Josh Kilmer-Purcell's Blog, page 23

Full of Hot Air

 

A SHORT HISTORY OF POPCORN

Popcorn has been eaten as a snack in the United States for thousands of years—the oldest ears of popcorn to have been found are believed to be at least 4,000 years old. They were discovered in the Bat Cave of west-central New Mexico in 1948 and 1950, and ranged from smaller than a penny to about 2 inches in size.

Early Native Americans grew corn, which they called “mahiz” (which evolved into the more familiar “maize”), and they introduced it to the English who came to America in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. It is believed that Native Americans discovered that corn kernels popped when thrown into a fire or hot sand.

Popcorn was not only an important food at the time, but was also used by Native Americans and Aztecs to make garlands worn by women at celebration dances.

After the introduction of the moldboard plow in the mid-1800s, corn growing became more widespread and led to an increase in the popularity of popping corn

as a recreational activity. Popcorn was sold at carnivals and circuses, as well as in the grocery stores. With the invention of “talking pictures,” movie theaters initially

refused to sell popcorn because it was too messy, so their customers took in their own popcorn, purchased from street vendors. The theaters soon caught on

and introduced their own concession stands to provide the snack.

 

During the Great Depression, popcorn was one of the few luxuries that the average man in the street could afford, being relatively cheap at five or ten cents a bag. While many other businesses failed, the popcorn business thrived. When the United States entered World War II, sugar was sent overseas for U.S. troops, so candy became scarce, and Americans ate three times as much popcorn as usual. Later, as television became popular, there was a small slump in popcorn consumption, as Americans deserted the movie theaters to stay home in front of the TV; but soon, snacking while watching television increased the consumption of popcorn again.

The popularity of this snack has grown and grown, and today it is one of America’s most enduring and popular snacks. People of all ages love popcorn, and the statistics

prove it: Americans consume about 17 billion quarts of popped popcorn each year.

 

STOVETOP METHOD

 

To pop the corn on the stovetop, you will need a covered saucepan and an oil with a high smoke point. The best ones to use are canola, olive, coconut, peanut,

or grapeseed. Do not use butter as it may burn.

 

3 tablespoons oil

1/3 cup popcorn kernels

A 3-quart saucepan is a good size for 1/3 cup kernels.

Add the oil to the pan and set it on medium-high heat.

Put 3 or 4 popcorn kernels into the oil and cover the pan. When the kernels pop, add the rest of the 1/3 cup of popcorn kernels in an even layer. Sprinkle with salt.

 

Cover, remove from heat, and count 30 seconds. This step first heats the oil to the right temperature, and waiting 30 seconds brings all of the other kernels to a

near-popping temperature, so that when they are put back on the heat, they all pop at about the same time.

Return the pan to the heat. The popcorn should begin popping soon, and all at once. Once the popping starts in earnest, gently shake the pan by moving it back and

forth over the burner. Try to keep the lid slightly ajar to let the steam from the popcorn release (the popcorn will be drier and crisper). Once the popping slows to several seconds between pops, remove the pan from the heat, remove the lid, and pour the popcorn immediately into a bowl.

 

With this method, nearly all of the kernels should pop, and none should burn.

 

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For over 100 great popcorn recipes, check out Popcorn! Click here

 

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Behind the Scenes: Macy’s Holiday Parade Studio

If you’re like us, you always look at a spectacle and wonder: “I wonder how they did that?”

Ever since we were little kids, we both wanted to travel to NYC to see the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in person. (Josh also wanted to co-host the parade from a TV booth high in the sky…but so far, no luck.) After we moved to New York, we finally got to witness the parade a few times. Then we started avoiding the crowds by instead partaking in the “secret” New Yorker tradition of watching the parade balloons being inflated on the side streets the Wednesday evening before the parade. That was fun too.

But not as much fun as getting a sneak peek inside the Macy’s Studio where all of the preparations are made for the parade. It’s a year-round job. The giant facility in New Jersey is also home to all of the preparations for the Macy’s Flower Show, and other legendary events. Take a walk around with us and peek at just a fraction of the work that goes into making the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade so magical…

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Ask the Expert!

