EAT YOUR ART OUT
EAT YOUR ART OUT
“I was at a restaurant with nothing on the walls,” says Tracey Tee, owner of the online fine art, crafts, and clothing boutique AuntBeep.com. “I love entertaining, and food and community are very important to me. I thought it would be great to have a meal [while sitting] among artwork in a setting not as cold and intimidating as a gallery.”
And so began the “Artful Supper,” now a monthly event occurring once again this coming Wednesday. Peckish art aficionados, famished fledgling collectors, and just ordinary folk craving an unusual evening will descend upon Berri's Café in West Hollywood to participate in Tee's 10th art-and-food affair. On the walls will be the oil paintings of L.A.-based artist (and Berri's owner) Raphael Berry; on your plate will be selections from a fixed-price Italian menu ($18); and in the air will be, Tee assures, no upturned noses. “It feels like a big family dinner,” she says. “I introduce the artist to every table, and if you have questions, you can ask them.” She insists this type of art opening is informative, fun, and “attitude-free.”
Tee herself is more entrepreneur than artist, having started AuntBeep.com and its “roaming gallery” (in-home consultations) two years ago because she hated working for the Man. She is, however, “extremely passionate about art,” and this, “even though I can't make a thing. I can't paint, and I can't sew a handbag if my life depended on it.” The result, she says, is an “utmost appreciation for craft, for the creative process. I have such respect for the people I represent.” (All AuntBeep.com artists are L.A.-based.) She holds equal affection for art enthusiasts, novice and veteran, and strives to offer “affordable” works. “If you can buy a print at Pottery Barn for $200; you might as well get a real painting,” she laughs.
Of course, such inclusiveness will also define her upcoming Supper, where you can even bring your own wine despite a full bar. Typically, Tee says, the artist sells a lot of work, “people tend to stay all night,” and everyone leaves pleased. “So many positive things can come out of a good meal,” she says with a smile.
–Dr. Rebecca Epstein
Artful Supper featuring Modern Portraitures in Oil by Raphael Berry. Berri's Café, 8412 W. Third St., West Hollywood, (323) 852-0652. Wed. 7 p.m.-10 p.m. Reservations recommended: (310) 226-7015. Auntbeep.com.
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THIS WEEK IN THE CITY
Thursday 23
FEED THE NEED
CityBeat and ValleyBeat say it's time to dine, but not everyone can eat as much as you. The Westside Food Bank is determined to help folks struggling to get enough to eat, and tonight, Eric Friedman and Matt Price, producers of a local monologue series, present their second annual benefit for the bank at the Barnsdall Gallery Theatre. Among the performers at “Show & Tell 2005” will be Jeremy Carver, Andrew Daly, Ilyse Mimoun, and Michelle Silver, and purveyors at the before- and after-parties include Izze Beverage Company, Surya India, and Lala's Argentine Grill. Proceeds go to programs that help feed more than 80,000 people, nearly half of them kids. 8 p.m. $30; $60 VIP. 4800 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood. (310) 828-6016, ext. 15 or Westsidefoodbankca.org/showandtell.html.
Friday 24
DRUNK AND DAZZLED
One of the great joys of SoCal living is being able to eat outdoors all year-round. And in the summer, the joys double because of the wealth of alfresco entertainment venues. Tonight, “vintage” means a fine time with wine, as the Brazilian Guitar Quartet kicks off “Vintage Evenings at the Ford” at the Ford Amphitheatre. Listen to the “Dream Team” (Everton Gloeden and Luiz Carlos Mantovani on eight string guitars, Tadeu do Amaral and Edson Lopes on six) under the stars, and, prior to the show, enjoy a complimentary glass of chardonnay courtesy of Buena Vista Winery (Sonoma's oldest) with your picnic dinner. Take a big sip. 8 p.m. $25; $12 students and kids under 13. 2580 Cahuenga Blvd. East, Hollywood, (323) 461-3673. Fordamphitheatre.org.
