Wind down with Wine Down!

Wine Down is as much a part of the Dixon's history as Art on Tap! The opportunity to taste a variety of wines and eat an abundance of appetizers is heightened by the surroundings of beautiful images and beautiful gardens! Join us tonight!

The Wines available for tasting tonight are:

Georges DuBoeuf Flower Label Julienas

Sebastiani Sonoma Chardonnay

Memsie "Water Wheel" Red Blend, Bendigo, Australia

Sebastiani Pinot Noir Sonoma

Secco Italian Sparkling Wine

Sebastiani Zinfandel Sonoma

That's Entertainment!

This fall's entertainment is Holly Cole and the Memphis Dawls. The Memphis Dawls are a female based group formed out of Memphis, TN. The Dawls will hold you captive with their full sound and heart breaking harmonies. The group consists of Holly Cole on guitar and vocals, Jana Misener (Giant Bear, Sultana) on cello and vocals, and Krista Wroten (Yazoo Shakes, Amy LaVere) on violin, accordion and vocals. 

Covering genres from classic country to modern rock, their sound is something that will never go out of style and both sensuous and unique. Mark Jordan of the Commercial appeal states that the Dawls are "utterly unlike anything else happening on the scene today." Since the release of their debut Ep earlier this year, their local appeal has grown tremendously. Holly and the Memphis Dawls look forward to taking their music on the road in early 2012.

Hors d'ouevres!

Hors d'ouevres will be provided by Just for Lunch.

Meet the Dixon Staff - Emily!

Name: Emily Harris Halpern        
 

Position: Director of Communications

College/University: New York University, Tulane University

How long have you worked at the Dixon? Two years and almost two months

The best thing about living in Memphis is…diversity! People, culture, landscape, food and entertainment; potential to make a difference in the community; large green trees; my neighborhood, Vollintine Evergreen; spending time with my family.

What famous artist (deceased or living) would you want to be for one day and why? 

There are too many to list, but here are two:

Cindy Sherman:  Made her debut in New York City’s Lower East Side in the mid-1970s. As a photographer she challenged so many conventions and concepts, made huge impacts on ways of seeing, art making, and the history of art, and looks like she had a lot of fun doing it.

Yves Klein: Lived in Paris, 1928-1962; Pioneer of performance, conceptual and pop art. Managed to drive 3000 people to a gallery opening containing no art at all, but only cocktails. Created his own color, International Klein Blue, and pushed people to think and dream.

…and probably Warhol, for a few hours!

How old were you on your first visit to a museum (art, science, history)? How did it shape your interest in museums?

As a child, I actually visited the Dixon very frequently on Sunday afternoons with my Dad (no joke!) Since then, pretty much every aspect of my life has been centered around working with art, artists or for an art organization. An introductory art history course during my senior year of high school at St. Mary’s sparked my understanding of how greatly art effects and reflects places, people and politics. The lives of artists seemed so revolutionary and inspiring! That course led me to take classes in undergrad, pursue internships at galleries and museums, such as the Ogden Museum in New Orleans, and then to a graduate program in arts administration and museum studies at NYU.

Do you have any pets? If so, what are they and what are their names?

A 60-lb pit mix named Kiki who is everyone’s best friend.

What is your favorite piece in Jean-Louis Forain: La Comédie parisienne?

Sur la plateau and le dialogue (dramatic but intimate scenes of off-stage at the ballet; mostly hues of deep green and gold)

What do you like most about working at the Dixon?

Connecting people with joy, creativity and inspiration. Helping realize challenges and achieve goals for the greater good. Meeting and collaborating with amazing people from Memphis and all over the world. And working at one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen.

Petanque, Badminton, Croquet - OH MY!

Here's a rundown of the games that YOU can play tonight at the Dixon:

Croquet is a lawn game, played both as a recreational pastime and as a competitive sport. It involves hitting plastic or wooden balls with a mallet through hoops (often called "wickets" in the US) embedded into the grass playing court.

Croquet is popularly believed to be viciously competitive. This may derive from the fact that (unlike in golf) players will often attempt to move their opponents' balls to unfavorable positions. However, purely negative play is rarely a winning strategy: successful players (in all versions other than golf croquet) will use all four balls to set up a break for themselves, rather than simply making the game as difficult as possible for their opponents. At championship-standard association croquet, players can often make all 26 points (13 for each ball) in two turns.

Croquet was an event at the 1900 Summer Olympics and roque, a variation on croquet, an event at the 1904 Summer Olympics. The World Series of Croquet is held annually.

Pétanque  is a form of boules where the goal is, while standing inside a starting circle with both feet on the ground, to throw hollow metal balls as close as possible to a small wooden ball called a cochonnet (literally "piglet") or jack. It is also sometimes called a bouchon (literally "cork") or le petit ("the small one"). The game is normally played on hard dirt or gravel, but can also be played on grass, sand or other surfaces. Similar games are bocce and bowls.

The current form of the game originated in 1907 in La Ciotat, in Provence, in southern France. The English and French name pétanque comes from la petanca in the Provençal dialect of the Occitan language, deriving from the expression pès tancats [ˈpɛ taŋˈka], meaning "feet together" or more exactly "feet anchored".

The casual form of the game of pétanque is played by about 17 million people in France, mostly during their summer vacations. It is also widely played in neighboring Spain. 

Pétanque is played by two, four or six people in two teams, or players can compete as individuals in casual play. In the singles and doubles games each player has three boules; in triples they have only two. A coin is tossed to decide which side goes first. The starting team draws a circle on the ground which is 35-50 centimeters in diameter: all players must throw their boules from within this circle, with both feet remaining on the ground. The first player throws the jack 6–10 meters away; it must be at least one meter from the boundary.

