Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/112451
SFMOMA, SAN FRANCISCO, �� KEN PRICE, PHOTO �� FREDRIK NILSEN Feats of (Very Good) CLAY Working from a Bastille workshop that once sheltered Napoleon���s silversmith, lifestyle powerhouse Astier De Villatte salutes the classical identity of the 17th and 18th centuries. The brand���s forte lies in its exquisitely designed ceramics by Beno��t Astier de Villatte and Ivan Pericoli, who revived an ancien technique called estampage to bathe black terracotta in a milkywhite ���nish. This method ampli���es the unique character of the clay, leaving deliberate little hiccups and imperfections to make each one of a kind. While the result may appear purloined from a Loire Valley farmhouse, the modern sensibility will ���lch its fair share of compliments in your Turtle Creek high-rise. Pictured: Composition Louis XV, $1,568. Exclusively in Dallas at Grange Hall. Amy Adams MUSEO NACIONAL DEL PRADO, MADRID �� MUSEO NACIONAL DEL PRADO, MADRID Diego Rodr��guez de Silva y Vel��zquez���s Philip IV, 1623 ��� 1627, at Meadows Museum, SMU Full Circle: PRADO+PORTRAITURE+ A MIGHTY ROYAL T he likeness of powerful Spanish monarch King Philip IV ��� he of the astute eye whose art collection forms a pillar of one of the world���s most muni���cent museums, Museo Nacional del Prado in Madrid ��� comes to the Meadows Museum at Southern Methodist University this fall. ���Diego Vel��zquez: The Early Court Portraits��� pairs this patron extraordinaire with his of���cial court painter, assembling early examples from the 17thcentury Spanish master���s oeuvre including the celebrated, psychologically modern, imposing canvas of Philip IV from 1623 to 1627, begun when the artist was only 24 years old. Part of the innovative, ongoing PradoMeadows exchange, this loan comes full circle, for if there were no Philip IV nor his portrait by Vel��zquez, there would have been no Prado to inspire Algur H. Meadows to found his own ���small Prado in Texas.��� September 16, 2012 - January 13, 2013, at Meadows Museum, Southern Methodist University; smu.edu/meadowsmuseum. Catherine D. Anspon MUSEO ARQUEL��GICO DE TULA JORGE R. ACOSTA; PHOTO �� MUSEUM ASSOCIATES/LACMA, BY JORGE P��REZ DE LARA Something to Write HOME ABOUT Sandaled Feet of Atlantid Warrior Column, Tula, Hidalgo, Mexico, Toltec civilization, A.D. 900 ��� 1200, at DMA Neighborhood; 411 N. Bishop Ave., 214.943.5650; neighborhood-store.com As if the Bishop Arts district didn���t have enough cool factor already: Neighborhood, a new home shop and design studio, has put out its welcome mat. Husband-and-wife duo John Paul and Erin Hossley (architect and interior designer, respectively) stock modern-minded furnishings ��� much of it locally made ��� by Stash Design, Field Day, Tony Barsotti, Shea Petricek; work from local artists such as Cabe Booth, Taylor McClure, Kevin Obregon and Scott Horn; and books, pillows, lighting and candles from Joseph Joseph, Core Bamboo, Fairfax & King. Whether you���re more the brewski or martini type, sidle up to the Design Bar for free consultation and advice. A menu cleverly displays hourly prices for services, and Neighborhood stays open late for design-owls: until 8 pm Tuesday through Thursday and 10 pm Friday and Saturday. Savannah Christian BIG FOOT A mong the most startling treasures on view in the Dallas Museum of Art���s ancient Mexican blockbuster, ���The Legacy of the Plumed Serpent in Ancient Mexico,��� is a multi-ton, sixfoot-tall pair of sandaled feet, truncated at the knees and sculpted from basalt, circa A.D. 900 ��� 1200. The dramatic architectural fragment was once a column in a vast pyramidal complex, at the heart of the capital of the Toltec kingdom in Tula (in the present state of Hidalgo), sited amid the plains of central Mexico. Watch for this Atlantid Warrior posted outside the entrance to the exhibition, standing guard over 150 rare artifacts and objects of art that span 500 years during the postclassic and early colonial periods, united by a common belief in the plumed serpent, or Quetzalcoatl. Another highlight is more ephemeral but equally fascinating ��� the poignant Codex