D Magazine sent over a photographer last week to shoot some photos of Richard and I, and I have to say that Wade Livingston happens to be the nicest guy I've met in a while... I just had to brag about him:) He totally went wayyy above what was called for that day; even drove back home to get a large backdrop so that we could get a really nice photo of a large, two tier fandelier, which was hanging in our showroom.
He's so passionate about photography; I totally loved that about him: "I love fashion photography because to me it is like a blank canvas, you start with beautiful clothes and beautiful models (of course!) and then you decide where you want to shoot (kind of the background of a painting) and how you wan to light it (I love lighting!.)" He says that he loves the creative freedom photography allows; I can totally see that! I also love it that according to him, his studio is a bright, sunlit, cheerful place; all white with skylights and large factory windows. Sounds like a perfect place for getting the creative bug... would love to see it in person one of these days.
Wade's favorite project this year is the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader swimsuit calendar. Apparently he was just sent on his 12th trip in April; how fun!
You should check out his Facebook page... I'm already a fan!
By the way... I can't wait to see the photos in D-Home! I'll be sure to post them on here pronto.
I've tried the aerial yoga, which is awesome, I've tried the aerial cirque classes which just rock, and now I have officially been to my first ever acro yoga class! It was so much fun!
Every time I try out one of Kimberly and Dylan's Cirque Fit classes, I'm completely in love... they just keep getting better and better. ...and each time I think I must be nuts, there's no way I'm going to be able to do that ...and each time Kimberly and Dylan convince me that I will ...and then it just happens! Simply incredible.
Kimberly and Dylan basically took acrobatics plus Thai massage and BOOM! Talk about a great pairing filled with super deep partner stretching and basically creating living and breathing sculpture with your own body.
Yesterday I had a private lesson with Kimberly and Dylan. On the menu? CirqueFit!
So, lets back up a bit...
So far, I've been taking their aerial yoga classes, which have been nothing but the best of fun... so good for the body, so good for the spirit. And, as you can see, pretty darn low to the ground... that's up-stairs.
Down stairs, on the other hand, you'll find all sorts of interesting contraptions, like the lyra (that metal hoop I'm spinning in), the trapeze, and the silks (the beautiful red ones.) Anyway... yesterday, Kimberly and Dylan suggested that I try out the contraptions mentioned above. I thought, oh boy... this will end with me on the floor, preferably with my neck still in working order. But both K&D were totally sure that I would be fine... so... I went for it.
First, the silks.
Not the best posture ever, but hey... not bad for my first time, right? It was pretty interesting... especially wrapping that silk around my leg a few more times, each time climbing higher. Then, spinning in the opposite direction to "untangle" myself, while "falling down" at a considerably faster speed then climbing up. Or at least, that is what's supposed to happen. ha! After a few times, I was so tired that I had to slowwwllllyyyy force my body to spin itself around and around. I thought: That's it. I'm fried.
Next, the trapeze.
Ok, by now my arms were total J-E-ll-O. I thought; no way I'm climbing on there and surviving. But, K&D were totally convincing: No one has ever fallen off, we promise! Ok, on I went. Not sure how I got on there, but I did. It was freaking high too! I looked down and saw: The Ground! Ok, ok... I told myself; it's not that bad... everything is o-kay. Breathe. I stepped up and.... Everything was!
Finally, the lyra.
So by now I'm sweating like crazy... No, not glistening like a proper young lady; sweating like eww! All that energy exerted on lifting your own body takes a whole lot out of you. And on top of it, the ring is made of slick metal, my hands are wet, and the lower part of my arms feel like someone blew them up to Popeye's size. Can't get on the ring. Crap! That's the one I really wanted to do! Dylan finally pulled up a mattress, another mattress, and his knee. I got on! yeyyyyy!
Once I was up in the air, I melted into 7th heaven! All the busy, busy dissolved into thin air, all the troubles of the day magically puffed away! I love, love, love spinning. I felt like I was in a world of my own... it was soooo relaxing.... I just felt like I belonged on that ring. As a matter of fact, the music in that video-clip explains my emotions to the "T"... It was perfect and I could spin like that for ever.
When I finally hoped off, I was told that I was up there spinning for like 8 minutes and that most people get sick after just a little bit. Eight minutes? Really? Felt like no time what so ever... I lost track of time; I actually lost track of time... I couldn't believe it. I found my new love! Thanks guys!
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For the iPhone people (I heard complaints that the video does not show up on the iPhone)
Ever feel like you should be dong something which you really love, but for some reason you simply can't make yourself sit down and actually do it? That is precisely my relationship with sculpture. When I sit down and start sculpting, the hours melt away, I am completely relaxed, everything feels just right; the world goes away and I am fully sated. When I am not sculpting, I get anxious to do it; I yearn to put my hands in clay... I can literally feel my way around the three-dimensional object in my mind.
Going by that, you might think I spend my days and nights doing nothing but creating new pieces; yeaaa... not so much. I prefer to strangle the breath out of my need to create the pieces crawling around my head. It must be some sort of a bitter-sweet self punishing thing... I mean, I have to gain something out of the behavior in order to continue it, right? It's a good thing that I still get to be creative at work, or I don't know what I would do with myself.
If the names sound familiar, it's probably because you have sat in one of their fabulous restaurants (Steel, Cru, Ferre, or Victory Tavern) while enjoying a delicious meal and a glass of wine. And now they're doing it again! Patrick and Catherine Colombo are about to open a new Italian Restaurant in Preston Royal!
