February 4, 2025 • 51 mins
On today’s episode of we get to know our host Liz Lidgett and learn more about her and her background. Liz is an art advisor, writer and gallery owner. As founder of Liz Lidgett Gallery and Design, she works with clients to find the perfect piece of art for their style, space, and budget. Liz has also been a contributor for many national publications, working with brands like Better Homes and Gardens, Martha Stewart, and Apartment Therapy. Her book about art collecting will be published in Spring of 2025 with Simon Element. She lives in Des Moines, IA, with her husband, Nick Renkoski, their children, Rocky and Effie, and their ever-expanding art collection.
Street Style Takeaways:
-I love the combination of high low both in design and personal style.
-Great style combines individuality and creativity and confidence.
-Style both in clothing and your home is the opportunity to share your point of view with world without saying a word.
-Every time I get dressed I try to balance classic lines with one element of quirk. I like this in my home too!
Save 15% site wide at www.houseofblum.com with promo code beat15! Or you can use this link- https://houseofblum.com/discount/beat15!
Connect with the Hosts https://www.instagram.com/boulevardbeatpodcast/
Connect with Meghan Blum Interiors https://www.instagram.com/meghanbluminteriors/
Connect with House of Blum https://www.instagram.com/shophouseofblum/
Connect with Krissa Rossbund. https://www.instagram.com/krissa_rossbund/
Connect with Liz Lidgett https://www.instagram.com/lizlidgett/ Episode Website https://www.blvdbeat.com/about
Street Style Takeaways:
-I love the combination of high low both in design and personal style.
-Great style combines individuality and creativity and confidence.
-Style both in clothing and your home is the opportunity to share your point of view with world without saying a word.
-Every time I get dressed I try to balance classic lines with one element of quirk. I like this in my home too!
Save 15% site wide at www.houseofblum.com with promo code beat15! Or you can use this link- https://houseofblum.com/discount/beat15!
Connect with the Hosts https://www.instagram.com/boulevardbeatpodcast/
Connect with Meghan Blum Interiors https://www.instagram.com/meghanbluminteriors/
Connect with House of Blum https://www.instagram.com/shophouseofblum/
Connect with Krissa Rossbund. https://www.instagram.com/krissa_rossbund/
Connect with Liz Lidgett https://www.instagram.com/lizlidgett/ Episode Website https://www.blvdbeat.com/about
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
We are excited to introduce you to the world. Liz Legit.
Liz is an art advisor, writer and gallery owner. Liz welcome.
I'm excited to start this conversation.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
I'm so thrilled to be with you guys.
Speaker 3 (00:12):
I mean, I love knowing you in person, and I'm
excited that you guys are sharing all of your knowledge
with the world too.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
I mean, this is a big step.
Speaker 1 (00:20):
Yes, it is.
Speaker 4 (00:21):
We're asking everybody because this is such a fun question
to think about. Tell us about the strength that you
grew up on and what that was like.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Well, that's actually such a fun question.
Speaker 3 (00:32):
So I grew up in a historic home here in
Des Moines and just a few blocks from where I
live now, and it's called thirty seventh Street, and so
it had just a row of beautiful historic homes.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
I grew up in a brick tutor.
Speaker 3 (00:50):
We had a photo of Teddy Roosevelt outside of our
house that had been passed from owner to owner. There
was just so much history in it, and I'll I mean,
it was a privilege to grow up in a home
like that. But it also I think shaped why I
am so interested in homes and design, and it probably
(01:11):
helped bud all of the things that I love to
do now. I think that's a house that shaped me.
But also it was a really tree lined street. It
was a quiet street, it was just some It had
wonderful neighbors. It's like all of the things that I
look for when I choose a home now. It was
a foundational place for me for sure.
Speaker 4 (01:33):
Okay, I feel like trees are going to be a
common thread between all of them. Everybody loves tree Everybody
wants those tree line streets truly.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
I mean they're protectors and I love that. I love
that idea.
Speaker 4 (01:45):
And what was your earliest memory of creativity? Growing up
in a historic home as you did, could you sort
of feel the people there who lived there before you?
Could you feel that history? It's such a different experience
than living in a new builder, being in a new neighborhood,
even that's recently developed. So I mean as a kid, right,
(02:05):
you care about toys and art projects and things like that.
You're not really thinking about architecture per se at a
super young age. But when did it sort of hit you?
And how did it feel to know that there were
so many generations because the house she grew up in.
I mean it dates back over one hundred years.
Speaker 2 (02:23):
Correct, Yes, yeah, it was nineteen twelve.
Speaker 3 (02:26):
And the really interesting thing about the house was that
the previous owners were always a part of the conversation
of that home because a former vice president had lived there,
and then also Et Meredith who founded Meredith Corporation, which
is now dot Dash Meredith. So there was just all
of these amazing ties with des Moines and really special
(02:48):
parts of Iowa history. Also, it was haunted, but that's
a different podcast. So when you said, could I feel
the people that were there? I was like, absolutely.
Speaker 4 (03:00):
Maybe we'll chat about that again later in there when
it's time. That sounds like a fun, entertaining episode.
Speaker 3 (03:06):
That's a completely different episode. But you know, I was
always the art kid, and whether it was because of
what my parents surrounded me in, that could be, but
I truly believe that partially it was just innate. And
I tell the story about how I was the art
(03:27):
kid and that I was always carrying around a sketchbook
and a pencil and I would literally just sit down
and I would draw hands or what was on the
kitchen table or just anything that was around me. And
so then I started art lessons at the Dowaine Art
Center at the age of five, and so that was
what my Christmas present was every single year.
Speaker 2 (03:44):
And that place.
Speaker 3 (03:47):
Speaking of the home that shaped me, that institution shaped me,
and it really made me think about all of the
things that you could do in the art world. And
sometimes you have this kind of idea that like, if
you want to be in the art world, you're an artist,
or you're a curator, or you're in these like very
specific silos. And the Art Center really opened me up
(04:10):
to incredible artwork for free, which also is why I
focus so much on accessibility now. I think that was
like a foundational thing for me.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
But you know, it really opened me up to possibility.
Speaker 3 (04:23):
When I went to college, I got a degree in
journalism and a degree in art history, and you know,
I'd open up my art history books and all of
these photos would say courtesy of the De Wine Art Center.
And that was kind of incredible to me because here
I was sitting with this like Francis Bacon, knowing that
(04:44):
it moved me, but not realizing that it was like
literally world famous, and it was two blocks from where
I grew up. So I just that was such a
special place for me, and so I think going to
the Arts Center, you know, were some of those initial
creative moments that I just it was. It was my
place to escape, you know. I loved it.
Speaker 1 (05:05):
That's so neat and awesome to have at your fingertips,
to just be able to go and spend time in there.
Do you like to take your kids there? Now? Often?
Speaker 2 (05:11):
I do? I do.
Speaker 3 (05:12):
I mean they come to the gallery a lot, and
so they know how to behave around artwork, you know,
and so now I.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Love taking them.
Speaker 3 (05:21):
And you know, we just did the they do a
great Day of the Dead celebration, and so we try
and hop into the Art Center as much as possible,
just because I know how important it was to me. Plus,
my daughter is obsessed with art. I try not to
influence that too much, but she's obsessed with it. So
now we get to go just the two of us
(05:43):
sometimes and experience it, which is really cool.
Speaker 4 (05:45):
Liz. I'm wondering if you can expand on something that
you said a moment ago. You talked about how when
people think of somebody who's in the art world, they
automatically go to an artist, somebody who paints or sculpts
or draws or you know, sells their works as a living.
Could you sort of take us through some of the
(06:05):
other lines of work that fall under the umbrella of
the art work other than being an artist, because I
think that people, you know, they may shy away from
their inner creativity because they might think, I can't make
any money doing this, or I can't make a living
as an artist. That's what happens when you leave the earth,
(06:27):
you know, that's when you become famous, and that's of
no good when you're trying to play the bills. So
take us through sort of that more broad scope umbrella
and what kind of the options were and what led
you to do what you do now, and if you
could also tell our audience what you do now exactly?
Speaker 2 (06:46):
Sure?
Speaker 3 (06:46):
Okay, so there's so much there, right, Okay, So first,
I am an owner of an art gallery. I curate
all of the shows, and so that is kind of
what I do now. I have my undergrad in our history.
I went to USC for my masters and that program's
now called curatorial Practice in the Public Sphere, which is
(07:10):
a pretty wordy way to say anything outside of a
museum space. Okay, that sounds very fancy, like just think
public art, right, it's the art that you interact with
in your everyday life.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
And so there were a lot.
Speaker 3 (07:24):
Of ways that I could have gone after undergrad and
I knew that accessibility. I go back to that word
all of the time, but accessibility was really really important
to me, and I kept thinking about how could I
bring artwork to people in their everyday lives. So I
got that degree, and then I came back and I
did a year of service with AmeriCorps with the Department
(07:46):
of Cultural Affairs. Then I became the in house curator
for an incredible collection in Iowa, and it was both
in the corporate space and in their personal home. I
learned so much. I learned so much in that year.
But you know, sometimes it's important to know just as
much as what you want to do, is what you
(08:07):
don't want to do, right, And that job really pushed
me to think about what I wanted to do because
I knew then what I didn't want to do. And
I started my business as an art advisor immediately I
was twenty seven years old. I decided that I wanted
to help other corporations with their art collections. I was
(08:29):
starting to go around and tour some other collections, and
we would find things like next to the radiator in
you know, service closets and things like that, just because
you know, in the eighties and nineties, it was kind
of a status symbol to have an in.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
House curator for a corporation.
Speaker 3 (08:46):
And then, you know, somebody retires or the person that
loved art goes on to their next job or whatever
it looks like, and then this artwork just sits and
it's not being taken care of. And your artwork is
an asset like anything else in your portfolio. And so
I wanted to help these corporations, and so I got
my first client and quit my job the next day.
And so it started with corporations advising them on what
(09:09):
to buy, how to take care of it, all of
those things, and then it just kept growing. People said, well,
would you help me with my home, would you help
me with my restaurant, would you help me with my
small business. Then almost six years ago, I decided to
create the gallery. And that really stemmed from the fact
that I was working with galleries all of the time,
and I felt like they weren't treating artists well enough.
(09:31):
I thought that they weren't doing enough for their clients.
The customer service wasn't there. The education that I really
thought people wanted wasn't there. And so those are some
of the core tenants that we now do at Liz
Legit Gallery. One of the biggest things is the international
average for female artists is about thirteen percent for representation
(09:53):
in galleries, and we committed since day one to have
at least fifty percent representation of female artists. We know,
oh that there are female artists out there. We know
there's incredible artists out there. We know that they are
fifty percent of the MFAs that are graduating.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
So why is a statistic like that?
Speaker 3 (10:10):
And so I know I can't change the art world everywhere,
but if I can show people that you can be
successful doing it the right way, whether it's just being
kind and good to people, kind of getting rid of
some of the cloak and dagger stuff from the art world,
or it's just representing fifty percent women and making sure
that you know that is something that we always talk
about to get rid of some of those discrepancies. So
(10:33):
that's me, but then also talking about different things that
you can do in the art world. There's all of
these different categories, right, So, yes, you can make the art,
you can sell the art, you can handle the art.