Badminton is a racquet sport played by either two opposing players (singles) or two opposing pairs (doubles), who take positions on opposite halves of a rectangular court that is divided by a net. Players score points by striking a shuttlecock with their racquet so that it passes over the net and lands in their opponents' half of the court. Each side may only strike the shuttlecock once before it passes over the net. A rally ends once the shuttlecock has struck the floor.

The shuttlecock (or shuttle) is a feathered projectile whose unique aerodynamic properties cause it to fly differently from the balls used in most racquet sports; in particular, the feathers create much higher drag, causing the shuttlecock to decelerate more rapidly than a ball. Shuttlecocks have a much higher top speed, when compared to other racquet sports. Because shuttlecock flight is affected by wind, competitive badminton is played indoors. Badminton is also played outdoors as a casual recreational activity, often as a garden or beach game.

Sound like fun? Join us for games, gardens, galleries and....gin! Gin cocktails will be for sale along with a variety of wines, beers, sodas and food selections from Cafe Forain!

Meet the Dixon GARDEN Staff - Jesse

Name:  Jesse Howley         

Position:  Manager of Grounds Horticulture

Hometown: Perry, OH

How long have you worked at the Dixon? 2 years

The best thing about living in Memphis is…… midtown.

 

What’s your favorite public garden outside of Memphis? Honestly, I haven’t been to many. When we lived in suburban Washington, D.C. for a couple of years, I really enjoyed visiting Brookside Gardens in Silver Spring, MD.  It’s a free garden and has introduced a number of great plants to the market.  Plus, it has probably the finest paperbark maple I’ve ever seen (one of my favorite trees).

What experience initiated your interest in horticulture and gardens? My entire life, my mind has seen things, but my hands could never quite cooperate in making them.  Building beautiful outdoor spaces doesn’t require highly tuned fine motor skills… just a vision and the knowledge to make it work.  It also gives me the opportunity to have a directly positive impact on a little piece of the environment.

Do you have any pets? If so, what are they and what are their names?  Sally, my 9 year old All-American mutt, and Charlie, an orange Tabby cat, but you never know what other critters may be in temporary residence – currently we have Black Swallowtail chrysalides on the kitchen counter.

What’s your favorite plant?  There are just too many great plants to choose a single one… my favorite changes frequently with the whims of the season.  Right now the Sweet Olives are blooming – truly one of the plant world’s most heady and memorable fragrances.

What do you like most about working at the Dixon? I enjoy being a part of making improvements to the Gardens that generations of visitors will get to enjoy.

Meet the Dixon Staff-Bryony

Name: Bryony Petch

Position: Art to Grow Outreach Instructor

College/University:

Newcastle University, UK

Northumbria University, UK

How long have you worked at the Dixon? 5 months

The best thing about living in Memphis is……It’s the birthplace of Rock and Roll and Ugly Mug coffee. 

What famous artist (deceased or living) would you want to be for one day and why?

Henry Moore, I think it would be really satisfying to work on such a large scale with industrial materials to create such beautiful figures.   
How old were you on your first visit to a museum (art, science history)? How did it shape your interest in museums?

I remember been taken to museums from a very young age, my favorite were the National Museum of Film and Photography Bradford  and National Railway Museum York. I loved seeing the Royal trains, every detail down to place settings in the buffet car were perfect! I enjoy now what I have always loved about museums which is seeing something extraordinary and beautiful whether it been art, science or trains.     

Do you have any pets? If so, what are they and what are their names?

Horatio the Hamster, named after CSI Miami Horatio Kane (he has red hair). Unfortunately he couldn’t come on the plane when we moved to Memphis so he lives with my brother back in England.  

What is your favorite piece in Jean-Louis Forain: La Comédie parisienne?

Young Woman on a Yacht 1883.  

What do you like most about working at the Dixon?

Beautiful surroundings and lovely people.

Their names say it all!

Sommersault, Pacifico, Lazy Magnolia, Blue Moon, West Coast Amber, Watermelon Wheat, Black Magic, Isle of Skye, Indian Summer….and more…

Escape to the Dixon tonight to wander through the glorious world of beer, stroll through the gardens, and explore the shows. Or just enjoy the perfect temperature, full moon, and lively sounds from Almost Famous with a full glass in hand.

Santé! 

And see you tomorrow, when we’re all back from our mini-vacation.

Art on Tap 2011 event and ticket information

Meet the Dixon Staff - Julie

Name: Julie Novarese Pierotti

Position: Associate Curator

College/University: Ole Miss (BA); Vanderbilt (MA)

How long have you worked at the Dixon? 3 ½ years

The best thing about living in Memphis is ….the emphasis on all of the arts—fine art, music, dance, theater, culinary arts.  Memphis is, in my opinion, the cultural center of the South!

What famous artist (deceased or living) would you want to be for one day and why?  Tamara de Lempicka—she lived a fabulous life!

How old were you on your first visit to a museum (art, science history)? How did it shape your interest in museums?  I was probably too young to remember my first museum experience, but I do have vague memories of going to the Catherine the Great Wonders exhibition and its fabulousness.  I also remember being terrified by the dentist mannequin exhibit at the Pink Palace.

Do you have any pets? If so, what are they and what are their names?  I think everyone knows by now that I have a 2 ½ year old Papillon named Lizzie and that I’m completely obsessed with her!

What is your favorite piece in Jean-Louis Forain: La Comédie parisienne?  The Tight-Rope Walker from around 1880 (Collection of the Art Institute of Chicago).  It is so dramatic, so spectacular, so FORAIN!

What do you like most about working at the Dixon?  I absolutely love helping people experience and appreciate art.