Salon Dinner w/Azalina Eusope in conjunction with She Bends Woman in Neon
SEE EVENT DETAILSAzalina Eusope
Azalina Eusope, a fifth-generation street food vendor, moved to San Francisco a decade ago. The only thing that could comfort her in the early days settling in and learning English was the food she grew up eating, so the pasty-trained chef cooked for herself, family and friends often. Over time, word got out about her home-cooked meals, and her hobby eventually turned into a business in 2010.
?
Eusope, whose grandmother sold coconut rice out of a basket she carried between villages, had always wanted to become a lawyer, but found herself in the family business after all. “This is the kind of food that reminds me of my culture, my family, my memories,” says Eusope. “You can’t turn it away. It’s in your family and in your soul. Somehow it’s going to come and find you.”
?
And it’s a good thing she got into the family business. In 2009, Bon Apetit magazine named Eusope one of “10 Top Upcoming Chefs” for 2010. She was also honored by Women’s Initiative for Self Improvement for being an “Enterprising Woman on the Rise” in 2012. She’s even catered food for President Obama!
Meryl Pataky
Originally from South Florida, Pataky moved to San Francisco in 2002 to attend the Academy of Art University. She fell in love with the tactile nature of sculpture and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Sculpture. An artist of many disciplines and mediums, Meryl focuses on the relationship between her own hands and material. Informing her material selection is a meditation on the elements of the periodic table from noble gases to metals and organics. She is aware of the history of her elements from their origins in the universe to their applications in culture and myth. The artist derives deeper meanings from these histories to add layers to her concepts. Both a personal and process driven narrative drive the work further forward.
Meryl is currently working on exhibitions in Oakland, California as well as curating the all-female, all neon exhibition entitled, "She Bends". The exhibition features female benders from around the world.
She Bends: Women in Neon
She Bends is the largest most inclusive all women exhibit ever put together, featuring 32 woman benders from around the globe.
Making a splash at The Museum of Neon in LA earlier this year, She Bends, hailed as “revolutionary” by Juxtapoz, will be hitting the Bay Area this Spring.
Produced by The Midway Gallery - an exhibition space uniquely positioned within a larger creative complex - She Bends SF will feature program enhancements such as a big opening night soiree, workshops, demos, panel discussions and salon dinners.
Curated by Bay Area bender and favorite, Meryl Pataky, She Bends is the largest, most inclusive all-female neon exhibition ever put together.
“Pataky is very knowledgeable and deep into the badass, dangerously spontaneous art form of neon bending and is the perfect curator to seek out and celebrate like-minded artists”
-Juxtapoz
“Neon has traditionally been a men’s field, yet today we see a growing number of women picking up the torch and bending glass for themselves to create artwork as well as signs. Originally known for its commercial applications - including seedy depictions of the female figure - neon in now appreciated for its conceptual content. Women’s influence on the medium has proven to further neon’s role as an art form and thus prolonged its survival as a trade”
-Kim Kogan, The Museum of Neon on the social importance of She Bends
“The material of neon itself is heavy with historical overtones, the act of women repurposing this trade to convey messages about the female experience is in and of itself an act of rebellion - not to mention these women are wildly talented and their neon works are an absolute pleasure for the eyes.”
-Kelsey Issel, Arts Director at The Midway Creative Complex on why she was compelled to bring the show to SF
Azalina Eusope
Azalina Eusope, a fifth-generation street food vendor, moved to San Francisco a decade ago. The only thing that could comfort her in the early days settling in and learning English was the food she grew up eating, so the pasty-trained chef cooked for herself, family and friends often. Over time, word got out about her home-cooked meals, and her hobby eventually turned into a business in 2010.
?
Eusope, whose grandmother sold coconut rice out of a basket she carried between villages, had always wanted to become a lawyer, but found herself in the family business after all. “This is the kind of food that reminds me of my culture, my family, my memories,” says Eusope. “You can’t turn it away. It’s in your family and in your soul. Somehow it’s going to come and find you.”
?
And it’s a good thing she got into the family business. In 2009, Bon Apetit magazine named Eusope one of “10 Top Upcoming Chefs” for 2010. She was also honored by Women’s Initiative for Self Improvement for being an “Enterprising Woman on the Rise” in 2012. She’s even catered food for President Obama!
Meryl Pataky
Originally from South Florida, Pataky moved to San Francisco in 2002 to attend the Academy of Art University. She fell in love with the tactile nature of sculpture and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Sculpture. An artist of many disciplines and mediums, Meryl focuses on the relationship between her own hands and material. Informing her material selection is a meditation on the elements of the periodic table from noble gases to metals and organics. She is aware of the history of her elements from their origins in the universe to their applications in culture and myth. The artist derives deeper meanings from these histories to add layers to her concepts. Both a personal and process driven narrative drive the work further forward.
Meryl is currently working on exhibitions in Oakland, California as well as curating the all-female, all neon exhibition entitled, "She Bends". The exhibition features female benders from around the world.
She Bends: Women in Neon
She Bends is the largest most inclusive all women exhibit ever put together, featuring 32 woman benders from around the globe.
Making a splash at The Museum of Neon in LA earlier this year, She Bends, hailed as “revolutionary” by Juxtapoz, will be hitting the Bay Area this Spring.
Produced by The Midway Gallery - an exhibition space uniquely positioned within a larger creative complex - She Bends SF will feature program enhancements such as a big opening night soiree, workshops, demos, panel discussions and salon dinners.
Curated by Bay Area bender and favorite, Meryl Pataky, She Bends is the largest, most inclusive all-female neon exhibition ever put together.
“Pataky is very knowledgeable and deep into the badass, dangerously spontaneous art form of neon bending and is the perfect curator to seek out and celebrate like-minded artists”
-Juxtapoz
“Neon has traditionally been a men’s field, yet today we see a growing number of women picking up the torch and bending glass for themselves to create artwork as well as signs. Originally known for its commercial applications - including seedy depictions of the female figure - neon in now appreciated for its conceptual content. Women’s influence on the medium has proven to further neon’s role as an art form and thus prolonged its survival as a trade”
-Kim Kogan, The Museum of Neon on the social importance of She Bends
“The material of neon itself is heavy with historical overtones, the act of women repurposing this trade to convey messages about the female experience is in and of itself an act of rebellion - not to mention these women are wildly talented and their neon works are an absolute pleasure for the eyes.”
-Kelsey Issel, Arts Director at The Midway Creative Complex on why she was compelled to bring the show to SF
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