bar where a space was quickly set up for we unofficial diners. Without the distraction of speeches and song, reporters, musicians and the team that made it all happen were able to celebrate. I shared stories with two Danish reporters visiting NYC with our Mary and Crown Prince Frederik. We talked about the royal regard for Green Roofs, and the famous Noma restaurant in Copenhagen ( make your reservation before you book your flights… ) We talked about the windswept beaches of western Denmark and kangaroos on the lawns of The Lodge. And we talked about the prospect of dual Danish/Australian citizenship. Go Mary!
The whole evening was a huge success, epitomized for me by the artful relaxation of a special guest while he sat out a Norske number – perhaps he was remembering an evening with Liz…
Posted in events, Food
Tagged American Scandinavian Foundation, Bill Cunningham, The Pierre
5 Comments
The Mighty Quinn
Barbecue American style is all about the rub, the smoking and to some extent the sauce, so I have never been a big fan. The wonderfully charred and simply seasoned Australian BBQ was always my preference. Once in Alabama we found an old corrugated smoke house with wooden tables and a low slung ceiling that served the most delicious ribs I had ever tasted, but the environment was most of the adventure. Then in Chicago on a photo-shoot in the meat packing district we were treated by our host’s dry-rub recipe, and that was OK. In New York there is the annual Big Apple Barbecue Block Party but again it’s the atmosphere that draws you in. So, imagine my delight at discovering what all the fuss is about when Mighty Quinn’s Barbecue recently opened their doors in the East Village.
The pit master is Hugh Mangum who created a huge following at the open air markets in Williamsburg over the past summer. His trick is in the rub, but also the slow cooking process which gives the meat that ‘melt in the mouth’ sensation. Unbelievably delicious sweet meat. The smoker runs 24 hours a day and is fueled totally by wood, no gas. Hugh was there stoking the coals when we paused to consider the brisket, the brontosaurus or the rack…? But it’s the brisket that is the signature choice. He told us about the cooking process, about the pink rings created in the meat as it slowly breathes in the smoke. Sounds ominous, but all this is years of developing a ‘Texalina’ taste that fuses the best Texas tradition with Carolina methodology. Hugh said they have many Australian regulars so I’m not the only Aussie on the hunt. Now that Rosella have gone out of business we may have to change our old barbecue model…
Peas in a Pod
A new hotel on the east side near Grand Central Station is boasting about the size of their rooms, and with good reason. These have to be the most well designed compact rooms in the city. It’s a Capricorn’s dream – everything is practical and not an inch is wasted. Luggage goes under the bed, there’s a big fold away drawer for ‘stuff’ and the bathroom is labelled for spectacle free spa-ing. Each floor has it’s own colour so you won’t lose your room, and there are sleeping alternatives for those who are traveling together but are still arguing about who carries the map. For the budget conscious The Pod provides a clean alternative for those who ‘only want a bed’. But there are some other great reasons to swing by…
Ping Pong! There are two tables set back behind reception that form part of an open entertainment area with bar, food service, comfy lounges, internet and a library of real books. It’s all very inviting and easy to relax. Pod is not so devastatingly groovy that you have to pretend you are waiting for your daughter, ( although a sister would have been good! ) but the staff are cool and tattooed and very friendly. The food is Spanish and there are colourful touches of the Orient in the gaming rooms, making for an international mood that carries to the top floor. When the lift door opens you feel you have been transported to Morocco, but step outside and with vantage point views to the Chrysler, the Empire State and the East river, you are unmistakably in Manhattan…
Seed for Song
With the coming of Spring, we have reintroduced our increasingly popular ‘seed for song’ program on the balcony. We started it a few years ago, and in that time have recognised blue jays, hummingbirds and finches enjoying the exchange. But on Sunday morning we were treated to a very special audience. This Red Cardinal not only paused, but posed, and gave us just enough time for proof….
Bullet Catch
Brits Off Broadway is in town for their annual residency at 59th Street Theatres, which is a plus for a couple of reasons. The first is that the 59th street theatres are excellent venues for small intimate performances, and second, this festival always has at least one outstanding gem. A few years ago we saw a fantastic play about Hurricane Higgins, and last weekend we saw the hit of the recent Edinburgh Fringe Festival. ‘Bullet Catch’ was billed as a magic show ‘…a stunt so dangerous Houdini refused to attempt it, the bullet catch has claimed the lives of at least 12 people since it’s conception in 1613…’
It was a one man show, and Rob Drummond was so personable that you felt you were in his living room talking about the meaning of life. There was magic and mind reading, but most of the show was really about truth and illusion. Rob continually referenced the story of William Henderson, a magician who was shot dead on stage supposedly attempting to catch a bullet in his teeth. We had personal insights to the man through letters and conversation ( the conduit being a volunteer from the audience ), and when the final scene came, you could feel the volunteer’s dilemma as he considered the gun in his hand – it all looked like play acting, but was it really….?
While the volunteer took his time to read and sign the release that would free him of responsibility should the trick misfire, I reflected on the glass of pink champagne we enjoyed before the show. I could have been the one called on stage to be a volunteer, and with all the illusion going on, at least my last drink would have been real…
Modernity at the MET
After going to the MET on the weekend to see the Impressionism, Fashion and Modernity exhibition, I have decided I could quite easily live in a Monet painting. All that colour and light is so deliciously inviting, you can almost smell the flowers. With such beauty it seems unbelievable that artists like Monet could have been criticized in their day. But the challenge he and his new wave colleagues presented to the status quo was in the daring reality of ‘compositions that paint our time’, with a style somewhere between portraiture and everyday life. This could be painting light and shadow on a woman’s dress or exposing a foot peeking from beneath a skirt. Quelle horreur! The fashion in painting was changing in the 1860’s – 1880’s as much as the fashion in clothing was changing, and artists like Monet, Manet and Renoir were pivotal in their role of putting Paris on the map as the fashion capital of the world.
The role of fashion in the works of the Impressionists is central to the MET’s exhibition and features paintings, photographs and prints with period gowns, girdles and hats. The dress worn in the painting was the same dress you saw before you in a glass case. As with the Alexander McQueen exhibition last year, using these different mediums, along with many quotes from Emile Zola, helped to create a real understanding of the time and the politics of painting. So it was a joy to see Monet’s ‘Luncheon on the Grass’ now hanging in one of the most famous museums in the world, when it had once been used to pay the artist’s rent and relegated by the landlord to storage in the basement.
No photographs were allowed inside the exhibition because of copyright restrictions. So on this occasion I have used the Museum’s marketing poster to show the dates and inspire the planning of your visit. While the beauty of Monet’s garden is being felt in the blossoming of Spring all over NYC, it seems a perfect time to spin a parasol in the park and maybe read a little Zola…
TheFitzyreport 