It was that time of year again, time for what had become an annual trek to Jane Seymour’s art expo at the Javits Center in New York. As always I had made plans to go with a group of friends and this year I was looking forward to it more than ever. There was such a large group of us this year that we decided to stay at a timeshare in Queens, being assured that the trip into NYC each day wouldn’t be more than about 20 minutes. Twenty minutes by ‘cab’ that is- NOT NY subway; a big difference we learned when you only have 3 days to be together.

Our group of nine consisted of myself, Renea, Michelle and her mom, two friends from Germany, Marga and Romy, a friend from Belgium, Julie, and Pam and Dianne, both from California. Pam had been the founder of our DQ Times Magazine and we had known each other since I was was first introduced to the net. And Dianne, who had worked with us on the magazine, I had known nearly as long. We hadn’t seen each other in some years though and some of the others I hadn’t even met yet so my excitement was high from the beginning. Would we all like each other?  I hoped so, 9 women in an apartment that barely fit 8 would be a challenge as it was- but if they didn’t even get along?? No worries on that part. The minute we all met, it was instant connection. The “open heart club’ as we dubbed ourselves was ready to take on New York.

Romy and Renea on the NY MTA

Our first sightseeing day, Friday we had planned to try to fit in as much as possible of the typical tourist attractions we had either missed in previous years (those of us who had been together) or never seen at all. Bright and early, nine women met the challenge of showering, dressing and ‘primping’ in 2 bathrooms. It was like living in a ‘dorm’ an international ‘dorm’  wonderful and chaotic. Our first stop after a quick breakfast was Battery Park where we would catch the ferry to take us to Liberty Island. Our plan was to take subways as much as possible. Note to self ‘ saving money is good, saving time is better. ‘ While I’m used to Boston subways that are clearly laid out, I was not used to NY subways. It seemed to take forever to get to our destination as we wearily changed from the N train to the R train to…. Without Dianne, our human GPS, I am fairly certain, we would all still be somewhere  in the NY subway system like poor Boston “Charlie and the MTA” Luckily, we did have Dianne with us and we did make it to Battery Park in time to catch the ferry.

Although rain had been predicted, the day was bright and sunny and afforded us an opportunity to get some wonderful pictures of the famous ‘Statue of Liberty’ from the top of the ferry. All my life I had seen pictures of the statue on postcards, in movies etc.  but never in person. It truly does take your breath away. Our guide asked us to imagine what it must have been like as a refugee to see that statue for the first time- to know what it represented. Suddenly, I understood better the meaning of the words “Give me your tired masses” What a welcoming beacon that must have been. Those people were welcomed to America by “lady liberty’ herself, like a mother opening her arms to her children who have travelled so far to see her- You’re finally here. You’re safe now. It was a moving experience for all of us I think.

 

 

 

We toured Liberty Island which houses the statue itself and then Ellis Island, first stop for over 12 million immigrants who came to America. This last would have been fascinating to explore as it had several floors and a museum but, the day was so sunny and inviting we opted to just tour the ground floor so that we could ‘fit everything in”. Some of our group had plans to meet up with others for the day so there was little time to experience Ellis Island the way I’m sure it is meant to be.

 

Back together again that night we met up with dear friends of ours (although none of us had actually ever met in person), a couple from Switzerland, Theres and Otto. The hotel they were staying at which was near to everything (sigh) arranged for our entire group to have dinner at a place called ‘O Reilley’s nearby. The food there was excellent and though you were only able to converse with those in your vicinity at the table, we had a wonderful time. I’m sure those seated at the tables around us thought it was a UN delegation of some sort!

After dinner, while some had had enough fun for the day, a group of us decided to pay a visit to the famous or should I say infamous bar in the film “Coyote Ugly”. I was the only one who had not seen this movie but after extracting a promise from our ‘leader’ Dianne that the trip would involve ice-cream- agreed to go along. Coyote Ugly is – interesting, to say the least. It was crowded as any bar but it was the um “unique’ way it was decorated that struck us the most. Ironically though we all SAW the same thing, only Romy realized what we were actually seeing hanging from the top of the bar- a row of ‘bras’. I took pictures of the others (I have a reputation to maintain- or did anyway!) in this creative setting and completely sober we headed back on the subway- mission completed, off to find my promised ice-cream. Now THAT was the way to end the day!

