Adventures of Yoo

November 17 2015

Best of Bondi Beach’s Sculpture by the Sea

One of my lifelong dreams is to travel the world and report at art events like museum and gallery openings or art festivals . During my time at My Modern Met, a few of the events that I really enjoyed were Art of the Streets at LA’s MOCA, Vivid Sydney in Australia, Tim Burton’s retrospective at the LACMA, and Art Basel in Miami. A few of the installations that I reported on but that I wished I had seen in person are Jaume Plensa at Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Leandro Erlich’s building illusion in Paris, and Tomas Saraceno mesh orbit in Dusseldorf, Germany.

One of the art festivals that I would love to attend is Sculpture by the Sea at Australia’s Bondi Beach. There’s just something about seeing artworks sit right on the beach, with water and light as their backdrop. I can only imagine experiencing them with the wonderfully refreshing smell of the beach all around them.

From the Sculpture by the Sea website:

Staged on the spectacular Bondi to Tamarama coastal walk, Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi is one of Sydney’s most popular events, with 520,000 visitors viewing over 100 sculptures by artists from around the world. Held since 1997, this free to the public exhibition captures the imagination of Sydney and its visitors for three weeks each spring and is the largest annual sculpture exhibition in the world. The exhibition generates an almost unprecedented level of goodwill among the public as they enjoy one of the most unique events in the world.

The 2015 show just wrapped up, it ran from October 22 to November 9. Here are some of the highlights from this year as well as from years’ past.

Above: Norton Flavell, Dust, Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2015. Photo by Jessica Wyld Photography.

Sandra Cross, Dissolution III, Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2015. Photo Clyde Yee.

Zilvinas Kempinas, Kakashi (2012), Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2015. Photo Clyde Yee.

Wang Shugang, Man on Ball, Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2015. Photo Clyde Yee.

Barbara Licha, Listen Time Passes, Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2015. Photo Clyde Yee.

Kim Perrier, Ashes to Ashes, Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2015. Photo Clyde Yee.

Kathleen Berney, Minden Jó Lesz 1953 (All Shall Be Well), Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2015. Photo Clyde Yee.

TaeGeun Yang, Pig of Fortune #2, Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2015. Photo Clyde Yee.

Michael Van Dam, Intervention (2014), Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2015. Photo Clyde Yee.

Elaine Miles, Tidal Pools, Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2014. Photo Meredith Schofield.

Carla Gottgens, The Guardians, Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2014. Photo Meredith Schofield.

Linton Meagher, Glamarama, Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2014. Photo Clyde Yee.

Matt Calvert, Girl Pointing, Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2013. Photo Samantha Burns.

David McCracken, Diminish and Ascend, Sculpture by the Sea, Bondi 2013. Photo William Patino.

I’m hoping to keep attending art events around the world. Can’t wait to share them with you! How about you? Which art events have you been to? Which ones will you remember forever?

Art & Design

November 16 2015

Peace for Paris Symbol Gets Spread Throughout the World

When French-born, London-based graphic designer Jean Jullien heard about the horrible terrorist attacks on Paris, he knew right away what he had to do. As he told Fast Company, “I was deeply shocked, saddened, and confused. Because I’m an illustrator, drawing is my first natural reaction to communicate things in general.” On his lap, taking a loose sketchbook, a brush and ink, he painting a black and white peace sign while incorporating the iconic Eiffel Tower. There was no initial sketching. Simple, straightforward but incredibly powerful, his “Peace for Paris” image quickly went viral. It has now been retweeted over 59,000 times, liked 160,000 times on Instagram and liked over 24,000 times on Facebook.

Peace for Paris pic.twitter.com/ryf6XB2d80

— jean jullien (@jean_jullien) November 13, 2015

As he told Wired:

It was a reaction. The first thing that came to me was the idea of peace, that we needed peace. I was trying to look for a symbol of Paris, and obviously the Eiffel Tower was the first thing that sprang to my mind. I just connected both of them. You know, there wasn’t much work process behind that. It was more an instinctive, human reaction than an illustrator’s reaction.

