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Contents MAY 2019: ISSUE 96
EDITORIAL Editorial Director
John Thatcher Managing Editor
Faye Bartle Editor
Chris Ujma christopher@hotmediapublishing.com
ART Art Director
Kerri Bennett Senior Designer
Hiral Kapadia Illustration
Leona Beth
COMMERCIAL AIR
Managing Director
Victoria Thatcher General Manager
David Wade
david@hotmediapublishing.com Commercial Director
Rawan Chehab
rawan@hotmediapublishing.com
PRODUCTION Production Manager
Muthu Kumar
Thirty Eight
Forty Four
Fifty
Fifty Six
Delving into the trials, tribulations, tenacity and talent of Tolkien actress Lily Collins
What links a Tiffany light, postcards, and Swan Lake? The Costume Institute goes ‘Camp’ to explain
A new exhibition delves into Stanley Kubrick’s movie mechanics, inspecting the clockwork of his genius
An exclusive peek at the stages of Chanel’s Look 77 – one of Karl Lagerfeld’s final fashion pieces
Lily Logic
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Happy Campers
A Director’s Odyssey
She’s Got The Look
Elegance is an attitude Simon Baker
Conquest V.H.P.
Contents
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MAY 2019: ISSUE 96
Fourteen
Thirty
Timepieces
Motoring
Sixty
Sixty Eight
Phillips: Photographs hunts down more auction records, with an assortment of fine snaps on sale in May
The retro-styled Calatrava Weekly Calendar represents a 2019 watchmaking win for Patek Philippe
A final supercar fling with the Lamborghini Aventador SVJ, as the road-legal rocket enters its swansong
The Four Seasons DIFC is a slice of serenity amid the bustle of Dubai’s prestigious Financial District
Twenty Four
Thirty Four
Sixty Four
Michelle Kingdom took the outlier art tradition of embroidery, and wove her emotion into the medium
The majesty of high jewellery and intricacy of couture combine in Tatiana Verstraeten’s collections
At Dubai’s The Pointe, Mathieu Viannay dreams up a fine dining experience with a unique point of view
Radar
Art & Design
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Jewellery
Travel
Gastronomy 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. HOT Media Publishing does not accept liability for omissions or errors in AIR.
Dubai - The Dubai Mall / Abu Dhabi - The Galleria Mall, Sowwah Square
Welcome Onboard MAY 2019
Welcome to AIR, your personal guide to Al Bateen Executive Airport, its people, partners, developments, and the latest news about the only dedicated business aviation airport in the Middle East and North Africa. We wish you a safe journey wherever you are going, and we look forward to welcoming visitors to Al Bateen Executive Airport to experience our unparallelled commitment to excellence in general, private and business aviation.
Al Bateen Executive Airport Contact Details: albateeninfo@adac.ae albateenairport.com
Cover: Lily Collins. Andrew Eccles / AUGUST
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Al Bateen
AIR
MAY 2019: ISSUE 96
Welcome to World-Class
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From humble beginnings in the 1960s when it served as Abu Dhabi’s first main airport, Al Bateen Executive Airport (ABEA) is now the only exclusive business aviation airport in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region – a world-class luxury aviation service facility aiming to meet and exceed the expectations
of business travellers from all around the world. With the 1982 opening of Abu Dhabi International Airport just 32km outside the city centre, ABEA underwent its transformation into a military air base the following year. Military operations continued until 2008, when Abu Dhabi Airports took
www.albateenairport.ae
Al Bateen MAY 2019: ISSUE 96
over its operation and developed it into a world-class executive airport. Over a 50-year timespan, ABEA’s wealth of experience, under both civilian and military management, facilitated its smooth transition to what European Business Air News (EBAN) named the Second Best Executive Airport in the World in 2013. The award – and the many accolades since then – mark a remarkable ascent for the airport, which enjoys a strategic position within reach of major businesses and leisure facilities at the heart of Abu Dhabi city. With a stand capacity for up to 50 private jets served by efficient 12
turnarounds, ABEA upholds its excellence in air traffic and ground management operations through its partnership with Munawala, a proprietary fixed-base operations (FBO) service provider. This unique offering provides a single point of contact for all requirements and a full range of competitively priced FBO services. ABEA maintains an unwavering commitment to delivering a worldclass passenger experience. As the region’s only exclusive business aviation airport, it always welcomes travellers from across the globe to its unrivalled location with warm Emirati hospitality.
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INTRODU CING THE NE W
Radar
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MAY 2019: ISSUE 96
Phillips: Photographs has an eye for the exceptional: over 100 world auction records have been set by this leading auctioneer and, in London on 16 May, it will look to add to the count. The pre-sale catalogue highlights the department’s eye for diversity: from a dynamic portrait of Naomi Campbell (taken by fashion photography great Steven Meisel), to a minimalist black and white landscape of the English Channel horizon, by Hiroshi Sugimoto. Phillips Photographs auction takes place on 16 May, in London. phillips.com
Opposite: Naomi Campbell, New York City 2019, by Steven Meisel. Est: GBP35,000 – 45,000
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Film Late Night Dir: Nisha Gantara A legendary late-night talk show host’s world is turned upside down when she hires her only female staff writer AT BEST: “It’s a charming, intelligent movie with a lot of heart and, naturally, some killer jokes” New York Post AT WORST: “It’s telling that The Devil Wears Prada, the closest thematic comparison to Kaling’s scenario, feels more fearless and timely, even though it’s 13 years old.” Time Out
The Third Wife AIR
Dir: Ashleigh Mayfair II A young girl in 19th century rural Vietnam becomes the third wife of a wealthy landowner, soon learning the reality of her few life choices AT BEST: “Deals with harrowing subject-matter in a restrained, tactful and aesthetically entrancing style.” Hollywood Reporter AT WORST: “Mayfair reveals the consequences of injustice in their tense brutality, despite never relinquishing her handle on the aesthetic beauty housing those horrors.” The Film Stage
The Biggest Little Farm Dir: John Chester A documentary charting a couple’s development of their sustainable farm on 200 acres of land outside of Los Angeles
AT WORST: “Audiences won’t watch it and go back to the land. But they might come back and see it again.” Screen International
Clara Dir: Akash Sherman An astronomer meets an artist who shares his fascination for the wonders of space – leading to a profound astronomical discovery AT BEST: “...Like Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar, [this film] provides storytelling that pays so much time to the science, while also providing a very human narrative.” Much Ado About Cinema AT WORST: “The well-acted Clara lacks clarity, and there’s nothing worse than an out-of-focus telescope.” Globe and Mail 16
Images: Amazon Studios; Serendipity Point Films; NEON; Film Movement
AT BEST: “Has the power to give birth to a new generation of inspired farmers, determined to invest in the future of the planet.” Film Journal International
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Critique MAY 2019: ISSUE 96
AIR
Theatre
Hadestown at Walter Kerr Theatre. Photo by Matthew Murphy
“H
ere’s my advice: Go to hell. And by hell, of course, I mean Hadestown, Anaïs Mitchell’s fizzy, moody, thrilling new Broadway show,” enthuses Adam Feldman for Time Out, of the musical which shows at Walter Kerr Theatre on an open run. “Ostensibly, at least, the show is a modern retelling of the ancient Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice: Boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy goes to the land of the dead in hopes of retrieving girl, boy loses girl again.” Marilyn Stasio says in Variety, “Although the production has lost some of the electricity that goes with playing in the round... What it loses scenically – namely, a visual sense of the arduous nature of the hero’s journeys – it makes up for in other ways.” Purrs Greg Evans in Deadline, “With an ending as moving as anything on Broadway – and for hades’ sake, don’t leave before the cast finishes its one-surprise-left curtain call –it stands alongside Daniel Fish’s Oklahoma! and Bartlett Sher’s To Kill A Mockinbird as this Broadway season’s visionary triumvirate, looking to the past and feeling undeniably, stirringly now.” 18
“If anyone could play Hillary Clinton, it’s Laurie Metcalf – and here she is... giving a performance that feels painfully honest and true,” asserts Variety of Hillary and Clinton, at John Golden Theatre until 21 July. “And if anyone could capture Bill Clinton’s feckless but irresistible charm, that would be John Lithgow... The characters stand up. The language is strong. But like Claudius’s earnest prayer to his resolutely unimpressed God in Hamlet, nothing said by either party reaches the heavens.” Writes Adam Feldman for Time Out, “The play, in effect, is a public offering of a private Hillary. This Hillary is strong but hurt, and understandably frustrated with Bill and his baggage... she is flustered, cutting and profoundly sympathetic.” Peter Marks in The Washington Post opines, “Nevertheless, they’ve persisted. And how? And why? These thoughts and questions form the thematic basis of Lucas Hnath’s riveting portrait... an enduring, turbulent marriage that we on the sidelines have spent decades trying to figure out.”
