* Kiki Goes on Sabbatical!

Packing the Essentials for Europe

2011-09-14T08:28:00.001-04:00

It was a pretty surreal experience packing up mylife on St. Thomas. I had beenthere for 10 years, apparently acquired a lot of stuff & had becomesomewhat of a pack rat. I hadmoved into my perfectly sized studio apartment only 2 years previous and didn’treally think that I had that much stuff!

The plan was, to pack my suitcases with theessential for Europe, store some things in a storage space at Tillett Gardensand the rest, well; I didn’t think there would be that much left.

Now, the phrase ‘essential for Europe’ was a littletricky. There was great debateamong my friends and I about whether 3 suitcases and my personal item were toomuch. Please keep in mind 1. I ama girl 2. The weather this time of year is tricky and 3. Well, lets just say that I likeoptions!!!

Step one was to invite my Fashion-ista friend Lisaover, have a couple of drinks & go through my closet. I was instructed not to pack or saveanything that was ripped, stained, need repairing or didn’t fit correctly. I also had a rule of my own, that if Ihadn’t worn it since I had moved, it clearly wasn’t moving again. However, in hind-sight, my rule kind ofsucked, since I had lived in the TROPICS and was moving to a more uhhhtemperate climate and let’s just say, I could now use a couple of more of thoselong sleeved shirts and a less of the tank tops :/

Step two was to go through the rest of my apartment& decide what should be stored & what should be given away. THIS was a little easier, since Ireally didn’t have that much space to keep a lot of kitchen or homefurnishings.

Step three, probably the hardest, was to organizemy art studio. This is where thepack rat in me really came out. Iam an artist that uses a lot of recycled & repurposed items increations, I like to experimentwith different medias and try new mediums. What can I say?!

On the last night that I spent in my apartment,July 30^th I remember having kind of an epiphany. In the previous week, I haddisassembled my gallery, sold all of the art supplies from my art supply store, had packed up my suitcases, stored 10 plastic cartons & given away or sold 3/4 of my possession. It all kind ofhit me, what I was doing and whether or not I was crazy. So, I got out my computer and wrote forthis blog. Here is an excerpt:

“I keep reminding myself that I am onlypacking, organizing and giving away, THINGS. Inanimate objects that can always be replaced. And I guess that I am replacing themwith other, living things that are so much more meaningful in life. Love and Happiness and Adventure andInspiration, things that every human needs to survive. Do I REALLY think that I will miss myBCBG Tutu skirt in Denmark?! Well…maybe a little.

Maybe it is these items that bring mecomfort and a feeling of stability, the same comfort and stability that I feelwhen I come home to my little apartment. It is mine and the Tutu skirt is mine and… breath in, breath out. Focus. Sip of vodka/soda… focus.

Do I feel like as long as I have all ofthis stuff I am ok? Should I berepeating the mantra “Less is More” and making some sort of correlationabout ‘baggage’?

Wow. There you have it! Funnythat in the last 2 years I have rated all of the guys that I have dated withhow much ‘baggage’ they have. Everyone has a ‘personal item’ and most have a ‘carry-on’. However, if you have ‘checked baggage’(divorced or kids), let alone ‘additional items’ (jail time, alcoholic, drugabuser, no job, no car ((this is important on St. Thomas!)), or no close-toedshoes ((one of my quirks)),) serious consideration has to be made.

So, should I be thinking about how muchbaggage I am taking with me? Imean, come on ladies, it’s 3 months! Are 2 checked bags too many?”

Which brings me to really wishing that I had packedmore warm clothes. And the factthat I DO feel lighter, freer and a little liberated not having an apartment, acar, any keys or possessions to bog down my life. I definitely purged a lot of stuff and a lot of ‘baggage’that I may have been carrying around with me. I feel as if a weight has been lifted off my shoulders.

The experience overall was life changing and completely worth it, however, I do miss the Tutu skirt from BCBG & cannot wait to wear it again :)

The Welcome Home Dinner

2011-09-09T06:09:00.000-04:00

For the last two weeks, I have been on my own inDenmark. On my own to translate,drive on the right, read Danish road signs, wear wool socks and 3 layers on thechilly nights. Also, on my own torun free, explore, sleep late, eat copious amounts of popcorn & chocolatein front of the tv, stay up late drawing and drinking wine.