Photograph: Roger Tooth/for the Guardian

What’s even more powerful than seeing it online is seeing the work offline at vigils, on t-shirts, on posters, on flags or drawn on people’s faces. It’s rare when a symbol can spark up a feeling of solidarity, especially in the wake of such tragic events. Our thoughts are with you, Paris.

Food

November 13 2015

Kimchi and Sweet Potato Fried Rice

For my first recipe, I worked with my nanny, Cindy, in coming up with this dish the whole family can enjoy. The kimchi gives the fried rice its taste while the sweet potato adds a nice sweetness. If you want a way to incorporate vegetables to a meal, you can’t get better than fried rice.

Below is a funny picture of Logan, trying to distract us from cooking. Do your kids do this…do they give a gentle nudge to play with them?

Now, let’s get down to business.

Start by peeling and arranging your vegetables to chop. These include your potato, sweet potato, onion, carrot and squash.

Chop the three hardest vegetables first, the sweet potato, potato and carrot. You’ll want to chop these all pretty finely, into small cubes.

In medium heat, sauté the vegetables so that they soften. Add 3/4 cup water so that the vegetables don’t burn.

While that’s going, chop the onions and squash.

Combine all the vegetables together and stir at low to medium heat.

Chop the kimchi and add it to the vegetable mixture. Bring up the heat to medium.

Add the pat of butter. For some reason, kimchi and butter make a mean combination.

In a separate bowl, whip two eggs together. In a separate pan, heat 1/2 tbs of olive oil and then scramble the eggs.

Now turn the heat down to low and add the eggs to the vegetable mixture. Add 3 cups of white rice, soy sauce, sesame oil and 2 slices of American cheese.

Voila! You now have a delicious, family friendly meal.

Recipe:
2 tbsp of olive oil
1 sweet potato (or 1 cup of chopped sweet potatoes)
1 small carrot (or 1/3 cup of chopped carrots)
1 potato (or 1 cup of chopped potatoes)
3/4 cup of water
2 small onions (or 1 cup of chopped onions)
1 small squash (or 1/3 cup of chopped squash)
1/2 cup of kimchi
1 tbsp of butter
3 eggs
1.5 tbsp of soy sauce
1/2 tsp of sesame oil
2 slices of American cheese

1. Chop sweet potato, potato and carrot into small pieces.
2. Heat the pan and then add 1 1/2 tbsp of olive oil.
3. Add all of the vegetables into the pan.
4. Add water to the vegetables and sauté over medium heat. Stir occasionally.
5. Chop onions and squash into small pieces.
6. Add the onions and squash to the pan and lower heat slightly, stirring occasionally.
7. Chop the kimchi and add it to the mixture, bring up the heat to medium.
8. Add the pat of butter.
9. In a separate bowl, whip two eggs.
10. In a separate pan, add 1/2 tbs of olive oil and then add the eggs. Scramble the eggs.
11. Turn the heat to low on the vegetable mixture.
12. Add the scrambled eggs, the white rice, the soy sauce, the sesame oil and the American cheese.
13. Optional: Add Sriracha and/or ketchup before serving.

Art & Design

November 13 2015

Favorite Links of the Week

It’s been a great first week! It feels a little bit weird being back in the saddle after my brief hiatus from My Modern Met but I’m happy to be writing again.

What are your plans for the weekend? Tomorrow, my friend’s daughter is being baptized in a beautiful cathedral up in Los Angeles. I’m looking forward to catching up with some old friends.

Here are some of my favorite links this week.

Derek Zoolander and Hansel are back with two new movies posters promoting the upcoming “Zoolander” sequel. One includes some selfie-taking!

A color lovers delight! (Bonus if you like books and movies.)

Mini Star Wars illustrations made in pointillism style.

Thumb waterer. Water plants with love.

Blast to the past! Rare early photos of Beijing.