You know, there's all of these different ways you can
you can market the art, right, you can try and
whether you're in a nonprofit or you're in a for profit,
(10:54):
there's all kinds of different stories that you get to tell.
That's what marketting is is really help telling the stories
of the artwork. So what I thought was so great
was that when I was in college, I came back
and spent a summer as a curatorial intern for the
Art Center, going back there and really getting to see
the behind the scenes of everyone who takes care of
(11:15):
the artwork, touches a piece of artwork, helps tell the
story behind a collection. And that's just on the nonprofit side,
but there's so many ways on the for profit side
as well. For example, we'll intake about two hundred works
of art on a monthly basis into the gallery, and
so we have a team of five right now that
(11:35):
is making that all happen, whether they're actually physically receiving
the artwork, taking photographs of it, putting it onto the website,
talking about it, doing the operations behind it. I mean,
there's so many different ways that you can be a
part of it. And yes, you can get a degree
in marketing and maybe minor in art history and still
get to work in the art world in some way.
Speaker 1 (11:57):
Liz, one of my favorite things about art is that
E books Emotions and Feelings. Can you tell me about
a particular piece of art that has moved you in
an extraordinary way. I'd love to hear about one of
your great masterpieces as well from your personal collection.
Speaker 3 (12:09):
Well, I think the most recent thing that I just
experienced was that I was just in Mexico City and
we went down to Frida Collo's home, Cassa Azul. It's
her home that she had with Diego Rivera. It's so
fascinating to me because I knew that love. I've always
loved Trida. I think she's an incredible artist, and her
(12:30):
story is amazing and the you know, her body was
unfortunately broken in many ways from an accident that she
had when she was eighteen years old, and she continued
to figure out ways to create. Like I just think
it's fascinating to see somebody who creating art or just
creating something in general is so much a part of
(12:52):
them that they physically cannot stop themselves, right. Frida had
a mirror above her bed, and she had a day
bed for the day and a night bed because she
almost always needed to be laying down at some point
during the day because her body hurt so much, and
so you know, they created easels for her so that
she could paint while she laid down. So I truly
(13:12):
cried when I was there. I'm not much of a crier.
I'm an eldest daughter, so I like to keep those
emotions like damn down right, But I truly cried when
I walked in because the space itself so much like her.
Speaker 2 (13:27):
It evoked so much emotion.
Speaker 3 (13:29):
But then also just really seeing her work that she
created in the face of pain was just really truly touching.
Another for me was mural by Jackson Pollock that's owned
by the University of Iowa. It came to Des Moines
probably a decade ago, and when I walked in, I cried.
That's the other only other time that I've cried when
(13:49):
I've been around ARC. But it was I think it
was the sheer size, it's enormous. And then also I think,
what's so special about Jackson Pollock's work you know, of
course it's called action painting, right, But I can close
my eyes and I can picture him creating the work
and standing over it and messing with it and throwing
(14:10):
the paint. And that's what really gets me excited for
artwork and my gallery sometimes is that I think, oh
my gosh, I can close my eyes and really picture
them making the work. That action of it is really
exciting for me. And so that is the kind of
thing I like to bring into my own home.
Speaker 2 (14:27):
Is like what moves you? Right?
Speaker 3 (14:29):
It is not about artwork that matches my sofa. There's
a derogatory term in the art world that is called
otc art or over the couch art, So you know,
obviously there's a place for that, right. I mean, like,
you want to live in a beautiful home, but I
want it to be a home that speaks to who
(14:50):
you are. So that's really something that I think about
a lot. Is like, okay, but how when I'm selling
a piece of artwork and I'm connecting a person with
a piece of artwork. Sure, I like to see fabric samples,
and I love working with designers and all of that.
I want to I want to really let a designer's
creation sing, but also I want it to be a
piece where that person who owns it now is able
(15:13):
to say, this is who this is, and this is
why it's important to me, and this is what it represents, and.
Speaker 2 (15:19):
This is what I see? What do you see?
Speaker 3 (15:21):
And so it's like, how can we create those conversations
with artwork and design and how can we bring joy?
And those are the things I look for in.
Speaker 2 (15:30):
My home too.
Speaker 1 (15:31):
Yeah, I think that's so true. I often say that
in my projects. I can tell you that this is
going to look good over the sofa or in the
living room and things like that, but it needs to
evoke somemotion and you need to really have it inspire
you every day when you're in those spaces.
Speaker 4 (15:46):
Well, and the goodness is, while this is sort of
a get to know you podcast for you, Liz, we
are going to sit down and have some other episodes
with you where you really take our audience through how
to educate themselves on our buy art and the nitty
gritty of it because unfortunately, and I'm sure you can
talk about this part all day, we're never really taught
(16:09):
in school how to look at art or design of
any kind. Really, and I think that that's unfortunate. I
always say that we spend a lot of money as
adults on things, on pieces because of the way they look.
That could be in a kitchen appliance, it could be
a car, certainly your wardrobe, and yet we're never taken
(16:32):
down that road of how to look at things. So
I imagine for you, you know, when you're talking about over
the couch pieces of art, that it really does have
to strike an emotion or provide something for you other
than the work itself one hundred.
Speaker 3 (16:51):
You know, I think it's so interesting. We talked a
little earlier about taking my kids to the art center.
You know, we do spend a lot of time in school,
if you're lucky, about like creating art in art class,
and so you get a little bit of a background there,
but really being able to feel comfortable about talking about
art or really understanding. And one of the things that
(17:12):
I do with my kids is we really stand in
front of a painting and I just say what do
you see and really feeling making them feel comfortable with
being analytical or critical or.
Speaker 2 (17:24):
I like this, okay, great. Why it could be that
it was the.
Speaker 3 (17:29):
Color red that you love One of my favorite memories
of talking about artwork was a guy that my husband
knew in college and he went to the Sistine Travel
and he came back and he was like, Liz, I
got to talk to you about this because he knew.
Speaker 2 (17:44):
I loved art. And I said, Conrad, tell me about it.
What did you think? And he goes, oh, my gosh,
that was a tight blue? And I was like, excuse me,
And I was like, what he took from it?
Speaker 4 (17:54):
Right?
Speaker 2 (17:55):
Like that was a tight blue? That was an awesome blue.
Speaker 3 (17:57):
And so maybe we can give people a lie little
bit more ways to talk about it. But there's no
wrong way to talk about art. It's really about whatever
moves you. It could be the color, it could be
the subject matter, it could be whatever you see in
and abstract work. I want people to feel really comfortable
in educating themselves and kind of getting past that feeling
(18:19):
of like.
Speaker 2 (18:20):
Oh, I don't know much about art. I don't want
to talk about it.
Speaker 3 (18:23):
The only way that you're going to learn is being
able to like voice what you see, and so just
starting with like, what do you literally see is the
first step.
Speaker 4 (18:32):
I think, Well, and kids are probably the perfect little
you know people to talk to the little people that
they are with little minds, because you're getting a very
pure answer from them, because they're not concerned about sort
of the academic part of it, or the part that
will make them sound sophisticated and refined and intelligent. They're
(18:53):
just truly speaking from the heart.
Speaker 2 (18:55):
So you're so right.
Speaker 4 (18:57):
You're so right.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
As you've been rooted into Mooines community since childhood, what
does community mean to you?
Speaker 4 (19:03):
Community?
Speaker 3 (19:03):
Gosh is so important to me, first just as a
person who lives in the community and wants to better it,
and then of course as a small business owner. A
community is what you know helps support us right and
our ideas. I say a lot when I lived in
Los Angeles, you felt like you had to be a
multi millionaire to make a difference. But in Des Moin
(19:26):
you have to have a good idea, and I think
that's a little bit of a difference of the community.
You know, people here truly want to support small business owners,
They want to take care of their own, they want
to see as succeed and it's one of the things
that I love about living in maybe a smaller city.
Beyond that, though, I think really past twenty twenty and
(19:48):
going through the pandemic. It really felt like that was
like this turning point where people started to care who
they were giving their money to, and they were really
thinking more about keeping their community strong. And part of
what makes the community strong is fall and business owners.
(20:09):
So you know, when I'm shopping, when I am trying
to make a decision, I always try and figure out
if I can give my business to a small business owner,
especially if it's female owned. I feel like where where
I give my dollars says what I care about, and
so I think about, like the type of place I
(20:30):
want to live in, the type of community that I
want to live in, And so those dollars act as
like your vote towards a towards what type of space
you want to live in, and.
Speaker 2 (20:41):
It's just like the supportive, wonderful nature.
Speaker 3 (20:43):
I want to live in a place where I go
to the grocery store and I run into somebody I
haven't seen in a while. I want to, you know,
send my kid to a school where I know the parents,
and you know there's people from all walks of life
that go there. I want them to be exposed to
just everything that a community has to offer.
Speaker 4 (21:03):
Well, and I think we've sort of seen the pendulum
swing to small businesses. I feel like for decades, sadly
everything was about big box retailers, just because for no
other reason than it's convenient for people, right right, And
now I think that communities, not only into Woying, but
all across the nation are certainly more mindful of supporting
(21:25):
those small businesses, and even if it's not a small business,
just being more mindful in general about what their purchases are,
which is what, at the end of the day, I
think is just so important. We all work really hard
for the money that we earn, and why wouldn't you
think about every dollar and where every penning is going.
And sometimes we're I think we can get a little
(21:47):
lazy in that regard, and so it is it does
become important and a good thing that now people are
a little more.
Speaker 3 (21:53):
Aware, absolutely, absolutely, And I think you know, when you're supporting,
for example, my small business, we represent seventy artists from
around the world, and those dollars are going then at
the end of the month directly to artists all over
the world, And so you know, is that the type
of thing that you want to give dollars to I
(22:15):
hope so right, like, because you know that you're literally
making me do a happy dance when a sale happens,
and an artist do a happy dance when a sale happens.
You're literally helping them be a person that can create
on a day to day basis and be an artist
full time and get rid of the myth of the
starving artist. And so you know, I mean, I think
(22:35):
that there's just larger impact sometimes, and I think that's
actually one of the cool things about working with an
interior designer because they are the ones that have like
this like tapped in access to artisans and you know
the people that are you know, still upholstering and working
on these crafts that are unfortunately going to the wayside,
(22:56):
you know, because you can just go online and pick
a sofa, but you know, there's still so many people
that are still working with their hands, and I feel
like designers like get to end up being the access
to that to still kind of almost simplify it in
some ways for you. But again, that's just you know,
the design world of things of what I want to
give my money to because.
Speaker 2 (23:17):
I want I want there to be people that are
still craftsmen.
Speaker 4 (23:20):
And absolutely so, since you are a craftsman, a crafts
woman and you've always been tapped into the art world,
we spend a lot of time, or we're going to
spend a lot of time talking about everyone's personal style,
because every person who we interview is going to be
in the design world in some way, shape or form.
(23:41):
So can you kind of tell us what is your
personal style? How did you get there, and what do
you love personally? Because we know that you're not just
in the art world. It's about fashion, it's about your interiors,
it's about how you do things. So how would you
describe that style and how you live?
