GALLERY BURGUIERES

Every once in a while we'll be driving home from the Quarter or the Marigny and we pass this little guy, jauntily eying us from his sweet parking spot. Trouble is, we're always driving on the other side of the road and the neutral ground keeps us from stopping off to ask him why he's so saucy.

So the other day we resolved to find him and solve the mystery of what and why he is. Although we saw him on a regular basis when we weren't looking for him, he was impossible to find when we were — a white buffalo in New Orleans's own Burmuda Triangle.

When we finally stumbled on him, we were in for a surprise. Turns out he is just a glimpse of the treasures on offer at Discoveries Furniture & Finds.

Just look at these finds!!! The store is MUCH larger than it appears from the outside (it is 10,000 square feet!!!). Truly an experience. They travel to discover unique and personality-full pieces and bring them to New Orleans (and stores in Hammond & Baton Rouge).

I want and NEED this daybed.

To ensure we can make it back to our slippery giraffe friend who guards the garden of exotic treasures, we dropped a pin in Google maps:

And to thank him for sharing his bounty with us, we gave our tour guide a little kiss. Till next time Elusive Giraffe!!

At Gallery Burguieres we like to keep it local and sustainable. There are too many amazing things in the world to justify buying new, energy inefficient items in bulk. So we spend a lot of time treasure hunting around the Big Easy. And there are plenty of treasures to be had!!

One of our favorite places is The Bridge House thrift store. The Bridge House is a local substance abuse treatment center that benefits and supports individuals struggling with addiction, poverty, and homelessness. Sales from the thrift store support the center.

Here's Julie shopping:

Julie, mom, and I (Ally) spent this afternoon perusing the shop. We got so much it hardly fit in the car! It's hard to pass up great deals for a great cause. Add the fact that buying second-hand keeps the Earth happy, and we consider this a loot  worth getting excited over. We got tons of wonderful antique frames and a HUGE, GORGEOUS wooden table for the Gallery. The guys at the shop even loaded it on top of the car for us!

The Bridge House Thrift Store:

I've just arrived in the Washington, DC, suburbs for my sister's wedding! The wedding is not until May 7th, so I have some time to enjoy the DC area and visit with my family and friends. I also wanted to make sure I got some painting in, too, so one of the first things I did was search around for a canvas and dig out my paints.

I found a solitary canvas in the basement (the last blank one!!) and the paints I left here, and started painting some giraffes. It feels good to keep up the routine of daily painting—it's like going to the gym, an endorphin high that leaves you feeling you have accomplished something that day.

I read in "Making a Literary Life" by Carolyn See that one has to treat writing like an addiction, and one has to feed the addiction to see it come to fruition. I strive to translate the concept to my writing as well as my painting. For the record, books on writing and the writing life are an incredible resource for anyone making a life of creativity. Just reading the suggestions, advice, and guidance of the authors helps put things in perspective, motivate you for projects, and prepare you to make the most out of your opportunities and time.

I'll have to get more canvases. The only downside of being an artist is that you end up with stacks of paintings everywhere! And, if you're like me, paint on everything.

I spent the weekend back in high school, a horrible fate made much, much better by New Orleans Charter Science & Math High School College Counselor Tammy A. Usher. She stayed with me through many hours of muraling, providing fun, food, and conversation. I can see why the students are so crazy about her! The mural commemorates students from SciHigh who successfully applied to colleges, and features the students' names and the schools they got into. I'm happy to report that the school plans to keep the wall through years of students, graduations, and acceptances, changing out the names to honor each new batch of high-achieving seniors.

Tammy took pictures throughout the whole process, including one with Cocoa & Chloe and one of me and her after mural completion!

This is the first time I've used house paints (graciously donated by the Sherwin Williams on St Charles and Harry's Ace Hardware on Magazine) to paint something other than single-color walls. I absolutely love them! Helps a lot that these were high-quality paints—smooth, vibrant, and opaque in one coat. Huge thanks to Sherwin Williams and Harry's Ace Hardware!!!

When people come to town you have to take them to Bourbon St. I always take them to Bourbon and get them Hurricanes until they are sufficiently compliant and then I take them to Royal Street and make them humor me while I walk around enjoying the galleries.

Today's big find was a print by Tanner. This image is called "Forgotten", and I got #13 in a series of 200!

Lucky #13! He had a few different paper reproductions available; I chose "Forgotten" because of the soft peach background and the bluish purple tones of the middle trees. All his paintings are beautiful, but something about this one drew me in.

"Waiting" (Left)

I also LOVE his works with animals. I feel like the animals add the presence of a soul to his paintings. It's like the trees are no longer quiet.

"The Guardian"(Below)

Beautiful Blues.

Tanner was there painting when we stopped by—it was incredible to see a painting in progress. I got to ask him some about his process and technique. He said he doesn't use mediums though his paints are glossy, and suggested I might enjoy painting with "guache"—a mix of watercolor and chalk. I've never tried it but will look into it. Gallery Director Dennis Procopio was there too—what a DELIGHT to talk with! He's a smart funny and fun guy.

From Tanner's Site:
"These days Tanner can be found painting in the quiet calm of his Royal Street Gallery, a serene space where enchanting works and ambient sounds combine to recreate those eerily comforting woods. Only now, Tanner's woods are a delicately rendered archetype symbolizing the sacred inner-sanctuary we all cultivate, both individually and collectively, as respite from a world that is increasingly out of tune with our natural sensibilities." All images are from Tanner's site.

Had the first (of four!) stained glass classes at the New Orleans Glassworks and Printmaking Studio this evening.

I made a stained glass woodpecker!

Instructor: Sarah Segovia
Stained Glass Artist
www.fragile-beauty.com

I LOVE her Gothic work in particular:

This is a gargoyle she made, but it reminds me of the Bat Tile by Derby Pottery. She also has a bat on her site that is stunning.

This week we chose whatever project we wanted, and we get to do the same for next week. Recommendations welcome!!