Cereal Volume One Preview

Page 1

In pursuit of food and travel. VOL. 1


SAY HELLO hello@readcereal.com Cereal Magazine 14 Royal Crescent, No.10 Bath BA1 2LR United Kingdom

FIND US ONLINE www.readcereal.com

SUBSCRIBE shop.readcereal.com subscribe@readcereal.com

BECOME A STOCKIST stockist@readcereal.com

/cerealmag

SUBMIT YOUR WORK submit@readcereal.com

@cerealmag /cerealmag

EDITOR

ROSA PARK rosa@readcereal.com

DESIGNER

RICH STAPLETON rich@readcereal.com

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR RICHARD ASLAN aslan@readcereal.com

COVER IMAGE BY SAMANTHA GOH

Cereal is a quarterly publication. The articles published reflect the opinions of the respective authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the publishers and editorial team. Printed in the United Kingdom by Taylor Brothers (Bristol) on FSC certified Challenger offset 300 and 140gsm paper.

The colour palette for this issue of cereal is as follows:

Š 2012 Cereal. All rights reserved. All material in this magazine may not be reproduced, transmitted or distributed in any form without the written permission of Cereal. Cereal Magazine reserves the right to accept or reject any article or material and to edit this material prior to publication.


W

hat is Cereal? Foremost, it’s a magazine rooted in our passions – for food, for travel. And for books too, with all the wonderful things they can teach us. Isn’t every day better when you learn something new?

We believe that the enjoyment of food and travel are two significant elements of a good life, and more and more of us are in a position to enjoy both on a fairly regular basis now – so much so, that knowing what to experience first can be daunting at times. This is where we come in. Each quarterly issue of Cereal will contain detailed expositions of edible topics and travel destinations, as well as profiles on products, people and places – chosen because they’re relevant, interesting, or have simply caught our attention. Because we adore books and their inherent ability to teach, we have structured our magazine as one. Every topic is treated as a chapter, often featuring various articles within it (including a bibliography, when applicable). This allows us to explore a subject in depth, giving it the attention and focus we think it deserves. With the goal of making something timeless, by crafting and curating a tactile experience, we hope Cereal, like a good book, can be read over and over again. We’ve also made sure that Cereal is a visual feast. Beautiful imagery and design can turn a decent volume into an inspired one, and we think people learn better with pictures. Children’s books are intrinsically visual, so why not apply that ethos to our content too? In part, Cereal is aimed at our inner child. Back when we were little, we learned many a fun fact from the back of cereal boxes. One of our fondest memories of childhood is of waking up to a huge bowl of something crunchy and milky, devouring the words and pictures on the back of the packet. These boxes were the first thing we read each day, and they taught and entertained us. Hence, Cereal. We hope to become your morning read.


