K.Co's Favorite Finds: 2021

Every place that we visit is special and unique. And, as we wind down the year and get ready to focus on a new one, we return with another installment of "K.Co's Favorite Finds," highlighting some of the top local finds that we have encountered in 2021!

If something mentioned on this list seems like it could be your favorite new favorite find too, we encourage you to support it from wherever you are! Follow them on social media, Share their info with others, and place online or mail orders when you can.

All are independently owned, local spots that we experienced in-person in 2021.

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Local Food:

Amazing Muffolettas and desserts housed in a warm, convivial restaurant and Italian grocery.

Anthony's Italian Deli, Baton Rouge, LA.

The best chicken sandwich we have ever had. (And we have had a lot of chicken sandwiches.)

Stanley's Famous Pit BBQ, Tyler, TX.

Delicious kolaches and other baked goods served in a space that looks like your favorite grandparent's parlor.

Gerik's Ole Czech Bakery, West, TX.

A collard green melt that will blow your socks off.

Turkey and the Wolf, New Orleans, LA.

The best Cajun food ever, at a roadside market in rural Acadiana. Get a side of Crawfish Etouffee, even if you've ordered too much of other stuff and don't think you need it. You do need it, and it'll still be good two days later when you've transported it over state lines and into your home.

Poche's Restaurant & Market, Breaux Bridge, LA.

Puffy tacos at the end of a drive through a vibrant neighborhood filled with beautiful, colorful murals and mosaics, including the World's Largest Virgin Mary mosaic.

Ray's Drive Inn - Home of the Original Puffy Taco, San Antonio, TX

When it's as hot as Hades and you've been on the road for a long, long time, a cute little ice cream and soda shop might be a mirage. Unless you're in downtown Lampasas, in which case it is blessedly real, thank goodness. It's also a DIY art studio, if you have a little more time to spend.

The Cherry on Top, Lampasas, TX

Shopping:

A well-curated, French-influenced selection of books, and a coffee bar in the back serving New Orleans' French Truck coffee.

Beausoleil Books, Lafayette, LA.

Curated with the best gift items, jewelry and home decor in a wide range of prices, this fun shop definitely inspires a "one for you, one for me" holiday shopping mindset. Grab a basket, you'll fill it up quickly.

Plenty Mercantile, Oklahoma City, OK.

This feminine, friendly boutique is located in quirky downtown Gainesville, and offers women's clothing, design books, decorative art prints and more.

Bungalow 123, Gainesville, TX.

Unique yet classic clothing for men and women, along with hats, scarves, self care items and candles in a warm, modern shopping environment.

Genterie Supply Co., Lafayette, LA.

Everything in Good Goods is unique, hand selected and supportive of independent artists and artisans. I especially loved its selection of jewelry and decorative ephemera.

Good Goods, San Antonio, TX

Culture:

Wall-to-wall superheros: Literally! This museum is a wonderland of nostalgia and collectibles encompassing Marvel, Star Wars, the Simpsons and other entertainment and toy memorabilia, both popular and obscure.

Toy and Action Figure Museum, Paul's Valley, OK

Fossils, dinosaurs and paleontology focusing on artifacts found in Texas.

Texas Through Time Fossil Museum, Hillsboro, TX

The Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge and Medicine Park, near Lawton, Oklahoma was probably my very favorite find of the year. Indescribably beautiful, just a few hours from Dallas, free to experience and truly unique, this beautiful area is one that I am confident to recommend to almost anyone.

Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, Lawton, OK

100 W Corsicana has run a world-class international art and writing residency for a few years now, and it recently expanded its mission, added historic sites and other locations to its campus and added a well-curated storefront featuring art, books and gifts by visiting creatives. It also hosts events and regular studio tours to connect, learn and see works in progress.

100 W Corsicana, Corsicana, TX

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It was hard to narrow down this list, which is good because it means we experienced a lot of amazing things! Can't wait to see what awaits us to share in our local, small town and off-the-path travels in 2022.

Art Stop: Kermit Oliver: New Narratives, New Beginnings, Waco

Art Center Waco

Last Friday, we made a quick trip up to Waco to see the Kermit Oliver exhibition at Art Center Waco. It was our sixth weekend in a row on the road, with one more to go until we wrap up our 2021 travels this weekend. A marathon! It would have been nice to take a break in this busy season, but we really wanted to see this show. And, originally scheduled through 12/17, it was just extended through 1/22/22, so even if you didn't get a break in the holiday madness, there is still time to see it (and you should.)

Kermit Oliver: New Narratives, New Beginnings, Art Center Waco

Kermit Oliver Hermes scarves exhibited at Art Center Waco.

