Air Gama Dec'15

Issue FIFty FIVe DECEMBER 2015

Michael Fassbender Luxury • Culture • People • Style • Heritage

SOUS LE SIGNE DU LION BROOCH IN WHITE GOLD AND DIAMONDS

DUBAI, THE DUBAI MALL +971 4 3827100/06

RIYADH, AL TAHLIA +966 11 4627959

www.chanel.com

DOHA, LAGOONA MALL +974 4444 1932

A B U D H A B I : T H E G A L L E R I A A T S O W W A H S Q U A R E I A L M A R Y A H I S L A N D I +971 2 6784567 D U B A I : B L O O M I N G D A L E ’ S - D U B A I I T H E D U B A I M A L L I +971 4 3505333 H A R V E Y N I C H O L S - D U B A I I M A L L O F T H E E M I R A T E S I +971 4 4098888

BUILT BUILT ON ON BREATHTAKING BREATHTAKING Surrounded Surrounded by the Gulf, by theThe Gulf, Alef The Residences Alef Residences is situated is situated on the on West theCrescent West Crescent of PalmofJumeirah, Palm Jumeirah, comprising comprising 104 unique 104 unique homes homes from 4800–15000 from 4800–15000 sq ft, sq ft, locatedlocated in eightinMansions, eight Mansions, all serviced all serviced by by W – The W Palm.

– The Palm.

The AlefThe Residences.

Alef Residences.

The home Theofhome firsts.of firsts.

Contact Contact us for your us forprivate your private appointment appointment READYREADY SP RING SPRING 20 1 7 •20TH 1 7 EALEF • TH EALEF .CO M .COM • 8 0 0•- A8L E 0F0 -(A2 L5 E 3 3F ) ( 2•5 3L3I)V I•N G@ L I VTI N H G@ E A LTEHF E. CO A L EMF . CO M

Contents

DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

Managing Director

Victoria Thatcher Editorial Director

AIR

John Thatcher Group Commercial Director

David Wade

david@hotmediapublishing.com Commercial Director

Rawan Chehab

rawan@hotmediapublishing.com Business Development Manager

Rabih El Turk

rabih@hotmediapublishing.com Editor

Richard Jenkins richard@hotmediapublishing.com Contributing Editor

Chris Ujma

Fifty Four

Model Behaviour

Sixty Six

Senior Designer

Features Editor

Supermodel Erin O’Connor reflects on a long career on the catwalk, and how motherhood changed her

Maserati, Armani, Jimmy Choo and more fashion greats make up spectacular travel style

Sixty

Fifty

Michael Fassbender is the latest Hollywood star to tackle Shakespeare, in a new adaptation of Macbeth

Fashion icon Ermenegildo Zegna talks to AIR about his time in New York, and the brand’s new luxury store

Andy Knappett

Annie Darling Designer

Emi Dixon

Return of the Mac

Illustrator

Andrew Thorpe Production Manager

Muthu Kumar

16

Travel First Class

The Legend of Zegna

Picking you up from the airport is one thing.

Calling you in the car to make your restaurant reservation is another.

From airport chauffeur service to a dedicated team and personal attention, the Club InterContinental difference is in the details. We aim beyond the obvious - turning our attention to thoughtful touches and pleasant surprises. For exceptional experiences and details that truly delight, there is only Club InterContinental.

Club InterContinental – It’s in the details For more information and reservations, visit clubintercontinental.com IN 180 LOCATIONS ACROSS THE GLOBE INCLUDING DUBAI • BANGKOK • HONG KONG • JEDDAH • KUALA LUMPUR • LONDON • PARIS • RIYADH • SINGAPORE • TOKYO

Contents DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

Twenty Six

Forty Six

Eighty Two

Book a stay at Frank Sinatra’s opulent Palm Springs pad, and celebrate his 100th

Bulgari’s head of horology discusses the brand’s beautiful new range of ladies’ watches

Londoner Tom Aikens was the youngest British chef to be awarded a Michelin star – he tells AIR how he did it

Thirty Two

Seventy Eight

Eighty Six

Ayah Al Bitar is one of the region’s most important designers, and she speaks exclusively with AIR

The new Rolls-Royce ‘Inspired by Film’ Edition of the Wraith might be the best yet

In the pursuit of powder, AIR has discovered that there’s only one way to ski this winter

Radar

Timepieces

Art & Design

Gastronomy

Motoring

Travel

Forty

Jewellery

AIR

A visit to the world’s biggest emerald mine, operated by Gemfields in deepest Zambia

Tel: 00971 4 364 2876 Fax: 00971 4 369 7494 Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission from HOT Media Publishing is strictly prohibited. All prices mentioned are correct at time of press but may change. HOT Media Publishing does not accept liability for omissions or errors in AIR.

18

Gama Aviation DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

Welcome Onboard DECEMBER 2015

I’m delighted to welcome you to the December edition of AIR, Gama’s in-flight magazine.

I hope you’ll enjoy learning more about our global business aviation group and the services we provide as you browse through the pages.

Gama is one of the world’s largest business jet operators – we have nearly 150 business jets operating all around the globe.

Established in the United Kingdom in 1983, we’ve grown to have bases throughout the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Europe and North and South America, as well as operating licences issued by the UAE, UK, US and Bermudan Authorities.

In addition to providing aircraft management and charter services, the group also provides aircraft maintenance, avionics design and installation, aviation software, aircraft cleaning, and leasing services to a wide range of clients.

Gama’s expansion in the Middle East continues to progress well; our regional fleet has grown significantly over the past 12 months with the arrival of a number of aircraft, along with the continued development of our regional footprint and services. This includes the opening of our Jeddah office and Abu Dhabi base. Also, Gama is now operating the only business aviation FBO at Sharjah International Airport, which is proving to be a very popular facility for Sharjah and the Northern Emirates, as well as a practical alternative to Dubai International Airport.

Business aviation remains one of the best tools available to corporations and individuals who want to make time for themselves and it’s been pleasing to see a continued resurgence in charter flights – the world is travelling for business again and developing much needed revenue for the global economy.

Thank you for choosing Gama – welcome onboard.

Richard Lineveldt General Manager Gama Aviation

Contact Details: charter.mena@gamaaviation.com gamaaviation.com 21

Dubai Hong Kong Las Vegas New York

THE INTELLIGENT GATEWAY TO DUBAI AND THE NORTHERN EMIRATES.

Palm Beach London Geneva Moscow

Our Sharjah FBO is just a 30 minute drive from downtown Dubai.

Whether you require long term parking and hangar space, a fast fuel stop or business jet maintenance, our state-of the-art facilities make Sharjah International Airport the only destination to choose.

For detailed handling and maintenance information or to find out about our other services on offer at Sharjah, please contact our FBO team on +971 6 573 4371.

Charter. Management. Maintenance. gamaaviation.com

Gama Aviation DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

Gama Aviation in the spotlight In the midst of nominations, experienced judging panels, and selection criteria to be met; on the evening of October 25th 2014; ITP Business Publishing granted 15 awards to prominent players in the industry – airports, operators, Fixed Base Operators (FBOs), maintenance organisations and aircraft management companies.

Gama Aviation Sharjah FBO won ‘FBO of the Year 2015’!

An award for all the effort, hard work, and dedication put in by a great team. This served as a reminder of what Sharjah International Airport is capable of; shedding the light on what potential the FBO has and emphasizing the fact that it is the intelligent gateway to Dubai, and the Northern Emirates, for business jet users.

The Gama Sharjah FBO not only provides you with the safest, most secure, and timely private travel experience, but we are very proud to now have an award that validates and recognises the class leading services we offer, perfected within just 12 months of opening.

Our participation at the air show yielded outstanding results. With our Legacy 600 on static display for the first two days, back-to-back meetings, and efficient use of time and resources led to an extremely successful week.

The good energy and buzz that we encountered at our chalet made us content that the level of awareness in business aviation is increasing and it is rather in the quality of your encounters, and not the quantity, that the difference is made.

In summary, our stunning impression of the Sharjah FBO was evident in our chalet, where it served as a comfortable arena for our guests, clients and employees. The modern and stimulating space was available for all our esteemed visitors to conduct meetings, enjoy some lunch, afternoon snacks and watch the flying displays all at once.

It was our pleasure to host you and have our management team, along with the Group CEO, Mr. Marwan Khalek, cater to your business needs.

Sharjah FBO receives FBO of the Year Award 2015

Gama Aviation soars at the Dubai Airshow 2015 Gama Aviation’s Legacy 600 to be on static display at the Dubai Airshow 2015

23

Gama Aviation DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

Gama Aviation is all about luxury November 2015 witnessed the outcome of a successful collaboration between Marie Claire Arabia, IWC Watches Arabia, Sharjah International Airport andGama Aviation to create

Marie Claire’s November Issue for their monthly published magazine.

The model was Raya Abi Rached, a highly renowned TV host and presenter of two of the most popular shows in the Middle East - Scoop with Raya and Arabs Got Talent. Raya is also IWC’s brand ambassador in the region.

The mentioned magazine, luxury brand and public figure chose Gama

Gama Aviation in the media spotlight At the Dubai Air Show this year, Gama Aviation took part in a handful of TV interviews / segments about business aviation in this region in addition to several pieces in the printed media and on social media.

