on our own in buenos aires

today might have set new boundaries.  the kids went off on their own and fred and i did our own thing.  it worked well for everyone and we will all meet for dinner.  love that.

fred and i started the day off at monet cafe which is on a corner in the ricoleta area.  just a simple cafe with good coffee and yummy croissants.  we are attempting to hook up with a woman who has a gallery and is in the midst of moving so all her art into new space and everything is at her apartment.  the hook-up isn't working so well but tomorrow is another day.  we walked back and i found a fantastic leather shop and made a few purchases which always sets the day off in a good direction.  the store just opened up 2 months ago. 

we went back to the hotel to check in with the kids and at that point, we parted ways.  fred and i walked over to el cuartito.  a pizza shop dating back 75 years.  a total local joint.  pictures of argentine sports on the wall.  in the front of the shop, you can eat your slice and have something to drink.  on the other side, is the area where you can sit down an order. 

we ordered a pie with mozzarella, jamon and tomatoes.  it came with olives too but no biggie.  it isn't antico forno in rome (my favorite pizza place in the entire world) but it is quite good.  the crust is thin but has the taste of a thicker napoleon type crust.  the crust is very crispy so a knife works perfect or a really good bite.  highly recommend this place.  total old school. 

we strolled over to el ateneo which is an old theater converted into a bookstore.  a very cool space.  books are even in the higher areas that were originally for seating.  the cafe is around the stage.  worth just walking into.

galleries were on the mind today so that is what we did.  we began at daniel maman gallery which is not really near any other galleries.  it was recommended to me so we stopped in.  the exhibit was quite interesting.  large trees that were wrapped in rope and studded with nails.  there were not only sculptures but also photos of the pieces that made them look surreal.  the best part, was the woman who ran the gallery was incredibly helpful.  i have done tons of research but was still at a loss on where to go for emerging art.  she pointed me in the right direction and confirmed all the information i had including where to shop.  i gave her a few tips when she came back to nyc which she does frequently so it was the perfect exchange.

we decided the best thing to do was to go back to the street called arroyo which is near the sofitel.  there are about 6 galleries on that street, all that carry more seasoned artists but if you ask, you never know what you can find in the back rooms.

we first started at a gallery that was having a show of all young artists and nothing was more than 1000 pesos which is about $380 us dollars.  nothing rocked my boat but i did like the concept.  the next space we walked into is called aldo de sousa gallery.  a young guy who owns it with a mixture of interesting artists.  i talked to him about other artists and what he might have.  also, i don't have space for huge pieces.  he brought out a bunch of stuff.  my favorite was an artist named florencia temperley.  he has a series of photos that she did called the wall.  might go back and buy a piece tomorrow.  there are 2 pieces that i liked.  one of the soccer ball and the other of the shadows of children.

we walked into daniel mamans smaller gallery which is located on that street too.  some interesting pieces, all the galleries seem to have a mixture of artists on their walls right now.  it might have to do with the season. 

down the street is a few other galleries that didn't draw me in.  palatina is another gallery on the other side of the street that i had actually written down so we went in.  the woman at daniel maman told me it was an excellent gallery when she went through my research.  3 lovely ladies helped us.  they brought out some really great pieces from 2 artists that i liked immediately.  the one on the left, the black and white, is from an artist named beto de volder.  what is really cool is the pieces move because there are magnets on the back of each piece attached to a metal canvas.  all his other art is of the same vein but in sculpture forms and drawings but conceptually the same style.  we bought the one shown above.  the piece on the right is from an artist named andrea paredes.  his work is all about cut-outs. one piece was a paper cut out with an exact knife.  the piece above is made of wood cut into an intricate web with green cylinder in the back that pops.  we got that piece too.  beto is 43 years of age and andres is 28 so the gallery has artists they are nurturing, others that have established themselves a bit more and others way into their 70's who are seriously established.  i like that.

on the way back we passed another gallery, galerie rubbers international.  2 artists i really liked in there but unfortunately the guy was on the phone while we were there and i didn't feel like waiting.  the artists were andrea fernandez and lilliana golubinsky. 

i finally connected with the woman who is in the midst of moving her gallery.  we will go see what she has tomorrow morning.  maybe more art is to bring home is in our future.