An Abundant Life - Film Star

A beautiful Filmmaker I was introduced to last year through two beautiful Artists and Designers I know stopped by YES Gallery the other day after we saw each other on the Street as I was just leaving the gallery on my way home for the evening. She hadn't been for a visit in a while because she has been so busy with the film she is currently working on, and because we were two blocks away from the gallery and she was walking in that direction I suggested that I could turn around and walk back that way with her and she could see the current show.

When we arrived at the gallery and we were talking about different things, she mentioned that she was filming a scene the following week that included the office of an art collector of old master paintings. She asked if there were any pieces in the gallery that I thought might work for something like that and she showed me a photograph of the office space and the wall where the painting would be hung. I pointed out paintings by two Artists who are both working in a very classical style and have been classically trained, and though she thought both of their work could look wonderful in the scene, there was one piece by one of the Artists, "Romantic Nightlife" by Danilo Peguero, that just seemed right to both of us. I told her that I would contact the Artist and explain and ask if he would be interested in being featured in this way, and when I did he said yes and we started the process of signing the paperwork to. make sure that everything was done professionally.

I went to the set location myself a few days before the scene would be filmed to hang the painting with the Filmmaker. We had planned to do it the day before, but the weather has been raining heavily on and off and the forecast on the day we had planned was for possibly heavy thunderstorms so I contacted the Filmmaker and asked if we could do the hanging of the piece on the day before we had planned because it was a very sunny and clear day which would make it easier for me to bring the painting to the location safely.

After we hung the painting we admired it and I took a photograph. It looked so beautiful on that wall! The Filmmaker shared a photograph with me of the filming in process, and I'm looking forward to seeing the finished film. When I went to pick up the painting the Director of Photography told me it was a beautiful painting, something that from my experience DP's usually wouldn't say unless they really meant it. It is stunning, and though I missed it from the walls of YES Gallery while it was gone, I'm so happy it had this opportunity to shine like the star it is!

"Romantic Nightlife"

By Danilo Peguero

Makes Its Film Debut

Blessings,

Jannie Susan

An Abundant Life - Mile Square Smiles

I was thinking that I"d title this post, "It takes a village," but I don't like to use words that other people have used as titles for my posts. I started thinking about how I could change around it takes a village to match the city of Hoboken that feels like a small town or a village, and that's how I came up with the title I used. It just seems somehow right, because Hoboken is known as the Mile Square City, even though it is slightly larger than that at 1.25 miles square, and what I am writing about has to do with all the wonderful people I know there, those who I have met before I opened YES Gallery and the many who have walked in the doors since the beginning of my preparing for opening day almost one year ago.

As I walk on my way to YES Gallery every day, I see people I know who I genuinely like seeing, and even when I don't have time to stop and talk, just saying hello and waving and smiling makes me feel so good. Some people stop by to visit when I have the door open, and others wave as they walk by and call out hello! Some people bring me things like espresso or plants, and some people ask where I was when they didn't see me one day and say that they were worried and are glad I'm ok.

Friday evening the Italian festival began at St. Anne's church, filling the blocks around it with the smell of wonderful local Italian food and and the feeling of a really beautiful community party. As I walked through I found a table with fresh pasta from That Pasta Club, and I decided to try several kinds. Sweet Pea Agnolotti, Spinach Mafaldini, Spinach Mezzi Rigatoni, and Porcini Bucatini will be keeping my table and meals very happy for the next few days as I try them in different recipes. It's been so busy at YES Gallery and with some other projects that I haven't had time to go to the farmer's market much at all this year, but now that I have this wonderful pasta, I'm excited to take a special trip to find some produce to cook with it.

There's a feeling of camaraderie and friendship with the people I know in the community. It feels so good to know them and to have so many people to say hello to who say hello back. Smiles and hearing that you've been missed, the little touches of friendship that make a nice day even more special are the things that keep our spirits up. I think it's grand to have a gallery in a place so lovely where people can visit and enjoy time together, talking about life and art and sharing a smile in a city that feels like a very beautiful place to be.

