NYC in the summertime has its own whole soul to it… it’s a sweaty, grimy, rawness that’s not for the fair weather traveler. Only die hards remain when the temps get up past 90. One could argue it’s New York in its most authentic state: 2am halal on the street corner, buzzing traffic and the drips of air conditioner condensation falling on your head; fellow revelers everywhere, wearing wild ensembles that no one bats an eye at. A few weeks ago, I had the joy of experiencing this version of NYC, and I’m sharing tiny glimpses of my trip below. It was a work-and-pleasure combo, and as always, creative inspiration in spades. Enjoy!
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Field Trip: LA
This October I had the opportunity to spend some time in Los Angeles - a town that was at one time my home, many moons ago. The trip was equal parts vacation, inspiration, and work. Joined by a couple of my besties who live in the area, I made the most of my 9 days there with a busy schedule of art, beach, nature hikes, architecture, music and more.
Among many things, I had the chance to view the opening of my friend Tomashi Jackson’s art show “Minute by Minute” at Night Gallery, which incorporated hand-embroidered and tatted textiles made by my own grandmother, Carrie Barcus, which I had gifted to the artist. Truly a special moment to see these complex, multi-layered (quite literally and figuratively), collaged works in person - they are POWERFUL! I could feel my grandmother’s utter awe and delight raining down on that gallery as well. You can read more about Tomashi’s show in this wonderful LA Times interview.
I also made a pilgrimage with my dear friend Tamara, to see my hero Niki de Saint Phalle’s installation “Queen Califia’s Magical Circle” in Escondido - one of the few existing sites of her art in the US. Magical indeed! I cannot even fathom the amount of time it took to cover this entire area in mosaics - much of which was made from semiprecious gemstones! The docent at the site told us that Niki and her team went to the Tucson gem show to buy the stones. I imagine they must have cleared out a lot of dealers’ bins to make this work!
Back in LA proper, I had the chance to visit the Neutra VDL House in Silverlake with my friend Symantha. This onetime home and studio of architect Richard Neutra is a place I’ve long wanted to see in person, as a huge fan of mid-century modernism and Neutra in particular. Neutra shares a particular history with my mother’s lineage, who were Austrian Jews. While it may not seem so unusual today, the fact that the original structure for this building was made in 1932 is pretty mind-blowing.
Last but not least, the trip was capped off by a trunk show at the beautiful Kinship Station boutique in Topanga. I loved hanging with the shop staff, and getting to know their customers more. They’ve got such a gorgeous curation of decor, clothing and jewelry - definitely worth a visit.
That’s a wrap! Until next time LA <3
Field Trip: Orisons
If you’ve ever spent time in the San Luis Valley of Colorado, then you know what I speak of when I say there is magic there. I’m not alone in believing it’s some kind of an energetic portal. As the largest alpine valley in the world, it’s also an incredible destination for natural beauty, and bountiful hot springs to soak your weary soul in too. So perhaps it’s no coincidence that artists over the decades have descended upon this valley, as a place to create and to find inspiration from the land. French sculptor Marguerite Humeau is one such artist, who, with the help of Black Cube Nomadic Museum and land offered from Jones Farms Organics, recently installed the largest earth-based work ever created by a female artist. Covering 160 acres of unproductive farmland, Orisons is comprised of 84 kinetic and interactive sculptures that pay homage to a land that is rapidly undergoing desertification - a bellwether of sorts for the rest of our climate change-plagued world. “Orisons means prayer,” states Humeau, but “it also sounds like ‘oree’ in French, which means ‘the cusp, the edge, the periphery.’ Orisons is about resilience, transience, life and death. Life as a gust of wind, the fragility of our existences.”
I had the privilege of joining some friends for the opening of Orisons, and immediately felt the gravity of what her work was speaking to, as someone who also owns a generations-old farming business that’s been impacted by climate change (yep, that’s my other hustle folks). Along the way we also managed to dip in at our favorite of the valley’s hot springs, Valley View, made new friends in the town of Saguache, and connected with some other resident artists in the town of Center. All in all a pretty special trip, hence the need to document it for you here.