24

Aviation’s beautiful premises in Sharjah to serve as their venue to showcase the world of luxury (fashion) and private flying.

We at Gama Aviation are more than happy to cater to the world of luxury that complements our offerings whether be it in publications, adverts, high-end products etc.… especially if the results are as stunning as this one!

Apart from the usual media channels, Gama Aviation also has imminent presence on social media; make sure you are part of our social media accounts below: Like our Facebook page: Gama Aviation Follow our Instagram Account: Gama.Aviation Follow our Twitter account: Gama Aviation

Radar

AIR

DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

26

Legendary singer Frank Sinatra would have celebrated his 100th birthday on December 12, and it’s likely he would have spent it here, at his Twin Palms estate in Palm Springs, California. When Sinatra arrived in Palm Springs in the 1940s, he brought with him the allure of celebrity and a host of other jet setters, and put the formerly sleepy Palm Springs on the map. His Desert Modern house, updated for 2016 but still largely influenced by Sinatra’s original design choices, is now available to rent for a variety of private occasions, corporate events, retreats and functions or commercial use. sinatrahouse.com

Critique DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

Film The Dressmaker Dir: Jocelyn Moorhouse Set in 1950s Australia, a beautiful and talented dressmaker returns to her hometown to right some wrongs from her past AT BEST: “Full-throttle performances enliven an otherwise all-over-theplace Australian smalltown satire.” The Guardian AT WORST: “Seeing the usually terrific Kate Winslet stooping to star in a screwball comedy this duff truly takes your breath away.” Mirror

AIR

The Big Short Dir: Adam McKay Four outsiders in the world of high-finance predict the 2008 financial crisis and decide to take on the big banks AT BEST: “The script is incredibly well-structured, funny, and dramatic.” Slash Film AT WORST: “Busy execution – bolstered by frantic cinematography that makes the whole endeavor unfortunately resemble an episode of The Office – feels labored.”The Guardian

Secret in Their Eyes Dir: Adam McKay A tight-knit team of rising investigators is suddenly torn apart AT BEST: “The tense, constant sense of unease persists long after the balls have been dropped and the film is over.” Vulture AT WORST: “Secret in Their Eyes wastes its incredible cast on a remake that fails to improve upon – or even make a compelling case for its own existence in addition to – the remarkable original.”

Rotten Tomatoes

Partisan Dir: Ariel Kleiman Conflict occurs when a young boy challenges his commune leader AT BEST: “It’s a thought-provoking film… a clever drama of power and control.” Time Out Dubai AT WORST: “Well-acted and suitably chilling, Partisan is a dark drama whose confident craft may offer enough for some viewers to look past its flaws.” Rotten Tomatoes 28

Critique DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

Theatre S

avour the moment, Broadway: the Olivier Award-winning A View from the Bridge, which swept West End audiences off their feet, roars into New York’s Lyceum Theater this December. Critics have been enamoured with Director Ivo van Hove’s powerful interpretation of Arthur Miller’s dark tale, which confronts ‘the American dream’ through the perspective of a Brooklyn longshoreman who welcomes his Sicilian cousins to the land of freedom… but when one of them falls for his beautiful niece, they discover that freedom comes at a price. “This must be what Greek tragedy once felt like, when people went to the theater in search of catharsis… At the end of its uninterrupted two hours, you are wrung out, scooped out and so exhausted that you’re wide awake” enthused Ben Brantley of the New York Times. This is certainly one for the performance purists; Variety’s Marilyn Stasio observes, “(the family) Home is a featureless square space in this expressionistic production…

Members of the audience sit in so close to the action they share the same breathing space with the actors…Talk about vulnerable.”

And the bravery of van Hove’s presentational-twist left Jeremy Gerard, of Deadline, distinctly torn. “I have to admit I’m of two minds… My 30-year-old critic self probably would have thrilled to the ballsiness of turning a naturalistic melodrama into a Greek tragedy. Doing so adds a layer of meaning the way the cover of Abbey Road added a layer of meaning to the Beatles mythology. But my oldercritic self says, “Leave the damned play alone.”

One-to-watch and look-away from is Hangmen, on at Wyndham’s Theatre in London. The darkly-absorbing original from director and playwright Martin McDonagh ensnares thoughtprovoking gallows humour about England’s ‘legal system’ of days goneby. “This brilliant comedy-thriller is about the last stand of things that once defined us, a world that had

scarcely changed in centuries, now slipping away into the cold Lancashire night,” surmised Andrzej Lukowski of TimeOut. Alex Dudok de Wit at City A.M. thought of its undertones that, “true feelings are throttled and big questions left hanging in this blackerthan-night comedy… It keeps the biggest drama offstage and leaves the most pressing facts unspoken, yet is never less than absorbing,” while The Guardian review was as emotionallyabsorbed. “Hangmen shows brutal characters overwhelmed by sadness: the air seems viscous with grief. It is not an argument but an atmosphere.

It absorbs the audience into another culture. It re-presents the 1960s.”

On to two perennial names in theatre: Kenneth Branagh, and his reimagining of Shakespeare’s timeless tragicomedy The Winter’s Tale at the beautifully-restored Garrick Theatre. The Telegraph’s Dominic Cavendish was swift to praise; “Kenneth takes the lead as the jealousy-seized Leontes alongside the great (Dame Judi Dench), the good (Miranda Raison) and the more than promising (Tom Bateman). All the old virtues of Branagh are present and exhilaratingly correct… but what we’re getting now in his middle-age is a richer, deeper capacity for vice and darkness: the ordinary man thrust into monstrous, terrifying motion.”

Matt Trueman of Variety considers it “a mulled wine production: fruity, spiced and well-stewed”, though opines, “Branagh has great moments, but too often, though, the actor’s vanity becomes visible, and key handovers and reconciliations are played out in slow motion. He pulls focus like a barman pulls pints — that is to say, for a living. Everything he does just seems so earnest.” But does it capture the brilliance of the Bard? Kate Kellaway of The Guardian believes so; “It’s a play that, when it works, casts a spell like no other, and this production… is magical.

It is hard to imagine the play more movingly performed. It’s a gift to eye and heart.”

29

Critique DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

Art T

he Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize at the National Portrait Gallery, London, is the leading competition to celebrate and promote the very best in contemporary photography from around the world. This year’s winner was London-based David Stewart, with his portrait of five girls eating sushi. The Telegraph writes of the exhibition: “Some are simply elegant.

Sophie Harris-Taylor’s glacial portrait of a male dancer from the Rambert Ballet School is a quiet masterpiece, while Norma, Teena Taylor’s graceful picture of a lady of a certain age, infuses late life with a gentle sense of fun. Other photographs find beauty - and character - in the most unlikely places. Sarah Lee brings a brooding noir air to a young man viewed through the rainy window of a Wigan fish and chip shop. And Ivor Prickett’s group

portrait, Amira and Her Children, captures the dignity of a family stuck in limbo in an Iraqi refugee camp.

There are disappointments. Benedict Cumberbatch looks gormless in Samuel Bradley’s monochrome study, and Gillian Laub’s The Obamas is too affected to charm.” Until February 21, 2016 Masters of the Everyday: Dutch Artists in the age of Vermeer runs at The Queen’s Gallery, St. James’s Park, London until February 14 2016.

The Telegraph was hugely impressed, art critic Alastair Sooke writing: “we marvel routinely at Vermeer’s skill and self-command, which upended expectations by refusing to embellish every last millimetre of his canvas with descriptive detail. Isn’t that strange? When it comes to taste, perhaps we are nothing but slavish robots, following the fashions of the

30

times… This truly is an immaculate, glowing exhibition, presented clearly and simply, in a surprisingly contemporary fashion, in a single large room, with stony whitewashed walls designed to imitate the interiors in the paintings themselves.” Art blog The Culture Concept write: “Dutch art of this period has always grabbed my attention from the first and has held it forever. It’s about the reality and the virtuosity attached to the brushwork, the celebration of everyday life and the composition, which is always masterful.”

A major retrospective exhibition - the first in the United States in more than 35 years and the most comprehensive ever mounted at New York’s Guggenheim Museum - will showcase the pioneering work of influential Italian artist Alberto Burri.

The Trauma of Painting esplores the beauty and complexity of Burri’s oeuvre, the exhibition positions the polarising artist as a central and singular protagonist of post–World War II art. Burri is best known for his series of sacchi (sacks), works with their angst-ridden surfaces of ripped and patched burlap, seams, and sutures. Far less familiar to American audiences are his subsequent series, which will be represented in depth at the comprehensive new Guggenheim exhibition. The New York Times writes of the exhibition: It presents an artist who is impressive less for the profundity of his work than for his consistency and his ideas, which remain very much alive even among young artists not familiar with his work.” Time Out New York says: “What distinguishes Burri’s compositions is his violent treatment of the canvas, which is often torn or spotted with holes burned through the surface. Unlike his contemporary Lucio Fontana, whose own slashed paintings were meant to suggest a theoretical space behind the pictorial realm, Burri’s efforts were cathartic—a way, perhaps, to deal with memories of a war still fresh at the time. Until January 6 2016

Critique DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

Books I

rish writer Kevin Barry has written an intriguing new novel about famed singer-songwriter, John Lennon. Set in the spring of 1978, years after he first founded the Beatles, an emotionally vulnerable Lennon is approaching 40-years-old - anxious and exhausted after years of relentless media scrutiny.