A Selection of Pasta

Found At St. Ann's Italian Festival 

From That Pasta Club

 https://thatpastaclub.com/

Blessings,

Jannie Susan

 

An Abundant Life - Bringing In The New

One of the things that I enjoy so much about YES Gallery that I didn't plan or expect is that even though I have shows set and curated for a specific period of time, things are always changing. People stop by or are introduced to me, Artists appear who have wonderful work to share, and with each season as I change the windows, there is a natural way that plants seem to come and go, sometimes being found at local markets and most recently being given to me from the hands of a local gardener who knows how much I love to save plants and give them happy homes. I'll be writing more on that on another week, but this time I wanted to highlight a lovely young woman, Roselita Rio, who I met several months ago at the supermarket where I shop on a regular basis and the art that she created that found a place at YES Gallery.

When I first opened the gallery last summer, nearly a year ago, I wrote about how much help I was given by some very wonderful people who seemed to appear out of nowhere to be the support system that I needed to not only help me get everything done, but they also added their beautiful spirits and presence and made the opening and the different events and openings ever after joyous ones. One of the people was a young man who works at the local market where I do much of my food shopping, and he is friends with a young woman there who I met after I had been blessed to meet him. Over the months since then as I shop for events and for my own regular day to day, it's as if I'm visiting with the loveliest of people every time I see them. They have also come into the gallery, and as I have gotten to know them more I have discovered that they are wonderful Artists with very creative vision and wonderful and varied talents.

A few weeks ago Roselita gave me a bracelet she had made, and it was such special gift and is so beautiful and joyful I wear it nearly every day. She told me that she makes them often and that she was thinking about possibly selling them, and I invited her to bring them into YES Gallery as part of the artisanal jewelry offerings there. She brought a selection of them a few days ago, and then brought a few more, and immediately people have started to notice them. There is something about Roselita and the bracelets she makes that glow and make people smile and feel happy. They're beautiful and colorful and they have messages and images as part of the design, and she adds a person's name sometimes as she did in the one she made for me. She told me she makes them for all of her friends, and I'm so blessed that she has included me in that category. Having a bracelet from Roselita is a beautiful and special gift and treasure as she is.

Handmade Bracelets

Made By Roselita Rio

At YES Gallery

Blessings,

Jannie Susan

An Abundant Life - Adventure Of Art

A few weeks ago I received an invitation from the beautiful Adela Townley who I met a few years ago because of the work she has been doing in the art world. The event she invited me to was on a weekday afternoon and early evening, and though I would usually be at YES Gallery during that time, the description of the event and the person who invited me are both really wonderful, so I felt it was important to take the time away for the trip to Brooklyn and I'm so glad that I did! The event began in an Artist's studio in the afternoon, and the evening found us in a local brewery a quick walk away for a happy hour following the meeting with the Artist and a private view and Artist talk.

The Artist who welcomed the small group of specially invited guests to her studio was Maria Kreyn, and he studio and her work are as lovely as she is. It was truly a privilege and an honor to be invited to this event and to have the opportunity to view her work and learn about her history and some of the extraordinary projects she has been involved in. Seeing her work and hearing her descriptions of how and when she began developing certain ideas was inspiring and interesting, from both the standpoint of and Artist's journey and also from an historical one. Her own words and ideas helped bring to life her varied and interesting journey, and the work on the walls and propped on the floor around us made her stories of their creation come to life before our eyes.

One project she described was a commission from Andrew Lloyd Webber for the walls of the newly redesigned and reenvisioned Drury Lane Theater in London, and the magnitude and emotional depth of the pieces is astonishing. Seeing some of the images in her studio that were earlier creations, a few of which were part of the inspiration for the development of that body of work, as well as more recently completed and current works in progress gave us as viewers an insight into her process as she shared the stories behind her own personal experiences that brought these painting to life.

Afterward as we made our way to the brewery and for the rest of the time that we were there as a group, there was something that felt so enjoyable after having been in such a beautiful environment with a beautiful Artist and beautiful hosts. Events like this are filled with lovely moments that remind us of the adventures to be found in art and the creative process, and in sharing our time and our gifts and our stories with each other.     

In The Studio Of Artist Maria Kreyn

With So Much Gratitude To Adela Townley For the Invitation

And To All the Beautiful Hosts Who Made This Event So Special

Blessings,

Jannie Susan

An Abundant Life - Uniquely Made

When people ask me what I look for when I am choosing art as a curator, for myself, or for my gallery, I have started to try to identify what it is that draws me in to want to share a piece with others. I would say that it is something to do with beauty, and it is, but it is more than that, and what I have begun to identify is that there is something in certain work by certain Artists that is unique to them, an expression of themselves that is only found in their work.

