the little mermaid {sf ballet}

I am in San Francisco right now and last night I was treated to a night out to the ballet. For 2 weeks, the San Francisco Ballet is performing The Little Mermaid, based on the original story by Hans Christian Andersen. Led by Hamburg Ballet Director and Chief Choreographer, John Neumeier, the SF Ballet does a modern interpretation of the tragic story of a mermaid enduring so much because of her committed love for a human Prince. What I loved so much about this performance was the melding of the choreography, stage design, and costume design. The mermaid costume complimented the choreography that resembled movement under water...the minimalist set design utilizing neon lights {I wish I could find a picture!} complimented the bold color palette of the costumes...some of the company dancers seamlessly transitioned from being sea creatures to being supporters of the mermaid...I don't think my descriptions can justify the truly original and unique production they put on. It was VERY modern - choreography, music, set design, everything - but I really appreciated the opportunity to see a full-feature ballet that was quite different from the NYC ballet companies. Check out the video above or here to get a preview and behind-the-scenes look at this performance...


{Photos courtesy of San Francisco Ballet}

precious

Yesterday were the Oscars - and despite not having had a chance to see a lot of the nominated movies, I watched a good part of the show. {Looks like I need to check out The Hurt-Locker, yes?} One movie I did watch was Precious - and despite it being a super intense and heartbreaking story, I liked the movie. A few weeks ago, I was on a transatlantic flight and spontaneously bought Push at the airport newsstand. I read it in one sitting and was captured by the difficult complexities of Precious's life. On top of that, reading the cover article in the NY Times Magazine, The Audacity of 'Precious', and learning about how the film came about, I had to see it. I think all of the attention the cast and crew have received are super worthy - I love when something totally new can be seen on the big screen. Now on to the other movies~

{Photos courtesy of here}

pulse nyc 2010

Tis the season of the big art fairs in NYC - and this morning I got to check out the Private Preview of PULSE New York. Above are some shots of the space located right along the West Side Highway and Houston. The big industrial space is filled with galleries from around the world representing up-and-coming artists of all sorts of mediums. Photographed below are some my likes. The bottom photo is a "self-portrait" as a camera captured passerbys {me!} and interpreted them into crayon color swatches. PULSE goes on until the weekend so check it out for fun~

chamber music @ the met

Yesterday, while it drearily rained outside, I spent a few hours at the Met Museum where there was a chamber music concert at the Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium right inside the museum. With a program of Mozart, Ravel and Brahms pieces, the intimate auditorium space was filled with soothing music from string instruments and piano by Yefim Bronfman.

After the concert, I visited the Temple of Dendur and the Impressionist section of the museum - how can you not see some of the great art while you are there. These are some paintings that particularly caught my eye on this specific visit...

Mada Primavesi (1903-2000) - Gustav Klimt - 1912

The Bath, Javea - Joaquin Sorolla y Bastida - 1905

{forgot to capture info!}

{Photo of Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium courtesy of here}

brief encounter

Over the weekend, I saw the play Brief Encounter at St. Anne's Warehouse - and what a great stage production! Based on David Lean's 1946 film {same title Brief Encounter} about a doomed love affair between two married people, this specific production is by the Britain-based Kneehigh Theater. With actors performing in front of originally created black-and-white film clips, they are trying to honor the spirit of the film that inspired it from the 1930s. The talented cast plays multiple varying characters, sings while acting, and does a lot of the stage setup themselves {moving set pieces, producing sound effects, etc}, which I loved. I really admire the creative direction taken by Emma Rice to put on stage her very unique take of the story - that all can enjoy. It's no wonder that this performance got extended {the reason why I was able to go check it out!} for more people to experience...