Taking in Humeau’s work is definitely something that will require another trip back in order to process everything; there is a complex framework of interrelated mythologies, ecologies, and imaginings at play here. Take, for instance, the highly-intentional siting of the sculptures, which pay tribute to different humans and animals who lived and died there - an attempt, the artist says, “to reconnect every form of life that has lived on it, is living on it, or will live on it in the future” (as divinated by the clairvoyant geomancers that Humeau brought on for the project, no less). Or there are the wind flutes that play the notes of the sandhill cranes who migrate to the valley each year - birds whose migratory patterns have been changing as of late. Heart-like shapes are also a recurring theme in the works, but don’t mistake those for the generic valentine variety - they’re actually a nod to the shape of a local medicinal plant seed, as well as an abstracted take on a sandhill crane’s face. There’s a lot there, but at the same time a palpable sense of peace on the land too. Humeau describes her work, in part, as an “attempt to perform acupuncture at the scale of the 160 acres of fallow circle.” In this sense, she considers the land itself as an artwork, and herself as a humble host whose role “was maybe to simply give it credit for who it is as an entity, celebrate it, elevate it, and care for it.” Humble, yet inspiring, to say the least.
Special thanks goes to Adam Gildar for playing tour guide (and for being an early catalyst of the whole project), to Max Gibson for hosting us, to Jones Farms Organics for allowing us on their land, and to the Frontier Drive Inn for the lovely opening reception. I will be back.
Field Trip: Cote d'Azur
Earlier this month I had the pleasure of traveling to one of the most enchanting places I’ve seen on Earth (truly). It was a long-awaited trip, having been postponed several times during the pandemic. So when my mother and I finally set foot upon the stunning Cote d’Azur of France, to say that I was thrilled is an understatement. And y’all, it truly lived up to the hype. Every day I was blown away by the beauty in all directions, both in the natural landscape, as well as the architecture, art, and culture that surrounded me. I was hoping for a trip to really inspire and reset me, and I most certainly got just that.
‘Has this turned into some kind of travel blog?’ you may ask? I’ll spare you the full details of my mother-daughter vacay, but I thought you, dear reader, might enjoy seeing a handful of the things that inspired me creatively on this sojourn. Because lo and behold, you may just see some of these influences come through as I begin working on new pieces for Fall/Winter 2023-2024…
I’m one lucky chica to have been able to visit such an incredible place. If one word could encapsulate this trip, it would have to be “stunning.” Need I say more?
Talisman World Tour 2022 Recap
It’s Wednesday, January 11th, and I am sitting in my studio on this snowy day in Colorado, still thanking my lucky stars for what a beautiful year 2022 ended up being. In particular, getting to tour around to showcase my wares in some amazing destinations, along with good friends and plenty of good food, was a real treat. Thought you all might enjoy a little photo recap of said travels - specifically to Mexico City, and then rounding out the year in Austin. Enjoy!
Our first stop on Talisman Fine Jewelry’s World Tour 2022 was Mexico City, where we were joined by a group of friends (shout out to Bianca, Anthony and Bonnie!), as well as designers/artists Salihah Moore, Animal Handmade, Young in the Mountains, and Mario Zoots for a special pop-up shop at the flagship store of noteworthy Mexican designer Carla Fernandez. There’s no way I could possibly recap here all of the amazing food, art, architecture and cultural experiences we had while on this journey, but below are some highlights…
Next (final) stop last year was Austin, Texas, for a trunk show with Talisman stockist Good Company. Can I just say, I love these ladies so much?! We had a great time hanging, and I even managed to sneak in some more wonderful meals, a concert, and some explorations along S. Congress Ave.