Contributors

ADRIAN CAMPBELL-HOWARD

ATHENA CAULEY-YU

PHOTOGRAPHER | Bath, UK

DESIGNER & TYPOGRAPHER | Bath, UK

CHARLES STAPLETON

CHARLOTTE TROUNCE

DANIEL EDWARD ROBERTS

VIDEOGRAPHER | Bristol, UK

ILLUSTRATOR | London, UK

WRITER | Brooklyn, USA

HEATHER DIANE HARDISON

JAMES STAPLETON

JAMES WILDE

ILLUSTRATOR | Berkeley, USA

VIDEOGRAPHER | Bristol, UK

WRITER | Seoul, Korea

JANE POTRYKUS

JEN ADRION

JOHANNE WOOD

WRITER | Chicago, USA

ILLUSTRATOR | Columbus, USA

FLORIST & STYLIST | Bath, UK

JOHN COE

JON RICH

KATE GOVER

CREATIVE CONSULTANT | Bristol, UK

ILLUSTRATOR & WRITER | Bristol, UK

WRITER | Bath, UK

KATHRIN KOSCHITZKI

KATY SALTER

KRIS SETO

PHOTOGRAPHER | Munich, Germany

WRITER | London, UK

WRITER | New York, USA


LILLIE AULD

LINE KLEIN

MARTE MARIE FORSBERG

PHOTOGRAPHER & WRITER | Brooklyn, USA

PHOTOGRAPHER | Copenhagen, Denmark

PHOTOGRAPHER | Jeløy, Norway

MARTIN KAUFMANN

MATT BIELBY

MELANIE GILES

PHOTOGRAPHER | Copenhagen, Denmark

WRITER | Bath, UK

STYLIST | Bath, UK

MOWIE KAY

NICOLE FRANZEN

OMAR NOORY

PHOTOGRAPHER | London, UK

PHOTOGRAPHER | Brooklyn, USA

ILLUSTRATOR | Columbus, USA

PAVEL KUNC

REBECCA SARGENT

ROSIE SHARRATT

PHOTOGRAPHER | London, UK

WRITER | Bristol, UK

WRITER | Bath, UK

SAMANTHA GOH

SARKA BABICKA

SHEENA LEE

PHOTOGRAPHER | New York, USA

PHOTOGRAPHER | London, UK

WRITER | Brooklyn, USA

Special thanks to: SHUHAN LEE

ZOSIA SWIDLICKA

TAYLOR BROTHERS

WRITER | London, UK

WRITER | Milan, Italy

ORCA DESIGN F & C PARK


CONTENTS

1

010 018 026 034 2

042 048 050 056 3

060 068

Copenhagen LOUISIANA MUSEUM AN EXCEPTIONAL EXPERIENCE OF ARCHITECTURE AND VISUAL ART ON THE DANISH COAST

CENTRAL HOTEL & CAFÉ THE WORLD’S SMALLEST COFFEE BAR AND HOTEL IN STYLISH VESTERBRO

4I

074 078

Interlude CHIEF HANDKERCHIEFS, THE VERSATILE PRINTED SQUARES, ARE POISED FOR A MAJOR COMEBACK

MAXWELL FROM COLONNA AND SMALL’S WE CHAT TO THE UK BARISTA CHAMPION ABOUT COMPETITIVE COFFEE

NORDIC FOOD LAB ALL ABOARD THE FOOD LAB – A BOAT BASED RESEARCH POST EXPLORING NORDIC CUISINE

WÜRST FORM DINE AT NOMA AND YOU’LL NOTICE THE CROCKERY. WE VISIT THE MAN BEHIND THE CERAMICS

Carrots A COLOURFUL HISTORY CARROTS AREN’T ALWAYS ORANGE. WE LOOK AT THE RE-EMERGENCE OF HERITAGE VARIETIES

4

084 094 100

INFRA-ORANGE THE MYTH GOES THAT CARROTS HELP YOU SEE IN THE DARK. WE SHED SOME LIGHT ON THE MATTER

A SWEET ROOT EXPLORING THE TRADITION OF USING CARROTS AS SWEETENERS

AT THE MARKET LEARNING TO BECOME A CARROT CONNOISSEUR AT A NORWEGIAN FARMERS’ MARKET

Westonbirt WESTONBIRT ARBORETUM PERFECTING THE SERIOUS BUSINESS OF LOOKING AT TREES IN WESTONBIRT’S VAST WOODLANDS

THE ART OF PICNICKING A GUIDE TO THE CONTEMPORARY PICNIC

5

106 114 6

124 132

Matcha THE WAY OF MATCHA CONSIDERING THE ANCIENT RITUAL OF MAKING MATCHA

LAHLOO PANTRY A VERY MODERN TEAROOM

A BESPOKE MATCHA CAKE SWIRLING MATCHA INTO A CAKE BATTER WITH BUTTER ME UP, BROOKLYN!

Ravello VILLA RUFOLO THE JEWEL OF RAVELLO

THE CHURCHES OF RAVELLO A PHOTO ESSAY BY RICH STAPLETON

Cereal THE HISTORY OF CEREAL (ALMOST) EVERYTHING YOU WANT TO KNOW ABOUT ONE OF OUR MOST POPULAR BREAKFAST FOODS

CEREAL MILK THE TASTE OF NOSTALGIA


VOLUME ONE HIGHLIGHTS C

A

D E

B

A

NORDIC FOOD LAB We travel to the Danish capital to chat to the brains behind the Nordic Food Lab, discussing everything from edible insects to bog butter.

B

VILLA RUFOLO Your bucket list should include visiting this palatial estate (if you haven’t already). We fall in love with its bi-level gardens that inspired Wagner to finish his final opera, Parsifal.

C

GEITMYRA FARMERS’ MARKET This vibrant farmers’ market in Oslo teaches us how to become carrot connoisseurs.

D

WESTONBIRT ARBORETUM We amble through the beautiful woodlands of the UK’s national arboretum. Trees never looked better.

