Category: New York

design, environment, green, New York

Biomimicry – creative inspiration for designers

Christa Avampato

If we, a designers, truly inspect and respect what nature has to teach us, then the creative inspiration around us is limitless. Business Week’s Green Design blog has recently published an enormous amount of new information, largely through pictures, to its site. No doubt that the contents are getting increased attention due to the U.N. General Assembly discussions this week around climate change.

The most fasincating posts to me are those relating to biomimicry, a new discipline that studies intently studies nature and then mimics nature’s designs and processes to solve human problems. How much time do we spend trying to reinvent the wheel, and then in the process chase our own tails? We need look no further than out our own windows to be inspired by new and innovative thinking.

Finally, these sets of articles and the principles of biomimicry have provided me with the vocabularly to articulate why the environment is such a precious resource and why I am so passionate about its protection. To lose any part of it, be in flora or fauna, is to lose hundreds of thousands of years of design study. The wisdom encapsulated in a snail shell or the leaf pattern of a maple is irreplaceable. To lose that wisdom, in my eyes, is an awful as book burning or the banishing of the freedom of expression. As Mayor Bloomberg intimated this week, to not protect the environment is tantamount to terrorism.

Have a look at the Green Design site at http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/di_special/20080211sustainable.htm

FAO, New York, retail

Spicing up FAO Schwarz

Christa Avampato

I’ve had some experience with celebrities from my time working in theatre. Now that I’m currently not directly connected to the enertainment industry, that experience has diminshed somewhat. I’m always curious about how celebrities deal with not being able to do normal things like grocery shopping.

After my shock at how busy the Apple store on 5th Avenue was today, I toddled over to FAO. I was greeted by a Peter Rabbit taller than I am and a toy soldier. Just as I was about to enter the store, a stretch SUV pulled up and a mass of photographers were pushed to one side. I stood in between the Peter Rabbit and the toy soldier – they had no idea who was in the car either. Enter, Posh Spice, a.k.a. Victoria Beckham, and her pint-size, adorable son.

I snapped a photo of her, amidst dozens of other flashes going off and following her into the building, or at least attempting to. The good folks at FAO wouldn’t let the paparazzi in the store so they hung around at the door, and would wait for her to exit with whatever goodies they picked up inside. Mrs. Beckham wasn’t smiling, and neither was her son. I am sure that celebrity has its perks, though I imagine it reaches a point of diminishing returns. If a trip to FAO can’t put a smile on someone’s face, then what can? And is celebrity really worth that?

New York, New Yorker, story

A Cartoon a Day to Chase the Blues Away

Christa Avampato

February can bring out the blues in all of us. Yesterday I went hoem a bit early with a massive headache – the perfect storm of gloomy weather, flourescent lights, and 8 hours toiling away in front of a computer screen. I’m lucky that an enormous part of my job requires me to read close to 100 news sources every day – from newspapers to blogs to magazine to trade journals, and many of them contain creative content.

One of my favorite daily checks is the blog created by New Yorker cartoonists. I wish I could draw well, or rather, I wish it didn’t take me so long to draw well. I long to be one of those people who easily takes ink to paper to draft up a piece of witty genius in a matter of minutes. Everyone’s got to have a goal to reach for, right?

Even though it’s so foggy out right now that I can’t even see the lake that’s only a few hundred feet from me, I’m smiling because of the cartoonists over at The New Yorker. This month, the New Yorker Cartoonist blog is features Michael Maslin. I love the honesty and simplicity of his cartoons and the stories they present. Check him out at http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/cartoonists

celebration, happiness, holiday, New Years Eve, New York

Day 1

Christa Avampato

2008 was brought in with a wide smile on my face surrounded by fabulous friends. I have never hosted a New Year’s party before and my friend, Catherine, suggested that having one would be a good idea. Plus, she has a spacious apartment, a rarity in NYC, that would be a perfect spot to host one.

I invited a number of friends from different parts of my life, and many of them had never met before. Worlds colliding can be a nerve-wracking thing. To my delight, it was fabulous from beginning to end. People were striking up conversations right and left and I feel confident that the party could have gone on into the wee hours of the morning without a pause.

