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An Event Not to Miss: The Budapest Autumn Festival
If you love the arts, then be sure to take advantage of Budapest’s Autumn Festival. This unique annual festival draws art lovers from everywhere to Hungary’s capital for a celebration of all things artistic. Visitors can expect to be left in awe by the array of contemporary performances and shows. Do you have a passion for dance, photography, graphic art, music, food, or film? If so, then this festival is for you. The first Budapest Autumn Festival dates back to the year 1992. This year’s festival is taking place from October 8-17, and it is a compilation of creative achievements of contemporary artists from all categories of the arts. This important festival gives Budapest a chance to reinforce the important role Hungary plays in adding to the culture of Europe. Hungary’s capital becomes a centre of contemporary art by extending their festival invitation to include internationally renowned artists to display and perform their works. Some of the most outstanding features of the festival are: The 6th International Dance Film Festival The famous EDIT Dance Film Festival portion of the festivities has played a major role in Budapest for 6 years. The dance films will include the documentary “Dream Dance”; shorts from the Netherlands, Japan, and England; Hungarian dance films; and other memorable programmes. Each film will be screened in its original language. The Food & Film Festival You can´t go wrong when you combine food and film. When you purchase your cinema ticket for this portion of the Budapest Autumn Festival, it will double as a dinner voucher. The film choices feature some of the best works of cinema...
Interfront and Front 242 Concert in Barcelona
Apparently this fall is Barcelona’s moment to shine musically, and there are some great concerts coming up. Not big stadium gigs, just really amazing concerts by stand-out artists. Get ready for a concert by the founders of the EBM genre, Front 242, who will perform with Spanish electronic stars Interfront. Let´s talk first of Front 242. The band was formed in Brussels in 1981 by programmers Patrick Codenys and Dirk Bergen, who the same year released the group’s first album “Principles.” In 1982 Daniel Bressanutti and vocalist Luc De Meyer joined the group and they released their second album “Geography.” Percussionist Geoff Bellingham signed on and was later replaced by Richard 23. Front 242´s success is mainly due to pioneering a sound that combines electronic sounds with a more aggressive sound, and creating the genre Electronic Body (EBM), as we understand it today, as well as influencing important bands like Nitzer Ebb, Skinny Puppy, Front Line Assembly, and others. In 1987 the band signed to Max Trax! and in 1988 released the album Front by Front, a true jewel of their oeuvre and contains hits like Headhunter and Welcome to Paradise. After this great step by Max Trax! They jumped to Epic Records, which put them on a more commercial track, but they didn’t sacrifice the power and quality of music. In the late 90´s the band returned to a more underground circuit and signed with the label Zoth Ommog / Music Research. What else can we add, this concert should be a real treat for fans of EBM and industrial, to see this Belgian group lighting up the...
Pieraccini’s collection at the Ateneum in Helsinki
Rolando Pieraccini is an Italian publisher who emigrated to Finland more than 30 years ago. Since then he has worked as a publisher but also as gallery owner. He has always made efforts to encourage the cultural exchange between Finland and Italy and some call him an “Art Ambassador” because he uses art as an extraordinary diplomatic medium. He organized several exhibitions of Italian artists in Finland and vice versa. In addition, he contributed to the formation of some of the modern Finish art collections in Europe such as those in the Albertina in Vienna and the Florence’s Uffizi Gallery. He began to collect art in the 60s when he had the chance to meet some famous members of the “Scuola di Urbino”: Leonardo Castellani, Walter Piacesi, Renato Bruscaglia and Arnaldo Battistoni. Since then he accumulated a “life collection” and in 2008 he donated 550 pieces of his private collection to the Atenum Museum in Helsinki, the biggest museum in Finland. This collection is one of the greatest and most complete collections in the world of 20th century Italian art. It includes works by 40 artists by everyone from Giorgio de Chirico to Carlo Carrà, Gino Severini, Alberto Burri, Felice Casorati, Afro Basaldella and Giorgio Morandi. Heikki Malme, the curator of paintings and designs in the Ateneum calls this collection “The most important collection of Italian twentieth century works outside of Italy” Among Pieraccini’s favourite Italian artists are Campigli, Marini, Carrà and Castellani. From October 1, 2010 until January 16, 2011 the Rolando and Siv Pieraccini Collection will be shown in an extensive exhibit on the 2nd floor of...