In Sweet Charity, “Josie Rourke bows out at the Donmar Warehouse with this Andy Warhol-styled take on the classic musical, starring an ebullient AnneMarie Duff,” explains Andrzej Lukowski for Time Out. “This is her last show at central London’s most bijou theatre, and if any hapless bean counter tried to stop her spending whatever the hell it cost to give all the programmes embossed silver plastic covers, then let me tell you: they failed.” Susannah Clapp depicts in The Guardian, “The Donmar glitters in a Bacofoil bonanza; it also features gold balloons, and sparkly cutout letters. At one point a troupe of Andy Warhol lookalikes... scissor across the stage. It’s overwhelming. But there is a point. Our heroine swims in flashiness but is hoisted above it by hopes of love.” Praises Sam Marlowe in Metro, “Duff’s not a crack singer or dancer, but her voice has a gorgeous, husky soulfulness. With her eyes brimming with pain and longing... she’s a survivor; her dogged hopefulness giving her a dazzling radiance. This is a show of grit and glitter. Just like true love, it sometimes hurts – and it’s fabulous.”
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Critique MAY 2019: ISSUE 96
Books
AIR
T
im Cook: The Genius who took Apple to the Next Level, is author Leander Kahney’s “praise-filled yet also critical one-decade performance report on the Apple CEO,” writes Kirkus Reviews. “Kahney’s book is no rags-toriches, blow-by-blow timeline of Cook’s life. While that element is present, the volume is more a study in comparisons: Steve Jobs was this way, here’s how Cook differs, and here are the sum effects of those differences. While Jobs cast his shadow as the innovative big-tech dynamo, Cook cuts quite the contrast as the reserved, privacyloving believer in ethics, equality, and environment.” John Voorhees at MacStories says,“The early chapters of Cook are by far my favourites... Kahney visited Cook’s hometown and spoke to people who knew him growing up.... The interviews are paired with Cook’s own words from speeches he’s given in the past, which is effective in portraying events that have shaped everything from his work ethic to his perspective on diversity.” Dealerscope, in its review, writes, “Whether you’re a fan of Apple’s products or not, [this] is a very engaging, quick read that pulls back the covers on one of the most interesting and influential companies of all time.” The memoir Notes from a Young Black Chef by Kwame Onwuachi (the executive chef at Kith and Kin and owner of the Philly Wing Fry franchise in Washington, DC) “Is engaging and well crafted,” says Michael Kleber-Diggs at Star Tribune. “The narrative is largely chronological, and Onwuachi’s life is so full of adventure and fascinating detours that the story never drags. The memoir is written with restaurant critic Joshua David Stein, and while the seams between one writer and the other aren’t evident, there are moments when emotional urgency seems diminished by an arm’s length presentation.” Kirkus weighs in that, “Recipes following each chapter show the range of Onwuachi’s talents while [he] is forthright about the
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obstacles he faced: kitchens ‘poisoned by racism’... Grit and defiance infuse a revealing self-portrait.” Onwuachi “Might have called his memoir ‘Making It’, suggests Jonah Raskin at New York Journal of Books. “The book is also majestic when the author chronicles the lives of his peers from the projects in the Bronx who are locked ‘in the prison of no opportunity.’ The story of his climb up, with its attendant pitfalls, is masterful. The closer to the top, the more the story falters. Readers might linger over the first half of this book, turn those pages slowly and savour the spicy stew that the author serves.” “Saying anything is the ‘best ever’ is a dicey proposition. Everything is subjective, right?” quizzes Newsday’s Jason Diamond of Best. Movie. Year. Ever. “Brian Raftery looks to convince readers that the final 365 days of the 20th century were, well, the best movie year ever... The films from that year – The Blair Witch Project, Star Wars: Episode I, The Phantom Menace, American Beauty, Being John Malkovich and about a dozen others – may not have changed how movies were made or packaged or talked about on their own. But together, as Raftery shows in this painstakingly researched, highly enjoyable book, 1999 is pretty stiff competition.” Recalls Barbera Vancheri, for Pittsburgh Post-Gazette,“The book is subtitled How 1999 Blew Up the Big Screen; a takeoff on what he calls the internet’s ‘preemptive critics, who would look at a lone leaked costume photo or read a secondhand review of a trailer and immediately declare BEST. MOVIE. EVER.’” Kirkus Reviews say the book “Offers plenty of interesting trivia – e.g., Brad Pitt’s then-girlfriend, Jennifer Aniston, shaved his head for Fight Club. Other interviewees include Reese Witherspoon, Kirsten Dunst, Steven Soderbergh, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and ‘the man who played Jar Jar Binks.’ It’s fun, light entertainment for devoted moviegoers.”
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Art
Arles Abend Deep, 2017 by Sean Scully. Fondation Louis Vuitton, Paris © Sean Scully. Photo: courtesy the artist
“B
e in no doubt. Scully is a phenomenon,” writes Rachel Campbell-Johnston for The Times, (as a preamble to her review of Sea Star – Sean Scully, at the National Gallery until 11 August). “A newly released biopic tells the story of a boy who, born to an impoverished family in Dublin and brought up rough in south London, rose to artistic fame through the sheer pugilistic power of his selfbelief... We find him shuttling... to his international openings in a private jet.. We watch one of his canvases fetching a million at auction. Yet he remains relatively overlooked.” “This show, like Scully, is highly recommended,” says Martin Gayford for The Spectator. “It’s a beautiful exhibition of a magnificent painter.” Clarifies Eddy Frankel in Time Out, “You’ve got two options. You can either try to read a bunch of hefty conceptual meaning... or you can take them for what they are: big bloody stripy paintings. The second approach sits a bit more comfortably with me. He’s a blustery, no-nonsense painter, smashing out the abstraction without too much fuss.” 22
“The artist’s lush, detailed images are filled with aloof, snooty, art school layabouts. The real dregs of creative society; blue rinse beauties and hip young things in vintage sportswear... It’s like being at the worst party in Camberwell ever,” quips Time Out’s Eddy Frankel of Chloe Wise: Not That We Don’t, at Almine Rech London. “But they are really good paintings. Wise has an incredible skill, and a wonderful compositional eye. All these soft young faces are surrounded by bodies; lost, isolated in seas of humans. Each figure is somehow totally alone despite the humanity and affection they’re engulfed in.” Says Maelstrom, “For someone so young, Wise has already made a serious name for herself in the art world. She’s made fans far and wide with her work that plays largely on themes of consumer culture and social media trends.” Vulture writer Jessica Pressler interviewed the artist: “Wise’s social-media following skyrocketed, and she started getting offers from brands asking her to model or wear things on Instagram. ‘It was weird because I was kind of embraced
by the fashion world at the same time I was critiquing it,’ she said.” “It is more than four decades since William Eggleston insisted that fineart photography didn’t have to be black-and-white...” recalls Alastair Sooke in The Telegraph review of 2¼, at David Zwirner until 1 June. “Today, of course, Eggleston’s pictures no longer flabbergast anybody – if anything, in our era of smartphones and social media, in which ephemeral colour photography is so ubiquitous, it is surprising that his work seemed startling as recently as the Seventies.” Chris Waywell explains in Time Out that, “The title refers to two and a quarter inches. Medium-format cameras use 2.25in square negatives. You can blow them up real big, and the quality is amazing... These pictures, taken in 1977 are as glowingly, troubling beautiful as any of his work, doused in a light that’s sweet and sickly as barbecue glaze.” Reports Louisa Buck in The Art Newspaper, “When asked why he never captioned his photographs, he replied: ‘Words and photographs don’t mix. You cannot express the meaning of a photograph in words.’”
