The Big Apple on a dime

Hot time summer in the city, back of my neck….

NYC can be one of the most expensive cities in the world.  Tickets to Broadway shows and large venues to see your favorite bands can break the bank BUT… there is plenty to do that doesn’t cost a dime.

Check out the Village Voice’s list for a complete list of free concerts in and around NYC.

BAM, Peter Jay Sharp Building:
May 24, 10 p.m.: Abdou Mboup and Waakaw
May 25, 10 p.m.: Late Night Dance Party with Ralph McDaniels & the Video Music Box
June 1, 9 p.m.: Endangered Speeches

Betsy Head Park @ 7 p.m.:
June 18: Dana Dane, Grand Puba, hosted by Chubb Rock
June 19: Hezekiah Walker
June 20: Jon B, Hi-Five

Brookfield Place Plaza:
June 29-30, 5:00 p.m.: 2013 River to River Festival
July 10-11, 6:00 p.m.: Lowdown Hudson Blues Festival
July 13, 6:30 p.m.: Brasslands

Brooklyn Bridge Park:
May 4 – August 31, 3:00 PM: Bargemusic Family Concert(s)
May 23, 7:00 PM: Old School Funk & Hip-Hop Dance Party

Central Park:
June 15, 3:00 PM: The Zombies, Django Django, Adam Green & Binki Shapiro, DJ sets by Modest P
June 30, 7:00 PM: Big Star’s Third
August 20, 7:00 PM: Bobby McFerrin

Commodore Barry Park:
August 24-5: AFROPUNK FEST

Crotona Park @ 7 p.m.:
July 9-10: Tego Calderon, RVSB
July 10: DJ Kool Herc
July 12: War + DJ Afro
July 13: Ghetto Brothers

Damrosch Park at Lincoln Center:
May 31, 6:30 p.m.: Festival au Desert: Aziz Sahmaoui & University of Gnawa, Imharahan, Mamadou Kelly
July 24-6, 7:30 p.m.: Kronos at 40
August 3, 3 p.m.: La Casita
August 3, 7:30 p.m.: Zvidance
August 4, 7:00 p.m.: Sacred Drums
August 7, 7:30 p.m.: Ruben Blades
August 9, 7:30 p.m.: Amanda Palmer and the Grand Theft Orchestra + Rosin Coven
August 10, 6 p.m.: 30th Annual Roots of American Music Line Up
August 11, 5 p.m.: Bobby Rush, Allen Toussaint, Eddie and Brian Holland, The Como Mamas

East River Park Amphitheater @ 7 p.m.:
August 27: Pete Rock vs. DJ Premier hosted by Lyricist Lounge
August 28: Mac DeMarco
August 29: Larry Harlow and the Latin Legends Band

Herbert Von King Park:
June 11, 7 p.m.: Rayvon, Red Fox, Golden Child, RSNY, hosted by Shaggy
June 12, 7 p.m.: Big Daddy Kane, DJ Scratch

House of Vans @ 5 p.m.:
June 27, July 11, 18, 31 and August 15 and 29. Artists TBD.

Hudson Square Music & Wine Festival @ City Winery:
June 4, 5 p.m.: Dave Davies of the Kinks
June 26 – August 28: 4th Annual Hudson Square Music & Wine Festival

Hudson River Park:
June 7 – August 23, 7 p.m., Every Friday: Sunset on the Hudson

BAM’s R&B Festival at MetroTech Center @ Noon:
June 6: Mint Condition
June 13: Bobby Rush
June 20: Zozo-Afrobeat Orchestra
August 8: Shuggie Otis

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts:
August 8, 6:30 p.m.: No BS! Brass Band

Madison Square Park:
June 19, 7 p.m.: Suzanne Vega
June 26, 7 p.m.: Anat Cohen Quartet
July 3, 6 p.m.: The Grascals, Joy Kills Sorrow
July 10, 7 p.m.: Rene Marie
July 17, 7 p.m.: Ben Sollee
July 24, 6 p.m.: Dafnis Prieto Sextext, Yosvany Terry Quintent
July 31, 6 p.m.: Erin McKeown, Lake Street Drive
August 7, 7 p.m.: Ivan Neville’s Dumpstaphunk

