November 05, 2006
A Portrait of the Artist
After nearly a year of preparation, this weekend was finally the opening reception for my dear friend Katrina's photography show at L'Amyx tea bar in Oakland, which also happens to be one of the places the two of us have met up and talked each others' ears off so late our respective men were ready to send the hounds out for us.
Katrina is formerly of the now-defunct Feisty Scribe personal blog, but her photos can still be seen on her site October Photography, which is also, incidentally, the best place to go to see her work if you can't make it to L'Amyx sometime before the end of the year.
Having seen Katrina's photos online over the past year, it was both satisfying and surreal to see them matted and framed and hanging larger than life on the walls of a public space. The experience was a little like meeting an Internet friend for the first time in real life: I was definitely in the presence of something familiar, but that third dimension added a new richness and depth to something--and someone--I already thought was pretty fantastic.
Even better, the place was packed with her family and friends, and during the reception she even sold a piece, which had already been taken off the wall and wrapped up for transport before we got there. Suffice it to say that the highlight of the evening was the good company (hi, Kate! hi, Ann(e?)!) and not the black tapioca balls bumping around in the bottom of my chai. (Plus, those fat straws for siphoning the "bubbles" felt slightly pornographic, and I don't know that I'm in a place in my life where I want to suck balls in public. Just saying.)
Also of dubious merit is Simon's decision to "Van Dyke" himself (see above). He thought that particular facial-hair styling would complement his glasses (fake) and cashmere (real) blazer for the event. In his own words, he wanted to attend the photography exhibit looking like a know-it-all, although I think the overarching effect was less Pretentious Art Critic and more Smarmy Professor, especially since I was on his arm wearing a babydollesque top, pigtails, and patent leather heels. Naughty!
[Already, NaBloA-Go-Go is starting to kill me.]
I wouldn't have recognized Simon in that photo. What a master of disguise.
Posted by: Amanda at November 6, 2006 01:30 PMI didn't recognize him either at first glance. I thought he WAS a pretentious art-critic. heh.
Posted by: carrster at November 6, 2006 01:52 PMHow fabulous for your friend! I mounted and displayed a few photos at work last year in an "Employee Art Show." It was fun, but a bit surreal.
Posted by: Jodi at November 6, 2006 02:02 PMYea, let's see the naughty school girl!
Posted by: Ted at November 6, 2006 03:27 PMEw, gross, Dad!
I wasn't dressed like a schoolgirl, naughty or otherwise. My shirt just happened to be of the babydoll/sailor variety, I just happened to have pigtails, and my shoes just happened to be patent leather (fake). I wasn't trying to pull any kind of costume, promise.
Posted by: Leah at November 6, 2006 03:37 PMAh, L'amyx! I must say one of my favorite tihngs about your blog is coming across bits and pieces of my hometown through someone else's daily life (as I now live in So-Cal). I have never liked the tapioca balls myself, but the last time I was there I found I could stomach them. I did however find the straws challenging as for some reason I kept wanting to plug up the bottom and then remove my straw so I could suck the t.b. out of the bottom. This resulted numerous times in my dropping tapioca balls onto my lap and creating all sorts of messiness.
I'll do my best to check out the show when I'm home for the holidays :)
Posted by: megan at November 6, 2006 03:47 PMThe NaBloA-Go-Go may be killing you but it's great for us! I love reading a new post every day.
Posted by: Martha at November 6, 2006 05:02 PMIt would be a lot funnier if his fake glasses didn't have lenses in them. It would take a true know-it-all to pull off the look.
Those of us who regularly wear glasses like to walk around without them, but the bumping into walls is a telltale sign that we're not really among the hip crowd.
Posted by: Texas T-bone at November 6, 2006 09:11 PMargh. REEEEEALLY unsure about the facial hair. Honestly, if I had to choose, I'd suggest a fu-manchu type o' 'stache over the strangely East-Villagey former folk-star look. From here, the moustachio looks like the stick-on kind from Urban Outfitters.
Posted by: mel at November 7, 2006 04:24 AMCongrats to your friend.
There's nothing like seeing things in print. Flickr just doesn't cover it.
I mentioned to Lance earlier in the day when we were hanging photos that I wondered if you would blog about the show.
Hee. I should have known you would. I am sad we didn't get a picture together. My head was so swirly and full of stars that night I'm amazed I could even stand up straight for that picture. Sheesh.
THANK YOU FOR COMING.
You are a dear. I will haunt you now. And your little Van Dyke too.
Posted by: Katrina at November 7, 2006 10:32 AM
