Lila Glasoe Francese idolized her older sister, Carolyn Glasoe Bailey when they were growing up in Minneapolis for good reason. At age 19, Carolyn opened an art gallery just as the Minneapolis art scene was burgeoning, and introduced many artists to the wider world as a gallerist and curator for private collectors. Carolyn introduced Lila to the world of art, fine dining and travel. She also introduced Lila to her husband, Dines Francesce, and inspired their move to Ojai. Carolyn lived here for 25 years before her tragic death from the brain cancer, glioblastoma.
Carolyn's brilliant career advanced many artists to greater success, and she also helped patrons increase the value of their collections. Stylish, free-spirited and insightful, Carolyn traveled widely, using Ojai as a home base where she cooked amazing meals, raised her son, Matson (who developed a mobile app to track sea turtles) and connected many people with each other.
That tragedy, along with a little sister's appreciation for a life, well-lived, inspired Lila's book, "The Situation, a Radical Journey Through Sisterhood." Lila and her widowed brother-in-law, Chris Bailey, also started the Carolyn Glasoe Bailey Foundation, which includes an artist residency, exhibits, talks and grants. The foundation, begun in 2015, is located in Ojai and directed by Frederick Janka; it also includes the Ojai Institute, which promotes arts program in schools.
Lila talks about how the process of writing the book gave her a deeper sense of gratitude and the fact "that every moment matters." We talk about Brené Brown's work as well as a quote from Spike Lee that helped Lila work through the writing of this book, "The one commonality about humanity that we all share, is the sharing of our stories."
We also talk about the current frenzied pace of real estate in Ojai, where Lila and her husband's business, Ohi Home, stages homes for sale and "makes sure seller don't leave money on the table."
"The Situation" is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and online at thesituationbook.com. A portion of the proceeds benefits the Carolyn Glasoe Bailey, where Carolyn's motto was "Buy art, save lives."