{Photos courtesy of NY Times and here}

art of the samurai {met}

This is the last week for the Met Museum exhibit called Art of the Samurai: Japanese Arms and Armor. I went to check it out as I know there is so much rich history, culture and artistry involved with anything samurai - Japanese warriors who were members of the feudal military aristocracy. Aristocracy, being the keyword, samurai held a high and respected role and led lavish lifestyles for their time. The Met collection {apparently the first comprehensive exhibition devoted to the arts of the samurai in the US} featured samurai helmets, armor, clothing, swords and their cases, saddles and artwork. The objects date from the rise of the samurai in the late Heian period, ca. 1156, through the early modern Edo period, ending in 1868, when samurai culture was abolished. Every item is hand crafted with artistry, which shows the high respect and honor that was given to these warriors. You get to see many pieces that are practical warrior tools that also embody many layers of symbolism. Various helmets were crafted for indiviuals that represented their philosophies and beliefs. There was a helmet that was in the shape of a swallow's tail {bottom image} that was not only aerodynamic, but also represented the speedy force in how a swallow flies. My other favorites from the exhibit included a video that showed how 15 people and 6 months are involved to create 1 sword, as well as jinbaori {surcoats that warriors wore off of the battefields} that had amazingly modern motifs despite them being created in the 16th and 17th century. I recommend the exhibit for anyone who wants a glimpse of this realm of Japanese culture {up at the Met until Jan 10}.


{Photos courtesy of Met Museum - photographs were not allowed for this exhibit}

roy haynes @ birdland

This weekend I got surprise tickets to see the legendary jazz drummer, Roy Haynes, at the Birdland. He is apparently known as "one of the seven wonders of modern jazz" - and it is amazing that at 24, Haynes was the drummer in Charlie Parker's group on Birdland's opening night, December 15th, 1949. So, fittingly, this set was the cornerstone of Birdland's 60th Anniversary celebration. Get this, he's 84 YEARS OLD! But he played like he is decades younger - and how appropriate that his band's name is "Fountain of Youth"...inspiring~

{Photos courtesy of Josef Polleross and Carolyn Appel (JALC)}

museum of chinese in america {moca}

After seeing signs for the new Museum of Chinese in America {MOCA} for some time now, it has opened and I went fora visit. The 12,000 square feet of former industrial space now tells a story of the presence of Chinese-Americans from the 1700s to present day. This space located in Chinatown is designed by Maya Lin {who is no stranger on this blog} and has a really nice facade on Centre Street. It's modern and tasteful - which I think is a nice first impression for the Museum and the people it honors. Highlighting the past and present of Chinatown {in NYC, as well as all over the country}, a visitor can read and see how the Chinese in the US have endured so much throughout time, have survived a tough history, and have accomplished so much. The museum has interactive elements, videos, anecdotes, old photo collections, original artwork from the various time periods {some samples below}. There is also a temporary exhibit called HERE & NOW of contemporary Chinese-American artists and their work {my favorite was the bottom photo if hanging Chinese and English books that all had view-holes carved into them with little figurines inside. Oh, and Thursdays grant free admission...nice.

andrea bocelli performs~

Last night was the 1st night of Andrea Bocelli's sold-out concerts with the NY Philharmonic at Carnegie Hall. I knew tickets were going to be hard to get, so I grabbed them early {and paid a little bit more than I wanted} and...wow, it was worth it! His soothing + compassionate voice is at times the complimenting factor and at other times the strong accent of the full orchestra. The program included many 1 movement shorts - and so we got a variety of opera arias, 4 renditions of Ave Maria and more...we even got 2 encore pieces where 1 of them was the classic La Traviata aria. The until-then-subdued Carnegie Hall crowd got all "rowdy"....:) The concert was amazing~

ruined

My friend took me to see Ruined at the Manhattan Theatre Club {City Center} last night and it was quite memorable. It is a story about an independent woman - Mama Nadi - who runs a brothel in a small mining village in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the girls who work there. Despite them being thrown around among rough soldiers here, it's a "safer and better" place for these girls who have been kidnapped from their villages or raped by soldiers or seen their family killed in front of them. The play is about the human spirit in times of war and turmoil - and between the amazing writing, characters and acting, it is such a heartbreaking piece. The final scene of the play was SO emotional - and I couldn't help but feel so much for these characters. Lynn Nottage, the playwright, spent two months at a Uganda refugee camp interviewing women who had been raped and brutalized in the fierce Civil War affecting the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo for decades...real life experiences setting the foundation for the characters. Ruined has been awarded the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for drama - well deserved for this excellent production that sheds light on world issues of violence in places of conflict.