I was so thrilled with the turnout of so many amazing people in one room. And a bit sad, too. I have been wishing that I could afford a bigger apartment to have gatherings like this more often. And then my dear friend, Lisa, helped me open up my eyes a bit wider. We panned the room to take a look at the space that people were actually occupying as they enojyed the last few hours of 2007. It was roughly the size of my studio apartment. And when I came home I did some more analyzing…while my place may be small, there is ample room to sit and chat, and people at a party don’t spread out – they clump together to have conversations and to share laughs.

The wonderful gift that 2008 brought me, in addition to all of the great people I was surrounded by, was the idea that this type of gathering didn’t need to be a once-a-year event. I could have this kind of celebration much more often, even in my studio apartment. Happiness and laughter is like air – it just conforms to the space in which you allow it to be.

The image above can be found at http://www.backdrops.net/images/108%20Celebration%2010%20x%2010.JPG

art, creativity, museum, New York

Delightful Doodles: the art of William Steig

Christa Avampato

Yesterday I took a walk across Central Park to stop in to the Jewish Museum of Art at 92nd Street and 5th Avenue. There is a new exhibit there that celebrate the art work of William Steig, a cartoonist who achieved early fame as an illustrator of the New York and became a children’s book author at age 60. Though he is most famous for conceiving the idea for and creating the story of Shrek, that one work, as wonderful as it is, does not do justice to a career based on enchanting doodles.

Like many art exhibits, this one has multi-media components – a short film, narrated by Steig, about his life and work, models of the Shrek characters, letters he’s written to and received from monumental figures in the art world, interactive pieces such as a children’s library, and of course, his marvelous sketches. Immediately upon entering the exhibit, the greatest nugget to genius is written plainly on the wall. When asked about how he developed such a successful career, Steig said “I don’t think like other people. I never really did grow up.”

It’s his wonderful sense of honesty and childlike desire to connect with people on a very profound basis that had me smiling all throughout the exhibit. His doodling and intentional coloring outside of the lines kept me dreaming, entering his world of fair tales that had meaningful lessons to teach viewers about their real, everyday lives. Steig said his best work came from drawing with no direction, with no purpose. Drawing for the sake of drawing.

This had me wondering all the way home what works I could create if I had no agenda in my creations. How would I live my life if I just did what I wanted to do without any sense of having to do something “useful”? By letting go, we can break-through.

happiness, New York, theatre

The Apple Sisters

Christa Avampato

A few weeks agao, I wrote about meeting Bob McClure as he was selling his homemade pickles (http://www.mcclurespickles.com/) at a charity event I attended. Last night, Bob invited me to see a variety show he was in at the People’s Improv Theatre (PIT) on West 29th Street. Bob was a part of The Apple Sisters variety show. And for those of you who missed the show, I would suggest logging in to their myspace page, www.myspace.com/theapplesisters so you are sure to catch their next act. I was laughing for a full hour at the comedy act these women put together.

I spent about 5 years working if profesisonal theatre management for Broadway shows and national tours. I left the business largely because I felt uninspired, though I have continued to attend shows whenever I can. The Apple Sisters is one of the best acts I have seen in a very long time. To be sure the show is not without its glitches, though the energy and spontaneity these gals have makes the glitches part of the fun. You won’t find polished choreography or perfect pitch in the songs – you’ll find something much better. Humor, warmth, and a very talented trio of writers. Their creativity will make you wonder why we haven’t yet heard more about these women – I have no doubt that large-scale success is on the way.

Also, if there’s an inspiring improv comic inside of you just waiting to get in on the act, The PIT offers classes, workshops, and tons of events. Most of the shows cost $5 – $8 per ticket – so much laugh for the buck that you can’t afford to pass it by. http://www.thepit-nyc.com/

New York, retail

Bringing home the goods

Christa Avampato

When you have a tiny apartment, there’s a need to make every square inch of it sparkle. I’ve been in the market for a few furniture pieces that fit perfectly in my pint-size place. I’ve had some trouble finding items that fit properly, are designed well, and are reasonably priced.

