Archive for the ‘Kitchen Inspirations’ Category
White Flowers in the Kitchen
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, Nature Notes, tagged flowers, Photography, white on February 25, 2011| Leave a Comment »
Creative Outlets
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged Contributing Writer, creative inspirations, food, Photography on February 17, 2011| Leave a Comment »
So the way our schedules have been working out lately, Steve races off to work across town, leaving me to work from home on various writing projects. As he heads out the door, I toss him a lunch I’ve quickly prepared. Just leftovers pulled together from his fridge. Some sliced fruit. A bit of cheese. Nothing elaborate I thought. But recently he commented on the fanciness of these petite meals. I rolled my eyes. Me? Fancy? Not! But then this morning, a realization.
I had chopped sun-dried tomatoes, scallions and capers and then layered the concoction over cold pasta from last night’s dinner. After peeking in various cupboards, I decided to finish off the little dish with a bit of garlic and a little parmesan cheese. As I stepped back to admire the marriage of color and textures, it hit me. These lunches have become a creative outlet of sorts. Almost like culinary morning pages, warming up my mind and fingers for the day’s work.
Many of my current writing projects involve taking the basic ingredients that make up my clients’ programs and putting those ingredients together in a proposal or a report in such a way that they whet the appetite of a potential funder. Time will tell if I am successful in that endeavor. Meanwhile, Steve doesn’t seem to mind my morning experimentations.
The Blooming Has Begun
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, Nature Notes, tagged floral art, flowers, paperwhites, Photography on February 16, 2011| Leave a Comment »
Mid-Day Musings
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged home, kitchens, musings on February 15, 2011| Leave a Comment »
Steve has two tables in his kitchen. There is the larger central table where meals are served, but against the wall near a window there is a smaller table and that’s the one that holds my attention at this moment. Sunlight pours through the window. A variety of plants bask in the warmth. Steve’s rosemary bushes. A mug of basil. A rather mutant African Violet, a gift from a friend, that he refuses to replant … he’s hoping it will break free of its clay pot, and like the plant in the Rocky Horror Picture Show, start shouting, “Feed me!” Then there’s a clear glass vase of lemon yellow mums and a red pot of soon-to-bloom paperwhites. Tucked here and there beneath the foliage small jewel-colored glass votives, a green bowl filled with oranges, and an empty mason jar that held sliced strawberries just yesterday.
Above the plants, through the window, the sky is the lightest blue. Seagulls fly all around, as do flocks of sparrows and pigeons. The hawks are not nearby. A gentle wind rocks the branches of the oak tree next to the house, and those of the maples across the street. It is still winter, of course, so far too soon, the sun will set spectacularly, casting a warm golden light across the kitchen walls. And then, even before I can race to grab my camera, everything will disappear into shadow. For a little while.
Lemon Slices
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged food, fruit, lemons, Photography, visual art on February 14, 2011| Leave a Comment »
Just Light and Shadow
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged color, illumination, light, Photography, visual art on January 27, 2011| Leave a Comment »
Lots of bright sunlight shining through the kitchen windows and then through empty glasses sitting on a table. The result: beautiful shadows and flashes of color.
In a Nutshell
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, tagged chestnuts, cranberries, food, kitchen, Photography, pottery, spinach on November 10, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Monthly Updates: Japan and More
Posted in Guest Contributor, Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, On the Road, Photography, Photography Exhibits, Publication Updates, tagged Charles River, Festival of Ages, Fire Festival, flowers, food, guest contributors, Japan, kimonos, Kobe, Kurama, Kyoto, octopus balls, Orion Magazine, Photography, sushi, takoyaki, temples on October 31, 2010| 1 Comment »
First up, Japan! As mentioned in last month’s update, I had the unique opportunity to travel to Japan where I spent three days in Kobe and three days in Kyoto. View images here. Food was a highlight. While there, I was indeed introduced to takoyaki, also known as Octopus Balls. While I admired the satisfied looks on peoples’ faces as they popped the delicacies into their mouths, I decided to abstain until my next trip.
I did indulge in some of the best and freshest sushi I have ever eaten. Just before departing Japan, I saw a Michelin man dancing in front of a bookstore. Here’s why. My favorite food discovery was the art of preparing food for display.
