CREATIVITY RULES | MARIA BRITO

A few years ago, we had the pleasure of meeting Maria Brito who is an award winning NY based contemporary art advisor, author and curator. She is known as a Power Players in the Art World and in 2020 she was named by ARTNEWS as one of the visionaries who gets to shape the art world. With her finger on the pulse of noted and rising artists, we wanted to catch up with her to talk about how she came to this industry, what it's like to build a personal collection versus when she is working with her clientele who includes A-list celebrities, demistifying art, the impact of NFTs on art, what her Art Basel experiences are and finding out about her book which is available next month!

ATHLEISURE MAG: You are a noted and well-respected power player in the art world. Prior to working in this industry, you graduated from Harvard Law School and practiced corporate law for a period of time. How did you come to the world of art and realize that this was an industry that you wanted to work in?

MARIA BRITO: I grew up in a family that prioritized art as a cultivation tool, like a hobby, but not a career. I went to every art exhibition, museum, gallery and artist studio my parents took me to, and it was really a very hands-on training for me. I continued furthering my passion when I moved to New York City in 2000 as a newly-minted attorney and started going to galleries and buying for myself.

AM: When you began building your personal collection of art work, what were you drawn to initially?

MB: I have always been drawn toward figuration, the human form, saturated colors, narratives that move me. I started collecting the work of Black artists way before all the galleries went crazy for them in the past 5 years. I am very proud of that.

AM: Can you tell us the difference between being a curator and an art advisor and why you love working in these areas?

MB: An art advisor is someone who makes suggestions as to what to acquire and why. It brings access and an eye to a client and it’s the eyes and ears of the art collectors who can’t possibly navigate the art market which is a global $300 billion market. A curator is someone who makes sense of how a collection looks together or envisions an art exhibition that has a theme that is coherent. The curator is an editor, the advisor is a strategist.

AM: Why is the concept of buying art and ultimately curating a collection intimidating to those that are outside of the art world?

MB: I think for too long people have had the wrong idea because what gets written in the big newspapers or reported on mainstream TV are the insanely high numbers that happen when a piece of art sells at auction for $200 million - that is intimidating. Or when people go to a gallery and the environment feels sterile and impersonal - that is intimidating. But that’s just the surface, there are thousands of galleries around the world as well as websites and art fairs that sell art priced under $5000 - people have no problem saving up money to buy a handbag for that amount of money or more. But a piece of art bought with a little bit of an understanding of the market can not only multiply its value 100x but also stay with you forever.

AM: How do you demystify the experience so that it’s more approachable to those that want to obtain art for their pieces?

MB: As I mentioned above, there are all sorts of levels in the art market. People take bets in emerging artists because they see the potential. There has never been a better time to collect or to be an artist. Besides, it’s all a cultural dialogue that is formed between the art and the collectors.

AM: I know that you have been an art advisor to Sean Combs, Gwyneth Paltrow and Tracy Anderson – what is the client relationship like in terms of making them aware of pieces, educating them about collections and ensuring that that it meets the requirements that they are looking for?

MB: I have hundreds of clients and they are all important to me. Every client gets a tailored approach with offerings that resonate to who they are and what moves them. That happens because I spend a really good amount of time getting to know my clients’ tastes and their objectives.

AM: Art Basel took place a few weeks back, what’s that time of year like for you and can you give us insight into how you navigate this show personally as well as when you’re doing it with/for your clients?

MB: That’s the busiest and most intense time of the year. It’s an insane amount of work because physically you have to go not only to Art Basel which can easily take 4 or 5 hours to see but to all the satellite fairs like NADA and Untitled which is where all the new talent gets to be shown. Clients come and walk around the aisles with me but the thing is that for the most part almost all of these galleries have circulated PDFs with all the images and the previews of what they will be showing so much of the good stuff has already been sold. That’s why an art advisor is so important for people who want to collect if they can’t dedicate themselves to building all these relationships with galleries.

AM: You curate art shows such as Greek Gotham in Mykonos a few years back with NY based artists such KAWS, Nir Hod, and Erik Parker, what do you look for when you are putting shows together like this?

MB: First I have an idea and then I let the idea marinate inside my head. Then I discuss it with the person who hired me to do the exhibition and then I go for the most talented artists I can approach who actually fit the idea or theme I had.

AM: How do you keep your pulse to the ground in terms of finding new artists and phenomenal pieces?

MB: By pounding the pavement! It’s easy to get complacent and more so now in a world that has gotten so digital but I still go to as many art galleries as I can every week, every art fair I can attend and artists studios when I can.