Speaker 2 (23:58):
Well, I'm a color lover.
Speaker 3 (24:00):
I think that's one of the first things you see
when you walk into my home is that there's color
and pattern everywhere.
Speaker 4 (24:05):
And that's significant because a lot of people are scared
of color one hundred percent.
Speaker 3 (24:09):
I'm not, you know, worried about resale value right now.
I'm really like trying to live in a home that
I feel good in and it makes me smile, and
it makes my kids feel creative, and my husband feel
good and joyful and just all of those things. I
want to surround myself in things that I love. So
whether that, you know, I bring in like a mid
(24:31):
century modern lamp, even though the rest of my house
is kind of like English country, you know, it doesn't matter.
There's some eclecticism there. Even when I'm getting ready in
the morning, I'm like, who do I want to be today?
You know, I feel like there's like a little bit
of a chameleon sort of a thing there, instead of
being like, Okay, does this fit this very specific design
style that I have set for myself. There is a stylist,
(24:53):
Alison Bornstein, that I think is incredible. I follow her
on Instagram and she has you create a ward with
three words. So I think about, like what my three
words are for my style a lot, and then I
think about my three words for my home too. On
another episode, I will have a definitive list for you.
I'm still like kind of trying to figure those words
(25:14):
out right now. But I think that's a really interesting
concept of like trying to help you narrow down, especially
when you are a design lover art lover. It's like
the possibilities are endless. It's almost overwhelming sometimes. So I
do understand how people shy away from color because they're overwhelmed,
you know, and I get that that's why people come
(25:37):
to a gallery. Sometimes it's like, oh my gosh, there's
so much art in the world. I don't even know
where to begin. So you try and work with somebody
that you already know that you like their eye or
their stech to help narrow that down. But can three
words be something that really helps you define that well?
Speaker 1 (25:52):
And I think the world it was so big for
so long. So the embracing work color, I see it
a lot in a lot of our work and what
clients are asking four two kind of back to that
principle that Chris and I have talked about, like when
you buy what you love, you'll always find a spot
for in your home, and bringing that style in just
helps refine everything as well.
Speaker 3 (26:11):
What I've been really interested in lately is, you know,
asking people what they collect, because I think that really
is fascinating. I, for example, collect small brass.
Speaker 2 (26:22):
Hats tell us more.
Speaker 3 (26:26):
So I have about twenty five of them now because
people love to gift them to me. Now. I found
a collection of three when I was thrifting and then
I just kept seeing them. You know, that principle where
it's like they're you know that you just start seeing
things that you're thinking about, or if you hear about
a trip, and then everybody's going there. Small brass hats
(26:47):
became this thing, and so I've got like sombreros and
cowboy hats and top hats and police officer from Britain's
hat and like, you know, I wish I could tell
you all the different types. I have ones that I covet,
but I think the thing that I love about it
is that there's literally no purpose to them. They are
just fun for whatever reason. I don't understand why they're made,
(27:08):
why there are so many different types of small brass hats.
But anyway, I think it's really fascinating to hear what
people collect, because I think that is something that people
do joyfully for themselves, and it actually can tell you
a lot about them.
Speaker 4 (27:21):
What makes a good collection?
Speaker 3 (27:23):
Oh gosh, I mean that is okay. So I love quirk.
I love you know.
Speaker 2 (27:29):
Do you know anybody else that collects small brass hats?
Speaker 3 (27:31):
No, you don't do not somebody's out there. I'm going
to get a letter someday that is like I do
it too, just FYI.
Speaker 1 (27:39):
But you do have to share a picture of them.
Speaker 3 (27:41):
I know, so I've got a whole cabinet of them now.
But you know, my sister decided recently that she wanted
a collection, and she wants small chicken figurines.
Speaker 2 (27:50):
I don't know why.
Speaker 3 (27:51):
Actually we haven't really discussed it. So I just got
a text that was like, I've decided what I'm going
to collect.
Speaker 4 (27:56):
Well, that's a very apropos for Iowa.
Speaker 3 (27:58):
Yeah, true, Yeah, you know so anyway, so I think
it's just kind of fun to find out what is
you know, whimsical and what catches people's eye. I met
somebody recently that has a full barbie room. I would
never expect it of them, but they have a full
room displaying their barbies that they've collected.
Speaker 2 (28:17):
And then we get to talk about that.
Speaker 3 (28:18):
I mean, that's actually where you get to kind of
see people light up, is you know when they talk
about their collections if they have one, or you know,
start talking to somebody about, you know, what would they
want to collect. You know, that's kind of the interesting
question too, of like helping them decide.
Speaker 1 (28:34):
Well, collection is such an interesting conversation. Do you feel, though,
in the art world that there's a way to make
a good collection.
Speaker 2 (28:41):
Oh gosh. I mean, there's so many different ways.
Speaker 3 (28:43):
One of my favorite stories is that we have this
client who when she and her husband met, they started
buying artwork that was in twos, so maybe it was
like two panels or it had two things in it.
And then when they had a child, they started doing threes.
And then they had another child and they started doing fours.
And I love that that is not an obvious thing
(29:05):
to their collection, but it speaks so much to who
they are as a family and how they've grown and
at different points of their life.
Speaker 2 (29:13):
I think a good art.
Speaker 4 (29:14):
Are they accountants. They're not accountants.
Speaker 2 (29:19):
I know that's true. That's a good point, you know.
Speaker 3 (29:22):
I just I think a great collection speaks to the
person in some way. So maybe it's somebody that collects
a piece every time they travel, or a hobby is
shown in some way over and over again. I think
that's what's really fun about a commission, for example, is
that you can throw in little details. We have good
(29:42):
family friends that their last name starts with be, and
so they love bumblebees, and so we did a still
life commission for them, and you know, we threw in
a small bee and sat it on the table like
it was had just flown into the painting. So I
think there's all kinds of things that you can do
that makes a collection special to you. I think a
(30:04):
good one is because it is something that you've decided
upon yourself and it means something to you.
Speaker 1 (30:09):
Lis we all know being an entrepreneur is a hard
road and it has its challenges at times, but it's
also very rewarding to watch your company grow. How has
that changed your outlook and envision as you take this
company into this next chapter.
Speaker 3 (30:22):
I love being an entrepreneur, you know. I think there's
lots of reasons I think that I can. I think
it's the creative aspect to it. I think artists and
entrepreneurs actually are very similar. It's like you have this
just abstract idea and you can make it physical and real.
I love that so much. I love supporting my employees.
(30:43):
I think it's really exciting to help people live their
best lives and create an environment that they are excited
to come to every day. I think that's really cool,
you know. There, Yeah, there are many lessons learned. I
remember early on taking things so personally, my dad.
Speaker 2 (31:01):
Kind of looked at me.
Speaker 3 (31:02):
One time, I said, Elizabeth, it's only business, and it
really was kind of like, am I okay? Is my
family okay? Like is everything going to you know, this
isn't going to this one small thing isn't going to
bankrupt me. So I mean I kind of try and
put everything in perspective. I think about that a lot.
It's only business, it's not life or death, but it
(31:24):
can feel very personal at times, and I think that's
sometimes the downside to it. But I also love how
personal it feels too.
Speaker 2 (31:33):
Well.
Speaker 4 (31:33):
Speaking of new chapters, you have a chapter that's new
coming up. Literally, when we say chapter, we mean literally
because you are authoring a book.
Speaker 2 (31:45):
Yeah us, Yes, so tell.
Speaker 4 (31:47):
Us about that. That's so exciting. And first of all,
congratulations on that journey because I know it's a big one.
But how can you tell us about that process? And
we just want to know everything? Tell us everything. Have
a book came to be and you know it's it's
different than another sort of design book and the interiors world,
(32:08):
for instance, So talk to us about what a coffee
table book looks like from an art perspective.
Speaker 3 (32:14):
Sure, okay, So the first things first, the book is
about collecting art, And it's really like the a disea
of how try and figuring out what you like about art,
your style, and then you know, how do you speak
to a gallery, how do you speak to an artist?
Speaker 2 (32:30):
What are the questions you ask? How do you pay?
How do you take it home? What do you do?
Speaker 3 (32:35):
How are you going to design with it? Are you
how do you install? How do you take care of
it once you own it? So it's really like going
to be like this full answer all of your questions
so that you don't feel like you're walking in blind
which I think a lot of people do when they're
buying artwork based solely on the fact that I you know,
of course do this on a daily basis, and people
(32:56):
ask me a lot of questions, and so we're going
to be answering all of those. The myth of the
overnight success, right, I think people don't realize sometimes how
long it takes for a book to happen. You know,
my first email about this idea of a book was
from twenty seventeen, and so we first I went and
(33:17):
started interviewing agents and trying to decide who was the
right fit. And then I really it took a long time,
and then you know, it went on the back burner
because I was trying to grow the business and somebody
connected me about a year ago with my agent, Kristin Nuhause.
She's incredible and she really got the the why of
(33:40):
the book. We started creating a kind of like ten
to twenty page proposal. I wrote the first chapter, We
started putting in a bunch of images, all of those things,
and we were probably about two weeks out from sending
it out and then I got a DM in my
Instagram from Samantha Wiener, who is now my editor at
(34:06):
Simon and Schuster Simon Element, and she said, have you
ever thought about making a book? And these are the
five things that I think you could talk about, And
we keep using the word serendipitous.
Speaker 2 (34:20):
It was really just like.
Speaker 3 (34:21):
Kismet because it was the book, and so I within
about twenty four hours was able to send her the
proposal with Kristen, and about forty eight hours after that,
we had a book deal. And my agent said, someday
you'll tell that story to another author and they're going
(34:42):
to want to hurt you.
Speaker 2 (34:46):
But it just it felt like all of the right
people were together and I think that's the biggest thing.
Speaker 3 (34:52):
I spoke to a lot of people who had created books,
and you know, they said, like, this is a.
Speaker 2 (34:56):
Passion project, right, Like you write a.
Speaker 3 (34:59):
Book not because you want to be rich, but because
you truly believe in it and think that it needs
to be out in the world and you've got something
different to say. And I really this was just like
my passion project. I kept coming back to it. I
kept thinking about it. So it takes about a year
to write the book and to shoot all of the images,
(35:20):
and so that is all due in April of twenty
twenty five, and then I will have the book out
in spring as slated for spring of twenty twenty six.
It takes about a year for the actual book to
physically be made. You know, it takes it's a really
really long process, and the process before it was long
(35:41):
and arduous. But I mean, I think the patience was
my biggest virtue there, and really just finding the right
people to work with and not trying to rush it.
But it has been a journey. And then writing it.
It's all in my head, right, so just getting it
down and actually taking the time to sit in front
of a computer and do the daily world of writing
(36:01):
and then setting up the shoots has been an incredible process.
The thing that's great about where we are locally is
that we have dot Dash Meredith here and so we
have incredible photographers that know how to shoot interiors, and
so we just have this amazing access to that. So
we have Adam Albright who has been shooting all of
(36:23):
the work for us, and we're getting to go into
spectacular homes and then also we're getting images from artists
and interior designers and all types of just it's just
going to be a feast for the eyes. I think
I'm very excited about it.
Speaker 4 (36:37):
Well, we are so excited to read it, and thank you.
