Baby Teeth

Laurie Notaro's Seven Reasons Why Phoenix is Better than Portland

By Laurie Notaro Mon., Feb. 4 2013 at 1:00 PM
Categories: Baby Teeth

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Sebastien Millon
Editor's Note: When architect and community activist Taz Loomans announced she was moving to Portland, we added her to a long list of Phoenicians who've decided to pack their bags and head to the Pacific Northwest.

And then we called Laurie Notaro.

Notaro is a best-selling author and frequent New Times' contributor. She lived in Phoenix for more than 30 years before moving to Eugene, Oregon. And while she's spent plenty of time in Portland, she still thinks Phoenix is better. Here's why:

See also:
- Phoenix Loses Another Creative Force in Taz Loomans
- Chow Bella's Candy Hearts: Food and Love Stories from Laurie Notaro, Robrt Pela, Kim Porter, Deborah Sussman, and More
- Laurie Notaro's Five Reasons Why Haboobs Are Awesome


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Baby Teeth

Legends Entertainment District Unveils "Community Building" Advertisement on the Luhrs Building

By Claire Lawton Fri., Mar. 2 2012 at 9:02 AM
Categories: Baby Teeth
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Claire Lawton
When Legends Entertainment District announced it would be unveiling a "community building, six-story mural" on the west-facing wall of the Luhrs building, we grabbed our cameras.

The historic ten-story building at 11 West Jefferson street first opened its doors in 1924 and its red brick exterior has gone virtually untouched since. 

A mural there would be a huge deal, and while the project's PR team at Steve LeVine Entertainment wasn't sure who was "painting," we had a few faces we would have liked to have seen on the scaffolds. 

Instead, we arrived to see a six-story ... something. We weren't sure what to call it -- a wallscape? a banner? an installation? 

And then we landed on it: an advertisement. 


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Advertising, Arizona Rattlers, Legends Entertainment District, Luhrs Building, PBR Mural
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Visual Art

On Public Art and Ephemera: Should Rose Johnson's Prayer of St. Francis Be Restored?

By Claire Lawton Fri., Feb. 10 2012 at 3:00 PM
Categories: Baby Teeth, Visual Art
RoseJohnson1.jpg
photo by Claire Lawton (2012)
Mural by Rose Johnson

​If you take a drive down 16th Street in Phoenix, you might notice a few coats of fresh paint on sections of the Mercer Mortuary building at 1541 E. Thomas Road. 

The mural was originally painted by local artist Rose Johnson and a group of students in 1998. It's in her signature style; large, stylized figures of all colors and races overlap. Their hands carry a waving rainbow flag, form peace signs, and release white doves across eight panels that wrap around the building. 

The mural was (and is) a symbol of peace and unity that was painted long before the area became known as Calle 16, where bright murals by local artists pop up on a regular basis.

Almost 14 years after Johnson finished the mural on Mercer Mortuary, the paint is chipping, and tags occasionally cover the faces and blocks of pastels.

It was on one of her daily commutes to work that a Phoenix resident named Rebecca DeWitt noticed the mural's deteriorating state and decided to make a few phone calls. 



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Calle 16, David Quan, Jenny Ignaszewski, Mercer Mortuary, Rose Johnson
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Baby Teeth

Seven Reasons Why Book Art Makes Me Uncomfortable

By Claire Lawton Tue., Jan. 31 2012 at 8:00 AM
Categories: Baby Teeth, Literary
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​Yeah, yeah, recycling is hot. And it's even better when you can use (and reuse) paper goods that often serve a one-time purpose. But throw a binding and a cover on that stack of paper, and you've got yourself a book -- maybe it's something you had to read in high school or something your friend gave you and said you had to read.

That thing you're holding is the paper version of what you can also find online, on a tablet, on your phone, on your computer, through your augmented-reality glasses -- whatever. It's an artform that bibliophiles are doing everything they can to keep together, when what's (scarily) becoming more popular is cutting them apart.

Sure, we get it; A book can make a great base for an art project. And who said a range of media was a bad thing? It's not. But, there's just something about defacing a book that makes that same noise the dentist's scraper does as it trails across an upper molar. Here's why ...  

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Book Art, Book Furniture, Book Purse, Paper Cut
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Baby Teeth

The Saguaro in Scottsdale Gets a Fresh Coat of Paint and Some Cool Touches -- But It's Still No Ace Hotel

By Amy Silverman and Claire Lawton Tue., Jan. 17 2012 at 4:35 PM
Categories: Baby Teeth
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photos by Claire Lawton
​​When the Sydell Group in New York announced last year that it had purchased a hotel property in Scottsdale, Manhattan could probably hear the squeals of delight coming from New Times' Phoenix office.

Sydell owns the New York and Palm Springs properties managed by the Ace Hotel chain -- the gold standard of boutique (read: funky, affordable, cool) hotels -- and we loved the thought of having our own Ace in Scottsdale. (Sydell's also behind the buildings Ace manages in Palm Springs and Manhattan, and Ace has two more locations in Portland and Seattle that operate in buildings not owned by Sydell.) 

Alas, it was just an idea. 

Sydell was horrified at the suggestion -- no, no, no, we were told, this property would not be an Ace. Last week we got a tour, and while the place has its charms (mostly thanks to Iron Chef Jose Garces, more on that in a minute) Sydell was right: The Saguaro is no Ace. 

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ace hotel, joie de vivre hospitality, sydell group, the saguaro
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