 

 

Late this summer we got a surprise email from someone at Amazon.  They had been following us on our Instagram account and saw all of the photos we posted from the heirloom flower and vegetable gardens at Beekman Farm.

They were going to identify one “gardening expert” to curate their holiday gift guide, and they wanted it to be us.  So we got to comb through Amazon and choose the 20 items that we thought every gardener should have (it was A LOT to look through!)

If you are a gardener or have to buy a gift this season for a gardener in your family, we’ve done a lot of the work for you.

 

Click here to see what we chose!

(what until you see the wheelbarrow!!!!)

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Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them

We often marvel how social media has led us to such a wonderful community of Beekman Neighbors, so we were intrigued when we came across these artists on Instagram.

Two strangers – one male, the other female – have taken the historically solo activity of photography and turned it into a collaborative process by working together in real-time, looking through each other’s camera lens while 8,000 miles apart … creating an art world revolution. Calling themselves The International Collaboration Project, artists Francisco Diaz and Deb Young have embraced the 21st century’s power of technology. With their award-winning, innovative and provocative work and process, they are taking the art and photography world by storm.

Francisco Diaz (USA) and Deb Young (New Zealand) met through the global network of Facebook in 2013. Initially flying solo—Young as a street photographer in Auckland and Diaz a photomontagist in New Jersey—the pair used Facebook as their digital version of the ‘artist hangout’ to share work and debate the future of photography. From their intense online discussions came the idea to bring artists from around the world together to produce concept-based works designed to create social dialogue.

“We decided to challenge the belief that photography is a solitary activity by working on images in real time together. We knew that our being strangers separated by 8,000 miles was an impediment, so we began to use the available technology in unique ways to surmount the challenge – video conferencing, team viewer, tethering, WhatsApp and numerous design apps,” says Young.

It is unusual in the art photography world to work in partnership, as artists tend to be independent, opinionated souls.  Before the digital era, two artists working together on one shot at the same time was impossible. It is even more unusual for one of the partners to be a woman.

“We also knew it was important to confront the notion that gender difference stylistically matters in the art world by working on each image jointly. Collaboration creates a powerful female/male synergy which helps us promote a more balanced approach to our cinematic narrative photomontages,” notes Diaz.

Their work is groundbreaking because their technological process disrupts every known photography protocol from the solitary nature of photography to the methodology of their image capture. Diaz + Young do not use models, props or set-ups, gathering images randomly, with each new work telling a story. The magic of the photos moves to post-production, where dozens of images are combined to create one final image that looks like a single photograph—creating an eerie sense of reality, which itself is an ironic refutation of photography as truth.

Since establishing The International Collaboration Project in early 2013, Diaz and Young have received international acclaim, in particular for their masterful “Playground Series.” The work is hauntingly beautiful at first glance betraying what appears to be a single, unique moment captured in camera by one photographer. An art collaboration that traditionally occurred in-studio has now given rise to bridging the gap between gender, culture, distance and time to create an apparent reality of many disparate images so seamless as to pose the question “how is photography defined and where is it headed?”

A new reality has been created with Diaz + Young as the face of 21st century digital photography where art photographers may now collaborate from different corners of the globe, blending creative energies as an example of true cooperation amongst global strangers in these challenging times.

We are so fortunate that they agreed to share their series The Wandering Kind with us.

 

 

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Only 5 prints of each image will ever be created.  Prices range from $1850-3,000. For more information, contact Susan Spiritus, Susan Spiritus Gallery, Newport Beach, CA 92660, 714.754.1286 or www.susanspiritusgallery.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Beekman Gothic

Dark romanticism (or gothic idealism) is a mainstay of Halloween celebrations. From its very inception in the late eighteenth century, Romanticism’s celebration of euphoria and sublimity had been partnered with an equally intense fascination with melancholia, insanity, crime, the grotesque, and the irrational. It’s what made the Victorian era so subversively sexy.

We’ve collaborated with our friend Sarah Pezdek Smith on several other fun photo shoots (things creative people do on a whim), so when she called us about doing this fantasy-filled dance macabre—we just couldn’t say ‘no’.