Marcus Garvey Park Amphitheater
June 9, 12 p.m.: 7th Annual Mafrika Music Festival
August 6, 7 p.m.: Jungle Brothers, Zhigge, hosted by Lyricist
August 7, 7 p.m.: Bilal
August 14, 7 p.m.: Smokie Norful

Nelson A. Rockefeller Park:
June 25, 7 p.m.: Angelique Kidjo

Pier A – Hoboken (NJ):
August 18, 12 p.m.: Lackawanna Music Festival: Performers TBA

Hudson River Park at Pier 84:
August 8, 6 p.m.: Titus Andronicus + Ducktails
August 9, 7 p.m.: Wild Nothing + Grimes

So you see, there’s plenty to do for tourists and locals that won’t empty your wallet.

MoMA on Friday nights are free from 4 – 8pm  Thanks UNIQLO

The Metropolitan Museum of Art admission is a $25 suggested donation.  I flip them a quarter and spend the day – anyday!

To help cover the costs of exhibitions, we ask that you please pay the full recommended amount.

The Met is state and city funded – give what you can.  I’m a resident and feel that my tax dollars already pay for my entrance.

Enjoy the many parks , pack a lunch, bring a blanket and soak in some sun and nature while people watching.

There’s free kayaking on the rivers at The NYC Downtown Boathouse on 56th and West Side Hwy.  as well as a few other locations (click on the link I provided)

Governor’s Island open on weekends – hosts plenty of art exhibits and fun things for the family and the public ferry service is free as well.

Of course if you want to spend your money… Some of my photography is being exhibited and is for sale at Basmati Indian Cuisine Restaurant (Hell’s Kitchen) Ninth Avenue btw 51st and 52nd Streets.   And my hubby, Jene Youtt’s work is hanging around the corner at Braai (51st Street btw 8th and 9th Avenue.  Braii is South African Cuisine and you can enjoy their “social lunch” for $12.95 pp.  from til 4pm.

Something new is CitiBike Share, but I believe you need your own helmet.  There’s 24 hr and 7 day access passes that can be purchased at any Bike station. Starting May 27th.  Remember to use the bike lanes, and obey traffic rules as they do apply to bikes.  Maybe NYC will become a more pedestrian friendly city like those in Europe.

So get out and your all that you can in the Metro area.

And remember to honor all the vets who have been lain to rest this Memorial Day.

Mary

www.mdyoutt.com

Wanting to be in 2 places at once…

My schedule calendar can be blank for days on end, then other times, there is so much to do.

Last year, my husband, Jene Youtt and I missed the opening reception of a gallery that I was exhibiting at in Vermont and I will be a part of an exhibit, a group juried international competition again in July – DarkRoom Gallery.  Entitled “Secrets and Mysteries”   2 of the 4 images I submitted were selected and of course I am thrilled.

The catalog has been published and I ordered one for myself.  Financially, VT will win out.

© Art In Motion (photographer unknown to me)

I’ve tried to get myself and Jene down to Haiti with Monica Watkins, founder of Art In Motion, photographing the children of Martine Longchamp’s Diakonos Orphanage.  I didn’t know how I was going to swing a trip to Haiti, finances are tight as the only way my money flows is out.  The lottery gods have not yet shone upon me (the $3 winning ticket I hold won’t quite do it) and although Jene and I do manage to travel, we do it with as small a budget as possible.

Monica’s passion for art and for children, mirrors my own.  The future is in the hands of the children and it is our job to ensure that we provide the tools they need, especially when hard times fall upon their innocence.  Their situation is not of their own making but that which a natural disaster left in their wake.  Art in any form has always been my means for expressing my feelings: my hopes, sorrow, love, joy, desires or just the beauty that surrounds us in nature.  I was very lucky to have parents who understood how music can transform the soul, or how the written word can be a most powerful tool, or how doodling let my mind run free way before I ever realized how important that could be.

