Outing: The London Chef

Image | | Mac

For a little something different my wife and I decided to try out the rather gourmet looking cooking school, cafe and caterers named The London Chef. The London Chef has opened a spectacular space on Fort Street, in our home town Victoria BC. (Yes I’m talking about culinary arts… watch out!)

I understand that normally during its evening classes the London Chef is setup with 2 people to each cooking area (of which there are seven) and all of you cook along with the chef who also comes by and gives guidance as you go.. could be fun! But the price tag for two can be a bit of a barrier… so an inspired mind came up with the idea for a “Night in Spain”, which was the event we attended this past Thursday night.

What was a Night in Spain? Besides fantastic it was 4 cooking stations producing different spanish tapas each manned by a professional. Bowls of sangria, spanish guitar and a dancer, Salt’s Spring Ale, and Ottavio’s were also essential to creating the nights artistic, fun, friendly and experimental atmosphere. Ottavio’s is a fantastic Victoria (Oak Bay) european deli and they were onsite participating and manning a couple of the delicious tapas stations.

At each of the tapas stations attendees would conglomerate around and learn about what was being served and see it being made. Each ingredient and the process was described. Some of the tapas were simple, cheeses with bread and a delicious tomato sauce to the more complex and entertaining to watch, pan fried prawns.

I won’t attempt to describe all the different artistic concoctions suffice to say the evening was a blast, the folks at the London Chef are knowledgeable, friendly and entertaining. I even learned a thing or two about how to cook prawns, and learned that yes, I really do need a gas stove!

Mmmm… edible art!

Artist I Admire: Bill Cunningham

| Mac

Okay, so I realize this confirms that I have been living under a rock. Also I realize the fact that I don’t have cable or satellite television is no excuse, as Bill Cunningham is a newspaper man, but alas I must admit I’d never heard of him until I saw Bill Cunningham: New York (great film!) on iTunes the other night.

Here is the trailer:

As discerned from the film here’s what makes Bill so admirable, in no particular order:

  1. He wouldn’t even consider himself an “artist”
  2. He is abashedly eccentric
  3. He is completely devoted to his craft
  4. He isn’t in it for the money, in fact he turns it down as he feels it would cost him his freedom
  5. He has been practicing his craft for years
  6. His photos are beautiful (IMO)
  7. He is using old school technology
  8. His attention to detail, ownership and passion of the whole process from the subject material to the photographs to the the page layouts is inspiring

Lastly what makes him truly admirable is that he’s a poet and philosopher on many levels, fashion, politics, photography, culture; He had a great quote in the movie “It is as true today as it has ever been; He who seeks beauty will find it”.

Creative Challenge: Pen Name

| Mac

A creative challenge that came about within a FA101 class discussion was to fashion yourself a creative handle, a pen name. I have had handles for online things before, but I had never attempted to craft one with meaning.

So I let that percolate away in my super-concious, and out the other end of the process came: “Creatio Collegiate”, here is why.

“Creatio” has Ancient Greek and/or Latin roots, and is the root for the english word creation. Creatio has connotations of the natural world (rather than man made items) and may also invoke spiritual or god like themes.

“Collegiate” of course evokes collaborative, inclusive, friendly and betterment themes.

So taken together the pen name “Creatio Collegiate” is about collaborative, friendly creation with the aim of self improvement; specifically becoming more well rounded, and appreciative of the many beauties our existence has to offer. I used the Creatio Collegiate name as my Vimeo handle to support the sharing of my FA101 creative acts during class. Exploring-Art.com is a continuation of this theme, and an attempt to sustain it beyond my current continuing education activities.

What is your creative pen name? Why? Don’t have one? Well now you have your first Creative Challenge! Good luck!