"Zip" - Allen Bentley

Bridgette Mayer is a girl according to my heart: strong, passionate, creative… We met several years ago when I fell in love with the art of Allen Bentley. How could I resist those beautiful paintings, full of sensuality, that represented dancers? When I first saw them I knew, I had to have one. I started with the beginner-art-buyer size… something not much bigger than my iPhone. It was all I could afford then and it was like a little treasure… A year later (and a better job stability in a decently paying company), I splurged. I bought the big-girl painting… the type you need A wall to showcase; and ever since, I never looked at it with an ounce of regret. It brightens up my days, puts a smile on my face and give me a sense of pride for owning something so beautiful.

Because I’m fascinated with Bridgette’s career and because I know fine art is not something anyone would splurge on that easily, I asked the gallery owner a few questions that I wanted to share with you.

Did you always want to work in art?
As a young girl I was very creative and was always making things and collecting things. When I got to college luckily my parents made me get a job to pay for books and my expenses. As an Art History major at Bucknell I decided to get a job in the art gallery at the University and fell in love with the work.

Tell me what influences you when you pick a new artist for your gallery?
My taste and intuition influence me when I pick a new artist. If I feel like I have found an incredibly talented and hot artist I will sign them on. Sometimes I watch artists for a few years to see how their work and talent will develop and if it will develop. If it does I usually sign them on.

How did it feel when you bought your first piece of art?
I bought my first piece of “real” grownup art during the first exhibition I curated in my gallery.

What was it?
It was an amazing collage by Rebecca Rutstein. I just had to have it and I had anxiety that someone else was going to buy it first. I realized, hey wait, this is my gallery and I can buy it first!! Since then I have bought many incredible works by the artists I represent and I am very proud of my collection. I plan on passing it on to my family and already have started that as I am addicted to collecting and I am running out of room!

What would you recommend to someone who is thinking about buying their first artwork?
Go for it but first make sure you buy from a respected gallery that has been open for a few years. Ask around and see what people think about the gallery program. Have the art dealer tell you why they represent the artist you are thinking about buying.

Which artist would you love to see on your home walls?
Jean Michel Basquiat

3 words:
Tea of coffee? Coffee!
I collect… The best contemporary art!
Favorite city? Paris

If those words triggered any questions, feel free to put them in the comment section and I’ll make sure to ask Bridgette. And to browse through wonderful art check Bridgette Mayer Gallery’s website.

Tell me a little about your new store: what did you like about the place?
I love the light and the abundance of our new space, it is clean and fresh, very European! We have a shoe gallery in the front of the shop with cool lighting and modern acrylic shelving. The shoes act as art pieces against our warm white walls. And we love our men’s wall with its steel handcrafted shelf and king’s crown towering above. We went mad for vintage lighting and pops of red. The back of the shop has a boyfriend lounge, with the hottest fashion mags, vintage furniture, and union jack bits and pieces. We have the best spot for happenings, a giant window to play with, and a vintage BUS STOP sign hanging outside as our signage!

What pair in your Spring collection are you the most excited to wear?
I love wearing my John Fluevog‘s! They are colorful and have interesting constructions, supple leathers and add just the right amount of funkiness to my spring looks. They are show stoppers and are sold exclusively here, not only in Philly but the whole of Pennsylvania!

Are you a heel or a flat kind of girl?
It’s a toss up! I love a fun flat for walking around the city, like those from All Black and J Shoes, but I also love a sexy heel like my new Melissa‘s made in Brazil of recycled plastic!

What should a girl be looking for when picking a new pair of shoes?
Let the shoes speak to you and you will just feel which one must come home with you and be yours But don’t forget about walkability and always consider the occasion. Is this a shoes for a fab event or is this an everyday walking shoe? Comfort is key but it is okay every now and then to let your initial love attraction take the reigns and buy that sky high pump because it’s just oh-so-sexy!

What would you say are the staples in a good basic shoe rack for the everyday girl?
A flirty heel, an edgy cutout bootie, a colourful or neutral flat, a high heel boot, a lace-up granny boot, a fun wedge, something metallic + something unexpected to add a fashion statement to any basic outfit!!

If those words triggered any questions, feel free to put them in the comment section and I’ll make sure to ask Elena. And to figure out what to do with your freshly spring-cleaned closet check Elena’s blog, also make sure to Like Bus Stop Boutique’s Facebook Page or to follow Elena on Twitter @ElenaLBre.

The former happened in the mid afternoon (couldn’t believe the museum closes at 5:00 pm, seems so early). No one was better suited to join me in those creepy adventures than my friends J. & C. The boys were jumping around from skeleton to skeleton and skull to skull and I was trying to stay composed at the view of those deformed embryos, Siamese babies attached by the head, so on and so force. The story of the original “Siamese” twins (whom were actually Chinese), their 21 children and difference of character gave us the good laugh we needed before leaving the place. Two things I’ll take out of it: a new respect for surgeons (what’s in there is darn ugly and all looks the same to me) and a renewed gratitude for having a working body and no weird genetical disease.

The later, was, well, later… I decided to take my BFF, A., for a celebratory dinner of our eight years of friendship. Cocktails, edamame, lobster salad, sushi combination… It was a feast of deliciousness. Was the dinner worth the price tag? Maybe. Maybe not. The friendship was, definitely. Not the best sushi I ever had (which was in a small Japanese restaurant in Park City, UT) but a serious freshness and variety of fish; and that lobster salad (with avocado & orange slices) was out of this world. I wish I had enough appetite to try one of the entree, where I’d think Masaharu Morimoto’s talent probably shines best but that will be for another time…

Overall, very happy to have avoided the hors of drunk, green, leprechauns last night and to have had a very “grown-up” day instead.