Being exposed to the arts and knowing that someone appreciates what you create, is very significant, especially for a child.  Not everyone can be a rocket scientist, but we all have the ability to create.  To feel and to put those feelings into motion.  Music, dance, poetry, art in any form is an expression of who you are and how you perceive the things around you.  To have what you do appreciated by others is such an uplifting experience.  But the real experience is that it connects one human to another and has from the beginning of time.  It touches each and everyone of us and it doesn’t matter why we like or dislike something, it’s that art can pause us in thought and makes one wonder what was behind the artist’s heart and soul that comes through the in their creative process.

In June, Art Day Celebration’s fundraiser has enabled Monica to once again open up this world of creativity to some very appreciative children by bringing an art workshop to where they live.  Her tireless efforts and those of friends and sponsors understand the value that she will bring to these kids.  One person can make a difference and I know I speak for her when I say thank you to all the generous people who gathered under 1 roof to be a part of her mission.

It’s such a wonderful feeling to know that what you do matters and it is an honor to be a small part this quest.  When you give back or pay it forward, you are receiving a great deal in return.  For me, being a part of what can transform a young life is so important so although I can’t be a part of this trip, I will do whatever I can to help Monica and her mission.

Hopefully, Jene and I can get to Haiti in the fall.

Mary

Why I love what I do…

Sometimes life just keeps getting better…well at least this week has been on the upswing.  As a late blooming fine art photographer with no formal schooling in a field where the school you attend can gain you access to some masters and mentoring from teachers, it is hard to crack the ice on your own.  But it is not impossible – perseverance and tenacity play a roll in following or chasing your dreams.

There are a number of juried competitions that I enter year round, hoping that one of my images will make the cut.  Art is subjective and even after you look at the works of the renown jurors, you have no idea what will catch their eye or why.  But when it happens, it negates all the rejection notices in the past and elevates your sometimes deflated spirit.  As an artist, I do what I do because I love creating.  That in itself is usually enough to keep us creative types motivated but we (all ?) seek recognition.  And when it comes from people that you admire, all the better.

That’s how I felt when famed photojournalist Peter Turnley selected one of my images last year for an exhibit entitled “A True Story”  Peter travels the world on assignments and his photography is sought by magazines, newspapers and galleries.  I was humbled and honored.

Sunday, I received an eMail from DarkRoom Gallery in VT, that 2 of my images were selected to exhibit in July.  Whoo-hoo… YAY me, If you could see me now, I am doing the happy dance.   The subject matter was left to interpretation ” Secrets & Mysteries “,  I submitted 4 images:

behind closed doors

          

haunting

Chosen by Vermont’s DarkRoom Gallery because of her abilities as a curator, juror, Catherine Edelman, of the Chicago Gallery that bears her name was set to task in reviewing the numerous international photographers that submitted their images.  She selected “haunting” and “behind closed doors” to be a part of the group show which will exhibit from July 5 – 29th, with a reception slated for July 13th.

To say I am tickled pink is an understatement, right now I am finding it difficult to contain myself and I can’t wait to inform Sara that her image was selected.  That same image is hanging in Annex 24 Gallery in Lancaster through the end of July.

Now I need to put together all the required information on both the images and on myself.  Talking about myself does not always come easy for me but talking about my creative process isn’t a problem so I will get that done today.  Adorama will print the images for me as I am still having banding issues on my Epson. (ugh!).   I will ship the matted prints to the gallery for them to frame.  This year, I won’t be able to attend the opening reception on July 13th because I plan to be out of the country, which leads to another reason why I love what I do…