My host & sweet boyfriend Sune, is a MarineEngineer on an oil rig in the North Sea. He works on the rig for 14 days straight, but then has off for 21 daysstraight. Hence, being on my ownfor 2 weeks. Needless to say, hishomecoming was greatly anticipated.

I have loved to cook for as long as I can remember. During my time on St. Thomas, Ihad the opportunity to work at a gourmet restaurant, attend fabulous Chaine desRotisseur dinners, learn from several gifted chefs & host dinners of myown.

Luckily, Sune enjoys food & cooking as much asI do and has an incredible kitchen. So, I eagerly created a menu for Sune’s return from the rigyesterday. Diligent reciperesearching, translating Danish groceries, converting quantities on my iPhoneand 3 days later, I had completed the perfect 5 course dinner.

Hummus with Homemade Tortilla Chips &Prosciutto Wrapped Breadsticks drizzled with White Truffle Oil

Insert Picture of Baked French Onion Soup(Apparently we were too excited to take a picture, but it was delicious!! And the long cooking process made the apartment smell AMAZING!!)

White & Red Grape Granita Intermezzo

Layered Eggplant & Basil Oil Marinated ChickenParmesan

These were sooo good & light, that we each ended up having 5!

Tiramisu

After all this and one minor catastrophe that shall remain nameless, I still love cooking & can’t wait to do it all over again!

PS I would like to thank www.cookography.com

My Fairy Tale first month...

2011-09-05T04:47:00.000-04:00

Since I have arrived in Denmark, I have felt like Ihave been in a fairy tale; the last month has been wonderful. I have spent good, quality time with mysweet boyfriend, cooking, adventuring, boating & meeting his family &friends. I have had time alone tosleep late, stay in my pajamas all day, create artwork & explore.

Kolding, the city that I am based in, is a charmingseaport city on the mainland of Denmark. It is at the head of the Kolding Fjord, in the southern region & aperfect mid-sized city, with a population just slightly larger than St.Thomas.

One of the showpieces of the city is the old castleKoldinghus, founded in 1268. Itsits on the hilltop & dominates the view from all points in the city. I can even see a little part of thetower from the kitchen window! Thelake, garden & castle have been a great inspiration to me already, withtheir pleasant & effortless charm.

The weather here has been, well, sporadic. Coming from St. Thomas, where is is 85and humid, 365 day of the year, 60 degrees and gray is kind of a shock. I was prepared & do come fromWisconsin originally, but let’s just say the when you get a warm, sunny day,you take advantage !

Saturday was one of those days, and I decided togo on a road trip to the Egeskov Castle on the island of Funen, about 45minutes away. I have always lovedcastles & fairy tales & am always trying to let my inner Princessradiate from my artwork. Thiscastle & the grounds that it lays on, were exactly where I yearned to befor a day, a month or, maybe I will just move in :)

The castle dates back to 1554 & was built on afoundation of upright oak trunks & is famous for being the most wellpreserved moat castle in Europe. Views of the castle are breath taking, but for me, it was walking aroundthe 18 different Gardens that enchanted me. Around every corner, (or 280 year old hedge!!) I foundanother beautiful treat.

The ScentGarden, The Fuchsia Garden, The Kitchen Garden, The English, Renaissance,Dahlia, Water, Grey, White... it was a Wonderland!

I feel truly blessed to be able to explore & become inspired at such magical places! Although I am thoroughly enjoying taking photographs, I have lots of drawings in the process!! Pictures to come, I promise :)

Berlin with Biggi !!!

2011-09-01T11:18:00.000-04:00

Before I left St. Thomas, I found out that my goodfriend Biggi Dodson was going to be in Germany while I was going to be in Europe ! Getting together was a must. Biggi would be traveling to herhometown of Dusseldorf and then onto Berlin, which is where we met.

