return to Entertainment > Recommended Events

Jun 2010  |  By Liz Logan  |  Comments

Beauty Salon

Just looking at Danielle Klinenberg’s abstract watercolor paintings, you wouldn’t know that she had a love affair with a soybean farmer, which inspired one of her pieces.

“I’m moved to paint because of the sensual aspect of it,”Danielle Klinenberg says.

To discuss art in an informal way—and maybe learn some of the juicy stories behind the pieces—is the goal of the new Art Salon Dinners of the North Shore, hosted by artist and former gallery owner René Romero Schuler of Lake Forest.

The gatherings are modeled after the salons that Gertrude Stein assembled in Paris at the beginning of the 20th century, drawing writers and artists to explore her now-famous collection of modern art. The first North Shore salon, featuring Klinenberg’s work, took place at the French restaurant Froggy’s in Highwood and drew 32 people. There will be more salons this fall.

“There is no wrong way to interpret art,” Schuler says. “You don’t have to have a vocabulary or a knowledge of art history, it’s just that emotional connection.” She hopes her salons will highlight the work of local artists and feed a natural curiosity about art.

Thierry Lefeuvre, Froggy’s executive chef and co-owner, offered to host the dinner partly out of his own interest in art. His wife, artist Jacqueline Lefeuvre, attended the first salon, and Thierry created a five-course menu inspired by the art.

Klinenberg, who lives in Chicago, is represented by the Thomas Master Gallery. The well-traveled, self-taught painter, whose work hangs in the acclaimed Chicago restaurant Alinea and was featured in the movie “The Break-Up,” spent time chatting with guests and fielding questions.

Amie Marks of Lake Forest, who works as a financial planner, says she had never been to anything more intimate than cocktails and hors d’oeuvres at a gallery opening. “Everyone’s always in the market for art,” she says.

And to meet Klinenberg, “I was captivated,” Schuler says. “She speaks four languages, but she struggles with speaking. She says everything through her art.”

Schuler ended the evening by encouraging guests to find that emotional connection with art: “Understand that passion, let it be a part of your life, and bring things into your life that let you feel that.”

To find out more about upcoming salons, visit artsalondinnersofthenorthshore.com.