Butter Me Up, Baby

Did you know that if you win the title of Dairy Princess at the Minnesota State Fair, they will carve your likeness onto a lovely butter bust?

I've never sculpted with butter, but I suspect it would be a challenging medium to work with, and very temperature sensitive...see a butter artist at work below in a refrigerated room:


It takes about 6 to 8 hours to complete each one, and they are carved out of a 90 pound block of Grade A butter. That will butter a CRAPLOAD of toast. My question is, does the winner get to take home their sculpture and watch it slowly melt into an oily puddle of goo?

Germy Rugs & More

Check out these bacteria rugs by Bev Hisey.....who knew germs could look so cool? The round shapes resemble bacteria in petri dishes as seen in a microscope:

And in a totally unrelated art note, here are some creepy paintings by artist Nouar:



Happy Monday everyone!

Buy Art & Feel Good About It Dammit!

Yes, we're certainly in a recession and our stocks keep losing their value. And unfortunately, funding for many non-profits has dwindled in response, and the outlook for arts non-profits seem the bleakest. So...you should head on over to The LAB this Saturday, March 21 for their biggest 25th Anniversary Art Auction. Your $10 ticket allows you to see and buy lots of fab artwork (at amazing prices) and did I mention it includes an open bar and snacks???
I'm on their Auction Committee this year (and was their Co-Director for 2.5 years too). Here's a preview of some of the very cool art that will be up for auction (and all proceeds will go to fund their arts programs):

Untitled No. 2928 by Rex Ray


Caught in the Web by Julie Dummermuth


The Magically Disappearing Landscape: Germinations 2.1
by Daniel Ross

A number of Red Cake Gallery's artists have generously donated their work, including Daniel Ross, Brenna Burns, Allen Stickel, Lori Bode, and Lissa Ivy Tiegel. Hope to see you there!!

The World's Largest Pinata?

Below is apparently what may be the world's largest pinata, standing at 59 feet tall and filled with 8,000 pounds of candy!!! I'd think it would be quite dangerous to be standing too close to it when it's whacked open....


Carnival Cruise Lines sponsored this in Philadelphia, and they apparently brought in a wrecking ball to break this puppy open, however I have yet to see any photos of that online....speaking of p i natas......if you are ever in need of a pinata, check out www.pinatas.com...they seriously have almost any kind of pinata your heart desires including:


Yep, that's a Fidel Castro pinata!



Ever wanted to take that annoying douchebag's cellphone and bash it to bits? Now you can! This cell phone pinata actually RINGS when you smack it....yay!!! And they can make custom order pinatas too, in case you don't find what you're looking for....have a great weekend ya'll.

Pie and More Pie

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I've been obsessed with pie lately. I met up with some friends at the Rite Spot again the past two Fridays for pie and cocktails.... two Greyhounds and cherry pie constitutes a well balanced dinner, no?


This tasty looking knit pie came off of a blog but did not list a credit for who made this luscious creation...

I do know who created this cherry blueberry pie...I made it this weekend for a girls' day in. I forgot how a pain it is to create a lattice top pie....it does look lovely, but man, does it take patience!!

Um...Why?

Apparently, Britain's Royal Opera is running out of ideas because they will be presenting an Anna Nicole Smith opera ....wtf....
Clearly, they are scraping the bottom of the artistic barrel...
In other news, if you are looking for a good and quirky piece of entertainment- check out The Lab's upcoming performances of the Case of the Streetwalking Streetwalker, directed by Adam Ansell. When I was still working as the Lab's Co-Director, Adam directed a great play 10 Lanes Pizza Bowl, which I loved. Hope you will check it out!

Eat Your Veggies

I came across this cool organization, MyFarm - they grow fruits and veggies in urban backyards in San Francisco, and distribute the food via typical CSA (community supported agriculture) style. So, if you have space in your yard but don't have the time/aptitude/energy to grow your own food- just contact MyFarm and their experienced gardeners will plant and tend them for you! In exchange for your space, you will get a box of produce each time there is a harvest. Pretty nifty!


And I guess since we're talking about veggies...I made this scrumptious pumpkin pecan pie this weekend (I've been fairly obsessed with pie lately...). I mostly followed this recipe from 101Cookbooks but used pecans instead of hazelnuts. I even used low fat coconut milk, and it was satisfying but not gut busting. Not a bad way to eat your veggies!