The next project – shooting behind the scenes for Art In Motion’s Art Day Celebration – a fundraising event of music, entertainment and fashion.  Something I’ve never done before but am up for the challenge and total experience.  Where is all this going to take me?  To Haiti, to photo journal Monica Watkins’ mission of bringing art to the underprivlged children at the Diakonos Orphanage.  The ‘arts’ aid in opening up a child’s mind, giving them an outlet for expressing themselves and helping them to realize their worth and potential.  Expressing oneself through art can mend wounds by feeling free enough to put something down on paper, or through the music notes that run through your head, or the movement in your body as your let the rhythm take over.  It’s all so beautiful because it comes to the surface from below.  A place so personal, where we hide our feelings in order to protect ourselves, only to realize that expressing our pain, sorrow and even joy, is what sets us free.  It empowers us and teaches us that our fears can be conquered by releasing them and we can move forward with an open heart allowing all the good to enter and the bad to exit.  Far too often people hold onto their suffering because that is the only thing they feel they can control.  But it is in the releasing of it that we regain control of our lives.  In my brief encounters with Monica, my heart has been filled with love for the children I will soon meet.  You may not be able to join us in Haiti but you can do your part by generously giving what you can.  Make a commitment, come to the event, help make it a success and know that giving whatever you can, can make a difference in a child’s life.  I feel so blessed to be able to use my art as a means of touching the lives of others.  I may not be able to change the world, but I can effect someone’s life in a positive way and that can make a big difference.

It really is easy to touch someone’s life and I love the connection it brings to me.  Think of how it makes you feel.

Whiling away the hours on a drizzly Sunday afternoon

Today I found as the day went on, the clouds rolled in and my mood languished.  I don’t normally give way to such feelings but for some reason, I can’t seem to get over them.  I am whiling away the day, doing nothing, not even laundry.  I could call friends to see what they are up to, maybe join them for dinner, a drink or movie but my lackluster state held me captive.  My husband is in the city, not feeling well – out of sorts himself.

I had woken early, fluffed off going to my yoga class, poured a cup of coffee and turned my computer on.  Revved up my Stylus Photo 1800R Epson printer, selected an image that my granddaughter Sara liked of herself and sized it to a 10×10″.  Decided to print on 11×14 German Etching paper but the rollers didn’t want to grab on to the edges.  Attempted to feed the sheet through the back… nada.  Hmmmmmmm, okay, the paper is thicker than the recommended Epson Matte and I’ve had trouble like that before.  Slipped the Epson presentation matte paper on the feeder and hit print.  For some reason, the color management wouldn’t allow me to make certain selections (i.e. type of paper. print speed and whether PhotoShop or the printer would color manage the process.

First I printed through PhotoShop, then I printed through InDesign.  Still couldn’t get the selections I needed and the prints came out banded.

My feeble attempts at trouble shooting led me to email Jene a SOS plea.  Outdated software might be the issue.  He walked me through step by step and I downloaded the upgrade.  Click print – same issue.  I also, at his suggestion, checked the print head alignment.  There doesn’t look like any problems with that.  Trying not to frustrate either I us, I ended the conversation with I’ll put a call into Epson support tomorrow.   Thinking “put your hands up and step away from the computer”.  So I did.

Hours spent and nothing to show for it.  That’s when the cloud of gloom seemed to really take hold of me.  A cold cup of coffee sat waiting for me to pick it up and the dampness and chill of the house blanketed me.  I went into the living room and nestled some wood in the fireplace and set it ablaze.   Warmth quickly filled the room, I nuked my coffee and sat and stared for what seemed like a few minutes but actually was an hour.  My mind drifted, a melancholy washed over me.  So I did what anyone would do… I shot myself…  okay maybe only a photographer would do that – I recorded my ‘inner sanctum’  alone in my mood.

   

I certainly wasn’t going to let my feelings go to waste.  I haven’t added any self portraits to my Inner Sanctum body of work in years.  It’s a listless, loneliness that I couldn’t shake, not like the cloud of depression on the Abilify commercials, just a ho-hum kind of melancholy.  A quiet solitude, a reflective mood where I sink into my feelings of longing.

My mood lifted,  being creative works like a charm.  I really like these 3 images.  😉

Alls well that ends well… now where’s that basket of laundry.