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Art & Design MAY 2019: ISSUE 96
“T
he art sphere reflects the complexity of our time, with innumerable entry and focal points. Embroidery is creating inroads within fine art, though is still underappreciated and undervalued,” reflects Michelle Kingdom, contemplatively choosing her words as she does each of her carefully-placed threads. “My own work doesn’t easily fall into an established art category. I am not part of a movement. I work in isolation, and have found a supportive audience mostly by happenstance. I’m trained in drawing and painting yet I’ve pursued another medium with the visionary approach of an outsider,” she adds. It feels an odd approach to quiz an artist about why, more often than not, their niche is neglected by the wider art world. But in this case, it’s a way of unspooling why Kingdom’s majestic miniature masterpieces should be admired. Still, Kingdom admits that the obscurity of embroidery was a place in which to find creative shelter, and she started out by creating in secrecy. “I never showed my work to anyone because I didn’t think it would be of interest,” she shrugs. “So often, textile work was overlooked as mere craft, and needlework especially was fraught with stigma. It was for grandmothers or colonial school girls; small in scale, fussy, domestic, nostalgic, and deemed irrelevant. This was precisely why I adored it and found it to be the perfect channel to tap into the murky world of the psyche.” An art lover who grew up in a “creative house”, Kingdom studied drawing, painting and traditional fine art at university in the early 1990s, when the art world “Was dominated by work that was oversized, highly conceptual, ironic and impossibly clever. It mostly left me cold and I never thought art was a viable career path,” she recounts. “I dabbled in various textile mediums on my own, and it was around that time that I started creating these odd, tiny stories in thread.” Those early pieces were mainly “A safe refuge off the judgmental radar of the ‘serious’ art world”, Kingdom confesses. “It was a chance to create something solely for me. I fell in love with figurative embroidery immediately. Something about it was primitive,
From the Periphery The woven vignettes of Michelle Kingdom have made an underappreciated art medium her own realm WORDS: CHRIS UJMA
Opposite: Primavera, 2019 Above: Without Question, 2018
strange and awkward, which struck me as compelling, raw and honest; there was something beautifully fragile, odd and otherworldly about it. Figurative embroidery seemed tailor-made for expressing secret thoughts.” Years later, she defines her contemporary output as, “An exploration of psychological landscapes; an attempt to illuminate thoughts left unspoken or that are unable to be expressed adequately with words. By creating tiny worlds in thread, I hope to capture elusive yet persistent inner voices. Symbolism and allegory examine the juxtaposing dynamics of aspiration and limitation, expectation and loss, belonging and alienation, truth and illusion.” While appearing as dreamscapes, it is literary snippets, memories, personal
mythologies, and art historical references that all inform the imagery. She looks to medieval manuscripts, ancient art, symbolism and outsider art for inspiration. As for the technique, sometimes Kingdom has a clear concept from the beginning, but more often has several vague images and ideas that she wishes to investigate. Her stitching is done with a “dense, intuitive, fluid approach and each piece stays in flux until the very end,” she explains. “More and more I move away from traditional stitch technique and prefer to play with intuitive ways to recreate the genre. Fulfilling a fixed idea in my head doesn’t interest me because it is the process that I find intriguing.” Through exhibitions her work has risen to prominence, and Kingdom’s 25
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Opposite: The Descent of Beauty, 2018 Below: All in a Row, 2019 All images courtesy Michelle Kingdom
We live in a time where everything is made by machines or exists in thin air, and for some there is a longing for handmade, tactile and personal work earlier point – about the tangible, ‘touch me’ appeal of her work – serves as an antidote to the constant interact with cold, tempered glass screens. “The last few years have seen a more positive reception to fibre,” she confirms. “We live in a time where everything is made by machines or exists in thin air, and for some there is a longing for handmade, tactile and personal work. What has traditionally been perceived as ‘women’s work’ and a dying art holds a kind of nostalgia and exoticism. It is ironic because part of fibre’s success is due to our contemporary fascination with social media and online forums.” Indeed, Kingdom’s stunning pieces have drawn a sizeable online following: Instagram posts of her finished works, 100s of hours in the making, draw (emoji-laden) gasps of appreciation for this authentic, time consuming craft. “The myopic lens of the internet draws viewers in and equalises what may have previously been overlooked,” she relishes. “It highlights the intricacy and depth of mediums that the established art world has long ignored.”
Still, there’s also a timeless appeal of viewing art in person: the irresistible opportunity to study up-close every brush stroke, contour, or in the case of Kingdom’s work, every considered stitch. This month her latest show, Peripheries, graces the bG Gallery in Santa Monica. Yet given the miniature nature of her pieces, she admits that manipulating the scale of a white walled gallery space is “a challenge.” The artist shares, “Part of what initially drew me to embroidery was the minute intimacy, that requires leaning in to hear it whisper. I find my work hangs most successfully when it embraces the contradiction between my work and the space, between the cloisters of the interior world and the expanse of the stark gallery walls. It requires the viewer to slow down and take pause, or not participate at all.” It allows for deep dialogue to accompany the deft design, too, building a construct around each little scene. “I made a conscious effort to accurately explore my evolving state of mind for this show. The overriding feeling was a kind of weary descent,” she divulges about the theme. “That
youthful feeling of staying up all night, believing everything was important and imminent and bound for a prompt flurry of resolutions... but then things just slowly trail away in the dark hours before dawn. That feeling when the party is finally over – when the last guests leave – when you are alone with all the stains and residues of the night before.” Thus the theme Peripheries took shape: “The outermost edges. The boundaries. The circumference. It is a space occupied on the outskirts, deemed relatively minor. Irrelevant. It is the area in which nerves end. It is all that is visible outside of your focus. The oblique narrows of the mind’s eye.” It is from the creative fringe where this artist emerged, and the beauty of her work is coming into focus – justly attracting both collectors and social media clicks. Using both thought-provoking narrative threads and actual thread itself, Michelle has unquestionably made embroidery her very own corner of the art kingdom. The solo exhibition ‘Peripheries’ is now showing at bG Gallery in Santa Monica. For details, visit michellekingdom.com 27
OB JECTS OF DESIRE
AIR X ROGER DUBUIS
With a special series of its Excalibur, Roger Dubuis ‘dares to be rare’ by drawing inspiration from the coveted Huracán supercar
OB JECTS OF DESIRE
ROGER DU BU IS
THE E XCALIBUR HUR ACÁN COLLEC TION In 2005, Roger Dubuis debuted its distinctive Excalibur timepiece – a watch that soon became synonymous with bold design, as well as an ability to house even bolder haute horology complications. A decade later, Italian marque Lamborghini unveiled its sensational Huracán – a stunning V10 supercar capable of
blistering acceleration. Today, the crisp form and elite function of these two icons combine in an adrenaline-fuelled Excalibur release; a series of timepieces imbued with the virtues and expertise that have earned Roger Dubuis the coveted Poinçon de Genève – the Hallmark of Geneva. 1
OB JECTS OF DESIRE OB JECTS OF DESIRE
ROGER DU BU IS
E XCALIBUR HUR ÁCAN PERFORMANTE / YELLOW Roger Dubuis and Lamborghini first joined forces in 2017, and the pair are pioneers geared for success: both embrace code-breaking design, driven by a passion for their respective craft. So too, the Excalibur timepieces represent the best of both ingenuity and indulgence, tactile
masterpieces to be admired. The materials alone are a statement of intent: titanium casing keeps these skeltonised timepieces feather light, hour and minute hands are PVD coated gold, while the bi-material strap has a soft Alcantara inlay, with the titanium clasp incorporating a ‘quick release’ system. 2
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OB JECTS OF DESIRE
ROGER DU BU IS
E XCALIBUR HUR ACÁN PERFORMANTE / RED These 45mm timepieces are distinctly Excalibur, yet harbour clever design cues in homage to the Huracán – from the hexagonal details, right down to the crownb (shaped like the nuts affixed to a race-ready wheel). The aesthetics of the movement itself are also inspired by the
automotive world. The self-winding rotor on the rear of the watch is designed like a supercar wheel rim, while the mechanism is engineered to mimic its engine – with air intakes across the openwork dial, a life cell protection unit, and strut-bars akin to those found on the real V10. 5
OB JECTS OF DESIRE
ROGER DU BU IS
E XCALIBUR HUR ACÁN / BLUE The beating heart of the Excalibur Huracán Collection – the masterfully crafted RD630 – is special indeed, marking the second calibre developed in partnership with Lamborghini Squadra Corse. The timepieces are driven by this automatic calibre, which comprises 233
components and 29 jewels. A key technical development is the balance escapement sitting at a 12° angle; an incline that sounds slight, yet makes a marked difference in accuracy, over time. The calibre’s twin barrel power supply allows it to reach a power reserve of 60 hours. 6
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OB JECTS OF DESIRE
ROGER DU BU IS
E X C A L I B U R H U R A C Á N / P I N K G O L D & T I TA N I U M ‘Dare to be rare’ is the ethos that defines this Swiss watchmaker’s spirit, and the Excalibur Huracán Collection certainly emulates that, with a racing aesthetic backed by sensational watchmaking performance. When Lamborghini’s visionary engineers join forces with these
incredible watchmakers, a magical synergy always occurs – for instance, the Roger Dubuis name is proudly bestowed upon the supercars themselves, during the Super Trofeo track series. In the horology stakes, the result is a suite of limited edition timepieces that truly set the pulse racing.
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ROGER DUBUIS Regional Stockists Dubai Roger Dubuis boutique Grand Atrium, Ground floor, The Dubai Mall Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons Burj Al Arab Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons Mall of the Emirates Abu Dhabi Al Manara Int’l Jewellery The Galleria Mall Saudi Arabia Roger Dubuis boutique Kingdom Tower, Riyadh Ali bin Ali Watches & Jewellery C Center Mall, Riyadh Ali bin Ali Watches & Jewellery Jameel Square, Jeddah For a private viewing, please contact +971 4 3308228 (UAE) or +966 112111285(KSA)
Timepieces MAY 2019: ISSUE 96
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Forever and a Day The retro-styled Calatrava Weekly Calendar by Patek Philippe taps into the wider horology trend for steel cases – yet pioneers with an innovative new complication WORDS : CHRIS UJMA
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n the watchmaking world right now, stainless steel cases are ‘c’est populaire’ (as they might say in Geneva). Of late, collectors have developed quite a proclivity for this metal as a ‘daily wearer’ on the wrist – and swimming with the tide, a host of major horology brands have busily released timepieces in sumptuous steel. Still, at the upper echelons of haute-anything, it’s fascinating to see how the world’s best artisans interpret trends in their own unique way. Addressing the tendency toward steel, Patek Philippe has arrived with a strong horology offering in its 5212A-001 Calatrava Weekly Calendar.