AM: Your firm Maria Brito LLC, includes your work as an advisor, but it also includes being an interior designer which seems like a natural progression with lifestyling as well as your fashion accessory design collaborations. Tell me about your firm and what your day-to-day is like.

MB: I actually don’t do interior design anymore because as a creative entrepreneur I know when to pivot - that business is good for the money but my mission in this life isn’t to place rugs in people’s homes. With accessories that was a very fun time but I did it for several years as an extension of my relationships with the artists and because there was nothing like it in the market. However, when my advisory practice grew and grew, and the headaches with factories and retailers also grew, I knew it was time to end that too. I still get called to consult with companies on product collaborations and I do that from time-to-time. Last year I launched two fine-porcelain collections with Showfields in collaboration with artists Cydne Coleby and Allison Zuckerman.

AM: Last year, NFTs became the conversation across all sectors of business. What does it mean to the art world and how are you navigating NFTs with artists you work with and clients that you curate/advise for?

MB: NFTs are a very important development in terms of digital ownership and because society is moving more and more toward a digital world, this movement found the perfect timing to flourish. Like everything that's new, right now it’s a lot of confusion, gray areas, speculation, like the wild west. My clients mostly collect art that is tangible, to live with in their homes or their offices, so while NFTs are a lot of fun, they will never replace physical art.

AM: Who are 3 artists that are currently on your radar that you’re looking at that we should be aware of?

MB: Cydne Coleby, Ryan Wilde and Cristina BanBan.

AM: Next month, your book, How Creativity Rules the World: The Art and Business of Turning Your Ideas into Gold drops. What was your motivation behind writing this book and what is it about?

There has never been a more crucial time than now to develop your creativity and your ability to innovate. Coming up with original ideas of value is today’s most precious skill.

MB: I wanted to debunk the myth that creativity is only for the few chosen ones or that it is genetic. Creativity is not about arts and crafts and cutouts or technical wizardry. Creativity is about fostering specific habits, making associations, and standing behind the ideas that come out of them. Whether you are an entrepreneur, an artist, or an employee, your creativity will help you turn the mundane into the extraordinary.

This is a book that helps leaders access their creative potential and profit from their ideas. It took me 13 years to be able to gather all the information that is here, and it’s a comprehensive, practical and actionable blueprint that will get you there even if you don’t think you can be creative and innovative.

I used every technique and everything that’s in this book to transition from a miserable corporate attorney to building an industry-leader seven-figure art advisory business and I have taught the same methods to people in companies as well as to hundreds of entrepreneurs, freelancers, managers, and artists through my online program Jumpstart.

I know these methods work and the time was right to bring them to a greater group of people through a book that is timely and timeless.

AM: Are there any projects that you’re working on that we should keep an eye out for that you’re working on?

MB: Writing a book, selling it at auction to a major publishing house and launching it is like having a full-time job on top of your full-time job. The book is the biggest project that I have worked on in a long time.

IG @mariabrito_ny

PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY | Maria Brito

Read the FEB ISSUE #75 of Athleisure Mag and see CREATIVITY RULES | Maria Brito in mag.

HIGHER ART & GOOD EATS WITH RON SILVER

We head to the studio office of Ron SIlver's restaurant, Bubby's in the Meat Packing District. Bubby's also located in Tribeca as well as 6 outposts in Japan and is known for its comfort foods. We found out about how he created one of the quintessential destinations for brunch with his passion for great food and keeping it simple. We also talked about how his interests and passions in CBD and THC that led him to create Azuca which compliments food as well as the love for creating art which you can see in his restaurants as well as his show in Mexico City.

ATHLEISURE MAG: So what was the moment that you realized that you wanted to be a chef?

RON SILVER: I would say that there were multiple moments where I realized that I wanted to be a chef. One of the things is that when I was a little kid, I realized that I loved to cook and part of that was because it was mischief – it was fire and knives. So, I take to mischief very well and then I would say another small thing was that my mother took my $5/a week allowance from me and I went to get a job washing dishes. That was $80/a week so that was another realization that was my spot. I washed dishes for a long time.

AM: So when did you wash dishes?

RS: When I was 13.

AM: Ok!

RS: And I washed dishes until I was 21 in and out.

AM: That was a long time to wash dishes.

RS: I liked washing dishes – I did other things in between. I was washing dishes in Alta Ski Resort and I wiped out and broke my rib, I was out for 6 weeks. So I decided during that time that I would be a chef. So I think that was when I really decided to go for it when I was 21.