An unexpected visual treat was to stumble upon the Festival of Ages, and to trek to Kurama outside of Kyoto to attend the annual Fire Festival. More pictures forthcoming.
Special thanks to recent guest contributors, friends and family who shared their images, including Lorraine’s Rainbow, Keith’s Sunrise and Frank’s Rose (below).
Publication Updates
- A Boston-based nonprofit serving the homeless has selected one of my photos for its walls, Harbor Rocks.
- Steve’s Kitchen Window appears in the November/December issue of Orion Magazine, in bookstores now.
- Monday, November 1st, visit the Evolving Critic for a guest blog about my photographic adventures along the Charles River.
Upcoming
- Inspired by his years of traveling in Japan, guest contributor Steve will write about sake.
- Photos of New England in autumn.
- Updates on winter sales events, silent auction participation, and other upcoming exhibits before year’s end.
And that’s the scoop, folks. Thanks for reading!
Japan: The Art of Food
Posted in Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, On the Road, tagged fake food, food arts, food photography, gyodan, Japan, Kyoto, Photography on October 27, 2010| 1 Comment »
As you walk around Kyoto, you’ll notice in the windows of restaurants or any type of establishment selling food items, the most beautiful displays of freshly prepared delicacies. Shrimp, appearing as if caught just that morning, top noodles and float in bowls of clear broth. Sushi artfully arranged on bamboo platters glistens in the sunlight. In front of the Italian restaurants, calzones spill melted cheese onto white plates. It is amazing as you press your face against the windows to realize that every single dish is a fake. Every scale, every shell, every bit of liquid is synthetic. But the craftsmanship is of such a level as to make the mouth water even after you realize the dishes are plastic!
Monthly Update: As August Gives Way to September
Posted in Branches, Contributing Writer, Guest Contributor, Inspiration, Kitchen Inspirations, Nature Notes, Photography, Publication Updates, tagged blue, Branches, color, flowers, gold, green, leaves, nature, Photography, poetry, rain, sunlight, trees, water on August 31, 2010| 2 Comments »
When I first spied these illuminated leaves in the Middlesex Fells, I was stopped in my tracks. At first, I thought the leaves were monarch butterflies — they so resembled the pictures I’d seen of monarchs dripping orangely from the trees along their migration routes. There were many such sights in the Fells this past Sunday. Such a journey, with the sunlight so golden and falling at that end-of-summer low angle … it was a definite highlight of the month. Following are a few other highlights of the month, as well as a some plans and prospects for September.
For those of you new to my blog, these more or less monthly updates are my attempt to regularly share with friends, family and colleagues my creative activities. These updates also help me put a public stake in the ground about what I am planning to do in the near future … so that (ahem) my friends, family and colleagues can help hold me accountable and keep me honest! Even if you regularly visit my blog, I think you might find a few new items of interest … especially if you like chocolate. 😉
Where Inspiration Found Me
Inspiration appeared in unexpected places in August. For both words and images, Steve’s Kitchen, was a source of inspiration. The images are below. As for the words, you can read the recent short that appears here in Orion Magazine’s online Places Where You Live. FYI, the picture you see in the online story will be appearing in the magazine’s November/December print issue.
And maybe being in Steve’s kitchen set the tone for the month, because food in general inspired me. I sent off poems about food. I’ve been reading books about food. Heck, I may even watch Babette’s Feast tonight. I do know that in August I spent a lot of time photographing food … first at the farmer’s market, and then … in Steve’s kitchen.
Additional images can be found here.
Though it is darn toasty now where I live, earlier this month there were heavy, steady rains and the air was so chill, people had pulled out sweaters and scarves. On my way into work one day I was captured by the pools that had formed on the sidewalks. And floating in the pools were fallen leaves.
More images like these can be found here.
Leaves in general have been inspiring me.
A leaf at the Middlesex Fells. You can view more Fells images here.
Okay, that’s a snapshot of the past month. What’s on tap for September?
* continuing to send off submissions for both the writing and the photography
* investigating what it would take to publish a book of my photos
* following up on some really cool story leads that people have been sending my way
* keeping better track of the arts events taking place in my area, especially those coming up for the holidays
* assessing and investing in the tools of my trade, from pen and paper to camera equipment
I think that’s it for now. Here’s hoping we all have a good September! 😉
Words + Images 