Fancy Camping and Muffins in the Fire

“We’re going camping. Wanna come?” Sister #3 stared at me with a smirk on her face. (I’m sister #2, and yes, that stirs up all kinds of jokes.) “We’re gonna have fun without you….”

She was taunting me. She knew that I didn’t like to be left out, especially left out of super-silly, breath stopping, laugh-‘til-you-cry moments with my two sisters. She also knew, however, that I’d be a little apprehensive about camping. I haven’t done it since my age was in the single digits. And while I love the outdoors, 3 days without a shower really wasn’t appealing.

I had a decision to make. Stay at home and wonder how much fun I was missing, or put on my big-girl hiking boots and head out into the “wild.” I pondered what I might face, weighed my options (Bad TV and work emails vs. hiking and kayaking). I called a summit with the sisters, and laid down my conditions… well, my one condition. Okay, it wasn’t a condition… more of a request… or, not so much a request as a suggestion… all right. I ASKED (politely, mind you):

“I’d love to go, but how about something a little different? What if we made this trip Fancy Camping?”

I had to explain. There has been some talk on travel sites and magazines lately advocating luxury Glamour Camping, or “Glamping.” Promoters tout the accommodations as luxe and posh. While at these resorts, ‘campers’ enjoy four-poster beds, chandeliers, Turkish rugs, massage treatments, even restaurants. Now I acknowledge the lure of this type of luxury accommodation, but I hardly see it as camping. (And really… why pay for a ‘camping’ trip that costs the same as a five-star hotel?!)

For me, camping is being outdoors, enjoying fresh air and scenery, and unplugging from our tech-focused world. I live in a big city, some days I don’t even see a blade of grass, and I lose touch with the sights and sounds of nature. But on this trip, I’d have an opportunity to reconnect, and have those senses reawakened.

There is a certain primal allure to cooking dinner on an open fire, chatting with the background of owls and crickets, and facing the setting sun with nothing but flashlights. But I thought it would be fun to figure out a way to do it without sacrificing certain basic amenities. There must be something between the ‘roughing it’ of traditional camping, and ‘glamping’ with servants.

Fancy Camping is about fully enjoying the camping experience, but adding some niceties to smooth out some of that roughing it. No we didn’t have crystal stemware, but we rounded up votive candle-holders, and colorful oilcloth table coverings. Mom and Dad contributed a pretty lantern and cheery melamine dishes (no paper plates here!). We had painted tin trays for our table, a floral mat for outside the tent, and fine cotton pillowcases.

And, as this was Fancy Camping, I decided that meant careful attention had to be paid to the food. I mean, hot dogs and baked beans are fine, but why not make the meals memorable? I worked on a menu and made plans for our five meals in the wilderness. On the day we were kayaking, artisanal cheese and arugula sandwiches would be the fare. Dessert one night would be foil-baked apples with lemon zest, brown sugar, and butter. But I’ve always had a particular love of breakfast, so I spent some serious time thinking about our first wake-up. Visions of smoky bacon and fresh pastries filled my head. I wondered… is that possible?

Sisters 1, 2 & 3, and Nephew, hit the road. After 16 long minutes we arrived at the campsite. Okay. Mom and Dad’s house (AKA Base Camp) happens to be in God’s country in the Pacific Northwest, and Deception Pass State Park happens to be the most popular campsite in the state of Washington. Don’t think that 10-mile drive wasn’t a consideration for an exit strategy if it all went south.

Our first meal at the campsite started with simple wraps, which we crisped on the fire, stuffed full with local farmer’s market veggies and cheese. We devoured them with much good wine (Nephew drank water). Then we retired to the fire for dessert. S’mores were required, but since we were Fancy Camping, we decided to use peanut-butter cups in place of ordinary chocolate bars along with gourmet-shop marshmallows, and the results were divine.

A couple hours later, we all piled into our very comfortable tent. Earlier we had sprinkled the floor with lavender – a beautifully scented natural bug repellant. We also installed an air mattress. Why not? They’re easy to inflate, and make the mornings SO much happier. Tired and content, we rolled into our beds.

Lately I have developed the habit of waking up with the sun, and in a tent outdoors, this pattern repeated itself like er… like clockwork. I got up and did my yoga practice – there’s nothing like doing yoga outdoors. Then headed to the table to start our breakfast.