Though that may seem like a very simple thing, it's honestly not. Artists of all kinds are vulnerable to listing to the feedback of others, and people can turn and change ideas self expression in a heartbeat with a word of critique that goes to the most tender place of a creative soul. Sometimes the person giving the feedback doesn't mean anything more than just giving their opinion, but even then sometimes that opinion can take away from giving the Artist freedom to explore what it is that is their own unique voice.

When I begin to choose work to show at YES Gallery, I go to the Artist's studio if possible. If it's not, I have some kind of meeting with them, either at the gallery or in some other place where we can really talk about their work. And then as I begin the process, I look at everything they want to show me, taking time to listen to how they present and describe it. Often, and this is something that goes back to what I describe as listening for their unique voice, I find that there are some pieces that I ask about that might not be as easily visible as others that are presented to me. There might be a piece tucked in a corner, or propped against the wall instead of hanging with the others that are being presented. I remember one Artist who I was visiting with who had some pieces in a corner of the studio propped against the wall on the floor. When I asked what they were he told me they were old work from a time when he was first starting to explore what became a signature style, and I loved them. This happens sometimes, that it's the older work that intrigues me, or sometimes if it's newer, it's a one-off piece that the Artist tells me is something they're not sure what it is or what to do with it next. Those are the pieces I often find myself wanting to show and share at YES Gallery.

This past week I had some new work come in from different Artists, and as always it surprises and delights me how easily the pieces begin conversations with the other work there. As I spoke with the Artists who were bringing in work, what kept emerging in the conversations was the voice that was unique to them that was appearing in the work that is now in the gallery. This is the voice that draws me in, that excites and inspires me and makes me want to share the work with others. It's a voice that only that Artist has, and one that cannot be replicated by anyone else. It is unique to them as the work is uniquely created, envisioned and made.

Some New Views

At YES Gallery

408 6th Street

Hoboken, New Jersey

Blessings,

Jannie Susan 

An Abundant Life - A History Of Collaboration

When people ask me what kind of work that I do, I have a long list, including saying that I am a collaborative Artist. So much of the work that I do is in collaboration with other people, and even when it might seem like I'm doing something on my own on the surface, I believe in giving credit where it is due and letting people know that I was inspired by someone, or helped by someone, or that someone's kindness or generosity or mentorship was the thing that made something I was doing possible.

Early last week when I was walking by Fiore's in Hoboken, I saw something in their back parking lot that looked like it was being thrown away. It was a big, round metal object with what looked like legs that could be table legs on it, though I knew that it wasn't a table. But because of the way I was looking at it, I thought it could make a really great table, and I thought I'd check in with them when they were open if it was still there to see if it was something they wouldn't mind me using as a table at YES Gallery.

The next day as I walked by it was still there, and so I walked in and asked about it. They're all so nice there and the lovely woman I asked went to ask the man who is in charge of everything, and he said that it was the old burner for a stove where they cooked the mozzarella, and he had been thinking of waiting to see if the scrap metal collectors wanted it. I told him that I was thinking of making a table out of it, but that I didn't want to take it away if it was something that could make them or someone else some money, and he said to go ahead and take it. The lovely woman who had asked him took me back out side to see how heavy it was, and she picked it up easily but said it was a bit heavy for her. I'm pretty strong, but she's much stronger than I am, because when I picked it up I didn't know how far I could carry it. The gallery is only two blocks away, or rather a block and two half blocks which is really a very short distance, and so I put on a pair of gloves I have in my bag just in case I need to carry something that's a bit difficult, and I walked on my way, stopping every time I needed to and shifting and taking breaks until I was able to get it back to the gallery.

It was a miracle in itself that I was able to carry it at all because it is really a very big heavy piece of steel with many different parts, and it was also a lovely miracle of a blessing that they let me have it and I was able to get it back to YES Gallery. When I got it inside I gave it a wipe down with a damp cloth, brushed the grit and dirt and some of the more easily removable rust from it and it looked absolutely fantastic. I would have left it just like that except that I did want to make it more functional as a table and the grate on top has very wide open spaces, so I started thinking about what I could use that I already had that could cover over the gate without hiding the wonderful layers and textures and designs of the sections and pieces of the burner beneath it.  

