Diana and Babette in the Kitchen Cookbook

this was a promotional piece which i thought would be at least useful to the recipient. the idea was even if you don’t like my art, there are some tasty recipes in here. and of course it was homage to my babette who inspires me everyday.

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recipe

boil water and follow package instructions for your pasta… heat olive oil and one pat of  butter, sauté in a skillet a rough cut of green olives, garlic, shallots or onions, capers if you have them, sun dried tomatoes and last but not least artichoke hearts from a jar not a can. now if you have a trader joe’s near you they have roasted artichoke hearts in a jar and can i tell you they are scrumptious! after all these ingredients are fiercely amalgamated, and the aroma is haunting, now add one half cup vodka. personally i use courvoisier cognac totally up to you at this point. fresh parsley, oregano and basil roughly torn and tossed in at the last minute. now you have lots of time to get out that tablecloth put a nice bowl of whole fresh vegetables in a bowl candles and voila it’s a party.

ingredients

angel hair pasta, roasted or marinated in olive oil artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes, a mix of assorted olives or all green you decide, fresh garlic (amount according to your after dinner plans) about a quarter of minced onion, fresh parsley, oregano and basil. sea salt and pepper or hot pepper to your delight.

Package Design

i was very fortunate to work with a fellow designer julia ionov and collaborate for over eight years to take fashion forms from all photography to line illustration. neiman marcus and bloomingdale’s each had their own “look”.  before our girly-girl patterns galore approach appeared all packaging in this category “booby accessories” looked a bit pharmaceutical so changing this was a lot of fun!

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Chelsea Clinton Wedding Portrait by Diana Huff

i was working and living in rhinebeck ny at the time of the clinton wedding. a friend suggested i do a painting to honor the event. so in two days i painted this folkloric portrait and the wedding planner came in and purchased it as a gift for the couple. i have no idea where it hangs today but it was created to celebrate the couple and the historic town of rhinebeck.

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Painted Objects and Furniture

i started painting stories on vintage wooden furniture and objects in california in the 80’s and sold them in a store whose clients were in the film industry. i have continued this and still do it for private clients. the multi-patterned table is homage to my two beloved cats isabella and babette. the japanese dolly has a i950’s bowl on her head, she serves hors d’oeuvres at many a festive dinner at home. i once illustrated a chair, as a birthday present from a husband to his wife, with images and quotes from “wind in the willows”. it is one of my all-time favorite children’s books.

 

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The Little Book Of Thin

i had a delightful time with lauren slayton ms, rd (founder of foodtrainers, a nutritional practice nyc) and her agent lauren galit. we each contributed something different to this project. the goal was to get the key points of proper diet, exercise and weight loss with encouragement and humor.
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This is My Own Purse so I Can Paint Cats if I Want to

the wooden purse itself is a 1950’s painted and embellished with stones, all of which i removed, the hardware and handle are original to the bag. these rare finds are getting harder and harder to find but luckily i still have some in reserve. i have done quite a few “bespoke” pieces for clients. what i love is a painting can go out to lunch, shopping or even visit a gallery.
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Bikini Bootcamp

this is such a great idea – a place where you can bring your pets and do yoga

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Great Arrow Book Cover

great arrow graphics is a lovely buffalo new york silk screen card company probably one, if not the only card company doing this fine art process on cards. there is depth in color and texture to these cards that is incomparable, it’s more like a gift in the mail than a card.

 
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Painted Furniture and Decorations

a box is a box until it turns into a facebox… these are 1930’s file boxes from an office in los angeles, california which still function but no longer for files. they are now painted ladies with chess-piece hats and sit nicely on a shelf and never say a word.

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as you already know i love collecting vintage pieces and either augmenting, re-assembling, painting and creating a new heirloom. the rolling pin now has a painted ball head and a chess-piece hat. i painted an icepick and added a feather to the tray and it makes a nice centerpiece for a party laden with crackers, cheese and crudities. the lamp is painted in a fall theme and then augmented with felt acorns. those hand-felted acorns with real acorn “hats” were made by my artist and bestie friend ruth donakowski.

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