He travels alone from New York City to the west of Ireland, in a bid to both find himself and an island he spontaneously bought a decade earlier in Clew Bay, off County Mayo.

Charles Finch of the New York Times writes: “Beatlebone faultlessly captures Lennon’s acidic, selfloathing, yearning, weary side. (And his sense of humor, too, an essential element: ‘Do you have a reservation?’ a hotel clerk asks him. ‘I have severe ones,’ he replies, ‘but I do need a room.’) What Mr. Barry finds more elusive is the other part of John, which remained innocent enough to create the luminous songs he wrote throughout the 1970s.”

He adds: “What ultimately makes this a great novel is its author’s exploration of the ways that sometimes, in art, we do get to become each other — kind of.”

Laura Collins-Hughes of the Boston Globe agrees with Finch’s positive assessment, writing: “If you happen to be, like me, less than obsessive about the Beatles, don’t assume you’re going to shrug your shoulders at this novel. And if the dark linguistic intensity of Barry’s previous novel, ‘City of Bohane,’ makes you hesitate, there’s no need. Closer in spirit to Barry’s short stories, Beatlebone is glorious, savory stuff — part lark, part meditation, and a tiny part excavation. Lennon really did buy an Irish island called Dorinish; you can look it up.”

Elsewhere, The Hundred Year Flood is a début novel by Matthew Salesses, which details a young KoreanAmerican man’s journey to Prague.

The reader is unsure about whether the protagonist, named Tee, is looking

to escape or for adventure, but will eventually understand his fraught relationships and tragic history.

The New Yorker writes: “Falling squarely into the American Abroad Bildungsroman category, the book falters when it uses the genre’s staples: cryptic pronouncements by bewitching ladies, mysterious locals and locales.”

Goodreads is more favourable, describing Tee’s journey as a “beautiful and dreamlike story”, before writing: “Matthew Salesses weaves together the tangled threads of identity, love, growing up, and relationships in his stunning first novel.”

Futhermore, Sarah Vowell has produced sparkling copy about the American Revolution through the eyes of Marquis De Lafayette, a teenage French aristocrat. Lafayette In The Somewhat United States is set during the year 1777, and Vowell’s protagonist disobeys Louis XVI and 31

volunteers to help the American cause against the British.

David Brusie of A.V. Club commends Vowell’s “ability to write beautifully about history and, as the lengthly bibliography at the end of Lafayette In The Somewhat United States proves, research the hell out of her subject.”

He goes on to suggest: “The book is a little short on Vowell’s singular voice, and the lovably childish Lafayette could likewise use more appearances.

“These faults, however, are minor compared to the book’s intoxicating blend of humour and emotional weight. Vowell closes Lafayette with a stirring montage of scenes from Lafayette Park, a patch of grass that has seen protests by anti-war demonstrators, white supremacists, Students For A Free Tibet, Tea Party members, and homelessness awareness advocates.”

Art & Design DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

East meets West Ayah Al Bitar merges tradition and modernity with her innovative floor seating collection

AIR

WORDS : ANNIE DARLING

F

loor seating comes in a variety of styles, from the Japanese tatami mat to the Tibetan kneeling bench and Native American tipi chair.

Often decorated with soft throws and plump cushions, it’s no surprise this seating style has endured the test of time.

Upon graduating from Parsons The New School for Design in New York, Ayah Al Bitar founded her own design house in September 2014. She launched her first collection of floor seating cushions – Wisada – in May. Her sculptural floor cushion is a hybrid piece inspired by the Eastern and Western differences in transportation. Wisada is an original and distinctive shape, specifically designed to represent Al Bitar’s desire for gender equality. Each piece is an interfusion of the conventional male and female bicycle seat.

Unique in her concept and aesthetic, Al Bitar says: “My floor seating reflects the different social issues in Saudi Arabia, but from a very positive

perspective. Men and women are one; they are yin and yang.

“It’s important to create dialogue and discussion. My furniture does that metaphorically and literally.”

Explaining that Wisada is a floor cushion that works best in multiples, she adds: “As a collection, my designs allow people to sit around each other in a very comfortable, relaxed and informal manner.”

Retaining the culture of her native Saudi Arabia is paramount to Al Bitar’s design. Ayah Al Bitar Design House creates contemporary and practical furniture that’s relative to the Arab world.

“So much in Saudi has been modernised, even our food has changed,” she explains. “However, for some unknown reason, floor seating hasn’t been developed. As a furniture designer, I noticed that this was a potentially prosperous market.”

Saudi Arabia is defined by its rich heritage, religiosity, historical role as an ancient trade centre and vibrant 32

33

AIR

Each piece merges my life in Saudi with my experience in New York

Bedouin traditions. In addition to the country’s astonishing landscapes and natural beauty, Al Bitar is inspired by her country’s auspicious future.

“Growing up in Saudi; I loved it. It’s still my favourite place in the world.

There’s so much culture, but not many people are interested in redesigning or recreating our traditions so that they fit into our modern era.”

Saudi society has experienced tremendous development over the past several decades, yet many citizens have retained the custom of floor seating. Al Bitar hopes to continue this tradition, explaining: “About 70% of the population, myself included, sit on the floor in Saudi.

“There’s not much tourism in my country, and not many people have experienced our rich culture. I’m trying to bring it out to the rest of the world and show people internationally how inspirational Saudi is.”

For four years, Al Bitar had the opportunity to work in America with some of the finest minds in her field of study: “To have the opportunity to study abroad was life-changing. I felt that I needed to return to Saudi Arabia and bring something back. I went to America on a Saudi scholarship and felt it was my job to return and integrate what I learned abroad into our culture.”

Wisada is deeply influenced by American culture, both in design and

practicality: “In Saudi, the spaces are huge. I could’ve designed something bigger, but I wanted something that could fit into New York’s small spaces.

“Each piece merges my life in Saudi with my experience in New York. The collection is very much a reflection of my own self. While in America, I found myself changing so as to accommodate both cultures and places. New York is so diverse and there are so many people, I ended up being influenced not only by American culture, but Japanese culture too.”

34

Traditionally, the floor-level lifestyle of the Japanese meant there was no need to develop raised furniture.

A common characteristic of floor seating is simplicity. Unlike European furniture in which wood, metal and leather is used frequently, floor seating boasts few embellishments. Al Bitar challenges this custom, bringing contemporary luxury to an otherwise minimalist tradition.

Wisada seats are constructed in Dubai using Tempur and memory foam, resting on a thin sheet of plywood

to keep the seat stable. The original cushions are covered in specially treated leather from England, that’s water, sun and cigarette proof. The collection is available in 30 colours and each seat is light enough to be moved around. For added practicality, Al Bitar has launched smaller versions for children, in addition to models fitted with cupholders, which can hold drinks or act as ashtrays.

To ensure her designs offer unparalleled support and comfort, Al Bitar worked extensively with

a chiropractor and psychologist to perfect her designs, saying: “We looked into what it means to sit on the floor and how your brain functions. You’re literally grounded; psychologically and physically you’re more humble on the floor. You’re more relaxed, even if you don’t consciously feel it.

“We looked into creating the optimum height for the floor seating, so that there’s no tension in the neck, shoulders or elbows. The curve of the seating takes the shape and weight of your waist.”

35

Al Bitar recently celebrated the opening of her studio in Dubai Design District, where she unveiled her new winter collection, which is covered in brightly-coloured springbok hide, responsibly sourced from the plains of Africa.

Al Bitar’s next collection will be launched at the end of January, she reveals: “The new collection is still going to be very, very raw. It’ll be another floor seating collection, but this time it’ll be modified to make it even more practical.”

Art & Design DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

The Bold Collective AIR

Dubai-based design initiative, DRAK, draws attention to the city’s budding art district

O

ver the past decade, Dubai has been reinventing itself in order to meet the diverse demands of varied cultures and industries. Today, it’s a flourishing commercial centre – an affluent gateway between the East and West.

In conjunction with the booming business and tourism industry, Dubai’s design scene has blossomed.

Consequently, an ambition has emerged to make the UAE a global capital of art and design, a dream that has been cemented through the launch of Dubai Design Week and, with it, Design Ras Al Khor (DRAK).

Established at this year’s Dubai Design Week, DRAK is an annual collective design initiative. This year’s installation featured product design by Khalid Shafar, fashion by

Khulood Thani, a jewellery piece by Lebanese designer Nadine Kanso, an architectural pavilion by Tarik Al Zaharna and a dedicated food truck by David O’Brien.

The collective unveiled an inaugural project in the Ras Al Khor flamingo sanctuary, which explores wildlife preservation in the area. Co-founders aim to create a new exhibition each year, based on different topics. Shafar explains that this “helps support emerging designers and will encourage the design industry to grow in Dubai.

Designers need to be exposed to the world, and that’s the beauty of DRAK.” Shafar and his co-founders began developing the newly formed initiative earlier this year, around six months before Dubai Design Week, saying: “We had the idea for a good while before we 36

actually created DRAK. After Dubai Design Week was announced, we started actively putting things together.

This was around April. We thought it’d be a great idea to organise something among ourselves.

“We were inspired at the thought of a group of designers coming together – a group project showcasing individual stories under one roof. When we heard the news about Dubai Design Week, that’s when we knew we had to do something collectively.”