I was relating this to my friend, Diane, at work and she suggested I stop in at a store called Home Goods, a TJX company. On my lunhc break I toddled over there, expecting to not find too much and found so much that I loved that I had to make sure to not get a cart so all I could buy is what my own hands could carry.

I found the perfect powerd blue metal three tier shelf that will fold up flat should I ever need to store it away, or, heaven forbid, move. It looks so perfect in my studio apartment that you’d think it’s been there all along. The store is chock full of every item you could imagine in the home decor category. The company is very much on trend with the “Make It Yourself” look as well as new items that have a retro feel. The store is well organized, easy to navigate, and the merchandise is fairly priced. The company even has a blog that I recommend you check for the latest tips and ideas on decorating. http://openhouse.homegoods.com/

You’ll have to go to Jersey to experience a Home Goods, though I promise it is worth the effort!

celebration, holiday, New Years Eve, New York, New York Times

Wild Revelry Is So Last Year

Christa Avampato

For the past few days I have been using my drive to work to come up with some pithy and witty commentary on New Year’s and why it’s my least favorite holiday. I opened the Times this morning and decided I didn’t need to write anything – William Grimes said it best.

I’ll be spending NYE with a few friends eating delicious, home-made food, and completely avoiding any run in with crowds. I’ve decided that 2008 is going to be the best year of my life. “Why?” you may ask. Just call it a very good hunch.

William Grimes story in Today’s Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/28/arts/28stay.html?_r=1&th&emc=th&oref=slogin

apartment, New York

The people under the stairs have left the building…

Christa Avampato

When I first moved in to my wonderful apartment with my even more wonderful landlords, I wrote a post to this blog about the people who lived under the stairs and the very rude note they slid under my door to inform how much my one day of moving was inconveniencing them. (http://christainnewyork.blogspot.com/2007/08/nyc-ordinance-on-carpet.html) This morning I received an email from my aforementioned wonderful landlord and it appears that my good karma is continuing. The nasty note writers have suddenly vacated the premises – merry Christmas and happy new year to me!

My landlord is quickly trying to fill the space and he and his equally wonderful wife leave for Paris just after the new year. Please post to this blog should you be interested in seeing the apartment and I will pass on my landlord’s name and number.

animals, environment, New York, pets

My Own "Little Chef"

Christa Avampato

Clearly I have been in my apartment for too long. Yesterday I had what my friend, Ken, and I call a pajama day – as in we spend the entire inside never changing out of our pajamas. Now this doesn’t mean I am not being productive – you may be surprised at how much you can get done by never getting properly dressed. I posted to this blog, did some entrepreneurship research, listened to Christmas music, made apple turnovers from scratch, and spent several hours watching episodes of the Gilmore Girls on DVDs.

The trouble with pajama day is that the inertia of it makes it difficult to not have several in a row. I willed myself into the shower this morning. And just as I was making my way to the bathroom door, I spotted Ike – my pet squirrel. I haven’t seen him for a while. He spent most of the summer tapping on my window in the middle of the night, annoying the hell out of me. Until he stopped showing up, and then I missed him. There he was this morning, standing up in a corner of the platform outside my window that is supposed to hold an air conditioner. (I am planning to make it into a plant stand when the weather’s warmer.) And Ike, unbeknownst to me, has taken over ownership. He’s gained a bit of weight – I guess he’s been bulking up for winter.

Now this may be my love of the movie Ratatouille coming through – I started to think that I really should be putting out the ends of my bread loaves, etc. for Ike. I mean, I’m not going to eat them and throwing them away just seems silly. This led me to consider what a balanced diet for a squirrel is. Isn’t it amazing what you can find on Google: http://www.squirrels.org/facts.html. According to this site, Ike’s diet consists of nuts, fruit, seeds, bird eggs, bugs, and animal carcasses. The nuts, fruit, and seeds I can do. He’s on his own for the rest.

I am completely aware that this sounds crazy for me to be thinking of Ike as a pet. He’s a wild animal – I know that. But until I can have a consistent number of regular pajama days and get a dog, he will have to do. And now, it really is time for me to get out of this apartment and into the world. Ike will mind the ranch while I’m gone.