Sadly, I must admit, that I never had anoverwhelming desire to visit Berlin, but was delightfully surprised. On the 5 hour drive from Kolding, Ivolunteered to drive for a bit, which necessitated a quick reminder of ManualTransmission driving. It had onlybeen 6 years & it was like riding a bike... until we accidentally got toBerlin before pulling over to switch drivers & I remembered that I haveforgotten how to slow down! Clutch, brake, gears, gas?! AHHHH! Thank god there wasn’tmuch traffic & we did some practicing on the freeway before we got off! :) We stayed in a little place called AlexHotel that was perfectly located & had a complimentary, deliciousbreakfast!

Our first stop was the Berlin TV Tower, which was highlyrecommended! We were informed thatafter buying the tickets, there would be an hour & 45 minute wait, but wecould leave & come back during this time. They didn’t tell us that it would take an hour of waiting inline to buy the tickets. Ugh. We decided to walk arounda bit during our 1 hour & 45 minute wait, during which, my shoe fell apart,thanks to the humidity & mold of St. Thomas. We looked for glue or shoes: we found rude German shoe sellers & anew pair of KangaRoos! Velcro pocket & all!

Donning my new ‘Roos, we went back to the TV tower,expecting to zip to the top, catch the view & meet up with Biggi & thekids. Oh, no, no. We waited another 10minutes to get tothe security check-point, 10 minutes to enter the gate to get to the elevatorline, 20 minutes in line to the elevator. After 3 hours+, when we finally gotto the top, we decided that we were NEVER GOING TO LEAVE! Cause this view HAS to be worth thewait!

It was a beautiful view and looked quiteinteresting! There wee signsall over describing what we were seeing, however, they were in GERMAN!!! Sweet! :( So we walked around, took some pics, and promptly went tothe bar to get a drink :)

After our anti-climactic 3 hour+ Berlin TV Towerextravaganza, we went to the Dali exhibit! NO WAIT! It wasa great showcase of hundreds of prints, drawings & movies.

That night we walked to Cafe Seeblick, the cafethat Biggi used to work at when she lived in Berlin. It was quite helpful that Sune had taken German ingrade school, so we could decipher some things & the waitress was awesome& pulled out her iPhone to help translate, but Thank God we are bothadventurous, love food, and not picky eaters because we thought we orderedchicken & beef, got chicken & fish :) Ohwell! It was delicious eitherway!

The next day we discovered Tacheles. This is truly an amazing gem ofBerlin. It is a 9000 square meterart center that is known for its murals & graffiti. It was built in 1907, originally as adepartment store, served as a Nazi prison, cinema & was taken over byartists in 1990. It was scheduledto be demolished & was reevaluated to later become a historical landmark& “center of development and realization of individual ways of thinking, ofthe creative contamination of art and living as well as the testing ofartistically and urban ideas.”

We spent about 2 hours here, visiting artists intheir workspaces, roaming the sculpture garden & intently gazing at thewalls covered in graffiti. Seemore at - http://super.tacheles.de/cms/

Next up, we got a little bit of conventional Germanculture. We went to the Reichstag Building, hung out in the sun on the lawn for ahalf hour later, it started raining, walked 10 minutes to the Brandenburger Tor& it was sunny again. The German weather could not make up its mind!

And, for the piece de resistance of Berlin =Biggi! We met Biggi & herfriend at a bar & had beers & then onto The Currywurst! This is a Berlin favorite, basically apork hot dog with a curry ketchup over it, served with fires! Yummmy!

Lastly, White Trash bar, where we watched a greatband, from none other than Denmark! We dancing the nightaway and were quite hung over the next day, 'nuff said! What happens in Berlin stays in Berlin :)

It was truly surreal seeing Biggi in Berlin, eventhough it was for a short time, it was priceless!

How this Sabbatical came about...

2011-08-27T08:34:00.000-04:00

How this Sabbatical came about you might ask?

Well, it was a hot Sunday on St. Thomas, in May and I was Facebook chatting with Sune, who was back in Denmark. He mentioned a particular music festival in Denmark at the beginning of August called Smukfest, and that I should come over for it! Huh, I thought, that sounds like fun & would certainly love to see Sune again!

The only problem that I could think of was the fact that I would probably not want to leave Europe after a week or 10 days.

See, I had been thinking about leaving St. Thomas for a while. Maybe even for a year. I love all of my friends and island family on St. Thomas, love the gallery & art space that I had created, love the involvement I had in the art community, even loved my little apartment that I called home. However, as many of you know, it is expensive and taxing living on St. Thomas.