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Stylistically, the manufacture has turned back the clock with a retro-look timepiece, and its instantly distinct detail is the handwritten text on the dial; among a slew of Baselworld 2019 releases (from both Patek and its rivals), the nostalgic typography alone ensured this self-winding timepiece stood out at the Geneva-based fair. Patek Philippe president Thierry Stern explained that the designer’s handwritten typeface reminded him of his old school calendar: thus the decision was made to implement it, over a more formalised font. Aesthetically there is nod to history in this round-cased watch’s design; the new Calatrava is inspired by the
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The performance-optimised 5212A Caliber 26-330, which premieres in this timepiece, is the apex of reliability
All images: Patek Philippe 5212A Calatrava Weekly Calendar
one-of-a-kind Ref. 2512, which was first created by the brand in 1955. The 2512 was actually also produced in steel, and this was a feather in Patek’s cap at the time – for most, limited production methods of the day made steel too complicated to work with. The brand’s coveted sports watch, the Gérald Genta-designed Nautilus, was a steel stronghold at that time. With a present day scarcity of those steel Caltravas to satisfy collectors, the 2019 iteration will likely be in high demand. (In a casual, postBaselworld video recap, Hodinkee founder and respected watch savant Ben Clymer revealed, “I can tell you, based on feedback from a few retail friends, that the demand for this watch is ‘bananas.’”) The 1955 original had a large, 46mmsizing, and a sign of the modernity of this travel-friendly interpretation is its more restrained 40mm case size. Remaining with aesthetics, the dial is worth further inspection. From centre-out, the four facets indicate the day, week number (up to 53), date and month, while the indexes are, in fact, blackened 18k white gold. “Stacking the five hands [hours, minutes, sweeping seconds, day and week] was a technical challenge,” admits Philip Barat, Head of Watch Development at Patek Philippe. The truly modern element is the Calatrava’s all-new new function for calendar watches: a semi-integrated mechanism which, in addition to the day of the week and the date, displays the current week number.
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The latter detail holds more functionality than it may first seem. The timepiece could have particular appeal, for instance, in numericallyinclined cultures such as Sweden where weeks – among other measurements – are referred to by number. (For orientation, this month’s edition of AIR was printed in Week 18 of the year). Meanwhile, the need for a 53rd week inclusion is due to an additional week occuring every five to six years; the Calatrava’s timely release date of 2020 (a year when the extra week pops up) will cater to this occasional calendar quirk. Powering the timepiece is the 5212A / Caliber 26-330, which has a minimum of 35 and a maximum of 45 hour power reserve, and also caters to unidirectional winding. Barat describes the “performanceoptimised” movement which premieres in this timepiece as “the apex of reliability.” A friction spring, just one of the changes, “reduces seconds-hand chatter,” he explains. “Friction costs torque and energy.” In all, it’s an idiosyncratic release from one of the masters of the dress watch, and though historically inspired, the 2019 Calatrava is a bold direction for the fabled brand (which, along with Audemars Piguet and Vacheron Constantin, is among the ‘Holy Trinity’ of luxury watchmakers). Granted, the omission of precious materials means that the new steel Calatrava may not be the rarest of them all, but it’s easy to see how this charming Patek release has left industry observers ‘week’ at the knees. 33
Jewellery MAY 2019: ISSUE 96
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Delightful
Disruption How the fledgling maison of Tatiana Verstraeten is re-energising haute joaillerie with the elegance of couture WORDS : CHRIS UJMA 34
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arallels drawn between my work and couture probably arise because my pieces are designed to merge with the body,” says Tatiana Verstraeten. “Like a dress, they’re made to be worn – to be enjoyed, not to stay in a window. They move and come alive on the body. I design an aesthetic – not an object,” outlines the Belgian-born founder, who launched her brand during Paris Couture Week. Her work, she enthuses, “Is inspired by everything – but not jewellery. I’m influenced by the extraordinary volume of work of Alexander McQueen; by nature; by sophisticated embroidery from Lesage (the Chanel atelier)...” The latter influence is of particular note. Not to anchor Verstraeten too much to her past, but gosh, what a prestigious past it is: part of her background experience was honing high jewellery skills under the watch of the late, great Karl Lagerfeld. “He somehow taught me to trust my own creative instinct, to honour my differences and to try not to belong to a ‘trend.’ He also taught me to shape my ideas into something very generous, luxurious and magnificent,” she remembers, fondly. Verstraeten embraces the lineage. When asked about striking it out on her own – and having to develop a signature look for her namesake maison – she considers, “I guess my style is quite influenced by my background in fashion/ costume jewellery at Chanel. At that time, I could create big volumes, with all kind of materials, production was swift and the Chanel ateliers and craftsmanship were amazing, and I could really test any ideas I had: creativity had no limit. Consequently, nowadays in the high jewellery world, everything is different with precious material as it’s slow, complex and expensive to create. However, I have been trained enough to challenge shapes and forms and take creative risks, and I like to do so while maintaining the very essence of high jewellery tradition.” What sets her maison apart from its Place Vendôme neighbours, the designer has observed, is that “Today the grandes maisons mainly opt for the ‘anonymous studio’ of creation – with no identifiable ‘head of design’, such as with those associated with their fashion arm.” (She does note Dior’s Victoire de Castellane
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I like to create sizeable pieces but without being choking or clownish – because elegance is crucial as an exception; “She actually began her career in the same way as me, starting as a fashion designer at Chanel”). In general, though, Verstraeten feels the historic jewellery houses, “Are starting to focus on entry-price pieces and must have branding. I’m going the other way: I want to design strong splendid pieces and sign with my name, revealing the designer – and the mind – attached to the collection. I think people want splendour, but also to know who is behind the scenes.” Without a century of history as a foundation, the founder had to steel herself for the competition. “The high jewellery business is an industry where you fight with very few maisons, as compared to fashion, but encounter real heavyweights,” she admits. “They have enormous marketing budgets – an enormous weapon to stop you. I hadn’t exactly understood the full force of that, back when I started out with my ideas and my passion.” She has armed her brand with an arsenal of sublime haute jewellery to fortify the hubris, including her fringed earrings: “My signature piece. I feel they are remarkable, but without being boastfully shown-off, and the style really suits every woman of every age. They’re magnificent against grey hair, cut short, and are a style I’ll revisit every season.” Within the five collections (thus far: Barbara, Vienne, Rain, Stars and Tzigane), the Barbara necklace is truly a statement maker. “It’s a complex volume
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to shape because it adorns the shoulders like a feather boa, seemingly not touching the skin,” says its creator. “From a production sense it’s also a nightmare, because the volume had to be cut in numerous pieces, moulded, and brought back together like a puzzle. It’s very challenging to shape the form you want.” Of the brights sparks that have accompanied her meteoric ascension, Verstraeten cherishes seeing her jewels “Come to life upon a woman. My favourite conversations are when women tell me how fantastically beautiful and special they felt wearing my jewellery – when all eyes were on them.” She “dreams” of designing a piece for Beyoncé, or to see Sharon Stone wearing one of her creations, and vows do more red carpet wondery with the likes of Natalia Vodianova, Zoë Kravitz, Charlotte Casiraghi, Cara Delevigne, and Adwoa Aboha. Verstraeten recalls a pre-event instance with Phantom Thread actress Vicky Krieps. “At first she was afraid that the volume of the piece might be too big for her, but as soon as she wore it, she loved it,” the jeweller recalls. “After all, I like to make sizeable pieces of jewellery; outstanding, but without the need to be choking or clownish – because elegance is crucial. I find inspiration from women themselves, and I only think about how to embellish their beauty.” Spoken like a true couturier, one might say.
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Fame is in the family for Lily Collins, however she is forging her own path – with personal experiences that have shaped both her character, and those she portrays INTERVIEW: LUCY ALLEN ADDITIONAL WORDS: CHRIS UJMA
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t’s been a busy year so far for Lily Collins. The actress, model and writer kicked off 2019 with the premiere of the Ted Bundy film Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile at the Sundance Film Festival. She then stopped off at the Television Critics Association press tour in California to promote the TV miniseries Les Misérables in the US, while this month, Collins is back in the spotlight, staring alongside Nicholas Hoult in Tolkien – a new movie about The Lord of the Rings writer. “Because I filmed three things back-to-back last year, now they are all seemingly coming out at the same time,” she laughs. Collins, the daughter of musician Phil Collins and Jill Tavelman, was born in England but moved to the USA before she turned six and, now 30, resides in Los Angeles. Initially, she went to University of Southern California (USC), attending for Broadcast Journalism before changing to Communications. Of her formative ambitions, she laughs about wanting to be, “The youngest talk show host – and my love of journalism comes from my love of meeting new people. Writing is just a way I get to explore that, while still acting. I never wanted to fully close the door on journalism, even though I’m following the path of acting now.” While she is a published author (more on that later) she diversified into acting as a career avenue, and parental nurturing played a role in guiding her toward a career playing characters. “My love of acting just came from when I was younger,” she reminisces. “My mom and dad would read books to me before bed, as a lot of parents do, and I would just kind of disappear in this dream world in my head, I guess, about what the movie would look like. And my dream became to take people with me on that journey and become those people.” Now, in adulthood, she loves “Getting to learn more things about myself with the characters that I play,
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whether that’s a fairytale princess, or a literary heroine, or someone that feels closer to home to me, or someone who’s completely foreign. I think I choose characters that are going to teach me a lot about myself along the way, and that will challenge me.” Does she prefer television or movies? “It’s completely different,” she admits. “Les Misérables was really great because it was a six-part miniseries, so it felt like a mini movie each time we filmed. Even though we didn’t have a huge budget, the production value was just incredible. So everything felt of quality – almost a film in and of itself. And I liked that you got to really live and breathe the character for longer than a movie would allow. But I still love movies. So I think now there’s less of a line between the two. I think so many actors are doing both, because so many amazing characters are on the small screen, and they have such epic qualities.” The acting route led to her attendance at Sundance Film Festival back in a freezing cold February (not her first appearance at the Utah-based event). “It was really fun this year,” she says. ‘I went up for only one day of press, dressed really warm, ended up not needing my jacket as much as I thought – because when I was there two years ago, it was like a white-out snowstorm. So this year was relatively tame,” she smiles. “I ran into so many friends and it’s a very interesting pocket of experience at Sundance. Everything happens within such a small space and everyone’s freezing cold. It’s camaraderie. And to attend in order to show a movie that is controversial, in the sense of its subject matter… Well, Sundance is an amazing platform for storytellers to talk about things that perhaps other places wouldn’t risk.” There, she bumped into other old friends: “People that you see in passing, and it’s a reunion of sorts; a very casual festival.
