PM and M’s miso salmon

Tonight we hosted PM for dinner. I made my specialty spinach salad, but M was the head chef: he prepared his tried-and-tested miso salmon accompanied by bruschetta (one of my favorites among his cooking repertoire) and baked vegetables chips (parsnip, carrots and sweet potato – yum!!). For desert we shared a pistachio macaroon (M’s favorite) and carrot cake (PM’s favorite). Overall, it was a lovely evening catching up with an old friend and colleague after returning from our respective holiday travel.

Chih-ly at the Halcyon Gallery

We were exposed to glass sculptor Chih-ly’s work within a month of moving to London when we first visited the V&A and were struck by the magnificent “chandelier” hanging overhead upon entering the museum. I put quotes around the word chandelier because until that point my idea of chandeliers was limited to Gothic dining decor favoured by inbred counts and countesses residing in casltes who crawl in the shadows of modernity, likes vampires holding onto the last vestiges of the Old World. We’ve remained fans of the American sculptor whose skills took him to Murano, the glass-making island off of Venice’s mainland, where he did his formal training. Recently we visited Murano with the hopes of finding something even the slightest bit Chih-ly-like but to no avail, so it was with great eagerness that we packed up M’s SLR for an afternoon of photo-taking at Halcyon Gallery which is currently devoted to showcasing the artist’s work.

Although a few of Chih-ly’s paintings were on display, the gallery is largely focused on the artist’s collection of glass sculpture, particularly the chandeliers and wall adornments. We were enamored by both the blue and the pink chandeliers, fantasizing about where we were place such works of art if they ours to call our own.

What I love most about Chih-ly’s glass sculptures is their aquatic aesthetic combined with their sensuality. Although the artist came to glass making prior to moving to Venice to study technique, I am convinced that living in such a water-dominated environment has left a deep impression on him judging from all the free-wheeling tentacles, throbbing organs, and wavey stems that emanate from the centre of his sculptures: the chandeliers, wall hangings and coffee-table pieces all give the impression that they are hyper-colored renderings of seafloor life. Visiting the collection was inspiring, a beautiful way to spend a quiet Sunday afternoon and one that left quite an impression on me in terms of understanding the function beauty has in our lives and the relief careful craftsmanship provides in a world full of mediocre and haphazard design.