If I had to choose a favourite dessert, it would be some form of tart. Lemon is a front-runner, but I also love Raspberry. This recipe by Angela Hartnett for apple tart looks delicious. Apple tart or an apple galette is a popular topper to English Sunday lunches. Served piping hot, with vanilla ice cream, there are few puddings yummier. Serve it on parchment paper, or on a large wooden cutting board.
Scott Bergey’s muted pallet and whimsical style.
Carol Russell’s charming wooden spoons.
An Inuit woman and child giving each other a kunik.
If I were going to a big fête, you know, at a Rockefeller estate or a small castello in Como, I’d wear a frock by mother/daughter duo, Bernadette. The Antwerp-based fashion label is chic and playful, and takes summer florals to another level. Think full length taffeta adorned with sunflowers or wild hyacinths. Or mini dresses, fashioned from sorbet orange Italian silk. These are dresses to dance until dawn in. These are dresses that come home grass stained with chocolate gelato down the front. As an aside, Bernadette also makes a delightful line of ceramics; simple teapots and bowls covered in the brand’s signature florals. So much to love.
One of the many things I miss about working in a communal studio is the sharing of ideas. Inspiration for a vase is just as likely to come from a studio mate’s work as it is a conversation about Sicilian lemons, Berber rugs or toys we played with as children. Working alone has many benefits. I am more decisive because I don’t have anyone to deliberate with. I follow my gut. Working alone allows for more focus. I am more productive. But what is missing is that beautiful thing that happens when two, three, four creative minds work together to unleash ideas that would otherwise never see the light of day. To see your influence manifest in another person’s work and vice versa is truly satisfying. This communal Frogtown studio, home to artists such as Hilary Pecis, Lily Stockman and Megan Reed sounds like a dream. “Deep conversations happen, where we’re pinging off of each other,” says Reed, who makes gorgeous and wacky sculptures from styrofoam and Sculptamold. “That’s the joy of being in a space like this. I feel that electric energy.” In an ideal world, I’d have a combination of the two. A quiet little studio in my garden, and a bustling studio to go to. A girl can have more than one dream.
I’ve been eyeing this summer topper for months now, and I’m on the verge of pressing add to cart. Designed by Sydney-based artist, Lorna Murray her accordion pleated hat looks like something Audrey Hepburn might have worn dashing across the Piazza Di Spagna in Rome. It’s hard to choose a colour, but I am leaning toward the emerald green, ‘Ravello‘ or the blue and white, “Praiano.” I rather like this terracotta, too. Once on, I’m not sure I’ll ever take it off.
Indivi Sutton‘s large scale washes of pure and mellow colour remind me of an aura photograph. They have that same ethereal and otherworldly feel. “Emotions and memories are the language of my paintings,” says the Sydney-based painter. Through a process of layering natural pigment powders on raw linen, Sutton achieves beautiful shades of colour that travel softly across her canvas. “Each piece connects to a moment in time, and what I hope for is that the audience will connect with that emotion and stand there with me, in their own memory,” she says.
You’ve got to be bold and daring, with a great sense of humour, to live in a kitchen like this one. The entire apartment, home of Sisley’s Christine d’Ornano, is an ode to whimsy and play. Kaori Tatebayashi’s porcelain flowers adorn a wall in the guest room, and teal velvet chairs surround an Angelo Mangiarotti double-pedestal table in the dining room. There’s colour, there’s verve; there’s serious art. Back to the kitchen; It’s the pop art floor that I love, and how it mixes with that decadent marble and all the colourful tchotchke.
As a potter, it is a pleasure and privilege to buy another potter’s work. I know firsthand how laborious working with clay is. I also know how hard is it to quantify originality, imagination, and the many failed pieces that pave the way for the successful ones. Machines have become so damn good at emulating human hands that $50 mugs are hard to justify. Until you’ve held one. Sipped hot ginger tea out of one. Until you’ve amassed a collection of them, purchased over time, each one with its own distinct personality and story. I came across Caitlin O’Reilly faceted mugs in emerald today and I love them. Her mini dishes are tactile and warm, too. I walked away with a large bowl glazed in a deep, dark oxidized green that reminded me of an ocean pool. Now, what to fill it with? Shells? Lemons? Or nothing at all?
I really like Jane Ormes‘ use of pattern and colour. Her folk art inspired bowls could have belonged to your Great Aunt Astrilde, if Great Aunt Astrilde had superb taste. Her drawings are equally whimsical. I’m no fan of pigeons, but I do love this one. Have a scroll through her work. It’ll amuse and delight you.
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