VIP Contemporary Art Fair, Steven Jobs + Hot Chocolate

ART:

VIP Art Fair.com 

World's FIRST
Virtual Art Fair 

Will it work? 

January 22-30, 2011

The art world's first online international art fair is scheduled to launch on January 22, 2011. The galleries buy booths, just like the bricks-and-mortar versions and customers who want to purchase art are given passes by the galleries or they pay for admission. The good news, you can browse the entire fair for free and if you decide to buy something, simply pay the admission and contact the gallery.

Available at David Zwimmer Gallery.

Art is still a commodity best seen in the flesh, but the VIP Fair will be the first large international test to see what can be accomplished in the virtual world. If a collector is familiar with an artist and the gallery, he or she will have no problem buying or at least reserving a piece at this virtual show. The many collectors who have been unable to travel to traditional art fairs, for whatever reason, will now have the opportunity to attend one, see the art and meet with the gallerists via Skype, over the phone, or by texting. Galleries are looking forward to the large potential audience for this show and will be available online for 18 hours each day, because of the world-wide context.

139 of the world's best galleries will participate, including heavy hitters like Gagosian, Hauser & Wirth and David Zwirner. Influential dealers in L.A., S.F., Tokyo, Shanghai, Berlin, London, Melbourne, Brussels, and Seoul are also on the list. In total,1,928 works of art will be be shown at the fair, which will last one week only. For a complete list of galleries go to: https://view.vipartfair.com/open/galleries

This fair will lack the usual art parties and face to face contact that encourage sales at traditional art fairs, but the deep recession has taken a major toll on the retail art industry and, for these galleries, the potential of developing new clients is an exciting prospect. Also, the VIP Fair will cost only a fraction of what galleries and collectors have normally spent at an art fair. Travel, hotels, higher booth rental fees, handling, packing, hanging, repacking and shipping of the art, to and from, have all been eliminated. If VIP is a success, more virtual fairs will be held. This experiment will provide information to all galleries and all art fairs about how to better take advantage of the internet. General access to the VIP Art Fair is free of charge, to register, go to:  https://view.vipartfair.com/auth/register

CREATIVE DESIGN 

EXCELLENCE
Thank You

Steven Jobs 

Steven Jobs is a man I admire greatly. I had the privilege of talking with him one-on-one while walking through the meadows of Aspen, one summer. We were having a dialogue about computers and design when we came upon three young red fox cubs jumping, rolling and playfully enjoying each other. We watched silently for a while and then walked on. It was a magical moment I shared with him, which I will never forget.
Sadly, Steven Jobs recently announced another indefinite medical leave of absence as CEO of Apple. ABC news recently described him as "the Thomas Edison of our time".  We have been lucky to have Jobs as one of the leaders and creators of our current digital age. He has always insisted that visual beauty be a part of every innovation he has brought forward. The Macintosh, iMac, iPod, iPhone and iPad have all set very high standards for design in technological products and that quality of design is one of the reasons Apple has an emotional appeal the competition often cannot claim. Steven Jobs also created Pixar Animation Studios, reinventing the industry starting with Toy Story. Good design always starts at the top and Steven Jobs has made a positive impact on the aesthetics of contemporary life. 

Notes from the commencement address at Stanford, 2005. 

Steven Jobs dropped out of college after six months, but enrolled in just the courses he liked before he actually left college. One class he took was calligraphy and because he studied the basics of excellent typography, Apple had great typography built-in and Microsoft copied Apple on this feature. "It is easy to connect the dots looking back, but impossible to connect the dots looking forward." If he had not dropped out, he never would have taken this calligraphy class, and personal computers might not have the excellent typography, they do today. 

------------

Jobs found what he loved to do early in life, starting Apple with Stephen Wozniak in his parent's garage at age 20. Within 10 years Apple had grown into a $2 billion company. One year after he released Macintosh, he got fired by the BOD of Apple. Rejected and feeling down, he soon realized that he still loved what he did at Apple and "that" had not changed. With this realization, he entered one of the most creative periods of his life. He started NeXT, which was ultimately bought by Apple, returning him to the company. He also started Pixar computer animation studios, producing the world's first computer-animated film "Toy Story". Pixar is now the most successful animation studio in the world. He also met and married his wife, Laurene, and now has a wonderful family.

He says, none of this would have happened if he had not been fired from Apple. "If life hits you in the head with a brick, don’t lose faith. I’m convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You’ve got to find what you love. The only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work.  As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. Don’t settle."

