Coming Full Circle and returning with Enso 2007 to San Francisco I attended the 21st Annual Japanese New Year’s Bell Ringing Ceremony (Joya no kane) at the Asian Art Museum Chong-Moon Lee Center for Art and Culture. The ancient Japanese tradition of striking a temple bell 108 times to purify the old year and welcome the new one is one of the most beautiful in the world. The Japanese bell in the collection of the Asian Art Museum is a treasure made by Tachibana Kyubei for the Daienji Temple, Tajima Province in 1532.

When I was selected for the 12th ring of the bell I felt the incredible destiny of Enso 2007 once again as 12 is a number central to the project. The highlight of the day was speaking with Forrest McGill, Chief Curator and Wattis Curator of South and Southeast Asian Art, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco.

Enrobed in Christmas fog we are leaving Montreux for Gstaad--Enso 2007 safely stowed.

Here is an excerpt from posts on the Wynton Marsalis Fan Club Site responding to the Around the World encounter with Wynton at Jazz at Lincoln Center in Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola:

This was very likely the clearest example of patronage of/for the arts I have ever seen. This young woman is carrying her idea of the Enso around the world and has amassed an impressive roster of sponsors and interested patrons along the journey. She performed a piece of abstract poetry, played an emotionally charged tribute to Wynton on her flute, and expressed verbally her endless admiration and gratitude for My Hero. For those of you struggling to earn a living by way of your art and/or wondering if there are people who will support your artistic vision, Drue’s project screams a deafening and definitive “YES!!!” Stick to what you love and the rest will follow.

My Hero was as dapper as ever in an olive cashmere and silk three-piece suit with Eel (???) skin shoes I am sure were handmade. In honor of Enso, he circled the room playing through the small gathering of guests and even used Wess Anderson’s wine glass (empty) as a muting device. What a magnificent sound, what an innovative approach and interactive performance. Seated at the top of the world, Wynton signed the Enso painting at the 12 o’clock position. His use of the brush was masterful, his signature was fluid and his name a piece of art itself.

I admire Wynton’s ongoing support for the arts and his obvious and continuous mentorship of up-and-coming artists.

The Sumi-e encounter began with a lovely lunch at the Soho House, a chic private club in New York in the Meatpacking district hosted by Bernard Aidan. An animated discussion on our respective art forms ensued. In particular, we discussed how each of us share an artistic impulse to innovate while being in dialogue with and respecting the great traditions of our disciplines.

In the diffuse lighting of a December afternoon we were escorted to the Catherine Malandrino flagship boutique where a champagne toast was waiting. Catherine personally selected a stunning couture gown for me to wear for the performance. Under the glittering chandelier my painting, ENSO 2007, spun softly awaiting Catherine's remarks. I was deeply touched by her intuitive reflections - "Drue is reaching through her art a timeless moment - not yesterday, and even further than tomorrow." I will upload Catherine Malandrino's extensive quotes on http://www.inasinglestroke.com along with beautiful photographs of today's encounter.

Today Jazz Legend Wynton Marsalis hosted a spectacular event for Around the World New York at Club Dizzy's Coca Cola. Overlooking a sparkling Manhattan skyline with Central Park in the foreground, Enso 2007 joined Wynton and me onstage. I performed a musical tribute to Wynton and he responded with his trumpet. His musical response to my painting of the Enso, The Enso Blues got the guests on their feet waving their white napkins New Orleans style. Victor Goines responded in kind and Dan Nimmer gazed at the Enso over the gleaming Steinway with blues at his fingertips. This photo captures one moment of my performance of the Around the World poem.
More photos will appear on the project website, http://www.inasinglestroke.com/.

After the show I was deeply touched by the remarks and responses to the Enso. One of the guests said What I love is that we make history at Club Dizzy's and today we definitely made history. In this photo, Roland Chassagne, Ricky Gordno, Dan Nimmer, Phil Schapp, Wendell Pierce, Spike Lee and Wynton Marsalis. More photos will appear on the project website, http://www.inasinglestroke.com/.

I was struck by the beautiful gestures of the wind in Chicago, powerful but not aggressive, sweeping and grand. And now it's off to the Big Apple!

Chef Charlie Trotter began his culinary response with the Around the World Pinot and then ended it that way to. After circling the globe with wines selected from around the world, he poured Jim's exquisite pinot again.

There's so much to say about the unbelievable toast of the Around the World Pinot Noir. Chef Trotter's sommelier poured and commented on the wine's balance--beautifuly silky without being heavy. Chef Trotter waxed poetic---It's opulent and sleek. More on the toast, my performance for Chef Trotter and his responses later.