E

MOMOFUKU MILK BAR The appeal of Cereal Milk™ has something to do with nostalgia. Sampling a Cereal Milk™ soft serve, we examine the allure of one of Momofuku Milk Bar’s most popular desserts.



1

Copenhagen



LOUISIANA MUSEUM AN EXCEPTIONAL EXPERIENCE OF ARCHITECTURE AND VISUAL ART ON THE DANISH COAST Words: Daniel Edward Roberts Photos: Martin Kaufmann



...AND IN TRUE LOUISIANA FASHION, TAKE THE CHARMING SURROUNDING NATURE INTO CONSIDERATION AND CHALLENGE CONVENTIONAL VIEWS. THERE IS A REAL SENSE OF FANTASY IN THE SECRET GARDEN...

I

f you happen to be on a long, hipster weekend with friends or a significant other in the Danish capital Copenhagen, it won’t be long before you’re advised to take an afternoon trip to one of its national treasures; the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, located a half hour north of the city by train in Humlebæk. The museum opened in 1958 under the direction of Knud Jensen, with architects Vilhelm Wohlert and Jørgen Bo. Their 33 year collaboration on the museum’s design accounts for all additions with the exception of the later South Wing. In contrast to the city centre locations of its cousins Tate Modern and MoMa, Louisiana is in the middle of a well to do suburban neighbourhood. All aspects of the museum, from location to design and environment, embrace the Danish concept of hygge – or ‘cosiness’. Despite common stark Scandinavian minimalism in interior design, hygge is a must for all homes, restaurants and social areas in this particular Nordic capital. Hygge is epitomised by a chilly fall evening by candelight in a well designed room with comfortable furniture, good friends and a bottle of wine. A stroll through the museum offers sufficient demonstration. Upon entering the grounds of the sprawling museum (well, sprawling for Denmark, less than half of the size of the UK in area), one is quite literally greeted by Louisiana. The white entry building, with its ornate porch lattice and long draped windows, could almost sit at the centre of a southern

plantation – sans Spanish moss. The first few galleries, quite small in size, allow an intimate view of the works, such as the metamechanic Tinguely sculpture still in operation. These initial galleries give way to narrow hallways with panelled staircases – like entering someone’s basement game room – which develop into long transitional passageways flanked by floor to ceiling windows. I could not help thinking that the architects of these passages cherished the surrounding grounds of the museum, wanting every visitor to feel as if they were still walking outside, though protected from the Scandinavian elements. The experience is reminiscent of Fallingwater by Frank Lloyd Wright, where despite the comfort of the room and interior beauty, one’s focus is constantly drawn to the beauty of the outside environment. These 1960s designed passageways that function as hallways and galleries eventually lead to some of the museum’s most prized acquisitions – the Giacometti standing figures. The figures are strategically placed so one can promenade and feel their grandeur. The familiar saying ‘location, location, location’ fits this well suited arrangement of the artist’s textured works against the softness of the weeping willows outside, which fill the large windows. Again, elements of nature are important to the experience inside, which alludes to another aspect of the Louisiana experience – that there is no right or wrong way to meander about the grounds. While in the West Wing, don’t pass up a visit to The Lake Garden, located outside of the Giacometti room. The