That’s all folks! Cheers to the new year… let’s see where 2023 brings me…
Field Trip: Carla Fernandez at the Denver Art Museum
It’s pretty safe to say that in the world of fashion, a designer referencing each and every person by name who stitched their garments is pretty unheard of. But not in Carla Fernandez’s world. Carla is a Mexico City-based fashion designer on a mission, who uses her collection to lift up indigenous Mexican artisans, while also calling into question fast fashion practices, apparel industry waste, and violations of human rights all the while. I’ve been a huge fan of Carla ever since I learned about her line many years ago. So you can imagine my utter excitement when my friend Jane Burke, Curatorial Fellow of Textile Art and Fashion at the Denver Art Museum, told me that she’d be co-curating an exhibition featuring Carla’s work, along with Florence Muller! What a dream! And, doubly exciting, Jane invited me to help out at an ancillary pop-up event for the brand. A chance to meet Carla IRL? Count me in.
Not only was the exhibition of Carla’s work utterly stunning and inspiring, but I was so happy to find how kind and down-to-earth Carla herself was upon meeting her. Truly a gem of a human. And her work… oh. my. God. her work! The attention to detail, the fabrications, the colors, the dance performances in lieu of fashion shows… there’s so much there. Personally, I love Carla’s aesthetic, which I would describe as both modernist and yet also evoking the style of Mexican indigenous garments… Ancient modern, if you will. Peep little snippets from the DAM exhibition below, and also be sure to read Carla’s “Manifesto of Fashion as Resistance” in its entirety here. It’s worth a scroll through if you’re into fashion, or yunno, if you wear clothing in general (cough cough). And, if you find yourself in the Denver area, get yourself to this show at the Denver Art Museum stat. Thank you Carla, you are a true inspiration.
Behind the Scenes of the Spring/Summer 2022 Lookbook Shoot
Journey with us to Phoenix, Arizona, where photographer Andrew Vanasse and myself ventured for a sun-soaked photoshoot of the latest Spring 2022 collection arrivals. While lookbook shoots may seem simple enough, many customers don’t realize just how many hours of concepting, planning and effort go into them (and after the fact as well). This one even involved a cross-country jaunt to the Sonoran desert, but hey, it was February and we weren’t complaining. With major, statement-making new pieces like the Mary Pendant and Metanoia Chain in the mix, we wanted a major shoot to showcase them in. Plus, where else were we going to photograph the new Phoenix Amulet Necklace than in Phoenix itself, right?
The earthy, bohemian vibe of an adobe house in Paradise Valley, on the outskirts of east Phoenix, provided just the right backdrop for the highly sculptural new wares. The scene we laid out had a look akin to an artist’s messy desert studio, and thus we mixed in an assortment of fruits and other (very) random foods for our still life shots - as if our artist had just plucked them off the table for a snack between working on her latest pieces. Fun side note here: I was also able to incorporate some of my family’s heirlooms into the pics too - including some handmade ceramic vessels and a driftwood mobile made by my late Great Aunt Susan. How special is that? Given the handmade nature of my jewelry - the Metanoia Chain alone took nearly 100 hours to make! - it all made sense together.
Another fun fact: I oftentimes find during photoshoots that, even with the concept nailed down before hand, themes present themselves on the fly. When that happens it’s best to go with it. That’s definitely what occurred here… Rather unintentionally, fish kept making their way into the photos. Don’t ask me why, but when selecting food for the shoot at the local grocery store, the fishmonger called to me, and once we arrived at the location, we stumbled upon some decorative terra cotta fish that just sort of fit the bill. So we went with it. Fish, after all, are said to symbolize rebirth, the higher self, prosperity, abundance and good luck, among other things. I took it as a good omen. And thus, I present to you: the making of “Pisces’ Studio,” a lookbook shot by Andrew Vanasse in creative collaboration with myself, with hand modeling by (my dear cousin) Alianna Martinez. Stay tuned for the final result, coming to the web soon!
XX,
Vanessa
Field Trip: Marfa
Marfa is somewhere I’ve longed to visit… I’d heard tales of the scene there: of glamping in Airstream trailers at El Cosmico and watching the stars explode against an unadulterated black sky, of glamorous parties in unexpected locales, with down-and-out ranchers mixing with the international art-world glitterati in this middle-of-nowhere junction. I was intrigued.
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