J. Paul Getty

A short drive up the Pacific Coast Highway, nestled in the hills of Malibu, sits the Getty Villa. The brainchild and love of American industrialist and oil tycoon J. Paul Getty, the villa rests on 64 acres and houses thousands of Roman, Etruscan and Greek antiquities collected over his lifetime. Author of How to be Rich and a constant presence on Fortune Magazine's rankings of wealthiest Americans in the mid-1900s, J. Paul Getty amassed a fortune during his lifetime. Fortunately for art lovers everywhere, he had a true passion for the finer things in life. Getty dedicated years of time and loads of funds to what is now the world's wealthiest art trust, which he later bestowed upon Southern California, enabling the existence of The J. Paul Getty Museum, The Getty Foundation, The Getty Research and Conservation Institutes, and the Getty Villa.

(image courtesy of Amerikani blog)

Getty was born in 1892 in Minneapolis, and spent his life working to expand his family's petroleum business. Collecting art and antiquities was a passion and favorite pastime of his, and as a result, the Getty Trust includes over 44,000 pieces. Getty felt very strongly that art, particularly antiquities, should be given a strong and accurate context in which to be viewed. The articles should be seen as the original patrons would have seen them. In the case of his particular collection, context called for the construction of a Roman home.

Based entirely upon a partially excavated, 1st-century Roman villa, Getty provided that context for his namesake's collection in the form of his Malibu villa. The Villa dei Papiri in Herculaneum, Italy, was buried when Vesuvius erupted in AD 79. It provided the partial model for Getty's plans. As most of it remains to be excavated, the architects of Getty's villa pulled in aspects of other typical Roman country houses of the time into their design. Every last detail is true to the time and luxurious lifestyle of 1st-century Romans, down to the coffered ceilings, lighting fixtures, and open-air construction providing nature's own air-conditioning, (and proof that the Romans were brilliant). Every herb in the herb gardens is drawn from what would have been found in the Mediterranean at that time, and the aromas waft throughout the grounds.

(image courtesy of Modern Art Notes blog)

Getty also believed that the public should have access to his collection free of charge, and thus the only thing to keep in mind is the $15 parking fee per car, (free for all evening events), and a simple online reservation made in advance of your visit. Having gone at 11 on a Monday in July, the crowds must have been smaller than at peak times, but were very manageable. Plan to wander for several hours at a minimum, and hope for sunny weather for the best views of the Pacific.

(image courtesy of Digital Apoptosis)

Getty lived the latter half of his life in Britain, and unfortunately, never had the opportunity to make it back across the pond to see his villa come to life.

(image courtesy of Art Net)

Food as Art.

(image courtesy of hillaryshort.com)

Grilled peach with prosciutto, burrata, arugula and balsamic. Slow roasted leg of lamb with cous cous, red pepper, spiced yogurt and herb salad. Tuscan kale, shaved fennel, radish, lemon, ricotta salata and breadcrumb. But first, Fanny Bay oysters. Just a peek at a recent meal had at the uber-cool Gjelina in Venice Beach. At the corner of Abbott Kinney Boulevard and Milwood Avenue, sits chef Travis Lett's three year old establishment. The atmosphere is kinetic, the interiors "industrial chic," and the food, artful. Lett has created a seasonal menu that is both captivating and aberrant. Off the beaten path. The menu is derived using only ingredients available at the local farmer's market, and the wine list represents the California coast beautifully, without excluding the Italians and French.

Just be sure you do not leave the building without having desert. The affogato with caramel and biscotti to be specific. Affogato being an Italian desert, which, upon being delivered to your table, consists of gelato which is drowned in piping hot espresso on the spot.

(photo courtesy of la.foodblogging.com)

Next up? Tequila and qarne asada tacos. The walls at El Carmen on 3rd are plastered with posters of Mexican wrestlers, the back booths with "adult" comics. Found in a Saveur magazine many years ago, my Anthony Bourdain-emulating father had dogeared the page, certain that someday we would make it there to try the enchiladas verde. With a tequila bar featuring hundreds of derivatives of the traditional margarita, (the Guava with salt was divine), the food far surpassed a typical bar-style Mexican restaurant. And on said bar, sit lucite lamps filled with neon-lit water and...small Mexican wrestlers. Get one of everything on the menu, starting with the guacamole. By the end of the meal, you will want to take home a framed (porcelain?) bust of a crazed Mexican wrestler. And, a guava margarita.

LACMA

(photo courtesy of Curbed LA)

One of the highlights of last week’s trip to Los Angeles was far and away a visit to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. LACMA, which sits next door to the La Brea Tar Pits, consists of nine modern buildings, containing among other things, Modern Art, Japanese Art, American Art, special exhibitions and amazing views of the Hollywood Hills.

The "Urban Light" installation in the courtyard is especially cool, featuring 202 restored vintage street lamps from around Southern California that were collected and organized by artist Chris Burden. You can walk among the gorgeous installation, or swing on the lampposts à la Gene Kelly.

(photo courtesy of Denver Westword)

This summer and fall the Tim Burton exhibit is at LACMA, featuring examples of work done throughout his life including paintings, film, and costumes. The infamous scissor hands once worn by Johnny Depp are on view, along with preliminary character sketches for Nightmare Before Christmas, Beetlejuice and Batman. The exhibit runs through October, and was a pleasantly interesting surprise.