The sentence to finish was: You know you’re from Philly when…

Random.org helped me pick a winner: Janet McGlynn.

According to Janet: You know you’re from Philly when you travel and wonder why is there no scrapple on the breakfast menu??

Love it!

Janet – Please contact me at hello@ohlittleaudreysays.com to claim your gift.

Everyone else – I encourage you to visit the PA General Store for all sorts of yummy foods (their cookies are famous all the way to France) and print the 15% off coupon below (redeemable online, with phone orders or at their Reading Terminal Market location)!

When D. emailed me and offered tickets to the show, I jumped on the opportunity and took myself on an Artist Date last Thursday. I didn’t question why she had tickets. That’s the way we are. We know people, we get stuff, we share the wealth…

The show was interesting. I am not sure what I was expecting really, but it didn’t rock my world as much as I thought it would. Some really cool floral compositions in all scales (loved the miniatures) but it still had that coldness of a convention center. I must have spent too many hours walking the aisles of trade shows during my pharma years… I couldn’t feel the magic. And potential for magic there was.

The cool surprise of the day was to find out that D. had designed the new Philadelphia Flower Show brand (hence the free tickets) and that was a real work of art. I knew she was a talented graphic designer but she really went beyond my expectations there.

Philadelphia Flower Show… Check… What next? I’m kind of feeling the Mutter Museum this weekend… Need to find a courageous soul to come with me.

Up for grab is a bountiful assortment of Philadelphia food favorites! An impressive basket of treats from the Pennsylvania General Store that includes Tastykake Butterscotch Krimpets and Chocolate Cupcakes, Asher’s Chocolate Covered Pretzels, Melrose Diner Butter Cookies, Uncle Jerry’s Hard Pretzels, Asher’s Keystone Crunch, a Chocolate Liberty Bell, Society Hill Toffee Nuts, Pretzel Pete’s Honey Mustard, Anastasio Italian Market Reserve Coffee, a Philadelphia Love Mug, a Replica Constitution, Goldenberg’s Peanut Chews and a Replica Liberty Bell!

Some good stuff right?

The rules are simple: finish the sentence “You know you’re from Philly when…” in the comment section of the blog (comments left on Facebook & Twitter will not be taken into account). I will pick (random draw) and announce the winner on March 16th.

Ready. Set. Be creative!

There are so many emotions linked to a move abroad. Whether it’s a move away or a move back, or both (in my case).

8 years ago, I was moving away. I was leaving behind me the comfort of a familiar city, a close family and a faithful group of friends. I remember taking the subway, about a week before I left, and running into someone I knew. It became clear to me, at that moment, that it was time to go. I was craving the idea of being incognito and being able to reinvent myself; become the person I knew (thought?) I was. The person that wasn’t tied to family expectations, friends assumptions due to our common history, or even general reputation.

The week after I arrived in Philly was the week two major TV series season finales were released. In Friends, Rachel accepts a job in Paris and then changes her mind when Ross declares his love to her. And I thought: “What if I missed my opportunity for that one-true-love?” And I cried. In Sex & the City, Carrie moves to Paris to follow Aleksandr and then becomes home sick and misses her friends. And I thought: “What if I lose my friends?” And I cried.

It only took a few more weeks for me to realize that:
1. I was already making some great new friends (2 of them I met within the first 48 hours I had moved here)
2. There was plenty of male eye candy in Philadelphia and I had a lot to learn and experiment about the American culture of dating.

8 years later, I’m back. But this time, I don’t feel like I’m leaving anything behind. All the great things that I have found here, I’m taking with me: my experiences, my memories, my freedom.  Friends, I have all over the world at this point. And I’m lucky to live in the 21st century where Internet keeps people connected and where everyone only lives a plane-ride away. As for my one-true-love… Who knows? Maybe he was there, all that time, just waiting.

Had you asked me a few month ago how I felt about the possibility of moving back to France, the answer would not have been pretty. Behind the tears was a terrorizing fear of the unknown. But, somehow, I don’t feel fear anymore. I feel excitement about the unknown. I’m not sad about the days left behind, I’m looking forward to the days to come.

I want to close that chapter of my life, with words from my favorite poem: If by Rudyard Kipling

…
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or being hated don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise;
…
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build’em up with worn-out tools;
…
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much:
…
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!

Now that the expiration date has come, it’s time to look at all those things I always said I’d do. And never did.

Here’s my Philadelphia Bucket List:

1. Walk around my very special Divine Lorraine – and finally snap a few pictures from up close instead of just flying by in a bus or a car.

2. Go to the Philadelphia Flower Show – 8 years in Philly. 8 Flower shows that came and went. 8 times the affirmation “This year, I’m going”. Well, in 2012, no excuses. I have to go. Plus, the theme being Hawaii, I really can’t miss it because I’ll be on a photography mission for Ms. Tigger.

3. See the Japanese House and Garden in Fairmount Park – It shouldn’t be that complicated… How come I did not get around to do it before.

4. Visit the Mutter Museum – Because I chickened out too many times… and when I found the motivation last june, J. chickened out for both of us. I’m not a chicken… I can do that…

5. Have dinner at Morimoto – I think I have a little crush on Chef Masaharu Morimoto…