Once the Sisters and Nephew woke up, the fire was coming along nicely and I had nearly finished the preparation for our first Fancy Camping breakfast; Orange and strawberry fruit salad, thick cut apple wood smoked bacon, fresh baked orange-berry muffins, and strong coffee. Hot baked goods are absolutely possible while camping.

Here’s how we made our Delectable Orange Fire Muffins:

Use medium/large oranges. If you have a special citrus peeler, (Sunkist has one that looks like a pointed stick, I used this thumb-operated model.) remove the peel in two halves and set aside. If you don’t have a special peeler, just cut the oranges in half and remove the fruit with a spoon, leaving the halved peels intact. The fruit will become part of your fruit salad.

Once all the peels are prepared, pour in the muffin batter, until the peel is about 2/3 full. (We made our batter before leaving home and put it in a plastic bag stored in the cooler, then just cut off the corner and piped the batter into the peels come morning.) Then, add berries — if you’re so fortunate, perhaps harvest some on your morning hike. Next place the tops back on the oranges and move them over to your fire. With the tops in place, the smoke is kept out of your muffins and the moisture kept in.

Carefully place the batter-filled oranges on a piece of vented foil directly in your hot coals and let bake for 15 to 25 minutes (depending on the heat of your fire).

When they finished baking, the muffins were the moistest, most flavorful muffins we’d ever tasted — beautifully orange-infused and full of fresh local berries, sweet and crumbly and decadent. And they were baked right in the orange peels! Topped with a little butter and some homemade jam, they were simply delicious. If that weren’t enough, there’s minimal clean-up, and the muffin ‘wrappers’… biodegradable!

We four sat around the fire, well–fed and content. No need for chandeliers and servants. A beautiful setting, perfect weather, good company and a fine meal… that’s what I call Fancy Camping.

 

Sugar, I love you….

Sugar. Sweetie. Honey. I love sugar… I’m not ashamed to admit it. I
love how it smells, how it tastes, its many forms, the extraordinary
ways it can be molded and shaped and transformed…. There’s a reason
why we call people we love by its name. “I love you, Sugar.”

Large crystal, brown, super fine and raw sugar.

Yes, I know that the consumption of sugar contributes to obesity,
diabetes and tooth decay. But I also know that we can lessen those
maladies by following the age-old practice of moderation when
approaching the sweet crystals. So yes, sugar. I welcome you.

Sugar — chemically, sucrose — is a naturally occurring substance in
plants, produced through photosynthesis (remember 3rd grade science
class?). Most people are familiar with sugarcane; the giant grass
which is the source of much commercially produced sugar. I remember
as a kid finding foot-long cut stalks in the produce section of our
grocery store. Mom would buy each of us three sisters a stalk, and we would walk
around the neighborhood chewing the cut ends and sucking out the
sweet juice … heaven!

Following sugarcane, the sugar beet comes in a close second for it’s
high natural sucrose content. Before the twentieth century,
sugarcane was responsible for 95% of the world’s sugar supply, but by
the 1980s, sugar beets and sugarcane shared equally in the U.S. sugar
market.

In the U.S., grocery stores carry granulated, powdered, light and
dark brown sugar. But travel across the pond, and you’ll enter a
completely new world of sugars. In Britain there’s demerara or
turbinado (AKA raw sugar), muscovado (a darker, coarser and stickier
form of our brown sugar), and castor/caster sugar (superfine) in the
sugar aisle. The simple task of popping down to the shop for a pound
of sweetness can be bewildering.

Sugar egg... ladies with hats.

Another sugar memory: as a kid, I was mesmerized by pretty little
sugar eggs, which contained spring scenes. They came out only at
Easter, and usually had bunnies inside. Crafty clever Mom learned
how to make them and taught me (and my 3rd grade class!) the art. I hear-
tell that some of those eggs from days of yore remain in the Easter
decorations of some of my old friends.

A peek inside.

It always made me sad that those treasures only appeared in the
spring, and only for a few weeks. Recently I decided to see if I
could make a sugar egg that was a little updated, and one that might turn up
any time of the year. Next? Maybe a guy fishing… what might be found below?

 

Mardi Gras, Carnival, and… Pancake Day?

