Art for Art's Sake

This weekend, we attended the 27th Art Dealers Association of America Annual Art Show to benefit Henry Street Settlement at the Park Avenue Armory. The art in the show ranged from post-card size works (including a marvelous Egon Schiele from Galerie St. Etienne) to a Basquiat that filled an entire wall. In between looking at the art, we schmoozed - a lot. Case in point, Jill Sussman, herself a work of art, was there with her husband (who was sweet enough to take this picture - without which - did you guess? - there'd be no picture of us at all).

From a number of events on Art Show weekend at venues around the city, we chose the Armory in part because of news coverage of its inclusion of works by a number of heavy hitters whom we admire like Al Held, Alice Aycock and Jean Michel Basquiat. Cheim and Read featured Al Held's Armatures, one of which, from 1953, appears below.

Miami's Fredric Snitzer Gallery featured one of the most newly minted pieces in the show, Alice Aycock's 2015 aluminum "Timepiece #3".

Here's the Basquiat, at the van de Weghe booth.  You could do a line-up of suspects fit for a police headquarters and still not entirely obscure this painting.

Nam June Paik's 1989 "Self Portrait" contains a bronze mask of the artist, videotape, antique TV tubes, circuit board, eggs, painted globe, watch, suspenders, pewter Buddha, magnet, painted piano, I-Ching page, silk flowers and one pair of eyeglasses incorporated in a 1950s Philco Predicta TV cabinet.

Outside Pavel Zoubek's booth hung "Christo Wrapped Mirror", dated 1963, of partially gilded, wooden, Victorian frame and glass mirror, polyethylene, twine and rope.

Eric Rhein's "R.O.T.C." from 1987, hung in the same gallery's space, is made of wire, suede, leather brocade fabric and found objects.

An entire wall in John Berggruen Gallery's space was covered with colorful Matisse paper pieces.

Several of the black and white pieces caught our eye, like Hernyk Berlewi's 1923 "Element Mechano-Faktur-Element", gouache on paper mounted on board

Victor Vasarely's "Cleo" 1958-61 acrylic on canvas was Jean's favorite piece in the show.

Some of you - particularly those of you living in New York City, or New York City studio-sized apartments - are sniffing 'yeah, that's all very nice for people with space.  There's no way I can have art in my apartment.'  We thought of you too, and yes, you can have art.  Here are a few pint-sized (or quart or gallon-sized) beauties for the dimensionally-challenged.

Here is a wonderfully compact untitled sculpture by Jose de Rivera, at the Valerie Carberry Gallery.  We didn't actually measure it, but it's less than one foot across.

Or you could have a Fernand Leger.  Leger is best known for his paintings, but you could have this textured three dimensional ceramic piece.  We found it at the Jeffrey H. Loria booth, inset into a wall, so it takes up no space at all.

At Adler & Konkright Fine Art we found this delicious Sonia Delaunay, entitled Prismes Electriques, no bigger than the size of a head portrait.

For those in the mood for something more modern, have a dash of Anton van Dalen.  We're only showing you his paper hot rod, but the whole booth at PPOW was devoted to van Dalen, and with good reason.  He has an edgy, playful mentality.  Even his paper tenement building is hypnotic.  Again, we didn't have our rulers handy, but this fabulous ride couldn't be more than about seven inches tall.

Still swear you don't have room?  Wear your art on your sleeve.  (Sorry - but you must admit it's been a long time since we indulged in a bad pun.)  The James Goodman Gallery had a mouthwatering selection of Calder brooches.  We apologize for the glare, but isn't it worth it?  If you have no space on your walls, wear a Calder on your hat, or around your neck, or on your jacket.

We should point out that most dealers seemed to find printing their prices anathema, so we don't know what anything cost.  But as for space?  Yes, we guarantee you have space in your home for art.

What we're wearing:
Jean is wearing a cashmere knit hat by Jasmin Zorlu; Top Shop jacket; Sock Man black and white fingerless gloves; black and white Underground Creepers from Trash and Vaudeville; white and black tote bag gifted from Kirsten Hawthorne; black knit harem pants from a neighborhood Tibetan store.

Valerie is wearing a vintage shearling hat by the Granite State Toy Co., Monies polished wood earrings, an unlabeled cotton bolero, an imitation Miro sweater whose label disappeared years ago, an imitation Mondrian ring (unseen), vintage Issey Miyake culottes (bought new more than twenty-five years ago!), and Diane von Furstenberg boots.

