Valerie Foster Hoffman is truly the Hostess With the Mostest, a real-life Auntie Mame! And to be at her Christmas party is to partake of an unforgettable experience.
Cookies anyone?
With Sherry in the garden.
With Santa and our Lovely Hostess!
Photographer Karl.
Exquisite jewelry designer Conchita with her most wonderful hubby.
Artist Extraordinaire, Peter Adams.
I loved hearing about sculptor Christopher Slatoff’s new commissions.
And so ended a perfect evening!
Can I even begin to express to you the joy I felt seeing the”Nan Rae” cart I donated to the Huntington for dear Danielle’s use. She had been my angel for over 25 years as Jim Folsom’s amazing assistant, and shepherding me through all my years of teaching there. This was my Christmas gift!
Brilliant Robert Hori took the afternoon off to join us. First stop, lunch in the Jade Court.
Next stop: the Flowering Brush Library and a visit with wonderful Nino, the Head Docent in the Chinese Garden, who does so much there.
I painted Bamboo with water, and then the gentleman who was stationed there added a rock, leaves, and a wonderful poem. By this time, my Bamboo had all but disappeared.
My name in Chinese.
The next stop was the Edmund de Waal exhibit, “The Eight Directions of the Wind,” curated by Robert Hori, in the Studio for Lodging the Mind. Tracing the 1,000-year evolution of porcelain. Truth be told, I would have had a hard time discovering all the nuances had Robert not been our amazing guide.
I wrote a note of thanks.
We drove in the Nan Rae cart, past the second part of the exhibit in the Marsh Tea House, in the Japanese Garden, where there are two black porcelain vessels for meditation, and on to the third section of the exhibit. In the Art Gallery’s Small Library, de Waal curated a library of poetry, framing language as a form of migration.
In the White Marble Hall, de Waal’s benches are made of Kilkenny stone.
In the dining room, 18th century Meissen plates repaired using the Japanese art of Kintsugi.
Thank you dear Danielle for a most memorable day!
Yea…Movie night with Curtis and Yi-Lin. Looks like they are Santa’s helpers!
We loved Frankenstein!!!
Santa’s helpers, Patricia and Jan stopped by.
We had a delightful time and so enjoyed Christmas cocoa.
Thank you Sweet Susan Avila for the most delightful evening. Dinner at Abernethy’s and then gifted Ben Platt at the Ahmanson!
Happy Hanukkah!
Lovely Valerie and her driver picked me up, and off we went the party!
I crashed this one!
Party number two.
Diane, our lovely hostess!
And Valerie with our host.
Years ago, the woman to the left was my student at the Huntington and to my right, a student from a workshop at Robinson Gardens!
It was time for Valerie to go on to her next party and for David to drive me home.
The studio tree is just about as full as it can be!
Christmas eve and Somi gets to open her presents.
Every year Awesome Carol Soucek King includes us in her wonderful Christmas dinner gathering at the Jonathan Club.
Santa wasn’t downstairs by the tree so I had to scold him for being naughty.
Here we are, ready to party. Dear Carol, Nino, Veronica, me, Patricia and Evelyn!
Our delightful party favors.
Another Christmas ends so beautifully.
And now, the New Year’s Eve countdown.