I learn something new everyday…

The other day while I was standing in front of  artstrong’s  display at the Armory show, I found myself in conversation with 2 men about sustainable vs recyclable plastic products.  Artstrong bags being one of them.  These bags are not only convenient and a lot easier than using layers of bubblewrap to protect what is precious to you.  And as a photographer, I am  transporting my framed art to galleries for exhibiting and these artstong bags are keeping rolls of bubblewrap out of the landfills and recycling stations.  When I think about it, the cost is negated by the fact that I am a little greener and am protecting what is precious to me – my art.  Go to their website ArtStrong or to Emmanuel Fremin Gallery at 547 West 27th St, Suite 508, NYC to purchase a bag or two or three.  Tell them Mary & Jene Youtt sent you… (Ok so I’m hoping that I can get a break on the price 😉  Seriously, though, every company appreciates learning where or how you heard about their product and I do believe that word of mouth is some of the best advertising.

  The Bübi bottle is also a relatively new product and although my friend, Craig Madaus came up with the developement of it, I get nothing for endorsing it, other than knowing that maybe, just maybe, I am helping to save the planet, one plastic bottle at a time. To learn more about the product click here.  They can be purchased on line through that link and are available in NYC at Paragon Sport and Earth Yoga.

OKAY, so what did I learn?  I learned that we ship all our plastic recyclables to China to be smelted and then they are returned to the US to become something new.  Of course it would be cost prohibitive in the US to smelt the plastic in a more environmentaly safe way (if there is such a thing).  So we send it to China where their regulations and work conditions have been known to be the pits.  So when we think we are doing good, we really aren’t.  Now people don’t want the weight of glass bottles to lug around when they are on the streets and even if you find a recycle bin to toss it in, you are still doing more harm then good.

You can read more about the issue by clicking this Mindfully.org link.

Remember there is only one earth and what goes around, comes around.  The air isn’t going to get cleaner by itself.  And yes, China is on the other side of the world, but what happens there effects people – EVERYWHERE!

Paradise lost, bliss found….

Paradise lost, bliss found…..

Non, je ne regrette rien (I have no regrets)

Well maybe there are a few little regrets.  I certainly have made enough mistakes over the years and probably will continue to make some more.   But in retrospect, it’s been a good life and I hope it continues.

This topic arises because I just went to the funeral of my oldest cousin.  She and her husband of almost 60 years, have 3 daughters and so many wonderful grandkids and great grandchildren.  As I hugged, one of her daughters fresh tears rolled down my cheeks.  My mother died nearly 22 years ago and although I wish I could turn back the hands of time, I can’t… no one can.  But I’ve always tried to let go and I have no regrets.    Living in close proximity availed me and my siblings to be around especially at the ends of their lives.  But it wasn’t just in the end, we were there always – a family, loving, laughing and yes, arguing.  The love was unconditional.  They loved us because we were their children, we loved them because they were people with good hearts.  And that goes a long way in the arena of good memories that will last my lifetime.  Love with an open heart.

I know this is NY Metro Art Scene and this entry topic is a stretch of the imagination.  But isn’t creating a loving environment an art form onto itself.  This tune pops into my head.  “Make someone happy, just make one someone happy…. ”  and it doesn’t take a lot to make some people happy.   This year Friends Without ABorder is getting into cyberworld and has put 44 donated photography prints up on the auction block through Bidding for Good.  the auction runs through December 18th.

If you are in NYC on Monday,  Dec. 5th  7-9pm  come to the live event for Friends Without A Border’s auction.  You can bid on a wonderful piece of photography there or online of course.  A cocktail reception is being held at:

Tenri Cultural Institute of NY

43A West 13th Street  (betw 5th & 6th Avenues)

Loving with an open heart is a gift that has an ebb and flow.  What you give, you receive.  So help create a loving and healthy environment for the children of Cambodia.  The auction benefits The Angkor Hospital for Children.

               

My print Deux Orchids is itemt #9                                          Jene Youtt’s “Blue” is item # 43

Other prints of ours have sold at auction for $500 +.  Talk about a bargain, the opening bid is $50 for these beautiful prints in archival mats.

We hope to see you there on Monday.