Take a look…if you dare.

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Creative Director: Aray M. TIll of Save the Date in the 518

Photographer: Sarah Pezdek Smith

Stylists: Yvonne McEachron  + Tara Holmes

Florist: Derryck Dematas

Chef: Adam Foti

Hair: Cassondra Schauble

Pies: Leah’s Cakery

Poem by Oscar Wilde

Eye of Wild

We began working with Christian Watson when he was 23 years old.  We came across his work on Instagram and thought he would share the vision we were working on for our next cookbook.  (It’s called A Seat at the Table and will be released in September 2017).

We were right.

This “kid” from the wilds of Oregon has become one of the people who inspires our creativity most.

While we are waiting for the cookbook to debut next year, we worked on a design collaboration that we called “Into the Wild”, and it is full of items meant for getting outdoors.

See how Christian photographed the collection and follow him on Instagram at @1924us.

 

 

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See the entire Into the Wild Collection by clicking here

Put Your Garden Beds to Bed

October is garden lockdown, the time to defend against the onslaught of winter. How you prepare depends on what kind of gardener you are, says Kristin Schleiter, senior curator at the New York Botanical Garden.

THE KUMBAYA GARDENER “There are folks who believe strongly in leaving the garden up all winter because you’re feeding and providing shelter for other creatures and birds,” says Schleiter, who agrees that cutting plants back is optional— especially if you’re dealing with a truly perennial garden. The important thing is to be ready, come February or March, to cut everything back before the sap rises.

THE NEAT GARDENER Neatniks will want to cut everything back before the winter sets in. This also goes for snowbirds who winter in Florida and don’t want to miss the window after the thaw.

ONE MUST-DO Every gardener should add a layer of compost or a layer of mulch. Schleiter recommends waiting until the first frost before adding an inch or two. “You’re letting the ground freeze and trying to keep it frozen, to avoid the freeze-and-thaw cycle that pushes the plants out of the ground.”

NATURE’S SHIELD As for snow, Schleiter says: Bring it on. It is the best barrier against the winter cold. “We have our most damage when there is no snow cover; and when you get to the teens without snow, that’s when bad things start to happen.”

A Buzz Cut

In our part of the world, no sound signals autumn more than that of the buzzing, cracking and popping that accompanies the cutting, chopping and splitting of wood.  The fireplaces and wood stoves have empty bellies and hungry mouths to feed.

Mike Page started his career as a lumber jack right out of high school, and it wasn’t until 11 years ago, after witnessing a demonstration at a county fair, that Mike picked up a chainsaw, aimed it at an old stump, and turned it into art.

The first time we met, Mike said: “I’m not an artisan. That’s too fancy.”

“Ok,” we said.  “Craftsman?”

“That will be fine”

Mike crafted a piece for the “Into the Wild” theme of the Mercantile (click here to see it in the shop)

He recently let us spend the morning with him to watch the creative process, and all that he asked in return was that if you like his work to leave a message on his Facebook page (please click here to let him know that he really IS an artist!)

 

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If you’d like one of these beautiful pieces, visit Mike’s website by clicking here

America, the beautiful

One hundred years ago, America established the National Parks Service with the believe that wilderness was essential and had to be preserved. Our country is now lucky enough to have 59 amazing refuges of nature across the country that include the grandest canyon, the most spectacular geothermal site, miles of coastline not to mention the reddest and tallest of trees.

On August 25, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed the act that created the NPS, a new federal bureau in the Department of Interior.

Which national park in your backyard will you visit this year?

 

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Go Wild

We reset the flagship Mercantile 5 times a year–once for each season and at holiday.  For those of you who live far away and can’t make it in, we always like to post a few photos of the details.

To coordinate with the 100th Anniversary of the National Parks, our theme for autumn is “Into the Wild”.  We partnered with artist Christian Watson to create a tight collection of outdoor gear to help all of you “go wild”  Beekman 1802-style.

Take a look around:

 

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Are you ready to get into the wild, click here to visit the Beekman 1802 Mercantile online shop

 

 

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