Perhaps W Magazine could sense my impending subscription cancellation because–despite the fact that Megan Fox is on the cover, pretending to seem as though there is some thought of intelligent merit rolling around somewhere in her head–they actually included several great pieces of interest.
First, there is a wonderful profile of Christophe de Menil, daughter of the great John and Dominique de Menil, who founded the Menil museum here in Houston. I love when the Menil or anyone connected with it gets any sort of mention in a national publication because it draws positive attention to the city of Houston, which sometimes gets a bad rap for various reasons. We are actually one of the most forward cities in the US in terms of art, and Houston is lucky to be the beneficiary of some very wealthy families who just happened to love and collect art as well as possess a philanthropic spirit. At 77-years old, Christophe is still going strong. There is not much information about her on the web, but you can see her beautiful jewelry and other creations at her beautifully modern website. If you keep up with art, you might be aware of her late grandson, Dash Snow. Dash was the son of Christophe’s daughter, Taya, from her first marriage to Robert Thurman, also known as Uma Thurman’s father. Anyway, Christophe seems like an interesting and friendly person, and I hope she visits Houston again sometime.
Also in the art vein was an article on Karel Funk, who is a young artist that paints, well…raincoats and hoodies. His work caught my eye because of its hyper-realistic, photographic style. In fact, he uses photographs that he takes himself as references, but the paintings are all acrylic on panel. Funk’s style is fascinating to me because I remember just how hard it was to paint fabric and drapery when I took a painting class in college. Something about his style and the choice he makes to present his subjects against a white background also suggests the sometimes solitary nature of modern society.
And last, there is a grand article on China Machado, who was the first non-Caucasian woman to be featured on the cover of a fashion magazine, Harper’s Bazaar, in 1959. The article is accompanied by many photos, some of Machado in her youth when she was photographed often by her friend, a one Mr. Richard Avedon, and several others of her presently, laughing and prancing around and seeming to have the time of her life with her family. She’s led a fascinating life which will be detailed in her upcoming memoir, beautifully entitled I Was Always Running After the Laughter. If only W Magazine could have chosen her for the cover.
I just love reading stories of these women who have led storied lives with friends like Judy Garland, Truman Capote, and others who are no longer with us. Houston is also lucky enough to have one of our own of just this type of lady in Lynn Wyatt. You can read more about her and get a taste of Houston history in this piece from National Geographic. Some of these ladies with their great memories won’t be around for all that much longer, and the more they tell their stories the longer we will have the reminder of eras gone by.
Wordgazer 