(photo courtesy of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art)

Along with a very impressive permanent collection of works from the Abstract Expressionists along with Contemporary artists, including a magnificent Richard Serra steel sculpture, the highlight of the afternoon was Christian Marclay's 24-hour film The Clock. Marclay compiled a montage containing 1000's of film clips ranging from early cinema up to new releases. Each clip features a timepiece at an exact moment during a 24 hour time period. Wether it is James Bond glancing at his watch at precisely *4:07, or Katharine Hepburn breezing past a clock that reads 7:45 while setting the dining table for a dinner party, the film captivates your attention as you never know what will pop up next. It is synchronized with real time, so feels a bit spooky. There will be one 24-hour screening of the film on July 28th beginning at 5pm. Go see this film! It also received the Golden Lion Award at this year's Venice Biennale.

*(I stand corrected. A loyal reader pointed out that I was incorrect in saying 7:24 previously, Bond's watch clearly reads 4:07!)

More on L.A. to come!

(photo courtesy of LACMA)

Spring Has Sprung

We have the doors propped open, and a wonderful breeze is coming into the gallery today. It's 72 and the sun is out, making us feel like we live in Southern California. And with Spring comes spring cleaning, and what better way to brighten up a living space just in time for sunny weather than a piece of art?

An excerpt from an article we came across recently on ArtBusiness.com, from Alan Bamberger:

"Art improves quality of life. All you have to do is think about the difference between a room with bare walls and one with walls full of art...Art stimulates the expression and interchange of thoughts, feelings, and ideas among total strangers who might never otherwise say a single word to each other."

We couldn't agree more.

Just a few pieces that conjure up thoughts of Spring...

Cara Enteles, Pollination Series #12

oil on aluminum

Dorothy Goode, Homage 72

egg tempera on panel

Margie Stewart, Inlet, Summer

oil on linen

Carl Plansky, Wild Flowers

oil on linen

Kristina Bailey, Hot House Flowers

mixed media on panel

The Post

(photo courtesy of dreamstime.com)

Alas, we are back from New York after a whirlwind of art fairs, gallery visits and Italian food. Now that we have caught our breath and are back to work, we are energized by the exciting art market there. More to come later about all we did on our visit to the big city, as well as the new book we have started, (after Peggy Guggenheim's memoirs), thanks to Jeremy Irons...

(photo courtesy of Google.com)

When we arrived at our hotel in SoHo, there were postcards on our beds. They had brilliant little quotes on the front in bold black letters on a white background. It got us thinking about writing letters, which is something we are very fond of doing. Nothing puts a smile on our faces faster than a handwritten note from someone that was unexpected or for no reason at all. Invitations are great, birthday cards even better, but a postcard or letter means someone took the time to sit down and hand write a few thoughtful sentences to say hello. When they could have just texted.

(photo courtesy of Etsy.com)

And of course, the best postcards are little pieces of art! Fun to tack up around the office... and a cheap collectible to pick up on travels.

How sad however, that handwritten letters are a romantic thing of the past. Something your grandfather did in order to court your grandmother as teens. Yes, thank you notes are still around, especially if you live in the South, as we are proud to say. But penmanship, true cursive of the kindergarten type, is almost mythical. Nowadays its all about

Copperplate Gothic and Times New Roman. We so rarely take the time to step away from the desktop, pick up a pen, and say hello. But more than that, will the next generation write anything down at all? Will they know how to write longhand? Or will they just hit send and hope for a reply?

(photo courtesy of the Australian Post)

So here's to snail mail, we are off to write postcards!

PS,

A very cute blog we found along the way.

A Little Touch of (First) Class

So yesterday I went to my mailbox and was greeted by the regular: bills, bills, and more bills.  Then, something caught my eye.  A postcard!  It was not just any regular postcard either.  It was a postcard from one of my gallery artists, Zuzka Vaclavik, greeting me from Tuscany.  If the image on the front wasn't enough to stir up some nostalgia, on the reverse she had painted a little surprise for me.  It certainly made my day and I am still carrying it around with me.

Postcards have always been an integral part of my life.  Throughout my childhood, every time we traveled my dad would pick up an abundance of postcards.  Then, when I got to college, every week (without fail) a new postcard arrived in my mailbox reminding me of our adventures together over the past 18 years.  I always looked forward heading to the mailbox to find that one treasure amidst the stack of junk mail and bills.  

Coincidentally, as a gallery owner, I send out postcards to hundreds of people every month.  See some examples of invitations above.  These postcards announce shows and invite all of the collectors to join the gallery in welcoming the artists to the city and to view their new collection.  I have been saving postcards that my husband and I have received for years.  They are always a great inspiration.  Apparently the art community in Beacon, NY thinks so as well.  A fellow blogger has begun the "Beacon Art Postcard Archive" which is a catalogue of postcards from all of the local artists, galleries, and studios in the Beacon, NY area over the past five years.  What a great idea.  I would definitely travel to see that collection and maybe pop by the Dia there as well.  Sounds like a trip to NY is in my future.