A couple years ago, I spent the last few weeks of winter traveling through Europe.  It was a particularly bitter-cold month – even the local antiques dealers I met said so.  My trip ended with a quick stay visiting my good pal, Tammie, an Australian ex-pat who was living outside of London at the time. 

 

Tammie lived in the quintessential English cottage nestled beside the Thames.  The night I arrived, we tromped over to the local pub for a bite to eat.  We had a spectacular meal (goat cheese and caramelized onion tart – yum!), and then Tammie remembered that it was Pancake Tuesday! 

 

Pancake Tuesday?  I had never heard of such a thing.  I love learning about the origins of words as well as cultural traditions, so to satisfy that curiosity, I did a little research.

 

In the UK, as well as parts of Canada, the day before Ash Wednesday is called Pancake Tuesday.  As this is the last day before Lent (the 40 days preceding Easter), all of the rich, decadent foods in the household need to be used up in preparation of the lenten fast.  A simple, quick and tasty way to use up eggs, butter and sugar… pancakes. 

 

Pancake Day races are another tradition still holding strong in many villages in the UK.  The most famous of these races dates back to 1445 in Olney, in Buckinghamshire.  Contestants (usually women wearing aprons) run through town while flipping a pancake in a frying pan.  The usually short race is, of course, presided over by local clergy. 

 

In France and the US, the day before Lent is called Mardi Gras, from the French, literally meaning Fat Tuesday.  In Ireland, Australia and parts of Canada and the US, the day is called Shrove Tuesday.  Shrove, past tense of the word shrive, means to confess and receive absolution for one’s sins.

 

Many scholars agree that Carnival – the traditional pre-lenten celebration in catholic countries – derives from the Latin words carne and vale, which translates to “farewell to meat,” and acknowledges the prohibition of consuming meat during lent. 

Whatever the reason and no matter what it’s called, I say any excuse to eat a little something sweet is a good one.  Enjoy this recipe for European style pancakes (known in the US as crepes).  Serve them this year on February 24^th, and enjoy a happy Mardi Gras, Shrove Tuesday, or Pancake Day.  Me?  I’ll hold a happy memory of pancakes in a cozy little pub in Whitchurch-on-Thames… with Tammie.

 

Shrove Tuesday Pancakes (adapted from a Bon Appetit recipe)

4 large eggs

1 cup whole milk (do not use low-fat or nonfat.  It is, after all, FAT Tuesday!)

1 tablespoon butter, melted

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup all purpose flour

Additional melted butter

Powdered sugar/Granulated sugar

Fresh lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350°F. Blend first 6 ingredients in blender. Gradually add flour; blend until smooth. Let stand for 15 minutes.

Heat medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Brush with butter. Add 2 generous tablespoons pancake batter, tilting pan to coat bottom. Cook until golden on bottom, about 45 seconds. Turn pancake over. Cook until bottom is speckled with brown, about 30 seconds. Turn out onto paper towel. Cover with another paper towel. Repeat with remaining batter, brushing skillet with butter as needed.

Butter ovenproof dish. Sift powdered or granulated sugar over speckled side of each pancake, then sprinkle lightly with lemon juice; fold pancakes into quarters. Overlap pancakes in prepared dish. Cover; bake until heated through, about 10 minutes. Serve with more sugar and lemon juice.

Note:  I prefer the crunch of granulated sugar over powdered sugar for the dusting.  Use what you like.

 

 

 

Homemade Silver Tarnish Remover

In my jewelry business, I specialize in designs using vintage medals, watch fobs and lockets. (See www.TamaraJewelry.com) I find these antique pieces, some of them well over a century old, at estate sales and auctions in Britain and throughout Europe. The sterling medals are often dirty and badly tarnished by the time they make it into my hands.

I’ve often been asked how I get them so shiny, so I thought I’d share my technique.  To be sure, there are many commercial polishes available, and I’ve tried several of them with varying degrees of success.  But they can be costly, messy and not only aren’t “green,” but can mar the finish of antiques.  The method that has worked best for me uses items that you probably have in your kitchen right now. This process will work on any sterling or silver plated piece, including flatware, napkin rings, jewelry, etc., and is especially good for removing tarnish from chains and other intricate or difficult to polish pieces.

Sterling and rose gold medal before cleaning

Using a heat safe plate or dish, place a piece of aluminum foil on the bottom. For larger pieces, use a Pyrex bowl.