The former Popolos space is currently getting a total makeover, and from what I can see on the plans, it's going to be awesome! A modern twist on a Tuscan farmhouse-style restaurant is just what the doctor ordered. I am especially excited about the European style outside patio; Dallas soo needs to get in gear about that! There is nothing better then sitting outside, under an old oak tree and enjoying a cup of what ever is your thing... and that's exactly the feel of (I know the name, but can't spill it yet... I will fill in this blank in a little bit), as it will be called.
By the way, you remember chef Kevin Ascolese from Salve, Mi Piaci, and Ferre in the West Village, don't you? Well, he'll be the official chef of the new restaurant! Exciting! I certainly hope to be one of the first to taste something fabulous from the menu as soon as the doors open toward the end of August!
Above: Catherine and Patrick Colombo posing beautifully on their main stair. The wrought iron railing, seen in the photograph above, was such a pleasure to build for them, and Catherine wrote me the most adorable little note on Facebook: "Izabela, it was amazing watching you, Richard the metal workers take this concept and materialize it so beautifully. I'll never forget the day you all installed it, I thought for sure someone was going to get crushed! You all ROCK!" Her main railing was so graceful, with its beautiful flowing lines, and at the same time just huuuge, to say the least. It certainly was a spectacle to see the guys installing it all; I don't know if anyone out there has a better crew of metal artisans who can also turn into He-Men the very next day!
***For more information on my designs and the ornamental ironwork and lighting our metalworkers fabricate right here in Dallas, Texas go to www.potterartmetal.com
For a very long time I have been looking for the perfect exercise routine which I would be able to actually stick to. I found a few things which were fun at first, but then my excitement slowly fizzled away... Until one day I went to a Tango Milonga and met Kimberly Adele and Dylan Keith of Cirque Duo. That was the start of my love for the aerial silks... and more specifically, aerial yoga.
There are lots of exercise classes you can take, including yoga, in order to build your strength and flexibility, and they will all bring you health and even piece of mind, but at least in my experience, aerial silks make you push the boundaries of how far your body can stretch without the feeling of being trapped in "I'm in a class... lets just get this over with."
Don't get me wrong, you definitely feel each and every stretch, really, really well... but for some reason the hour long classes feel as if they went by in a blink of an eye... I always feel like "That's it? It's over? Nooo.."
In a matter of less then two months my body has gone from Totally Stiff, to what feels so much more amazing and I can't wait to achieve so much more. My posture has improved greatly and I swear I "grew" like an inch because of it... hehe. It feels so good to actually get in-tune with your body and be able to actually feel your muscles supporting your weight as opposed to just slouching around, which I have been doing for most of my life.
After I get a little bit more out of my yoga classes, I'm planning to take their Aerial Cirque Arts classes... those look like a lot of fun!
I opened the envelope and saw the most adorable bronze owl sculptures ever! "View the Artist's Proofs of an exciting new sculpture series by Brad Oldham" ...the invitation read. I'm so very proud of Brad's new accomplishment! We have been buddys for so many year now; makes me happy to see him take on this new endeavor in his life... Pure Sculpture by Brad Oldham... sure has a great ring to it, doesn't it? I'm also psyched by the unveiling of CAPTAIN, WALTER, JOHN & ABIGAIL; the fabulous trio... I wanted to share it with everyone!
The Invitation reads:
MORE WAYS TO LOVE
BRAD OLDHAM
As a friend and client of Brad Oldham, you know the genuine
nature of the artist and his work. True to form, this new
limited-edition sculpture series featuring owls is once deeply
personal and yet ultimately accessible.
Each Silver-Infused Bronze focuses on a unique breed
of owl-and is inspired with its own original story by Oldham's wife
Christy Coltrin. The sculpture design and the new custom storybook
are completed in tandem, with each inspiring the other.
When the final casting in an edition is made, the mold is
broken to ensure the series can never again be reproduced-
and a piece of the actual mold is enclosed with the hand-
signed and numbered sculpture.
View the Artist's Proofs
of an exciting new sculpture series
by Brad Oldham
and become a Charter Member of a revolutionary new artistic endeavor
PURE SCULPTURE
By Brad Oldham
Wednesday, June 1st & Thursday, June 2nd
5:00 - 7:00 p.m.
Bentley Dallas
5300 Lemmon Avenue
Dallas, Texas 75209
Hosted by:
Brad Oldham, Christy Coltrin & Bill Jesse
RSVP to christy@bradoldham.com or 214.239.3993
I know I keep saying It's A Small World, but it really is. As I mentioned before, Potter Art Metal Studios (my fabulous place of design and ornamental metalwork fabrication) is currently working on the lanterns, doors, and new glass top awnings for the entries of the Regency Row Homes at the Ritz-Carlton. Architect Richard Drummond Davis designed a very pretty anthemion for the door panels which I'm going to sculpt at about 4" tall and Brad will cast them for me in pewter... they'll look like beautiful little jewelry pieces. Kyle Crews has a very awesome idea for them... but I can't spill too much info... you'll just have to wait and see!
Just got back! Guess what? Got to take a photo with my favorite sculpture: John & Abigail... plus Brad's daughter is a totally awesome little fashionista and helped me pick out the most rockin' hot pink feather for my hair! Getting it out of my hair is going to be another story; I think they stay in like a month...
John & Abigail... the most adorable little owls! ...and me!