I felt that I was creating some of my best artwork yet and it was well received; yet I wasn’t able to make a living from it. Selling art supplies was a learning experience, but my biggest competition, the Internet, would always win.

In the course of a day or two, my serendipitous destiny would become clear. I realized that I had many friends or acquaintances living, traveling or working in Europe that I could visit, Priscilla sent me an email about an art show in London, the Venice Bienalle & Steve Rockstein approached me about sharing my space at Tillett Gardens.

I spent some time soul searching about the right answer, the right path, and it soon became clear. I needed to do this, whatever ‘this’ was!

And so, I am! Step by step, I am discovering what ‘this’ is, and loving it along the way!

Stay tuned, next up: Berlin with Biggi!

Sorry About the Delay!!!

2011-08-23T06:08:00.000-04:00

So sorry about the delay in posts on the Blog!

The last 6 weeks have been a whirlwind of emotions, adventures & excitement. I quit my job, sold or gave away 75% of my belongings, packed up the rest & declared that I would be back in a couple of months. I have no car, no job, no apartment & no keys! Kind of exhilarating!

I took a leap of faith to follow my heart & seek what is most important to me: travel, inspiration, love, food, beauty & contentment. In addition to searching for these, I have found vulnerability & humbleness.

I have been in Denmark for 2 1/2 weeks & been blessed with the most incredible host, tour guide, translator & boyfriend, Sune. He was my inspiration to emerge from my comfortable cocoon on St. Thomas & explore new possibilities.

Together we traveled to Berlin, Germany to visit our friend from St. Thomas, who was traveling there with her kids. (More to follow!)

I have been inspired by the vast, lush landscapes, the uncomplicated lifestyle & hygge of Denmark & feel ready to CREATE!

Please know that I have been taking notes along the way & will be posting more, I just wanted to post a little teaser update !

In the picture below, I am at the Salvador Dali Exhibit in Berlin :)

REcreative web site!

2011-06-24T14:01:00.000-04:00

Check out some of my latest artwork on this newly found website !

REcreative - an online community for people to share and

showcase their own work.

http://www.recreativeuk.com/users/kimberly-young

Goals & Dreams

2011-06-23T13:23:00.000-04:00

The title of this piece is “Goals & Dreams” It was created for the Feminine Mystique Show, which was on June 4^th, 2011 at The Ice Gallery Project at St. Thomas Dairies. It is 3ft x 6ft, colored pencil & marker. It is dedicated to the catalyst of my upcoming move :)

The Big Announcement!

2011-06-22T12:17:00.000-04:00

Yup! The rumors are true!!!

I'm Going on Sabbatical!

I have always felt that I have been on an "artistic journey". It began in school and has developed in St. Thomas, over the last 10 years. I have owned & operated my gallery, Everyday Clay Studio for the last 3 years, owned & operated Key Art Supplies for 2 ½ years, been on the Board of Directors of Arts Alive for 3 years and was a founding father of Artvi Advocates & am currently the Vice-Chair.

St. Thomas has been an incredibly inspirational location and the experience of working with the many talented artists and gallery owners has been immeasurable. I have had the opportunity to immerse myself in another culture that has broadened my creativity beyond words... or pictures :)

However, I feel that after 10 years, my creative juices are running dry & and advancement in my artistic career is slightly stunted.

I hope to learn and develop new skills and relax, recoup, redevelop myself and take a needed and deserved break. I also hope to increase in productivity upon return & ultimately benefit my artistic career & the Virgin Islands art community.

Please stop in the gallery

Monday - Friday,

12:30 - 5:00pm or

Saturday 10am - 5:00pm

to make your final purchases &

help me travel & discover my inner artistic beauty!

My final day in the gallery will be

Saturday, July 16th,

for the Arts Alive

"Art in the Garden" Festival -

10:00am-5:00pm

Feel free to contact me about gallery items or art supplies at (340)775-1405 mon-sat - 12:30-5pm

Oh yeah, the important question -

Where are you going?!?

Europe! Starting in Denmark & then visiting friends in London, Ireland & Paris, with a stop in Venice to see the Venice Bienalle! Yipee!!!!