Paintings and Pairings

Art appraiser, advisor and curator Lily Yu is combining her love of art with her appreciation of food and wine for “Paintings and Pairings,” a series of dinners featuring the works of a local artist combined with a downtown chef’s cuisine and a Monterey County winery. Yu said she plans to hold the dinners at different locations around the Peninsula.

The inaugural event will be a collaboration between paint- er Paul Seftel and chef/owner Soerke Peters at the Village Corner, located at Dolores and Sixth, Sept. 5 from 5 to 9 p.m.

The evening will begin with wine and light bites during an opening reception for “Arts Techtonic, Forces of Nature by Paul Seftel,” including works on canvas and paper, and four outdoor wall reliefs. Born in London, Seftel is an abstract mixed-media painter, using metal, minerals and raw pigment in his works. While his studio is at the American Tin Can- nery in Paci c Grove, his work will hang at the Village Corner through Dec. 2.

“I chose Chef Soerke and Paul Seftel because they are both innovators in their realms who are inspired by nature and Earth,” she said. “Chef Soerke’s emphasis on food is on freshness, local ingredients and seasonality. Artist Seftel uses all organic materials to make his homemade paint, such as natural minerals, pure pigments and pulverized stone.”

While he is keeping the menu a secret, Peters said, “It will be abstract cooking, if there is such a thing.”

“As chefs, we love to be challenged with new ideas, con- cepts and opportunities,” he said, and Yu’s mission for Paintings and Pairings “is very interesting and challenging, indeed.”

“Thinking of Paul’s interpretations from canvas to sculp- tures and putting it on a plate is no easy task,” Peters said. “Getting to know the artist personally does help inspire me to use similar techniques in the art of plating.”

Each of the four courses will be paired with wines from Albatross Ridge.

Yu said that throughout the dinner, which is set to start at 7 p.m., Seftel will talk about his work and how he creates it, and Peters will discuss what inspires him in the kitchen. Each guest will receive a copy of the evening’s menu signed by the Seftel and Peters to mark the occasion.

“I am not sure what will happen at the dinner. This pairing of artist and chef has never been done before,” she said. “This is for people hungry for adventure and who have appetites for fresh ideas and organic inspiration.”

Each seat costs $95, including tax and tip.

View pdf of the article here