November 28, 2014

There Is a There There: Tom White ~ Jason & the Argonauts

mixed media on paper
19992


Tom White is currently showing his work, Jason & the Argonauts, in the exhibition, There Is a There There, at the Gray Loft Gallery in Jingletown, Oakland.

Inspired by Gertrude Stein’s philosophy of collecting art and supporting artists, this group show celebrates that way of life by creating environments in the gallery with furniture, art and events that reflect this attitude. Bay Area artists who have had an affiliation with the gallery – and primarily artists from Oakland – have their work displayed in salon-style arrangements in the gallery. Work displayed in the exhibit include painting, photography, sculpture, mixed media, art furniture, accessories and jewelry.

 ~ ~ ~ ~


The exhibition is open on Saturdays from  
1 to 6 pm

It will be open during the 
Jingletown 9th Annual Winter Art Walk: 
  Dec. 6 & 7, 11 – 6 pm
 
2nd Friday closing reception: 
  December 12, 6 – 9 pm
2889 Ford Street, #32
Oakland, CA 94601
510-499-3445




Styrous® ~ Friday, Novber 28, 2014

~
~




November 27, 2014

T Day Flambé ~ 2014





This has been one of the most memorable Thanksgivings of my life. 
   



Debut wine glass
              photo by Styrous®



We have always had dinner with family or friends. This year was the first exception. Everyone we know was out of town or otherwise engaged so, it was just the two of us. 

A new friend came by early in the day. It was our first social contact and the first time she had visited our studio. She had made some pies and she brought a couple of slices for us. She told me to put them in the fridge to chill them a little but I put them in the freezer temporarily so they would chill quicker. Both were pumpkin; one slice was covered with persimmon and the other with chocolate.


Yummy!


We talked about our lives, careers and work then we took her upstairs so she could see the exhibition which has our work in it currently showing at the Gray Loft Gallery (see links below). When she left, it was with the joy of new found friends.

After she left, we finished preparing for the meal; as there was just the two of us, we decided to buy half a turkey breast rather than a whole turkey. The plan was to roast it in the oven as we would a whole turkey with a wonderful cornbread "stuffing" which had carrots, onions, pine nuts, etc.

While it was cooking, we both worked on projects and things which kept us occupied. The next thing I knew, the smoke alarm went off and when the oven door was opened, the flames of the fire leapt out of the oven.


Yikes!


We put the pan out on the deck to let the flames and smoke die down, then scraped off the burned parts. As we were in emergency mode, I didn't get a single shot of the action. I mashed up some potatoes but, obviously, there was nothing to make gravy with so we ate them with just butter and salt.

I got out the beautiful Debut glasses I have had for decades. They were made in 1986 in Yugoslavia "expressly for R. H. Macy, Inc." according to the box it came in. Originally a set of four, it had dwindled down to two; perfect for this occasion. We opened up one of our nice bottles of wine, toasted our friends who were not there with us, and to each other, then thoroughly enjoyed our duet-tary meal. We joked about the fire and the scorched turkey (actually, just the skin). To be honest, we kept bursting out laughing through the whole dinner.

After dinner I made coffee and went to get the pie slices our friend had brought for us earlier. I couldn't find them at first then discovered them in the freezer where I'd forgotten them. They were frozen solid as popsicles (believe it or not, invented in Oakland).


popsipies
photo by Styrous® 



When we were finished with the meal and cleaning up, we discovered the salad we'd forgotten to serve with the meal. 

Oy vey!


Yeah, it might be considered a disaster of a Thanksgiving by some but as I looked at the soot covered stove later, I realized, to us it was magic because we had each other to share it; we had found a new friend to add to the many we have; and we both have our work in the gallery upstairs. For all this and much more, we gave thanks. We will laugh about the "disaster" for years, to be sure, but I wouldn't have it any other way. 




remains of the day
photo by Styrous®




What a wonderful Thanksgiving!




Viewfinder links:     
         
Thanksgivings      
Gray Loft Gallery ~ There Is a There There      



Styrous® ~ Thursday, November 27, 2014   




November 23, 2014

9th Annual Jingletown Winter Art Walk



December 6 & 7
11:00 to 6:00 pm


I will have my studio open and I will be showing and selling my work during the 9th Annual Jingletown Winter Art Walk event next month. 