Nuttall, a 15th���16th-century hand-colored and illustrated volume penned on deerskin. Stolen from the Mixtecs by their European conquerors, it���s now back in North America for the ���rst time in 500 years. Organized by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, ���The Plumed Serpent��� arrives at the DMA as its second and ���nal stop; do not miss this mystical show (special entry ticket required). ���The Legacy of the Plumed Serpent in Ancient Mexico,��� at the Dallas Museum of Art, through November 25; dallasmuseumofart.org. Catherine D. Anspon Ken Price���s L. Red, 1963, at Los Angeles County Museum of Art The Price Is RIGHT One of the most captivating exhibitions of contemporary ceramics ever, ���Ken Price Sculpture: A Retrospective,��� organized by the Los Angeles Country Museum of Art, ���rmly places this late West Coast master in the realm of contemporary sculptors, eschewing a narrow craft de���nition. Long before Chihuly broke through the con���nes of the craft kingdom, the Los Angeles���born Price was showcased in serious galleries and accepted by museum curators, including the incomparable Walter Hopps, who gave the artist one of his ���rst exhibitions at the Ferus Gallery in the early 1960s, then showcased Price some 30 years late in an important traveling solo organized by The Menil Collection. A former professor of ceramics at USC, Price spent the ���nal decade of his life in Taos, where he continued to push and probe the possibilities of ���red and painted clay, vis-��-vis his famed mottled and molten creations. Despite the often small size of these clay works, they pack a punch and possess a power that transcends their time, place and medium. Architect Frank Gehry, a friend and fan of the ceramicist for more than 50 years, specially designed the exhibition, which makes the second stop of its national tour in Dallas at the Nasher Sculpture Center next February, before heading to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in the summer of 2013. On view September 16, 2012 ��� January 6, 2013, at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (lacma.org); February 9 ��� May 12, 2013, at the Nasher Sculpture Center (nashersculpturecenter.org); June 18 ���September 22, 2013, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (metmuseum.org). Catherine D. Anspon The Outdoorsy TYPE For those still debating the merits of papering a powder room, perhaps its time to live large. Known for its imaginative, mural-like wallpapers, Italian company Wall & Dec�� recently introduced OUT (Outdoor Unconventional Textures), a three-part surface covering that enables incredible photographic reproductions and large-scale graphic designs to be applied onto outside walls. The system consists of an adhesive, a technical fabric and a ���nishing treatment that ensure a tenacious grip on exterior surfaces, even in damp environments. The choices guarantee no one will ever again refer to your domicile as ���the second house on the left��� ��� think eye-popping Bauhaus patterns, optic prints, tribal motifs, houndstooth, camou���age and weathered wood for starters. We suppose the only real question you need ask is: Does this pattern make my house look big? wallanddeco.com. Amy Adams Words to the WISE Toff Timothy Oulton British furniture designer Timothy Oulton is prone to making pronouncements such as ���If everyone gets it, I���m not doing my job��� or ���Antiques aren���t relevant.��� Clearly, this isn���t a man who���s stingy with an opinion. And, during the opening of his ���rst stand-alone store in the U.S. (in Dallas at Potter Square, 4500 N. Central Expressway), we discovered he���s not particularly parsimonious with British slang, either. In an effort to get our Anglophile on, we queried: How does one avoid being called a wanker? Here���s what he told us: 1. Use manners; be nice to people. 2. Be loyal. 3. Buy the best you can afford. 4. Choose classic over trendy every time. 5. If you believe in it, go for it; don���t listen to others. 6. Don���t be afraid to apologize. 7. Don���t take life too seriously, but commit wholeheartedly. 8. Be interested. 9. Be passionate. 10. Think big.