Kermit Oliver is an iconic Texas artist local to Waco, and one whose work you may have seen before learning about him - especially if you're an Hermès fan. He was the first American artist invited to collaborate on the brand's luxury scarves, designing nature and wildlife scenes, Native American iconography and other elements of Texas and the American west. My favorite Kermit Oliver Texas Wildlife design features a big turkey - not something I would have thought to want until I saw it on Saturday!

Oliver was also the first Black artist to receive major gallery representation in Houston, in 1970. He moved from Houston to Waco seeking a quieter life, still creating exemplary work while working for the Postal Service. A 2012 Texas Monthly profile features a rare interview with Oliver, and it is fascinating to read his story through more of his own words.

I had read the Texas Monthly article a few years ago, so when I learned that the somewhat reclusive Oliver would be exhibiting in his hometown, I knew I had to go or regret the missed opportunity.

The exhibit itself was large and varied, with Oliver's common themes of nature, religious iconography, myths and portraiture providing a unifying thread. And, the paintings contain allegories, so every piece tells its own story; deeper than its beautifully-rendered surface.

"Young Christ with Saint Christopher," by Kermit Oliver at Art Center Waco

I identified two favorite pieces in the show. Which one I liked best changes as I revisit them in my mind. The first one is "Young Christ with Saint Christopher," depicting a child and a black goat, which I like for the juxtaposition of the fanciful flowers and bells with the gravitas in the child's expression.

The second is "Headboard: Khristopher with Chas' Maize."

The latter was the piece that captured Hermès attention, and won't be sold. The painting is gorgeous, as is all of Oliver's work, and the frame makes it truly special. Oliver carves his own frames, and this one, like others in the exhibition, both perfectly sets off the art and stands alone as a statement piece. Apparently, an Hermès president, by way of a Neiman Marcus executive, agreed.

"Headboard: Khristopher with Chas' Maize," by Kermit Oliver at Art Center Waco.

"Headboard: Khristopher with Chas' Maize," Details.

In interviews, Oliver has spoken to letting the viewer interpret these paintings for themselves, but what's there, visible and implied, contains his multitudes as well. This is especially true for a piece that is not in this exhibition, but installed in Houston's Trinity Episcopal Church, in which the face of Christ is painted as the face of Oliver's son, who was executed on death row. The piece, while controversial to some, serves as a meditation on redemption, forgiveness and unconditional love, evoking thoughts and emotions that are hard for anyone to articulate.

Many pieces in "New Narratives, New Beginnings" inspire the same response, simultaneously universal and personal. To a great extent, you just have to feel these pieces, reading the imagery for yourself. And, while the pieces definitely inspire introspection, Kermit Oliver, so famously a man of few words and prolific images, and many words about him (including mine here) tells us who he is in the pieces he creates. Through Oliver's work, we are are better known and so is he.

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More information:

Kermit Oliver: New Narratives, New Beginnings is on view through Jan. 22, 2022 at Art Center Waco, 701 S. Eighth Street, Waco. Admission is free.

Trinity Episcopal Church hosts tours of its historic church and contemporary art collection, including Oliver's The Resurrection. 1015 Holman St., Houston.

Houston arts writer and curator Susie Khalil will publish a book on Kermit Oliver's life and work through Texas A&M University Press. The book is co-produced with Hooks-Epstein Galleries, who represent the artist.

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About K.Co: We share inspiration, creative connections and unique experiences found in local art, culture and communities and off-the-path travel in Texas and elsewhere.

Scene from the Road: Wichita Mountains Bison - Lawton, OK

Bison in the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge near Lawton, Oklahoma

Last weekend we went to Oklahoma for the night. Our first trip out of state in two years! Texas is so big that we have kept busy with day trips and the occasional overnight to see family. This is partially because of the pandemic and partially because we are the owners of some "pandemic pets" and it has been hard to leave them. (Hard on us mostly. They're resilient.)

While this was a short trip, we packed a lot into it, beginning the journey with a drive through the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge near Lawton-Fort Sill, Oklahoma. Just a few hours north of us, our route took us through Denton, Decatur and Wichita Falls before we left Texas and hit some amazing scenery.

In researching for this trip, I had seen photos of bison and really hoped to see some for myself. My wish came true when we happened upon this small, grazing herd by the side of the main road through the refuge. Not being idiots, we stayed a safe distance and photographed them from the car. James didn't bring his telephoto lens, so we didn't get great close-ups, but we didn't get attacked, either. If you look closely, you can see that the bison have a pumpkin porch on the structure to the right. I found this really funny, as though some bison's been reading the lifestyle blogs. It's fall, ya'll bisons! Anyway, they were indeed majestic and it's wonderful that they have a safe and protected place to live that is so close to us. Maybe we will go back to see how they decorate for spring.

After we checked in to the hotel, I pulled out my sketchbook and tried to capture the scene. This might be a bigger piece later.

Thanks for reading and happy art adventures,

SK