 # # #


Jingletown Arts & Business Community in Oakland, California, is pleased to announce the 9th Annual Winter Art Walk, Saturday and Sunday, December 6 – 7, 11 a.m. to6:00 p.m.  

Galleries in the neighborhood will also hold 2nd Friday Art Walk receptions on December 12, from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. and are indicated with an *. These events are free and open to the public. 

The annual winter open studio event highlights the work of more than 50 artists who live and/or work in the area known as Jingletown, which is situated between the Park and Fruitvale Street bridges bordered by the estuary separating Oakland from the island of Alameda.  There will be food trucks featuring delicious local products.  

Jingletown has a number of galleries, including: 420 Gallery, Float Gallery, Gray Loft Gallery, Jingletown Art Studios and Gallery, Norton Factory Studios, as well as art studios of many outstanding artists who are living and working in one of the most established arts districts in the Bay Area. 



Participating artists and galleries:


Waterpark Lofts
2875 Glascock Street - Unit 207      
Celena Peet & Roz Stovle, Creative Orange Studios, Multiple Medias    www.creativeorange.ca 

 4:20 Gallery, 420 Peterson Street    *
Judy Chamberlin, painting    www.judychamberlinart.com
Peter DeLucchi, painting & furniture  www.peterdelucchi.com
Jill Gibson, sculpture and jewelry   www.gibsonarts.com
Betsy Lyon/Dandilyon Designs, Jewelry   https://www.etsy.com/shop/DandilyonDesigns
Jill McLennan, painting and holiday gifts   www.jillmclennan.com
Bill Silveira, mixed media   www.automaniastudios.com
Susan Tuttle, Jewelry & Photography     monkey8@earthlink.net 

CottonMill Studios, 1091 Calcot Place
EcoMonster, Upcycled Handcrafts # 312   www.ecomonster.com
FLOAT Gallery   #116    www.thefloatcenter.com  “It's Alive!”  Plasma Art
Larissa, multiple/mixed-media # 416     www.clocktoweroakland.com
Omnitakser Designs by Luke Stevens, metal and wood  #216     www.omnitaskerdesign.com
Catherine Rose, The Eye Line T-Shirts & Handcrafted Therapeutic Essential Oil Spritzers  #306 
    
Gray Loft Studios, 2889 Ford Street
Gray Loft Gallery   #32      www.grayloftgallery.com    “There is a There There” group show  * 
Styrous, photography  #22   www.styrous.org     
  
Ford Street Studios, 2934 Ford Street
Counterpoint Studio, LLC., #2   Lisa Levine and Peter Tonningsen, photography   www.counterpointphoto.com
Peter Dreyfuss, sculpture and watercolor #35    www.peterdreyfuss.com  
Fernando Reyes, painting, printmaking, drawing  #26    www.freyesart.com   *
Rachel Rodi, Mosaics #43 www.rachelrodi.com    

Jingletown Art Studios, 3001 Chapman Street     *
Sande Anderson, mixed media and silk painting with wearable art     www.sandeanderson.com
Mel O, acrylic, encaustic, mixed media  www.melogallery.com
Jan Stamos, mixed media  www.janstamos.com  .

Norton Factory Studios, 3094 East 10th Street   *
24 artists working in a variety of media   www.nortonfactorystudios.com



About Jingletown: Jingletown acquired its name at the turn of the century when Portuguese cannery workers whose earnings would "jingle" in their pockets at the end of the day as they walked home from the factories in the area, signifying prosperity.  As time went on the neighborhood went into disuse, but in the early 1980’s artists realized the potential and converted many of the neglected warehouses into functioning live/work spaces.  It is now a thriving artist community and one of the fastest growing arts district in the Bay Area.  

In a time when our neighborhood has been changing dramatically, the goal of the Jingletown Arts and Business Community is to heighten awareness about the rich and diverse population of working and exhibiting artists and the creative opportunities in the Jingletown Arts District. 