Drink like a true rebel!

Have we taken gluten free too far?

Art lovers, put this on your must visit list.

Is this for real? Car vending machine.

Disturbing photo series shows “the all-absorbing and soul-sucking nature of contemporary cellphone culture.”

This looks like a fun duo.

Want this new book.

Photo show about elderly Asian hipsters. Nice!

Touching to know that she cries to her music, too.

Hooray for women!

Finally, real life breastfeeding photos, in all its beautiful messiness.

(New print by Audrey Kawasaki is called “It Was You.” It’s now being sold at Spoke Art.)

Art & Design

November 12 2015

Inside The Broad, LA’s Newest Contemporary Art Museum

Back in September, I attended the press preview of The Broad, the new contemporary art museum in downtown Los Angeles. It was a pop art lover’s dream! Works by Jeff Koons, Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, and Takashi Murakami were all on display.

The show stopper, however, was The Infinity Mirrored Room by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama. (See above.) I’m still daydreaming about it. Imagine being able to step into space and be surrounded by an endless array of stars. You walk into a room that’s lined with mirrors and strung with thousands of LED lights. The ground is covered in water, save for a platform you walk on. You have 30 seconds to fully immerse yourself in the experience. I’m sure I was not alone in thinking, “Is this what heaven feels like?”

Dynamically changing LA’s urban landscape, The Broad’s architecture is, in and of itself, a beauty to behold. Design studio Diller Scofidio + Renfro’s (DS+R) concept was “a veil and a vault.” As you walk down the stairs, you can look through large glass windows to see art pieces hung on racks and shelves, it’s the storage area around which the museum was built. (The Broad is showing just 250 of their more than 2,000 works.) This is referred to as the vault. The outermost structure is a lattice-like veil that lets light shine into the building in a beautifully natural way. I was surprised that the third-floor skylights could bring in such perfect indirect, diffused light.

The Broad is named after the billionaire businessman and avid art collector Eli Broad and his wife Edythe. (Yes, that’s Broad of homebuilding company Kaufman & Broad.) Their mission is to make art accessible to everyone, that’s why general admission is free!

Make sure you visit this new art institution in LA. It’ll be well worth your time.

Balloon Dog (Blue) by Jeff Koons. This larger than life piece is 12 feet high and is made of mirror-polished stainless steel.

Tulips by Jeff Koons

Rabbit by Jeff Koons

Single Elvis by Andy Warhol

Two Marilyns by Andy Warhol

I…I’m Sorry by Roy Lichtenstein

Away from the Flock by Damien Hirst

Under the Table by Robert Therrien

No title by Robert Therrien

Norms La Cienega on Fire by Edward Ruscha

Red Block by El Anatsui. Those are woven red liquor labels!

Of Chinese Lions, Peonies, Skulls and Foundations by Takashi Murakami

DOB in the Strange Forest (Blue DOB) by Takashi Murakami

Art & Design

November 11 2015

Top 15 Art Prints at 20×200

There’s lots of places where you can find affordable art online, like at Minted, Society6, Art.com, Yellowkorner, Saatchi Art, and even our store My Modern Shop. (See Emily Henderson’s list for more.) One of my go-to places, however, is a site called 20×200. Started back in 2007 by Jen Bekman, 20×200 is a great place to find beautiful art prints from both established and emerging artists. Their limited edition prints are exclusive to the site, which means you get a signed and numbered certificate of authenticity with your purchase.

Recently, they put out their 2015 gift guide which divides up their works into 18 different categories like Animal Lovers, City Slickers, Foodies, Nature Lovers and Space Cases. I, personally, went through each of the gift guides to pick out 15 of my favorite pieces. From Paul Octavious’ serene scene called Kite Hill to a fun, roller skating Weimaraner, you won’t be disappointed by this collection. I promise! In fact, I want to hang each of these pieces inside my house.