Held in partnership with the creative community Dubai Design District (d3), Dubai Design Week celebrates the city’s thriving art scene, with emphasis on collaboration. This year, international community gatherered to explore and celebrate local craftsmanship.

Thani believes that it’s important

37

38

AIR

DRAK is “open to the public” so art enthusiasts can share the inspiration behind their collections. “What’s amazing about DRAK is that it’s not only engaging for the designers. It’s also important to engage the younger generation and the general public; to encourage them to come and see what Dubai’s art and design scene has to offer.”

Dubai Design Week’s programme of design installations attracted various retrospectives from Middle Eastern countries and showed visitors what can be expected from the city in the coming years. This year, DRAK placed a strong emphasis on service, research and design development.

“We’ve had a lot of interest from academics, not only locally but internationally,” Thani reveals about DRAK. “This has been incredible and the feedback we have received has been brilliant.

“The design industry in Dubai is changing. When I graduated from school there was nowhere I could study fashion. I had to study marketing because that was the most creative topic I could study. There was no education for those who wanted to enter more vocational professions. Now, the whole country is leaning towards educating people about these fields. It’s

I believe that designers are the backbone of the ecosystem in Dubai part of an overall strategy, which I feel the country is really promoting.”

Ambitious plans are being made to turn more of Dubai’s desert space into a bustling hub of creativity and commerce. The main objective of DRAK is to draw attention to the Ras Al Khor industrial area, one of the oldest areas in the city.

“It is an area that most people don’t know a lot about. They don’t understand the potential of it,” argues Shafar. “Our main objective is to draw attention to the area’s future as a creative district.

“Overall, design is very new to the region, but I believe that designers are the backbone of the eco-system in Dubai. We create, we sketch and we

draw. This is something we need to celebrate and it became our mission to dig deep into the area.”

Learning from other creative communities throughout the world, d3 has developed an ambitious plan to draw creative talent to Dubai. Tecom and d3 management are planning to combine a commercial retail area with a creative community. They aim to open Foster and Partners – a creative community within the area – by 2018, and develop a waterfront development - a new Marina - to attract the wider public to the district.

Shafar says: “The speed at which Dubai’s design scene has developed over the last three years is staggering.

Especially in comparison to cities like 39

Paris, London, Milan and New York.

“However, we need to be careful about how we progress. We can grow much faster than we have been doing, and Dubai has great potential, but we need to be mindful about how we grow to ensure we have the right quality, the right production and the right outcome.”

Editor in chief of Architectural Digest, Manuel Arnaut, described working with DRAK as “an incredible and creative experience”, saying: “We have no doubts that the Ras AlKhor industrial area has enormous potential to stand out as a creative hub. We also firmly believe in the three concepts that this initiative advocates - Design Research, Innovation and Material Exploration.”

Jewellery DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

Under African Skies AIR

Gemfields operates the world’s biggest emerald mine in Zambia, Africa. Richard Jenkins investigates how the precious stones travel from hundreds of metres below ground, to the beautiful finished pieces of jewellery

40

G

eologists are snobs. I’m standing on the edge of the vast, 1.3km Kagem mining site in Zambia, listening to an expert talk about the lack of respect afforded to those working in the USA, Chile and Argentina – whose layers of rock only go back 40 or 50 million years.

It turns out there’s a lot I don’t know about rocks. I’ve been invited here

by Gemfields, who have operated the Kagem site by the Kafubu River since 2008 to learn more about why emeralds, and Zambian emeralds in particular, have recently enraptured the jewellery world.

The very fact that emeralds exist at all is a kind of geological miracle.

Around 1.8 billion years ago, seams of rock running horizontally hundreds of metres down in the earth were formed, called TMS (talc-magnetiteschist). Skip forward to a mere 500 million years ago, and vertical poles of a new substance called pegmatite start

It’s as if a spoon a mile wide has taken a chunk out of the earth working their way downwards. When the TMS running across and pegmatite running downwards cross paths, the reaction is magical – and emeralds are the result, whose green colour comes from the chromium in TMS. In order to prise these natural treasures from the earth, incredibly detailed topographical maps are produced of the area, which estimate where the TMS and pegmatite deposits can be found. Next, deep holes are drilled into the ground and long, tubular samples are removed and examined. Each hole costs the company around $300USD per metre of depth – and many of the drill holes are 200 metres deep. In total, more than 70km of holes have been drilled since 2008.

Once a suitable site is located, a mine is formed. Emeralds are produced in an open mine system, rather than tunnelling underground – it’s as if a spoon a mile wide has taken a chunk out of the earth. It takes two years of painstaking blasting and digging, with dump trucks endlessly trundling toand-from the surface, to even reach the level at which emeralds can be found, 41

Jewellery

AIR

DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

Opening pages: Aerial view of the Gemfields mine site This Page: Gemfields emeralds, pre-finishing Opposite Page: FabergĂŠ Zenya Emerald Pendant

42

The floor is glittering silver with a trillion flakes of mica, a silvery silicate that makes the floor look like a moonscape a hundred metres below the surface.

Kagem has several different pits in various stages of this process, which takes about five years in total.

130 metres below surface level, the mine walls soar upwards, like being inside an enormous football stadium with a bowl of blue-sky visible overhead. Our group is watching trained professionals armed with small picks and hammers expertly pluck rocks containing emeralds out of the surrounding waste. The floor is glittering silver with a trillion flakes of mica, a silvery silicate that makes the floor look like a moonscape, and it seems that emeralds could be beneath every rock. Once the stones have been found – at this point, they’re still largely encased in larger chunks of bland grey rock – they are placed into locked red canisters and sent for cleaning. The rocks are washed to rid them of any dusty residue, and then finally clipped by hand to remove any trace of excess quartz or biotite – leaving just shining green emerald behind. As a stone, emeralds are

relatively weak – if diamonds are a 10 on the Mohs scale of mineral hardness, emeralds only weigh in at around a 6.5 – so extra care must be taken.

The stones are then graded by quality, lustre and size, before being sent to auction. Certain stones, like the enormous “Elephant Tooth” remain on site until Gemfields can figure out what to do with them – this one stone is estimated to sell for about USD$6000 per gram, and it weighs 1.2kg. They also turn out blocks of stone that weigh a tonne and are so stuffed with emeralds, they don’t even chip them out – just cut the block into shape and sell it as a multimillion-dollar coffee table. Gemfields hosts four emerald auctions per year, and only sell the raw materials. It’s up to the buyers (often companies in India) to cut and 43

polish the stones, before selling them to companies who are buying emeralds faster than Gemfields can produce them. As the representative said, if the 1980s was the era of gold, and the 90s the time of the diamond, then we are the age of colour stones.

The Gemfields operation is very important for the local populace, and provides jobs for almost 800 men and women. Gemfields has also invested millions of dollars in building schools and a clinic for the surrounding area.

Once a mine has been fully worked, trees are replanted, and the idea is that when Gemfields ceases operations decades from now, there will be no evidence they were there at all – except for the countless pieces of exquisite jewellery produced thanks to their efforts, of course.

Timepieces DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

High and Mighty – Expedition Watches

I

t’s called ‘The Death Zone.’ At around 8,000 metres above sea level, the oxygen levels in the human body can no longer support life, and spending much time at such altitudes without protection is suicidal.

By comparison, most commercial jets cruise at an altitude of between 9,000 and 12,000 metres, not very far above Everest, while private jets often fly just a little higher.

The first name that comes to mind when one mentions Everest is Sir Edmund Hillary. Everest was first confirmed as the highest mountain on earth in 1856 by the Great Trigonometric Survey of British India. The first European to attempt a summit was George Mallory, as far back as 1921. Starting out from base camp, he left food and supply caches, and attempted the climb three times.

Driven back by icy winds, he had to give up.

After twenty years and at least nine failed attempts, it was Sherpa Tensing Norgay and Sir Edmund Hillary who finally, and officially conquered the top of the world on 29 May 1953, more than thirty years after Mallory. This was also the heyday of one of the most iconic expedition watches – Rolex. The intrepid team was equipped with Rolex Oyster Perpetual chronometers, and Rolex shared in the spoils of that momentous accomplishment, in terms of brand recognition. They helped sponsor the attempt, a wise choice, given the outcome.

TARIq MAlIk

A few days after the successful expedition, helmed by inspirational leader Col. John Hunt, the team returned to kathmandu to learn that both Hillary and Hunt had already been knighted. Tensing was awarded 10,000 Rupees, while the rest of the team received jeweled caskets and medals, as well as kukris (Nepalese blades) in jeweled sheaths. They were world famous, and so was Rolex.

Today Sir Edmund Hillary’s watch can be viewed in Zurich at the Beyer Watch and Clock Museum. It is still a very fine specimen, with the creamy white dial, the dagger hands and triangular-shaped indexes. It certainly has wear and tear, but that makes it all the more appealing, especially considering the journey it 45

has made. These watches were made especially for the expedition, and were never commercially available.

Afterwards they were sent back to Rolex for testing, and led to further improvements in the design.

Since 1953 Rolex has gone on to update the Oyster, Explorer, and Submariner, but remained true to its heritage. It remains one of my favorite collectibles. Made from 904l stainless steel, the case is like a vault, and doesn’t crack under tough conditions. The Rolex movement is legendary – a real workhorse, by any watchmaker’s standards. The patented Paraflex shock absorbing system has further improved an already resilient watch, and the rotor self-winding system is unbeatable.