------------

When Jobs was  young he read: “If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you’ll most certainly be right.”  Every morning he asks himself: “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?” When the answer is  “No” for too many days, he knows he needs to change something. "Remembering that we'll be dead soon makes all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important." Remembering that keeps you from thinking you have something to lose. Follow your heart."

In 2004 he was diagnosed with cancer. "This was the closest I’ve been to facing death" and no one wants to die. Our time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma–which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice, and most importantly, have the courage to follow your heart. Your heart and your intuition somehow already know what you truly want to become.

When he was young, he enjoyed The Whole Earth Catalog. The final issue of that publication had a photograph of an inviting, but seldom traveled country road. Beneath the photo were the words Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. Jobs said: "I wish that for you. Stay Hungry! Stay Foolish!"

We send our best wishes to Steven Jobs and hope he returns to Apple soon, to continue designing our future.


FOOD: 

Haute Chocolate

Make the most of this icy winter.
Enjoy a cup of hot chocolate!  

Fabulous Hot Chocolate at La Maison du Chocolat
Midtown NYC, Rockefeller Center at 49 St.

La Maison du Chocolat is a French chocolatier which serves an amazing cup of hot chocoate at all three NYC locations ($8 cup). They also have stores in Paris, London, Tokyo and Hong Kong. It is cold this winter and you can count on La Maison du Chocolat to warm you up and for solace. If you want this indulgence at home consider purchasing some hot chocolate pearls to bring back with you. Plus, these pearls are available online and can be sent to almost anywhere in the world. Below is the list of locations in the New York area for La Maison du Chocolat.

Midtown, NYC

30 Rockefeller Center

at 49th Street

NY 10020 New-York

Tel : (1212) 265 9404

Fax : (1212) 265 9405

Hours:

Monday-Friday: 9:30am-7pm

Saturday: 10am-7pm

Sunday: 12pm-6pm

Upper East Side, NYC

1018 Madison avenue

78th Street

NY10075 New-York

Tel : (1212) 744 7117

Fax : (1212) 744 7141

Hours:

Monday - Saturday : 10am - 7pm

Sunday : 12pm - 6pm

Downtown,NYC

63 Wall Street

NY 10005 New-York

Tel : (212) 952-1123

Fax : (212) 952-1133

Hours:

Monday-Friday: 9:30 AM - 7:00 PM

Saturday: 10AM - 6 PM

ALSO: Short Hills, NJ

1200 Morris Turnpike

NJ 07078, New Jersey

Hours:

Monday-Friday: from 10am to 9pm

Saturday: from 10am to 7pm

Sunday: from 11am to 6pm

This tube of Maison du Chocolat - Dark Chocolate Pearls makes an intense chocolate drink to be enjoyed hot or cold.

Tasse de Chocolat - 0.55lb. $18.00

http://www.lamaisonduchocolat.us/us/en/product/Chocolate-drink

(May contain peanuts or other nuts) Ingredients: Cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter, natural vanilla extract + glazing agents & an emulsifier.

Dark Chocolate Pearls
sold at their retail stores and online

Hot Chocolate:

Pour ¾ quart of milk and ¼ quart of water in a saucepan and bring to boil.

Add the chocolate beads in the boiling liquid and mix using a whisk to evenly melt the mixture.

While mixing with a whisk bring the mixture to a boil once again, lower the Heat and let the mixture reduce for 2 to 3 minutes to obtain a smooth hot chocolate. For best results, let the hot chocolate stand to cool slowly and when ready to serve, reheat the chocolate mixture without boiling it. Pour in serving container through a sieve and serve

Iced Chocolate:

The above preparation method may be used to prepare iced chocolate by using only ½ quart of milk and ½ quart of water, as well as omitting the reduction process of 2 to 3 minutes. This will allow the chocolate mixture to remain liquid as taken from the refrigerator. We recommend preparing the mixture the night before.

Until later,

Jack

© ARTS&FOOD,(ARTSnFOOD.blogspot.com) All rights reserved, © Copyright Jack A. Atkinson 2011 Under All International, Digital, Intellectual Property and Copyright Laws. Images © Copyright individual Creators, Lenders or Fabricators.

Tim Flach's Beautiful Dogs, Art Auction Trends + Easy Chinese

First, a thank you to all of the readers from 32 different countries who have found and read this blog, which I only started two months ago. Please help keep the momentum going, by recommending www.ARTSnFOOD.blogspot.com to your friends; by keeping the link on your desktop as a place to go when bored at your computer; by selecting "like" on Facebook, ARTSnFOOD; and then check in twice a week - let's have some fun together over the next year. Who doesn't enjoy inside tidbits about the Arts and great Food suggestions. Again, a heart felt thank you, it is a privilege to create ARTS n FOOD. 
- Jack A. Atkinson

ART: Photography Exhibition & Book

Check out award winning London photographer Tim Flach's dog photos, they go way beyond the mundane pet portrait. For more info and more photos go to http://www.timflach.com/ and select Portfolio, then Dogs Gods. Flach is represented in NYC as a commercial photographer by Peter Bailey at  www.peterbaileyny.com . 

