Gotham Gal

Ruined

Once in awhile you come across a play that tells a story that more people should hear.  Ruined would be that play. 

What goes on in Africa, on a daily basis, is really hard for any of us to wrap our arms around.  At least for me.   The random killings, the civil wars, the raping and pillaging of communities, the lack of respect for a human life.   People and countries around the world have sat back and watched.  I am not sure where you even begin to help.  Education would be a good start if you could make sure the youth isn't swept up with the rebels before they get to school.

Lynn Nottage, is the playwright of Ruined.  She is not only a Guggenheim Fellowship recipient she is also was granted a McArthur Genius Grant in 2007.  Ruined is a brilliant play that sheds some light into the atrocities that are happening in the Congo.

Ruined is a term for women that are raped.  Women that have been kidnapped by the rebels and gang raped who are then shunned by their families when they return to their homes and villages.  Why?  Because they are not ruined and the families have now basically lost face.  Perhaps that is why the rebels are using women as weapons of choice to fight their wars.  BTW, this is not one side of the rebels, it is both sides.  One side is worse than the other.  Nobody is doing right here. 

The play takes place in the Congo at a bar/whore house run by Mama.  This a place where the rebels put their guns down, enjoy a few beers and pay for sex.  As the play unfolds, we learn the stories of the 3 women who are working and living at Mama's place.  Their stories are gut wrenching.  Each scene tells more and more.  You can feel the tension build in the audience over the course of the play. 

Ruined certainly helps raise awareness about the raping, pillaging and genital mutilation that is happening in the wars across Africa.  It is a brilliant play that is well worth seeing.  The acting is superb and the tales of each of the characters will stick with you for a very long time.  We need to see more plays like this. 

AADA and the Henry Street Settlement

Every year, actually for the past 21 years, the Henry Street Settlement in conjunction with the Art Dealers Association of America put on an art show at the Armory to raise money to support their programs. 

There are roughly 70 art dealers from across the country who come and show.  I went up there with Jessica this evening, didn't exactly turn out as planned but we did go see the show.  I have gone a few times in the past and considering the present economy it was interesting to check out the crowd, the art and the prices.

Keep in mind that most of these galleries have been around for awhile so the art that they are showing is mostly from artists that are mid-career or older, not many artists are just starting out.  Certainly there might be some emerging art but based on that price points that I saw, I am not so sure about that. 

I had a few favorites.  This is of the phone booth which I thought was just hysterical if anything.  Not a piece I see someone splurging on today.  I didn't even ask the price. It is completely real and huge!

One that I really loved was from a Roman artist named Pizza Cannella who shows at Barbara Mathes Gallery.  He did a series on chandeliers.  There is something very warm, soothing and elegant about this piece.  A cool $65K.  Could be my fave.

I did enjoy seeing the photos of the Highline prior to any of the construction that has been done.  Joel Sternfeld was given access to the Highline to document everything.  The photos, to me, are more interesting in their historical value than the beauty.  Those photos are going for $25K a piece and there are only 7 available per shot.  They are shown at the Luhring Augustine Gallery. 

 

There other piece that I really liked was of Abe Lincoln.  The artist had painted other Presidents, flowers, torsos and ice cream sundaes.  I checked it out on line when I got home.  The gallery representing the artist, Aaron Fink, is the Alpha Gallery out of Boston.  What was kind of cool is that his parents own the gallery.  I like the way the paint appears to be dripping off the canvas but after looking at his other work (on line), I am not so much into his work as I am into this one particular piece.  Maybe it has to do with the subject matter.  Price $21K

Last painting I took a picture of is the series of paintings called Blah, Blah, Blah.  One woman held up the postcard they were giving out and wanted to know if she should just hold this up at a meeting.  I thought it was pretty funny.  The artist is Mel Bochner and his work is at the Peter Freeman gallery.  Clever and certainly a conversation starter but not at $90K. 