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Interview: Lucy Allen / The Interview People. Images: Getty Images
Everyone is just there for the love of their project or movies.” However she has her fair share of high-profile associations on set itself, having recently worked with Zac Efron on Extremely Wicked… as well as David Oyelowo, Dominic West and Oscar-winner Olivia Colman in Les Mis. West, (she concurs with Keira Knightley), “Is wonderful… He’s such a jokester. We’d be shooting these intense scenes and he would lighten it up so much in-between takes, but also just switch into an intense vibe right away,” while Colman, “Is just so lovely and warm and funny. So to see her play this character, to switch it on and off between takes, was wonderful to witness. She has a wit and a charm and a nurturing quality that are so rare.” A “big thing” for Collins, is “Watching how people interact with the crew – it’s not just the cast, the crew are the ones who are there before you and leave after you; they’re the ones that make it all possible. I feel so fortunate to be able to work on sets where there is no difference between cast and crew; everyone treats everyone equally, and it really sets a good, positive vibe on set.” But her life is not all cinema sheen, nor has it always been; Collins is accustomed to challenge – personally, as well as professionally. Yes, she has a famous father, but hers is not a storybook road to fame – as her first literary outing, titled Unfiltered: No Shame, No Regrets, Just Me, attests. The book delves into her experiences of addiction and eating disorders. “Both of my parents were really proud of me for writing it, for being brave to go do that,” she says. Collins found the process, “Extremely therapeutic. I learned so much about myself in that process and I think it allowed me to come to terms with a lot, and to dig deeper into things that help me now with character work. It allowed me to let go of a lot as Lily, but also gain a lot of knowledge for every character that I play from thereon out.”
Of the book’s outreach, she ponders, “Everyone has their own journey and their own process, and I think writing about it was just a very therapeutic way for me to be introspective about my journey. Also, knowing how it didn’t only affect me butalso my peripheral friends and family. I better understand the domino effect.” Though the writing process and book release were cathartic, she is not one to impart guidance simply because of the journey she travailed. “I feel like I’m not one to give advice,” Collins confesses. “It’s hard, because I’m someone that just knows my own experience. People have come up to me and asked for advice, but I do say I’m really not one to give advice.” The experience of ‘letting go’ has stood her in good stead when it comes to shutting off from character, and returning to herself. “Luckily, I’ve not yet had the problem of taking things home with me,” she reveals. “I think I like the idea of entering into that work space, becoming that character and that person, and then leaving that behind at the end of the day. It helps me compartmentalise more. But that being said, I also use my surroundings to help better the development of the character.” She thinks back to filming the gut-wrenching demise of Fantine, still sharp in her memory from the making of Le Mis. “When we started, it was in the dead of winter. There is a scene where I’m being dragged through the streets, and it was minus 13; it was snowing; it was the dead of night. I had no hair; there was no warmth; there was nothing. So, for me, I couldn’t necessarily not take some of that home, because it was just freezing where we were, and it was quite a depressing part of the story,” she explains. “But I do everything I can just to go back to being ‘me’, be it FaceTiming friends or anything like that. I crave that separation. I think it helps me stay more sane”. 43
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When it comes to sneakers, Simon ‘Woody’ Wood has insane obsession with every nuance of the 100-year sports shoe boom; he’s an encyclopedia of every collab, custom, limited edition and retro reissue. It all started with a scheme to get pairs for free WORDS: CHRIS UJMA
CAMP The Costume Institute delves into the parody, pastiche and theatricality of camp, exploring how this once private code has been embraced by mainstream style in myriad ways
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“T
o talk about Camp is to betray it”, posited Susan Sontag in the introduction to her seminal and controversial essay on the topic. The late American writer penned her Notes on ‘Camp’ back in 1964, and it was a sensation. As her first contribution to Partisan Review, the prose served as a comprehensive pulse check, an explanation of subtext, a charting of camp's evolution, and secured Sontag intellectual notoriety. Her essay took the form of 58 notes, and included a list of "random examples of items that are part of the canon of Camp" – among them Tiffany lamps, Aubrey Beardsley drawings, Swan Lake, certain turnof-the-century picture postcards, and the Cuban pop singer La Lupe. “At the time she wrote her essay, camp was largely ‘a private code’ and ‘a badge of identity’ among small urban cliques,” explains Andrew Bolton, the curator of a current exhibition at The Met, which is using Sontag’s insight as the axis for an immersive investigation. It changed the privacy of camp “irrevocably,” he elaborates. “She essentially catapulted camp into the mainstream, where it’s remained ever since.” 46
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Sontag wrote that if you look at art through camp eyes, a Caravaggio painting has the same visual appeal as a Flash Gordon comic
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At the press introduction to the exhibition, held at Teatro Gerolamo, the curator noted that, “The word camp first entered the hallowed and sanctioned ‘space’ of a dictionary – Ware’s Dictionary of English Slang and Phrase – in 1909. The entry read: ‘Actions and gestures of exaggerated emphasis. Used chiefly by persons of exceptional want of character.’” There have been moments when camp has come to the fore “to become the defining aesthetic or sensibility of the times, reflecting the zeitgeist,” says the fashion expert. “The 1960s was one such moment, as were the 1980s, and, arguably, the times in which we’re now living.” He told The New York Times that "Whether it’s pop camp... high camp
or political camp – Trump is a very camp figure – I think it’s very timely." This year The Met is grabbing the bull by its feathered boa. For starters, it has selected ‘camp’ as the theme for its annual Costume Institute Benefit: the showstopping society-soiree also known as The Met Gala, held on 6 May. Previous themes have been as diverse as ‘China: Through the Looking Glass’, ‘Manus x Machina: Fashion In An Age Of Technology’, and ‘Rei Kawakubo/Comme des Garçons: Art of the In-Between’. This time, the invitation-only attendees have been tasked with capturing the parody, pastiche and theatricality of camp. Then there is the immersive exhibition titled Camp: Notes on Fashion, made possible by Gucci, which serves as the topical reflection behind the red-carpet regality. “It’s an examination of how fashion designers have used their métier as a vehicle to engage with camp in a myriad of compelling, humorous, and sometimes incongruous ways,” Bolton enthuses. A simple understanding of camp’s far-reaching influence could be gleaned simply by reading the line-up of the designers whose ensembles will be featured. They include heavyweights
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Opening Pages: Ensemble by Jeremy Scott for House of Moschino, SS18, courtesy of Moschino, United States; Alessandro Michele for Gucci, FW16–17, courtesy of Gucci Historical Archive Previous Pages: Bertrand Guyon for House of Schiaparelli, FW18–19 haute couture, courtesy of Schiaparelli Opposite: Jeremy Scott for House of Moschino SS17, courtesy of Moschino. All images courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art / © Johnny Dufort, 2019
such as Giorgio Armani, Cristóbal Balenciaga, Jean Paul Gaultier, Nicolas Ghesquière (for Louis Vuitton), Bertrand Guyon (for House of Schiaparelli), Demna Gvasalia (for Balenciaga), Karl Lagerfeld (for House of Chanel, Chloé, and Fendi), Mary Katrantzou, Alessandro Michele (for Gucci), Yves Saint Laurent, Elsa Schiaparelli, Hedi Slimane (for Saint Laurent), and Donatella Versace. The Met, of course, seeks to delve deeper – and the language used by Sontag in her concise observations are the key to unlocking understanding. Another influential text is that of David Isherwood, who in his 1954 novel The World in The Evening first introduced the concept of camp as an aesthetic sensibility, by presenting it as a dichotomy – High Camp versus Low Camp. “For Isherwood, High Camp ‘is the whole emotional basis of the Ballet’ and ‘of Baroque art,’ a sophisticated connoisseurial mode by which ‘to discuss aesthetics or philosophy,’” quotes Bolton. “Isherwood regards it as ‘much more fundamental’ than Low Camp, which he considers as ‘an utterly debased form’. Sontag expanded on Isherwood’s concept of camp as an aesthetic sensibility in Notes on ‘Camp’, which is the heart of the exhibition both physically and philosophically.” In the introduction to her essay, she asserted that, “The essence of Camp is its love of the unnatural: of artifice and exaggeration.” She goes on to argue that camp “has an affinity for certain arts rather than others” – giving fashion as an example because of its emphasis on “texture, sensuous surface, and style at the expense of content.” (Incidentally, Sontag only gives two examples of
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Like most fourletter words, camp invites debate. But unlike most four-letter words, it evades definition