Meanwhile I am carefully packing many of Chef Trotter's gifts from the evening. One was the landmark work Ma Gastronomie A Classic of French Cuisine by Fernand Point. Fernand Point (1897 - 1955) is considered to be the father of modern French cuisine. For Point's Restaurant de la Pyramide in Vienne, in the old Roman town south of Lyon, he gained three Michelin stars and trained a generation of French master chefs including Paul Bocuse.

As the European Daurade with Tofu Puree, Bok Choy, Wasabi and Hijiki was served in grand style, Chef Trotter sat by me and read from his favorite passages of Ma Gastronomie. Chef Trotter's voice rose and fell softly accompanying the delicate daurade. I was deeply touched by his thoughtful inscription in the book.

Just returning from an extraordinary evening at the legendary Charlie Trotter's Restaurant in Chicago. Chef Trotter's culinary response defies description. Paired with this post is a photo taken on my cell phone of the menu he created especially for Around the World Chicago. I'll post the high quality photos as soon as I can. The first course included Italian Osetra Caviar with Cauliflower, Fresh Water Eel Terrine with Beets, Hawaiin Big Eye Tuna with Horseradish Emulsion paired with Pascal Douquet's Le Mesnil-sur-oger - Blanc de Blancs Brut NV. For each course I composed a haiku for a meal prepared with such artistry, I wanted to capture the elusive beauty. Here's the first haiku...

The no home of home
Leaves me haunting memories
not there and there too

Chef Trotter's intuition is incredible. With the exquisite eel he unknowingly referenced one of the symbolic meals in Tokyo where eel was featured. The haiku is my response to his elegant remarks about the enso as a journey, the concept of home, not being able to return to home, and yet being able to simultaneously.

No home is also a play on the word Noh referencing the powerful Japanese art form.

More later...On to NYC!

I was honored to meet with Around the World Honoree, Legendary Former 49ers Coach Bill Walsh today. His commitment to the Around the World in a Single Stroke project has been unwavering. One of the very first people I told about my vision, he believed in it from the beginning. He encouraged me to realize the dream, stick to my game plan and execute. In our many conversations criss-crossing the American sports and cultural landscape, I have been enriched by his insights and way of approaching just about anything.

I will particularly treasure my time with Bill Walsh today. I had the opportunity to show him the original painting Enso 2007 and listen to his remarkable and profound responses. He touched his white hair then looked very reflective. “Your brush stroke represents the road through the season. When the stroke begins---that’s like the beginning of the season when you are energized, hopeful, self assured…your stroke shows the route is not perfectly symmetrical. There are disappointments. There are successes. But you sustain yourself, and it does come full circle.” I was deeply touched because I wanted to convey the feeling of “the journey,” and the complex textures inevitably a part of it. As Coach Walsh swept his hand in a circle lightly brushing the edge of the Enso I could feel the grandeur of so many seasons going by compressed into this moment.

I talked about note endings and the endings of brush strokes---how great poise is required at the end of a musical phrase when one has the least air and potentially the more difficult part of the passage--and how a different kind of poise is required at the end of a brush stroke vs. the beginning because there is less ink and the variables of the brush are continually in flux. He said I know exactly what you mean, “Poise, presence, focus, having as much energy at the end, as you do at the start, and that’s where teams falter.” Then he pointed at a metaphorical time as expressed in the progression of the brush stroke---“Right about here, is where teams give up hope. But your stroke continues---just like those players who are energized. There are always degrees of focus and commitment. When you get weary that’s when you need the best leadership. You see, some will always fade.”

We talked about the quality of the ink, the choice of the shading and depth of ink and the character of a team, the leadership within a team. “Certain players never give up…And there are other players who can get caught up in that.”

As someone who is known for his breadth of knowledge about wine, Bill was very pleased with the magum of exquisite Au Bon Climat Around the World Pinot Noir and the story of the wine. He especially appreciated this special production, and the finesse and grace of this wine.

In the Jazz Capital of the World---the exciting preparations for New York Honoree Wynton Marsalis are in their final stages. I'm most grateful to Wynton and Jazz at Lincoln Center for the energy, soul and attention to detail they are infusing the ceremony that Wynton will be hosting in the elegant Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola. I look forward to the acoustics of this world class facility when I play my musical tribute for him. And I know the Enso will vamp then spin softly across the breath-taking Manhattan skyline. Wynton is having his grand Steinway specially tuned just for the event. For the exclusive invitation-only reception a beautiful folding card of the Enso of the Tokyo skyline was sent. The photo accompanying this blog post shows the image.