Today you will find a great number of ‘adventure’ watches, featuring built-in GPS, altimeter functions, heart-rate monitors and all manner of new-fangled accessories. Few are mechanical, and although many are extremely well-made, you will need to go a long way to beat the king of the mountains – Rolex.

Every timepiece has a story, and what I enjoy about the vintage kind is that the stories are so much richer.

There will always be new peaks to climb, figuratively speaking, but it’s worth remembering the milestones that brought us to where we are today.

Tariq Malik is co-founder of the UAE’s only vintage watch boutique, Momentum. momentum-dubai.com

Timepieces DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

A Time To Shine

Bulgari’s ladies timepieces are looking to impress an audience that are keenly aware of what they’re looking for. AIR speaks with the Managing Director of Bulgari Horlogorie, Guido Terreni

AIR

WORDS : RICHARD JENKINS

M

ost high-end watch companies trade on their name, and often centuries of experience to back that name up. Of course there are exceptions to this rule, such as Richard Mille and Urwerk, but by and large most consumers tend to stick with the brands that have been creating exceptional timepieces since the 1800s or earlier. Bulgari certainly have the history – they’ve been producing exquisite jewellery since 1884 – but do they have the horological chops to back it up?

Guido Terreni, Managing Director of Bulgari’s watch division, thinks so – which is why the company can now focus on producing stunning new watches for ladies, an audience that is fast catching up with the men’s market when it comes to sales. He tells AIR about the changes he’s seen since joining Bulgari in the year 2000: “First of all we were not a manufacturer and now we are fully, so the industrial part and the knowhow has been a tremendous experience. And not just acquiring the knowhow but the best knowhow, because we start from the top.

“It’s also a truly different world outside Bulgari. If you think about

the early 2000s, the Japanese were leading the growth and it was a completely different world exiting the financial crisis in the 90s, so today it’s a completely different world apart from the media.

“The Chinese market didn’t exist and now is a third of the market, and you have Middle Easterns who are probably the nationality that best understands what the exuberance of Italian style means, in terms of how we are able to enjoy a rich creativity in terms of not understating the luxury, but expressing it fully.”

Many brands – think Richard Mille, Audemars Piguet and Hublot – have recently cottoned on to the fact that women are far more discerning in their watch choices than ever before, and have brought out watch lines to suit them. For Bulgari, with its long history of making women’s jewellery, the foundations for success were already in place. Terreni says: “Starting from Serpenti in 2010, we have really chosen a road not to do a ladies watch by downsizing a man’s watch which is what the industry does – we find that’s not the best way to address women.

“Ladies want a strong personality, and something unique. Serpenti for 46

Ladies want a strong personality, and something unique 47

AIR

The traditional way for manufacturers to approach ladies’ timepieces was to simply shrink down the men’s range 48

sure is the sign that opened the market to the Middle East, and Lucea is the second collection that is very important here. It was born a year ago and these two collections for ladies are the ones who came from the huge creativity, personality, and the seduction of the shape with this kind of object around your wrist.

“Lucea is also a strong personality for a woman that always wanted the DNA of a jeweller, because this isn’t a watchmaking bracelet, it’s a jewellery bracelet, but it can be worn every day.

It’s easier to wear than a Serpenti, that you need more guts to wear and these two are expressions of different ways of doing a watch. Then you have jewellery watches like the Diva that we’re just presenting now, which are more of a gentle expression in creativity for women that want to have the impression of a timepiece, but don’t want to push the creativity of the Diva.”

As Terreni has mentioned, the traditional way for manufacturers to approach ladies’ timepieces was to simply shrink down the men’s range.

For Bulgari, this has never been the case. Terreni elaborates: “Creativity is about feeling, no? Somebody creative is about what people feel, and the wind and the leaves. It’s because they capture 49

something that is very qualitative and very difficult to rationalise, so it’s very important to travel, to visit the markets – my designers go around quite a lot in understanding what’s asked for.

“I said before that the industry hasn’t understood this because they are really masculine. We have a team that’s very open to the outside world, but very knowledgeable about what the brand is.

My head designer entered Bulgari one year after me and we don’t need a brief any more - it’s an osmosis process now.”

While the ladies’ collections are all very different, they share design cues, and this is most apparent in the Serpenti and Lucea collections.

Terreni explains: “A woman looks at the object as a whole – they like it or they don’t like it that’s it, and we try to do a creative expression that’s very exciting.

We look for a ‘wow’ effect, which you can only do if you capture elements of iconicity that are true to yourself, and the Serpenti is one.

“The Lucea builds on the Serpenti, because the bracelet that comes from the same DNA, the crown is a tribute to the coloured gemstones where we are leaders in jewellery, so this inspiration really comes from inside ourselves – not outside influences.”

Style DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

Made In Italy AIR

Italian fashion giant Ermenegildo Zegna Group dates back to the 19th century. Annie Darling speaks to CEO Ermenegildo Zegna about the opening of their flagship store in Dubai

U

pon approaching the grand storefront windows, freshly framed with a façade of tempered glass, avant-garde sophistication radiates from within.

An elegant backlit – and unnecessarily oversized – ‘EZ’ monogram greets shoppers as they enter the modish store for the first time.

Ermenegildo Zegna, leading Italian fashion house and worldwide leader in luxury menswear, has opened the doors of its latest flagship store in Dubai’s Mall of Emirates. It’s unmistakable upon arrival; the inspiration of the store’s design dates back to the original fabric created by Angelo Zegna’s distinguished wool mill in Trivero, Italy, over one hundred years ago.

Angelo, a watchmaker by trade, started weaving wool in the late 19th century. Of his ten children it was his youngest, also named Ermenegildo, born in 1892, who founded what was to become one of Italy’s most celebrated family businesses.

The brand’s CEO, Ermenegildo Zegna, who prefers to be called Gildo, has held his prestigious title since 1997, having served on the Board since 1989.

Explaining that family involvement is one of the best investments a business can make, he said: “A family business is about values and commonalities.

It’s about believing in a project and developing it.”

Founded in 1910, the brand quickly gained a worldwide reputation for its impeccably high standards.

Specializing in high-quality men’s clothing hasn’t always been easy, and the brand is one of few European fashion houses that continue to thrive in the present day. What’s more, it’s still owned by the Zegna family, which is now in its fourth generation managing the business.

Gildo explains that his grandfather, Ermenegildo, “was a designer, he knew how to design a fabric.

“We have a saying in Italy that ‘a strong family makes a strong business’.

50

I think we are a good example of this. We believe in our family and we believe in our family business, which enables us to bring the company forward.”

Ermenegildo’s successful strategies were not limited to his professional life.

The brand is a standard of excellence for the entire luxury fashion industry because of his appreciation for the natural world. Throughout his career he strived to source the best quality natural fibers, directly from their country of origin.

Ermenegildo understood the importance and beauty of his environment and hoped to incorporate this into his products.

By celebrating this vision, nature and technology is harmoniously blended throughout the new Dubai store.

Occupying 254 metres of luxury retail space, formalwear, sportswear and accessories are all displayed within the single level boutique.

A masculine, ivory colour palette is tastefully accompanied by glossy rosewood, mahogany and dark metal.

In addition, gouged satinwood, antique

51

AIR

bronze and plain oak create an exceptionally luxurious and intimate atmosphere. Created by Zegna’s inhouse architects, the design is based on a creative concept developed by architect Peter Marino, for the Zegna Global Store in Milan.

Gildo has previously held senior executive positions within the Zegna Group – particularly in America, after extensive retail experience at Bloomingdale’s New York. A graduate in economics from the University of London, he also studied at the Harvard Business School. Gildo’s focus has remained on retailing and pioneering early entry in emerging luxury markets. “Those years went very quickly,” he laughs. “Our clientele is very international; he is a traveller.

He has his own profession – his own

We want to provide an extra service to our customers activities and hobbies. He appreciates quality, he likes Italian style and he has a personality; he knows what he wants.

He is well-informed; he goes on the web to research our products and then comes into the store with a particular request.”

In 1991, Ermenegildo Zegna was the first luxury men’s brand to open a fully owned store in China and the group has now expanded its network to 546 stores, of which 312 are fully owned in over 100 countries. Gildo argues that “travel and technology is changing the luxury market” and that consumer behaviour has evolved. It’s important for the brand to adapt to such trends and changes in circumstance. “I would say 50 per cent of the world’s luxury purchases are made by people who are travelling and shopping throughout the world.

“This makes it more difficult for us to target our customers. We have to spot their nationality, where they go, what they like; marketing has become a very scientific exercise. Nowadays your store doesn’t just host that city’s locals.

“The concept of globalization is really important; Ermenegildo Zegna has to have a global strategy, whether it’s the 52

merchandise, the window displays or the sales team.”

By “creating dialogue with the company’s customers”, Gildo argues the company will be better able to service their specific, international market. “We have Chinese, Russian and Italians working in our stores across the world. It comes together like a melting pot. These representatives need to be trained so they can predict our customer’s desires.”

This attentiveness is particularly evident towards the rear of the store.

Since 1972, Ermenegildo Zegna has been artfully crafting Su Misura – a bespoke made-to-measure service.

