AIR NasJet Jan'15

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CONTENTS / REGUL ARS

Managing Director Victoria Thatcher Editorial Director John Thatcher Group Commercial Director David Wade david@hotmediapublishing.com Commercial Director Rawan Chehab rawan@hotmediapublishing.com Editor Tracey Scott tracey@hotmediapublishing.com Deputy Editor Richard Jenkins richard@hotmediapublishing.com Features Editor Lara Brunt lara@hotmediapublishing.com Senior Designer Adam Sneade Designer Andy Knappett Illustrator Vanessa Arnaud Production Manager Chalitha Fernando

Forty Eight

Fifty Eight

Guitar Man

Hippie Chic

This month, Elvis Presley would have turned 80. AIR looks at the remarkable impact of The King.

Designer Thea Porter brought the Middle East to London in the 1960s – and boho chic was born.

Fifty Four

Sixty Four

American Hustle

Pulp Fiction

From Disney princess to sultry star of OscarZLQQLQJ ÂżOPV $P\ $GDPV has come of age.

AIR sits down with the famously prickly crime writer, James Ellroy. Is his bark worse than his bite?

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CONTENTS / REGUL ARS Eighteen

Sixty Eight

Seventy Six

Radar

Motoring

Travel

‘Boy meets girl’, Hollywood-style, plus the pick of London’s art events.

Controversial ex-Lotus boss Dany Bahar is back and wants to transform your supercar.

From tsunami-struck home to luxury boutique hotel, one man’s abode is transformed.

Twenty Six

Seventy Two

Art & Design

Gastronomy

Antony Micallef gets personal, and Jeddah’s street sculptures shine.

A tour of the world’s best restaurants with bon vivant, Kristian Brask Thomsen.

Thirty Four

Timepieces Richard Mille’s sleek new boutique, plus AIR previews SIHH 2015.

Forty Four

Jewellery AIR talks art and inspiration with Van Eyck founder Alon Garty.

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.

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You can seek the help of one doctor.

Or you can turn to Mayo Clinic.

At Mayo Clinic, a team of experts works together for you. No wonder Mayo Clinic was recognized as the No. 1 hospital in the United States by U.S. News & World Report. Visit mayoclinic.org or mayoclinic.org/arabic to learn more. ROCHESTER , MINNESOTA , USA

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PHOENIX /SCOTTSDALE , ARIZONA , USA

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JACKSONVILLE , FLORIDA , USA

NASJET

January 2015

WELCOME ONBOARD

I’d like to start by wishing you a happy and prosperous New Year. We are expecting an exciting year ahead as we continue to enhance your onboard experiences and launch new aircraft types into the fast expanding PDQDJHPHQW ÀHHW ZKLFK QRZ FRQVLVWV RI ¿[HG ZLQJ DLUFUDIW I am also proud to highlight two strategic DOOLDQFHV ZKLFK ZLOO EHQH¿W RXU HVWHHPHG FOLHQWV $W D UHFHQW LQGXVWU\ JDWKHULQJ WKH 0LGGOH (DVW %XVLQHVV $YLDWLRQ VKRZ ZH VLJQHG an historical agreement with European and Asian operator Luxaviation to form the second ODUJHVW ÀHHW QHWZRUN LQ WKH JOREDO SULYDWH DYLDWLRQ LQGXVWU\ R̆HULQJ RXU FOLHQWV DFFHVV WR more than 150 aircraft. The agreement means you will be able to travel seamlessly across FRQWLQHQWV XQGHU RQH RSHUDWLQJ ÀHHW 2YHU WKH next few months we will share with you the FRPSOHWH VHUYLFH R̆HULQJ At the same time we also signed a ODQGPDUN DJUHHPHQW ZLWK 7KH -HW %XVLQHVV WKH ZRUOGœV ¿UVW HYHU VWUHHW OHYHO FRUSRUDWH aviation showroom for the acquisition and sale of private jet aircraft. This enables us to negotiate competitive terms for private DLUFUDIW VDOHV IRU RXU FOLHQWV ZKHWKHU DV VHOOHUV RU EX\HUV 2XU FOLHQWV ZLOO JUHDWO\ EHQH¿W IURP The Jet Business’s formidable proprietary research and marketing business framework. 2QFH DJDLQ my colleagues and I would like to thank you for making 2014 a success and we look forward to serving you with the same passion and commitment as the last 15 preceding years.