Next day, Saturday was the day of the art show at the Javits. Our plan was to head out early for Central Park, meet Sofia (from Portugal and another member of our international delegation which was growing as time went on) and her mother for lunch then head to the expo. While we didn’t connect with Sofia before the show , Renea, Julie and I did manage to meet with Patricia Raskin who had come in for the day from Rhode Island to finally meet Jane. Patricia has several radio programs (2 on the net and one on… in Rhode island) and although she had interviewed Jane 4 times had never actually  met her in person; today would remedy that. We met at a small restaurant/deli  called ‘Burgers and Cupcakes” near the Javits. It was fun being able to introduce my friends to Patricia whom they had only known to that point as “the woman who interviews Jane”. Patricia is warm and down to earth and fascinating to talk to and soon we were all chatting away. She even gave me copies of her last 2 interviews with Jane for my website and to distribute which I gratefully accepted. That’s the sort of thoughtful person she is.

We made it to the Javits and after being joined there by Michelle and her mom and Romy, the group of us went in search of Jane’s booth. Pam and Dianne would meet us there later. At once I noticed the difference between this year and last. First of all, unlike last year where the organizers had blocked off the artist trying to exhibit opposite Jane, this year they had gone back to the original format, which sadly afforded the unfortunate exhibitor a wonderful view of the back of Jane’s visitors the entire weekend. I did feel bad especially learning that the artist whose art was on display opposite Jane was in his 80s and blind.

Jane's booth was a madhouse due to the fact in part that Kay Jewelry representatives were there with her collection. People were crowded around that part of the booth so densely you could barely get near. At one point I walked up to the display to view a necklace Romy was considering buying to have one of the representatives exclaim over the necklace I was wearing. They had never seen “that’ particular Open Heart necklace before. I explained, it was a prototype, a gift from Jane and Susan and they seemed impressed that I had an “original” Open Heart.

Patricia introduced herself to Jane and presented her with a copy of a newspaper article from a local Rhode Island paper in which Patricia had been quoted as saying that Jane, was her favorite repeat guest on her program. Jane smiled, obviously flattered and thanked her then proceeded to accompany her to the Kay section where Patricia hoped to purchase an “open heart’ for herself. With Jane’s assistance, Patricia chose a beautiful diamond ring and the two parted with a photo and a promise that Jane’s next interview with Patricia would be about her art, which Patricia had finally seen for the first time and been quite impressed by.

 

Jane I noticed as she moved gracefully between art patrons and jewelry customers was looking even younger than usual, hair down, wearing a self desgned "Open Heart" T shirt which we later learned could be ordered, albeit without the crystals that adorned Jane's own shirt. She explained that the decision had been to let each person add their own adornment as there was always a chance the studding would come off in the wash. To this point, I had not actually even said hello to Jane formally. She knew I was there and we acknowledged each other but there was simply no time for our usual ‘chat’ at the show this year. My mission this year was really more about making sure my friends who had come so far got a chance to meet her. Romy and Julie finally got their chance- and I was thrilled at Jane's reaction to Romy’s own artwork- a gift for Jane. Jane initially asked if it had been done by computer, then reacted with surprise and delight to learn that it was Romy’s own design. Romy then presented her with some cards from those in the DQ Times forum who had not been able to attend the show but had wanted to express their appreciation for Jane. I had letters that went along with these, “Open Heart’ letters but had unfortunately left them at the house  but would bring them the next day. Jane was touched by the cards and also by some drawings which Marga presented to her done by another of the forum members, Sarah. The drawings were of Jane herself and once again Jane marveled at the talent involved and seemed moved by the gift.

 

Theres and Otto finally joined us. They had we learned been there since early that morning and had seen Jane painting a mural with Wyland and the children- something we had missed out on that had been planned as a special event for families. I had assumed that this would be a private event and since among the 9 of us we couldn’t produce one child, we had decided to come in the afternoon. Apparently it had been open to the public and had been great fun to watch. More or our ‘international delegation’ arrived- 3 girls from Germany, Daniella, Nadine and Claudia and I had to laugh at Jane’s expression of surprise. At one point as each would take a turn getting their photo with Jane, I took to introducing them (although some had met her before, Jane just can’t remember all the names and faces) as Romy from Germany and Julie from Belgium etc. Jane just laughed in amazement at how far they had all come and I jokingly announced that I had brought half of Europe with me this year! I was reminded of the scene in Devil Wore Prada in which Anne Hathaway and her coworker Emily are whispering in Meryl Streep’s ear who she is about to meet and where they are from as they are standing in the receiving line!