Gildo recently introduced Su Misura Casual Luxury, which is an extension of the popular service, offering an elegant range of casual and sportswear. Trench coats, leather jackets and premium cashmere jumpers are designed and altered with a personalised, contemporary twist.

“We want to provide an extra service to our customers and to give them a choice. Interaction has become even more important when we look at the development of technology and travel.

Dubai is such an important hub; both Dubai and Abu Dhabi are very important.

“It’s one of the best and most luxurious shopping capitals in the world. It’s a no brainer to come to Dubai, but I think the way we did it makes sense.”

The family-controlled company has a joint venture with Emirati conglomerate Al Tayer Group to manage Ermenegildo Zegna boutiques across the Gulf state. Gildo says: “Creating a partnership with Al Tayer, who have a very strong local influence, gives us the local knowhow that we needed to improve upon.”

It’s no secret that Dubai is renowned for its love of luxury labels. The UAE has quickly become a stirring alchemy of extravagance, splendor and ambition. A growing list of designer brands continue to fight for attention as the region expands its shopping malls.

Ermenegildo Zegna is hoping that their bespoke service and notable history will set them apart from the fierce competition. The brand is planning to open another outlet in The Dubai Mall by 2017.

53

AIR

RE MO 54

ODELLED At 37 and post-baby, Erin O’Connor is back on the catwalk. She tells Christa D’Souza about rebranding herself in the social-media age

55

AIR

Perhaps, had she not been a model, she might have been an actress

H

ow long should a supermodel take to spring back into shape after having a baby? For Erin O’Connor, who gave birth to her first child in July 2014, it was a good six months. In a way, she wished it had taken longer. “Having been a walking right angle most of my life, I felt blessed when I first got these five new bumps (baby bump, bosoms and bottom cheeks) and I wasn’t that willing to let them go. Being candid here, I was lucky that breastfeeding made my body decide to hold onto every last pound.”

The regally limbed O’Connor, 37, dressed in a long DSquared2 floral skirt, has just swept into the Café Royal, London, with her is her new(ish) agent, Jonathan. As he makes to sit down with us, she wonders — thank you, Erin! — whether he might be more comfortable at the next table.

No, he wants to be right here with us, a decision he may regret, because for the next 30 minutes we talk of nothing but babies and her one-year-old son, Albert. “Honestly,” she jokes, “if I weren’t his mother, I’d definitely be his stalker.”

“One of the best models in the world” — that is how Karl Lagerfeld describes O’Connor. Or as Jean-Paul Gaultier, another longtime fan, once pronounced: “She is quite like art.

She is like theatre.”

Gaultier is right. Beyond that pale, pale skin and noble Roman profile, she is way more than a model in her role as former vice-chairwoman of the British Fashion Council and as cofounder of All Walks Beyond the Catwalk, which campaigns for greater “individuality and diversity” among models.

The girl who was first scouted at the Birmingham Clothes Show in 1995 is back on the catwalk at an age when most models have long since retired, including walking for Giles Deacon at London Fashion Week, as well as for Michael Kors and Marc Jacobs in New York. “Can you imagine not working for someone for 10 years and then there they are, virtually on your doorstep?” she says. “But Marc hunted me down.

That’s how it works with him.” In July, she graced the pages of Italian Vogue, shot by Steven Meisel, and in the past few months there is hardly a fashion 56

brand that hasn’t ensured her presence at its parties and dinners, never mind their catwalks.

Born in the Midlands of England, the middle of three girls, and brought up by her mum and furnace man dad on a council estate, O’Connor, like her son, was tall from the moment she came out of the womb. By the age of 16, she was 6ft, with dark brown hair down to her waist, earning her the moniker Morticia. Though shy “with a tendency toward OCD” (she says a sense of order has always been crucial to her wellbeing), she was also a bit of a performer. “Just the way I deflected the extremity of my body was to make other people laugh,” she explains, the only trace of Midlands being the flatness of her As. “It was like, OK, you’re going to look? Well then, I’m going to put on a show.”

That sense of performance — she spent 10 years from early childhood to late adolescence studying ballet — has always infused her craft. Perhaps, had she not been a model, she might have been an actress. I’m thinking of all the great characters she has played on the

57

AIR

runway, Pete Doherty for Gaultier and the lunatic asylum lady for McQueen (remember that razor-clam ballgown she wore in 2001, clawing at the glass walls?). Didn’t she so perfectly evoke Diana Vreeland for Jacobs’s AW15 Garden of Hell show in spring?

“Oh wow,” she snorts, “I would be a phenomenally bad actress, because all my gestures are grand and quite static.

I miss that subtlety needed for great acting. Modelling is a brilliant medium for me. It’s almost a sanctioned loss of control, these short bursts of letting go, this temporary fleeting, which I mean every moment of when I’m out there, or in front of the camera — playing this persona who is somewhere between you and the client’s expectation — but then I come off and I’m fine. I don’t need it any more.”

This capacity to think of modelling almost as meditation on the move, or at least her capacity to compartmentalise, is probably what has kept her sane in the insane world of fashion. “Yup, manufactured poise,” she says. “That’s definitely what I have learnt over the years.”

Not that there haven’t been times when that poise has been slightly toppled. Like the fitting in Paris when a designer actually slapped her bottom and told her she was too big for a pair of trousers. Hurrah, Erin said, the trousers needed to be made bigger then, and walked out. “Look,” she says, “modelling is a tactile business. But that was inappropriate and something that should never be said to anybody.

At that moment it didn’t matter what they thought. It mattered what I thought of myself. I mean, I can part ways with people, but I’m always going to be with myself, aren’t I?” A self-help book, Life Lessons with Erin — that, surely, is what this magnificently sensible, articulate supermodel should be doing next. And indeed something along those lines, a sort of memoir of her modelling days, is in the pipeline.

“I mean, let’s hope there’s enough content to put in a book,” she says. “I’ve always wanted to identify with a wider audience, both in fashion and beyond, and this would be a way of doing it.”

She says social media, and Instagram in particular, has allowed her, for the first time, to be in charge of her own image, “to load the content and tell

the stories I want to convey”. (She has 31,000 followers on Instagram and posts a mix of quirky pictures and witty quotes such as: “Hey, sorry I’m late, I didn’t want to come.”) So it’s all part of the big plan, then, to be a brand? “Oh God,” she snorts again. “A brand!” And then, after considering this carefully, says: “I’ve always represented other brands, so to take ownership of myself as a woman, and work with brands on a collaborative basis — that feels like the right positioning. Finally.”

And how does she see herself in 10 years’ time, when she is three years shy of 50? Will she still model full-time?

“I love a challenge,” she says. “I love my career and I can only continue in this direction, which is to be how I am. Now that I know who that person is.” Another passion is weightlifting (yes, that’s how this fragile orchid got

It’s almost a sanctioned loss of control, these short bursts of letting go back in shape — pumping iron) and collecting vintage furniture, much of which is in evidence at the family home in Camberwell, south London. Think faux leopard upholstery and an ironbottomed freestanding bath — all very far from the “polite, beige” decor and double-glazed windows of her 1970s childhood. “I remember everything being quite new,” she says of the home she grew up in. “I think that’s why I now love things that belonged to people before.”

With her fortune — $18m at the last count — O’Connor can indulge in all the vintage furniture she wants, but would she consider herself extravagant?

“If you saw my Ocado shop, maybe you’d think that, but let’s see. Hmmm.

Extravagant? If you’ve worked so damn hard your whole life, you want tangible things to represent that. It’s definitely OK to be happy and have nice things. “ Which doesn’t bring us at all to her partner Gibson, an Irish businessman specialising in tech startups. Although O’Connor has always been quite secretive about him, one gets the impression that he has broad enough shoulders to play the Mr O’Connor role 58

with grace. Apparently he is also a great daddy. “I guess Albert loves a wrestle with his dad and a cuddle with his mum. But yes, of course he changes nappies.”

Back to babies then, sigh, and how sweet it was taking all that time out, and sitting for three hours in front of the TV and watching back-to-back episodes of Come Dine with Me while breastfeeding. And how, yes, she wants another (“Well, Albert needs a pal”), but maybe not just yet, because it’s hard to drag yourself back from that world into this one. “I remember one of my first jobs back was walking for Giles,” she says, “and although I was triumphant to be working and feeding at the same time, as I walked, I missed that feeling of gripping the pram. It had become my roving security blanket and without it I felt handicapped.

“But I knew it was a balancing act, and I knew I could do both. A defining moment was when I got these two emails in succession, one from Mothercare and one from Marc [Jacobs]. I looked at them listed on my laptop and thought, ‘That is the story of my new life.’”

59

MAGIC

MA

MIKE MI Michael Fassbender is mesmerising in his latest film, an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth. Can his magnetic presence provide the ultimate interpretation of the Bard’s legendary character?

WORDS : RICHARD JENKINS/THE INTERVIEW PEOPLE

60

AGIC

IKE

61

62

AIR

Y

ou may have your own opinions about how much of Shakespeare’s canon he actually wrote himself – most, all, or none of it, and with that decision comes the recognition that some of his most famous characters like Caliban, King Lear and tragic Macbeth might be the work of other unknown authors.

What is indisputable, however, is that regardless of who did come up with these characters, they have captivated audiences for centuries.

