Birthday Dinner

Thai X-ing

Yesterday was my 28th birthday, and to celebrate, Ian and I went out for a special dinner. We decided on a neighborhood place called Thai X-ing (pronounced Thai Crossing), that we'd been hearing about ever since we moved to DC. It's kind of a funky place. There's no menu, they just serve you whatever they're cooking that day. It started out in the basemen of a row house, but has since expanded to the main level and second floor.

Before heading out to dinner

The meal started out with a delicous soup and salad. Part of the fun of the meal was not really knowing what the dished were. The soup was some type of red curry (I think), and we're still not sure what the salad was, expect for that it was really good and really spicy!

The first course, soup and salad

I think the two highlights from the night were the pumpkin curry (we didn't think we'd like it, but the flavor was incredible) and a tofu and glass noddle dish. In addition to these dishes there was a salmon curry, a chopped lamb and chicken dish with lots of cilantro and ginger, and a chicken and bean curd ( I think) dish, plus a perfect dessert of fresh mango and sweet sticky rice. We were so full by the end of the meal!

A happy Ian towards the end of the main courses

 The restuarant had a homey feel with lots of shrines. Here's the one nearest to our table:

The shrine looks a little scary in this photo (I have to get a new camera soon!), but I promise that it was very zen.

Thai X-ing is the type of place you go to for the experience as much as for the food.  It's great to have a place like this in the neighborhood!

Happy Caturday!

I would totally invite this little guy to dinner. He looks so polite!

Housebound Installation

Yours Truly installing Allison Gildersleeve's paintings

As promised, below are some pictures from installation week of Housebound. But first, a little information about the exhibition pulled from our press release:

"Heiner Contemporary is delighted to present Housebound, a group exhibition exploring the depiction of domestic space featuring work by Rachel Farbiarz, Bella Foster, Allison Gildersleeve, Allison Reimus, Ann Toebbe and Augusta Wood. Practicing in different media, these artists address various definitions of home, shifting between its public and private nature. For many, home is a reflection of the self, where rooms become extensions of one's personality. It is a place where possessions are gathered, memories held, and lives are recorded through belongings and their use. Augusta Wood memorializes her grandparents' former home by projecting family snapshots in layers onto the walls of the now vacant house. Her haunting photographs provide an interesting comparison to Ann Toebbe's cozy, created-from-memory, cut paper and painted rooms, which play with perspective and color, and Allison Gildersleeve's intimate, impressionistic vignettes depicting interiors drawn from her daily life.

While domestic space may be linked to private moments and personal histories, it can also function publicly as a showcase for entertaining that speaks not only to the way one lives, but the way one wishes to be perceived. In this vein, Bella Foster's whimsical, idealized living spaces filled with bold textiles, bawdy wallpaper, and objets d'art bring to mind a well-heeled, international set, and Allison Reimus's textured vessels and abstracted architectural details reference home décor and interior design. In contrast, Rachel Farbiarz's socially conscious installation removes the home from its bricks and mortar context and investigates the way it exists as a mental construction for certain populations. Viewedtogether, the works in Housebound consider the relationship between domestic space and personal history, identity and memory."

Before: Rachel Farbiarz, Take Me With You

After: Rachel Farbiarz, Take Me With You

Detail, Take Me With You

Rachel Farbiarz,  I Wish I Could

Detail, I Wish I Could

Detail, I Wish I Could

Before: Allison Reimus, Vessel Grouping

After: Allison Reimus, Vessel Grouping

Installation view: Ann Toebbe, Allison Reimus, Augusta Wood, Allison Gildersleeve, Bella Foster, and Rachel Farbiarz

Installation view: Ann Toebbe, Allison Reimus, Augusta Wood, Rachel Farbiarz

Installation: Bella Foster and Ann Toebbe

Installation view: Allison Gildersleeve, Bella Foster, Augusta Wood, Ann Toebbe

And just for fun, a few pics from the opening reception:

Animal Odd Couples

I just finished watching the sweetest documentary on PBS call Animal Odd Couples: The Benefit of Friendship. I laughed, I cried, this show had it all. Keep your eye out for reruns!

Housebound

The gallery just opened a new show, Housebound,  a few days ago, and we've already gotten a nice write-up in a local blog ArtSeeDc including a mini interview with me.  Here's a link to the post, Coming Home to Heiner Contemporary: A Group Show

Installation view of Housebound

 I love the concept of this show and am thrilled that visitors to the gallery are enjoying it too! As Roxanne mentions in the article, this show has been in the works for a while and it is so satisfying to see it come to fruition. (I'm planning to share some pics from the installation soon!)

Election Day

DC weekend

A cute little house on the day before election day

Just in case questions come up, I work Tuesday - Saturday, so my weekend is actually Sunday - Monday (I very lucky that Ian doesn't teach on Mondays so we are still able to enjoy a two day weekend together). 

 Saturday after work, I met up with Ian and some buddies to cheer on the Ducks at our local watch bar Irish Channel. The bar lets the alumni association decorate, play the fight song, and basically take over the place. It's a fun environment, kinda like a substitute Cooler.  The bar attracts a surprising amount of Duck fans. Last year for the Rose Bowl game over 150 fans were at the bar. We feel bad for unsuspecting Caps fans who walk in hoping to catch the hockey game (I guess that's not a problem this year though...).

Duck Spirit

Some new friends from Ian's soccer league that we've converted

Ian and I celebrated the Ducks' win a bit too much, and were a little (a lot) haggard the next day and didn't accomplish much... 

...But we were rested and ready to go the next day. We decided to walk down to the Mall to see Ai Weiwei's According to What? at the Hirshhorn (more on that coming soon). It was such a gorgeous day for a walk.  Fall is my favorite season and I love being out in the cool, crisp air. Before Sandy hit we were having a bit on an Indian Summer, so it's just now beginning to feel like fall. Although our systems haven't gotten used to the temperature swing yet, and I ended up pulling out my winter coat and hat for our walk. 

Some great fall foliage

After our day of being out and about in the chilly fall weather we came home and made this delish dinner. Ian prepped and grilled the steaks while I cooked up some sweet potato fries and sauteed brussels sprouts. See the end of this post for the brussels sprout recipe. 

I'm sorry for the poor image quality of some of these photos :(.  Right now the only camera I have is my iphone! Ian and I are ready to invest in a good camera, but are totally overwhelmed by the options and don't know where to start. Any suggestions?

Sauteed Brussels Sprouts:
2 cups brussel sprouts
1 shallot
2-3 pieces of bacon
about 3/4 cup chicken stock, maybe less (my secret ingredient!)
salt and pepper
toasted walnuts (optional)

Rinse and halve the brussels sprouts lengthwise. Cook the bacon in a large sautee pan until crispy. Remove from pan and lay on paper towels to soak up extra oil/fat. Pour most of the extra bacon fat out of the pan, but reserve a little to cook the brussels sprouts in. Add the shallot and brussels sprouts to the pan used to cook the bacon.  Allow to brown a bit and add some of the chicken stock until it absorbs. The chicken stock gives the brussels sprouts great flavor and helps to soften them a bit. Continue to add small amounts of chicken stock until absorbed and the brussels sprouts are cooked to taste. Crumble the bacon and the toasted walnuts and add them to the pan. Salt and pepper to taste.