Today we’re kicking off something new! In keeping with all things neo-traditional, I’ve decided to launch an interview series celebrating cool creatives and their current and classic favorites. First up? Brooklyn-based artist Happy Menocal (short for Harriet, amazing, right?). You’ve likely seen Happy’s fanciful illustrations featured in glamorous nuptials on Vogue.com or on the most stylish Stubbs & Wootton slippers. I met the in-demand artist years ago back in New York and was instantly charmed by her boundless creativity and cultural smarts. Happy’s art prints, stationery, and custom pet portraits rank high on my personal wish list. Want to know more? Check out Happy’s website, instagram, and of course, read on for the new/old staples she can’t live without!
// TRAVEL DESTINATION
Current: Just got back from Cuba (above, illustration by Happy)
Classic: The Everglades
// HOTEL
Current: Le Citizen on Canal St. Martin in Paris. It’s like a funny little youth hostel for grownups – cheap, clever design, good neighborhood. I love a canal.
Classic: Deetjens in Big Sur (below, custom crest illustration by Happy)
// READ
Current: Ragtime by E.L. Doctorow. Actually listening on Audible, Doctorow reads it himself.
Classic: (Another audio thing — I mostly listen to books while I paint): Aleksander Hemon reads Nabokov’s short story Pnin, which later becomes the first chapter of the novel, for the New Yorker.
// FILM
Current: White God (Ambivalent about this one, it’s just the most recent thing I watched. It’s worth seeing.)
Classic: Metropolitan (above)
// LIBATION
Current: Campari & soda
Classic: Rum & Coke
// TV SERIES
Current: Election buildup is such a creepy carnival, but Face the Nation with John Dickerson on Sunday mornings is civilized and smart.
Classic: Frasier (above)
// BEAUTY PRODUCT
Current: Lava soap
Classic: Lavender Oil
// TUNES
Current: Hinds “Bamboo”
Classic: Leonard Cohen (above)
// STYLE ICON
Current: Duro Olowu
Classic: that little girl smoking a cig in the famous Mary Ellen Mark photo (above: Happy Menocal for Stubbs & Wootton)
// RESTAURANT
Current: Excited to try Babu Ji this week
Classic: JG Melon (above)
// HANDBAG
Current: dirty white canvas tote
Classic: dirty white canvas tote
// JEWELS
Current: coveting this silver Sophie Buhai barrette (above)
Classic: pearl studs given to me when I got my ears pierced at 13
// MUSEUM
Current: auction houses!
Classic: Musée Delacroix in Paris
// TRANSPORTATION
Current: walk
Classic: walk
// COLOR
Current: White & Cream, Pink & Lavender (above, some of Happy’s art supplies)
Classic: Red & Green, Terra Cotta, gosh all of them really
// DECOR
Current: I’m calling it “Pee Wee’s Tunisian Country House” (below, custom pet portrait by Happy)
Classic: Park Ave style galley kitchen with a black and white checker floor and and a swinging door with a porthole
Thanks for joining me, Happy! Stay tuned for a new Current/Classic interview next week (I have a feeling you’re going to LOVE it)!
(Photos of Happy and her studio by Carol Dronsfield)