013




garden consists of a series of paths which wind around garden houses. In Denmark, these houses, comparable to small sheds, called kolonihave, are small summer houses with communal gardens and common areas, where Copenhageners go away for weekend living. The handful of artists whose work is presented in the garden, give their impression of the summer houses, and in true Louisiana fashion, take the charming surrounding nature into consideration and challenge conventional views. There is a real sense of fantasy in the secret garden, especially the horizontal tree bridge. Though the East Wing of the museum, completed in 1992, allows museum goers to completely circle the grounds while indoors, it’s recommended that you satisfy your curiosity to be outdoors when sparked, and hopping around is encouraged. A walk through the central yard will highlight prominent sculptures, as of those by Henry Moore, Louise Bourgeois, Max Ernst, and Jean Arp. Go further down towards the coast, and the small wooded areas reveal hidden sculptural and architectural delights, such as Gate in the Gorge by Richard Serra, or a Self Passage by George Trakas. The latter leads one along a cliff to a stunning view of Sweden and an alternative entrance to the South Wing. Trakas truly captures the spirit of the setting, with symbiotic melding of landscape and sculpture. Often, children will be innocently running through the wooded area, and pursuant parents accidentally stumble upon these inconspicuous, but noteworthy, installations. At this point, a well deserved break at the cafe is due, and maybe you’ll indulge in a Carlsberg, just because you can. But regardless of beverage choice, your respite will allow you views of a serene coastline, and three massive Alexander Calder sculpture/ mobiles, appropriately called Calder Terrace, that play against the spanning northern sky. As you roam through the four wings of the museum, many well placed benches and exquisite light fixtures welcome you as audience for impressive collections (such as Art of the Pacific Rim, with entry through a circular glass hut), and galleries holding the contemporary masterworks of Warhol, Rauschenberg, and Lichtenstein, all in atypical non-threatening spaces. The newer south and east wings of the museum usually host rotating exhibits, which are curated with thought provoking cleverness. Past exhibitions include David Hockney: Me draw iPad, Ai Wei Wei: Fountain of Light, and Women of the Avant-Garde. In addition to the galleries, Louisiana has a quaint concert hall, regularly hosting musicians and writers. As of recent years, summer weather has allowed for dance performances to be held in the pseudo-amphitheatre area where Louisiana meets the sea. This place is especially popular amongst artists, sketching or painting by the coast. Louisiana’s original concept was to be a museum containing only Danish works, but as the elaborate plans for the grounds proceeded, the founders knew that it had to become a platform for international contemporary art. It thrives as one of the most exceptional experiences of architecture and visual art, and yet leaves all the associated austerity of the like at the front step. You can even swim in the sea! But remember – you won’t be able to enter back in to the museum after exiting to the small beach area, so be sure that you have seen all the collections and had your smørrebrød for the day. Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Gl. Strandvej 13, 3050 Humlebæk LOUISIANA.DK

016



CENTRAL HOTEL & CAFÉ THE WORLD’S SMALLEST COFFEE BAR AND HOTEL IN STYLISH VESTERBRO Words: Jane Potrykus Photos: Martin Kaufmann


019



W

hen travelling, I have two non-negotiable requirements: a cosy, well-appointed hotel room and a good coffee bar for my morning caffeine fix. Once those are addressed, everything else seems to fall into place. Central Hotel & CafÊ, located in Copenhagen’s Vesterbro neighbourhood, cleverly incorporates both my needs with its novel combination of coffee bar and one-room hotel.





Co-owner Jacob Kampp Berliner was already quite familiar with the space – he was the owner/operator under its previous incarnation, The World’s Smallest Coffee Bar. After many discussions with business partner Leif Thingtved about the exciting possibilities inherent in adding a hotel, the two (who together also own Copenhagen restaurant Granola) joined forces again to redesign the space to suit the broader concept. The team brings a wealth of design experience to the project, not only drawing from their success with Granola, but from their backgrounds: Kampp Berliner runs Danish menswear label Soulland, and Thingtved is an established movie set decorator. Nestled at the top of Tullinsgade off Gammel Kongevej, the street level space remains dedicated to the cafe. The exterior has been updated with a fresh coat of paint in deep taupe (previously, the building was a kitschy lime green). Above, the signage is clean and smartly retro. There is a smattering of sidewalk tables encouraging you to stop, sit and take notice. Once inside, the allure continues. Though the space is small, the colour palette is a soothing mix of earthy red and green tones. The interior boasts additional seating options, with two bar stools at the barista/service counter, and benches along two walls. The menu offers a full range of coffee based options, as well as pastries, cupcakes, and assorted sweets. If it’s a nice day, head back outside and grab one of the outdoor tables for maximum relaxation. Tullinsgade is fairly quiet and conducive to conversation. If you feel like a stroll, ask for your au lait to go and take a stroll through Vesterbro. The neighbourhood is home to florists, an amazing book shop called Thiemers Magasin and design shops aplenty. Granola, the popular restaurant owned by Thingtved and Kampp Berliner, is mere steps away. But before you go, don’t miss the cafe’s gift items. Artfully tucked into shelving is a variety of beautifully packaged candies, as well as plates and mugs proudly sporting the Central Hotel & Café branding. As for the hotel component, the first floor space is still a work in progress and is scheduled to launch in early 2013. Though simply furnished with a bed, shower, sink and toilet, and measuring a spare 130 sq ft – making it the world’s smallest hotel – the room balances the charms of minimalism with luxe amenities. Kampp Berliner and Thingtved aim to make the experience akin to staying in a larger luxury hotel (save the pool and bathtub). Guests can ring downstairs for room service from the cafe, and amenities include free bicycles (a Copenhagen must), free internet, iPod docking stations, and breakfast at Granola. The hotel strives to appeal to weekend visitors, business travellers, couples on a romantic getaway – really anyone who desires something a bit different when travelling, and appreciates thoughtful design and service. It is an especially appealing option for those travellers who relish feeling a part of the neighbourhood. Imagine a day walking (or biking) Copenhagen, buying a bouquet of fresh flowers and a bottle of wine, then returning to the room to enjoy the street sounds while unwinding – and at night, looking up at the stars through a skylight over the bed. It’s certain to lend a bit of a pied-à-terre living to any Copenhagen getaway. The team has taken their time to get the space just right. The room has been in development for over a year, as quality is paramount and they seek to convey the extra effort inherent in attention to detail. And for those of you who need just a bit more room, stay tuned – the team has just acquired an extra room in the house next door. Expansion plans are already underway. Tullinsgade 1, 1618 Copenhagen