Mary Durante (Wehrhahn) Youtt

I have started the legal process of changing my name – dropping one I borrowed 40 years ago, taking back my maiden name and adding my husband’s surname to mine.

Non, je ne regrette rien (I have no regrets)

Well maybe there are a few little regrets.  I certainly have made enough mistakes over the years and probably will continue to make some more.   But in retrospect, it’s been a good life and I hope it continues.

This topic arises because I just went to the funeral of my oldest cousin.  She and her husband of almost 60 years, have 3 daughters and so many wonderful grandchild/great grandchildren.  As I hugged, one of her daughters fresh tears rolled down my cheeks.  My mother died nearly 22 years ago and although I wish I could turn back the hands of time, I can’t… no one can.  But I’ve always tried to let go and I have no regrets.    Living in close proximity availed me and my siblings to be around especially at the ends of their lives.  But it wasn’t just in the end, we were there always – a family, loving, laughing and yes, arguing.  The love was unconditional.  They loved us because we were their children, we loved them because they were people with good hearts.  And that goes a long way in the arena of good memories that will last my lifetime.  Love with an open heart.

I know this is NY Metro Art Scene and this entry topic is a stretch of the imagination.  But isn’t creating a loving environment an art form onto itself.  This tune pops into my head.  “Make someone happy, just make one someone happy…. ”  and it doesn’t take a lot to make some people happy.   This year Friends Without ABorder is getting into cyberworld and has put 44 donated photography prints up on the auction block through Bidding for Good.  the auction runs through December 18th.

If you are in NYC on Monday,  Dec. 5th  7-9pm  come to the live event for Friends Without A Border’s auction.  You can bid on a wonderful piece of photography there or online of course.  A cocktail reception is being held at:

Tenri Cultural Institute of NY

43A West 13th Street  (betw 5th & 6th Avenues)

Loving with an open heart is a gift that has an ebb and flow.  What you give, you receive.  So help create a loving and healthy environment for the children of Cambodia.  The auction benefits The Angkor Hospital for Children.

               

My print Deux Orchids is itemt #9                                          Jene Youtt’s “Blue” is item # 43

Other prints of ours have sold at auction for $500 +.  Talk about a bargain, the opening bid is $50 for these beautiful prints in archival mats.

We hope to see you there on Monday.

Mary Durante (Wehrhahn) Youtt

I have started the legal process of changing my name – dropping one I borrowed 40 years ago, taking back my maiden name and adding my husband’s surname to mine.

Who am I and why am I here?

A question I’ve asked myself many times over the years.  I used to define myself as to my job.  I was a print production manager.  That was only one small faction.  Now I look to define myself more as a person.  Yes, I still attach labels, it is what most people understand easily.  But really – who am I?

I am a person with infinite qualities.  Like and unlike others all at the same time.  I have the capacity to love and to be loved.  I am touched and I feel.  Beauty is my essence, it’s the way I look at the world, but not through rose colored glasses.  I look deeper to find what is wonderful about humans, nature and inanimate objects.  (Every once in a while, there can be little to be found), I don’t take things for granted, all that is in life is impermanent (except maybe for some things in landfills).

When my daughter was a toddler, we would walk to the supermarket a few minutes away, we would stop every couple of feet to look at a leaf or bug.  To really look at it from all angles and appreciate it for it’s structure,  the many legs of a caterpillar, how it undulates it’s body as it forges forward or how intricate and different the veins in leaves are.  My first instinct was to hurry her along,  let’s go we have things to do.  Things??? Like dusting or vacuuming.  I think that can wait.  I wonder if she was even remembers those moments.  But it doesn’t matter, I do!  Life should not be rushed because as you get closer to the end, death comes all too soon.  I still like to look at things that way.

With age comes some semblance of wisdom or at least I’d like to think so.  I’m wise enough to know to cherish what is really important in life – and that’s people, not possessions.  I could have the biggest house, but without family or friends to enjoy it, it would just be a big, very lonely house.