Now of course, I really have no idea what the worth of any of these pieces are based on the age of the artist, the collections they are in, or even museums, etc., but I will note that a few years back when I went to the event more than 80% of the pieces had little red dots on the side meaning sold.  In some cases, galleries were completely sold out.  This year, I was looking for the red dots and there were very few.

Immigration

Immigration is one of those topics that create a lot of conversation.  I believe that we are a country of immigrants and we should continue to open our doors to other people who want to come to the US and participate by being working educated citizens.  Not always so easily done. 

In Australia, if you want to become a citizen, you have to have a degree and then work.  After 3 (or 4) years, if you become a working member of society, you get to become an Australian citizen.  It is helping the Australian economy grow and because of this law, many Asians have moved there for work. 

In this country, we have treated many of our immigrants not with open arms but quite the opposite.  We are forcing them to leave this country instead of letting them fill jobs that I am not sure many Americans would want.  But what is worse is that we have been deporting 18 year olds who have lived in the US their entire life, who grew up here, who's parents have become US citizens or have green cards and are sending them back to where they came from.  Why they don't have the paperwork is probably because the system is really hard to navigate and most of them are not educated enough to figure it out.  But, where these kids come  is the US. 

Any kid under 18 regardless of being at US citizen will and must be educated while they are here, it is the law.  For instance, in Denver, 60% of the kids in some of the public schools English is not their first language.  I don't know if they are legal of illegal but they are being educated.  Once they hit the age of being able to go to college, they can't go because they do not have a VISA or green card.  Instead, we deport them.  Did anyone think that perhaps these young "Americans" might be good hard working citizens that have been educated in our public school system and can make an impact on our economy?

There is a woman who works for us.  She is wonderful.  She has been part of our family for almost 10 years.  Yes, we pay her taxes.  She came to the US illegally with her daughter in tow 25 or so years ago.  She started out in Chicago and eventually ended up in NYC.  She worked hard.  A total jack of all trades.  She came here to make a better life for her only daughter.  She is from Brazil.

When it was time to go to college, the only place she could afford to send her daughter was to the top University in Brazil.  Perhaps not well thought out but once her daughter got to Brazil to go to school, she couldn't return because she wasn't an American citizen.  She got on a plane to come home for Thanksgiving ( an American holiday ) and was turned away at the gate.  Her mother, who has been happily married to a US citizen for over 10 years, can't have her daughter visit her.  Although her husband tried to adopt her daughter years ago, the wonderful state of Florida lost all their paperwork for 2 years and by the time they found it, she was too old to be adopted.

Now comes the long tedious process of attempting to get her daughter back to the US.  Seven years have passed.  It should have taken 10 but I was aggressive about pursuing this through the NY State Department.  Her first interview, in Sao Paulo, was done by a person who works for the US Immigration Department who proceeded to harass her in the interview.  I won't go into details but it was disgsting. Regardless, she eventually went to the next level which takes a few more years.  The process is tedious and frustrating.  More important, nobody cares.

Yesterday, was the finale, and her VISA has been approved.  She will be here in 10 days.  What resonated with me more than anything else was when she called me to thank me for all my help, the first thing she said was "I'm coming home".  Home because the US is her home.  The US is home to the thousands of kids we deport for not having the proper paperwork.  Why don't we help them become happy engaging citizens instead of sticking them on a plane back to a place where they no one and don't even understand the culture.

In cases like this, I believe nice guys finish last.  I am always amazed at the people who figure out how to work through the system, particularly the immigration system, who get here and are not good citizens.  Our policies must change.  We should be helping all kids of immigrants figure out how to stay, be educated and love this country.  We should be opening our doors to any educated person who wants to come here and start their business.  We should be opening our doors to people that have the skill set to work in our companies and make them better.  Our world is flat and until we participate with that in mind, our economy is never going to be as robust as it should be. 

Mind over Matter

Mind over matter is very powerful.  I hit the slopes again today after making a much needed upgrade yesterday or new boots and bindings.  Also, the weather is more like spring skiing today.  I am a total fair weather skier. 