You have the copy be a part of our libraries
as well.
Speaker 1 (36:44):
Thank you, and the book I know will be so
interesting because you really are a wonderful educator. It's been
fun always following you as you like to teach you
a world different things. It's interesting and because you are
an effective teacher. When it comes to art, Let's face it,
art is and can be intimidating. What would you say
to folks who are afraid to dive into the art world,
what most commonly holds them back?
Speaker 3 (37:05):
You know, I think there's a fear of looking stupid,
and I do have people say to me all the
time that I just don't know anything about artwork, and
so they people have thoughts and opinions, they just don't
feel like they have been given the permission to speak
it out into the world. And so I think one
of the major things is finding a gallery or an
(37:27):
artist who.
Speaker 2 (37:29):
Feels welcoming to you.
Speaker 3 (37:30):
Don't let anyone make you feel stupid because you have
very valid thoughts and opinions, you know, and also educating
yourself in some way. One of my favorite suggestions is
to go to a museum with.
Speaker 2 (37:44):
Your friend or partner ormever.
Speaker 3 (37:47):
And act like you've got an unlimited budget and you
both have to pick one piece of artwork to take home.
And so you know, you wander through and the sky's
the limit on what you have and what are you
drawn to you It makes you think about like, Okay,
what would I actually want to live with? So you know,
that's really something that I hope that is kind of
(38:08):
a little lesson that helps people voice what they like
about things and why it moves them. But yeah, find somebody,
find a place where you feel welcome and if you
feel welcome, then you can ask all of the questions
that you have. There are no stupid questions here, and
really being able to talk openly I think is find
(38:30):
that welcoming space well.
Speaker 4 (38:31):
And it is too bad that people do feel somewhat
shy or they're not going to sound educated or sophisticated
enough when they go to a gallery or to an
art museum, because I think it's innate for humans to
want to make things prettier, right, I mean, from the
time you know, you've got a two year old in
(38:52):
the driveway with their sidewalk chalk. They don't know anything
about art that they want to make something prettier they're
attracted to and oh, we take this lank slate of
cement and now it's pretty colors until it rains. So
it's unfortunate because obviously, as human beings we want to
be creative. It does bring joy, it makes us happy,
(39:15):
and yet at some point as we grow up, we
get this idea in our heads that we don't really
know anything about it, and that's too bad.
Speaker 3 (39:23):
Yeah, I think the art world, from its own making,
has a bad wrap.
Speaker 2 (39:27):
You know, you've got the.
Speaker 3 (39:29):
Idea or many people have the idea in their head
that you're going to walk in and none of the
prices are posted, and it's going to be silent, and
there's going to be this snobby gallerista that's looking down
at you being like, I can tell you don't have
the money to be.
Speaker 2 (39:43):
Here, and you know, just all of those things.
Speaker 3 (39:46):
And so we try and be the anti that because
I do believe the art world.
Speaker 2 (39:51):
Is for everyone.
Speaker 3 (39:53):
Absolutely, yeah, it just is. And the design world and
it's not just our world. The design world is for everyone.
And yes, that can in a different variety of budget points,
but good style can happen in a variety of ways.
I mean, who didn't just watch that Martha documentary and
that was the best.
Speaker 2 (40:09):
It was wonderful, it was.
Speaker 3 (40:12):
I loved hearing her talk about you know, nobody thought
that she should have a line at Kmart, but just
because you may not have this astronomical budget doesn't mean
that you don't want beautiful things or good style.
Speaker 2 (40:24):
And she got that from.
Speaker 3 (40:26):
You know, a very early on, you know, way before
the Target and MASONI line and all of those things.
Speaker 2 (40:32):
You know, she was like kind of a pioneer for that.
Speaker 3 (40:35):
So all that being said, I think it's too bad
that people get so worried about, you know, looking silly
in the art world and in the design world, and
it's on all of us that work in those industries
now to kind of deflect that and stop it and
turn it around.
Speaker 4 (40:52):
Absolutely, that's it's just so important because I think that
too often, more often than not, we certainly see this
in bad but it stills into every category of design.
Style is often directed by what we're told is good
versus what we're necessarily personally attracted to. And I think
that the average consumer of whatever the product may be,
(41:18):
is too influenced by that. And so the more that
those of us in the creative world can do to
educate people and to give license and permission, I think
that that will benefit everybody where people do feel more
secure and confident. Agreed.
Speaker 1 (41:34):
I loved the game that you chatted about earlier, about
going into the gallery and just picking whatever piece and
not really thinking about price. But I do have to
ask if price was no issue, and you could pick
out any peace in the world and have it in
your personal collection, what piece would you choose and why?
Speaker 2 (41:49):
Okay, So What I Covet is a series by Robert Longo.
It's called Men in the Cities.
Speaker 3 (41:56):
You may have seen these pieces, but their life and
it looks like they are people.
Speaker 2 (42:03):
White background black and white.
Speaker 3 (42:06):
Looks like they're sketched, and it looks like they're people
in business attire and they're falling. What actually happened is
that Robert Longo set up a camera and didn't tell
his friends what was about to happen, and he started
shooting tennis balls at them.
Speaker 2 (42:18):
So what was happening was that.
Speaker 3 (42:20):
They're they're reacting like full body moving their limbs trying
to get out of the way, and.
Speaker 2 (42:25):
It creates this incredible.
Speaker 3 (42:28):
Movement and emotion and you'll just have to look them up,
Robert Longo Men in the Cities. But there's a whole
series of them, and they're giant. So I have no
idea where I'd have to probably buy a new house
for them, but that's that's what I covet.
Speaker 2 (42:43):
I just would love them.
Speaker 1 (42:44):
That is so interesting to hear about, and I'll have
to look them up for sure, I do.
Speaker 4 (42:47):
I'm that list. For our final big question, we have
a couple of little ones at the end for fun.
So much of this podcast is really about those little
luxuries that elevate the day to day. What are some
of yours? Because we want this podcast to be a
space where people can come to slow the paste down
and really enjoy the luxuries and those those elements that
(43:11):
they have to boost their their lifestyles versus the big
events that happen.
Speaker 2 (43:16):
I love that question.
Speaker 3 (43:17):
So I am somebody that tries to buy quality not quantity.
Good for you, that's great, I agree. I mean I
do try. I do try.
Speaker 2 (43:26):
That doesn't mean I'm not on Amazon, don't get me wrong.
Speaker 3 (43:28):
But one of the things that I truly love is
like my skincare routine, you know, that feels like a
luxurious moment for me each day.
Speaker 2 (43:38):
I also try to wear nice underwear that is such
a person I love it.
Speaker 1 (43:43):
I love I love it too.
Speaker 3 (43:46):
I just feel like that like sets the foundation for
feeling good, you know. And I get dressed every day,
so it's like, you know, I am not a work
from home person, so like that's just like my first
moment of like getting excited to get ready ready in
the morning. And then you know, I try and use
the good silver wear. I have some silver from my
grandparents and I try to use it. I've got china
(44:07):
from my wedding, and I try and use it. I
don't try and wait for the big moments. I try
and use the nice stuff again if it breaks, because
I you know, people ask me all the time, like
my kids are four and six, and they're like, you
use that around them, And I'm like, yeah.
Speaker 2 (44:22):
It's only stuff. It's like stuff, It's just stuff.
Speaker 3 (44:25):
I mean, it's beautiful and it makes me happy and
it's not like I'm like super excited if it shatters
on the floor. But at the same time, it's just stuff.
And I also want to teach them to care for things.
I have people all of the time say I've got
little kids, so I can't buy art, and I'm like, oh,
that is just silly, Like you still, so you're just
gonna live your life for eighteen years without things you
(44:47):
love around you.
Speaker 2 (44:49):
I let's talk about this. Let's talk this through a
little work.
Speaker 3 (44:54):
So and you may not want to spend your money
on art, that's okay, But I still want people to
know that they can have wonderful things around kids because
kids can learn.
Speaker 4 (45:03):
I get what you're saying. A lot of people say
that we can't have nice things until the kids are older,
and unfortunately, when you have that mindset, I think you're
teaching kids to not put value on anything because it's like, well,
only if it's a certain dollar amount or only if
that's a certain label, then you care. And it's like, no,
(45:23):
we should care for everything, because what is you know,
good quality to you and me, Maybe somebody else's only
thing they have to care for that piece if it
comes from a discount store. So I think I love
that you brought that up because I think it's so
important to teach people that we should be taking care
(45:44):
of everything everything as if it is a piece of
Baccarack crystal or at French oil painting. I just think
that that expands and elevates the conversation about quality over quantity,
because everybody's definition of quality is different one hundred percent.
Speaker 2 (45:59):
I think that's so right.
Speaker 3 (46:00):
The other thing that I think has gone by the
wayside is people knowing how to mend their clothes. And
my dad was not wealthy growing up, and you know,
they had one good shirt and one good pair of
pants and all of that. And so my dad is
the one that taught me to sew. I like, how
to sew a button and mend a pair of pants,
(46:20):
or mend a hole in your clothing, and so that
now I have friends dop buy because they don't even
have like a sewing needle and thread, and so I'll
help them sew their buttons back on. But I do
think that people don't know how to take care of
their things and sometimes repair, and I think that is
something that people need to know how to do.
Speaker 2 (46:40):
It's a life skill.
Speaker 4 (46:41):
Okay, well, if nothing else from this episode, I'm going
to take away to stop by your house for all
of my garments that requires some mending and to up
my underwear gain.
Speaker 2 (46:54):
Yes, exactly all of that, yes, yes.
Speaker 1 (46:56):
Yes, Well, Liz, we want to end each episode by
asking all of our guests similar questions. A blueprint, as
you know, doesn't happen on its own. It requires the
right tools to make it successful. What is the tool
that you have that's made the blueprint of your life work?
Speaker 2 (47:10):
Well, the first thing that came to mind was a
hot glue gun. I don't know that, I don't know
that that's actually what you met.
Speaker 3 (47:18):
Probably creativity, right, like, maybe that's like the what's in
my own personal toolbox, But my hot glue gun has
been with me since high school and it has seen everything.
I have hot glued more than anything. Anybody should ever
hot glue. I think it's the answer to everything. And
so it's either creativity.
Speaker 2 (47:35):
Or a hot glue gun.
Speaker 1 (47:36):
That's great. And we know you're not hot glue gunning
a button on for sure.
Speaker 4 (47:39):
No, that's true, Liz. The other part of this podcast
title boulevard. It's such an important one because as we
started this podcast, everybody grew up somewhere. Everybody lives somewhere.
So what does your boulevard look like? If you could
create a street or an avenue or a boulevard, what's
on What does it look like and what does it
(48:01):
do for you?
Speaker 2 (48:03):
This is so lovely.
Speaker 3 (48:04):
It's full of historic homes that have charm and character,
that have been lovingly taking care of for one hundred years,
going back to the very beginning. Has trees, it has
people outside using the space. It's got kids running around,
it's got adults talking to each other out in the driveway.
Speaker 2 (48:25):
It's got walkability to places where.
Speaker 3 (48:29):
You know, we want to spend our day to the
grocery store or coffee shop or whatever. And I think,
like the thing that I love so much My street
is very small, it's only got five houses on it.