When I got home and started looking at things, I began to get some ideas. I always thank God for anything good that I do and anything good in me when people give me compliments of any kind, and when it comes to creatively, I know that it's the Creator of all things who gives me any of the good ideas that I have and makes them possible to become reality. I wasn't really sure how the ideas were going to work, but I just put together the things that I was feeling I needed to bring to the gallery, and when I got there, everything started to fall into place and make sense. A beautiful vintage dim sum serving tray that I found years ago at a favorite thrift store fit as if it was made for the area of the burner underneath where the flames would have come out of when it was still part of a stove, and a piece of glass that I'd found a few weeks ago about a block from the gallery fit the top the way I would have wanted a glass top to fit. Looking at the new table it seemed to be exactly where it needed to be in the gallery, as a coffee table in front of a vintage couch in front of the window.

This table gives me so much joy, and though I could say that I made it all by myself, I know that's not true. It took Fiore's being the wonderful people who they are and the wonderful people at the thrift store where I found that beautiful vintage dim sum serving platter, and the beautiful space to put it in that is possible because of other beautiful and wonderful people. When we remember all the beautiful people who help our dreams and visions come true, we start to see God in the every day, working through and with all of us.

A New Table

At YES Gallery

Made From An Old Burner

From A Stove At Fiore's

Blessings,

Jannie Susan

An Abundant Life - A Beautiful And Special Place

I've written about Chef Ashfer Biju in these pages before and a few weeks ago I wrote about a lovely dinner he'd created with inspiration from Shalini Haut Parfum. At the time, though I didn't know it, he was on his way to a new position as Executive Chef at the Baccarat Hotel New York, and I decided to visit him when he was there and enjoy Afternoon Tea.

When I was very young and into my teens, my mother and I used to go to Afternoon Tea together at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Boston.  One of my favorite books as a child was E. B. White's "Trumpet Of The Swan" and it still is a very special book to me. The swan in that story stays at the Ritz Carlton and orders room service of tea sandwiches because of the watercress in them. Somehow or other my mother found out that we could actually go to the Ritz for tea, and so we did and it was one of the most lovely experiences. We went often together for special occasions and sometimes just for fun, and ever since then I've searched for a place to enjoy Afternoon Tea but haven't found one that matched those memories.

The idea of visiting the Baccarat Hotel was wonderful in itself, and knowing that Chef Ashfer Biju was there made it even more special. He is a marvelous Chef and a truly wonderful and kind, humble person. The food he has created that I've had the honor to enjoy in the past has always been so excellently full of flavor and colors and textures, with the freshest and best ingredients artfully combined for not only a beautiful experience of taste and scent but for visual beauty as well. Add to that the experience of Afternoon Tea and it was a day that I will remember always with a smile of delight as I look forward to more adventures in this marvelous place.

From the moment I walked in, everything and everyone was so wonderful and lovely and kind and welcoming. The signature scent of the hotel is so enjoyable to the senses as it creates a feeling of peace and relaxing, calm, luxurious elegance. Every person who greeted me had such a gift of hospitality that every moment I felt not only taken care of but as if I were someone special. The Afternoon Tea itself was wonderful, with every taste and flavor and creation as wonderful in every way as they were beautiful, and the Grand Salon where it was served is a room so lovely and filled with the beauty of art and design and crystal chandeliers and refracting light, including prisms that hang as a covering for the windows, that I could happily sit there every day and enjoy the peace and tranquility of a beautiful afternoon.

Every touch down to the quill pen that is given for signing brought back beautiful memories from my childhood and my growing up and gave me new memories to add to this chapter of my life. As I prepared to go I caught a glimpse of the bar area and I began to dream about my next visit to this very special and beautiful place.

Afternoon Tea At The Baccarat Hotel

Executive Chef Ashfer Biju

In New York City

28 West 53rd Street

New York, New York

https://www.baccarathotels.com

A Prism Of Light Creating Rainbows

From The Cascading Crystal Windows

With Executive Chef Ashfer Biju

Blessings,

Jannie Susan