leanor Foa Dienstag
Photojournalist
As a photojournalist and journalist, my work regularly appears in Woman Around Town as well as other online publications, including NYCitywoman and The Transition Network New York News. All the stories, below, were reported, written and photographed by me, with the exception of Zuccotti Park, which was written by another journalist around my photographs.
Vincent Chirico’s Vai—West Side Newcomer is Hot
02/06/2012
The blocks between 79th and 81st Streets on Amsterdam are chockablock with restaurants but few good ones. A newcomer, Vai, whose focus is contemporary Mediterranean...
The Renaissance Portrait: From Donatello to Bellini
12/23/2011
It’s hard to over praise this landmark exhibition. It’s so filled with ravishingly beautiful portraits – paintings, drawings, sculpture, manuscript illumination and medallions – by...
Morso—Reasonably Priced Food with a Pedigree
12/20/2011
Good news for Upper East Siders: Morso, a new, reasonably priced top-drawer contemporary Italian restaurant with Mediterranean ingredients recently opened, tucked away on the ground...
Welcome to the Neighborhood—Not!
12/08/2011
Is there anything more dangerous – or funnier – than self-righteous extremists? Yes, those who live in a gated community, as Alan Ayckbourn deftly demonstrates...
From Rainbows to Sunsets—Jet-Away to La Romana, Dominican Republic
12/03/2011
Two-week vacations are so-o-o-o 20th Century. Who has the time? Or the money? Or the patience? Today, it’s “getaways,” especially winter “getaways,” because they give...
The “New Cuisine” of Mexico’s Colonial CitiesPart III – Chefs Ada Valencia and Monica Solis
11/14/2011
Forget everything you think you know about Mexican food—it’s heavy, it’s fried, it’s fattening—and come with me to discover new, sophisticated Mexican cuisine in the...
Diego Rivera Murals for The Museum of Modern Art
11/10/2011
What could be more timely in New York City, as the Occupy Wall Street movement grows and expands, than an exhibition of the murals of...
The “New Cuisine” of Mexico’s Colonial Cities: Part II – San Miguel de Allende and Guanajuato
11/07/2011
Forget everything you think you know about Mexican food – it’s heavy, it’s fried, it’s fattening – and come with me to discover new, sophisticated...
The “New Cuisine” of Mexico:Part I – Mexico City and Queretero
10/31/2011
Forget everything you think you know about Mexican food – it’s heavy, it’s fried, it’s fattening – and come with me to discover new, sophisticated...
Stieglitz Reigns at the Met
10/14/2011
Didn’t we just see Stieglitz at the Met a year ago? Well, yes and no. We saw Stieglitz, Steichen, Strand, three masters of early 20th...
White and Church—Chef Matteo Boglione’s Masterpiece
09/23/2011
Owner/Chef Matteo Boglione, from Florence, is the real deal: a passionate chef turning out amazing northern Italian food — refined and beautifully presented small plates...
William deKooning at MoMA
09/16/2011
William deKooning and women belong together like ice cream and hot fudge sauce. In fact, deKooning came to the U.S. in 1926 (stowing away on...
The Select (The Sun Also Rises)
09/14/2011
Last year, Elevator Repair Service (ERS) stunned New York theatergoers with a six-hour production, Gatz, a word-for-word dramatization of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby....
Gay Pride Parade—A Joyous Celebration
06/27/2011
Sunday’s Gay Pride Parade down Fifth Avenue, following on the heels of New York State’s historic vote, late Friday night, to legalize same-sex marriage......
New York’s “Garden in the Sky” Grows
06/21/2011
On opening day of The High Line, Section 2, two women, in particular, were beaming: New York City Planning Director and Chair of the City Planning Commission,......
Intimations of Spring
03/23/2011
On the first warm day of Spring, with everyone out on the streets and dulcet breezes blowing, it was pure pleasure to stroll past the Mayor’s hyacinths......
New York in Black and White
01/29/2011
For a short time after a fresh snowfall, New York is a masterpiece in black and white. Wrought iron fences hold onto the fluffy white stuff creating beautiful......
Lennon Fans Enjoy a Rockin’ Birthday Celebration
10/12/2010
Beatles’ historian, Martin Lewis, a self-confessed “Johnaholic,” hosted a joyful, down-home, rocking birthday concert to celebrate John Lennon’s......
El Barrio—Lively Scene in August
08/16/2010
El Barrio on a Saturday in August is a riot of color. Salsa music — recorded and live — is playing on almost every corner. People congregate outside,......
