2022 Was Good
So how about a little recap
I don’t know about you, but it’s easy for me to fall into the end-of-year trap of being so ready for a FRESH NEW YEAR that I assume the year we’re just finishing was something worth putting behind me. But this morning I spent a few minutes reflecting on the past 360 days and I realized it was actually a pretty fantastic year.
Let’s Start with Art
In 2021 I had the great fortune of scoring a studio space in Charlotte’s new Visual and Performing Arts Center (VAPA). I was super excited to be part of my hometown’s new art frontier, and from day one it has been amazing. I’ve met so many new-to-me artists — fast friends, all of them; I’ve seen so much incredible art be created by these new friends; and I’ve been able to build a space for myself that feels cozy and conducive to creating.
As if that weren’t enough, VAPA also commissioned me to create the two largest pieces of art I’ve ever made. The main wall of VAPA’s multipurpose room is about 900 square feet, and the wall facing the elevator on the 2nd floor is about 500sf, and I got to design and paint a mural for each of those walls. I was also handed the challenge of completing both these murals in less than two weeks, which meant I got to recruit all my artist friends to help me! And everything is better with friends.
I was also commissioned to create a mural for Burr & Berry, one of my favorite coffee shops in Charlotte. Not only are their drive-thru shops created out of old shipping containers, but they seriously have the best coffee in town. And they like bright abstract art!
Finally, in June, I had a solo show at The Artisan’s Palate, a restaurant in NoDa that has a distinct gallery within their space. They have amazing french fries, and they treat artists so well. It was an honor to be able to exhibit there.
A Major Award!
As I mentioned above, one of the best things about being an artist at VAPA is all the other artists I’ve had the opportunity to meet. One of these friendships resulted in my being nominated for and receiving a SEED Grant from the Arts and Science Council! I used this grant to travel to France for three weeks, exploring Rennes, Aix-en-Provence, and Paris — the three cities that were meaningful to me when I lived in Rennes my junior year of high school. It was an utterly glorious three weeks, and I was able to work through some Big Life Questions™ that I’ve long sought answers to. Since then, I’ve been working on an interactive exhibition around these Big Life Answers™ that I hope you’ll get to walk around in sometime soon.
BFFs
If you’ve read this far, you may have figured out that one of my life themes is friendship. And the friendship(s) I’m most proud of is my college gang, affectionately known as The Commune. We were able to get together this year for the first time since The Before Times™ and it was perfection. I would help bury a body with every one of these extraordinary women, and maybe already have… 🤷♀️
Last But Not Least
How about a short list of some of my favorite things from 2022:
Favorite Recipe: Soup-e Jo (Persian chicken, mushroom, and barley soup). That link is behind a paywall, but reach out if you’re interested and I’ll be happy to send you the recipe. It’s the best soup I’ve ever tasted, much less made. And I made it constantly this year.
Runner-up for best recipe was given to me by my friend Maya, for this ridiculously good Crispy Cabbage and Cauliflower Salad.
Favorite Book: I came sooooooo close to my reading goal of 36 books this year (with four days to go, I still might make it) and boy were there some good ones in there. I read a ton of memoirs, which is my favorite audiobook genre (quick shout out to my mom’s newest book, Child, which not only did I treasure, but also got to design the cover for), and also a bunch of new books from favorite authors. But there were two standouts for me:
Ejaculate Responsibly (written by my good friend Gabrielle Blair) is an earthshaking reframing of the abortion debate. Based on her twitter thread from 2018, this book offers us 28 concise and well-researched arguments for flipping the debate on its head and taking the focus off of legislating women’s bodies. It’s one of those seminal books that should be required reading for everyone.
The Lincoln Highway, by Amor Towles. Novel by novel, Amor Towles appears to be offering us his take on the great genres of literature, and with The Lincoln Highway, we get the Epic Journey (with a little Bildungsroman thrown in). This tumbling story has everything you could hope for - the hero, the antihero, the corrupt clergyman, Odysseus, George & Lenny, Homer, and even some Franny & Zooey - and every main character is at once lovable and fallible, the best kind.
Favorite Music: I’m one of those people who always has a song playing in my head1, and I love discovering new sounds. But despite my best efforts, it has become harder and harder to find new music as I get older. This is incredibly frustrating to me (and embarassing to admit) so I work hard to overcome this stupid generation gap.
The best new-to-me band I listened to this year was Rainbow Kitten Surprise (from North Carolina!). Their song Cocaine Jesus was on constant rotation in my studio.
(Speaking of which, here’s my Studio Playlist on Spotify if anyone is interested in the music I listen to most. I add songs to this playlist weekly.)
What have you been cooking, reading, and listening to that I should know about? Please share!
What’s next?
I’ve already got some exciting stuff queued up for 2023 and I’m looking forward to launching it with some of my best friends here in Charlotte on Saturday night. I love hosting NYE because I get to serve my favorite traditional meal for starting the year off on the right foot. This means Pork, Greens, and Black Eyed Peas. My collards recipe has become somewhat legendary, so, as my final gift to you today, here it is:
Ohmygod Yum Collards2
4 bunches of collards, long stems and tough ribs removed
Salt
1/4 cup brown butter (recipe included)
1 onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/2 chipotle chile en adobo, all chopped up (to taste — it’s intended to add smoky, not spicy)
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Pepper vinegar (recipe below)
Wash the greens thoroughly in a whole lotta water (I fill my sink and wash them in there). Place the dripping wet leaves in a pot of water, add salt (to taste). Cook the greens for about 10 minutes (until they’re all wilted and reduced down quite a bit). Remove to a bowl. Reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking water.
Heat 1/4 cup unsalted butter on medium-low until it turns brown and nutty. Strain off the milk-fat solids. (This is something I make a big batch of ahead-of-time and keep in the fridge.) Increase the heat to medium. Add the onion, garlic, pepper flakes and chipotle, stirring occasionally until the garlic is lightly colored and onion is soft. Add the greens, their reserved cooking water, and 1 teaspoon of salt. Cook for 30 minutes and taste again for salt (they can use a lot). You can continue cooking until the greens are “within an inch of their life” or you can stop here. The longer they cook, the better they’ll taste.
Serve with pepper vinegar on the side.
Recipe for Pepper Vinegar: 1 cup white vinegar + a handful of jalapeño or serrano chiles, sliced into “coins.” Drop the chiles into a bottle or jar that has been freshly washed in hot, soapy water. (A narrow neck bottle is preferable so the vinegar can be drizzled rather than poured, but you can also make it in a jar and then pour the spicy vinegar into a bottle when you’re ready to serve.) Bring the vinegar to a boil in a small pan, then transfer to the bottle (or jar). Cap and place in the refrigerator until you’re ready to serve. The vinegar will be best if you make this at least a day or two ahead, but if you’re making it the same day you plan to serve it, you don’t need to put it in the fridge.
Happy end of 2022, y’all. Can’t wait to see you on the other side.
xoxo, Laurie
PS, if you enjoyed reading this and have friends you think might also enjoy, I’d love for you to share with them! I plan to write monthly in the coming year. Thanks y’all :)
I only recently learned that apparently not everyone has constant music playing in their head. Are you one of these people? I would love to discuss this with you.
Huge thanks to Deborah Madison for the original base recipe, and especially for the brown butter secret. You have been helping me for many years to make people’s New Years just that much luckier and fortunier.
I have the noisiest head ever. Rarely do I need to play music at home, lol.