"Influencing through the Art Experience" for VIE September 2023

“When the First Lady of Virginia, Suzanne Youngkin, and her husband, Governor Glenn Youngkin, moved into the Executive Mansion in 2022, one of the first things she did was transform its walls.

As one might expect to find in the country’s oldest continuously occupied Executive Mansion, the rooms were lined with paintings of Virginia statesmen and Virginia landscapes set in heavy gold frames. But Mrs. Youngkin saw things differently. She wanted a broader, newer story to be told about the Commonwealth of Virginia through the work of living as well as historic Virginia artists, and she wanted to reopen the Federal-style landmark, designed in 1813 by prominent architect Alexander Parris, which had been closed to the public since the pandemic.

Mrs. Youngkin asked Judy Boland and Ann Goettman, who sit on the Citizens’ Advisory Council on Furnishing and Interpreting the Executive Mansion (CAC), to realize her vision by creating the Art Experience (https://www.executivemansion.virginia.gov/art-experience/). The duo was an interesting choice: Neither one is a museum curator. But while Boland’s background is in psychology and Goettman’s is in marketing, both are passionate about art. Although the women were not well acquainted at the time, they found themselves agreeing on which artists and paintings to suggest for the first exhibition, Spirit of Virginia….”

Read more in the September issue of VIE Magazine HERE.

"An Authentic Voice" for July VIE

“Corene” by Jonathan Green (1995)

“What makes very young people able to turn passions into a living, marrying their gifts with the discipline to create their life’s work? How can they know so early, possessing the confidence and necessary focus to keep them on their path? I dreamed of being a painter but derailed in college, distracted by thoughts like, If I am not Picasso, is it worth it? If my work is not going to hang in the Met, what does that say about me? In I am not ‘in,’ then can I still keep going forward and not give a damn what anybody thinks?

Jonathan Green knew in his very being the irrelevant nonsense of those distractions, which don’t mean a thing at the beginning of a career — or maybe ever. That’s why I love him. He actively chose to master one field (actually three: painting, fashion design, and the social graces) instead of being a jack-of-all-trades.”

Read more about Charleston-based painter Jonathan Green in Suzanne’s latest article for VIE Magazine HERE…

The Art of Gift Giving for VIE December

Three Wise Men at Strassbourg Cathedral, Germany (c. 1940)

“The Three Wise Men Understand the Art of Gift Giving…”

Suzanne asks three experts — a world-class chef, one renowned jewelry designer, and a stylist to the stars — to share their wisdom on what to get your loved ones (knives, anyone?), when to give it (surprise them!), what to do when you forget (it happens), and how to give the really big one (diamonds, of course.)

Read the full article in the latest issue of Vie Magazine HERE.

Summer Salad #3: Art Project

Rule #1 - We first eat with our eyes! Contrasting shapes and colors can be a beautiful thing. The cubes of croutons and logs of carrots make this feel like an art project, painting on the plate.  Flavor becomes a balancing act as well. Academy Croutons and roasted Carrots Vichy deliver the satisfying crunch, complementing the buttery texture of tender lettuce leaves.

Academy Croutons can sit in their frying pan for over a half hour after cooking, soaking up extra olive oil. The wait makes the fried bread even tastier, turning each cube into crispy little bombs delivering crunch, fat, flavor all in one bite. If there is still olive oil in the pan, use it to finish the salad.

To make Carrots Vichy, peel whole carrots - not baby carrots, not woody large carrots in 5-lb. bags, but carrots in bunches with their leafy tops intact. Cook carrots in a sauté pan over medium heat with a little bit of olive oil and enough water to come halfway up their sides. When a knife tip can barely poke inside the carrot and the water is almost evaporated. Add fresh thyme. Wait till carrots are room temperature to use in the salad, either sliced into 1-inch lengths or simply left whole. Know that these beauties are yummy hot, cold or room temperature for apps and dinner. 

There are two ways to finish this sort of salad. For more crunch, you could add celery. Simply slice across the stalks to get a handful or two of pale green half moons. But if you crave more flavor, spice and fat, then salami is your friend! Thickly slice and dice and toss in salad. A little bit goes a long way. (In our latest version, pictured above, we opted for a few nubs of blue cheese. Delicious!)