An Abundant Life - Top Of The Line

I've had a love affair with beautiful kitchens and design for as long as I can remember. As I've written in these pages before, I'm a foodie who loves to cook, and over the years I've found myself in many kitchens, sometimes cooking, sometimes watching and learning from a Chef, sometimes just enjoying the experience of being in and around a place and things that I love. In the nutrition and wellness workshops I've facilitated over the years, I've met and collaborated with some of the finest Chefs and staff who share their skills and love of fine food with the community kitchens all over New York City and the boroughs, and from time to time when I walk into a kitchen I'll see the name Wolf on a sleek and beautifully crafted stove or recognize the signature look of a Sub-Zero refrigeration system and I'll know that the people I'm meeting with are creating a culinary experience at the highest level.

At a class I attended last fall at the Cesar NYC Kitchen Design Showroom, I met Yadira Hernandez of Sub-Zero Group East when she taught a product knowledge segment on cooking with the Wolf Convection Steam Oven. I was fascinated - I'd never seen a stove that operated that way before, and I asked her if it might be possible to meet with her at the showroom to talk more about the innovative products that were available for Chefs and home cooks from these remarkable lines. The day that I met her, the showroom looked glorious, with Dale Chihuly's sculptures augmenting the already graceful and well appointed designs that gave life to the products on display and helped show just how beautifully the Sub-Zero and Wolf appliances could be integrated into a comfortable and lovely home. When I walked in, there was a delicious scent of freshly cooked food in the air, and Yadira introduced me to Chef Coleman who had just completed a lunchtime demonstration on product usage. She also introduced me to Bradford Devens, the Manhattan Showroom Manager, who graciously invited me to come to one of their upcoming monthly evening Product Demonstrations in November.

That night was a memorable one in so many ways - the menu that Chef Coleman prepared was truly varied and delightful, with so many different flavors and tastes and textures and such a variety of vegetables and meats and fish. And as he prepared everything, he was showing how to do it using the Wolf ranges, and discussing the qualities of the Sub-Zero refrigeration systems and the Wolf ovens and stoves that made not only cooking but storing the food that was being prepared something of the highest order. I saw that night and understood more fully just how much of a perfect science goes into creating kitchen storage and food preparation systems that are functional as well as beautiful, and why it is that I've always been drawn to the Sub-Zero and Wolf line of products. They are visually beautiful and functional in a way that helps make food preparation a joy, and the combination of sharing a dinner together with a group of people who were all learning about the different combinations of available products from someone with the knowledge and expertise of Chef Coleman was a gift. Builder and Account Manager Joseph Farina was there also, and the combination of his knowledge of installation and product specifications added to the overall experience that showed why the products of Sub-Zero and Wolf are a superior choice. In addition to all of the knowledge shared that evening, Chef Coleman offered to follow up with any questions we might have regarding meal preparation or storage, including an offer of sharing his informational newsletter with tips and recipes for creating the perfect Thanksgiving Dinner. There are other showrooms that offer use and care classes as well, in Roslyn Heights, New York and Pine Brook, New Jersey, and the staff are so well trained and passionate about insuring the full enjoyment of the line of products that each of them has a wealth of knowledge to share. Throughout every conversation and demonstration, there was a continued theme of a wonderful story - the appliances created and designed by Sub-Zero and Wolf are consistently innovative, beautiful, and high performing, building on a history that is based in form, functionality and excellence, and made proudly in the United States for generations.

A few nights ago I attended the Architect Newspaper's celebration honoring AN's Top 50 Interior Architects at the A&D Building, and though there were many lovely showrooms who opened their doors and were welcoming, when I visited Sub-Zero and Wolf, that was where the real life of the party was. As welcoming and friendly as on the night of the Product Demonstration dinner I attended, the staff at the showroom made everyone in this much larger group of attendees feel right at home. You could smell the delicious scents of Chef Coleman's cooking from the elevator, and the menu was simply marvelous. Although I don't have nearly the skill of a Chef like Chef Coleman, or the product knowledge of the rest of the wonderful staff, at Sub-Zero and Wolf I can dream of my perfect kitchen, and in one of their kitchens, create my own masterpiece.