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fashion in her aforementioned list: “women’s clothes of the 1920s” and “a woman walking around in a dress made of three million feathers.”) For this show, which will be divided into two parts, Sontag serves as the ghost narrator. In the first, she is the ghost of camp’s past, tracing both its etymological and phenomenological origins and taking visitors on a journey that begins in the court of Louis XIV – where the word camp was first used by Molière in his 1671 play The Impostures of Scapin, to mean 'theatricality.' Then, in the second part, she plays the role of ‘the ghost of camp’s present and future’. The design, masterminded by scenographer Jan Versweyveld, is also twofold; while the first part will be presented as a series of narrow corridors with low ceilings ‘to underscore the clandestine, underground nature of camp before Sontag outed it in the 1960s,’ the second part will be presented as a large, open piazza ‘to highlight its acceptance and integration into mainstream culture.’ “In the first part, Susan’s voice will be heard as a quiet whisper, while in the second it will be heard as a deafening, earsplitting scream,” Bolton clarifies. Sontag was actually no stranger to The Met. She would visit “religiously” every Sunday, and many artworks that she mentions in her 1964 essay
are taken from The Met’s collection, such as Crivelli’s Madonna and Child. “As in her essay, they’ll be presented randomly to underscore her concept that camp has an equalising and democratising effect on art – that if you look at art through camp eyes, a Caravaggio painting has the same visual appeal as a Flash Gordon comic,” illustrates Bolton. What’s more significant to understanding and appreciating fashion as a vehicle for camp is Sontag’s analysis of its modes of expression. These include irony, humour, parody, pastiche, duplicity, ambiguity, theatricality, extravagance, and exaggeration, among many others. “Sontag in her essay argues that the ‘Camp eye has the power to transform experience’ but ‘not everything can be seen as Camp. It’s not all in the eye of the beholder.’ That’s not been my experience,” counters Bolton. “When it comes to fashion – or rather when it comes to looking at fashion through a pair of camp spectacles – it’s all in the eye of the beholder. It’s this subjectivity that underpins its mutability and capriciousness.” Indeed Bolton admits that he is not helming an omniscient survey. “Like most four-letter words, camp invites debate. But unlike most four-letter words, it evades definition,” he says. “For this reason, the exhibition raises more questions than it answers. For example: ‘Is camp kitsch?’ ‘Is camp political?’ And ultimately, ‘What is camp?’ The only answer to these questions is – as the historian Gregory Bredbeck has suggested – a camp one: ‘Only one’s hairdresser knows for sure.’” The Costume Institute’s spring 2019 exhibition – 'Camp: Notes on Fashion' – shows from 9 May to 8 September this year. metmuseum.org/camp 49
INSIDE THE London’s Design Museum honours the directorial brilliance of Stanley Kubrick – by unpacking the master storyteller’s methods WORDS: CHRIS UJMA
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ere’s Johnny!” grins a maniacal Jack Nicholson, peering through the splintered hole he’s hacked into the bathroom door, ready to hunt down his cowering female prey. This fraught scene from 1980’s The Shining became a meme so iconic it burst from the cinema and into popular culture. But do audiences remember the wood grain of the door itself? Or the exact shape of the axe? Across his directorial portfolio, Kubrick poured just as much attention into the minutiae of building a scene as he did to developing complex character arcs, or honing astute dialogue. While known for embracing cutting-edge film techniques, the Manhattan-born director was not averse to some good old tireless research. For 1999’s Eyes Wide Shut, he spent a year photographing every house doorway in the Islington, London, postcode to find a perfect candidate for an fleeting scene. For the ominous underground beatdown in A Clockwork Orange, he tasked different crew members with taking thousands of photographs of London’s tunnels, after which he studied every
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single image (eventually plumping for Wandsworth Underpass). These anecdotes are symptomatic of Kubrick’s meticulous attention to every detail – however obscure. Each frame of his 16-film career was painstakingly crafted, drawing the audience into an immersive visual world. To honour the 20th anniversary of his passing, London’s Design Museum hosts a six-month stint of Stanley Kubrick: The Exhibition. “Featuring more than 500 objects, projections and interviews, the exhibition brings to the fore Kubrick’s innovative spirit and fascination with all aspects of design, depicting the in-depth level of detail that he put into each of his films,” executive curator Alan Yentob surmises. The respected TV executive helped shape the journey along with Deyan Sudjic, director of the Design Museum, and co-curator Adriënne Groen. “When I delved through his extensive archives, one of the things I uncovered was his fascination with stationery,” says Groen, opting for a Kubrickian-level example of her most interesting curatorial find.
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Previous Pages: Stanley Kubrick on set during the filming of 2001: A Space Odyssey, (1965–68; GB/ United States). © Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. These Pages: Kubrick directs a scene of his 2001: A Space Odyssey © Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc
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“Kubrick wanted to use a particular type of paper to write upon. There’s a page we found where the director typed upon it, with a typewriter, ‘This is how it types’, and a fountain pen annotation that says ‘This is how it draws ink’. It shows his character – tirelessly looking for just the right paper, to ensure the ink was absorbed in the way he wished.” Through the filmmaking process, “Kubrick was ‘hands on’ from start to finish, even sitting at the editing desk with just a pencil and an eraser. Everything had to be ‘just right’, and his obsession for perfection drove him to embrace advanced technology and techniques,” says Groen, of his method. “His remarkable canon comes from a time before films were made digitally – pre-CGI, before access to technology was easy.” For instance, to simulate gravity-free weightlessness in his 2001: A Space Odyssey, the director had a giant rotating centrifuge – essentially a 38ft Ferris Wheel – purpose-built by the Vickers Engineering Group; astute camera work completed the trick of the eye. (The Design Museum has one, as part of the exhibit installation). Staying with Space, Kubrick famously purchased a f/0.7 lens (and the custommodified Mitchell 35mm) from NASA itself, in order to shoot Barry Lyndon with an ethereal, candlelit-style patina true to the story’s 18th-century setting. The lenses had been used by the space agency in the 1960s to take low-light photos of the dark side of the Moon, and aided Kubrick’s filming of actors by the light of flickering flame. Groen enthuses how the films, despite belonging to that pre-digital era, “Are still current and exciting. 2001: A Space Odyssey in particular redefined the science fiction genre, and doesn’t look like it was made back in the 1960s; his films are still able to fascinate audiences as they did when first released.” He was deeply committed to finding the right way of doing something, even if it took years to realise. He possessed creative vision, but with it incredible patience; a keen chess player in his spare time, Kubrick was a strategist. In the case of A.I: Artificial Intelligence, says Groen, it was about a move he chose not to make. 54
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If you can get people to the point where they have to think for a moment about what it is you’re getting at – and then discover it – the thrill of discovery goes right through the heart
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“Kubrick bought the rights to the Brian Aldiss’ story in the 1970s, but held off on its creation as he felt that there wasn’t sufficient camera and computer technology to do justice to his vision for the script,” she explains. He acquired stories (usually middling novels, which he made great) and – be the genre crime, war, thriller, romance or sci-fi – went to any lengths to visually unfurl the narrative. He cultivated patience in his audiences: the director is synonymous with slowpaced, protracted (yet enthralling) scenes. The role of music, for example, was so important to setting the mood that he would often extend a scene to allow the score to finish in full. Kubrick’s perspective was underpinned by that insatiable hunger for detail. Groen cites the prep he put into a film project that did not even get made: a proposed biopic on 19thcentury French emperor and military commander Napoleon Bonaparte. “He embarked on this massive journey to gather all the information he could find about a leader he greatly admired,” she says. “Kubrick compiled his findings on date cards, with each assigned a chronological day in Napoleon’s life accompanied by research about what happened to him on that day – who he met, what he’d eaten etc. It was all handwritten, stored in a filing cabinet; in a way it’s Kubrick’s paper version of a Google search, or a Wikipedia page. It’s fascinating to see the amount of information and research he acquired” – before the internet age, no less. “Nobody could craft a movie better than Stanley Kubrick,” praised fellow film great Steven Spielberg (who Kubrick eventually endorsed to direct the aforementioned A.I., released in 2001).