Here’s Octavious on Kite Hill:

For the past two years I have visited a beautiful mound of earth that I have come to call “the hill.” Each time I come to the hill, a new story is told to me as if the hill is my stage and the locals are the actors in this daily play. On this particular day, over two-hundred people gathered on the hill and flew kites of all different kinds. Seeing this for the first time was a moment I won’t soon forget.

Above: Kite Hill by Paul Octavious

Baby Monkey No. 6 by Sharon Montrose

White Breasted Nut Hatch by Carrie Marill

Roller Rover by William Wegman

Praia Piquinia 14/08/12 14h00 by Christian Chaize

Bob’s Giant Donut by April Walters

Modern Art by Craig Damrauer

Hugo (Library) by Joseph O. Holmes

Mountaineer in an Ice Cave of Paradise Glacier, Mount Rainier National Park, Washington, 1925 by Vintage Editions

Cemetery Rd, 3169-3327, Viewmont, NY by Pete Mauney

Untitled (I told my therapist about you) by Mike Monteiro

After the Rain by Chikara Umihara

City Lights United States of America by Space Editions

jsc2012e052681 by Donald Pettit

We Are So Good Together (blue) by Dylan Fareed

Art & Design

November 10 2015

Family Outing: San Diego Model Railroad Museum

This past weekend, we visited one of the boys’ favorite destinations, the San Diego Model Railroad Museum. Located inside Balboa Park, the museum houses miniature models of actual California railroads. Parker and Logan excitingly ran around from display to display, taking each one in. Look closely and you’ll find mini dioramas of real life – semi-trucks filling up on gas, folks lined up at a movie theater, and even people lounging around a McDonald’s.

The boys love one room in particular, the toy train gallery. Here you’ll find Thomas the Train, minions, and Disney character filled cars, it’s a children’s paradise. There’s even a few buttons you can push to make some of the trains go round and round.

The museum is run by more than 300 volunteers which includes model builders who make sure every detail is painstakingly in place. The institution calls itself the largest and only accredited model railroad museum in North America and one of the top model railroad museums in the world.

For us, the trip is only about an hour from our house but for those driving in from Los Angeles, it can take up to two. You won’t be disappointed, however, because aside from this museum you’ll find sixteen more inside the park. Balboa Park is a breathtakingly beautiful cultural park that has gardens, restaurants and a koi pond as well. Bring food and you can enjoy a picnic under the sun, or you can be like us, and pick up noodles and curry at the small Japanese restaurant.

For those visiting southern California, Balboa Park is a must-visit destination. Though we have a few different annual passes for some of the museums, I think that next year we’ll probably end up buying the annual family pass for the whole park, which gets us into any of the 17 participating museums. Yes, that’s how much we love this place!

Me and the boys in front of Balboa Park’s large water fountain.

This last photo was shot at the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center which is only a hop, skip and a jump away from the railroad museum. It’s another great place to take the kids.

Life

November 9 2015

Who are the Yoos?

Hello and welcome to Adventures of Yoo! I’m Alice, you may already know me as the founder and former editor-in-chief of My Modern Metropolis, an art and culture blog I started back in 2008. It’s been seven years since its launch and a lot has transpired during that time. For one, I’ve been blessed with two boys, Parker, who is 3 1/2 years old and Logan, who’s 1 1/2. They’re a handful but, like most parents will tell you, they’re the light of my life. Being a parent completely changes your outlook on life, making you reassess what’s important.

Surprise wedding dance we performed. See it, here. (1.3 million views!)

Wedding party. Our closest friends and family.

My favorite wedding photo.

Parker grabbing Sam’s finger. A heartfelt reminder that they don’t stay that small for very long.

Fozzie cuddling up next to Parker, the first day we brought Parker home.

Parker, our little tiger.

Logan in his favorite place, a ball pit.