Place the piece to be cleaned on top of the foil. Cover the piece liberally with baking soda.  

Then pour very hot water (near boiling is okay) to cover the piece. It will bubble a bit and smell not so pleasant. It is important that the silver piece is completely covered with water and that it comes in contact with the aluminum foil.

Note the bubbles

If necessary, use a wooden chopstick to keep the silver in contact with the foil. The foil and baking soda create a chemical reaction that transfers the tarnish away from your silver and on to the foil. (Using a metal fork or tongs might cause the tarnish to transfer to the tool rather than to the foil.) Leave the silver in the solution for a few minutes, then rinse with cool water.

If your silver still looks grimy, use an old toothbrush and more baking soda to scrub away any dirt and tarnish in the nooks and crannies.

Take care when working with jewelry. For instance, never pour hot water over glass beads, which might crack or break in the heat. Also hot water can remove the pearly cover of faux pearls, as well as the glue used to adhere them, so be sure you know what you’re working with before you dip! And although it’s widely recommended to never get genuine pearls wet (wait, they were ‘born’ in water!), I have been known to use this technique with freshwater pearls on sterling chains. Be careful and test an area near the back of the necklace if you’re not sure.

Another before...

... and after.

Using baking soda is a very gentle and easy way to clean old pieces; it’s a good abrasive that won’t scratch silver. I’ve been using it for years, and now you can too!

 

Twinings Teashop, The Strand, London

On one of my most recent sojourns to England, I had the desire to find a special place to buy some tea – I was in London, after all.  Now, one might first think of finding a teahouse or restaurant where one could enjoy a high tea experience with all the accoutrements.  But I wanted some history with my tea. 

 

In the early 1700’s, Thomas Twining began working for a wealthy merchant from The East India Company who was importing a new beverage from the Orient.   Thomas was intrigued by the potential markets for this commodity, and started his own company.  He opened a shop on the Strand in 1717, and there began the Twinings family history of English tea.

In 1837, Queen Victoria granted Twinings their first Royal Warrant for tea as “Purveyor in Ordinary to Her Majesty.”  And in 2006, Twinings celebrated the company’s 300^th anniversary. 

 

I was excited to see this still-thriving icon of English culture.  After witnessing the sumptuous food halls of Harrod’s, my anticipation was high for the flagship store and museum, still operating in this very location for three centuries. 

I set out on the tube and emerged to a chilly but clear morning.  Surprisingly, the neighborhood is a decidedly un-charming business district, which includes the Royal Courts of Justice.  The shop looks rather out of place, dwarfed by a bank and a modern coffee house, but there in all its finery, stands the Twinings teashop. 

 

Above the door is a gilded lion and the Royal Crest, flanked by statuettes of men dressed in traditional Oriental costumes, representing the tea’s origin.

I stepped inside and instantly adjusted my expectations.  The shop measures about ten feet wide, and a good 60 feet long.  It’s strangely deep with high ceilings… but what should I expect from an 18^th century building?   The walls are lined with dark wooden cabinets, and portraits of the Twinings’ family notables watch from above.

 

With further inspection, I saw that the displays house a huge variety of teas, herbal infusions, coffees and hot cocoas, as well as an extensive range of accessories, from teapots to caddies to strainers to china. 

I was invited by the shop attendant to visit their museum.  Far in the back is a small display (to call it a museum is rather lofty) that chronicles the Twinings’ family and the history of tea in England. The ‘museum’ showcases tea advertisements and has a beautiful collection of antique teapots.  It’s charming and informative, if not terribly well laid out, but considering the space constraints, it’s perfect.  I mean, if tea is nothing else, isn’t it cozy?

I purchased some tea and got my bit of history at the same time.  I came with expectations of grandeur, and was properly greeted with genteel English charm.  Twinings teashop on the Strand is indeed, a little slice of English heaven.

Twinings Tea, The Strand Shop

216 Strand, London, WC2R 1AP Open: Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, Saturday 10 am to 4pm. Nearest Tube: Temple

 

 

Ahh Prague. And hot wine.