The bloodthirsty, relentlessly ambitious Macbeth is arguably the one character that actors most long to play, and Michael Fassbender steps into the role in the new film interpretation of Macbeth, in theatres this winter.

The Ireland born and Germany raised Fassbender has proven he can play menacing, unsettling characters – notably his scene-stealing turn in 12 Years a Slave – but, in keeping with his idiosyncratic career choices to date, says that taking on Shakespeare was never one of his ambitions. He says: “I had done Shakespeare in drama school and never really imagined that I would do a stage production or work on a film adaptation. It was quite accidental but I saw Macbeth as a chance to do something very different from my other work of late.”

That other work includes one of Terence Malick’s rare films, Weightless, as well as the Steve Jobs biopic directed

by Danny Boyle, in which he plays the titular genius behind Apple. Fassbender has appeared in low-budget horror films, box-office superhero smashes and thoughtful character pieces, never being shoehorned into one genre or another – and a high-profile Shakespeare role is a natural next step for a restless performer – usually, though, this would be on the boards 63

of Broadway, where actors feel they can truly test themselves. Fassbender refutes this, saying: “I wouldn’t consider myself a theatre actor by any means. I did some popular theatre, including an adaptation of Quentin Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs when I was around 18 years old. Playing Macbeth is a far more difficult proposition than anything I ever did in theatre when I was younger. [Speaking in iambic pentameter] was one of the more difficult aspects of mastering the text. I would keep repeating the lines over and over until I felt that I had mastered the rhythm. I approached Shakespeare’s text as if it were music, and you try to make the melody part of your speech pattern. But my thinking was that the rhythm is there to amplify the meaning and emotions of the words and in the process of acting I hope that I got the rhythm right.”

The new Macbeth movie doesn’t shy away from physical and emotional violence, which is where Fassbender’s brooding intensity made him a natural choice for the role. “It might be because I’m really mad myself!” he laughs, “But I’m not mad enough to allow that to destroy myself. But I think we’re all a little mad and it’s more interesting to acknowledge and portray madness than to ignore it. If you look at how we behave on this planet there is no doubt that madness is everywhere. When I look at the roles I seem to be drawn to, you can see something of a recurring pattern at work. I don’t know whether directors or producers see me as a tortured soul. Maybe they do! I guess I have that tortured look on me! I think it’s time for me to start doing more comedies. My parents are especially proud of my work. After I abandoned the idea of being a guitarist in a heavy metal band, they were rather nervous

AIR

If you look at how we behave on this planet there is no doubt that madness is everywhere when I told them I wanted to be an actor. They didn’t see it as a very secure profession. They were relieved when I finally started to have some success and now they’re retired and they often come to visit me on set. That means a lot to me.”

Fassbender occupies a curious role in the Hollywood A-list. He’s capable of making women swoon, and yet many of his roles are deeply complex, often unsympathetic characters you really wouldn’t want to spend any time with. The actor thoughtfully says: “I’m happy in my skin, and I never think about whether my characters are unsympathetic or tormented in terms of wanting to play those kinds of roles. I look at every part as a way of expressing different aspects of their humanity. I have no vanity when it comes to that. That’s what I love so much about acting - it’s the ability to submerge your ego into that of another person. And the whole notion of being

a sex symbol is a bit frightening and ridiculous - although it suits me!”

Away from acting, Fassbender uses his newfound success to satisfy his need for speed. He’s a big fan of motorsports, and recently travelled cross-country with his father via motorcycle. He says: “I love motorbikes and I also love karting. It’s an experience that is about as close to being in a Formula One race car that you can have without killing yourself.

I love the feeling of being so close to the ground - which is something you don’t get when you’re driving a car. I enjoy the sensation of the speed and the turns and the G-forces in karting even though it’s nothing compared to what Formula One drivers experience. Being on a motorbike and concentrating while you’re going as fast as possible is also a strange form of relaxation - your mind just adapts to what you’re doing and you stop worrying about everything else that’s going on in your life.”

64

65

AIR This Page: She wears: Red velvet jacket, Pucci; Long printed dress, Pucci He wears: Single breasted blazer, Thomas Pink; Pink shirt, Thomas Pink; Black pants, Emporio Armani Vehicle: Maserati Quattroporte GTS in Bianco

66

PLANES, CHAINS & AUTOMOBILES The elegant surroundings of Al Bateen Executive Airport’s new VVIP terminal are the best place to travel privately in style PHOTOGRAPHY: ADAM BROWNING-HILL STYLING: NATALIE HARPER HOWELL JEWELLERY: DAMASJEWELLERY.COM

67

68

AIR

Opposite Page: He wears: White stretch shirt, Emporio Armani; Camel sweater; Emporio Armani, Navy jeans, Emporio Armani; Shoes; model’s own.

She wears: Sweater with

This Page: She wears: Sweater with multicolour fur sleeves, Emporio Armani; Emotion Pink Ring and Emotion Purple Ring, Fabergé; Rose Gold Charm Necklace with Charms, Fabergé

multicolour fur sleeves, Emporio Armani; Wide leg check wool pants, Emporio Armani, Strappy mini sandals, Jimmy Choo; Rose Gold Charm Necklace with Charms, Fabergé

69

AIR This Page: She wears: Emerald green shift dress, Pucci; Gold Lorelai pumps, Jimmy Choo; Alix Sapphire Ring, Fabergé; Zenya Sapphire Egg Pendant, Fabergé Vehicle: Maserati Quattroporte GTS in Bianco

70

71

AIR

This Page: He wears: White shirt, Emporio Armani; Grey blazer and pocket square, Emporio Armani Opposite Page: She wears: Long patterned dress; Pucci

72

73

AIR This Page: He wears: Black leather biker jacket, Emporio Armani; Stripe shirt, Thomas Pink; Red sweater, Emporio Armani; Navy chinos, Emporio Armani Vehicle: Maserati Quattroporte GTS in Bianco 74

75

76

This page: Boho purple mirror leather mix cage sandals, Jimmy Choo; Leather yellow and navy handbag, Pucci

Previous Page: She wears: Blue chiffon blouse and matching palazzo pants, Pucci; Rose Gold Charm Necklace with Charms, Fabergé, Rose Gold Charm Bracelet, Fabergé; Rococo Pink Enamel Rose Gold Wide Ring, Fabergé

77

Motoring DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

A New Inspiration The new Rolls-Royce Wraith ‘Inspired by Film’ edition pays tribute to the carmaker’s influence on moviemaking

AIR

WORDS : RICHARD JENKINS

78

79

AIR

T

hey’re a creative lot, the folks at Rolls-Royce. Every new model you try out, there’s some little touch or other that will surprise or delight – be it the glowing constellations picked out by LEDs in the roof upholstery or a solid silver (and gracefully retractable) Spirit of Ecstasy on the bonnet.

They need to be creative, too, as Rolls doesn’t bring out new cars very often. The mainstays of the brand – the Phantom, Ghost and Wraith models – were released in 2003, 2010 and 2013 respectively, with only minor iterations and tweaks (extended wheelbases, Drophead editions and so on) to keep the models fresh and give collectors something new to add to their fleets.

The baby of the stable is the Wraith, and its ‘Inspired by Film” model is the latest of these modified editions, currently available to Rolls-Royce customers in the Middle East for a limited time. AIR was granted a test drive of one of these formidable coupes, to inspect just how different the experts in Crewe could make a Wraith from its base model, to something celebrating all of Rolls-Royce’s history in film.

The answer, happily, is quite a lot. A custom two-toned Silver and Jubilee Silver paint finish makes the first and most immediate impression as you slide behind the steering wheel, with the gleaming bonnet stretching away into the middle distance, where that solid silver, hand-cast Spirit of Ecstasy points the nose of the car in the right direction. The interior is welcoming, smooth and stately – buyers have a choice of Anthracite or Seashell leather seats, and the owners of earlier-model Wraiths will note with envy the unique ‘Inspired by Film’ treadplates and clock, another touch of exclusivity.

Everything about the car is designed to evoke a filmic emotion. The silver of the exterior references the silver screen, the interior suggests a superhero’s costume, and the Spirit of Ecstasy is the ‘leading lady.’ You get the idea. The company has a long heritage in the film industry, and has had leading roles in many iconic films including Goldfinger (1964), The Yellow Rolls-Royce (1964) and The Great Gatsby – both the 1974 original and its Leonardo DiCapriostarring remake in 2013.

To really push the idea home, a launch

film was made to celebrate the new model, titled And the World Stood Still.

The film won a Gold Award at the 26th International Visual Communications Association Awards, which caught the attention of the British Film Institute’s Senior Curator for Non-Fiction films Patrick Russell, who considered it such a striking piece of contemporary cinematography he decided to include it in the BFI’s coveted National Archive.

Russell said: ““We are delighted to see Rolls-Royce’s Wraith launch film enter the BFI’s collection. We selected it for preservation as it is an outstanding and award-winning example of modern corporate promotional filmmaking. It’s a powerful use of the film medium for product launch purposes, executed with impeccable craftsmanship.”

The film is well worth seeking out. As an introduction to Wraith as the most powerful and technologically advanced Rolls-Royce in history, it was executed with precision. Filmed at a secret location near Barcelona, the shoot included an innovative “Timeslice”

Everything about the car is designed to evoke a filmic emotion sequence created with 100 SLR cameras and the longest purpose-built camera rig in Europe. Stylistically, the Wraith took centre stage in a shadowy world of opulence and mystery, in a noirish drama.