All Photos © Copyright 2011 Tim Flach

Tim Flach focuses his camera on dogs, having previously captured the beauty of horses (Equus). He uses some unique techniques, such as shooting the pet from below, from beneath a sheet of plexiglass. A book of images in this photo exhibition was originally published in New Zealand by PQ Blackwell under Tim's title "Dogs / Gods", but the newly released US version is simply titled "Dogs", due to concerns about US mores. I personally have always thought it was interesting that Dog was God spelled backwards. Oh, well. You can buy this beautiful book for a 37% savings at Amazon.com.

ART: 2011
A Big Upturn in Auction Sale Prices!

Sotheby's Feb. 8 sale
estimates $18.6 million for Picasso's 'La Lecture'.
We shall see where the market takes it.

TREND: Expect High Auction Prices for Art Created 1950 to Present. “When art collectors or investors seek safety and familiarity, they are most likely to gravitate towards works by artists from the era and culture with which they have the greatest connection." (source WSJ) Auction results were astounding last year for works from the 1950's forward, bought by wealthy Baby Boomers.

The high end art market has seen a wild rebound from the downturn of the global financial crisis. There is a saying in the art world, only buy the best, it is your greatest opportunity for a good investment. A staggering $5 billion dollars in sales was posted by year's end at Christie's, up 51.5% from $3.3 billion in 2009 and Sotheby's announced sales of $4.3 billion in art sales last year, up from $2.3 billion in '09.

Expect collectors to continue to spend heavily on Baby Boomer era art created since 1950 - Pop, Color Field Abstractions and Contemporary art stars. All led by Andy Warhol, whose work last year sold for a combined $367 million. Of course there is always Picasso to make an auction really interesting. (source WSJ, NOTE: Auction Sales or any resale by collectors is called the "secondary art market")

Nude, Green Leaves and Bust by Picasso

Top 10 Art Sales in 2010

1) $106m - Pablo Picasso, Nude Green Leaves and Bust, oil painting. 

2) $103m - Alberto Giacometti, bronze sculpture.

3) $68m - Amedeo Modigliani, oil painting.

4) $63m - Andy Warhol, silkscreen on canvas.

5) $53m - Alberto Giacometti, bronze sculpture. 

6) $53m - Amedeo Modigliani, sculpture. 

7) $51m- Pablo Picasso, oil painting. 

8) $48m - Henri Matisse, bronze sculpture. 

9) $45m - J.M.W Turner, oil painting. 

10) $42m - Gustav Klimt, oil painting. 

(source The Art Newspaper)

Enjoy the following exciting video of the art auction at the Christie"s, Impressionists and Modern Art Evening in NYC. Lot #6, Picasso's: Nude Green Leaves and Bust sells for a record price, plus all commissions are also paid by the buyer.

Online Shopping / Art

David Blackwood is one of Canada’s leading printmakers and most popular artists. The current exhibition catalog showcases his iconic works.

http://www.dmpibooks.com/book/black-ice

BLACK ICE, by David Blackwood 
"Prints of Newfoundland"

Exhibition Catalog - Price $40.00

BLACK ICE EXHIBITION:
Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto
February - May 2011

David Blackwood Prints

Also at AGO Shop: 
The exquisite RHYTHM mobile
in black (small),
by Christian Flensted

This Flendsted mobile hangs from a single point,
suspended by wire and thread.
The individual shapes revolve independently
under the faintest currents of air in an interior space.

RHYTHM mobile Art  by Christian Flensted

Aluminum 29 x 28 inches
Multiple

Price $536.00

http://shop2.ago.net/store/product/2402/RHYTHM-mobile-in-black-%28small%29%2C-Christian-Flensted/

FOOD: Easy Chinese

Chinese food is seldom prepared in non-Chinese households, but we forget that "stir-fry" is basic Chinese cooking. Plus, you only have to wash one pan and you don't even need a wok! 

The following recipes are simply a matter of tossing a few ingredients into a large deep skillet and stirring it all up for a few minutes then serving over rice. Fast and easy cooking.

------------------------

Easy Mu Shu Pork, served over rice.