People Watching New York Style
08/02/2010
It is the wonderful mix of people — their faces, colors, outfits, attitude, zaniness — that makes New York so special. Walking a New York Street is......
Matisse: Radical Invention, 1913-1917
07/20/2010
You don’t have to be an art historian or curator to love this exhibition, although it helps. For passionate Matisse lovers who couldn’t care less about......
Le Périgord—Classic French Food Bliss
07/14/2010
Twenty years ago my parents, with refined European palettes of the first order, hosted their 50th wedding anniversary dinner in the private party room......
The Getty: A Beacon Of Culture, L.A.-Style
06/27/2010
You don’t have to love art to love The Getty Center in Los Angeles. Although it helps. Yes, it’s a museum with some seriously beautiful paintings and......
Riverside Park—Photographer’s Paradise
06/20/2010
What is wonderful about New York is finding so many opportunities to take great photos. Riverside Park on a sunny day provided one possibility after another.......
Governors Island: Open for the Summer—Come Visit!
06/11/2010
Want to get away for a day? Spend the day having a picnic, riding bikes, and enjoying a fascinating art exhibit? Then visit Governors Island, the former......
Governors Island Is Changing
06/10/2010
Governors Island has just reopened for the summer season. And there is new art to view. So get out your walking shoes, bikes and picnic baskets to enjoy......
Three Museums Focus on Women
05/18/2010
Does pouring a lot of money into a show make it better? You can decide by traveling first to the Brooklyn Museum to view “American High Style: Fashioning......
A Tangled Web on the Metropolitan’s Roof
05/02/2010
Just in time for the warm weather, the Metropolitan Museum has installed a stunning display—Doug + Mike Starn’s Big Bambú. A jungle gym for adults......
Springtime Blooms in New York
04/25/2010
Suddenly, overnight, New York’s street and parks were bursting with blooms. The timing couldn’t have been better. We are so ready for spring flowers. Springtime...
Prowling the Streets with a Camera
04/12/2010
“I prowled the streets all day, feeling very strung-up and ready to pounce, determined to ‘trap’ life – to preserve life in the act of living.” Cartier-Bresson......
Here Comes the Sun—Finally!
04/11/2010
Spring is our reward for winter, and this year — after a record snowfall in February, and a record rain in March — we treasured our reward more than......
Asphalt Green—An Oasis in Manhattan
03/21/2010
The Asphalt Green complex—two buildings linked by a green Super Turf athletic field—is a low-rise oasis amidst the Upper East Side’s high-rise apartment......
William Kentridge at MoMA: Five Themes
03/14/2010
I saw my first Kentridge animated film, Johannesburg, 2nd Greatest City After Paris, consisting of charcoal hand drawings for projection, over a decade......
At The Crossroads of the World, Never a Dull Moment
02/23/2010
Visually, there is never a dull moment in the Times Square area, even at high noon. Instead of flashing lights and theater-goers......
Woman Around Town: Karen Altfest: Money Management
01/31/2010
“One of the tough things for women is that they don’t have role models for handling their money,” says Karen Altfest, Principal Advisor and Executive......
Three Exhibits at the Museum of the City of New York
01/30/2010
The modest Museum of the City of New York, at 103rd Street and Fifth Avenue, is now running four fabulous shows. Well edited, they consist of: Photographs......
California Dreamin’ on Such a Winter’s Day
01/03/2010
There is a reason why the movie business wound up in L.A. It has beautiful light, especially after a cleansing......
Strolling Around the Old-New Lower East Side
11/17/2009
New York is a street-photographer’s paradise. Nowhere is the contrast between old and new more evident than......
David Hockney: Paintings 2006-2009
11/15/2009
Strolling into a Fifth Avenue or Chelsea gallery on a crisp November day and catching the latest work of world-class artists is one of the great pleasures......
Governors Island: Little-Known Park Treasure
08/31/2009
“Who knew it was this close,” said one friend. “Who knew the ferry was free,” said another. “And what a fabulous view of downtown.” Like most......
The High Line-An Architectural Gem
06/29/2009
The High Line, which opened June 9 is New York’s ultimate Cinderella—an abandoned West Side railroad line slated for demolition......
The Noho Star—A Neighborhood Place for Everyone
03/20/2009
The Noho Star is my favorite neighborhood restaurant, even though it isn’t in my neighborhood. But whenever I go to a downtown......
Contact me at:
Telephone 212-879-1542
E-mail at efoa@usa.net