“He is an inspiration to us all. Stanley was a chameleon with the astonishing ability to reinvent himself with each new story he told. I defy anyone who just happens upon a Kubrick film while channel surfing to try with all your might to change the station – I have found this to be impossible.” Every detail was a step closer to his endgame: producing a cinematic work of art the viewer just can’t turn away from. Of his method, Kubrick imparted, “If you really want to communicate something, even if it’s just an emotion or an attitude, let alone an idea, the least effective and least enjoyable way is directly. It only goes in about an inch. But if you can get people to the point where they have to think a moment what it is you’re getting at, and then discover it, the thrill of discovery goes right through the heart.” For its showcase, the Design Museum has upheld this beguiling spirit. “We’re dissecting his process, rather than showing all the material per film,” explains Groen. “We worked very closely with the Kubrick archives [which is housed at University of the Arts London] and it’s so vast – with boxes upon boxes of notes and material – that this exhibition is based on a relative fraction.” For the guest, then, these thoughtfully curated slivers of his legacy are a thrilling opportunity to discover the man behind the movies – whose genius goes right through the heart of cinema. Stanley Kubrick: The Exhibition shows at The Design Museum until 15 September, while the British Film Institute screens his masterpieces during its ‘Kubrick season at BFI Southbank’, throughout May. designmuseum.org/exhibitions/
Top: Matthew Modine and Stanley Kubrick on the set of Full Metal Jacket, © Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Below: Stanley Kubrick and actor Jack Nicholson on the setof The Shining – which was directed by Kubrick (1980; GB/United States).© Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc 55
AIR This page: The final stage was the resplendent, complete look being presented to the world at the Paris - New York 2018/19 MÊtiers d’art runway show, on 4 December. Look 77 is available at Boutique Chanel, on Fashion Avenue at The Dubai Mall
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An AIR-exclusive behind-the-scenes peek at the artisanship of Chanel’s stunning ‘Look 77’ – one of the final Metiers d’Art pieces masterminded by the late, great Karl Lagerfeld
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Right: (1) Once the embroidery sample had been validated by Karl Lagerfeld, the design was created first on tracing paper according to the pattern provided by the Chanel RTW ateliers, in order to respect the proportions and the cutting details. At Lesage ateliers, the organza was then embroidered all over with beads and sequins in tones of coral, chalk and gold to create a tweed motif. To finish, an embroidered plastron was made and positioned onto the embroidery. Completion time: 726 hours
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Above and right : (2) At Lognon and LemariĂŠ ateliers, five metres of black tulle were accordionpleated by the House of Lognon and then gold threads were inserted by the House of LemariĂŠ. These pleats embellish the lower part of the dress. Completion time: 40 hours
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Above: (3) At Chanel Ready-to-Wear ateliers, the embroidered pieces were delivered gradually by the Lesage atelier to the Chanel RTW ateliers so that the seamstresses could start to assemble the dress. Strips of leather worked in relief for an exotic skin effect were added, and highlight the embroidery. Finally, the pleats made by the houses of Lognon and LemariĂŠ were sewn onto the lower part of the dress.
Above: (4) The Mercer Hotel, New York, 3 December. The final fitting of the dress and its accessorising took place the day before the runway show under the close observation of Karl Lagerfeld and Virginie Viard. The dress was accessorised with earrings in the shape of scarab beetles, a necklace with a large CC pendant, a belt adorned with a buckle, cuff bracelets worn in duo and gold leather sandals made by the house of Massaro for Chanel.
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Motoring MAY 2019: ISSUE 96
Veloce The Lamborghini Aventador SVJ is a last, super fast blast before the bull is tamed WORDS : JEREMY TAYLOR
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he Nürburgring Nordschleife in Germany is regarded as the ultimate proving ground for a car’s performance. Known as ‘the Green Hell’, the 20.5km former grand prix circuit is fast, narrow and scorched with the skid marks of the many drivers who have failed to cross the finishing line. There are speed records for racing cars, motorbikes and non-road-legal motors, but the most coveted is for production cars that you and I can drive on the road — and that’s the title the new Lamborghini Aventador SVJ seized last year. It went round in just under 6 minutes and 45 seconds, a lap record. For now, the Aventador SVJ has bragging rights over every other car out there. But how on earth do you test something this fast on a public road? Capable of achieving 0-100km/h in 2.8 seconds and a top speed of 349km/h, the SVJ looks as menacing as a great white shark on its lunch break. Certainly, the SVJ is the most powerful Lamborghini to leave the company’s Sant’Agata production facility near Bologna. It is likely to be a swan song for the company’s old-school V12 engine too. That’s because a technologically advanced, greener hybrid is set to be unveiled as supercar makers turn their attention to battery power. To mark what could be a defining moment, then, Lamborghini tuned and modified the outgoing V12 to extract every last ounce of power. The changes included titanium valves, a redesigned cylinder head and a lighter flywheel — the sort of stuff that makes motoring geeks salivate. These help to boost power and reduce the weight of the low-slung SVJ by more than 50kg to a trim 1,525kg – not that much heavier than a bog-standard Ford Focus. Consequently, the SVJ revs noisily to beyond 8,500rpm and offers a wider band of torque, transferred to the road through a permanent four-wheel-drive system that has been modified for more rear-axle bias, thus improving the handling. I doubt many Lambo owners lift the rear-mounted, carbonfibre cover to peep at the engine. If they did, they would discover some exquisite architecture. Perching above that lot is the latest version of Lamborghini’s active aerodynamic spoiler system, which 62
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For sheer spectacle and sonic boom, the Aventador SVJ rivals Concorde
attracts attention like a radar beacon. The huge rear wing isn’t there just for show. It increases downforce by more than 40 percent compared with the previous Aventador SV. This is ingenious stuff that really requires a PowerPoint presentation to explain properly. On a fast corner, the forces created by the rear wing can be deflected left or right, increasing grip over the inside rear wheel, where it is most needed to keep the SVJ glued to the road. It works brilliantly, but also attracts a trail of nerdy car-spotters in your wake, smartphone cameras pressed to their windscreens. Expect to go viral on social media if you crash — it’s that sort of machine. But at least you won’t be able to see most of your pursuers — the central pillar that supports the spoiler is so bizarrely placed, it blocks visibility. You might as well throw away the rear-view mirror and shave a few extra ounces off the weight. Stabbing the throttle unleashes a guttural snort like Brian Blessed
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having an asthma attack. There’s no neighbour-friendly setting for those awkward, early-morning starts either, so don’t expect another barbecue invitation from No 17. However, for sheer spectacle and sonic boom, the SVJ rivals Concorde. It’s tight for space inside, once the wing doors have been swung up to reveal a gaudy mix of imitation suede and leather in the cabin. The bucket seats are painful on a long journey, while visibility and headroom were an afterthought. There’s nowhere to stash a phone, let alone my spotted handkerchief, and the eccentric dashboard layout appears to contain switchgear stolen from the original Tardis. A flip-up cover protecting the starter button is borrowed from a Top Gun fighter. The wow factor for new passengers is undeniable, but the flap, when left open, can catch a shirt cuff at the most awkward moments. At least Lamborghini has dispensed with those silly indicator buttons fixed
to the steering wheel on the Huracan, a wild sister car that is equally deserving of the raging bull badge. Impossible to operate at night, the tiny switches have been replaced with a conventional column stalk in the Aventador. There’s nothing easy or straightforward about any Aventador, of course – even climbing in and out is a Houdini-style feat designed to scalp all 6ft-plus passengers,, and the restricted luggage space under the bonnet needs to be supplemented by stuffing the passenger footwell. Worst of all, the single-clutch gearbox is almost comically antiquated. At low speed, occupants will be doing a headnodding workout worthy of Jane Fonda, usually accompanied by cries of: “It’s not my rubbish gearchange, honest.” Matters improve dramatically at higher velocity, when the shift is smoother. Not that you’ll notice, because harnessing the SVJ on a public road demands full attention. Straight-line performance in the SVJ is stupendous. And when you’re heading into a corner, each highrevving downshift on the huge paddle-shifters is pure drama. This amount of performance and grip takes some getting used to. With all this set off by an old-fashioned V12 soundtrack and outlandish styling, the Aventador delivers a sensory overload rarely found in any car these days. Modern, efficient Ferraris and soulless McLarens can’t hold a candle to the vibrations and resonating thrills of the supersonic SVJ, which really sticks the boot in. Of course, for more than USD450,000 you might expect nothing less. If you want to make an entrance, there’s very little on the road that shouts as loud as a Lamborghini. And that price doesn’t include some of the optional equipment on my test car, including a “viola” paint job at USD12,000 and a carbon engine rocker cover for USD5,400 (I said it was beautiful). In any other circumstances it would be right to suggest the Aventador is a twoseater that’s reached its sell-by date. But what Lamborghini has done here is turn an ageing, outrageous supercar into something even more spectacular. Just for one last fling, for old times’ sake – and if only to annoy the neighbours. 63
Gastronomy MAY 2019: ISSUE 96
French Twist
Mathieu Viannay arrives on Dubai’s shores with Rue Royale: a bold concept of traditional French fare, masterfully tailored to a UAE audience
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WORDS : CHRIS UJMA