I got a wild idea one day after reading a single paragraph in… I think it was TimeOut magazine in London in 2003.  Prague… the architecture was hardly touched in WWII.  It was the best of Eastern Europe, but accessible to Westerners.  My friend Noah described it by saying this: “Prague looks just like Disneyland.  But it’s the real thing.  And I had one of the best meals of my life there.”  Color me intrigued!

I badgered my pal Anne to go.  I arranged all transport from our comfortable digs in London, she just had to come along. I knew if I could just get her her first cup of coffee, she’d do whatever I said. “Sure,” she said, without an ounce of trepidation.

Leave it to us to head to central Europe on one of the coldest spring days ever.  Bundled in wool coats, cashmere sweaters and scarves, we headed to our hotel, which was in the historical centre of Prague, aka The Lesser Town (Mala Strana).  To say it was charming was well… charming.  Dormer windows opened to the crisp air and overlooked the snow-dusted red tile roofs of the town.  One channel in English on the TV.  Surely this was a town to be explored!

Anne and I set out to see the sights.  It was just past 2pm, and the sun was beginning to get low in the sky.  We knew if we were to see things, we had to hop to it!  We headed to the The Charles Bridge, a stone Gothic bridge that connects the Old Town and the Mala Strana.  Czech king and Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV commissioned it, and construction began in 1357.  The bridge is flanked on either side by 30 Baroque statues, added in the 17^th century. 

The bridge has stood for centuries, many believe due to the egg yolks used in the mortar.  Floods have besieged Prague over the years — most notably the flood of 2002, the worst flood in 5 centuries — and the bridge stood.  Let’s hear it for egg yolks!

(Incidentally, while there, we encountered several below-water-line shops near the river that had apparently been flooded months before.  Perhaps in another hundred or so years, the moldy smell will dissipate!)

After shivering through the Old Town and the Charles Bridge, we needed a pick-me-up.  Several cafés were offering “hot wine” on their sign-menus.   Who were we, mere foreign tourists, to resist?  Into the first welcoming establishment we staggered, sat down and began un-layering (the un-layering will become a trend on this trip).  The waitress recognized our urgent need for something warm, and quickly brought us two steaming mugs of the lovely elixir.  The red wine was warmed and infused with spices and lemon wedges, and was served with a shaker of sugar, as it arrived unsweetened.  We stirred in spoonfuls of sugar and happily sipped away the next half hour, plotting our next outing in the City of Music.  

Ahhh.  Prague.

In my Norwegian/Swedish heritage, hot wine, or Glogg, is only served during the Christmas season.  This is, perhaps, a good thing… as I might otherwise be a bit sloshed year-round.  Here’s my favorite recipe for that lovely warm holiday drink.  Skål! 

Glögg (pronounced GLUHG)

For any of you non-drinkers out there, this recipe can easily be adapted by substituting the alcohol with apple or cranberry juice, and eliminating the sugar. 

Makes 18 servings.  9 cups.

3 Cinnamon Sticks, broken into manageable pieces

10 cardamom pods, lightly crushed — or 1/4 teaspoon ground

6 whole cloves

4 strips orange peel

4 strips lemon peel

2 bottles (750 ml) dry red wine

1 cup sugar

1 cup raisins

2 cups brandy

1 cup dark rum

1/2 cup whole blanched almonds (we use slivered)

Place cinnamon sticks, cardamom, cloves and orange and lemon peels in cheesecloth and tie to enclose.

Combine wine, sugar, raisins and spice bag in 4 quart nonreactive (stainless steel or non-stick) saucepan.  Bring to a boil, then quickly lower heat and let steep, uncovered, 10 minutes.  Add brandy, rum and almonds.  Simmer 10 minutes – do not boil. 

Serve immediately, Or, cool to room temperature and refrigerate, covered, for up to 3 days.  To reheat, place over medium-low heat until hot; do not boil.  Ladle into glasses adding a few raisins and almonds to each glass. 

Make it even better:  Serve with gingerbread cookies. 

 

Make Something Beautiful! Wineglass Shades

I’m rushing to make some great food and pretty atmosphere for my Thanksgiving guests.  I have beautiful china on which we will be serving dinner.  But the china’s got lots of pastel colored flowers on it.  It’s definitely not an autumn palette.

 

Rather than buy new dishes, I’ve pulled a couple of colors from the china and decided to interpret those colors in their more bold shades to make things look a little more appropriate for the season.  And instead of spending a bundle on accessories, I’ve made some matching lamps out of wine glasses and vellum.

