This month's Moment of Inspiration comes from a personal experience of mine. In early January, I attended the Haramara Retreat in Sayulita, Mexico with Pilates instructor Tonya Lenheim. I spent a week in nature without technology, in awe of how the world can be when we pause and disconnect. This pause provided me with time to reflect, allowing for a "reboot" of the senses and a return to the basics. Now, I feel that I've returned with a feeling of centeredness.
Read MoreHoliday Party 2017! [PERSIAN GARDEN]
On December 1st, we kicked off the holiday season with festive cocktails, live harp music by 14-year-old, Carla Mory, sweet treats and even sweeter friends. The SZ Gallery was adorned with twinkly lights, paper flowers & holiday ornaments creating a magical vibe within our Persian Garden exhibit, by Monir & Mehdi Ghanbeigy.
Monir & Mehdi Ghanbeigy
PERSIAN GARDEN
11.03.2017 - 12.31.2017
‘Persian Garden’ is an exhibit that tells culturally rich stories of Persian culture through contemporary and classically-influenced pieces. Monir and Mehdi Ghanbeigy from Iran have created multimedia artwork together since 1970, combining Mehdi’s detailed work with Persian miniatures and painting, Monir’s background in ceramics and pottery, and their mutual love and appreciation for the history of Persian art.
‘Persian Garden’ showcases a variety of Mehdi and Monir’s collaborative pieces: plates inspired by historical Iranian ceramics, large ceramic panels with modernized miniatures in gold and platinum foil, sculptures of oxen and horses inspired by ancient cave drawings, and unique vases fired in temperatures up to 2500°F heat. Handcrafting their own clay, glaze, and even their kilns all from scratch, their ceramic pieces have a distinct quality that cannot be found anywhere else in the world.
First Friday [11.03.17]: PERSIAN GARDEN - Event Photos!
PERSIAN GARDEN, by Artists Monir & Mehdi Ghanbeigy, opened on Friday with warm accolades on a brisk November evening. This curated exhibit of almost fifty porcelain/ceramic works of art were imported from Iran and inspired by ancient and modern-day history, throughout various Asian & European cultures. With each piece comes a specific story or poetic reference.
The works were complimented with Persian and Middle Eastern sweets, hot tea and a variety of wines to taste. The SZ Gallery was quickly filled with art collectors and enthusiasts, resulting in the sale of thirteen pieces on opening night. SZ is proud to be the first gallery in the US to show the works of such renowned artists. To learn more about the Ghanbeigys' background & influences, check out this Q&A and live interview (to the right).
PERSIAN GARDEN will be exhibited at the SZ Gallery until December 31.
[Proceeds donated to Art with Heart]
Learning from the Case Study House Program
We previously made a list of the architects who inspire our work the most, and now we're shining a spotlight on a group of architects and a famous program that especially provides inspiration to our residential design concepts: The Case Study House program from 1945 - 1966. Famous architects like Charles Eames and A. Quincy Jones were part of this program, and we hold many of the architects of the Case Study House program in very high regard. Their houses still hold much cultural value, delivering a "wow" factor over 60 years later.
The Case Study House program was created in response to the demand for single-family residential housing in the post-World War II era. This call for housing led to what is now referred to as suburbia. A group of architects came together in January 1945 to create the Case Study House program, where they announced in Arts & Architecture magazine that each architect will take it upon themselves to build a house that is capable of duplication. Each house would then be on display for the public to walk through and determine how successfully the job had been done. Many of these houses are still standing in Los Angeles, CA.
These houses represent how architects had a voice during the 1940s - 1960s, especially when it came to residential development. Developers back then took cues from the architects, which is vastly different compared to today's market. The Case Study House program embodied a spirit of curiosity from that era, which is a spirit that we at SZ always strive to maintain.
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