A Rose & Diamonds & Champagne - The Incomparable Rose Hartman!

Last Thursday evening, we set out in the latest -- and hopefully the last -- blizzard of our seemingly endless winter to attend the launch of photographer Rose Hartman's new book "Incomparable Couples" published by ACC Editions. The party was hosted by de Grisogono, the Swiss jewelers, and Candy Pratts Price. The event was held at de Grisogono's extraordinary jewelry store on Madison Avenue.  As an added treat, a portion of the proceeds from book sales was donated to one of our favorite charities, God's Love We Deliver. (And in case you're asking, we're not really wearing the colors you see above.  The lighting changed every inch or so.) The cover photo features David Bowie and Iman, an incredibly stylish and instantly recognizable couple.

No one need to have worried that the storm might keep people away. Who could possibly resist the lure of a glitzy party to honor a chronicler of the glamorous Studio 54 scene, with people from that era mixing with younger fans? Add a generous dollop of champagne and delicious hors d'oeuvres in a warm and cozy jewel box of a setting et voila: a recipe for fun! Rose wore a long lace black top by Adrienne Landau to highlight a pair of glittering de Grisogono diamond drop earrings. The guest of honor poses with Omar Hernandez (in blazing blue) and Keith Patrick.  Click here for the Harper's Bazaar photos and story.

We're always delighted to see a man who loves to dress.  This is Di Mondo who always wears something riveting. That evening, he wore a Dolce and Gabbana suit the color of lush tropical greenery.  This shot also gives you a better view of Rose's beautiful jacket.

You really need to see some of the details of this suit.

Alejandro Figueredo and his friend Medini posed with us in a corner of the main room, out of the crush of the crowd.

Alejandro, a graphic designer, offered us one of his bespoke business cards disguised as strips of gum.

Unwrapping his business card is a bit like opening a gift.

It was fun to run into the tall and dapper Roy Kean, whom we'd met at the party for Rose' previous book (""Incomparable Women). To view photos of duos that appear in Rose's latest book, click here for L'UOMO VOGUE/News/"Rose Hartman, Pas de Deux in New York City".

Carmen D'Alessio posed with Rodrigo Salem. This Peruvian public relations diva was the maintainer of the famous list that Andy Warhol dubbed the Who's Who of 1970s New York Night Life and was a driving force behind the success of such clubs as Studio 54, Palladium, Limelight, Tunnel, Cain and Plumm. Warhol took a famous portrait of her and she famously popped out of a huge birthday cake wearing a gold lame Norma Kamali bathing suit. Our kind of gal!

We ran into Elise and Caroline Rueda, whom we hadn't seen since Fashion's Night Out several years ago.  The sisters worked in the world of New York couture, having worked in the world of Paris couture before that.  Caroline later indulged us by putting on her hat, an antique leather pilot's casque with a a peak in the front that gave it the look of a visored warrior's helmet.

Guests enjoyed the scene and the delicious bubbly.  Unseen are the beautifully presented and scrumptious canapes that the handsome waitstaff regularly tempted us with.

This woman had the most wonderful Gibson Girl hairdo, and de Grisogono had the most wonderful spiral staircase, so we caught the two of them together.

Tziporah also braved the bad weather to make an appearance at the party.

Rosemary Ponzo, Montgomery Frazier and Ben Mindich clearly had fun dressing for the weather.

Rose took time out from signing books to schmooze with guests Melissa Kassis and Michael Travin.

Bob Fisher is working on a documentary on Rose.  We missed the opportunity to photograph his colleague, Otis.

Ross Kenneth Urken (left) and Joseph Michael de Leon enjoyed the party. Brunch is definitely the leitmotif connecting us with Ross and Rose. We first met Ross a couple years ago when he and Rose were having brunch at an outdoor table at Diner on the Bowery and we were being photographed and interviewed for a Swedish newspaper. Shortly thereafter, we invited Rose to brunch at a restaurant on Rivington Street that turned into a disaster. If something could go wrong, it did. Ross just hosted Rose for brunch at his apartment last week ... and we're having brunch with her next weekend, hopefully with better results than the last. The adventure continues.

