Monday, October 06, 2008

Outstanding in the Field

It was enchanting. It is a movable feast.

The concept of performance artist and gypsy chef guru Jim Denevan is to dine on the very soil that nourishes the bounty on the plate, in the company of the farmers who cultivate it. The event is called Outstanding in the Field.

There could't have been a more perfect location on the Jolie Vue Farm near Brenham, Texas. The tables were set in a gentle curve on a hilltop overlooking waves of pasture. The guest chef, Monica Pope of T'afia, created delicious dishes with complicated names and mysterious taste combinations; names like gruyere, sambal, gribiche, cajeta. It didn't really matter what these words meant, except to confirm that Monica Pope was Jim Denevan's brilliant choice for guest chef. The local farm food and Texas wine pairings were Monica Pope's oil paints. The inspiration of time and place were Jim Denevan's canvas. Together, in the studio gallery of Jolie Vue Farms, they created a small masterpiece.

Reese and I had the privilige of being part of the art for the afternoon. That's me in the black cap across the table. Our dear friends the Globes and the Brownings have their backs to the camera. Reese, bless his heart, is literally outstanding in the field taking the photo.

4 comments:

Betsy said...

Looks like it was loads of fun. I checked out all the pictures on facebook, too. :-)

Sarah Hazel said...

It was!

lis said...

there is something I like about this pic.....beautiful.

I just commented on the last post but, it just occurred to me you may not check back that far....is the rose painting amongst your "availables" on your website???

Sarah Hazel said...

Thanks, Lis. Did you get my message on facebook about the painting?