{ Poster images from Manhattan Theatre Club website }

met: new american wing

I never got a chance to post this, but I went to the MET a bit ago and saw the new American Wing that has been renovated. WHAT a nice surprise. In the sunlit room, there is glassware, pottery, jewelry, crystal pieces, metalwork and more primarily from the mid 1800s to the early 1900s. There are even some significant stained glass pieces from the Tiffany collection. It's so inspiring to see the amazing craftsmanship and evolving design styles and aesthetics from the good old USofA. Definitely recommend this Wing for your next MET visit - as you know you have to pick and choose your sections for each visit since this place is SO huge~ Some highlights I chose from the exhibit photographed below...

*interior ware*

*architectural decor*

norfolk chamber music festival

This past weekend was a getaway to Norfolk, CT for the end of the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival. My friend's father is the violist for the Tokyo String Quartet, who performed on Saturday evening. The concert's program included string quartets by Schubert and Mendelssohn and a clarinet quintet - with guest clarinetist David Shifrin - by Mozart. The performance was housed in a wooden country barn-like music hall and we were all able to listen to beautiful classical music in the midst of the picturesque Connecticut countryside.

This Festival is part of the Yale School of Music and hosts summer music programs for aspiring musicians. All of the members of the Tokyo String Quartet {and other artists} are mentors and teachers for the program. All of this takes place on acres of land of rolling green hills owned by Ellen Battell Stoeckel. Upon her death in 1939, she left her estate in a private trust with instructions that the facilities be used for Yale University’s summer music school, ensuring an enduring artistic legacy. Now in its 68th season, the Yale Summer School of Music - Norfolk Chamber Music Festival has a dual teaching/performance purpose. So we as visitors also got to hear bravo student performances {their final recital at the end of the program}.

Also on the premises is The Art Barn that houses the studios for fine art summer student programs. The studios were vacant at this point of the summer, but I got some fun shots of their work and materials scattered through the space.

We stayed in the cottages that are distributed through the estate that usually host the faculty members. The musicians and their families stay here over the duration of the summer - as my friend did in his early childhood years - and I got to see how this summer program nurtures the arts in a simple and unpretentious way. This weekend ended up being a really nice few days in the peaceful countryside surrounded by beautiful music and wonderful friends and families.

summer swimming

It's August! Actually, close to mid-August already - yikes! Found this seasonally appropriate artwork by Cindy Stockton Moore and wanted to share. These are from her collection called After the Deluge. I love the small people on donut rubber tubes floating in a big watercolor pool. Would be nice day to work from a poolside no?


{Images courtesy of Cindy Stockton Moore's website}

min kyung kim {mountain series}

Roth Gallery in the UES is featuring Korean artist Min Kyung Kim - and I got to attend her opening. The collection Mountain Series uses traditional methods of painting on rice paper - but in a modern way. Kim uses a saudering iron to burn rice paper to make a color from below show through. The result is numerous large format pieces that are made of layered rice paper sheets. She has a beautiful sense of color and had a vibrant show filling up the gallery walls. The collection is not huge, but apparently all done in the last year. So check it out if you have a chance~
Have a great weekend all! Looks like sun~

