Italics are mine

Denver

 Not too long ago I went to Denver and it turned out to be an amazing trip. I decided to make the trip when I realized I had to bail out of Dallas and if you've been following me for a while you can figure out why I had to leave STAT. (If you haven't been following me for a while and can't figure it out, I still love you tons! Hugs and kisses!) So, off I went. I ended up being there for five nights including a day where there was a snow storm and it was exactly what I needed. The snow storm wasn't that bad and the next day I was able to get to the airport as if nothing had happened. Alright, so what about Denver? First off, the American Museum of Western Art was PHENOMENAL. It showcased so many interesting periods of Western art and I was just amazed. Then I went to the Whistler/Cassatt exhibit at the Denver Art Museum and that was good but frankly it wasn't great either and the exhibit at the Clyfford Still museum was not great either. You just have to take your losses I guess. Some of the best food I had was in "holes in the wall" kind of situations, especially at Randall's, and my goodness that place made my salad look and taste better than any picture! I just adore them.

One thing I loved during the trip was the New Play Summit at the Denver Center for Performing Arts and while the plays I saw were of varying quality, let me tell you that the play Cebollas was AMAZING, Because it is a work in progress we were specifically asked not to review it so I won't say more than that but frankly it was MINDBLOWINGLY GOOD and hopefully no one will resent me for writing that down. 

Another thing I loved about the trip was the opportunity to watch Who's afraid from Virginia Woolf. l had seen the black and white movie with Elizabeth Taylor but frankly it doesn't compare with seeing it live. The people next to me, who were speaking Russian, seemed very disappointed that it wasn't more funny than it was, and one of them even explained to me he had come expecting to laugh, and what exactly am I supposed to say to that? The play is a masterpiece that has been recognized as such for decades. If after all this you still don't know about the plot line in Who's afraid from Virginia Woolf it is your fault more than anyone else's.  

So basically I had a great time, and I also want to give a shout-out to the kitchen staff at Earl's because they were spectacular. Runner-up: lunch at Rioja. I was so happy walking through Larimer Square. I also loved getting dinner at Panzano. It was a bit of a hit or miss but once you've figured out what the restaurant is great at, oh my, they're really truly great at what they're great at, if that makes sense. Love them tons!

Houston

 Last summer I went to Houston to get my French passport renewed, and I had meant to write a blog post about the city, but life got in the way (very long story). So here is my belated attempt in writing something about Houston. The city itself holds a special place in my heart as a French citizen since the French consulate is there. Some time ago I bought "Double Vision: The Unerring Eye of Art World Avatars Dominique and John de Menil", with Dominique being an heiress of the Schlumberger family (back in engineering school at Mines ParisTech our main auditorium was named the Schlumberger hall in recognition of the family's philanthropy) and frankly I hadn't gone past the first quarter of the book because Dominique Schlumberger was clearly born with a silver spoon in her mouth and it is hard to relate to someone in her situation. But when I drove into Houston to get my new passport, I stopped by the Menil Collection and was taken aback by the smart choices the Menils made in collecting. Of course they must have had really good advisors, but at least they were smart enough in choosing the *right* advisors. I also loved the Houston Museum of Art, which I visited when I made my request for a new passport. (Yes that's a lot of in-person trips to Houston but you don't want someone to be going around misusing your name and your passport!) I also saw the Rothko Chapel on the trip where I picked up my passport. I hadn't expected Houston to have such vibrant energy in the arts but the city was phenomenal. (Shoutout to the restaurant of Hotel Zaza near Rice University for the fantastic lunch!) 

 What I found interesting about the de Menils was that, although they were born into a life of privilege, they did dedicate themselves (after a while) to changing the world around them through their collecting. For instance, the book "Art and Activism: Projects of John and Dominique de Menil" provides details about their involvement in civil rights causes. Also, I love this excerpt p.119: "John and Dominique de Menil built their collection on the simple but profound premise that art is not the preserve of the elite but rather a basic human necessity... Collecting, for the de Menils, was "a way to know oneself, like a mirror, a way of seeing oneself.""

I have a couple more books about Houston, in addition to "The Menil Collection": "Improbable Metropolis" and "Making Houston modern." They are all excellent and demonstrate convincingly great art is not only to be found in New York City or San Francisco. "Making Houston Modern" is about Howard Barnstone, best known for his work with Mark Rothko, "Improbable Metropolis" describes the trajectory of a city bound to achieve prominence on the cultural stage. I can't wait for Houston Opera to give me a reason to come back!