Urban Culture Institute
  • Home
  • Projects
    • Worcester
    • Howes Park
    • Coppens Square Park
    • Codman Square Park
    • Gourdin Park
    • Kulturpark Berlin
    • TEMPOart
    • Ringer Park
    • Mather School Green Space
    • MBTA Red Line Wollaston Station
    • MBTA Silver Line Extension
    • Boston Children's Hospital
    • HarborArts Boston
    • Social Muscle Club
    • Memphis Art Walk
    • To Extremes
    • Art in Architecture Study
    • BSA Placemaking Network >
      • 2019 Placemaking Seminars
      • 2018 Placemaking Seminars
      • 2017 Placemaking Seminar Series
      • Placemaking Seminar Series 2016
      • Placemaking Seminar Series 2015
      • Placemaking Seminar Series 2012
      • Placemaking Seminar Series 2011
      • Placemaking Seminar Series 2010
      • Placemaking Seminar Series 2009
      • Placemaking Seminar Series 2008
  • Blog
  • Publications
  • Team
  • Maps
    • Fenway-Kenmore
    • Fort Point-Seaport
  • Contact

Dinner in the Open Room or An Austin Travelogue

1/13/2015

1 Comment

 
Christina Lanzl

Having lived in the northern parts of the world, some of my best memories are of delicious summer picnics at scenic locales with friends or family. Of course, ants and other critters can overshadow these outdoor idylls, turning mishaps into anecdotes, retold as memorable stories at future occasions. My passion for eating outdoors stems in part from the depravations of the urban dweller lacking the amenities of a balcony, patio or garden. Hence, being invited to a potluck dinner at Open Room Austin by Susan Lambe and her team at Art in Public Places during a visit was a dream come true.


On approach, the spot's visual stimuli triggered many wonderful associations. I reveled in richly layered memories of childhood years spent in the verdant Bavarian countryside, visualizing our family home’s big garden and my grandfather’s farm orchard, where we picked fruits and berries all summer. To this day, I relish the inimitable taste of freshly picked, sun-warm strawberries, raspberries, gooseberries, and boysenberries or, roaming through the forest to pick wild blueberries for cakes and baking, lingonberries for preserves and chanterelles for dinner. Climbing up trees, I savored the crisp apples, juicy plums, pears and delicious cherries – my favorite – straight from the branches. Or how about those first radishes pulled from the ground and the carrots washed in the rain barrel for immediate consumption? There’s nothing like it.     

These thoughts passed through my mind as I was entering Austin’s well-appointed, public living room in a small park, surrounded by young trees that have to grow for another decade before casting shade on hot days. Having chosen the amenities of the city, the cultural richness and urban creativity over my former rural existence, I cherished this possibility of sharing a comfortable outdoor experience with others.

Like a scene out of a fairytale, a long dining table covered with a white lace tablecloth invites to be seated. Fabricated in powder-coated steel, the delicate fabric being frozen in rigid metal adds to its wonder and charm. At the four corners of this imaginary room, elegant, seven-arm chandeliers in matching color frame the ensemble. Realized by Miami-based artists Rosario Marquardt and Roberto Behar, the design responds to my own perpetual desire to find harmony and sense of place. This surely is a setting I want to revisit over and over again, probably like many neighbors and out-of-town visitors who happen upon the Open Room in this newly built park next to a new neighborhood on the north side of Austin’s Lady Bird Lake. If Open Room was mine, the only thing I would add is a little hedge or a white picket fence at the park’s edge for more comfort and as delineation for passing traffic.

On this balmy, early winter evening the warming rays of the Texas sun provide perfect outdoor conditions for a social gathering. About twenty artists, architects, planners and residents had followed the invitation to join this evening of food and conversation hosted in my honor. Two photographers capture the scene, Philip Rogers is one of them, a brilliant photographer known for his portraits of artists, on leave from his native Maine over the winter. As I look at the faces in his photos, I fondly remember our shared stories of successes and challenges similar to those of other cities I traveled to.