Italian celebrities of the 50´s to feature in Glamorous photo exhibit
Scandalous love affairs, parties, hidden love, hopes and dreams- we’ve been fascinated by celebrities for years, as tabloids and television attest. The past was not so different, as you can see in an exhibit at Trajan´s Market in Rome which displays salacious photographs of movie stars and celebrities from the 50s attracting the public eye. In 1949 the international press covered the Linda Christian and Tyrone Power’s wedding in Rome with the same attention lavished on celebrity weddings today. In the ´50s Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer filmed Quo Vadis Cinecittà and also opened Café Society which became, very quickly, a swinging hotspot for movie stars. In the ´50s in Italy there were two different realities: one part of the population was trying to survive the disasters and aftermath of the Second World War. Hunger, poverty and illiteracy were common. On the other hand, there was also a large part of the society that was more affluent, and ate up celebrity based popular culture with zest. Brigitte Bardot, Ava Gardner, Audrey Hepburn, Clark Gable, Charlton Heston, Ernie Banks, Grace Kelly, Prince Rainier of Monaco, Ingrid Bergman, Roberto Rossellini, Maria Callas and Aristotle Onassis all spent time in Rome, and helped establish its reputation in the media as a cosmopolitan jet-set capital where Coca-Cola was the protagonist and rock & roll and jive were everywhere. In this exhibit you can see shots from this magical era that established Rome in the hearts and minds of many as glamorous, star-studded capital. Rent apartments in Rome to see the lives of famous people of the 50´s, when glamour was still alive, and relish in the loves,...
Jewellery, the symbolic objects that identify us. Part 1
For many people jewellery is nothing more than mere decoration, an accessory to enliven an outfit or something that we only use on special occasions. We might see a ring or pendant in a jewellery store that we like it we and buy it because it combines well with dress that we have, but did you ever think the meaning of jewellery in our culture or as part of our identity? In ancient cultures, especially in ancient Egypt, jewellery symbolized the status of the person, and had different meanings according to religion and its uses. The jewels were used in some rituals and were understood to give power as amulets or served on the other hand as links to different gods. Their power was believed in part to derive from the materials they were made of. Some jewellery also indicated official or military status, besides being a fundamental part of personal image and beauty. In almost all ancient cultures the use of jewellery symbolized the social status of the person, in addition to its religious and magical meanings, but it is only today that the use of jewellery, at least in Western societies, it shows our individual tastes and is part of our personal identity. Today there are many different types of jewellery and these are more often than not used as markers of social affiliation or as status symbols, especially in the case of the most exclusive jewellery and precious stones. Our jewellery speaks for us, and clearly defines our tastes and our lifestyles. Thus we find practices like piercing and body-modification used by urban subcultures such as...
Erwin Wurm and his weird world of sculpture
Edwin Wurm is an interesting sculptor who lives and works in Vienna. He studied at the Academy of Applied Arts and Fine Arts in Vienna between 1979 and 1982. He also works with photography and video installations. He is known for producing peculiar reinterpretations of everyday figures and melding such mundane objects as pens, clothes, fruits or other elements of our lives into unique sculptures. Recognized in different parts of the world for its particular way of showing the irony and humour present in the world, his fun and interactive works have attracted fans worldwide. In many of his works, the play hinges on challenging the concepts of balance, space, weight and shape that we associate with these objects. At times it may appear to the visitor that the end results are absurd and meaningless, but so is life. When you see the final result in a series of photographs is amazing how Erwin has managed to show so much in one simple gesture, and thereby convert a mundane object into a work of art. Examples of this include putting his feet in a bucket while wearing the other on his head, a maroon couch with a hole through which we can put our head and shoulders, making bookshelves with the subject´s hands and legs, or the head of a man with rolls of photographic film for eyes, markers in his ears and nostrils, holding a stapler, an upside down and slightly tilted house, or sitting in a chair with his head on the floor. If you want to know the capital where this magnificent artist lives and...