Back to who am I?  I fashion myself as an artist, I’m far from a creative genius but none-the-less, I take the time to look at and appreciate my surroundings.  I like the nuances, I bring out subtle emotions – sometimes with strong images.   I want people to try to follow my eye when they look at an image that I captured.  It’s rarely a blaring statement – nothing that would catch your attention like the clap of thunder, I want you to be drawn closer as you would by a whisper and to wonder what was running through my mind.

Now for the Why am I here part… I’m guessing because that particular sperm collided with the egg at the precise moment so that the chromosones/DNA structure created me.  I am here to pass through people’s lives.  Hopefully the experience is/was or will be a good one.  We all leave our mark on others as we go on our journey.  Even some negative lessons can become the best learning experience of your lifetime.  We all give and take something along the way.  We become the sum of our parts – who we are because of those who touched us.  I hope that the parts of me that I left with you were good or at least turned bad into good.  A few people will say that having me in their lives had an effect on them – maybe I didn’t alter the lives, just made the times spent together more worth while.

That’s the impact I will have… no great legacy.  I probably won’t discover the cure for cancer, but if you are in my life, I hope that I will be remembered  As an artist, I think I have been able to touch some more people as they stop to view my photography at a gallery or even hanging on their walls.   I like to share how I look at things and make you pause, if only for a moment, and see what I see.  Life – it’s oh so worth living when you look at it in terms of what is really important.

Of course, my friends, family, loved ones have shaped me.  Some people just pass through and without knowing effect a change.  The warmth of the Cambodian people have done that.

© Mary Durante Wehrhahn

8 days of walking the streets of Siem Reap and Phnom Pehn have touched me so deeply that I and husband Jene Youtt knew that we wanted to do something to give back.  While we were there, we found out that a well known photographer who is based in NY, had a vision of building a free children’s hospital, Angkor Hospital for Children is his legacy.  Through auctions and other fundraisers he saw his dream come true.  Without having met Kenro Izu, he altered our lives.  The next year we had found through Friends Without A Border  that we can not only become members but can donate our art to help raise much needed dollars.  At the first auction we raised $1000 dollars with art collectors bidding for our work.  I was honored to chat with Kenro Izu and told him that I was humbled to be a part of his dream.  We have been a part of fulfilling the needs of the hospital and rural clinics that he and FWAB set in motion.  This year, FWAB is holding an online auction of 44 pieces of art up for bid.   This auction is being run through Bidding for Good through December 18th.  And if you are in NYC on Dec. 5th , there is a live event at Tenri Cultural Institute of  NY,  43A West 13th Street  from 7 – 9 pm.  It is free and open to the public.  Please take a look at the 44 prints that are on the auction block.  It’s a worthy cause and your gift will be appreciated by more than just the recipient of your gift.  Bid generously.

Jene’s image is called Blue and mine is Deux Orchids

How to cut through red tape. (one step at a time)

© Denise DeLuise Photography

My husband and I just celebrated our 1 year anniversary.  What should have been blissful  (and it was on many levels) turned out to be the thorn in my side.  The thorn because I kept putting off changing my name and a year later, all my papers, ID etc are in a name I borrowed years ago.40+ years ago when I was first married, I had nothing but a single bank account, SS#, driver’s license and a marriage certificate, it was much simpler to change my name to his.

Now there is so much more attached to my name and the red tape appeared to be endless.   (to me – at least).  Not knowing what had to change first,

I placed a phone call to my lawyer last year for 2 reasons: To see about doing a name change and updating my will (another grandchild was on the way).  The $2500 fee she quoted had me hesitating.  Yikes.  She said that I need to file a petition with the courts in order to start the ball rolling, place a notification in the newspaper stating that I am changing my surname due to a marriage and not to defraud any collection agency.  (OK so the last part is unspoken, but that is one of the reasons and to make sure I’m not put on a terrorist list as stolen identity).