Speaker 2 (48:39):
And there's so much kindness. There's so much kindness. We
see each other, you know, out in the lawn. Do
you need help? Do you hey?
Speaker 3 (48:48):
I see that your garage can is still out. Are
you guys traveling? Do you want me to take it
in for you? That is kind of like one of
the hallmarks of a neighborhood. No matter what the homes
look like, it's like people watching out.
Speaker 2 (48:59):
For and take care of each other. All the people on.
Speaker 3 (49:02):
Our street have different backgrounds, their families look different, They
bring something special and different to the table, and we
all just want to take care of each other. And
so I think that is a really going back to
the community part of it. That's what my boulevard looks like.
Speaker 4 (49:19):
Wonderful. Thank you so much, Liz, it's been so great
to chat with you.
Speaker 2 (49:23):
And yes, again.
Speaker 4 (49:25):
I'm excited for the three of us to take on
this venture. It's going to be exciting to talk to
all sorts of different people from the design community, both
locally and everywhere from coast to coast.
Speaker 2 (49:35):
So thank you for your time, Thank you. Excited to
do this with you.
We are excited to introduce you to the world. Liz Legit.
Liz is an art advisor, writer and gallery owner. Liz welcome.
I'm excited to start this conversation.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
I'm so thrilled to be with you guys.
Speaker 3 (00:12):
I mean, I love knowing you in person, and I'm
excited that you guys are sharing all of your knowledge
with the world too.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
I mean, this is a big step.
Speaker 1 (00:20):
Yes, it is.
Speaker 4 (00:21):
We're asking everybody because this is such a fun question
to think about. Tell us about the strength that you
grew up on and what that was like.
Speaker 2 (00:30):
Well, that's actually such a fun question.
Speaker 3 (00:32):
So I grew up in a historic home here in
Des Moines and just a few blocks from where I
live now, and it's called thirty seventh Street, and so
it had just a row of beautiful historic homes.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
I grew up in a brick tutor.
Speaker 3 (00:50):
We had a photo of Teddy Roosevelt outside of our
house that had been passed from owner to owner. There
was just so much history in it, and I'll I mean,
it was a privilege to grow up in a home
like that. But it also I think shaped why I
am so interested in homes and design, and it probably
(01:11):
helped bud all of the things that I love to
do now. I think that's a house that shaped me.
But also it was a really tree lined street. It
was a quiet street, it was just some It had
wonderful neighbors. It's like all of the things that I
look for when I choose a home now. It was
a foundational place for me for sure.
Speaker 4 (01:33):
Okay, I feel like trees are going to be a
common thread between all of them. Everybody loves tree Everybody
wants those tree line streets truly.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
I mean they're protectors and I love that. I love
that idea.
Speaker 4 (01:45):
And what was your earliest memory of creativity? Growing up
in a historic home as you did, could you sort
of feel the people there who lived there before you?
Could you feel that history? It's such a different experience
than living in a new builder, being in a new neighborhood,
even that's recently developed. So I mean as a kid, right,
(02:05):
you care about toys and art projects and things like that.
You're not really thinking about architecture per se at a
super young age. But when did it sort of hit you?
And how did it feel to know that there were
so many generations because the house she grew up in.
I mean it dates back over one hundred years.
Speaker 2 (02:23):
Correct, Yes, yeah, it was nineteen twelve.
Speaker 3 (02:26):
And the really interesting thing about the house was that
the previous owners were always a part of the conversation
of that home because a former vice president had lived there,
and then also Et Meredith who founded Meredith Corporation, which
is now dot Dash Meredith. So there was just all
of these amazing ties with des Moines and really special
(02:48):
parts of Iowa history. Also, it was haunted, but that's
a different podcast. So when you said, could I feel
the people that were there? I was like, absolutely.
Speaker 4 (03:00):
Maybe we'll chat about that again later in there when
it's time. That sounds like a fun, entertaining episode.
Speaker 3 (03:06):
That's a completely different episode. But you know, I was
always the art kid, and whether it was because of
what my parents surrounded me in, that could be, but
I truly believe that partially it was just innate. And
I tell the story about how I was the art
(03:27):
kid and that I was always carrying around a sketchbook
and a pencil and I would literally just sit down
and I would draw hands or what was on the
kitchen table or just anything that was around me. And
so then I started art lessons at the Dowaine Art
Center at the age of five, and so that was
what my Christmas present was every single year.
Speaker 2 (03:44):
And that place.
Speaker 3 (03:47):
Speaking of the home that shaped me, that institution shaped me,
and it really made me think about all of the
things that you could do in the art world. And
sometimes you have this kind of idea that like, if
you want to be in the art world, you're an artist,
or you're a curator, or you're in these like very
specific silos. And the Art Center really opened me up
(04:10):
to incredible artwork for free, which also is why I
focus so much on accessibility now. I think that was
like a foundational thing for me.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
But you know, it really opened me up to possibility.
Speaker 3 (04:23):
When I went to college, I got a degree in
journalism and a degree in art history, and you know,
I'd open up my art history books and all of
these photos would say courtesy of the De Wine Art Center.
And that was kind of incredible to me because here
I was sitting with this like Francis Bacon, knowing that
(04:44):
it moved me, but not realizing that it was like
literally world famous, and it was two blocks from where
I grew up. So I just that was such a
special place for me, and so I think going to
the Arts Center, you know, were some of those initial
creative moments that I just it was. It was my
place to escape, you know. I loved it.
Speaker 1 (05:05):
That's so neat and awesome to have at your fingertips,
to just be able to go and spend time in there.
Do you like to take your kids there? Now? Often?
Speaker 2 (05:11):
I do? I do.
Speaker 3 (05:12):
I mean they come to the gallery a lot, and
so they know how to behave around artwork, you know,
and so now I.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Love taking them.
Speaker 3 (05:21):
And you know, we just did the they do a
great Day of the Dead celebration, and so we try
and hop into the Art Center as much as possible,
just because I know how important it was to me. Plus,
my daughter is obsessed with art. I try not to
influence that too much, but she's obsessed with it. So
now we get to go just the two of us
(05:43):
sometimes and experience it, which is really cool.
Speaker 4 (05:45):
Liz. I'm wondering if you can expand on something that
you said a moment ago. You talked about how when
people think of somebody who's in the art world, they
automatically go to an artist, somebody who paints or sculpts
or draws or you know, sells their works as a living.
Could you sort of take us through some of the
(06:05):
other lines of work that fall under the umbrella of
the art work other than being an artist, because I
think that people, you know, they may shy away from
their inner creativity because they might think, I can't make
any money doing this, or I can't make a living
as an artist. That's what happens when you leave the earth,
(06:27):
you know, that's when you become famous, and that's of
no good when you're trying to play the bills. So
take us through sort of that more broad scope umbrella
and what kind of the options were and what led
you to do what you do now, and if you
could also tell our audience what you do now exactly?
Speaker 2 (06:46):
Sure?
Speaker 3 (06:46):
Okay, so there's so much there, right, Okay, So first,
I am an owner of an art gallery. I curate
all of the shows, and so that is kind of
what I do now. I have my undergrad in our history.
I went to USC for my masters and that program's
now called curatorial Practice in the Public Sphere, which is
(07:10):
a pretty wordy way to say anything outside of a
museum space. Okay, that sounds very fancy, like just think
public art, right, it's the art that you interact with
in your everyday life.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
And so there were a lot.
Speaker 3 (07:24):
Of ways that I could have gone after undergrad and
I knew that accessibility. I go back to that word
all of the time, but accessibility was really really important
to me, and I kept thinking about how could I
bring artwork to people in their everyday lives. So I
got that degree, and then I came back and I
did a year of service with AmeriCorps with the Department
(07:46):
of Cultural Affairs. Then I became the in house curator
for an incredible collection in Iowa, and it was both
in the corporate space and in their personal home. I
learned so much. I learned so much in that year.
But you know, sometimes it's important to know just as
much as what you want to do, is what you
(08:07):
don't want to do, right, And that job really pushed
me to think about what I wanted to do because
I knew then what I didn't want to do. And
I started my business as an art advisor immediately I
was twenty seven years old. I decided that I wanted
to help other corporations with their art collections. I was
(08:29):
starting to go around and tour some other collections, and
we would find things like next to the radiator in
you know, service closets and things like that, just because
you know, in the eighties and nineties, it was kind
of a status symbol to have an in.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
House curator for a corporation.
Speaker 3 (08:46):
And then, you know, somebody retires or the person that
loved art goes on to their next job or whatever
it looks like, and then this artwork just sits and
it's not being taken care of. And your artwork is
an asset like anything else in your portfolio. And so
I wanted to help these corporations, and so I got
my first client and quit my job the next day.
And so it started with corporations advising them on what
(09:09):
to buy, how to take care of it, all of
those things, and then it just kept growing. People said, well,
would you help me with my home, would you help
me with my restaurant, would you help me with my
small business. Then almost six years ago, I decided to
create the gallery. And that really stemmed from the fact
that I was working with galleries all of the time,
and I felt like they weren't treating artists well enough.
(09:31):
I thought that they weren't doing enough for their clients.
The customer service wasn't there. The education that I really
thought people wanted wasn't there. And so those are some
of the core tenants that we now do at Liz
Legit Gallery. One of the biggest things is the international
average for female artists is about thirteen percent for representation
(09:53):
in galleries, and we committed since day one to have
at least fifty percent representation of female artists. We know,
oh that there are female artists out there. We know
there's incredible artists out there. We know that they are
fifty percent of the MFAs that are graduating.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
So why is a statistic like that?
Speaker 3 (10:10):
And so I know I can't change the art world everywhere,
but if I can show people that you can be
successful doing it the right way, whether it's just being
kind and good to people, kind of getting rid of
some of the cloak and dagger stuff from the art world,
or it's just representing fifty percent women and making sure
that you know that is something that we always talk
about to get rid of some of those discrepancies. So
(10:33):
that's me, but then also talking about different things that
you can do in the art world. There's all of
these different categories, right, So, yes, you can make the art,
you can sell the art, you can handle the art.
You know, there's all of these different ways you can
you can market the art, right, you can try and
whether you're in a nonprofit or you're in a for profit,
(10:54):
there's all kinds of different stories that you get to tell.
That's what marketting is is really help telling the stories
of the artwork. So what I thought was so great
was that when I was in college, I came back
and spent a summer as a curatorial intern for the
Art Center, going back there and really getting to see
the behind the scenes of everyone who takes care of
(11:15):
the artwork, touches a piece of artwork, helps tell the
story behind a collection. And that's just on the nonprofit side,
but there's so many ways on the for profit side
as well. For example, we'll intake about two hundred works
of art on a monthly basis into the gallery, and
so we have a team of five right now that
(11:35):
is making that all happen, whether they're actually physically receiving
the artwork, taking photographs of it, putting it onto the website,
talking about it, doing the operations behind it. I mean,
there's so many different ways that you can be a
part of it. And yes, you can get a degree
in marketing and maybe minor in art history and still
get to work in the art world in some way.