 

I simply cut out the vellum using regular scissors (click here to download template), and used decorative scissors along the bottom edge. 

 

Next I got a large rubber stamp (mine is 4” x 6”), loaded it up with purple ink and pressed the vellum onto the stamp.  Because the stamp is very large and ornate, I could slightly overlap the printed edges to give complete coverage. 

 

Next I did a “test run” for the shades, fitting them over wine and champagne glasses to get different effects.  Once the size was determined, I simply punched holes near the top and bottom and fit a tiny decorative brad inside the holes to secure the sides.

 

I added some beaded flourishes to the edge of one shade, and there you have it, simple to make, pretty custom-made accents for your table.  If you like, each guest could have one!  Enjoy your holidays.

 

 

 

 

 

Outdoor Ice Skating – in Santa Monica?!

Everyone is familiar with the ice rink at Rockefeller Center, but who knew little rinks were popping up all over the West.  There’s one in Union Square in San Francisco, and even one in little Walnut Creek, CA, just in time for the change of seasons.

But there are no seasons in the Southland, it was 75 degrees outside last Sunday night…. in November.  But in a small outdoor parking lot, I definitely felt transported to a winter place.

Tivoli lights adorned trees , color changing paper globes were strung overhead, and the asphalt of a parking lot had been transformed into a slab of sparkling ice. 

It’s a new holiday tradition in my family to hit the rink in downtown Santa Monica, CA, and I got several friends to head outside, strap on ice skates and enjoy some good ol’ seasonal fun.

Complete with cheesy, guilty-pleasure disco music, a spin on the ice is a flashback for all, recalling embarrassing ten-year-old angst.  Yes, we still try to look cool while flailing wildly just before hitting the ice… hard.  And I believe that wearing the wet patch on my butt is a badge of honor, as it should be for anyone trying to have fun while entertaining the onlookers.  But more than anything, skating makes everyone smile. 

The rink had been well used over the course of the day (where’s a zamboni when you need one?), but the grooves just added to the challenge. 

Couples skated hand in hand, and children put their parents to shame, whizzing past pell-mell.  There were folks of all ethnicities and ages enjoying the holiday magic, perhaps dreaming of snow… or even temperatures below 60.  Little “pros” twirled in the center, showing off many hours of lessons.  Most of all there was laughter, some nervous, some gleeful.

What more can you ask from a hot muggy night the week before Thanksgiving?

Several in our crowd wanted to watch from the safety of the benches, and for them I had a thermos filled with the best hot chocolate you’ll ever taste.  It’s so rich and yummy, it really does stand all on its own as dessert. 

Even though the skaters didn’t work off many calories, they were welcome to their own cups of the chocolaty goodness… with the added bonus of a shot of Bailey’s Irish cream or homemade kahlua.  Ahh, that’s good stuff.

There is a difference between hot cocoa and hot chocolate. Hot cocoa is made from cocoa powder, and hot chocolate is made from shaved chocolate bars. My recipe uses shaved/grated chocolate.  It’s richer than cocoa, because chocolate bars have a higher cocoa butter content than cocoa powders.  Make it.  You’ll like it.

Hot Chocolate

8 oz. milk chocolate, chopped very fine or grated

4 C. milk

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. vanilla

Pour milk into a heavy bottomed saucepan.  Add in grated chocolate, and heat over medium heat until chocolate begins to melt, whisking often.  Add cinnamon.

When chocolate has reached the desired temperature, remove from heat and whisk in vanilla.

Pour into cups and enjoy!  Makes 6 servings.

(Note:  If you prefer your chocolate with a stronger taste, you may substitute 2oz. semi-sweet chocolate for 2oz. of the milk chocolate.)

There are temporary outdoor skating rinks all around the west, take a look for one in your neighborhood:

http://downtownsm.com/calendar/icerink.html

http://www.unionsquareicerink.com/

http://www.iceskatewalnutcreek.com/

 

 

Chihuly at the de Young

Recently, I had the good fortune to visit my old stomping grounds, San Francisco.  I dragged my friends to that fair city-by-the-bay for a very special showing of world-renowned glass artist, Dale Chihuly.  It was held at the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park.