One step at a time…

I couldn’t see the forest from the trees and sometimes when a task seems unsurmountable,  if I ignore it and it might just go away.   What’s in a name…  My husband’s patience was wearing out and wanted why I hadn’t started the proceedings.   He doesn’t think it’s as complicated as the lawyer made it seem and that I could go about it on my own.  (hello honey… have you met me – nothing I do is ever that simple) I too wanted to just do it… It’s not that I didn’t want to take his name.  It’s certainly a lot easier to spell than the one I assumed  41 years ago. We travel and (heaven forbid there is health emergency), having different last names does not show authorities or hospitals that we are married.  No legal paper work that would link us as husband and wife, giving either of us authority to act in each others benefit when split second decisions have to be made.  (Not many people carry their marriage certificate in their wallets).

Monday, I finally put the name change in motion.  I called SS and was told by a recording that I could download the form from their website.  I called motor vehicle – the gal told me I would need my original birth certificate, first marriage certificate, divorce decree and my current marriage certificate as a paper trail of how the names became what they did in order to change my driver’s license and vehicle registrations.  Of course I really should call my local office of Vital Statistics to see if I need to petition the courts to change my name.  (I’ll do that today).

There is an obstacle with my Birth Certificate – people born in Hudson County before 1965 had to get new birth certificates due to a scandal about fraud.  See Vital Statistics.  Again, this is something that I should have done years ago too and didn’t because I already had my passport, driver’s license, etc as ID so why bother. (oh yeah and I was lazy – because you had to jump through a couple hoops in order to get the new certified copy).

The NJDMV gal suggested I go through an online site since I didn’t want to have to go to Trenton in person.  I don’t know what the difference is between the long form and regular Birth Certificate is so I opted for the long form.  And I ordered 3 copies.  I also had to request the certified document of my first marriage.  I don’t think I ever had possession of it since it was my “ex” that needed it to file for divorce.  I do have a copy of my divorce decree.  VitalChek.com asked for copies of specific IDs.  One being my marriage certificate (hello I don’t have it! that’s why I am requesting it from you).  Since I don’t have a fax machine, I had to digitally photograph my driver license (both sides), passport, vehicle registration and my current marriage certificate because it has both my maiden name and my current name (that of my ex- husbands).  Upload the documents alon with the form and they would get back to me within 48 hours to verify that the documents would be accepted and approved in order to move forward.

Friends asked me for years – why didn’t I just go back to my maiden name…  and  here’s the funny story.   I was a receptionist at an ad agency and took a phone call from a school nurse looking for Mrs. so & so.  I was new to the job and checked the list of employees twice knowing that I had no knowledge of the woman.  Sorry no one by that name is at this number…  Casually I mentioned it to the woman who used to be the receptionist and she yelled that’s me!.   Well how would I know since her name was not his.  That’s when I decided that I would not go back to my maiden name as I didn’t want to have a different name than my child.  Both our children were asthmatic and I was so thankful that I queried her as to whether a Mrs. so & so worked there before I did.  She flew out of the office to her child’s school cursing me under her breathe as she pounded the elevator button.

What does this have to do with NY Metro art scene …  we are both artists.  Some of my earlier photography prints that have sold are signed Mary Durante Wehrhahn and the ones from this past year are signed Mary Durante Youtt because that’s who I am now (in my mind).  So you see, even this becomes more complicated than it should. What if I become famous????  Will the value of my work before the name change increase as well?

SS #, Bank Accounts, IRA’s stocks, bonds mortgage, driver’s license, registration of 2 cars, passport, insurance policies, will, credit cards, PSE&G,phone bill, cable and a host of other things will slowly be altered.  So much easier if I had decided to keep my maiden name when I got married the first time (but that was just coming into vogue with women’s lib in 1970).

If all goes well, by the beginning of Dec. (it takes VitalChek 19 – 22 days to research and get the appropriate certificates in the mail) I will change my SS# which is the first on the list, passport is next because I need 6 points of identification to change my  drivers license… Some things should be easier to do (I’m hoping) with just a copy of my current marriage certificate and written notification.

As Juliet once uttered –  What’s in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet….

So yes, before you know it I will legally drop the Wehrhahn and be who I am today  – Mrs. Mary Durante Youtt.  I like the sound  –  has a sophisticated ring to it.

Mary Durante (Wehrhahn) Youtt