1 tablespoon dark sesame oil

1 red bell pepper, cut into strips

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 lb. pork tenderloin, cut into strips

1 6" zucchini, julienned into 2" strips

2 cups pre-packaged raw rainbow slaw 

   or coleslaw shreds

1 bag, boil-in-bag white or whole grain rice

2 teaspoons Hoisin sauce 

Cook rice as per package instructions.

Stir this dish constantly while cooking!

Heat oil in a large deep skillet over medium high heat. Add bell pepper, cook 2 minutes. Add pork, zucchini, and garlic, cook 4 to 5 minutes or until pork is done and veggies are crisp-tender. Add coleslaw and cook 2 minutes until wilted. Add Hoisin sauce and cook 1 additional minute.

Spread rice on a plate, spoon Mu Shu Pork over rice. Serve immediately.

------------------------

Easy Chicken with Veggies Stir-Fry, served over rice.

3 tablespoons soy sauce

2 teaspoons mirin (optional)

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/4 teaspoon dried or fresh minced ginger

1 lb. chicken breast meat, cubed

2 tablespoons cooking oil

6 precut, (pre-packaged) celery sticks cut into 1/4" slices

6 precut, (pre-packaged) carrot sticks cut into 1/4" slices

1 crown of broccoli, trimmed into small florets

1 snack package or equivalent of peanuts.

1 bag, boil-in-bag white or whole grain rice

Cook rice as per instructions on the package. 

In a large re-sealable baggie, combine soy sauce, mirin, garlic and ginger, add cubed chicken, re-seal, mix and marinate for 20 minutes (up to overnight) in fridge. Heat oil in a large deep skillet and add chicken including the marinade. Stir-fry for 6 to 8 minutes, add veggies and cook, stirring for 4 to 7 minutes more until veggies have softened.

Spread rice on a plate, spoon Chicken and Veggie Stir-fry over rice. Serve immediately.

------------------------

Buy a box of pre-packaged traditional fortune cookies, brew some jasmine tea and its HOME MADE CHINESE for supper!

Until later,

Jack

© ARTS&FOOD,(ARTSnFOOD.blogspot.com) All rights reserved, © Copyright Jack A. Atkinson 2011 Under All International, Digital, Intellectual Property and Copyright Laws. Images © Copyright individual Creators, Lenders or Fabricators.

Revisiting Chicago's Picasso + El Cubano Grande

The Chicago Picasso

ART: PUBLIC SCULPTURE 

The "Chicago Picasso" in Daley Plaza, Chicago, IL. 

Up in the sky - it's a Bird, no it's an Afghan Dog, no it's a Baboon! Seriously, what is it? It IS an abstracted Picasso sculpture of a Woman's Head. Wouldn't you be disappointed if a Picasso wasn't slightly weird! As Mayor Daley said at the unveiling "What is strange to us today, will be familiar tomorrow."

On view at the Chicago Institute of Art

Original Maquette sent by Picasso.

Downtown Chicago is an exciting urban landscape with several great public sculptures. One of the most interesting public sculptures anywhere in the world has been in place in Chicago for over forty years now - the magnificent Picasso which dominates Daley Plaza. The Chicago architectural firm of Skidmore, Owings, & Merrill, while designing Chicago's Civic Center, envisioned a large-scale public monument to anchor the plaza in the front of the project. SOM senior partner, William Hartman, contacted Picasso and a commission was agreed upon. When Picasso got the call, he was working on a series of paper and cardboard cutouts he called "Heads of Sylvette", which he translated into metal sculptures. For the Chicago Picasso, a small 42-inch maquette of the final 162 ton, 50 foot tall sculpture was sent by Picasso as a "gift to the people" of Chicago. This maquette is presently on view at the Chicago Art Institute in the Modern Wing. The city sent Picasso a $100,000 check for his design, but he insisted the sculpture was a gift and tore it up. The production of the sculpture was handled by Skidmore's structural engineers and paid for as a part of the cost of the Civic Center construction budget. Fabrication was done at United States Steel Corporation in Gary, Indiana, where it was entirely preassembled, then disassembled and shipped to Chicago for final installation on the plaza. The sculpture was completed in 1967.

Controversy started almost immediately. It was a visual shock to most Chicago residents and politicians. There was a serious movement to have the sculpture removed and replaced with a more conservative, acceptable and realistic image of baseball player Ernie Banks, in his Chicago Cubs uniform. The Chicago Daily News columnist, Mike Royko, wrote that the sculpture had "a long stupid face that looks like some giant insect..." Some people insisted the architects had been duped and it actually was a Baboon, others were fairly certain it depicted an Afghan Dog, there was a contingent who thought it was purely nonobjective but many thought it was a pile of rusty junk metal, an eyesore that needed to be hauled away. 