I ski and I board.  I can basically ski anything as there was a point in my life where I made the ski leap.  It wasn't that my abilities changed it was more that my state of mind changed.  Not sure I will ever get to that level boarding.

Jess, Josh and I went out together this morning.  We ended in tight trees with steep moguls.  I went down a bit and bagged.  I took off my board and walked down.  Jessica said to me, I have the skills why don't I go for it.  Why?  State of mind.  I fear the pain and agony I will go through to get my comfort state of mind.

All I can think of going down a trail like that on my board is my back, my knee, my life.  Promised Jess I'd ski for a few days in March where my comfort level on a narrow tree mogul slope still remains high, at least for the moment. 

This is a picture of Josh and Jess at the top of one of the lifts.  The other one is an area where you can see where the tree line ends which reminds you how high up you are. 

My age is showing

We hit the slopes today.  I am most definitely feeling my age.  Now I understand thoroughly while the average age on the slopes is more like 22. 

It is seriously cold out here today.  10 degrees at the top, maybe.  I was freezing.  I boarded a few runs and my legs were burning, my toes were numb and I am not sure I was having much fun.  I much prefer the 45 degree ski. 

Also, we had the classic freak out.  Josh and Jess went out alone and then lost each other.  Josh came to the meeting place for lunch figuring we'd all be there...as we were.  Jessica went to the ski patrol ( who were beyond lame because they could have found us at the lunch spot ) and then eventually we were freaked and went to ski patrol too and found Jess.  Ugh.  Unfortunately cell phones do not work so well on the slopes.  I am going back out and buying walkie-talkies for March skiing. 

Going out again tomorrow, of course, but I am praying for warmer weather.  Emily said that I should stick to half days going forward.  She might be right.  Alas. 

Customer service rule number 1

Image via Wikipedia

We are spending the four day weekend at our friends home in Keystone, Colorado.   Before showing up with all our gear in tow, I sent out some goodies before our arrival.  Some came, some didn't. 

Luckily, thanks to Fedex, the skis/boards arrived as expected.  Murrays Cheese, no problem, everything came as planned, Ricks Picks, same thing, perfection.  Compartes Chocolatier - no show.

As a rule, from experience, I only order from Internet companies that use UPS.  USPS, particularly in out of the way places and even in Manhattan, they just don't deliver the packages.  USPS won't leave a package at the door (in rural areas) without a signature and in Manhattan, I seriously wonder if they ever bring the package but the piece of paper on where to retrieve the box.  Mail is one thing, packages another which is why I love UPS.

I placed an order with Compartes Chocolatier, paying a whopping $31.99 for 2 day UPS delivery.  It specifically said UPS 2 day delivery.  I ordered it on February 9th and expected delivery on the 11th.  We got there the 13th, no chocolates.  I called them and they mentioned it might have gone USPS.  I asked why?  The response was that is what they do.  Sure enough, we found the note that said USPS had been there and we had to go to the post office.

First of all, we are all on vacation.  Second of all, the post office is 20 minutes away.  Third, the post office is closed by noon on Saturday and we missed it.  So, here we are, all leaving on Monday or Tuesday, a secondary home and nobody will see the chocolates for months.

Needless to say, I will never order anything again from Compartres Chocolatier,  But, lesson learned, if you tell the customer that you are shipping UPS - ship UPS.  In days like these, customer service is the number one priority.  If they did what their website said they would, we'd be savoring those chocolates right now.

Books from overseas

I just finished the book Self Help by Edward Docx.  I picked it up in Paris at a top book store that had definitely curated the books that they were carrying.  What is interesting is that you can't find this book in the states.

This book was long listed for the Man Booker Prize in 2007.  This is an annual award given to the top contemporary novelists in Britain and Ireland every year.  This award has been around for 40 years.  The award appears to be quite prestigious.

There is so much published these days that I was really surprised that I could not find this book at Amazon.  I found it on Amazon UK with rave reviews but for whatever reason, perhaps it is the publisher, has not made the book available here. 