AM: So what were all the places that you went to in terms of culinary school or restaurants that you worked for prior to coming up with Bubby’s?

RS: I worked for some hotels for awhile and then I moved to Atlanta because I lived in Salt Lake and there wasn’t any real good dining there. I moved to Atlanta and worked for some of the best restaurants in Atlanta and I was offered a scholarship to the Culinary Institute but I did a quick cocktail mathematics and realized that I couldn’t afford that scholarship and didn’t go to school. I moved to NY when I was 24/25 and just worked my way up and I opened Bubby’s when I was 28.

AM: What made you realize that you wanted to open this up and to create this kind of cuisine here?

RS: Well the style of cuisine in the 80s was really weird, nouvelle cuisine with small plates and small portions and I wanted a place that really had good home cooking and large portions on small plates. I really just wanted to cook the food that I wanted to eat.

AM: What’s the average day like for you, being at Bubby’s?

RS: I’ve been running Bubby’s for a long time, 28 years - so my average day at Bubby’s, I am sort of regimented about how I do what I do. I go to Tribeca and have a coffee and go around and talk to everybody. I go around and kind of see if things are looking good and then I come up to Highline and I do the same thing and then I come up here to my office and I’m a painter. So that’s what I want to do when I come up here, is paint. Once I know that everything is kind of locked down, I can paint. I am also in the cannabis business.

AM: We’re going to get that too as well. So you have the 2 restaurants here and the ones in Japan as well.

RS: Yes, 6!

AM: How do you decide where the next place will be for your restaurant and the community that it serves?

RS: Well I suppose that the world decides for me. I’m not a business person really. So the Japanese people called me 10 years ago and I was like, “there’s no way that I’m doing that” and then we were having lunch the next day and I was walking around the space about a week later. I don’t really make a plan.

AM: Do you think that you would create another concept that is outside of Bubby’s that’s something different?

RS: It’s a good question. I don’t have a lot of reason to do that, but at the same time, I do come up with a lot of ideas that are interesting sometimes so I think that the jury is still out on that.

AM: We were at the Specialty Food Show here in NYC and we saw Azuca. We know that you launched it last year. Can you tell us more about why you are in this space and what made you want to create this?

RS: I’ve been in cannabis space since I have been washing dishes really. So, I’ve smoked weed since I was a kid - like everyone in the kitchen does. I think what really inspired me to get into this business was that I felt that I really had something to offer it. Maybe 6 years ago, I discovered that there was a very large problem which is how cannabis edibles deliver. So I really set up to solve that problem in that regard. I was able to make really good progress with that. In a way, it sort of fell in my lap, but I did a ton of research.

AM: What did you initially launch and are there more launches for this year?

RS: So what we have is a technology really. Azuca is a cannabinoid edibles technology and what that means is that it allows edibles to be consumed in an understandable way which is helpful for people who want to take cannabis or CBD or also for people who want to make edibles. We’re very much in the business of helping people understand cannabis edibles.

AM: What are your plans for that looking at the rest of this year and going into next year?

RS: Well, we’re working with some of the biggest cannabis companies in the country and we’re just getting started with those guys. We are selling CBD, edibles – like our sugar Azuca packs which will be available online and in stores soon. We have THC edibles in Massachusetts with a partner up there and we are also talking to people and other countries about CBD stuff.

AM: You’re also a painter. How long have you been painting and what is it about that that draws you to that form of creativity?

RS: I’ve always been an artist and I started Bubby’s so that I could make art. I can’t really answer what draws me to it. I know that if I don’t do it, I get very crappy.

AM: How many paintings do you create a day?

RS: It depends. I am always working on something. At the moment, I’m doing it on paper which is a little quicker than oil paint. So then all these paper things will be mounted on fabric so that is going to be a big job. I can paint a bunch of things it’s just going to take forever to get them mounted.

AM: Will you ever or have you ever been in a gallery?

RS: I had a show in Mexico City in August.

AM: Wow how exciting! How many pieces were in that show and were you nervous?

RS: 40 pieces and yes it was my first show!

AM: Congratulations! What are 3 signature dishes that we should eat when we come to Bubby’s?

RS: Well the Fried Chicken and pancakes, that’s a thing to eat, we have really good Watermelon Lemonade – that’s a thing to drink and the biscuits! Well the burgers are great too!

AM: When you’re not painting and you’re not focused on Azuca and Bubby’s – what are 3 things that we could find you doing in terms of relaxing and getting your athleisure on?

RS: Smoking bong hits, reading and I have 4 kids.