With all this fanfare and rigmarole, of course it would be a disappointment if the Wraith ‘Inspired by Film’ didn’t live up to its star billing. Thankfully the performance more than matches the drama of its styling, and this Wraith is the most powerful car Rolls-Royce has ever made. A shorter wheelbase, wider rear track and fastback body use a twin turbo v12 engine with 624bhp to propel the car from 0-100kph in 4.6 seconds, in the comfort and elegance synonymous with the brand.

The engine purrs throatily even when pushed, and at no point does the acceleration feel laboured – there’s no snap to achieving full throttle in the way you’d find in a sports car – but of 80

course, that’s not why you opt to drive a Rolls-Royce. Torque and acceleration is as smooth as silk, like a private jet approaching takeoff speed so gently you can’t even tell when the wheels have left the ground. For a big car (although admittedly small in comparison to other Rolls-Royces) the Wraith is remarkably nimble, able to leap into gaps in traffic and fit into parking spaces with ease.

In any other industry, you would look at minimal changes to a core product with distrust, a cynical ploy to wring money from the consumer with minimal effort on the manufacturer’s part. In this instance, though, it’s easy to see why Rolls-Royce has created this masterpiece. The brand has the history, the pedigree and the sheer creativity to take something familiar and give it a new spin. There should be room in your garage for one of these exclusive, elusive and fascinating models.

81

Gastronomy DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

Star Man Tom Aikens was the youngest British chef to ever be awarded two Michelin stars, at the age of 26. He talks to AIR about his philosophy, earning accolades at such a young age, and his future plans in the Middle East AIR

WORDS : RICHARD JENKINS

T

he name ‘Tom’s Kitchen’ may sound unassuming, homely and the kind of thing you’d find on the corner of a suburban English street, producing sandwiches for office workers’ lunch hours. Behind the name, though, is a fiercely passionate, relentlessly innovative series of restaurants across London founded by Tom Aikens, a 45-year-old chef with a unique perspective on cooking. From his first restaurant’s opening in Chelsea in 2006, Tom’s Kitchen has had a steady rise to the very top of fine dining lists across the world, with outposts in Istanbul and Dubai and much more to come.

Aikens found almost immediate success as a chef, which all stemmed from a love of food as a child. He tells AIR: “For as long as I can remember – probably the age of 8 or so – my twin brother and I were helping my mother out in the kitchen. She would involve us in making cakes and home baking, or just weighing things out, but we were always on hand to help to lick out the

occasional sticky raw cake mix that was left in the bottom of the bowl.

“Living in Norfolk, we had a large back garden where we grew a lot of our own fruits and vegetables. As a result, from very young I got to learn about seasonality and how to grow and cook great produce. I must have been approximately 13 years old when I seriously decided to become a chef.

I was terrible at school and knew that I did not want to be stuck in an office behind a desk.

“As a result, I left school at 16 and enrolled at Norwich City College Hotel School, one of the best catering colleges in the UK. An Advanced Catering Diploma later, I went straight to London and sent my CV to about 30 different hotels and restaurants.

Everyone came back with the same answer –‘Sorry not enough experience, try again in three years’ time.’

“David Cavalier was the first one to give me a position in his Michelinstarred restaurant in Battersea, London. I had to work for free for the 82

first six months before he would give me a job. I then went onto work with a whole host of different chefs in London and France, including Pierre Koffmann in London, Joel Robuchon in Paris and Gerard Boyers in Reims. At the age of 26 I had the great honour to become the youngest British chef to be awarded two Michelin stars.”

Working underneath true culinary greats like Robuchon and Koffman was as educational as it was intimidating.

Aikens recalls: “Pierre Koffman and Joel Robuchon were two chefs that really shaped my career, but both very different chefs. One was all about the flavours and tastes on the plate, whereas the other was really about the precision and details, and of course tastes as well. They both also had amazing produce. So my style is a bit of both of them, to be honest.

“I love the intricacy but it has to have the good flavour as well. I also admire chefs like Paul Bocuse, Alain Ducasse and the Roux brothers. Not only have they revolutionised the industry with

AIR

their cooking, but they are also great businessmen.”

London is an integral part of Aikens’ personality, and his cuisine. Each of his London restaurants offers something subtly different – the original outpost in Chelsea is located in a stunning building in a fairly residential area, the Somerset House location is in the middle of a tourism hotspot, St. Katharine’s Docks is something of a hidden gem with marina views (a rarity in London) and Tom’s Kitchen Canary Wharf is in the heart of the City district, feeding the wealthy financial sector. And they all share one thing – Aikens’ desire to use the best to become the best. He says: “In addition to my true passion for food and cooking, it took a lot of determination, hard work and self-belief. I had to be patient and persevere as sometimes working as a chef involves taking steps backwards and forwards to get to where you want to be. Moreover, I believe that setting the use of fresh, seasonal produce and the best locally sourced suppliers as my two top priorities were well received as people are increasingly concerned by what they eat today.

Of course, no chef worth his salt these days can have a brand without expansion across the world, and Aikens is no different. Earlier this year his new concept Pots Pans and Boards opened in Dubai’s JBR Beach Walk, and Aikens is pleased with its progress, saying: “It received a lot of good reviews and it has a great location, right by the beach. I do believe that it responds to a developing demand for more casual and welcoming restaurants, offering simple yet delicious food in Dubai. It was very rewarding to attend the opening of this new venue as I literally came up with the whole concept from scratch.

It was amazing to see it become reality after staring at it on a presentation for months. It is even better looking than I thought it could be. I am in discussion for new openings in Dubai and in other cities in the Middle East. It is a very dynamic region where it is exciting to be present as a chef.”

Tom’s Kitchen has restaurants in Chelsea, St Katharine Docks, Canary Wharf and Somerset House tomskitchen.co.uk

Of course, no chef worth his salt these days can have a brand without expansion across the world, and Aikens is no different

Top row, left to right: Charcuterie; Hand dived scallops; Cornish duck breast; Ricotta. Middle row, left to right: Treviso and trickory salad; Lamb rump; Juniper salmon; Roast monkfish tail.

Bottom row, left to right: Crème brûlée; Truffle tagliatelle; Baked alaska; Roast Yorkshire pigeon.

All food photography: David Griffen.

Travel DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

Pursuit of Powder

AIR

This winter, experience massive snowfalls, unrivaled terrain and the ultimate adrenaline rush

86

T

raditionally the reserve of the fortunate few, untouched snow and breathtaking vistas are now in abundance at Kazbegi, Georgia.

As we arrive at the precipice of a new winter, the promise of pristine power is just too tempting to resist. For ski enthusiasts, there’s no better way to enjoy the world’s most popular winter sport than with the thrill of a private helicopter ride.

Tucked away in the mysteriously wild Caucasus Mountains, Design Hotels member Rooms Hotel Kazbegi has created a bespoke package in partnership with Gudauri-Heliskiing.

Heli-skiing remains the top choice for many skiers and boarders, as it offers better snow and challenging topography. From power-packed glades to arduous chutes, heli-skiing assures untracked powder all day, every day; in addition to the sensational beauty of

87

repeated helicopter rides.

The exclusive seven-night heli-ski packages from January 23 – March 19 host a maximum of 16 people per tour.

Guests enjoy unlimited heli-skiing with experienced mountain guides, and specialised deep powder ski equipment is supplied upon request. Rates start from EUR6,990 (AED27,300) per person, based on two sharing.

This remote, sophisticated 156-room retreat is the very first of its kind in Georgia. Its geometric structure, crafted by Tbilisi-based design studio Adjara Arch Group, boasts rustic wooden décor, spacious balconies and plush leather furnishings. After a hard day skiing, relax in front of a crackling fireplace before visiting the hotel’s cosy restaurant, which serves traditional Georgian cuisine.

For reservations and additional information visit designhotels.com/ rooms-hotel-kazbegi

What I Know Now

AIR

DECEMBER 2015 : ISSUE 55

Michael F. Shaw

Founder, Franklin luxury liFestyle consultancy

O

ver the years I’ve had many mentors and people who have given me valuable advice.

However, one lesson in particular has helped me on numerous occasions.

My dearly departed godfather (who was a gentle, but persuasive man) taught me why it is important to always smile in the face of adversity. This lesson has turned around many tricky situations.

It’s important to me that I experience life. Every day brings new challenges, and let’s face it, a life without them would be dull! Life’s too short to be

bored, so when the challenge has gone, find another and get what you desire out of life.

For me, being frank and truthful is the best way forward. It leaves people in no doubt of your commitment, intentions, abilities and drive. On occasion it may, unfortunately, upset. Nonetheless, in the long run it’s the best way forward.

And as the years roll on, you can always develop ways to soften the blow.

People say “thanks” in a million different ways, but they may never say the word. Despite this, you know when

88

you have made a person’s life seamless.

Busy and focused achievers need to maintain their line of sight. Don’t worry about small issues; focus on the big ones.

At Franklin, we focus on the solutions we offer our clients. In the future, I hope to see Franklin expand, but retain the same extremely high standards of service and level of discretion we have in place today.

It’s crucial that we continue to embody our founding principles, which have cemented Franklin within the industry.