March 26, 2016

Pearl Jones-Tranter @ Caffe 817








photography by 
Pearl Jones-Tranter 
@ Caffe 817






photos by Styrous®




Today another cycle of my life came or perhaps will come full circle. Almost every Friday, I go to the Farmer's market in downtown Oakland. We usually stop at the Caffe 817 for a coffee. They show art by local artists there. I was looking at what was up at the moment and I liked the photography being shown enough to go up to the sign to see who was the photographer.  





It turned out to be work by Pearl Jones-Tranter. The name rang a bell but no connection was made until I sat down back at the table with Tom then it hit me. She and Tom had been room-mates when I met him over 40 years ago! 


 



The exhibition at Caffe 817 is a satellite show of the Digital Art Collective, which is connected with Berkeley City College’s multimedia department. The Social Justice-themed exhibit, Critical Voices, is at The Jerry Adams Gallery, 2050 Center Street in Berkeley                                     


 


Talk about a blast from the past!




Peal Jones-Tranter on the net:           
       
Pearl Jones Tranter website                     
Vallejo Museum: 
            “Mare Island in Transition 2005 Through 2009:        
                              Photographs by Pearl Jones Tranter"  
San Francisco Bay Crossings: Shooting Mare Island    
Pearl Jones Tranter at Salon X               
Times Herald: Pearl finds wisdom in 'nude' trees
Digital Artists Collective


                   


Styrous® ~ Friday, March 25, 2016

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March 23, 2016

Fruitvale Bridge ~ Jingletown













photos by Styrous®


































































Styrous® ~ Wednesday, March 23, 2016         

  
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March 21, 2016

On TV 4: Obama en Habana; Cuba that is














photos by Styrous®




Yesterday was a landmark day in the history of the United States. President Barak Obama landed at the Havana, Cuba, airport.

























 



 

Olé, Obama!



Styrous® ~ Monday, March 21, 2016       

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March 11, 2016

Parsing* the iPhone

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*parsing

As of Monday of last week, the iPhone has become a part of my world (see link below). It's almost a couple of weeks since I've had it and I'm realizing how difficult it is to read my blog on a mobile phone. Now, most people are surfing the net with iPhones or Smart phones which means most of them are not checking out this blog for very long, if at all, because the basic format does not fit comfortably.  

I have also realized that since I've always composed this blog on a computer, that is were it looks it's best. This leads me to the conclusion I am going to have to alter my format or something; I'm not sure what at this point. 

Perhaps I will begin composting it on my iPhone. That's an idea I will have to try out; perhaps I'll even start a new blog geared specifically for the iPhone.



It's amazing how life keeps you on your toes, so to speak!



testing out the new eyePhones      


Styrous® ~ Friday, March 11, 2016

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this 'n that ~ musings

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Immortal Loves     
Parsing* the iPhone            
Parsing the iPhone II            
Sassy Siri          
Sent from my iPhone      
Hospital(ity) ~ Horror, Humor & Humility            
Avocado Days ~ A Blog                      
7 11 17 77          
Christmas for Styrous            
In support of Ukraine                       
            
            
                                                                                                                            photo by Styrous®
                        
    
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~
      







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March 4, 2016

testing out the new eyePhones (#iPhone)













photo by Styrous®

taken with MY eyePhone (#iPhone)




Styrous® ~ Friday, March 4, 2016

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March 1, 2016

Gianni Versace, Junior High School & Mary Stallings ~ 1997

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On March 1, 1997, near the end of the 20 year period when I produced fashion shows, I received an invitation to attend an event which was to be held on April 2 at the Versace fashion boutique on Post Street in San Francisco.    









 photos by Styrous®





It was a beautiful, low-key extravaganza with models informally showing the Versace fashions in the thick of the elegantly attired crowd. There were trays with glasses of fine wine passed around by men in tuxedos and delicious hors d'oeuvres being offered by women in spiffy uniforms. 

During the event one of my life cycles came around. The entertainment for the evening was a fantastic jazz combo and much to my surprise, the singer with the group turned out to be Mary Stallings, one of my school mates from junior high school of forty or so years earlier. What a blast THAT was! I remembered her in school; she was thin as a rail, tall as an oak and sang her heart out every chance she got.  
  

Photo by Mars Breslow

    
As she was working, I only had a few minutes to talk to her but I found out she had become an accomplished jazz vocalist. She had sung with various jazz musicians, including, Cal Tjader. She has since played the Monterey Jazz Festival, the San Francisco Jazz Festival and Georgia's Savannah Music Festival. She sang at the Jazz at Lincoln Center venue in 2007. It was fun but a bit nostalgic running into her after all those years at a time I was bringing one cycle of my life to a close.    

the gifts cycle 

There were gifts given to the attendees of the fashion event. Of the many items offered, I ended up with the Versace Teatro set commemorating the 1987 book, Versace Teatro. it consisted of a huge silk scarf and a set of 22 cards featuring images from the book. Each card featured drawings of costumes Versace created for various opera and ballet productions (links to both below). 


Giovanni Versace scarf ~ 1997
photo by Styrous®


Versace Teatro costume cards
photo by Styrous®



I still have both the scarf and the card set and I am thinking about selling them on eBay, which would bring another cycle in my life full circle. 


Three and a half months after this event, Giovanni Versace was murdered outside his Miami Beach home by Andrew Cunanan on July 15, 1997. Versace was 50 years old. 


Versace's Miami Beach mansion (Casa Casuarina) 2009
photo by Chensiyuan






photo by Aaron Rapoport, circa 1982
Giovanni Versace (Italian pronunciation: [ˈdʒanni verˈsaːtʃe], was born Giovanni Maria Versace on December 2, 1946. He was an Italian fashion designer and the founder of Versace, an international fashion house, which produces accessories, fragrances, make-up and home furnishings as well as clothes. He also designed costumes for the theatre and films. He was a friend to Diana, Princess of Wales and, of course, fashion model Naomi Campbell. He was chum with music personalities such as Madonna, Elton John, Cher, Sting and many others; he was the first designer to link fashion to the music world. Openly gay, Versace and his partner Antonio D'Amico were regulars on the international party scene. - Wikipedia   


"I want to be a designer for my time."
                                       - Gianni Versace



Net links:
        
Versace Teatro scarf ~ 1997     
Versace Teatro ~ costume cards     
Gianni Versace website     
Mary Stallings website     
Mary Stallings on YouTube      
            
         

Styrous® ~ Tuesday, March 1, 2016

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Gianni Versace ~ Versace Teatro scarf 1997

 







photos by Styrous® 











































































































Gianni Versace, Junior High School & Mary Stallings    
Teatro Versace costume cards            




Styrous® ~ Tuesday, march 1, 2016
    
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