 

Pam and Dianne finally arrived but were unable to actually get to Jane because of the crowd and the friends that surrounded them for almost an hour. Jane had been a guest on Martha Stewart and both Pam and Dianne had had tickets to the show that day so Jane immediately asked how they had enjoyed the show, commenting how she had pointed Pam out to Martha as “her biggest fan” Pam runs a myspace for Martha Stewart (unofficial) but immediately informed Jane that she had come to see “her’ at the show not just to see Martha and had actually been rather disappointed that they had been seated so far from Jane herself. Jane commented how they couldn’t have seated them further away from her if they tried, to which Pam replied dryly, “And I think they DID try”. They both laughed at that and it was time for the required “photo with Jane”  Cameras immediately went up to catch the moment causing Jane to comment to Pam that it looked like they were about to start a riot. I wondered given the number of people in the booth if anyone would have even noticed at that point!

I did get to speak to Jane for a moment and informed her that we had found the perfect new role for her. Her eyebrows raised, she inquired curiously what that might be? I informed her, we had decided she should be the next “Desperate Housewife” as we had learned one of the show’s main stars was leaving. Jane’s rather self depreciating reaction “They would never want me” was met with denials by all around. “Well I said, with a grin, we MIGHT be able to change that”. She looked at me, considered for a moment then smiled. She KNEW what her fans were capable of, she had seen it in the past both with Dr. Quinn, Dancing with the Stars and most recently “Dear Prudence”. Who was she to doubt what  might happen?

After the show on Saturday most of us met for dinner (Michelle and her mom had gotten last minute tickets to Mary Poppins) in a pizza restaurant called Lombardi’s famed for the best pizza in New York. Unfortunately with that many, we needed several tables so everyone broke into groups. The wait was quite long – the pizza very fresh, but my heart still belongs to Bertucci’s!

Then it was on to shopping on 5th avenue (where we met up with Sofia and her mom by accident) and later -dessert at “Juniors” famous for their cheesecake. Now “that’ was more like it!  The cheesecake really was as amazing as we had heard making it more understandable that before ordering our waiter had assured us if we “didn’t like the cheesecake he personally would pay for it!"  After seeing a group at another table celebrating a birthday a few of us decided we needed to invent one of our own. Pam was our ‘honoree- or ‘victim” depending on how you view it and it was great fun to see the look of surprise on her face when the waiters approached our table to sing happy birthday to her as she knew we all knew full well her birthday was actually in July! She was very goodnatured about it  though and went along with the joke and we all referred to it from then on as the night of “Pam’s birthday”. 

Sunday, was bittersweet as it began with Pam and Dianne bidding us goodbye early in the morning as they had to catch their morning flight to California. The rest of us slept in and enjoyed some rare time together, talking and marveling over some photos that Marga had brought with her of herself in earlier years and her family. It’s times like these I enjoy the most- time to just ’be'’. All too soon though it was time to head back to the Javits. This time we opted for cabs, we had had enough of the subway and anyway we had lost our human GPS!

Again, Jane’s booth was a a frenzy but not quite as frantic as the day before. I was glad for that because today Marga had brought her scrapbook with her, a very special gift for Jane which she had worked on for weeks. She had shown it to me at the house and I had been incredibly impressed. I wanted there to be time for Jane to truly appreciate all the work that had gone into it. Finally the right moment approached and Marga offered Jane her “gift of the heart” Jane took the book exclaiming immediately in delight that it was ‘this sort of thing that meant so much to her” As she turned each page the look of amazement on her face grew as did Marga’s height which by then was approaching 8 feet tall I suspected. She had put so much work into the book and it was clear Jane truly appreciated it. Each page was an artistic masterpiece of computer designed wallpaper especially chosen to highlight one of Jane's dances along with a DVD of the specific dance. There were also pages on Dear Prudence and on Jane’s Open Heart Design, each in carefully chosen colors and backgrounds, It was truly a work of art and at the end Jane herself applauded Marga for her gift and gave her a spontaneous hug. It was a proverbial “Kodak moment” if ever there was one!