AM: Do you have any philanthropic efforts that you are a part of that you would like to share?

RS: Bubby’s does a lot of philanthropy. We give stuff to people all the time and support a number of things like New York City's oldest men’s shelter - New York City Rescue Mission. Azuca will have a huge amount of social stuff to do because the cannabis business is very ripe for a lot of different opportunities for a lot of different people who deserve them and don’t have them. So we’re very focused on how we are going to sort of set our company up so that it is incorporating the social aspects of things that we need. Especially the War on Drugs that has been particularly hard on brown people and we’re very much focused on making sure that we’re staying aware of creating opportunities almost in an artificial way. We’re getting a lot of help thinking about that and it’s the biggest deal. In setting up our company it’s run by women and my CEO as well as everyone in the company really has a deep moral compass. I think the jury is out on how we are going to be helpful. Not just philanthropically but also responsible and opportunity creating way. Philanthropy is great, but I think it’s a lot of challenge to create actual opportunity and we’re very much so focused on that.

AM: What legacy do you look to leave behind with all of the fingerprints that you have put down on all these areas?

RS: That is a tough question. I hope that I leave something behind that my kids are part of and something that continues to do good work after I’m gone and maybe I hope to leave behind a bunch of beautiful stuff.

IG @Bubbys

You can hear Ron Silver right now on our show, Athleisure Kitchen which is a part of Athleisure Studio, our multi-media podcast network! Make sure to subscribe to find out when the episode drops. You can hear it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeart Radio, Google Podcasts and wherever you enjoy listening to your favorite podcast.

Read the September Issue of Athleisure Mag and see Higher Art & Good Eats with Ron Silver in mag.

GRAPHIC HISTORY

All eyes are on the recent collaboration of 1800 Tequila X PUMA X Sam Rodriguez Sneaker that continues the heritage of the PUMA Clyde sneaker by the iconic sports brand. We chatted with artist, Sam Rodriguez about being approached for this project and how he blended his graffiti style along with Mayan and Aztec aesthetic to put his twist on this shoe.

ATHLEISURE MAG: Tell us about your background as we know you're a self-taught graphic artist.

SAMUEL RODRIGUEZ: My name is Samuel Rodriguez and I am an artist based out of San José, California. My work has shown in public spaces, museums, companies, galleries, the internet, and editorial media. For a number of years, I was self-taught through graffiti, until I later decided to expand my studies through the pursuit of a Bachelor in Fine Arts at California
College of the Arts. I have since blended what I absorbed in both experiences to create my style and figure out the next steps in my career

AM: How have Mayan and Aztec art influences been important to the designs that were incorporated into your sneaker?

SR: The Mayan and Aztec language are indigenous to Mexico so I thought it would be a good starting place. However, I also did not want to simply repeat what they did as it would have been out of context to this time period and project. Using this influence as a starting point, I thought about how they were communicating messages back then and asked myself how that could look through my perspective today. That’s why you see modern typography, graffiti,
and hip-hop style headwear weaving throughout the illustration. What I like about this project is that it pairs together indigenous, home-grown ingredients with contemporary ones.

AM: Were you a fan of the Clyde sneaker prior to you working with PUMA?

SR: Yes, very much so, this sneaker was everything to me during my formative years. I got my first pair at age 12, the same year when I started writing graffiti. A lot of people that I looked up to would sport these. I would see Lowriders, Breakdancers, Cholos, and other Graffiti guys wearing them. Although these sneakers first became popular because of NY hip-hop, here at home we mixed them with our local flavors. For example, I would sport them with creased
jeans, Ben Davis zip ups, Derby Jacket and a flipped up Cap. There were all sorts of West Coast variations, I remember some people wearing them with Cascade shirts, hairnets and all kinds of
local styles. It’s a shoe that reminds me of good times when I was introduced to the streets, but more importantly when I began my lifelong passion in art.

AM: How did the 1800 Tequila X PUMA X Sam Rodriguez collab/partnership come about?

SR: I was initially approached by Hypebeast. I was surprised and excited when they shared the details of the project. Designing a Puma Clyde was definitely an item on the bucket list.

AM: Sneakers are definitely important in our wardrobe, but what statement besides style do you feel that your work creates in terms of creating social/historical/cultural conversations?

SR: Style is something that a person grows into. It is your personal voice, but then you ask yourself, so what? From this comes the content of the work. I use my style and life experience
to speak on social/historical/cultural conversations. Art is more interesting when it is relevant
and responds to the current time period. Furthermore, it serves as a mark in history.

Read more from the May Issue and Graphic History in mag.