Week in San Antonio

We flew to San Antonio on Tuesday to help Lynne move from an independent living apartment in a retirement living facility, to an assisted living apartment.  We packed most of Wednesday, with Brian arriving by late morning and helping Papa put together new bar stools.  Movers arrived on Thursday morning by 9:30.  They finished the move by early afternoon and I spent the rest of the day arranging furniture and organizing drawers and cabinets in the bathroom, master closet, and kitchen.  We enjoyed time with Lynne and Brian all day on Thursday.  Papa and I hung all of Lynne’s artwork on Friday morning, and I continued organizing in the afternoon.  By evening, the apartment looked like “home” for Lynne.  We returned to AZ on Saturday afternoon.  She was happy, as we were!  She is going to enjoy her new place with more services.  Lynne will turn 97 in a couple of weeks.  We hope to do as well as she has for as long as she has!  She’s amazing!

Hosting Master-Apprentice Award Recipient Joanne

A couple of weeks ago, I received a call from Joanne, to tell me “I won!”  I met Joanne in March at Wak: Pow Wow at San Xavier Mission in Tucson.  We went to the Pow Wow with friends, Rachel and Bill.  At some point during that afternoon, Rachel and I walked around the grounds to look at each of the vendor tents.  There was one vendor whose jewelry was beautiful and different than all the others.  Joanne and her daughter, Janice, make beaded necklaces based on Navajo rug patterns of Joanne’s mother and grandmother.  Both Rachel and I purchased necklaces from Joanne that day and we got in touch with them on a trip to Canyon de Chelly in May.  Joanne and Janice invited us to their home, where both Rachel and I bought more Navajo beaded jewelry.

After we left Canyon de Chelly, Rachel remembered a conversation with the Director of Southwest Folklife Alliance, when the Master-Apprentice Award was mentioned.  Rachel called me and suggested we nominate Joanne for the award.  Rachel was on her way to Chicago for the summer, so I wrote the nomination, with help from Rachel, and submitted it in early June.  The Master-Apprentice Award “supports and encourages the preservation and perpetuation of traditional art forms present and thriving in Arizona.  It fosters and supports the critical teaching/learning relationship between traditional artists and their apprentices.  The award is supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, Arizona Commission on the Arts, Surdna Foundation, and the University of Arizona Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences.”

Joanne won the 2019 Master-Apprentice Award!  Joanne has been making beaded jewelry 35-40 years and she has mentored her daughters, with Janice  now an accomplished beaded jewelry artist as well.  The Award comes with both a monetary prize and recognition by the Southwest Folklife Alliance at various events over the coming year.  Joanne was invited to Tucson this weekend for a photo shoot.  I invited her family to stay in our home and I invited several friends and neighbors to come meet her and see her unique jewelry.  We had a busy weekend with Joanne and Janice and their family.  I am so proud of Joanne!

David Hume Kennerly Pop Up

After lunch today, we drove down to the UA Campus to see the David Hume Kennerly pop-up exhibition.  His career stretches back to the 1960’s and the breadth of his work is staggering.  We were surprised at how many of Kennerly's images are the iconic photos of those particular moments, that everyone thinks of.   

“As a featured component of the University of Arizona’s Family Weekend 2019, the Center for Creative Photography has designed its first-ever outdoor pop-up exhibition to be displayed along the UA Mall.  Including over 60 images by Kennerly, the exhibition shows the Pulitzer-prize winning photographer’s breadth of subjects.  Included are his early political pictures of Robert Kennedy, Richard Nixon, and Gerald Ford; entertainment images including Mick Jagger, Miles Davis, and Jerry Seinfeld; sports figures Mary Lou Retton, Muhammed Ali, and Carl Lewis; recent political figures President Donald Trump, Senator Elizabeth Warren, and former President Jimmy Carter; and news events including a space shuttle lift off, presidential inaugurations, and a chilling view of the Pentagon on 9/11. The exhibition will run Friday, October 11 through Monday, October 14 only.” 

Tucson Meet Yourself

We spent this afternoon in downtown Tucson at the Tucson Meet Yourself Festival, in its 46th year.  “The festival is a celebration of the living traditional arts of Southern Arizona’s ethnic and folk communities.  The three day event features hundreds of artisans, home cooks, dancers, musicians, and special exhibits that celebrate beauty in all its diverse and informal forms.”

We went specifically to hear Mariachi Aztlan de Pueblo High School perform at 3:30 this afternoon.  They are incredibly good, with 120 members vying for 16 performance spots.  We also watched Ballet Folklorico, a Polish dance troupe, and Chinese lion dancers.  There were dozens of ethnic food vendors, everything from Peruvian, French, Iranian, Mexican, Native American, Indian, Thai, and so many more.  Artisans were demonstrating their crafts.  Papa talked with a man making reatas, over 75’ long from single strands of cut leather.  There were Native American artists making everything from jewelry to baskets to paper flowers, Asian weavers and calligraphers, a Congolese seamstress, a Ukrainian embroiderer, and from the Americas - leatherworkers, piñata maker, muralist, and potters, on and on!  There were also thousands of people watching, eating, and enjoying the afternoon in downtown Tucson, with the event centered around the Main Tucson Library.

Tucson Meet Yourself Festival brings together all the elements that are a considerable reason that we chose to live in Tucson in retirement.  We love the mix of ethnicities, the various traditions and cultures, native foods, and all of us living in the Sonoran Desert - where only a few tribes are native.  All the rest of us are from someplace else.

In the Room with David Hume Kennerly

This evening, Papa and I went to Centennial Hall on UA campus to the presentation, In the Room with David Hume Kennerly and Jon Meacham.  David Hume Kennerly’s photographic archive was recently acquired by the Center for Creative Photography at UA.  Tonight’s event “brought together two Pulitzer Prize winners and friends.  David, a former White House photographer, has documented history for more than fifty years, creating iconic images of war, politics, sports, celebrities, and everyday life.”  Jon Meacham is an historian and former editor of Newsweek magazine.  You can see some of David’s work at https://kennerly.ccp.arizona.edu/galleries-overview.  David and Jon talked for close to two hours, with slides of photos flashing behind them on stage.  There were so many photos that most Americans have seen, historic moments, taken by David.  It was a very interesting evening, laced with stories, both sad and funny.

Supper Club

We enjoyed having supper with our Supper Club neighbors last evening at Judith and Toby's home, and co-hosted by Lynda and Dan, who live next door to them.  Lynda and Dan prepared grilled chicken and beef, and everyone brought large platters of appetizers, salads, side dishes and desserts.  All was delicious and we are enjoying getting to know neighbors.  It was a perfect night on Judith and Toby's patio, under the stars.

Quinceanera

Last evening we went to Jocelyn's quinceanera dinner and dance.  A quinceanera is both a religious and social event celebrating young women at the age of 15 and the importance of their family, friends, and religion.  This was not our first quinceanera.  We went to Jocelyn's cousin, Sabrina's quinceanera in Mexico three years ago and Jocelyn's sister's quinceanera two years ago. There was a buffet of delicious spicy food, music, and dancing.  We enjoyed seeing several people we hadn't seen in a couple of years.  Jocelyn was beautiful in royal blue and she chose sea life decor.  Jocelyn has blossomed over the past few months.  

Tucson Museum of Art

We met our friend, Jennie at the Tucson Museum of Art this afternoon, for TMA’s First Thursday event.  We enjoyed a classical guitarist playing samba music, Ballet Folklorico dancing, and exploring the American West exhibits.  We parted ways for Jennie to go to a presentation at the FOX Theater and Papa and I went for dinner at Senae Thai Bistro.  We had a wonderful evening!