...:: I PUTTER ::...

Sunday Putterings

Before heading to the Frye Museum to check out Candida Hofer’s The Architecture of Absence exhibit, we grabbed a quick lunch at The Baguette Box.

Located in Capitol Hill, the Baguette Box is Eric and Sophia Bahn’s second restaurant. The siblings other restaurant, Monsoon, delivers a fine menu mixing traditional Vietnamese flavors with Pacific Northwest influences. This chic spot is a must for anyone who enjoys Vietnamese cuisine.

Anyone in Seattle who loves Vietnamese sandwiches knows about Saigon Deli. Much fancier than Saigon Deli’s but still inexpensive and simple, the sandwiches at the Baguette Box are incredible. It’s a casual place with a menu full of simple sandwiches and sides that deliver complex and rich flavors.

The glass of Stella beer was the perfect addition to my Grilled Tofu Baguette with Beet in Garlic Oil Salad.

I love the patterns and symmetry in Candida Hofer’s photos of interior spaces. The more you examine the images, the more obvious the grid of the interior space. I had to resist pulling out a pencil and ruler… I wanted to trace the sharp lines running across the photos from top to bottom and from left to right.

I also love Hofer’s use of natural light and how it affects the shape and depth of the interior spaces that she photographed. Hofer’s technical skill and mastery of the camera creates images far more impressive than a photographer whose mastered Photoshop.

Back From DC

My DC trip was shy of a week and I’m damn proud that I only packed two pairs of shoes. This is a first for me. Secretly though, I hoped this would be the perfect excuse for me to shop for more shoes.  This never happened.

The majority of the days were spent hanging out with my sister, Lindsay, and Brady.

Brady is sumolicious... At 2 months, Brady weights in at 16 lbs. 8 oz... Most 5 - 6 month old babies weight 16 lbs!

Lindsay never stops accessorizing... she must always have a pair of shoes on and whatever else she's in the mood for. She's a girl after my heart.

Although it was cold and windy, we managed to make it out for a few excursions. One afternoon we went to a favorite place of mine, The National Building Museum. It’s been over a year since the opening of the Liquid Stone Exhibit and I’m still waiting for the catalog to be published. The release date for the catalog has been pushed back to February 2006. Don’t you think the catalog should be available by the opening date and not after the exhibit closes?

I’d like to visit all the concrete buildings that are featured in the exhibit. Anyone interested in starting an annual trip where we knock off a few from the list? Here are two favorites...

White Temple, Near Kyoto, Japan

Mexican Embassy, Berlin, Germany

I checked out A Building Tradition: The Work of the Prince’s School of Traditional Arts Exhibit. I love the repetition of geometric shapes used to create patterns in tiles, mosaics, stained glass, and architecture of Islam. A lot of the pieces reminded me of tiles and mosaics that I saw at the National Tile Museum in Istanbul.

After a few exhibits, shopping in the museum store, and throwing pennies in the fountain, we headed over to Teasim for lunch. The Penn Quarter location is just a few blocks from NBM.

People love teasim for their tea and food. I love their tea but am not a huge fan of their food. The menu is all over the place from traditional Japanese dishes like the Salmon Teriyaki Bento Box and Plum Ochazuke to Buffalo Burgers and the Meatball Bento Box. Most of the food is served cold and their sauces could use some work.

My Tuna Bento box was decent and HyeSook’s Scrambled Eggs with Tea Cured Salmon tasty. I’ll definitely go back for tea but skip their food.

We celebrated my sister’s birthday at Sette Bello. Sette Bello is an upscale Italian restaurant in Arlington that’s only 6 weeks old. Although we were underdressed and toting two kids, the staff was extremely polite and took really good care of us.

The food was amazing and some of the best Italian food I’ve ever had. The Calamari Fritti was tasty – it wasn’t chewy and the crispy batter melts in your mouth. The Arugula and Fennel salad was perfectly dressed with a Lemon Vinaigrette and tasted so fresh. The spaghetti with olive oil, garlic, mussels, clams and chili flakes was simple yet full of flavor. I loved everything.

My sister enjoyed her salad, Boston lettuce, walnuts and Gorgonzola cheese, and her Gnocchi. Lindsay’s favorite was the warm bread – she devoured piece after piece. Their wine list is excellent and we were pleased with our selection.

Given the portions, the quality of the food and service, I think their prices are extremely reasonable. I can’t wait to go back next time I’m in DC.