We hung out with the wonderfully charming and entertaining Ed Rudin who turned out to be the art critic whose review appears on the back cover of Rose's newest book

Our pal, photog David Glackin, stopped by before heading to a gallery opening.

Ryan Nessing, whom we'd met at one of Rose's previous events at Rizzoli, and his lovely young friend and a friend of Omar's posed with Rose.

Jean lined up to purchase her copy of Incomparable Couples.  Here you can see Caroline wearing her leather pilot's casque. To purchase your own copy of Incomparable Couples from Amazon, click here. Since this is not the last of the parties honoring Rose, stay tuned for some more high-style hijinks!

Elf Cap? Ski Hat? Heck, No. It's an Urban Turban!

Winter weather in the northeast -- and most of the country -- has been brutal, with high winds, low temperatures, snow, sleet and freezing rain. When just staying warm is the priority, many throw style to the winds and just go for snug and cozy. With luck, they look sweet and cuddly like one of the seven dwarves above. (Photo from playbuzz.com.)

Others go for the goofy ski hats, like this red number from GetaKlu's website.

Or this long tail ski hat from etsy.

Or this one.

OK. We just had to throw this one in for the shock and awe factor.

We choose a different route, a road less traveled. (What a surprise, right?) Both of us purchased fleece hats from Ignatius last November at the Philadelphia Museum Craft Show.  Each has a very long tail attached to the top of the hat. The inner cap is also fleece, so it gives an extra layer of insulation.

Although we noticed some wearers wrapped the long tail around their necks, we chose to wrap it around the top of the hat instead.  It adds height and creates a multi-level effect. Net result:  an urban turban that not only keeps us snug and warm, but also makes us feel chic.

In a real turnabout, it was Jean who selected the multi-color striped hat, after Valerie chose the black and white one.  Who says you can't survive the relentless cold and precipitation with style? Aha!  Just imagine what we'd come up with to wear while climbing the Himalayas!  Hope this gives you some ideas to cheer up your wardrobe to get through these last and hopefully few days of winter.

For those of you still rockin' your inner Disney fantasy, have you ever wondered WHICH one of the seven dwarves YOU are? Of course, there is a website that can answer that question for you. Intrigued? Take a chance and find out: http://www.playbuzz.com/ewanbo10/which-of-the-7-dwarves-are-you. Image from playbuzz.com.)  Later, kiddies!

Playing Dress Up: The Senior Version

When parents are faced with snowy days, they invite a neighbor's kid over so the kids can entertain each other, and the parents can get on with the serious business of balancing the check book.  Or watching the game.  The kids go up in the attic and put on the clothes in grandma's trunk.

Faced with yet another snowy day, we too played our own version of dress-up.  Jean came over to Valerie's house with a load of glasses an optician would envy, and we had fun trying on a wide variety of frames.

Having worn glasses on a daily basis for the past 40 years, and being a hoarder by nature, Jean naturally has a large collection of frames (with and without prescription lenses).

From two boxes with about three dozen frames, we each selected six.  The frames pictured above, dating from mid-1970s to about 2008, provided a great starting point for our snowy day adventure. Valerie's half-dozen run down the right side of the photo and Jean's run down the left.

Let the games begin!

These 1986 "Gigantor" frames from l.a. Eyeworks are among her all-time favorites. The matte black frames impart a Groucho Marx vibe to the look. Apparently, they're so popular with the public, the company still carries a version in its current line. Jean paired them with a black satin Chromat neck cage, Amy Downs felted wool turban, Top Shop zip-front peplum jacket, vintage horn and bone earrings, vintage gold and bakelite rings and plastic cage bracelet.

Also dating from 1986 are these Colors in Optics "Sanford Hutton" frames, which she wore to her wedding reception that same year. Today, she's paired them with a surprisingly (for Jean) colorful Ignatius fleece hat and a red plastic necklace made of tiny Barbie Doll high heels from the Brooklyn Museum Store in honor of the "Killer Heels" show.  The black round neck crinkly fabric Brigitte jacket provides a great backdrop to vintage and current bakelite and plastic bracelets. (Can't seem to see the square red bakelite earrings in this shot.)