Saturday 25
GREAT GUMBO!
Sure, L.A.'s a good food town, but it ain't got nothin' on N'Orleans. We can tip our hat when tipping is due, however, so this weekend let's all do the jambalaya jive at the Long Beach Bayou Festival at Queen Mary Events Park. This 19th annual fundraiser for Comprehensive Child Development, a nonprofit providing care and education for children with working parents, will have live Cajun bands, nonstop dancing, arts and crafts, and crawfish culinary creations up the Zydeco. Plus music and cultural workshops, and a family-style (shirts on, please) Mardi Gras parade. Kick it up a notch as Bourbon Street hits the beach. Fri.-Sun. 11 a.m.-10:30 p.m. $10-$25; free for kids under 10. 1126 Queens Highway, Long Beach. (562) 427-8834 or Longbeachfestival.com.
Sunday 26
A FORKFUL OF DJANGO
For the past few months, the Italian Cultural Institute has been showing spaghetti westerns as they're meant to be seen – with spaghetti! Tonight, the series “Agotheque: Spaghetti and Westerns” concludes with a screening of Giulio Questi's Django, Kill!, a 1967 Italian blood bonanza starring Tom Milian as a Mexican outlaw who returns from the dead to avenge his own grisly crucifixion and punish the Americans who betrayed him. Film scholar Alessandro Ago will introduce the film, and, prior to that, Angelino's Café will introduce your tummy to a pasta meal representative of a particular region of Italy (to be announced). “Dinner and a movie” was never so gruesome, or so perfect. 7 p.m. Free; reservations required. 1023 Hilgard Ave., Westwood, (310) 443-3250, ext. 108. Iicusa.org.
Monday 27
MAKE MINE A DOUBLE
You know them and love them, even if you've never seen them. But maybe tonight's the night, the night you put on something swank, drive to Los Feliz, and tune into the dulcet sounds of Marty and Elayne, the dynamic duo of the Dresden Room Lounge. Forever famous from their appearance in the hip flick Swingers, these two and their cabaret act will tickle your fancy with or without a martini in your hand. And when the mood's this good and the room's this dark, suddenly Monday is something to love. Mons.-Sats. at 9 p.m. No cover. 1760 N. Vermont Ave., Los Feliz, (323) 665-4294. Thedresden.com.
Tuesday 28
PLATE IT UP
Sure, spaghetti and westerns go together (see Sunday); so do food and … wet-plate collodion process photography? You'll find out at tonight's Clickers & Flickers photography networking dinner, featuring commercial and fine art portrait and fashion photographer Ken Merfeld giving the presentation “Crafted Vision: Portraiture, Fashion & Advertising.” Merfeld, whose work has appeared in Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, and Mademoiselle, among others, will discuss his commercial but also more personal work, which employs the 19th-century wet-plate process. Get an eye, ear, and mouthful. 6:30 p.m.-10 p.m. $53; $43 members. The Castaway, 1250 Harvard Rd., Burbank. Reservations required: (626) 794-7447 or Clickersandflickers.com.
Wednesday 29
JUICY GEMS
Even today, few forms of advertising are as delicious to the eyes as old fruit-crate labels. Through August 14, get your fill of these fine pieces of design as the California Heritage Museum presents more than 400 of them in the exhibition Groves of Gold: California Fruit Box Labels. Spanning the 1880s to the mid-1950s, these artifacts reflect not only part of California's agricultural history, but also interactions and collaborations between grower, packers, and commercial lithographers. Direct marketing and cutthroat brand competition were as formidable then as now, but these elegant ads have yet to find a modern-day match. Weds.-Suns. 11 a.m.-4 p.m. $5; $3 students and seniors; free for kids under 12. 2612 Main St., Santa Monica, (310) 392-8537. Californiaheritagemuseum.org.Published: 06/23/2005
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