Lisa Przystup & Jonathon Linaberry: Brooklyn’s Rising Duo

The Bones of J. R. Jones & James’s Daughter Flowers; Jonathan & Lisa

It’s an early Saturday afternoon in Greenpoint, Brooklyn with the first hints of warmth touching our shoulders that we wait in front of The Lobster Joint for Jonathon to let us up. We’ve waited for this interview for a while and it’s been well worth the wait. Opening the door he grins that signiture grin of his and says, “Come on up!” giving my photographer and I a hug before we asend the stairs. Upon entering the apartment we are enveloped in the fragrance of anemones, flowering magnolia branches, and eucalyptus. And just as soon as having crossed the threshold and taken note of the flowers on the table, we are greeted by Lisa, Jonathon’s fiancé, one of the new and hip Flower Girls of New York. Greetings, hugs and giddiness (mostly on my part) ensue and then we start to talk about the stars. Completely off topic, but our photographer had just come back from a trip to the Adirondacks where he photographed his nephew’s milkyway. Showing off his photos to them, I gush at all that he had accomplished to date and they began to look forward to the shoot even more.

As we attempt to refocus and regain control of the shoot and what we need to accomplish in the short four hour time span I quickly direct Jonathon and Tim (our photographer) as to the concept for the shoot and the potential music video if time allows (which, thank our lucky stars, it did). You can look at our FB page for that video later this week!

As they set up their work space in the bedroom and office/studio of the apartment, Lisa and I quickly take station in her workshop. I marvel as she starts to work at our flower arrangement, smoothly cutting, arranging, stepping back to judge the shape it’s taking, all the while regailing me with their love story. It’s a very simple boy meets girl, he spotted her at a restaurant they both frequented and finally asked her out, and yet it makes it that much more poetic. She laughs while stripping excess leaves and admits, “I googled him” and when I ask them how long before they “knew” they eerily ask the same question, “before I knew that he/she was the one?” and ultimately answer the same, “immediately” but then again, isn’t that the kind of love we all crave, the one where you are that in sync?

Jonathon is roaming the hallway stumming his banjo, laid back in twill pants and a dark but well lived in navy dress shirt while Lisa is working away, clearly in her element wearing high waisted, stonewash, straightleg denim with a simple black long sleeve.

This is exactly how I would have wanted to portray them, as they are, in their home, surrounded by all that makes them as cool and aloof as they seem. But there is incredible depth to each of them that would be foolish not to note. Jonathon has spent years honing his skill and continues to blow us all away with each album he releases, his most recent Dark Was The Yearling. They are dark and they are thoughtful, a true indication of a beautiful mind with so much depth and character to offer the world. And Lisa has spent years as a writer, now as a copywrite for J Crew. One year into her own business, James’s Daughter Flowers, she works from home on her flowers, each arrangement a masterpiece. Her work has been displayed in many editorials, such as The Cut, Elle, and Into The Gloss among others. The following is our interview of Brooklyn’s Rising Duo, Lisa and Jonathon.

THS: We all say that we change so much from high school, but in your case your music has come to such a different level and tone. Can you tell me a little about that journey? How did you know you were finally on the right path for what you want to express?

Jonathon: It definitely took a long time. I don’t think I really knew what I wanted to do with my music until I was living in Rosendale and that was in 2009. Living in that quiet town by myself gave me a lot of time to explore what I wanted to achieve musically. At the time I hadn’t been really playing much music and the direction I turned was a far cry from the punk rock music I was playing in my youth…. maybe I just became a little less angry.

THS: Your songs like “St. James Bed” and “Heartsracing” are so completely different and yet I’m enamored with both of them. Is this something you hear often from your audience?

Jonathon: Both of those songs appear to be crowd favorites. I wish I knew why. I would have wrote more like them.. ha.

THS: You’ve posted that “The Dark” was written after the passing of your grandfather, effecting the mood of the whole album, do you see that mood following you through to your next album?

Jonathon: No… I don’t. A lot of the songs on that last album were very cathartic for me. I’d like to leave those feelings and songs in the past.

THS: I’ve gotta ask. How many instruments do you own and how many typically make up a whole song?

Jonathon: I really don’t know. If I were to guess I possibly own eight or so? The meat of a song is usually done by one instrument. I try to write songs that translate well to one instrument and don’t rely on too many to get the feeling across.

THS: What’s in store for The Bones of J. R. Jones this summer? Any festivals we should be buying tickets to?

Jonathon: No festivals… just yet. I will be on tour through April in May. Heading down through the SouthEast and then back up through the MidWest. I’m looking forward to it.