A girl just never knows when she might have to ride a camel in the Sahara or drive a sled dog team in the Iditarod race through frozen Alaskan tundra!  It always pays to have a pair of expedition wear glasses with leather on the nose to protect against freezing weather and at the temples to keep out sand and snow. Jean actually wore these in the late 1970s to clubs and to sunbathe on the landfill on the Hudson River that became the base of the World Trade Center and World Financial Center. This time, she's paired them with a super long-necked poly fleece neck gaiter with a drawstring hood to protect from the elements.  As always, she's wearing vintage gold and bakelite rings.

These square framed, clear lensed glasses made in England by Booth & Bruce are among the newest in the lot, dating from approximately 2006. Unfortunately, the then-popular East Village optical shop on Avenue A and East 3rd Street has since closed.  Jean added a colorful mohair plaid Amy Downs turban, blue satin Chromat neck cage and blue earrings by Keith Lewis Studio in the Hudson River Valley.  The feather weight earrings are made of recycled water bottles, carved and colored with metallic acrylics.

Gold knotted matte metal frame sunglasses made in Korea are from the mid-1990s. We both thought the vintage red honeycomb weave Issey Miyake parka made Jean look like an alien astronaut.  She added a red silk fan and lots of red plastic and bakelite bangles and rings to cheer things up on the Japanese space station!

These modified cat-eye faux tortoise shell sunglasses from the 1990s by Anne Klein for Riviera work well with a spotted and knotted Amy Downs turban, black knotted rubber earrings by Kirsten Hawthorne, bakelite and gold rings, and a vintage navy blue leather boy's pea coat.

Valerie discovered that playing dress-up with someone else's eyewear is challenging!  After all, the colors and shapes are suited to someone else.  Valerie frequently window shops for glasses, but is still unaccustomed to the amazing world of frames.  Dresses can be bought for a song; glasses cannot.  Dresses can be (should be!) changed every day; glasses cannot.  Buying a pair of glasses is like getting married: it is an institution, not lightly entered into.  The last time Valerie got a price quote, her intern had to whip out the smelling salts.  Valerie has still not recovered, and has yet to figure out how to 'dress' her face.  But she chose the frames she liked the best for today's fun, and came up with these choices.

These pearlized Rochas late 1990s frames don't exactly have polka dots, but they put Valerie in mind of polka dots - thus the hat (Lilly Dache) and the earrings (Jean's mom).  The shirt is from Zara, the jacket is an unlabeled Mugler knock-off.

These huge Liz CLaiborne 1980s frames are hilarious.  They're a bit geeky and masculine, so Valerie had fun trying to add a feminine touch to the outfit. That's a Schiaparelli hat, Ungaro jacket (both from vintage stores), costume red and black earrings, and felted fingerless gloves by Tiiti Tolonen.

Valerie thought this huuuuuge swath of black across her face (Courreges Paris frames from about 2004) called for a bit of amusement, in the form of color, to set it off.  The big felted vintage flower corsage with contrasting stitching was found in a thrift shop, and easily attached to a turban-like black felt hat of the same period.  The gloves and earrings (more or less the same period) are unlabeled, as is the hat.  The ruched silk coat is by Elizabeth Arden.

Valerie liked the two-toned black and white Alain Mikli 1990s glasses in Jean's collection, and pulled out several two-toned pieces to set the glasses off with.   Below is another Schiaparelli hat, with costume plastic earrings, a Ralph Lauren chalk stripe jacket, and vintage black gloves with white insets.

There is no brown in Valerie's wardrobe - none - so when she chose the leopard spot Diva glasses, she thought the best thing to do was go back into her wardrobe for more yellow.  Only the man's double faced cotton weave shirt is labeled - Longue Distance ("made in France"). Jean found the wonderful earrings, whose black dots rise off the surface like tiny pearls.  Except for the shirt, everything is, alas, anonymous.  All of it is second hand, and the hat and gloves are older than Valerie, which is saying something these days.

Although not going out anywhere near the snow (remember, this is the lady who broke her ankle just stepping out into the street on a beautiful summer day), Valerie thought she'd nod to the weather with this last pair of glasses.  You can't see it here, but these Francois Pinton frames have a tiny row of rhinestones at the outer edges and have interesting white feather-spotted temples. Taking her cue from that, Valerie added the fluffy St. Laurent hat, fuzzy gloves and bulky scarf and the black and white coat.  The wooden earrings are by Monies, and the black lacquered wood pin in the hat is by Rumiko Suzuki

Bet your grandmothers didn't have this much fun on a snowy day!