For a complete listing of Jingletown artists, businesses and upcoming events in the area, please visit our website: www.jingletown.org

 # # #

November 22, 2014

San Francisco legends ~ The Brown Twins

 
the iconic photograph of the Brown Twins 
by photographer Susan Ragan


I woke up this morning and discovered another of my favorite characters in life (see link below) died a couple of days ago on the 20th of this month. It was Marion, the last of the famous Brown Twins of San Francisco. Her sister, Vivian, had died last year on January 9th. 

According to Wikipedia, they were voted second as San Francisco's "Best Local Character" in 2000. I have no idea who was voted first but he or she must have been a doozie to top them. I never met them but I thoroughly enjoyed their appearances in the media.

Below are some wonderful images of the world famous twins I found on the net; photographers are noted when they are known.

photographer unknown



photographer unknown



 photographer unknown



photographer unknown



photo by Mike Kepka, S. F. Chronicle



photo by Mike Kepka, S. F. Chronicle



photo by Karolee Bahr



photo by Kevin Killian



photographer unknown



photographer unknown



photo by Christopher Michel



photographer unknown




photographer unknown
Corbis Images



photographers unknown



 
photographer unknown 



photo by John Storey
S. F. Chronicle



photo by Deanne Fitzmaurice
S. F. Chronicle



 photographers unknown
S. F. Chronicle



 photographer unknown
S. F. Chronicle




Neither sister married nor had children; 
they lived with each other their entire lives.


Marian (January 25, 1927 – November 20, 2014) 
Vivian (January 25, 1927 – January 9, 2013)


So long to the last of the unique San Francisco people from the old days!



Styrous® ~ Saturday, November 22, 2014


~

Styrous photos in There Is a There There

 








 Styrous® 

photography




I am currently showing work in the exhibition, There Is a There There, at the Gray Loft Gallery in Jingletown, Oakland.

work I am showing

 Fruitvale©2014
photo by Styrous®


 Lavion©2014
photo by Styrous®



Inspired by Gertrude Stein’s philosophy of collecting art and supporting artists, this group show celebrates that way of life by creating environments in the gallery with furniture, art and events that reflect this attitude. Bay Area artists who have had an affiliation with the gallery – and primarily artists from Oakland – have their work displayed in salon-style arrangements in the gallery. Work displayed in the exhibit include painting, photography, sculpture, mixed media, art furniture, accessories and jewelry.

 ~ ~ ~ ~


The exhibition is open on Saturdays from  
1 to 6 pm

It will be open during the 
Jingletown 9th Annual Winter Art Walk: 
  Dec. 6 & 7, 11 – 6 pm
 
2nd Friday closing reception: 
  December 12, 6 – 9 pm




2889 Ford Street, #32
Oakland, CA 94601
510-499-3445








Styrous® ~ Saturday, Novber 22, 2014

~
~

November 20, 2014

20,000 Vinyl LPs 32: Mike Nichols and Elaine May ~ the first dream team of comedy on vinyl




An evening with Mike Nichols & Elaine May
cover photo by Richard Avedon 
photo of LP cover by Styrous®


I woke up this morning to discover that Mike Nichols died yesterday. Although I did not know him personally I was sad to hear of this as he and his partner, Elaine May, were part of my early years of discovery of the world of comedy on vinyl records and I had enjoyed many hours of pleasure listening to their routines.

One of the great cuts from the album is Telephone. This was recorded a decade or so before Lilly Tomlin introduced her world famous character, Ernestine on Saturday Night Live.


photo by Richard Avedon


Nichols was born Mikhail Igor Peschkowsky on November 6, 1931, in Berlin, Weimar Germany. He was an American television, stage and film director, writer, producer and comedian. He began his career in the 1950s with the improv troupe, the Compass Players, predecessor of the Second City in Chicago and as one half of the comedy duo Nichols and May, along with Elaine May. May was also in the Compass. In 1968 he won the Academy Award for Best Director for the film The Graduate (which starred Anne Bancroft and Dustin Hoffman). His other films include Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, (the ground breaking film which starred Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton) Catch-22, Carnal Knowledge (the controversial film which starred Jack Nicholson), Silkwood, (which starred Meryl Streep) Working Girl, The Birdcage (which was the American adaptation of the French film, La Cage aux Folles, which starred Robin Williams), Closer, Charlie Wilson's War (his final picture), and the TV mini-series Angels in America. He also staged the original theatrical productions of Barefoot in the Park, Luv, The Odd Couple and Spamalot.

