When our friend Karrolyn Belkis turned 80, she said was so full of joy, she felt like LEAPING. “Wherever I was, I just wanted to jump around and say YESSSSS. Isn’t it beautiful????” She thought people might think she was crazy if she leaped for joy on the streets of New York City. “I had to…
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We learned that there is no way to know how our work will resonate in the future, or IS resonating right now. It is not in our control. True creatives HAVE to make whether they are recognized or not.
A potent symbol of this came via email recently from a friend visiting Holland:
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Along with the rest of the world, I’ve been watching the transformation of Olympic gold medal decathlon winner Bruce Jenner into ultra-femme Caitlyn Jenner, culminating in Annie Leibovitz’s Vanity Fair cover portrait. Having worked with Leibovitz years ago I know that, beyond the 10-hours of facial-feminization surgery, Caitlyn has been styled to-the-hilt by makeup, hair and…
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Frida Kahlo, confined in terrible casts most of life, painted them, transformed them into something beautiful, expressive; she turned them into art. Recently, we found a trove of powerful images by photograher Ishiuchi Miyako of Kahlo’s wardrobe, in remarkable detail. Each item is evidence of her powerful drive to self expression, despite wounds, setbacks and handicaps.
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Nigerian photographer J. D. ’Okhai Ojeikere spent more than thirty years traveling across Nigeria documenting hundreds of braided “Tall House” styles that appeared after Lagos gained independence from Britain in 1960. He took close to 1,000 portraits of different braids, twists, plaits and buns, each carrying a distinct meaning. For us, they are examples of personal expression taken to wondrous heights with the most elemental of materials.
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We have Jason Kottke to thank for chosing the choicests bits of Elle’s hilarious interview with Fran Lebowitz about fashion. But even then, it’s worth reading every bit of her unique LOL commentary.
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As ever, Neil Gaiman nails it. But there’s a question in his wonderful words, one that many people we know have been asking themselves: What Do You Have that Nobody Else Has? What is the particular flavor/quality/aspect/talent/vision unique to you? And even more importantly, what are ways it can thrive in the world? Ko Im over at…
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The other day at Artists and Craftsman, we noticed the cashier’s ever-ready note pad —his hand — and were reminded of the many ways we’ve used our hands. We mentioned this to Sinnae Choi, Improvised Life’s brilliant aide-de-camp, and she wrote some seriously powerful words about just what hands can do, and be.
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Yesterday was the Winter Solstice, the shortest day —and longest night — of the year, when the sun pauses on its southward trajectory, then starts its cimb north, and the cycle begins once again. Some of us wait to begin rejuvenating our lives until New Year’s Eve when the glittering ball drops in Times Square. But…
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When contemplating a life change, what’s better: scared or sensible? How does one choose? And why? After wrestling for several grueling weeks with making a radical, lock-stock-and-barrel move, I’ve decided to stay put and work on making a meaningful internal geographic instead. In many ways this kind of psychological change is a much tougher adventure, in…
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We WISH that we could see people who had adorned themselves like this — with stars, stripes, zigzags, more —as we wander the city. Such possibilities. We envision the top one as wondrous tattoos.
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We —our lives — are really a kind of artist’s canvas. When we take that view, we ask ourselves: What are we painting? Do we paint with kindness, generosity, anger, fear, bravado, hatred, curiosity…
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Anthony Giglio is journalist, sommelier, and author of Food & Wine Wine Guides, Cocktails in New York and Mr. Boston’s Official Bartender’s Guide. He is wine blogger for Details and Improvised Life’s deviser of brilliant, simple strategies for celebrations both grand and low-key. Of late, Anthony revealed yet another side of himself: a superb storyteller whose personal stories move and transform. He brought…
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We LOVE everything that is in clear defiance of age (or any other) limiting stereotypes. You GO girl/woman/lady/man/daddy/mister/ms/miss/mama….! via Pinterest
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The documentary The Viking of 6th Avenue chronicles the life and musical career of legendary New York icon Moondog. As a girl, I used to see him in front of Saks Fifth Avenue and other corners around town, a blind man in full Viking regalia. Many years later I would discover his music and learn his story…
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It took National Geographic photographer Michael Nichols 32 days to photograph the President, a 3200-year-old, 247-foot-tall giant sequoia in California. (Click on the image twice to get a full measure of BIG.) One of the oldest trees in the world, the President has stood witness to millennia of history. We spent quite a bit of time trying to find out just what exactly those 3,000 years might have entailed. Here’s a bit of the story.
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We were very moved by both this tree that is over 2000 years old and Anastasia Pottinger strangely similar photographs of people 100+-years-old, nude. We found some haiku to accompany them.
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Recently, Sally showed me Gordon Marino’s NY Times article, “A Life Beyond ‘Do What You Love”. The gist: the oft-repeated 21st century American mantra of following your true passions — instead of dull but reliable career paths — is misguided. There’s a hint of naïve entitlement to making “Do What You Love” the be-all-end-all answer to the workday blues, just…
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