025


NORDIC FOOD LAB ALL ABOARD THE FOOD LAB - A BOAT BASED RESEARCH POST EXPLORING THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF NORDIC CUISINE Words: Richard Aslan Photos: Line Klein




W

hen the epicentre of international gastronomy shifted north, introducing the world to new Nordic cuisine, the assembled technocrats of Molecular Gastronomy from Spain to Chicago were left blinking in the dust. One of the key driving forces behind this movement is the Nordic Food Lab in Copenhagen. Founded in 2008 by Noma head chef René Redzepi and entrepreneur Claus Meyer, the non profit, self governed organisation explores the building blocks of Nordic cuisine through research into traditional and modern food production and preparation. Housed in an unassuming houseboat anchored on a canal opposite Noma, this is where chemists, chefs, scientists, anthropologists and academics work together to push the boundaries of new Nordic cuisine and share their findings with the world through various platforms. We met Michael Bom Frøst, the laboratory’s director and associate professor of Sensory Science at the University of Copenhagen; Josh Evans, correspondent of the Yale Sustainable Food Project; and Ben Reade, who has accepted the mantle of Head of Culinary Research and Development this past summer from Lars Williams, who now heads up the Noma test kitchen. Inside the lab, it’s bright and open, and the large industrial kitchen kitted out with gadgets. Prints of various roots and vegetables complete with their Latin names grace the walls, and sticky yellow notes litter the windows. Rows and rows of glass jars and plastic containers are filled with samples, some of them in various stages of fermentation. We arrive on the same day as a delivery of plums destined to help Ben create his own version of umeboshi. BR: OK, try this ... CEREAL: [looks doubtful] What is it? BR: It’s a seaweed called dulse [palmaria palmata]. It’s really interesting because it’s rich both in umami and sweet tasting amino acids. MF: We’ve discovered that to overcome barriers to new foods, there has to be a balance between novelty and familiarity. Ice cream is the perfect gateway food because it’s so comforting, even with a novel flavour like seaweed. BR: Ask someone ‘do you want ice cream’, the answer is almost invariably ‘yes’! It’s like a reflex. Do you want ice cream? CEREAL: Yes! JE: We tried this with kids. Some refuse, some wait till other kids try it first, others jump straight in. Those that do try it usually love it. The first taste is the hardest … after that it gets easier. CEREAL: Why is seaweed so interesting? BR: In Wales, they make bread with it, in Northern Ireland, they eat it as a snack, but for us it’s a revival. Taste this … it’s similar to dashi, super salty and very rich in umami. Even though it’s so similar to the Japanese version, the kelp species is totally different. The world is hugely biodiverse but we don’t take advantage of it. There’s a lot of space in the ocean. We should explore that. Sustainability comes up repeatedly in our findings, but it’s actually unintentional. We put deliciousness first. CEREAL: Isn’t ‘deliciousness’ too subjective to pinpoint on a global scale? MF: I think there are basic rules that each culture applies differently. Some things travel very well, like tomatoes, but if certain more challenging foodstuffs are to be widely accepted – like some strange fermented food or insects, for example – then the balance between familiarity and novelty has to be addressed.