 

The de Young holds a very special place in my heart, as it was the first museum I ever visited, in elementary school.  We saw a Picasso exhibit, and I remember buying many post cards of his Peace Dove series.  (The doves, interpreted by a friend, later adorned my bedroom wall.)

 

I had visited Chihuly’s studio in Tacoma, Washington, as well as seeing installations of single works in London and Las Vegas, but never in an actual museum with so many pieces displayed.  (After doing some research, I’ve since learned that this is his largest exhibit ever… Chihulypalooza!)  I knew we were in for a treat, and assured my companions of this.  We were not disappointed.   

The hall was dark, the ceiling dropped low, and we entered another world.  There were suggestions of sea creatures, mind-bending forest foliage, baskets of glass, and Italian carnivale-inspired gondolas.  There were chandeliers made up of thousands of tiny tendrils of colored glass, seussian critters, and a spectacular fifty-six foot glass garden.  

I spoke with one of the museum officials who told me that this particular exhibit, consisting of tens-of-thousands of pieces of glass was shipped in 15 containers, and took a dozen installation technicians two weeks of ten-hour days to construct.  And while Chihuly himself supervises all the set-up and lighting, the exhibits never look the same once disassembled and moved to their new location. 

The last steps of the showing took visitors into a small white-walled room with a transparent glass ceiling, stacked with more of Chihuly’s fanciful colored shapes.  Lights show through the ceiling, creating glorious color-plays on the blank canvassed walls.

Chihuly has his critics, but don’t count me as one of them.  I find his pieces inspiring and dramatic.  And this was a wonderful return to the de Young for this child-at-heart.  And of course, I came home with more postcards.

 

http://www.chihuly.com/

 

Artist Trading Cards, ATCs

Artist’s Trading Cards, or ATCs as they are commonly referred to, are miniature works of art that come from all artistic disciplines and are created and traded by everyone from quilters to crafters to painters to jewelry designers. The only way you can get an ATC is by giving one of your own.

From as early as the fifteenth century, artists have made miniatures of their work for sale or promotion. But modern day Artist Trading Cards are not about sales at all – they are art for art’s sake. They also include the social aspect of trading (kinda like trading Olympic pins or baseball cards). But in the case of today’s ATCs they were inspired by, of all things, hockey.

Swiss performance artist m. vanci stirnemann is credited as the originator of the Artist Trading Card movement. He got the idea after watching enthusiastic fans trade hockey cards. He was inspired by the social interaction that resulted from the act of trading, and wanted to create a similar experience with handmade art.

So, stirnemann made a catalogue documenting his activities with other artists in a format similar to sports trading cards, and produced 1,200 cards by hand. This led to the first exhibition of Artist Trading Cards in April 1997 at the INK.art text & book store in Zurich, Switzerland. During the show, visitors were encouraged to produce their own cards to trade with stirnemann and each other at the closing reception.

The idea caught on like wild fire, and ATCs have been exchanged all over the world ever since.

Some are exchanged in real-life interactions, and there are also groups that offer virtual swaps, usually organized on-line and the cards are mailed to participants. I had the good fortune to participate in one of these virtual swaps a couple months ago. In our case, there was a design category assigned to the groups, and mine was metal – meaning that each ATC had to incorporate metal somewhere in their cards.

Being a jewelry designer, I decided that making leaf shapes from copper sheet and wire was the starting point for me. Soon my entire work table was covered in rubber stamps, inks, paints, bits of fiber, beads…. After fiddling around with the stamps and being very not pleased with my designs, I took a step back.

I went to look at some of my travel photographs for inspiration, and again, saw a leaf theme emerge. So I printed several photos 2” x 3” and started altering them. Pretty soon my watercolor paints came out, and I began to paint over the printed photos. What beautiful magical things happened with the paints! Mounting and embellishing the photos came next, and my ATCs were born.

The format of ATCs is perfect for kids, and for anyone who might be intimidated by the blank canvas. They help to hone skills and allow for experimentation without big commitment. Here are some of my cards from a recent set of ATCs.

There are few but important rules about ATCs.

They MUST be 2-1/2” by 3-1/2”

They are never sold, only traded.

They usually have your name and contact information on the back.

Try some of your own!

For a tutorial on ATCs, watch my show on TVWeekly.com

http://www.tvweekly.com/