Venezia Love

In 2006 I was lucky enough to stay for a September week in Venice before travelling to points further South. The actual people that lived there were back from holiday and it was the most gorgeous architecture I've ever seen. I can appreciate buildings that are a few hundred years old and still standing (since in Texas, almost everything has been built in the past 150 years), but in Venice even the mundane apartment buildings and storage spaces usually have awe inspiring histories. If you go, don't miss the Correr museum for an awesome Roman statuary collection. They recently opened a new interesting museum about plague victims found on Lazzaretto Vecchio, so much history here.

Of course, the Romans had not settled here, they were further to the South in Araminium (Rimini, the Adriatic port with ocean water as silty and disgusting as the Texas coast unfortunately). But, many places I looked at in Venice showed a nod to the neo-classical and Roman influences. A marble sculpted statue head over a doorway, ancient style cornices, mosaics and reliefs... And, it is amazing to walk the streets at night without car noise or exhaust, everyone walking.

If anyone wants to rent a second floor out on an old palazzo, call me, I'll quit my day job and be on the first flight out, for real!!

Venice to me is fragile in its aging beauty. It won't last another 100 years because of the rising sea levels, and despite the bluster from the citizens about the sea of tourists and typical local government squabbles, I saw in some of the citizens there the sad awareness of how things will go. I could live here making art and making trades forever and be happy, I think.

For Soda and Candy, I promised a post of the most bizarre shoes I have ever seen anywhere created at a shop in San Marco. I was passing by back to the hotel and had to take a picture.

Italiana:

Mi Amo Venezia!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What's Cooking (che cosa griglia? non pietre)

Super busy at the day job this week, so today it's about cooking (which I'll be doing this weekend).

But of course not just any cooking! I bring to the esteemed readers' attention the 'De re coquinaria' (on the subject of cooking) by Marcus Gavius Apicus.

*Warning - Only click on the link if you are not about to (or just have) eaten.

After reading the hundreds of suggestion type recipies, it pains me to say it but I can only conclude that Roman cooking was total B.S. by today's standards. Just wine and bread for me, thanks...

Here is a recipe that might have gone over well in antiquity (non-vegetarian, but if you just read all that other stuff, you've got some thick skin) :

Instead of a Dormouse fillet, start with 4 lbs flank or skirt steak (most all fat trimmed off), place on cutting board, salt lightly, and then pound out with a hammer (not the one you use for chiselling stone like exhibit 13, or the weird kind with the sadistic tendorizing spikes). Pour on the lime juice from the typical green plastic containers. When you think you have too much lime, just a little more. Then very lightly dust with cumin and a bit of oregano. Next a 2 tablespoons of silver tequila (then drink some so you are in more of a 'fajita-y mood'). Grind pepper over it and then about 1 cup of dark soy sauce. Work all the ingredients into the meat, and grill to just on the well side of medium.
Serve with sauteed onion / bell pepper and flour tortillas, oh yeah, and beer (or tequila since it is still out and you are probably tipsy).

Italiana -

Romani sono incapace di cucinare bene, il libro lo dimostra :)

Così ecco la mia ricetta per fajita:

1.7 kg di bistecca (sale poco, poi colpito con martello),

.2 liter succo di lime

poco cumin,

poco oregano,

30 ml tequila argento,

.2 liter salsa di soia

Griglia!!! :)

Drawing (disegnare artisticamente)

After thinking about Chaka's thought provoking post on left vs. right brain thinking, I'm compelled to sing the praises of the book 'Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain'.



Before reading this book my scribbles were really pathetic. But after working through all the exercises, my painting and drafting skills are at least twice as good (have to accept the fact that I'll never be an Albrecht Durer, but maybe good enough for my purposes).



So if you find yourself with some time and a pencil, paper, spray paint, or maybe even some old rocks and a cave wall, be sure to get a copy of this book and work through it if you want to draw like the wind (not sure, but that sounded inspiring)...


