Another lovely frock!

When my daughter, Camille, (who loved dresses that would stand straight out when she twirled around) had her fourth birthday, we invited her little friend, Carl, who lived across the street, to her party.  Carl watched Camille open the first four packages with some anticipation.  With a bit of disgust on the fifth one, he declared, "Oh my, another lovely frock!"  All the adults at the party were stunned that a five year old boy knew what a frock was and furthermore could use the word appropriately.  When we thought about it some more, though, we were not as surprised.  

Both of Carl Minzner's parent's were Harvard trained lawyers.  We would frequently hear his dad's booming voice on sunny days outside our window as Dick and his son's, Carl and Max, headed for the park.  Dick would be explaining why the sky was blue or how the trees turned sunlight into chlorophyll.  His mother, Pam, later became a New Mexico Supreme Court Justice...one who wore her own lovely frocks under that not so charming Justice gown.

This fond memory returned to me when I visited the Mariposa Gallery in Nob Hill. One of the artists, Marcia Sednek, whose creations were being showcased in a show titled "Jingle Bell Frock" had created wonderful little sculptural frocks out of all sort of recycled materials.

Photo via

Just a little touch of whimsy for a sunny day.  I was rushing from one errand to another that day, reminding myself a little of the white rabbit..."I'm late, I'm late, for a very important date," but I can never resist this contemporary gallery that celebrates both folk and fine art.  So I popped in for just a minute.  Thirty minutes later, I really was late.