I started this new lifestyle blog as not only a way to journal the trials and tribulations of parenthood, but for many other reasons as well. First, I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder last year, a mental illness that my mother endured. It took me a while to come to terms with the fact that I’m always dangerously close to having a manic attack, spiraling down into an uncontrollable mental state where my mind makes a chaotic cacophony of connections. On the bright side, having this illness has made me more mindful, appreciating the present and being grateful for all that I have. I hope that, through this site, I can help others discover the little joys in life, the everyday moments that often go unnoticed.

I also started this blog to give readers good book recommendations, Korean and non-Korean cooking recipes, and travel tips. Finally, I’m still going to post on new and upcoming artists, designers and photographers. My first love is art, and there’s nothing greater than sharing the talent of others. On My Modern Met, I wrote over 6,000 blog posts and the ones that gave me the most joy were the ones where I positively impacted the lives of others, whether that meant shining the light on an unknown artist or making readers smile or cry over a true and authentic story.

Family photo taken at Lake Arrowhead. Elmo hitched a ride.

At Parker’s dol, or one year old party. Can you tell by the cake what our theme was?

To give you the quick background of who I am, I was born in Los Angeles (yes I’m O.G.) and I’m the third of four children, I have two older sisters, Grace and Carol, and one younger brother named Eugene. Eugene was my business partner at My Modern Met for seven years and he’s now the editor-in-chief of that site. I’m incredibly close to my family so you’ll see them popping up all over the posts. I attended UCLA, where I received my undergraduate degree, and then UCR, where I got my MBA. For the next four years I worked at MTV Networks, in advertising sales, and then I spent two years managing a staff at Outdoor Channel (yes, think hunting, not my cup particular cup of tea). After leaving the ad sales world, I took a trip to Italy and Greece, where I was inspired by all the art to start up a blog dedicated to modern day experiences, which included art, design and photography. I’m proud to say that we were one of the first ones to start an art and culture blog, as many soon followed.

Sammy snuggling up to Parker for the very first time.

At Mammoth, on one of our many fishing trips.

At Yosemite, one of the rare photos of us together. (Sorry it’s grainy.)

Recent family photo taken at Alt Summit, a blog conference in Salt Lake City, Utah.

I’ve been married to my husband Sam, for the last eight years, but we started dating our first year in college, which was in 1994. (Yup, that’s 21 years!) Like any couple, we’ve had our share of ups and downs but we’ve only come out stronger in the end. He’s my partner and I could not imagine my life without him.

Charlie, when he was just a young puppy.

Charlie and Fozzie, brothers from another mother.

Now, here’s my quick list of things I love. I love traveling, hiking or just being outdoors. I consider myself an entrepreneur at heart and I love reading business books, think Steve Jobs, Howard Schultz, Elon Musk. Being a mom, I don’t have time to watch much television but I’ll make the time to catch a good series (really digging Aziz Ansari’s new show, Master of None). I’m not a great cook but I’m lucky enough to have a Korean nanny who teaches me how to prepare family friendly meals. (I can’t wait to share these with you.) I have two dogs that are like my children, Charlie and Fozzie, they’re unbelievably cute and cuddly Cavalier King Charles Spaniels. I’m not particularly stylish, I don’t succumb to the latest fashion trends but I can appreciate a well styled outfit. I dream about building my own custom house one day, think any home you see in Dwell.

Here are the blogs I follow daily, they’re in my A-list bookmark folder: A Cup of Jo, Bleubird, Design Love Fest, SF Girl By Bay, Cupcakes and Cashmere, Design*Sponge, The House that Lars Built, decor8, Love Taza, Oh Joy!, Emily Henderson, The Pioneer Woman, and Design Mom. The ladies behind these blogs have really inspired me to start this site.

O.K. Think we’re ready now to dive in. Oh, wait one last thing. The pictures you see above of me and my husband were mostly taken in 2007, around our wedding time. Two kids and fifty extra pounds later, I’m not too excited about being in photos but, being that this is a personal blog, I’ll do my best to swallow my pride and be in some of them anyway. Now, away we go!

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