Here is a completed? exercise from the book where you have to draw upside down. I wonder what that guy is thinking?

















---
Qui è un disegno pratica del libro 'Disegno sul cervello a destra'. Il libro è meraviglioso per aumentare la capacità di disegno. cia-ciaooooo...

Ft. Worth Art Fair (fiera d'arte di Ft. Worth)

I was out this weekend scouring the best paintings and what-nots that the area had to offer. In terms of realism painting, it was kind of disappointing. There were some quirky ones with indoor views that focused mostly on walls and windows out to boring landscape and a guy that did a nice surreal white rabbit from 'Alice in Wonderland', but he wanted too much for what it was. Most of it was the giclee computer generated crud that looks great from say, a football field away. Thinking about blogging friends, I imagined that Mo would appreciate this bizarre sculpture because of his affinity to early morning disturbances.



(All in all, it was a very weak showing for realism / neoclassic subject matter)














On a tangent, tonight I put on the old 'inconspicuous' clothing and went to a disreputable establishment of 'convenience'. In said location, I proceeded to purchase several thousand Texas Lottery tickets in hopes of helping out fun blog friend Girl Interrupted who is awesome, gorgeous, learns Latin at MJenks place, and so perfect (especially if she is reading this).

After filling up two garbage bins with 'scratch off shavings', I couldn't believe my eyes. A winner... 20 USD!!! Not quite the return I had hoped for; maybe some currency contract straddles next month would be better?














Italiana:
Sono andata ad una fiera d'arte di questo fine settimana. La maggior parte delle opere d'arte è stata molto deludente (o troppo costose).
Ehi! Ho anche acquistato un biglietti che hanno vinto... ahahaa

Dallas / Ft Worth Art (arte a Dallas/Fort Worth)

Here is the wonderful Dallas Museum of Art where today I saw a


lovely pair of Tuts...













So I'm invited here for a 'mock' auction, or 'mocktion' I guess, put on by Sotheby's. It's like they are training the donors, bleh. Anyhow, the after-parties are always good I guess.

Much more exciting, is the Fort Worth art festival all this weekend. I might pick up some quality neo-classic goods, there should be about 250 artists with booths if it's like last time.


Wish me luck :)

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per Italia:
Il presentazione di 'King Tut' è ancora in Dallas. Il museo vuole a tutti di andare offerta in un'asta. Domani, spero di acquisto presso la fiera d'arte in Ft. Worth.

New sculpture started, and it's got me short stacked (nuova scultura)

...and the faceless bastard didn't reraise into my flush chasing after the flop just now. I think I know his tell though, so he's on the ropes.







Ok, the tie-in to neoclassical stuff and art is tenuous, but I had to show off my chips because Kimmizzie and Lopez like poker. And, the clay bust will be one of my dad, not some sort of weird 'modern art' thing like a mannequin sculpture or something.


And here is a closer shot of the Paulsons. Does anyone read Spanish well? I designed the logo / layout, so don't tell me if I screwed up the translation at the bottom (I don't want to know).






















Italiana --- Ecco alcune poker chips fatto che una ditta per me. La nuova scultura sarà di mio padre. Non è completo, ma è vincente. Ciao...

Ancient Betting (scommesse antica)

So I was playing Texas Hold 'Em the other day (as people in Texas do, yuk yuk), and was thinking about what kind of procedures the folks in antiquity followed when placing bets. It appears from this ancient mosaic (not mine) that they placed the money on a table with a caduceus (symbol of god 'Mercury') and a palm leaf (symbol of victory)...

From this, I can only draw the conclusion that 'Mercury' was a loser. In retrospect, not having the pagan symbols is probably why I lost the big pot with 'trip hooks'...

On a completely different subject, I love Christie's auction house. Here is a painting in a lot that speaks to me (figuratively). Just nice neoclassical landscape, ahhh they don't make them like this much anymore. But if someone does, please send me a catalogue.