Speaker 1 (11:57):
Liz, one of my favorite things about art is that
E books Emotions and Feelings. Can you tell me about
a particular piece of art that has moved you in
an extraordinary way. I'd love to hear about one of
your great masterpieces as well from your personal collection.
Speaker 3 (12:09):
Well, I think the most recent thing that I just
experienced was that I was just in Mexico City and
we went down to Frida Collo's home, Cassa Azul. It's
her home that she had with Diego Rivera. It's so
fascinating to me because I knew that love. I've always
loved Trida. I think she's an incredible artist, and her
(12:30):
story is amazing and the you know, her body was
unfortunately broken in many ways from an accident that she
had when she was eighteen years old, and she continued
to figure out ways to create. Like I just think
it's fascinating to see somebody who creating art or just
creating something in general is so much a part of
(12:52):
them that they physically cannot stop themselves, right. Frida had
a mirror above her bed, and she had a day
bed for the day and a night bed because she
almost always needed to be laying down at some point
during the day because her body hurt so much, and
so you know, they created easels for her so that
she could paint while she laid down. So I truly
(13:12):
cried when I was there. I'm not much of a crier.
I'm an eldest daughter, so I like to keep those
emotions like damn down right, But I truly cried when
I walked in because the space itself so much like her.
Speaker 2 (13:27):
It evoked so much emotion.
Speaker 3 (13:29):
But then also just really seeing her work that she
created in the face of pain was just really truly touching.
Another for me was mural by Jackson Pollock that's owned
by the University of Iowa. It came to Des Moines
probably a decade ago, and when I walked in, I cried.
That's the other only other time that I've cried when
(13:49):
I've been around ARC. But it was I think it
was the sheer size, it's enormous. And then also I think,
what's so special about Jackson Pollock's work you know, of
course it's called action painting, right, But I can close
my eyes and I can picture him creating the work
and standing over it and messing with it and throwing
(14:10):
the paint. And that's what really gets me excited for
artwork and my gallery sometimes is that I think, oh
my gosh, I can close my eyes and really picture
them making the work. That action of it is really
exciting for me. And so that is the kind of
thing I like to bring into my own home.
Speaker 2 (14:27):
Is like what moves you? Right?
Speaker 3 (14:29):
It is not about artwork that matches my sofa. There's
a derogatory term in the art world that is called
otc art or over the couch art, So you know,
obviously there's a place for that, right. I mean, like,
you want to live in a beautiful home, but I
want it to be a home that speaks to who
(14:50):
you are. So that's really something that I think about
a lot. Is like, okay, but how when I'm selling
a piece of artwork and I'm connecting a person with
a piece of artwork. Sure, I like to see fabric samples,
and I love working with designers and all of that.
I want to I want to really let a designer's
creation sing, but also I want it to be a
piece where that person who owns it now is able
(15:13):
to say, this is who this is, and this is
why it's important to me, and this is what it represents, and.
Speaker 2 (15:19):
This is what I see? What do you see?
Speaker 3 (15:21):
And so it's like, how can we create those conversations
with artwork and design and how can we bring joy?
And those are the things I look for in.
Speaker 2 (15:30):
My home too.
Speaker 1 (15:31):
Yeah, I think that's so true. I often say that
in my projects. I can tell you that this is
going to look good over the sofa or in the
living room and things like that, but it needs to
evoke somemotion and you need to really have it inspire
you every day when you're in those spaces.
Speaker 4 (15:46):
Well, and the goodness is, while this is sort of
a get to know you podcast for you, Liz, we
are going to sit down and have some other episodes
with you where you really take our audience through how
to educate themselves on our buy art and the nitty
gritty of it because unfortunately, and I'm sure you can
talk about this part all day, we're never really taught
(16:09):
in school how to look at art or design of
any kind. Really, and I think that that's unfortunate. I
always say that we spend a lot of money as
adults on things, on pieces because of the way they look.
That could be in a kitchen appliance, it could be
a car, certainly your wardrobe, and yet we're never taken
(16:32):
down that road of how to look at things. So
I imagine for you, you know, when you're talking about over
the couch pieces of art, that it really does have
to strike an emotion or provide something for you other
than the work itself one hundred.
Speaker 3 (16:51):
You know, I think it's so interesting. We talked a
little earlier about taking my kids to the art center.
You know, we do spend a lot of time in school,
if you're lucky, about like creating art in art class,
and so you get a little bit of a background there,
but really being able to feel comfortable about talking about
art or really understanding. And one of the things that
(17:12):
I do with my kids is we really stand in
front of a painting and I just say what do
you see and really feeling making them feel comfortable with
being analytical or critical or.
Speaker 2 (17:24):
I like this, okay, great. Why it could be that
it was the.
Speaker 3 (17:29):
Color red that you love One of my favorite memories
of talking about artwork was a guy that my husband
knew in college and he went to the Sistine Travel
and he came back and he was like, Liz, I
got to talk to you about this because he knew.
Speaker 2 (17:44):
I loved art. And I said, Conrad, tell me about it.
What did you think? And he goes, oh, my gosh,
that was a tight blue? And I was like, excuse me,
And I was like, what he took from it?
Speaker 4 (17:54):
Right?
Speaker 2 (17:55):
Like that was a tight blue? That was an awesome blue.
Speaker 3 (17:57):
And so maybe we can give people a lie little
bit more ways to talk about it. But there's no
wrong way to talk about art. It's really about whatever
moves you. It could be the color, it could be
the subject matter, it could be whatever you see in
and abstract work. I want people to feel really comfortable
in educating themselves and kind of getting past that feeling
(18:19):
of like.
Speaker 2 (18:20):
Oh, I don't know much about art. I don't want
to talk about it.
Speaker 3 (18:23):
The only way that you're going to learn is being
able to like voice what you see, and so just
starting with like, what do you literally see is the
first step.
Speaker 4 (18:32):
I think, Well, and kids are probably the perfect little
you know people to talk to the little people that
they are with little minds, because you're getting a very
pure answer from them, because they're not concerned about sort
of the academic part of it, or the part that
will make them sound sophisticated and refined and intelligent. They're
(18:53):
just truly speaking from the heart.
Speaker 2 (18:55):
So you're so right.
Speaker 4 (18:57):
You're so right.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
As you've been rooted into Mooines community since childhood, what
does community mean to you?
Speaker 4 (19:03):
Community?
Speaker 3 (19:03):
Gosh is so important to me, first just as a
person who lives in the community and wants to better it,
and then of course as a small business owner. A
community is what you know helps support us right and
our ideas. I say a lot when I lived in
Los Angeles, you felt like you had to be a
multi millionaire to make a difference. But in Des Moin
(19:26):
you have to have a good idea, and I think
that's a little bit of a difference of the community.
You know, people here truly want to support small business owners,
They want to take care of their own, they want
to see as succeed and it's one of the things
that I love about living in maybe a smaller city.
Beyond that, though, I think really past twenty twenty and
(19:48):
going through the pandemic. It really felt like that was
like this turning point where people started to care who
they were giving their money to, and they were really
thinking more about keeping their community strong. And part of
what makes the community strong is fall and business owners.
(20:09):
So you know, when I'm shopping, when I am trying
to make a decision, I always try and figure out
if I can give my business to a small business owner,
especially if it's female owned. I feel like where where
I give my dollars says what I care about, and
so I think about, like the type of place I
(20:30):
want to live in, the type of community that I
want to live in, And so those dollars act as
like your vote towards a towards what type of space
you want to live in, and.
Speaker 2 (20:41):
It's just like the supportive, wonderful nature.
Speaker 3 (20:43):
I want to live in a place where I go
to the grocery store and I run into somebody I
haven't seen in a while. I want to, you know,
send my kid to a school where I know the parents,
and you know there's people from all walks of life
that go there. I want them to be exposed to
just everything that a community has to offer.
Speaker 4 (21:03):
Well, and I think we've sort of seen the pendulum
swing to small businesses. I feel like for decades, sadly
everything was about big box retailers, just because for no
other reason than it's convenient for people, right right, And
now I think that communities, not only into Woying, but
all across the nation are certainly more mindful of supporting
(21:25):
those small businesses, and even if it's not a small business,
just being more mindful in general about what their purchases are,
which is what, at the end of the day, I
think is just so important. We all work really hard
for the money that we earn, and why wouldn't you
think about every dollar and where every penning is going.
And sometimes we're I think we can get a little
(21:47):
lazy in that regard, and so it is it does
become important and a good thing that now people are
a little more.
Speaker 3 (21:53):
Aware, absolutely, absolutely, And I think you know, when you're supporting,
for example, my small business, we represent seventy artists from
around the world, and those dollars are going then at
the end of the month directly to artists all over
the world, And so you know, is that the type
of thing that you want to give dollars to I
(22:15):
hope so right, like, because you know that you're literally
making me do a happy dance when a sale happens,
and an artist do a happy dance when a sale happens.
You're literally helping them be a person that can create
on a day to day basis and be an artist
full time and get rid of the myth of the
starving artist. And so you know, I mean, I think
(22:35):
that there's just larger impact sometimes, and I think that's
actually one of the cool things about working with an
interior designer because they are the ones that have like
this like tapped in access to artisans and you know
the people that are you know, still upholstering and working
on these crafts that are unfortunately going to the wayside,
(22:56):
you know, because you can just go online and pick
a sofa, but you know, there's still so many people
that are still working with their hands, and I feel
like designers like get to end up being the access
to that to still kind of almost simplify it in
some ways for you. But again, that's just you know,
the design world of things of what I want to
give my money to because.
Speaker 2 (23:17):
I want I want there to be people that are
still craftsmen.
Speaker 4 (23:20):
And absolutely so, since you are a craftsman, a crafts
woman and you've always been tapped into the art world,
we spend a lot of time, or we're going to
spend a lot of time talking about everyone's personal style,
because every person who we interview is going to be
in the design world in some way, shape or form.
(23:41):
So can you kind of tell us what is your
personal style? How did you get there, and what do
you love personally? Because we know that you're not just
in the art world. It's about fashion, it's about your interiors,
it's about how you do things. So how would you
describe that style and how you live?
Speaker 2 (23:58):
Well, I'm a color lover.
Speaker 3 (24:00):
I think that's one of the first things you see
when you walk into my home is that there's color
and pattern everywhere.
Speaker 4 (24:05):
And that's significant because a lot of people are scared
of color one hundred percent.
Speaker 3 (24:09):
I'm not, you know, worried about resale value right now.
I'm really like trying to live in a home that
I feel good in and it makes me smile, and
it makes my kids feel creative, and my husband feel
good and joyful and just all of those things. I
want to surround myself in things that I love. So
whether that, you know, I bring in like a mid
(24:31):
century modern lamp, even though the rest of my house
is kind of like English country, you know, it doesn't matter.
There's some eclecticism there. Even when I'm getting ready in
the morning, I'm like, who do I want to be today?
You know, I feel like there's like a little bit
of a chameleon sort of a thing there, instead of
being like, Okay, does this fit this very specific design
style that I have set for myself. There is a stylist,
(24:53):
Alison Bornstein, that I think is incredible. I follow her
on Instagram and she has you create a ward with
three words. So I think about, like what my three
words are for my style a lot, and then I
think about my three words for my home too. On
another episode, I will have a definitive list for you.