Personally, I didn't love the book but as I sat down to enter the book in my books read column, it didn't pop up.  Even though the world has become quite flat, I was surprised that a book that had even been acknowledged by a major award would have somehow found its way to Amazon in the US. 

Just an observation. 

Life in the art world

Image via Wikipedia

  The art world, like many professions, is a world unto its own.  I love listening to artists talk about their work.  There is something almost magical to it.  You see the excitement and the creativity right before your very eyes.  But, like many businesses, you have to be in it to win it but particularly in the art world.  Gallery support is key.

The art world is being slammed with the downturn in the economy.  As always, there are a few silver linings.  Instead of seeing speculators in the art market, we are going to see true collectors stay in.  People who love art, who enjoy the world of art, want to support the artists and see works on their walls every day of the week. 

My friends Mom, who happened to be a major art dealer in the 70's told me she was sick of the art world about 3 years ago.  She was at the art auctions (Sotheby's, Christies, etc.) and there was a Richard Prince on the auction block.  She was sitting next to 2 young guys, hate to be judgmental here, but two young investment bankers.  One guy says to the other that he has heard Richard Prince is really great, worth buying.  The other guy says, ok, and proceeds to buy the pieces for over a million bucks without batting an eye.  She said this piece of art didn't speak to this guy, he had no love for it, he just figured it was a great place to rest his money and supposedly Prince was a cool thing to have.  She was so upset by the entire transaction she told me she was done with the auctions.  Lucky for her, the art world has taken a major change.  These type of buyers are leaving the art market and the prices will begin to reflect the true value of the work.

Today I was sent a piece that has just gone on the market for half the value it sold for 12 months ago.  An absolutely fantastic piece.  I wonder how much lower the price will go, what is the true value at this point. Regardless, the person who sent me the piece pointed out 2 really important things.  People who have been priced out of the markets for years are returning to the market because they can buy again and they know the true value of the work. Hence, the real collector vs the speculator.  But more important is that in times like these you see great art being made because the artists come off the tread mill and are able to be creative.  This is where the cream will really rise to the top.

As a collector, I am looking forward to see what type of work gets made in times like these. 

Foodzie

I ordered a few things from Foodzie last week in need of some Valentines Candies.  Based on the customer service alone, I am now a life long customer.

Immediately after getting the order, I got an email from from someone at Foodzie thanking me for the order. Over the next week I had received 3 of the four shipments and got another email from someone at Foodzie who had been following my order.  She wanted me to know she was on top of it and contacted the company who I bought the chocolates from ( who is very busy due to Valentines Day ) and that I would absolutely be getting my order on time.  She was tracking the orders as I was.

My guess is Foodzie's product line will continue to grow as the web seems to be sprouting with food based sites like Foodzie these days.  Also, the customer service angle, in any economy, as you are growing your business is a huge bonus. 

Loving Foodzie. 

Miami

The cold winter has got me longing for sun so my friend and I took decided to take a quick jaunt to Miami.  $169 round trip can't be beat. 

Warm weather but not too warm.  Mildly surprised how many people are mulling around the hotel.  We are literally lounging and reading.  Only here for 2 full days which is just the perfect amount of rest and relaxation.

We are staying at the Delano.  The outside is great.  Nice vibe by the pool area but the rooms and service are not fantastic.  First thing Josh asked me, "how are the beds"?  Answer...not great.

Had dinner at Casa Tua the first night.  Our rule is that dinners must be in walking distance of the hotel.  Casa Tua is housed in an old house.  Delicious Italian food.  The picture is from Casa Tua where they took an old iron container, filled it with water, flowers and candles.  Really beautiful.  I believe it is their signature look.

We also went to Ola Miami where a NYC chef has taken residence.  Douglas Rodriguez who was the chef at Patria.  Latin inspired food.  We had a few things to split.  Nothing to write home about but considering our order came out of the kitchen in minutes, made me wonder.  The picture here is of the hotel that the restaurant is in, sort of like a high end motel. 

Tonight, who knows.

Another day at the pool, another nap.  Nice and easy place to check out for a few days.