Nichols was 83 when he died.


Tracklist:

Side 1:

A1     Telephone     8:07
A2     Adultery     7:50

Side 2:

B1     Disc Jockey     9:02
B2     Mother And Son     6:32


Credits

    Directed By – Arthur Penn
    Photography – Richard Avedon
    Piano – Marty Rubinstein



Mother And Son on YouTube
Adultery on YouTube 
Disc Jockey on YouTube 
Telephone on YouTube   


What a Team!



Styrous® ~ November 20, 2014

November 19, 2014

Gray Loft Gallery ~ There Is a There There In the news

article by Christian Frock
SF Arts Monthly 


 ~ ~ ~ ~


Open during Jingletown 9th Annual Winter Art Walk: 
  Dec. 6 & 7, 11 – 6 pm
 
2nd Friday closing reception: 
  December 12, 6 – 9 pm

Inspired by Gertrude Stein’s philosophy of collecting art and supporting artists, this group show celebrates that way of life by creating environments in the gallery with furniture, art and events that reflect this attitude. Bay Area artists who have had an affiliation with the gallery – and primarily artists from Oakland – have their work displayed in salon-style arrangements in the gallery. Work displayed in the exhibit includes painting, photography, sculpture, mixed media, art furniture, accessories and jewelry.

Gray Loft Gallery
2889 Ford Street, #32
Oakland, CA 94601
510-499-3445







Styrous® ~ Wednesday, November 19, 2014

~
~

November 18, 2014

Kim Kardashian ~ True Reflections

Naked is the only way to make it!
photos by Styrous®
 
Thank you Kim Kardashian for showing us how we’re doing it wrong
By Amanda Rose, November 14, 2014

Big vote of thanks to Kim Kardashian, who this week finally cemented her lesson to women of the world about how all this time we have been doing it wrong. All totally and completely wrong.

To think women across the globe are fighting to be heard, for a right to be educated, for a right to equal pay and equal positions based on merit, and to be respected as the fantastic creature they are. But all along they just needed a naked butt.

They are studying, working, juggling commitments and managing family and career. Yeah… no. Kim says strip off for money instead. It’s easier. (If you don’t know what I am talking about Google Kim Kardashian)

Kim is special, obviously. Known for nothing, but famous for being famous. A creation of great PR and society’s need for increasingly vacuous TV and gossip. Kim Kardashian is the epitome of what not to do. And yet seemingly the poster girl for how to succeed.

So now, with wealth and fame at her command — without having to ever get her immaculately manicured paws dirty — it was obviously time for Ms Kardashian to show the rest of us business women what we have been doing wrong in trying to establish our careers.
Yep. Who needs a degree and career when you can just strip naked for a magazine? I mean… Hello. That would save a lot of grief, time and effort for so many of us!
All this time we have been strategic in how we look. Working hard to stay fit and healthy and covering up enough to ensure we receive respect in a business setting.
Thank you Kim for letting every aspiring business woman and young girl know that “naked is the only way to make it”

Let me go back in time and tell all the women who worked hard to create a future for us all to not bother because Kim Kardashian will show us how it’s done.

Thank you Kim for also being a poster girl for successful women in porn in the 21st century. An industry I’m sure young girls are now considering because of you.

Don’t worry yourself too much though Kim, the rest of us will take on the responsibility of ensuring the millions of women wanting to be respected for their brains that it is ok NOT to get naked to get noticed.

Oh, and we’re assuming you’ll be donating your designer clothes to charity now that you clearly have no need for them?
                                   - Amanda Rose  





Thank you, Amanda


Styrous® ~ Tuesday, November 18, 2014


~

November 16, 2014

There Is a There There has opened @ the Gray Loft Gallery

There Is a There There
Artist reception @ the Gray Loft Gallery
photo by Styrous®


November 14 - December 12, 2014


Gray Loft Gallery
2889 Ford Street, #32
Oakland, CA 94601
510-499-3445