I’m realizing now that every excursion of ours revolved around eating. Another excursion of ours was breakfast at The Original Pancake House.

Their famous Apple Pancake.

My sister, Lindsay and I devoured Pumpkin Pancakes, Swedish Pancakes, Potato Pancakes, Cinnamon Apple Crepes, and a large bowl of fruit. I don’t know what was funnier – the waitresses expression after we ordered or the expressions of other customers when our food was delivered to our table.

Our experience at the Original Pancake House reminded me of when I used to go to the Scarlet Tree Restaurant and eat 2 orders of their French Toast in one sitting. Every time I placed my order with a new waitress, they would always double or triple check to clarify that I wanted 2 orders!

The Original Pancake House was founded in Portland, Oregon. Turns out there are an Original Pancake House in Seattle – anyone want to pig out on pancakes together? Or we could make a weekend road trip of it and visit the Portland Restaurant, check out some art and loads of shopping. Plus, I know of a great hotel - Hotel Lucia. It's the best hotel I've stayed at in Portland and one of my favorites in general.

Vancouver Art Gallery

Before dinner, I checked out Vancouver Art Gallery’s Friday Night event, Fuse. Fuse is hosted one Friday a month and the museum extends it's hours till 11 pm. Fuse features live dj’s, special performances, art lectures, activities, and free cocktails at the Gallery Café. All this for a discounted price of $10 instead of the regular admission cost of $15.

I was stoked to see a packed museum of hip and fun looking people checking out interesting art on a Friday night. The next Fuse event is November 25th. If any of you Seattlelites don’t have any Thanksgiving plans, this would be a great weekend to head up to Van City for a mini-vacation.

I loved the Classifed Materials Exhibit!! How could I not – I collect, classify, and archive almost everything in my life and my life! Everyday I archive my life in a minimum of 3 of 4 formats. Why do you think I love Japanese magazines so much… they love to collect, classify, and archive everything. Magazines after magazines have 2 page spreads showcasing every possible variation of one item… from yakisoba to restaurant chairs, from sneakers to Cartier watches, from pencils to pencil sharpeners… I LOVE it. When I was in the 2nd grade I started my own filing system for all my books. In the upper right hand corner of the book’s 1st page, I would write in the book’s reference number, along with year I received the book, and my name.

Classified Materials Exhibit “examines some of the ways in which artists employ, transform or challenge the processes of ordering and classifying through which conceptions of the world, and our individual positions in it, are deeply embedded.”

I loved Ellen Gallagher’s pieces that address racial identity and it’s social consequences. She creates mixed-media pieces using advertisements found in mid-century black culture magazines that she deconstructs by defacing the models and original text then rebuilds by layering different materials to portions of the models and creates new messages by combining some of the original text with text from other advertisements. Did anyone check out Ellen Gallagher’s solo show at the Henry back in February 2004?

I also loved Steven Shearer’s work. He addresses youth and alienation by creating collages of death-metal rockers inspired by found images taken from 1970’s teen magazines, discarded photo albums and downloaded images from the web. The collages were hilarious and sometimes sad. Lots and lots of photos of blue collar rockers, ass shots of nude rockers, and long, ‘rocker’ hair. One of his pieces is a ceiling covered in rock band posters complete with a bed. In order to fully appreciate the posters, you have to tilt your head way back. I couldn’t help but notice patrons viewing this piece had to strike a classic rocker pose… only things missing are a guitar and belting out Black Sabbath lyrics.

I Love Concrete!

I've got to start packing for my trip to DC. But I know I won't end up packing till an hour or so before my ride picks me up and without a doubt, I'm bound to forget something real important... like my wallet. Balt can attest to this – twice I’ve forgotten my wallet and once I shown up for my flight a day late!

I guess I could be packing right now but instead I’ll blog about DC. My favorite thing about DC is Lindsay. My second favorite thing is the Liquid Stone: New Architecture in Concrete Exhibit at the National Building Museum .

I’ve seen this exhibit 3 times and I’m can’t wait to see it again! What’s most brilliant about this exhibit is how they’ve incorporated the education component. For most exhibits the education component is non-existent or it is presented separate from the actual exhibit and usually in the form of the exhibit catalog.

I love how the Liquid Stone exhibit is laid out – from an introduction to what is concrete and the various make-ups, to stunning examples of concrete architecture around the world, to how designers, engineers, and architects are pushing concrete into new forms and uses.

If you are in the DC area, this exhibit is a must see and it’s also free.