I'm still like kind of trying to figure those words
(25:14):
out right now. But I think that's a really interesting
concept of like trying to help you narrow down, especially
when you are a design lover art lover. It's like
the possibilities are endless. It's almost overwhelming sometimes. So I
do understand how people shy away from color because they're overwhelmed,
you know, and I get that that's why people come
(25:37):
to a gallery. Sometimes it's like, oh my gosh, there's
so much art in the world. I don't even know
where to begin. So you try and work with somebody
that you already know that you like their eye or
their stech to help narrow that down. But can three
words be something that really helps you define that well?
Speaker 1 (25:52):
And I think the world it was so big for
so long. So the embracing work color, I see it
a lot in a lot of our work and what
clients are asking four two kind of back to that
principle that Chris and I have talked about, like when
you buy what you love, you'll always find a spot
for in your home, and bringing that style in just
helps refine everything as well.
Speaker 3 (26:11):
What I've been really interested in lately is, you know,
asking people what they collect, because I think that really
is fascinating. I, for example, collect small brass.
Speaker 2 (26:22):
Hats tell us more.
Speaker 3 (26:26):
So I have about twenty five of them now because
people love to gift them to me. Now. I found
a collection of three when I was thrifting and then
I just kept seeing them. You know, that principle where
it's like they're you know that you just start seeing
things that you're thinking about, or if you hear about
a trip, and then everybody's going there. Small brass hats
(26:47):
became this thing, and so I've got like sombreros and
cowboy hats and top hats and police officer from Britain's
hat and like, you know, I wish I could tell
you all the different types. I have ones that I covet,
but I think the thing that I love about it
is that there's literally no purpose to them. They are
just fun for whatever reason. I don't understand why they're made,
(27:08):
why there are so many different types of small brass hats.
But anyway, I think it's really fascinating to hear what
people collect, because I think that is something that people
do joyfully for themselves, and it actually can tell you
a lot about them.
Speaker 4 (27:21):
What makes a good collection?
Speaker 3 (27:23):
Oh gosh, I mean that is okay. So I love quirk.
I love you know.
Speaker 2 (27:29):
Do you know anybody else that collects small brass hats?
Speaker 3 (27:31):
No, you don't do not somebody's out there. I'm going
to get a letter someday that is like I do
it too, just FYI.
Speaker 1 (27:39):
But you do have to share a picture of them.
Speaker 3 (27:41):
I know, so I've got a whole cabinet of them now.
But you know, my sister decided recently that she wanted
a collection, and she wants small chicken figurines.
Speaker 2 (27:50):
I don't know why.
Speaker 3 (27:51):
Actually we haven't really discussed it. So I just got
a text that was like, I've decided what I'm going
to collect.
Speaker 4 (27:56):
Well, that's a very apropos for Iowa.
Speaker 3 (27:58):
Yeah, true, Yeah, you know so anyway, so I think
it's just kind of fun to find out what is
you know, whimsical and what catches people's eye. I met
somebody recently that has a full barbie room. I would
never expect it of them, but they have a full
room displaying their barbies that they've collected.
Speaker 2 (28:17):
And then we get to talk about that.
Speaker 3 (28:18):
I mean, that's actually where you get to kind of
see people light up, is you know when they talk
about their collections if they have one, or you know,
start talking to somebody about, you know, what would they
want to collect. You know, that's kind of the interesting
question too, of like helping them decide.
Speaker 1 (28:34):
Well, collection is such an interesting conversation. Do you feel, though,
in the art world that there's a way to make
a good collection.
Speaker 2 (28:41):
Oh gosh. I mean, there's so many different ways.
Speaker 3 (28:43):
One of my favorite stories is that we have this
client who when she and her husband met, they started
buying artwork that was in twos, so maybe it was
like two panels or it had two things in it.
And then when they had a child, they started doing threes.
And then they had another child and they started doing fours.
And I love that that is not an obvious thing
(29:05):
to their collection, but it speaks so much to who
they are as a family and how they've grown and
at different points of their life.
Speaker 2 (29:13):
I think a good art.
Speaker 4 (29:14):
Are they accountants. They're not accountants.
Speaker 2 (29:19):
I know that's true. That's a good point, you know.
Speaker 3 (29:22):
I just I think a great collection speaks to the
person in some way. So maybe it's somebody that collects
a piece every time they travel, or a hobby is
shown in some way over and over again. I think
that's what's really fun about a commission, for example, is
that you can throw in little details. We have good
(29:42):
family friends that their last name starts with be, and
so they love bumblebees, and so we did a still
life commission for them, and you know, we threw in
a small bee and sat it on the table like
it was had just flown into the painting. So I
think there's all kinds of things that you can do
that makes a collection special to you. I think a
(30:04):
good one is because it is something that you've decided
upon yourself and it means something to you.
Speaker 1 (30:09):
Lis we all know being an entrepreneur is a hard
road and it has its challenges at times, but it's
also very rewarding to watch your company grow. How has
that changed your outlook and envision as you take this
company into this next chapter.
Speaker 3 (30:22):
I love being an entrepreneur, you know. I think there's
lots of reasons I think that I can. I think
it's the creative aspect to it. I think artists and
entrepreneurs actually are very similar. It's like you have this
just abstract idea and you can make it physical and real.
I love that so much. I love supporting my employees.
(30:43):
I think it's really exciting to help people live their
best lives and create an environment that they are excited
to come to every day. I think that's really cool,
you know. There, Yeah, there are many lessons learned. I
remember early on taking things so personally, my dad.
Speaker 2 (31:01):
Kind of looked at me.
Speaker 3 (31:02):
One time, I said, Elizabeth, it's only business, and it
really was kind of like, am I okay? Is my
family okay? Like is everything going to you know, this
isn't going to this one small thing isn't going to
bankrupt me. So I mean I kind of try and
put everything in perspective. I think about that a lot.
It's only business, it's not life or death, but it
(31:24):
can feel very personal at times, and I think that's
sometimes the downside to it. But I also love how
personal it feels too.
Speaker 2 (31:33):
Well.
Speaker 4 (31:33):
Speaking of new chapters, you have a chapter that's new
coming up. Literally, when we say chapter, we mean literally
because you are authoring a book.
Speaker 2 (31:45):
Yeah us, Yes, so tell.
Speaker 4 (31:47):
Us about that. That's so exciting. And first of all,
congratulations on that journey because I know it's a big one.
But how can you tell us about that process? And
we just want to know everything? Tell us everything. Have
a book came to be and you know it's it's
different than another sort of design book and the interiors world,
(32:08):
for instance, So talk to us about what a coffee
table book looks like from an art perspective.
Speaker 3 (32:14):
Sure, okay, So the first things first, the book is
about collecting art, And it's really like the a disea
of how try and figuring out what you like about art,
your style, and then you know, how do you speak
to a gallery, how do you speak to an artist?
Speaker 2 (32:30):
What are the questions you ask? How do you pay?
How do you take it home? What do you do?
Speaker 3 (32:35):
How are you going to design with it? Are you
how do you install? How do you take care of
it once you own it? So it's really like going
to be like this full answer all of your questions
so that you don't feel like you're walking in blind
which I think a lot of people do when they're
buying artwork based solely on the fact that I you know,
of course do this on a daily basis, and people
(32:56):
ask me a lot of questions, and so we're going
to be answering all of those. The myth of the
overnight success, right, I think people don't realize sometimes how
long it takes for a book to happen. You know,
my first email about this idea of a book was
from twenty seventeen, and so we first I went and
(33:17):
started interviewing agents and trying to decide who was the
right fit. And then I really it took a long time,
and then you know, it went on the back burner
because I was trying to grow the business and somebody
connected me about a year ago with my agent, Kristin Nuhause.
She's incredible and she really got the the why of
(33:40):
the book. We started creating a kind of like ten
to twenty page proposal. I wrote the first chapter, We
started putting in a bunch of images, all of those things,
and we were probably about two weeks out from sending
it out and then I got a DM in my
Instagram from Samantha Wiener, who is now my editor at
(34:06):
Simon and Schuster Simon Element, and she said, have you
ever thought about making a book? And these are the
five things that I think you could talk about, And
we keep using the word serendipitous.
Speaker 2 (34:20):
It was really just like.
Speaker 3 (34:21):
Kismet because it was the book, and so I within
about twenty four hours was able to send her the
proposal with Kristen, and about forty eight hours after that,
we had a book deal. And my agent said, someday
you'll tell that story to another author and they're going
(34:42):
to want to hurt you.
Speaker 2 (34:46):
But it just it felt like all of the right
people were together and I think that's the biggest thing.
Speaker 3 (34:52):
I spoke to a lot of people who had created books,
and you know, they said, like, this is a.
Speaker 2 (34:56):
Passion project, right, Like you write a.
Speaker 3 (34:59):
Book not because you want to be rich, but because
you truly believe in it and think that it needs
to be out in the world and you've got something
different to say. And I really this was just like
my passion project. I kept coming back to it. I
kept thinking about it. So it takes about a year
to write the book and to shoot all of the images,
(35:20):
and so that is all due in April of twenty
twenty five, and then I will have the book out
in spring as slated for spring of twenty twenty six.
It takes about a year for the actual book to
physically be made. You know, it takes it's a really
really long process, and the process before it was long
(35:41):
and arduous. But I mean, I think the patience was
my biggest virtue there, and really just finding the right
people to work with and not trying to rush it.
But it has been a journey. And then writing it.
It's all in my head, right, so just getting it
down and actually taking the time to sit in front
of a computer and do the daily world of writing
(36:01):
and then setting up the shoots has been an incredible process.
The thing that's great about where we are locally is
that we have dot Dash Meredith here and so we
have incredible photographers that know how to shoot interiors, and
so we just have this amazing access to that. So
we have Adam Albright who has been shooting all of
(36:23):
the work for us, and we're getting to go into
spectacular homes and then also we're getting images from artists
and interior designers and all types of just it's just
going to be a feast for the eyes. I think
I'm very excited about it.
Speaker 4 (36:37):
Well, we are so excited to read it, and thank you.
You have the copy be a part of our libraries
as well.
Speaker 1 (36:44):
Thank you, and the book I know will be so
interesting because you really are a wonderful educator. It's been
fun always following you as you like to teach you
a world different things. It's interesting and because you are
an effective teacher. When it comes to art, Let's face it,
art is and can be intimidating. What would you say
to folks who are afraid to dive into the art world,
what most commonly holds them back?
Speaker 3 (37:05):
You know, I think there's a fear of looking stupid,
and I do have people say to me all the
time that I just don't know anything about artwork, and
so they people have thoughts and opinions, they just don't
feel like they have been given the permission to speak
it out into the world. And so I think one
of the major things is finding a gallery or an
(37:27):
artist who.
Speaker 2 (37:29):
Feels welcoming to you.
Speaker 3 (37:30):
Don't let anyone make you feel stupid because you have
very valid thoughts and opinions, you know, and also educating
yourself in some way. One of my favorite suggestions is
to go to a museum with.
Speaker 2 (37:44):
Your friend or partner ormever.
Speaker 3 (37:47):
And act like you've got an unlimited budget and you
both have to pick one piece of artwork to take home.