{Images courtesy of Roth Gallery}

lights...at the met opera house

When one visits the Met Opera House at Lincoln Center, no matter how many times you go, you cannot help but be awed by their chandeliers. They adorn the center of the lobby space {11 of them of many sizes}, as well as inside the theater {21 of them}. When you are in your seat and the lights dim and the chandeliers rise up passing your eye-level, you cannot help but follow the lights with your eyes up to the top of the theater ceiling. That excitement and drama never gets old. Last night, I visited the Opera House to see a nice performance of Pamela Herrera and Marcelo Gomes in ABT's Romeo + Juliet. And I think because it was SUCH a beautiful evening and since this is the last production of this year's ABT season {in the back of my head I knew I would not be visiting again for a bit}, the lights particularly stood out.
The chandeliers at the Metropolitan Opera - created by chandelier-manufacturing company J.&L. Lobmeyr - have been hanging since opening night in September 1966. Apparently there are 49,000 pieces of Swarovski crystals that are on the 'sputnik'-like pieces. Amazing. See photo below that show the transformation of the chandeliers with a backdrop of the Opera House facade, changing the mood dependent on the light coming into the building. Pretty, isn't it?

roxy paine on the roof {met}

Visited the special exhibit Roxy Paine on the Roof: Maelstrom on the Met rooftop. With silver intertwining metal "branches", this sculpture is a 130-foot-long by 45-foot-wide stainless-steel piece that was created specifically for this site location. It was REALLY bright up there {major squinting} but it was fun to walk in and out of the sculpture, as well as see it juxtaposed with the Central Park skyline.

On a separate note, took the 77th Street subway station and took a snapshot of the subway tile art. Really pretty flowers made of metallic and matte tile mosaic...

swan lake with diana vishneva {abt}

Right now the American Ballet Theater is in full force with all the classic performances. This week is Tchaikovsky's tragic classic Swan Lake and I got to see the critically-acclaimed Diana Vishneva {as Odette/Odile} and Marcelo Gomes {as the Prince}. I've seen Diana Vishneva before when she performed contemporary at the City Center. And from that point on, I knew I wanted to see her in a classic ABT performance. And last night was that night - she was everything I thought she would be and MORE. From the moment she fluttered onto the stage, she was a dancer transformed into a swan. And as she continued to move with amazing flexibility and fluid but strong dancing, you could feel the tragic emotion of her character. In Act 2, there is a duet of Odette and the Prince - where they meet in the forest - and I was completely floored and moved. And I wasn't the only one - they came out for 3 or 4 curtain bows in the midst of the performance. The MET was a full house and when the final curtain went down, it was a full standing ovation with flowers galore thrown onto the stage {blurry photograph above}. Another moment of feeling so lucky to live here in NYC and having the option to experience such things...

{Above photo of Diana Vishneva as Odette: Courtesy of ABT website}

storm king

Someplace I have always wanted to go is Storm King Art Center, a sculpture park up the Hudson Valley area. And I got that opportunity this weekend! With 500 acres of landscape, the property is sprinkled with various kinds of sculpture and landscape art by renowned artists. I'm not sure where else you can see works by Maya Lin {new addition this year!}, Alexander Calder, Isamu Noguchi and Roy Lichtenstein {as photographed below in order} all in one place.

My overall favorite - taking into consideration the landscape - was Storm King Wall by Andy Goldsworthy {photographed below}. It is a stone wall that started from the edge of the park, down a big hill, into a lake, out the other side of the lake and curved around the trees of a wooded forest. The idea is simple but to me it seemed really thoughtful in location and use of natural materials - and was a piece that could be appreciated from many points-of-view.
Below are a series of photos taken to roughly show the experience of progression one gets as a visitor by seeing a sculpture from afar, then close, then appreciating the fine details/materials of the piece. Left is Mark Di Suvero's Pyramidian and right is Calder's Knobs.
It's really a beautiful experience to walk through the vast park and get to see large-scale art without walls or a ceiling - just the sky, trees, grass and clouds framing each piece. Despite a half-day spent out there, I can see myself wanting to go back and getting a chance to notice new things that I couldn't catch from this 1st time. Below are 2 more details I loved - carved signage for all the artwork + Calder's huge signature {and year of work} soldered on his sculptures.