In The Sub-Zero And Wolf Appliance Showroom
With Chef Coleman
At The A&D Building
150 East 58th Street
New York City
http://www.subzero-wolf.com

Keeping Sushi Grade Salmon

Fresh To Perfection

Innovative Systems For Preparation

Builder And Account Manager Joseph Farina

Shares Knowledge, Insight and History

A Variety Of Foods And Flavors

Prepared Perfectly

The Well Appointed Beauty

Of The Sub-Zero And Wolf Showroom

Celebrating Beautifully
At The Architect Newspaper's Event
Honoring AN's Top 50 Interior Architects

Blessings,

Jannie Susan

An Abundant Life - Vibrant And Full Of Life

When I think of Alberte Bernier, I think of beauty, grace, elegance, and style, and I think of her lovely smile that lights up her face and any room she walks into. I also think of the word vibrant, because she is and her work is, the rich colors and tones of her canvases seeming to jump off the walls and out of the spaces they are placed in. I met Alberte a little more than a year ago, when I saw her work at a group show at the Hob'art Gallery in Hoboken, and then last summer on a rainy evening I went to see a show at the same gallery where she was exhibiting with the photographer Thomas Egan. That night when I reintroduced myself we began to discuss the possibility of my writing a blog post, and Alberte told me that she had a studio space at Chashama in the Brooklyn Army Terminal where there would be an Open Studio in the fall. I went there on a golden Saturday afternoon, a beautiful adventure in Art and Architecture - my hat goes off to the beautiful and visionary Founder Anita Durst who I knew was an amazing powerhouse but whose vision and presence is so integral to the studios in the Brooklyn Army Terminal that they wouldn't exist, or be so extraordinary, without her. The day was a special and memorable one, and my time in Alberte's studio was full of the light and life that is part of everything that Alberte is a part of. Her paintings and mixed media creations, the plants on her shelves and the shells she is growing them in are thriving, and every touch and every part of the space breathes creativity and beauty.

When I was at the Hob'art show last summer, Alberte introduced me to Edla Cusick and her niece Agnes Collins who I wrote about a few weeks ago. Edla had been Alberte's teacher and Alberte honored her presence at the Hob'art opening as she honored Anita Durst when she stopped by her studio at the Brooklyn Army Terminal. There is something so gracious and lovely when a beautiful and successful artist is able to recognize those mentors and teachers and supporters who have meant so much in a creative life's journey. She has also written several books, and is regularly involved with charitable causes. There is a sense of community and history and grace, an opening up of a space to include all - past, present and future, and, like the plants on Alberte's windowsills in her studio at the Brooklyn Army Terminal, one link leads to another, each piece growing into fullness by linking to the others around it.

Over the past months I have also attended the openings for two of her group shows in Chelsea, and another at Hob'art in memory of Edla Cusick. After the most recent opening at Pleiades Gallery, she treated me to a lovely dinner at a nearby restaurant. It was another rainy evening, but inside with Alberte it was sunny, as we talked about life and light and art.

Alberte Bernier
With Anita Durst, Founder of Chashama
At The Brooklyn Army Terminal
Open Studios 2017
www.chashama.org
www.albertebernier.com

A Manequin Dressed In Beautiful Colors

By The Couturier's Eye

A Display Of Her Books

Mixed Media And Work Created On Wood Fragments

At The Opening Reception For

"Transitions From Dark" At Hob'art Gallery

Photograph By Thomas Egan

www.thomaseganphotography.com

www.hob-art.org

www.albertebernier.com

In Chelsea
At The Opening Reception
For A Group Show
At Ceres Gallery

www.ceresgallery.org

Talking About
Her Mixed Media Collage Pieces
With Artist Piper Smith
At The Opening Reception
For The Small Works Show
At Pleiades Gallery
www.pleiadesgallery.com

And Over A Treat Of A Dinner After The Show

Blessings,

Jannie Susan