THS: Dark Was The Yearling was a very different album from The Wildness. Any hints for what’s in store for the next album? Any thing in the works or are we savoring the moment?

Jonathon: You think it was different? haha. I guess that’s a good thing. I never gave it much thought. I do have some things in stored. Actually I have a dozen or so new songs already… just trying to figure out where they all would fit.

THS: The video for Ticket Home was such a departure from the video for La La Liar, but tell the truth, which one was more fun to shoot?

Jonathon: Ohhhh… they were both fun. Completely different experiences. LaLaLiar was shot in a sound stage, so it was all very controlled and measured. Ticket Home, was much more loose and shot outside at random locations in the Catskills. I think if I had to choose I would choose Ticket Home solely on the fact, that it gave me a chance to be outside in some of my favorite parts of New York State.

For more information about Jonathan and his band, The Bones of J. R. Jones follow the link to his website and follow him on Facebook. Jonathon is currently on tour, click the link for tour dates to see if there is a show near you.

THS: Everyone always asks you which flowers are your favorite either of all time or season so I would be foolish not to follow suit, but I also want to know which flowers were the toughest to work with? (Hardest to put into an arrangement/fall apart too fast to enjoy)

Lisa: Favorite flowers: Poppies, Ranunculous, Cafe au lait Dahlias, Cosmos.

Hardest to work with: Hellabores – they are finicky as all hell and I just haven’t had any luck with them (yet).

THS: Because it drives me nuts every time I stare at your work, how do you keep the base from toppling over? (It’s truly fascinating)

Lisa: It’s all a mirage (as you now know). I usually use a ball of chicken wire in the bottom of the vase to help maintain order and structure. You can also make a flower grid with tape across the opening of a glass vase too.

THS: If you could produce the set for one of Jonathan’s videos 1) would you? and 2) what kind of flowers could you see yourself using?

Lisa: Hmmmm…not sure. As you know, try to keep our professional lives separate 🙂 BUT if I did I’d probably use lots of overgrown wild greenery with minimal blooms. That, or a curtain of lilies.

THS: You have this uncanny ability to play with light and dark, heavy and sparse, full and slender, asymmetric and yet balanced. I sit there staring at your squarespace gallery in awe most of the time because I can never quite figure out what draws me to your work, maybe all of it together. Like a family recipe for your favorite meal it’s almost like you’ve discovered your own secret ingredient. Any chance I can get you to spill?

Lisa: Oh man. Honestly I really do feel like I’m still learning and that whatever I’ve managed to pull of so far is the result of an organic process that really has no special, specific secret ingredient. I guess that just looking for an being inspired by nature and art and other amazing florists is the closest thing I get to a secret ingredient.

THS: We are going to make a small table placement, so what would your advice be to me considering I have no clue how to pull a stunt like this off?

Lisa: Start small and don’t overthink it too much. I think getting your base figured out first (that asymmetric shape we were talking about) and then just go for it – add in those secondary blooms then fill it out with some of the more striking statement ones. And breathe. And try to have fun.

THS: What have you learned about each other as your careers have begun to take off? Do you vibe off each other/find inspiration in each other’s work?

Lisa: I am constantly inspired by Jonathon. His patience and persistence are staggering and something I try to emulate (not always successfully). I also think we both are drawn to the idea of wildness so there’s that.

THS: You were a fashion writer, do you feel like that part of you is now dormant or replaced? Are flowers now your words? If so, what is the tone that you want to portray? Because obviously every reader has his or her own take, I really want to know what you want the take away to be.

Lisa: I think that both things are so different and I still get great satisfaction from writing. The aesthetic I look to achieve in my writing is very different from the aesthetic I look to create with my flower arrangements. Usually with writing saying more with less words is a good thing, it’s the sign of a good writer. whereas with flowers I tend to gravitate to more, more, more. I like the idea of a crazy, overgrown, slightly weird arrangement.

THS: You both spend time Upstate, and I know you’ve mentioned on your own blog, Lisa, that you found inspiration there. Do you find that Upstate still inspires you or have you begun to find it within the streets of New York?

Lisa: I’d say that upstate really rejuvenates my spirit in a way that the city doesn’t. Just being around nature and flowers and green things makes me so happy and informs a lot of what I try to do with flowers. The streets of New York are inspiring in a different way – the sheer volume of talented, creative individuals supporting and collaborating with each other is amazing.

To contact Lisa or view more of her work, visit her Squarespace or her IG.

I hope that you enjoyed this installment of our Rising Power Couple Series. Stay tuned for more from The Hare & Style!

Xo,

Maliha

Article by: Maliha Mohiuddin

Photography by: Tim Van Camp