The Official Martha Stewart Blog

April 16, 2014

An Interesting Exhibit at Dienst + Dotter

Hannah Milman, our Crafts Editorial Director, would like to share the following blog.

I recently attended the book launch and gallery opening for Joseph Ari Aloi’s Sketches, Tattoos, Drawings, Paintings, and Objects at Diesnt + Dotter, an art and antique gallery in New York City specializing in Scandinavian art and antiques from Baroque to present day. Jill Diesnt, the proprietor of the gallery worked closely with Jospeh Ari Aloi to create an inspiring experience for the show including an exclusive collaboration in which Joseph painted directly on the wall of the gallery. Joseph’s distinct tattoo/graffiti style made for an interesting juxtaposition commingling with Jill’s expertly curated Scandinavian pieces. Signed copies of Joseph’s book are available at Dienst + Dotter. You can see all of Joseph’s work by clicking here.

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1 Dienst + Dotter is an art and antique gallery curated by proprietor Jill Dienst.

2 The gallery is located in NOHO at 411 Lafayette Street in New York City. For hours and more information call: 212 861-1200

3 This is David Mashburn - graphic designer for Joseph’s new book, artist Joseph Ari Aloi - AKA JK5, and Jill Dienst - owner of Dienst + Dotter.

4 Joseph Ari Aloi’s tattooed hands

5 From the sidewalk, you can see the hand-painted collaboration between Joseph Ari Aloi and gallery owner Jill Dienst, who lovingly calls it "a gift."

6 This is Joseph Ari Aloi’s new book, titled Sketches, Tattoos, Drawings, Paintings, and Objects published by Rizzoli New York.

7 Joseph Ari Aloi’s grafiti-tyle artwork and Jill Dienst’s Scandanavian antiques make a nice juxtaposition.

8 Joseph’s newest book is on display beneath a beautiful antique penny farthing.

9 Kevin Sharkey, Executive Director of Decorating for Martha Stewart Living and Kate Berry, Creative Director of Martha Stewart Weddings

10 Kate Berry, engaged in conversation with Dan Dienst, CEO of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia

11 This is an assemblage from Nine to The Power of Three Show, Tokyo 2003.

12 There were stacks of limited edition silk screened prints to shuffle through.

13 Only twenty of these prints were available the night of the event. This artwork was also used on the cover of the new book.

14 Jill always has the most beautiful and interesting antiques on display in her shop.

15 This is Dan Dienst’s very apropo leather jacket.

16 A selection of Joseph Ari Aloi’s sketchbooks

17 I loved this Swedish Rococo chandelier circa 1750.

18 This is an antique painted suitcase filled with more of JK5’s sketches, artwork, and tattoo designs.

19 This large platter is filled with Joseph Ari Aloi’s ‘Flowbots’ designed for KidRobot surrounded by his books and sketches.

20 This is an amazing selection of Joseph's hand-drawn tattoos. His medium revolves around tattoo art and graffiti styles.

21 Such beautiful detail

22 This is Chad Murawczyk, founder of Min New York and Mindy Yang, President of Min New York, a haute perfumery, apothecary, and atelier.

23 Antiques expert Leslie Keno, Jill Dienst, and Joseph Ari Aloi

24 These are three originals that were printed in Joseph’s new book - From left: The Hunter and The Hunter, The Night Could Be My Eyelids, and The Sand is Quick!

25 A page from Joseph’s new book Sketches, Tattoos, Drawings, Paintings, and Objects. This page is from his sketchbook.

26 These are sketches and drawings displayed in an antique American cabinet - among them Star Wars Galaxy 4 Topps Artist Series.

27 Steven Learner - Founder and Creative Director of Collective 2, Jill Dienst, photographer Douglas Friedman, Kevin Sharkey, and Kate Berry

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Posted in: Behind the Scenes, Collecting, Employees, Entertaining, Events, Friends, Miscellaneous, Photo Gallery

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April 15, 2014

See What's Blooming At The Farm!

Finally, after a long and drawn out winter, the snow has all melted and the early spring blooming flowers are sharing their refreshing beauty. Here's a bit of spring color to cheer you!