Hussein Chalayan: 1994 – 2010
Chalayan is an internationally recognized fashion designer who is known for his innovative use of materials, meticulous pattern cutting and progressive attitude to new technology. Since the launch of his own label in 1994 he has produced more than 20 collections and he won the award British Designer of the Year twice in a row (1999, 2000). Chalayan’s designs are inspired by architectural theories, science and technology. He has even produced a collection which included chairs and tables that became garments. To him fashion is an area of exploration and he is motivated by political, social and economic realities. His designs have a philosophical component as well. Besides fashion collections, he makes installations, directs short films and designs costumes for stage. Previously presented at the Design Museum, London and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo, this touring exhibition curated by Donna Loveday brings together fashion collections, installations and films produced by Hussein Chalayan between the years 1994 and 2010. The selected works reflect Chalayan’s views on a range of current themes including genetics, technological progress, displacement, migration and cultural identity. The exhibition features the following works by Hussein Chalayan: Temporary Interference, Inertia, Airmail Dress, Panoramic, Aeroplane Dress (Echoform), Compassion Fatigue, After Words, Temporal Meditations, Ambimorphous, Absent Presence, Readings, Before Minus Now, Manifest Destiny, Genometrics, Repose, Place to Passage, Geotropics, Blindscape, One Hundred and Eleven, Anaesthetics, Airborne, Earthbound, Dolce far Niente, Kinship Journeys, Micro Geography, and The Tunnel. Having his roots in Turkey, Istanbul is fertile ground for an exhibition of this amazing artist and designer. Don’t waste time. Rent apartments in Istanbul to explore this city...
Merce party Barcelona
Welcome the best barcelona music festival which will bring together a variety of genres, from folk to rock, to hip hop, pop, and even rumba. Like always, organizers have ensured that they are the most interesting and relevant bands on the current music scene. This year, for example, some of the most anticipated groups are the mythical Goldfrapp, Maika Makovksi, Nueva Vulcano, El Guincho … As the schedule is not yet completely closed, we will introduce the groups have already confirmed their participation in the BAM to give you an idea of what to expect in the 2010 edition of BAM. Goldfrapp: Sure, for many the legendary IDM duo Goldfrapp needs no introduction. Led by the lovely Alison Goldfrapp, this group has became known over the last decade for their intelligent and sensual electro dance, or as described by BAM organizers “pop with tights and an extra helping of neon.” Maika Makovksi: BAM is not only one of the most anticipated indie festivals for its international programming, but because it is known for supporting and promoting musical culture in Spain. One of those players in the Spanish indie scene is the Mallorcan rock vocalist Maika Makovski, who will present her third album on the stage at BAM. El Guincho: Three years ago, Reixa Pablo Diaz, known as El Guincho, swept Spain and the international indie scene with his debut album Alegranza, an exquisite fusion of tropicalia, electronics, pop and dance, which placed him among the largest in the alternative music scene with the likes of Panda Bear and Animal Collective. His new album Black, will surely make you shake...
The Egyptian Museum of Barcelona more than forty new works until December 30
From now until December 30th this year, the Egyptian Museum of Barcelona will present a series of archaeological pieces showing from different representations of daily life and rituals surrounding death in the mysterious ancient Egyptian world. There will be many new acquisitions on display for the first time, as well as many which have just been returned to the museum after being lent out for use in international collections. Among the new acquisitions, of special interest are the beautiful examples of pharaonic jewellery such as rings, choker and pendants. Some of the most important jewels in the collection are necklaces that belonged to the collection of the German Baron Hans Wolfgang Herwarth von Bittenfeld, closely linked with the inner circle of Nazi Germany politics. Other featured articles include a solid gold ring inscribed with the name of Nefertiti, the wife of the Pharaoh Akhenaten, drinking vessels made of stone, ceramic pots, a head rest with parts made of gold and replicas of pieces that are displayed in the Cairo Museum. All kinds of artefacts will be exhibited alongside specialized books that come directly from the museum´s library. In addition, no less than 10 000 documents will be accessible to the public. The Barcelona Egyptian Museum was opened in ´94 and it shows hundreds of pieces an environment dedicated to showing Egyptian history. If you want to attend this exhibition, you can rent apartments in Barcelona and enjoy this blast from the...