029


Dulse, a red alga seaweed


Dulse ice cream


CEREAL: Will people ever happily eat insects? MF: The majority of the world eats them already, but those that don’t fear them hugely. It’s not insurmountable – if you see people enjoying something, over time, you’ll end up trying it, like tourists trying silk worm larvae in Seoul. If we want to introduce insects to Europe, we should use those that are most similar to what we already eat. JE: Like sandhoppers – they taste like shrimp and have a wonderful crunchy texture. You see them by the beach. MF: Alternatively, we give people insects in a form that’s not recognisable to overcome barriers. BR: Alongside formic acid which is very sour, ants produce chemical compounds that are similar to the compounds found in herbs. Flavour chemist Arielle Johnson looked into this for us and found compounds in ants identical to lemongrass. These were the type of ants served at the Noma pop-up in London. She also found licorice and coffee flavours – there is so much to discover. Other areas, like fermentation, are more or less totally unexplored. While science recognises around 240,000 species of plants with about another 40,000 or so yet to discover, they’ve already described a million and a half species of bacteria – but they think that’s only around 0.5 percent of the total! JE: Microorganisms can evolve so fast that classical taxonomies don’t make sense any more. The implications are enormous. It’s only in the last decade that we’ve been able to describe the entire genome of a species relatively easily. Before that, testing was very approximate. CEREAL: It sounds fascinating! BR: There are various ongoing fascinations! I’ve just finalised a paper for the Oxford Symposium of Food and Cookery on bog butter. People buried butter in peat bogs for 3,000 years but the last time anyone tried to make it was in an 1894 experiment. I replicated it to discover how Iron Age men in Scotland ate and to see if it tastes good to modern palates. An old Irish rhyme says, ‘butter to eat with the hog is buried seven years in the bog’, so I’ve got ten kilos of it sitting underground somewhere for seven years to see what happens! CEREAL: What does it taste like? BR: Very mossy. And it smells like the forest. It could have interesting applications with game dishes. CEREAL: It’s part of your mission to share all these findings, right? MF: Yes. We travel a lot – symposiums, events, conferences – last weekend, we talked to chefs at a Dutch university. Next weekend we’re at a slow food event in Turin. We take every opportunity we can to meet people and increase our networks. We also write a lot of papers. CEREAL: Where do you find your inspiration? MF: It’s everywhere. We look closely at the world that surrounds us and examine everything edible – beach plants, insects, mammal life ... any chef can do that, wherever they are. NORDICFOODLAB.ORG

032




WÜRST FORM DINE AT NOMA AND YOU’LL NOTICE THE CROCKERY. WE VISIT THE MAN BEHIND THE CERAMICS. Words: Rosie Sharratt Photos: Line Klein



N

oma’s brilliance and reputation stems from its tenacious faith in its key principles – to seek inspiration in the landscape of Denmark and delve into its ingredients and culture, “hoping to rediscover our past and shape our future”. It’s no mistake that they selected the work of Aage and Kasper Würtz of Würtz Form as the literal base of their business. The glossy dappled surfaces of this family run business’s platters and dishes mirror the love of the arts inherent in Danish culture. Designing crockery for a select few other luxury dining rooms across Denmark, including Geranium and Grønbech & Churchill, it needs no reiteration that Aage Würtz is a master of his art who knows the secrets of his craft like the backs of his clay mottled hands. For Würtz, it all began in 1973, when he trained as a potter and went on to study at the Aarhus Art Academy while beginning to build his own small ceramic business. It was in 1981 that Würtz Form launched, and today Aage’s son Kasper visits with the chefs of the country’s most renowned restaurants, working to their briefs to draft the perfect canvasses upon which Michelin starred masterpieces can be presented. Once designs are decided, Kasper returns to the dusty workshop in the small town of Glud in Jutland where he and his father work each project through to completion. Hunched and focussed over the wheel, hands pressed as if in prayer on either side of the rim of a dish to be, Aage eases the grainy velvet of the wet clay into shape. Muddled stacks of tools caked in chalky daubs sit beside him, their wiry heads and blunt metallic tips a stark contrast to the fluid sweeps they carve into the clay. Across the workspace, scuffed wooden boards hold fully formed, shell fine pieces, pristine oyster white, ready to be glazed and fired. Würtz’s work is finished with its own particular brand of refined irregularity, the oven baking onto each plate and bowl an almost lunar mottling of charcoal blemishes. As if burnished by lava, the deftly spun curvature of each piece appears expertly charred, a medley of carbon dark freckles searing its glassy surface. To think that Würtz’s creations were once formless mud clods, conjured from matted earth into a refined organic elegance, makes clear why they befit luxury gourmet establishments such as Noma. They distil nature’s essence into purest luxury, without losing the rustic honesty of the raw materials themselves. KHWURTZ.DK

037




Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.