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1 Color is arriving at the boxwood allee.

2 First to bloom here are light purple crocus.

3 My honeybees are active, I'm happy to see.

4 The bees are hungry for nectar after a long winter.

5 I really enjoy naturalizing early spring bloomers in the lawn, like these dark purple crocus. They just brighten up the place.

6 Small early bloomers are well-suited to lawns because they grow about the same height as the grass.

7 If the grass needs to be mowed before the foliage browns, I instruct the crew to just mow around these bulbs, as the foliage replenishes the bulb for next year. These crocus have really multiplied over the years!

8 This group of scilla has really spread, as well.

9 I really love these masses of sweeping color in the spring.

10 These fritillaria are getting ready to bloom.

11 A grouping of white crocus.

12 These have bright yellow centers.

13 This small flower is a species type of tulip.

14 These tiny starry flowers are Chionodoxa and I love their rich blue color. These diminutive bulbs produce some of the clearest blues in all of horticulture.

15 But chionodoxa also comes in shades of pink.

16 This is what it looks like before the flowers open.

17 Another type of pink chionodoxa

18 The daffodil border that stretches along Maple Avenue has been growing rapidly.

19 A bulb pushes through the earth with so much energy.

20 Looking back in the other direction

21 It won't be long before we're blessed with cheerful daffodils!

22 This is one of several tree peonies in my collection. Unlike herbaceous peonies, which die back to the ground in autumn, tree peonies remain standing through winter.

23 The tree peonies have many flower buds this year!

24 A purple, white, and yellow crocus

25 A stunning variegated crocus

26 And a pure white crocus

27 Beneath this boxwood and multiplying nicely are 'Natascha' miniature iris.

28 A closeup of this beautiful bloom - It looks like someone hand-painted the petals.

29 Snowdrops are another great flower to plant en masse.

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Posted in: Bedford, Collecting, Gardens, My Farm, My Home, Photo Gallery

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April 14, 2014

The Unveiling Of The Summer House Garden

The former owner of my farm, Mrs. Sharp, occupied two houses on the property. She called the house on the corner the Summer House, where she stayed during warm weather. Adjacent to it is the Winter House, (where I live) which had a better heating system and where Mrs. Sharp was comfortable during the cold months. I like that story and kept the names of the buildings, although major changes were made to both. Today, the Summer House is where some of my large collection of books is kept. I also like to use it for entertaining. I've been working on the garden out back, a kind of room walled by a tall hedge of boxwood. Last fall, many things were planted and I can't wait to continue there. This past week, that garden had its spring unveiling.

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1 This is the summer house garden, tucked away inside a tall hedge of American boxwood. All of the English boxwood was protected during the winter beneath burlap coverings.

2 Things are beginning to sprout!

3 This is white ornithogalum, the bulbs of which were planted last autumn. It produces tall stalks bearing clusters of star-shaped flowers.

4 All the snow we had really stressed the burlap.

5 As I've mentioned on this blog, I like to cover my shrubs with burlap to help retain their shape when snow falls and to protect them from windburn.

6 More sprouting ornithogalum and white allium in the back

7 This faux bois gazebo is a focal point of this garden. I bought it several years ago and finally have the perfect place for it.

8 It was time to remove the burlap.

9 Phurba began removing it from the small Tide Hill boxwood.

10 Any burlap that wasn't tattered and torn was rolled up to use again next year.

11 These are the pins that anchor the burlap to the ground.

12 Chhiring began dismantling the framework.

13 The burlap to be used again was labeled accordingly.

14 Dendi went around and pulled more pins.

15 Pete dismantled the larger framework.

16 The trees behind Pete are Ginkgo and I can't wait for their lovely fan-shaped leaves.

17 If you look very closely, you can see that the tall American boxwood was protected from the snow with plastic netting to keep the branches from splaying. It's not as sensitive to the cold as English boxwood, so no need to wrap it in burlap.

18 The tall tree towards the rear is a mature ginkgo. This is a unique species of tree because it has no living relatives. Native to China, the ginkgo is actually a living fossil recognizably similar to fossils dating back 270 million years.