All Over NYC!

Paul and NB on the High Line in Chelsea

Paul and I took a breakneck day trip to NYC earlier in the week, combining business, pleasure and even family!  We started off in Soho where Paul made a flying visit to some clients while I went to the Lee Friedlander show at at Janet Borden:

Lee Friedlander

Lunch and a few more galleries, nothing too memorable, then off to Chelsea where I had been strongly advised by more than one of my teachers to see the Michaël Borremans show at David Zwirner. It was impressive and I am glad I managed to catch it before it closed. I am still trying to work out why several people whom I respect thought of my work in connection to this work..there definitely is some similarity in our impulse, but it's somewhat "submerged" in the presentation. This needs pondering!

In front of Borremans' "The Loan." My dressing to coordinate was unintentional!

While in Chelsea we strolled on the High Line, something that is becoming a tradition.  We always enjoy the city sights, and the people watching (as usual, a large percentage of French and German speakers) and the beautiful landscaping of the line (cityscaping?)

Birdhouses and feeders in heavy use

Great light!

Walking around Chelsea we also caught some street art, like this choice little interactive project, Hope:

Hope, Chelsea, NYC, 12/11

I don't know who did it but it was simply and beautifully executed and a pleasure to participate in. It also fostered communication as several people encountering it at the same time necessarily spoke a bit, expressing astonishment and interest, sharing pens etc. I always like public art that breaks down barriers between people, however fleetingly.

Adding Hopes to the collection.

We saw some other excellent art in galleries, and then headed over to the New York Times building where we had an appointment to meet Paul's editor. It's quite an interestingly designed building, done by Renzo Piano, lots of vistas and strong colors, and we spent a pleasant hour talking and drinking tea in the beautiful Times employee cafeteria, Paul and Loren kicking around some of Paul's ideas and me quietly taking it all in.

New York Times Employee Cafeteria Photo credit: Fred R. Conrad

This would have been enough to fill up my dance card satisfactorily but wait there's more!  Paul had also arranged for us to rendezvous with a relative of his whom he only recently met, who works at Christie's. He thought I would like her (and he was right!)  We waltzed right in to Christie's, past all the security... turned out this was  something of an unintentional Ninja move because it was one of the nights of the Elizabeth Taylor auction and admission was limited and security was tight. We did get stopped at some point, but courteously, and we then waited for our relative in very glamorous Christie surroundings, and perused a fascinating digital databank of auction images. 

(I have to admit, I am not very interested in jewelry so the Taylor Collection was somewhat wasted on me!)  Once our relation, Deborah Bell, arrived downstairs we whirled off, crossing through the jolly crowds at Rockefeller Center and ended up in The Modern, which is part of MOMA. I was thrilled to see an enormous and shockingly beautiful piece MOMA commissioned from Mickalene Thomas still on display right where we were entering (it's only up temporarily so what incredible luck!)

"Le dejeuner sur l'herbe: Les Trois Femmes Noires" by Mickalene Thomas

A huge crush of people filled the bar/restaurant almost to bursting, in pre-holiday fervor, and we spent a very enjoyable if all too brief time getting to know our newfound cousin a little better (she's wonderful!) and making plans to meet again post-holidays, before dashing off to catch our train home. 

What a day! Didn't feel tired at the time, it was all very energizing, but I noticed at the end of the next day's various duties and work efforts, my boyfriend Paul and I were both drooping. Well worth it!