The sculpture is actually based on Picasso's model Sylvette, who wore a ponytail on top of her head which splayed to both sides framing her face. His preliminary drawings all show various heads and some show breasts, so there is no doubt it is a female human head. Picasso was in his 60s at the time and had been distorting the human form for most of his life by the time he created this head and shoulders bust for Chicago.

Picasso's Design Process for the Statue.

THE MODEL:
Picasso was between wives Francois Gilot and Jacqueline Roque when he was introduced to artist's model Sylvette David. She became Pablo Picasso's muse at Vallauris on the French Riviera although their relationship was platonic. Sylvette's presence brought a new and positive phase to his work. She was the inspiration for a group of forty paintings and drawings called Picasso's Sylvette cycle. Most importantly, the "Heads of Sylvette" were a series of metal sculptures Picasso based on Sylvette and her coiffeur. These works marked yet another major innovative change in his work. While working with Picasso, Sylvette changed her name to Lydia Corbett.  Today Lydia Corbett (Sylvette) has residences in France and England, she now works as an artist herself.

Sylvette David (Lydia Corbett) with Picasso

Do you see the face,

hair and shoulders

in this rear view?

Chicago has grown to love its Picasso sculpture which is now a symbol of the city. Artist Lydia Corbett's greatest contribution to the art world may well be as the long-necked, ponytailed model for Pablo Picasso's monumental gift to the windy city.

FOOD: The Trendy and Delicious Cubano Sandwich.

The Cuban culture is known for beautiful people, a strong cup of coffee, the best cigars and the fabulous Cubano sandwich. Cuban sandwiches called "a sandwich mixto" were common on menus in Cuba starting in 1900 and a staple by the 1930s. They became the preferred lunch for Cuba's sugar mill workers. In eastern Cuba, the bread is rubbed with garlic first.

The classic Cubano sandwich is constructed with Cuban pan de agua bread* rubbed with garlic and built with dill pickles, grilled ham, swiss cheese and smashed pork chunks which have been slow roasted in mojo, a delicious citrus and garlic marinade. One should butter the outside of the bread and cook in a special press, called a plancha**, to press the sandwich between two hot plates. You end up with a thin, hot, crispy sandwich with oozing melted cheese.

*For bread you need a loaf which is crusty on the outside and soft in the middle, but never use a baguette, which is too narrow and too hard to press correctly. **No plancha press? Cubans often cook their sandwiches on a griddle or in a skillet and put a brick wrapped in aluminum foil on top or use a cast iron skillet to press their sandwich flat. Enjoy your Cubano! 

Ingredients:

- Thin slices of grilled ham

- Hot, slow roasted pork (the quality of the Roast Pork makes the sandwich)

- Thin slices of swiss cheese

- Slices of dill pickles

- A 12" loaf of Cuban pan de agua bread, split open

- garlic clove

- butter

In Miami, Cuban sandwiches are both a meal or a snack. The best and most authentic Cuban restaurants in Miami have a take out window, so people can walk up to buy a quick cafe Cubano and croqueta preparada (Cuban sandwich made with pork croquetas). Reuben's Cuban Restaurant reportedly has fantastic Cuban sandwiches. In south Florida Cuban Cafes are a home away from home for the Cuban community. Here, order the croqueta preparada.  Ruben's, 8281 SW 124th St., Miami, FL 33156 (305) 235-5575. http://www.yelp.com/biz/rubens-cuban-restaurant-miami
A second recommendation in Miami is the Latin American Cafeteria. 9796 SW 24th St., Miami, FL 33165  (305) 226-2393. http://www.yelp.com/biz/latin-american-cafeteria-miami-3  

In New York City you can find an excellent Cuban Sandwich on the Lunch menu at The Spotted Pig, 314 W. 11th Street at Greenwich St.  (212) 620-0393 http://thespottedpig.com/food.php?menu=lunch
In Chicago check out 90 Miles Cuban Cafe. 3101 N. Clybourn Ave. Chicago, IL 60618, Phone: (773) 248-2822 http://www.90milescubancafe.com/menu.htm

Until later,

Jack

© ARTS&FOOD,(ARTSnFOOD.blogspot.com) All rights reserved, © Copyright Jack A. Atkinson 2011 Under All International, Digital, Intellectual Property and Copyright Laws. Images © Copyright individual Creators, Lenders or Fabricators.