Two artists at the table recently designed bike racks, engendering Austin’s reputation as a forward thinking city that supports sustainable and creative life styles, while fostering innovation in design, public health and leisure activities. A muralist looks to work on more public art commissions. Concern is voiced over an ongoing public debate questioning the expense of a public art commission in the form of a security wall at the nearby electrical substation. With the richness of conversation, the potluck dishes in the center of the table remain mostly untouched until someone begins passing a few bowls. Eating seems less important, here and now, though someone tells of recent barbeque feasts.

As the sinking sun paints a glowing sky, our conversation turns to quiet reverie. A vivid palette ranging from deep orange to lavender marks the end of the day. Birds are singing their last evening song. Calm and gratitude for this lavish display of nature makes me feel at peace with the universe. The air turns chilly, so we bade our goodbyes, feeling richer and happier for what we shared.
1 Comment
high frequency facial machine link
8/27/2021 12:45:39 pm

Fashion, the style of clothing, style of looking different, style of talking and style of living, etc is now the need of various people who want to be and behave according to the changed outside environment. Fashion has been always a center of attraction for most people for many years. Generally, the trend of fashion has been viewed in young generation people.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Urban Culture Institute

    The Urban Culture Institute
    ​works with diverse communities to transform civic spaces into meaningful, dynamic places. Our award-winning practice is committed to excellence in the arts and culture. 

    Archives

    May 2021
    August 2020
    June 2020
    January 2020
    November 2019
    June 2019
    March 2019
    November 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    June 2017
    April 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    June 2016
    April 2016
    February 2016
    December 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    June 2015
    April 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    September 2014
    July 2014
    April 2014
    September 2013
    July 2013
    March 2013
    January 2013
    November 2012

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    Airport Art
    Anne-Catrin Schultz
    Art
    Art In Architecture
    Art-in-Architecture
    Artists Help Desk
    ARTitecture
    Arts And Culture
    Arts And Technology
    Art Tour
    ArtWeek Boston
    Austin TX
    Blue Trees
    Book Talk
    Boston
    Boston Center For The Arts
    Boston Creates
    Boston Society Of Architects
    BSA Space
    Campus
    Chelsea Art Walk
    Chelsea MA
    Christina Lanzl
    Christine Henseler
    Christopher Janney
    Dendroids
    Department Of Architecture
    Dieta Sixt
    Digitalkunst
    Diller+Scofidio
    Durig & Rami
    Edward Ingersoll Browne Trust Fund
    Einstein Tower
    Erich Mendelsohn
    Exhibition
    Facade
    Fort Point Arts Community
    Fort Point Tech & Art Tour
    Forum
    FPAC
    Friends Of Fort Point Channel
    Guarracino Family Gallery
    Historic Fort Point
    ICA Boston
    Imagine Boston 2030
    Institut Du Monde Arabe
    Institute Of Contemporary Art/Boston
    Jean Nouvel
    Josefine Günschel
    Julian Opie
    Julie Burros
    Kinetics
    KMD Architects
    Konstantin Dimopoulos
    Kulturpark
    Kunst Im öffentlichen Raum
    Land Art
    Landing Studio
    Materialitaet
    Mather School
    Medien
    MIT Museum
    Ned Kahn
    Open Room Austin TX
    Patrick Dougherty
    Peabody Essex Museum
    Placemaking
    Port Park
    Projection Mapping
    P+ Studio
    Public Art
    Richard Bertman
    Richard McGuinness
    Roxy Paine
    Sculpture
    Soma
    Stefan Pietryga
    Steven Holl
    Stickwork
    Storefront For Art And Architecture
    The Blue Trees
    Urban Culture Institute
    UrbanScreen
    Vancouver Biennial
    Vito Acconci
    WBUR
    Wentworth
    Whitney Biennial

Proudly powered by Weebly