collection

36:365


(photos by Elaine A. Russell)


Normally... I would be posting a review of a local gallery today. But, I woke up after only 2 hours of sleep with a fever and a sore throat.... so all bets are off at the moment. This is not an unusual event (having Lupus)... but I also know that it probably means that I will be "toast" for the rest of the day.. and not to plan on doing anything major. Tonight is the "First Friday" gallery events here in ABQ... so hopefully I will be better by tonight so that I can go.
Ah.. but enough of that.

As you all know... I have been taking photos forever... and have more than the average person's stash of photos lying about. It has been my goal to eventually get them all scanned and saved into digital files so that:
  1. I can access them more easily
  2. store them more easily
  3. not have a closet full of photos

Yesterday I was looking at a bunch of my photos that I have saved on my husband's computer from last year (*before I got my own laptop). The photos for today's blog are 2 shots that I took last February. In fact, almost to the day... a year ago. There is something so reassuring about the river area here in ABQ. I have always been drawn to water... but there is something majikal about the combination of river and the huge cottonwood trees down there that is just amazing.

And so... I will leave you to gaze upon the beauty that is the Bosque....

Living Simply Tip for the Day: Try to keep your collections small. If that is not possible (say you have a collection of several thousand photos---ahem... )... try to keep them organized and in one location. In my case... scanning and saving all my photos to digital files is a long and arduous task... but one that I will definitely reap the benefits of in the future.

Laura's house....


*photo by Elaine A. Russell



So... Laura is a very interesting person. The daughter of 2 avid antique collectors... she said she never anticipated going into the "family business." In fact, she said she went in the opposite direction, becoming a clinical psychologist. She has 4 degrees, and an insatiable curiosity about the world.. and the people in it. She is also a fantastic artist herself.
Her home is also her place of business, with several rooms devoted to the "collections" that people come from far and wide to see and buy portions of. She caters primarily to collectors, enthusiasts, and artists. Drawers, shelves, cupboards, closets... even entire rooms are full of interesting items.

It is easy to lose track of time in a place like this. Believe me. Hours went by like mere minutes.
More tomorrow.. but in the meantime.. enjoy :)

I am also including a link to a video from YouTube that shows an interview with Laura.. and it helps explain things so much better than I could.

YouTube Interview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alwqmjdH9fM

glorious black friday


"Archie" ... Laura's awesome puppy. Photos by Elaine A. Russell


Sooooooooooooooo much goodness today. Today, a friend and I went up to Santa Fe to go to
Laura E. Stanziola's place. Laura is a collector extraordinaire, who happens to have made a business selling all the cool things she finds. Just about anything you could possibly be looking for; she has... and it's all catalogued. ... and organized.

Bones, beads, bobbles, bits, bullets, board games, baby dolls, books, balls, blankets, bottles... and that's just the B's. ........Fabulous!

As a bonus... the trip up, and the trip back was stunning... the light, the weather, the scenery...just awesome. Then we stopped at a cool little market for home-made tamales and beef jerky.

Tomorrow, I will hopefully have more pics from her place... but for now....."Archie" says hello :)

gothic visions


feeling a bit goth today.. .. probably from the onslaught of promos for "New Moon" and anything vampire..... But it's ok... I really do love the look. Years ago... long before it was cool... I was a huge collector of anything Victorian and Gothic. Lots of lace, lots of candles, old dark wood furniture... but alas, married and changed everything to be more comfortable for the tastes of a family lifestyle. Not complaining.... everything comes back around in it's own sweet time. I actually like a variety of styles... so.. my house is a happy mix most of the time.
Yesterday I had the opportunity to see Cynthia Cook at an artist's salon at the Mariposa Gallery. She is charming, intelligent, funny.. and irreverent... just the way I like my artists :)
Her artwork is simply stunning. It is something you would perhaps chance to see at the home of a scientist/ collector/ eccentric in the Victorian times. Tucked away in an old castle-like fortress, hanging on the walls along with those stark portraits of olde....wine goblets by the fireplace, weird violin music in the offing...I don't know.. maybe that is just my take on it.... but I love her work. It evokes a mood.... a reverence... a look into a world that is just a little more fragile, a little more delicate... a little bit more awe-inspiring than most of us tend to see. Or perhaps.. it is the way the world really is... we just don't see it through our bill-laden, foggy from work ...need another espresso just to function --mentality.
Either way.... it was fabulous.

To see more of Cynthia's work:

*photos by Elaine A. Russell


---and on a completely different note... here is a cool video called "Pipe Dreams."
This video is featured on: http://www.snopes.com/photos/arts/musicmachine.asp -- as it was mailed around as some kind of "urban legend."
All I know is that it's pretty damn cool.