at the gallery again

this morning there was a talk with the ballet photographers and ballet dancer misty copland at the leica gallery. i had been on the wait list and was lucky a space opened up.

i actually hadn't realized that two of the photographers were dancers themselves (kylie shea and diana markosian). the talk began with the curator requesting that each try to put into words what they were trying to express with their work. i don't remember what each artist said, but here are the thoughts that i did take note of: 

kylie shea mentioned that her photos reflect the grit and grace of a dancer - the duality of hard work and the beauty of dance and the beauty of nature - her photos in the show were self portraits taken in the studio and outside amidst rain and flora. diana markosian shared that she came to photography through her writing and stories of her family history in russia and armenia. i was also fascinated that she said the color in her photos was a result of her film going through the airport security x-rays. (chanda and i had commented on the color in her work and had wondered how it came about). during the q and a i asked if the artists could share what camera they had started out with and how it first shaped the way they saw the world through its lens. kylie shea began with a canon slr (single lens reflex) when she was dancing in seattle. she fell in love with taking photos and avidly read manuals and took classes to learn the technical aspects. for diana markosian i only remember that she decided at her college graduation and her mother shared the cost for her first camera. henry leutwyler received a little kodak camera with an outer square flashbulb when he was six years old. i don't think i phrased the second part of the question properly, because i think i really wanted to hear what photos were taken with those first cameras.

the final thoughts that i remember: 1) henry leutwyler reminisced that when he arrived to document the day of misty's final performance, she walked up to him limping . . she had gone through hip surgery just a month or a few months before and was also experiencing pain in her ankle. he never understood how she made it through that entire day. they also both shared how they first met and how they worked together: misty would arrive at his studio and he would take several photos and then they would go out for food and drinks. this went on for over over two decades i believe! it sounded very casual and fun. (they met at a gala or a big party of some kind, and henry swapped table seating tags so he could sit next to her . . i think that's how it went.)

2) in answer to an audience member's question of what suggestions she had for young dancers to help with taking care of themselves, she said rest was important . . making sure one took time to relax and let go of pressure and commitments. 

greg met me afterwards and we walked to lifethyme health food store for some cold cuts to go with the bread i had bought earlier in the morning at the green market.

we also stopped at the library as i had parts two and three of the hobbit movie on hold. while there i checked to see if there was still space in the lecture series being offered by a local university professor, and there was! i was so surprised. i thought for sure that it would be full. the librarian signed me up and made sure i had all the reading material. i'll take a pic of it tomorrow and describe the class and everything i need to read before we first meet in march. i better make sure i get my work done! i should also get a notebook.

a pastry pop up on a rainy day

 

chanda reminded me last night that she and lucien would be baristas at a cafe pop up hosted by the restaurant she works for. (the restaurant is not intending to open fully for breakfast until april.) i immediately wrote ellen to see if she wanted to meet for coffee and pastry (it's her favorite place).

the space is very small and we almost didn't walk in because it looked so crowded. however, several people walked out, leaving room for us at the bar.

here are our lattes made by chanda. lucien served up the oatmeal with cream and brown sugar and rhubarb . .

it was so delicious . . so incredibly creamy! the pastry chef was jr ryall from ballymaloe house hotel in shanagarry, county cork, ireland, and there were many cakes and other beautiful looking pastries all laid out along the bar. too bad i didn't take a pic! (you can see the cookbook in the prior photo.)

(it rained today, so many of the very dirty hills shrunk in size. the street cleaners have also resumed their rounds, so sidewalks and streets are beginning to look a little better. also, it poured during my walk home and i got very wet!)

greg's birthday

 

leica gallery had an opening for their latest exhibit of photographs which we attended . . 

an exhibit of ballet photography from three different photographers, two of whom were ballet dancers, and one of whom had documented misty copland's final performance with american ballet theatre. pre-registration for tickets was required and i was fortunate to have seen the advertisement for it in time.

korrina met us there and we walked home to celebrate greg's birthday.

i was going to make fettucini alfredo, but korrina had brought delicious food from work so i didn't need to: foccacia, arancini and cauliflower salad.

discussing japanese kanji characters . . 

while whipping up cream for the chocolate mousse dessert . . 

i used a recipe from my new york times cooking app. it called for six egg whites, four egg yolks, twelve ounces of bittersweet chocolate, and a teaspoon of vanilla. i made sure the eggs were at room temperature and i added the sugar very slowly. also, chanda helped me fold in the whites. it turned out so good! i made mousse for his birthday once before . . years ago . . but i'm not sure what recipe it was. (actually, i just found the blog post about it here. i was so much more motivated to make dinner in those days!)

geese (again) at the park and an evening history talk

 

it's wet and chilly, but not freezing.

----

 in the evening, greg and i attended a program at the greene space with gilded age actress denée benton, historian leslie harris, the tenement museum's marquis taylor and wnyc's alison stewart. you can find the full lecture on their youtube channel.

walking crosstown

 

i walked over to east village organic today to buy chestnut honey and a wildflower honey for greg and i (we like it on yogurt) and passed abraço coffee on the way. i was going to go in for a "kaffee mit schlag," but decided to meet greg at union square where he had just arrived for his bloodwork appointment (i miss meeting korrina here so much!). 

after his appointment, he went back downtown to work and i ended up walking home through washington square . .

for dinner i made sesame soba noodles (from the mollie katzen cookbook) which i haven't made in ages. i used to make it when the girls were little. it was delicious and the three of us almost finished it completely, but there's still a little bit for someone for lunch tomorrow.

breakfast for dinner

. . at 7:30 pm . . 

and strawberry rhubarb pie for dessert.

very dirty snow piles and pics from morgan

 
our snow piles are very disgusting. i took this photo to send to my sister. i wrote in a text: "our lovely snowy hills!"

----

morgan sent a photo and video from east of london of friend james' brother's sweet scottish terrier dog . .

having a lot of fun!

walking milly again

 

it's been so cold that i haven't walked milly in weeks . . but today was more mild . . only in the teens! (14, to be precise.)

the geese always amaze me . . i think they're so beautiful.

they're not bothered by everyone walking by . . or even those people jogging by . . (at the end you can see milly waiting patiently for me to finish filming).