 

Though I was familiar with most of Jane's art I had a better chance today to examine one her most incredible works to date (in my opinion) which I had noticed immediately yesterday but been unable to see close up. It was a sculpture of the Open Heart symbol completely done in bronze but with amazing detail and with a texture that more closely resembled marble. Everyone in the booth had at one point marveled at it and when I announced to Susan Luks (Jane's art director) that I thought it belonged in a museum, she assured me that one day it likely would be.

Another highlight of the day came when Susan Rizzo Vincent and her group arrived. I had met Susan the year before but had no idea if she would remember me. To my surprise she enveloped me in a warm hug as I went over to ‘reintroduce myself” Susan is one of the warmest most loving women I’ve ever met. She  is the founder of an amazing organization called The Andrea Rizzo Foundation; which she  created in  honor of her daughter Andrea, her only child,  a promising young dancer who had been killed at the age of 24 by a drunk driver. It had been Andrea’s dream to one day be a dance therapist and work with children, specifically cancer patients and special needs children; as she herself had survived cancer as a child. Though Andrea’s life had been senselessly cut short, her mother Susan, had with the help of loving friends, found a way to make Andrea’s dream a reality.

 Her connection to Jane had come about during the time of Jane’s participation in Dancing with the Stars. The show’s  producers learning of Susan’s organization had offered a gift of 4 VIP passes to the show to use for a future fundraiser. Susan however had another use for the tickets, to make a young girl’s dream come true. 16 year old Julie Reed, a cancer patient at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center had been introduced to ‘Drea’s Dream, the pediatric dance/movement therapy program established by the foundation . Foundation members knew how the therapy had helped Julie and wanted to honor her amazing spirit by gifting her with a trip for her and her mother to the show. All that remained was to come up with funds for the trip itself. With the help of foundation supporters and The Farmer’s Daughter Hotel, the needed funding was obtained. Jane, who had been contacted by Susan in an effort to gain her support  for the program (as an artist/dancer herself) was so moved by the story she generously donated one of her “Healing Heart” paintings for an auction to help raise the needed funds. The group met their goal and Julie was a guest of honor at the 2007 Dancing with the Stars finale.

Now Susan had returned with her sister and some friends to reunite with Jane Seymour who, had opened her own heart to the young cancer patients helped through the foundation. From a distance I could see the warmth in Jane’s eyes as Susan and her group approached and presented Jane with a small gift. It was clear that Jane had a great deal of respect and affection for this woman and talking to Susan herself later, it was equally clear the feeling was reciprocated. This I thought, was what Jane’s open heart jewelry symbolized- people opening to each other- in time of need, reaching out, connecting through a common love of humanity.

My favorite 'light' moment of the day showed the 'fun' side of Jane. As usual cameras were snapping away- TMZ has nothing on Jane Seymour fans- and Jane in her usual gracious way was smiling and posing when suddenly she abruptly left to go to the back room. Had she simply had enough of the amateur papparazzi? Certainly I couldn't blame her. To her delight it was something entirely different. Armed with her "own" video camera Jane had decided to turn the tables on us and was now videotaping US. She encouraged us to wave and walked proudly up and down the group showing us that 'two' could play at this game! It was all in good fun and later I even got her to pose again with her camcorder
for another picture!

I had never actually witnessed Jane painting in person before nor I knew had many others, so I especially having missed seeing her painting the day before with the children, I was overjoyed at an impromptu art demonstration a bit later. It was fascinating to see her ponder what she would do and then just start painting. Each design was done slightly different in the same black paint and the room suddenly hushed as Jane set to work. At one point she seemed to notice the silence and assured us "It's alright to talk" At that, everyone laughed and things returned to the normal 'din' as one after another new pieces joined others behind her.

The afternoon passed quickly after this as Jane would only be there 2 hours that day. I managed to get to Jane to give her the Open Heart letters from our forum members and she took them gratefully promising to read each of them on the plane. Then it was time to go. Final goodbyes were said to Jane and to some of those who would not be accompanying us on our final afternoon in NY and promises exchanged to stay in touch and find a way to get together again.

Although the expo this year had not yielded the usual time to just chat with Jane, as in previous years, it had been special in its own way and I truly enjoyed it. It had become a meeting place for friends all over the world united by their common appreciation of Jane and her art. I had reconnected with old friends and met new ones and somehow at the end, Jane’s “Open Heart’ concept had become even more meaningful to me within the context of it all.