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he Pointe, a little dining and entertainment distinct that sits pretty on The Palm Jumeirah, is a microcosm of the culinary options found across Dubai: from fast food choices through to refined cuisine. Still, it was something of a coup when Rue Royale, helmed by acclaimed chef Mathieu Viannay, was announced as part of The Pointe’s opening lineup – and to understand why, a little European history is required. Back in 2008, Viannay – now holder of the ‘Meilleur Ouvrier De France’ (the nation’s highest creative honour) – acquired the former glory known as La Mère Brazier. Not short on sentiment, he deems it “A moment of destiny”. The Lyon-based bistro dates back to 1921, and was founded by Eugénie Brazier, herself a titan of the culinary world: Brazier was the first lady to win three Michelin stars and, in the restaurant’s heyday, her self-titled eatery was the place to dine. By 2008, though, it had become a “tired” (frankly, dilapidated) version of its former self. “When I first visited the restaurant it was old and broken but it had an enduring spirit, and soul, so I decided ‘Let’s go; let’s acquire it,’” Viannay recalls. Settling ownership matters with the department of Trade and Commerce in Lyon, he went to work and, to get to the point, turned Mere Brazier 64
into a two Michelin Star-experience with a stellar reputation for sublime renditions of traditional French fare. The Pointe, conversely, is the exact opposite: history in the making, and place where Viannay was tempted to lay the foundations of a new dining concept. “In Lyon I was building on storied heritage, whereas the restaurant in Dubai is a different prospect entirely,” he buzzes. “That is why Rue Royale is not called ‘La Mère Brazier Dubai.’ There is a new story to be told.” There are subtle links, though. Rue Royale is the street on which La Mère Brazier is located. The décor, too, draws inspiration from the bistro concept, and Viannay brought some of the design touches with him. The aesthetic of the entryway, the glass façade to the kitchen and the silk fabric – which graces details of the dining area – were all imported (literally, or stylistically) from Lyon. He calls it “A touch of France with design notes from Dubai”. Still, there should be no confusion that Rue Royale seeks to copy the French icon. (The menu is not the same, for starters). “I live in Lyon, and have cultivated La Mere Brazier as two Michelin-star cuisine, with 35 people crafting cuisine to delight only 45 covers – it’s a very special concept
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Flavours are exquisitely balanced, while being sensitive to local cultural requirements
that cannot be replicated,” Viannay notes. “This concept is ‘prêt-à-porter’ to La Mère Brazier’s ‘haute couture.’” Rue Royale is pretty much a whole new wardrobe. It’s decidedly ‘sans vin’: alcohol-free, with region-friendly modifications to interpretations of French culinary staples. “I accepted the challenge to impart my ideas as some families here – Emirati in particular – want to eat exceptional fine dining in an environment that conforms to their cultural dining preferences,” he enthuses. “We have to respect culture and because we are in the UAE, I thought it was an exciting to try and develop a menu this way.” While being fine dining, Rue Royale is for a different palate; “Inspirational French cuisine with signature dishes” such as Pate en Croute (of farm chicken breast, veal, duck liver foie gras and sweet bread); Pain de Brochet (pike fish from the River Quiberon, in Hormandine sauce); Farm Chicken Fricasse de Volaille (in creamy sauce, accompanied by pilaf rice). This is real French bistro, sensitively done. Even for an awarded master such as Viannay, circumventing non-halal ingredients was an all-consuming adventure. There is no ‘Big Book of 66
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Alternatives’ for him to turn to for answers; Viannay had to write it. “For months I put a lot of thought into this chemistry,” he admits. For instance, his Beef Filet Rossini with truffle sauce traditionally incorporates red wine and cognac. The chef worked on a replacement sauce that combines beetroot jus, balsamic vinegar and cranberry jus. Another signature dish on the menu is Pain de Brochet, ordinarily made with a sauce of pastis or Absinthe, but for which Viannay crafted a jus of fennel, reduced with anise – a sauce that deliciously mimics the original. “In each instance the taste is exquisitely balanced, while being sensitive to local cultural requirements,” he beams. “Guests will be delightfully surprised by the unexpected versions of the dishes. I debuted the first halal version of Pate en Croute over a decade ago, and it was a huge success; the absence of certain non-conforming ingredients is counterbalanced by a blend of tastes that can rival the original.” He admits that there is “Not much” in the way of relevant produce from Dubai to help, and most ingredients are flown in fresh from France (as
well as the likes of Australia, Africa and New Zealand). “I did want to incorporate some touches from the region – the Hot French Madeleine dessert, for instance, is accompanied by camel’s milk ice cream,” he smiles. Experience was ‘imported’ too, with staff – from the restaurant manager and operations manager, through to the entire kitchen complement – becoming acquainted with Viannay’s methods by spending time in Lyon. The chefs are French, they know French cuisine, and each are accomplished in their role. “It’s an exceptional location,” says a contemplative Viannay, gazing across his terrace to the waters of The Palm that shimmer beyond. ”The area has an intimate feel; it’s a well-realised vision by Nakheel,” he adds. “I feel that our restaurant team and the aura of Rue Royale takes care of exceptional on the ‘inside’, and The Pointe – with its breathtaking views – takes care of the grandeur on the ‘outside’.” 67
Travel
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MAY 2019: ISSUE 96
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Four Seasons Hotel Dubai International Financial Centre
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he seasons they are a-changing, and as UAE residents gear up for toasty summer swoons, the Four Seasons brand proves that it too can adapt to the moment. The Four Seasons Hotel DIFC moderates a different climate to its coast-dwelling sister resort over on Jumeirah Beach. This is the sleek city slicker; suave suites and poolside pomp nestled in the heart of Dubai’s financial community. The hotel has all the luxury clout of an internationally-renowned brand, and all the cosy charm of a highlyexclusive boutique property. Refreshingly for Dubai, this is not a cloud-kissing colossus: it’s a modest eight storeys tall and, in this case, less is definitely more. There’s an elegant air of a private member’s club, as modern art pieces grace the public spaces, which are hued with cool marble and soothing chocolate-box tones. As the property celebrates just its third anniversary this year, the freshness is still apparent. The seventh floor is this hotel’s leisure haven (or as the hotel itself deems it, a ‘seventh heaven’), and its glass-walled pool is a picture perfect creation for the Instagram-era – besides being tempting for a dip to beat the heat. The specious trio of the Penthouse, Terrace and Deluxe Terrace – the hotel’s Specialty Suite collection – are another fine example of its contemporary
appeal. The latter is generously spread across the 5th and 6th floors, while the ample Penthouse proffers 180° views of bustling city avenues or lush Zabeel Park. Each of these premier abodes has a King Bed to wake up in, and a limestone bathroom in which to prep ahead of an evening in stylish garb. First port of call of an evening is the Adam Tihany-designed Luna Sky Bar, which resides on the topmost floor – as does the Churchill Club, an ideal enclave in which to sink back into a Chesterfield with a cigar. Naturally, this vantage boasts views of the soaring Burj Khalifa and mesmeric skyline. At podium level is the chic Penrose Lounge, while further relaxation awaits in MINA Brasserie, which doubles as both an eatery to tuck into hearty sharing plates and a Manhattan-vibe setting for pre-dinner craft cocktails. It would be remiss to not mention that another appeal of the Four Seasons Hotel DIFC is the assortment of off-site restaurants, bars and art galleries that sit (theoretically) within walking distance – heat permitting, of course. One certainty is that in a district where money matters, this impeccable hotel represents a wise investment for guests looking to reap the dividends of comfort, convenience and class. For VIP arrangements (such as guest transfer from the airport to DIFC by limousine), contact the concierge via the dedicated line: +971 (0) 4506 0222 71
What I Know Now
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MAY 2019: ISSUE 96
Navid Negahban ACTOR The whole journey to Hollywood has been a crazy adventure – and remains so; I’m still following the Yellow Brick Road, to help this Tin Man find his heart. Growing up during the Iranian revolution and Iran/Iraq war taught me one thing: you have to live in the moment because tomorrow might never arrive. I also believe that the only thing that is impossible is the impossible itself. I was in my twenties when I arrived in Germany (via Turkey and Bulgaria), and couldn’t speak German or English – but I wanted to be an actor. Now I’m 50, I can say that for sure the industry is not the bathing in milk and honey that most people may assume. But I arrived with no expectations; I just wanted to tell stories. What surprised me early on was how some creators, trying to tell a story about my part of the world, didn’t discern 72
between Farsi, Arabic or Turkish. Some didn’t concern themselves with knowing the difference, because they were all considered the ‘same’ language as long as the words sounded foreign enough to scare the audience. I’m proud to see that changing. I love the psychological challenge of playing a multi-layered character, as it allows you to learn more about yourself. I compare the process to diving into a swimming pool, sitting at the bottom while holding your breath, getting to know your limits, and hoping that you have enough air left to swim back up and get out of the pool. All the screen personas become part of your library, but you should never forget that you are the librarian. You have to monitor that all the books are checked back in, and are put away when you are done reading them. If not, it will make you lose your sanity.
When it comes to advice received, I could write a book about all the wisdom I have been given. From my grandma to my parents, I have been given so much incredible guidance – and I believe everyone who crosses your path is there to deliver a message: you just need to be open to receive and decipher it. A pertinent lesson my father used to tell me was, “Pesaram (my son): when you are unhappy about where you are in your life, look down, as there are hundreds of people who would like to be where you are. And when you are feeling so full of yourself, look up: there are millions of people above you.”
Navid stars as The Sultan in Disney’s live-action remake of Aladdin (in cinemas this month), while in June he reprises the surpervillan role in X-Men spinoff series Legion
The cultural emirate awaits you
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