Saad Alazwari &KLHI ([HFXWLYH 2̇FHU

Contact Details: clientservices@nasjet.com.sa nasjet.com.sa T. +966 (0)11 217 2070 NasJet Contributing Editor: Hardy Sohanpal E. hsohanpal@nasjet.com.sa - 13 -

NASJET NEWS

Strategic alliance between NasJet and Luxaviation Group to transform private aviation industry in Europe, Middle East and Asia NasJet and Luxaviation Group have announced a VWUDWHJLF SDUWQHUVKLS WDUJHWLQJ (XURSH WKH 0LGGOH (DVW DQG $VLD 7KH DOOLDQFH ZLOO FUHDWH WKH VHFRQG ODUJHVW ÀHHW LQ WKH JOREDO SULYDWH DYLDWLRQ LQGXVWU\ R̆HULQJ D FRPELQHG ÀHHW WRWDO RI PRUH WKDQ EXVLQHVV MHWV WR FOLHQWV RQ WKUHH GL̆HUHQW FRQWLQHQWV The strategic partnership is set to revolutionise the JOREDO SULYDWH DYLDWLRQ LQGXVWU\ SURYLGLQJ DQ HQKDQFHG QHWZRUN IRU RSWLPLVHG VHUYLFHV DQG VWUHDPOLQLQJ FURVV FRQWLQHQWDO WUDYHO IRU FXVWRPHUV LQ (XURSH WKH 0LGGOH East and Asia. 6DDG $OD]ZDUL &(2 RI 1DV-HW VDLG ³:LWK WRGD\¶V

DJUHHPHQW ZH VHW WKH IRXQGDWLRQ IRU D GHHSHU cooperation with a solid operator in Europe. We are looking forward to further developing our partnership over the coming months and enhancing the services R̆HUHG WR RXU FOLHQW EDVH ´ 3DWULFN +DQVHQ &(2 RI /X[DYLDWLRQ *URXS DGGHG ³:H DUH GHOLJKWHG WR HQWHU D SDUWQHUVKLS ZLWK D leading player like NasJet. The alliance will allow for a continuous optimisation of costs and enhance service TXDOLW\ IRU RXU H[LVWLQJ DQG IXWXUH FXVWRPHUV ´ Luxaviation counts amongst Europe’s largest business DYLDWLRQ FRPSDQLHV ZLWK D ÀHHW RI DLUFUDIW

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MEET THE TEAM: Khalid Al Hamdan

JOINING FORCES NasJet has signed a strategic partnership with international sales broker The Jet Business, introducing its Middle East clients to an expanded network of private aircraft buyers and sellers via the broker. The Jet Business is the world’s first ever street-level corporate aviation showroom for the acquisition and sale of private jet aircraft and ancillary services. NasJet’s decision to partner with The Jet Business comes as part of its long-term growth strategy to focus heavily on boosting aircraft sales from 2015 onwards, building on 15 years of success as the largest and fastest growing business aviation company in the Middle East. The partnership will support NasJet’s strategic plan to provide a comprehensive service portfolio either through building inhouse capabilities or collaborating with carefully chosen partners. The agreement will enable NasJet to negotiate competitive terms for private aircraft sales for its clients, whether as sellers or buyers. NasJet, too, will benefit from The Jet Business’s aggressive

research and marketing business framework, led by its well-qualified teams from various departments including charter brokerage, aircraft management, aircraft operations and business jet sales. NasJet will also have access to The Jet Business’ world-class corporate aviation showroom located at Hyde Park Corner – London, one of the most exclusive and prestigious business sites in the world. “Given NasJet’s enviable track record in the Middle East and The Jet Business’ strong reputation and heavy investment in proprietary technology, this strategic partnership is aimed at offering a completely unique user experience to clients in the Middle East,� said Saad Alazwari, CEO of NasJet. He added: “In turn, it will serve the regional private aviation industry at large, as a result of the exposure the market gains through an expanded network of international buyers and sellers.� In collaboration with NasJet, The Jet Business recently exhibited a stunning Challenger 605 for sale at Middle East Business Aviation (MEBA) 2014. - 15 -