And so you know, you wander through and the sky's
the limit on what you have and what are you
drawn to you It makes you think about like, Okay,
what would I actually want to live with? So you know,
that's really something that I hope that is kind of
(38:08):
a little lesson that helps people voice what they like
about things and why it moves them. But yeah, find somebody,
find a place where you feel welcome and if you
feel welcome, then you can ask all of the questions
that you have. There are no stupid questions here, and
really being able to talk openly I think is find
(38:30):
that welcoming space well.
Speaker 4 (38:31):
And it is too bad that people do feel somewhat
shy or they're not going to sound educated or sophisticated
enough when they go to a gallery or to an
art museum, because I think it's innate for humans to
want to make things prettier, right, I mean, from the
time you know, you've got a two year old in
(38:52):
the driveway with their sidewalk chalk. They don't know anything
about art that they want to make something prettier they're
attracted to and oh, we take this lank slate of
cement and now it's pretty colors until it rains. So
it's unfortunate because obviously, as human beings we want to
be creative. It does bring joy, it makes us happy,
(39:15):
and yet at some point as we grow up, we
get this idea in our heads that we don't really
know anything about it, and that's too bad.
Speaker 3 (39:23):
Yeah, I think the art world, from its own making,
has a bad wrap.
Speaker 2 (39:27):
You know, you've got the.
Speaker 3 (39:29):
Idea or many people have the idea in their head
that you're going to walk in and none of the
prices are posted, and it's going to be silent, and
there's going to be this snobby gallerista that's looking down
at you being like, I can tell you don't have
the money to be.
Speaker 2 (39:43):
Here, and you know, just all of those things.
Speaker 3 (39:46):
And so we try and be the anti that because
I do believe the art world.
Speaker 2 (39:51):
Is for everyone.
Speaker 3 (39:53):
Absolutely, yeah, it just is. And the design world and
it's not just our world. The design world is for everyone.
And yes, that can in a different variety of budget points,
but good style can happen in a variety of ways.
I mean, who didn't just watch that Martha documentary and
that was the best.
Speaker 2 (40:09):
It was wonderful, it was.
Speaker 3 (40:12):
I loved hearing her talk about you know, nobody thought
that she should have a line at Kmart, but just
because you may not have this astronomical budget doesn't mean
that you don't want beautiful things or good style.
Speaker 2 (40:24):
And she got that from.
Speaker 3 (40:26):
You know, a very early on, you know, way before
the Target and MASONI line and all of those things.
Speaker 2 (40:32):
You know, she was like kind of a pioneer for that.
Speaker 3 (40:35):
So all that being said, I think it's too bad
that people get so worried about, you know, looking silly
in the art world and in the design world, and
it's on all of us that work in those industries
now to kind of deflect that and stop it and
turn it around.
Speaker 4 (40:52):
Absolutely, that's it's just so important because I think that
too often, more often than not, we certainly see this
in bad but it stills into every category of design.
Style is often directed by what we're told is good
versus what we're necessarily personally attracted to. And I think
that the average consumer of whatever the product may be,
(41:18):
is too influenced by that. And so the more that
those of us in the creative world can do to
educate people and to give license and permission, I think
that that will benefit everybody where people do feel more
secure and confident. Agreed.
Speaker 1 (41:34):
I loved the game that you chatted about earlier, about
going into the gallery and just picking whatever piece and
not really thinking about price. But I do have to
ask if price was no issue, and you could pick
out any peace in the world and have it in
your personal collection, what piece would you choose and why?
Speaker 2 (41:49):
Okay, So What I Covet is a series by Robert Longo.
It's called Men in the Cities.
Speaker 3 (41:56):
You may have seen these pieces, but their life and
it looks like they are people.
Speaker 2 (42:03):
White background black and white.
Speaker 3 (42:06):
Looks like they're sketched, and it looks like they're people
in business attire and they're falling. What actually happened is
that Robert Longo set up a camera and didn't tell
his friends what was about to happen, and he started
shooting tennis balls at them.
Speaker 2 (42:18):
So what was happening was that.
Speaker 3 (42:20):
They're they're reacting like full body moving their limbs trying
to get out of the way, and.
Speaker 2 (42:25):
It creates this incredible.
Speaker 3 (42:28):
Movement and emotion and you'll just have to look them up,
Robert Longo Men in the Cities. But there's a whole
series of them, and they're giant. So I have no
idea where I'd have to probably buy a new house
for them, but that's that's what I covet.
Speaker 2 (42:43):
I just would love them.
Speaker 1 (42:44):
That is so interesting to hear about, and I'll have
to look them up for sure, I do.
Speaker 4 (42:47):
I'm that list. For our final big question, we have
a couple of little ones at the end for fun.
So much of this podcast is really about those little
luxuries that elevate the day to day. What are some
of yours? Because we want this podcast to be a
space where people can come to slow the paste down
and really enjoy the luxuries and those those elements that
(43:11):
they have to boost their their lifestyles versus the big
events that happen.
Speaker 2 (43:16):
I love that question.
Speaker 3 (43:17):
So I am somebody that tries to buy quality not quantity.
Good for you, that's great, I agree. I mean I
do try. I do try.
Speaker 2 (43:26):
That doesn't mean I'm not on Amazon, don't get me wrong.
Speaker 3 (43:28):
But one of the things that I truly love is
like my skincare routine, you know, that feels like a
luxurious moment for me each day.
Speaker 2 (43:38):
I also try to wear nice underwear that is such
a person I love it.
Speaker 1 (43:43):
I love I love it too.
Speaker 3 (43:46):
I just feel like that like sets the foundation for
feeling good, you know. And I get dressed every day,
so it's like, you know, I am not a work
from home person, so like that's just like my first
moment of like getting excited to get ready ready in
the morning. And then you know, I try and use
the good silver wear. I have some silver from my
grandparents and I try to use it. I've got china
(44:07):
from my wedding, and I try and use it. I
don't try and wait for the big moments. I try
and use the nice stuff again if it breaks, because
I you know, people ask me all the time, like
my kids are four and six, and they're like, you
use that around them, And I'm like, yeah.
Speaker 2 (44:22):
It's only stuff. It's like stuff, It's just stuff.
Speaker 3 (44:25):
I mean, it's beautiful and it makes me happy and
it's not like I'm like super excited if it shatters
on the floor. But at the same time, it's just stuff.
And I also want to teach them to care for things.
I have people all of the time say I've got
little kids, so I can't buy art, and I'm like, oh,
that is just silly, Like you still, so you're just
gonna live your life for eighteen years without things you
(44:47):
love around you.
Speaker 2 (44:49):
I let's talk about this. Let's talk this through a
little work.
Speaker 3 (44:54):
So and you may not want to spend your money
on art, that's okay, But I still want people to
know that they can have wonderful things around kids because
kids can learn.
Speaker 4 (45:03):
I get what you're saying. A lot of people say
that we can't have nice things until the kids are older,
and unfortunately, when you have that mindset, I think you're
teaching kids to not put value on anything because it's like, well,
only if it's a certain dollar amount or only if
that's a certain label, then you care. And it's like, no,
(45:23):
we should care for everything, because what is you know,
good quality to you and me, Maybe somebody else's only
thing they have to care for that piece if it
comes from a discount store. So I think I love
that you brought that up because I think it's so
important to teach people that we should be taking care
(45:44):
of everything everything as if it is a piece of
Baccarack crystal or at French oil painting. I just think
that that expands and elevates the conversation about quality over quantity,
because everybody's definition of quality is different one hundred percent.
Speaker 2 (45:59):
I think that's so right.
Speaker 3 (46:00):
The other thing that I think has gone by the
wayside is people knowing how to mend their clothes. And
my dad was not wealthy growing up, and you know,
they had one good shirt and one good pair of
pants and all of that. And so my dad is
the one that taught me to sew. I like, how
to sew a button and mend a pair of pants,
(46:20):
or mend a hole in your clothing, and so that
now I have friends dop buy because they don't even
have like a sewing needle and thread, and so I'll
help them sew their buttons back on. But I do
think that people don't know how to take care of
their things and sometimes repair, and I think that is
something that people need to know how to do.
Speaker 2 (46:40):
It's a life skill.
Speaker 4 (46:41):
Okay, well, if nothing else from this episode, I'm going
to take away to stop by your house for all
of my garments that requires some mending and to up
my underwear gain.
Speaker 2 (46:54):
Yes, exactly all of that, yes, yes.
Speaker 1 (46:56):
Yes, Well, Liz, we want to end each episode by
asking all of our guests similar questions. A blueprint, as
you know, doesn't happen on its own. It requires the
right tools to make it successful. What is the tool
that you have that's made the blueprint of your life work?
Speaker 2 (47:10):
Well, the first thing that came to mind was a
hot glue gun. I don't know that, I don't know
that that's actually what you met.
Speaker 3 (47:18):
Probably creativity, right, like, maybe that's like the what's in
my own personal toolbox, But my hot glue gun has
been with me since high school and it has seen everything.
I have hot glued more than anything. Anybody should ever
hot glue. I think it's the answer to everything. And
so it's either creativity.
Speaker 2 (47:35):
Or a hot glue gun.
Speaker 1 (47:36):
That's great. And we know you're not hot glue gunning
a button on for sure.
Speaker 4 (47:39):
No, that's true, Liz. The other part of this podcast
title boulevard. It's such an important one because as we
started this podcast, everybody grew up somewhere. Everybody lives somewhere.
So what does your boulevard look like? If you could
create a street or an avenue or a boulevard, what's
on What does it look like and what does it
(48:01):
do for you?
Speaker 2 (48:03):
This is so lovely.
Speaker 3 (48:04):
It's full of historic homes that have charm and character,
that have been lovingly taking care of for one hundred years,
going back to the very beginning. Has trees, it has
people outside using the space. It's got kids running around,
it's got adults talking to each other out in the driveway.
Speaker 2 (48:25):
It's got walkability to places where.
Speaker 3 (48:29):
You know, we want to spend our day to the
grocery store or coffee shop or whatever. And I think,
like the thing that I love so much My street
is very small, it's only got five houses on it.
Speaker 2 (48:39):
And there's so much kindness. There's so much kindness. We
see each other, you know, out in the lawn. Do
you need help? Do you hey?
Speaker 3 (48:48):
I see that your garage can is still out. Are
you guys traveling? Do you want me to take it
in for you? That is kind of like one of
the hallmarks of a neighborhood. No matter what the homes
look like, it's like people watching out.
Speaker 2 (48:59):
For and take care of each other. All the people on.
Speaker 3 (49:02):
Our street have different backgrounds, their families look different, They
bring something special and different to the table, and we
all just want to take care of each other. And
so I think that is a really going back to
the community part of it. That's what my boulevard looks like.
Speaker 4 (49:19):
Wonderful. Thank you so much, Liz, it's been so great
to chat with you.
Speaker 2 (49:23):
And yes, again.
Speaker 4 (49:25):
I'm excited for the three of us to take on
this venture. It's going to be exciting to talk to
all sorts of different people from the design community, both
locally and everywhere from coast to coast.
Speaker 2 (49:35):
So thank you for your time, Thank you. Excited to
do this with you.
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