Bill Georgenes - The Toy Master

S P I R I T   O F   A   S T U D I O

Photography & Text by C. Whitney-Ward

Artist Bill Georgenes is a very happy man. He gets to play with toys all day long, a simple childhood joy that eluded him because both he and his mother were sent to live in a sanatorium when she was diagnosed with TB. But he's making up for those lost  years by plying his amazing eye, heart and talent - he was trained at the Massachusetts School of Art and received an MFA from Yale -  to his equally amazing toy assemblages. 

When you step into his Santa FE studio/home every surface is 'encrusted' with  sculpture - in varying stages of doneness.

But, they all begin with an empty cookie tin and box of toys...

A few pieces will be added...

And then Bill might move on to another in-progress sculpture and another, slowly adding and building, going back again to each one, adding more toys until it's right - like creating a symphony, he says.  Then he paints them, first with whatever acrylic paint he has around, and then with a final coat of silver or gold. The wonder is in their detail and how one toy flows into, around and above/below/behind the next and creates a happy whole.

And when Bill gets 'stuck' with a toy sculpture he's working on, he switches artistic hats and  works on his paintings - large 'optic' canvases filled with color and texture.

All this is a far cry from his days as an art restorer, repairing Rembrandts and Monets at the Fogg Art Museum in Cambridge, MA.  But, I don't think the Toy Master would have it any other way.

Please CLICK HERE to see a wonderful video of Bill and his work.

B I L L   G E O R G E N E S

505.989.8289

Leather Designers in Santa Fe

L E A T H E R  .   L E A T H E R  .   E V E R Y W H E R E



I try to go to the Santa Fe FLEA market at El Museo each week and I always bring my camera. You never know what treasure you'll find tucked away in one of the enticing booths.  This time, two vendor/artists caught my eye with their beautiful leather bags and clothing.  

Photography & Text by C. Whitney-Ward

Designer ABBIE CAPLIN'S hand-crafted leather bags are stunning. These meticulously- detailed bags are a joint venture between Abbie and artisan/craftsman Miguel Montano who brings her designs to life.

Even the insides are lovely...

A B B I E  C A P L I N

at the FLEA (look in the side room)

925.205.9119

.

A few booths away, this deerskin jacket caught my eye - the creation of PAM DIETRICH, a master artist/designer in deerskin, elk, lamb suede and lamb shearling.

All the seams are hand laced and Pam notes that all of her tools can

 fit in one of her hands...simply beautiful.

beautiful detail work...

P A M   D I E T R I C H

at The FLEA - El Museo

505.577.1076

.

And I ran into leather designer Mohsin Mulk just outside (I'll be doing a studio visit soon) and took a few photographs...

M O H S I N   M U L K

505.316.6551

In the Kitchen - with Brian Rood - Tomme Restaurant

S  I  G  N  A   T   U   R   E      D   I   S   H   E  S

Photos by C. Whitney-Ward

Brian Rood, Executive Chef at Tomme, a wonderful downtown bistro, invited me into his kitchen to see how he made  - MORCILLA  or  Blood Sausage - a signature dish on the Tomme menu that his grandmother taught him to make. According to Brian, there are lots of variations and recipes for this ancient dish  - which dates from the first century A.D.. - but he likes to keep it simple - pork shoulder, Spanish sweet paprika, bay leaf, salt and pepper, and a bit of ground oats for  a binder.

The seasoned meat is freshly ground in a commercial Cuisinart and then mixed with pork blood - hence the name.

Brian has to special order the casings - not something readily available in Santa Fe - and when the pork mixture is ready, he feeds it through the Cuisinart and the casings balloon  and are twisted and looped into links. Looks easy, but I think it takes a bit of practice and a master hand to pull it off.

The sausages are then poached and chilled.  When an order comes up,  they are   quickly seared with rosemary...

A wedge of bread is cooked in garlic and thyme...

an egg cooked sunny-side up...

Plated with some cannelloni bean puree and a bit of greens, the finished dish  is worthy of the ancient Greek poet Homer,  who penned a few passages in the Odyssey about roasting blood sausage over a roaring fire.

 Thanks Brian and kitchen mates - Lisa Graff and Gabe Archuletta. I'm amazed that something as simple as sausage and eggs can take hours to make from scratch and 3 skillets to pull it off!

T O M M E

 (pronounced TUM)

229 Galisteo St. - Santa Fe, NM

      (505) 825-2253