Âł%HLQJ D SLORW LV D YRFDWLRQ QRW D MRE´ ZDV &DSWDLQ .KDOLG $O +DPGDQÂśV UHVSRQVH ZKHQ DVNHG ÂľZK\ DYLDWLRQ"Âś The executive director of 125 Flight 2SHUDWLRQV MRLQHG WKH FRPSDQ\ LQ 2006 following a military career LQ WKH 5R\DO 6DXGL $LU IRUFH ZKHUH KH Ă€HZ D ZLGH YDULHW\ RI DLUFUDIW LQFOXGLQJ WKH $:$&6 +H WRR LV the NasJet Accountable Manager for the *HQHUDO $XWKRULW\ RI &LYLO $YLDWLRQ RI 6DXGL $UDELD ZKLFK PHDQV HQVXULQJ the company operates within the regulatory framework set by the authority. While his contemporaries dreamt RI D FDUHHU LQ PHGLFLQH RU ÂżQDQFH DV D WHHQDJHU &DSW .KDOLG KDG ÂżUPO\ VHW KLV VLJKWV RQ Ă€\LQJ +LV FKRVHQ route started with the military and not only did he get the opportunity to train as a pilot but he also learnt a few NH\ SULQFLSOHV ZKLFK KH FRQWLQXHV WR DSSO\ WR KLV ZRUN WRGD\ Âł(YHQ WKRXJK WKH ZRUN LV WKH VDPH WKH GL̆HUHQFH between a military and civil career is that in the military you are taught

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NASJET NEWS

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$FFHVV D ÀHHW RI MHWV ± ZLWK guaranteed availability. With COMPLETIONS-ADVISORY the NasJet fractional program you EX\ D VKDUH LQ D MHW UDQJLQJ IURP DQ %HQH¿W IURP RXU H[SHULHQFH. eighth to a half. You can have all the We have the advantage of a advantages of aircraft ownership for close working relationship with a fraction of the cost. many of the leading business jet Your share guarantees you a PDQXIDFWXUHUV LQFOXGLQJ %RHLQJ $LUEXV *XOIVWUHDP %RPEDUGLHU DQG FHUWDLQ QXPEHU RI ÀLJKW KRXUV SHU year in your jet or in a comparable +DZNHU %HHFKFUDIW 2YHU WKH \HDUV the team has successfully completed aircraft. Fractional ownership costs DUH SUH DJUHHG DQG ¿[HG DQQXDOO\ ± RYHU QHZ DLUFUDIW GHOLYHULHV working with owners to ensure their QR HQG RI \HDU ¿QDQFLDO VXUSULVHV just seamless international access to aircraft is completed to the highest D ÀHHW RI DLUFUDIW <RX FDQ DOVR HQMR\ VSHFL¿FDWLRQ DQG ZLWKLQ EXGJHW DOO WKH EHQH¿WV RI WKH IUDFWLRQDO AIRCRAFT MANAGEMENT SURJUDP ZLWKRXW WKH ORQJ WHUP FRPPLWPHQW ZLWK WKH PRQWK +DYH WKH H[SHUWV GR DOO WKH lease program. work 2ZQLQJ D SULYDWH MHW LV FHUWDLQO\ D SOHDVXUH EXW LW¶V DOVR D major undertaking. NasJet can take FLIGHT SUPPORT that stress away and give you peace ([SHUWLVH DQG SXUFKDVLQJ of mind knowing that an established SRZHU. Using NasJet’s unrivaled and experienced international regional operational expertise and operator is able to manage your SXUFKDVLQJ SRZHU DLUFUDIW PDQDJHG DVVHW ḢFLHQWO\ 1DV-HW KDV LQ H[FHVV either by the principal’s crew or an

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GROUND SERVICES In 2013 NasJet DQG WKHLU SDUWQHU ([HFX-HW ODXQFKHG JURXQG VHUYLFHV IRU SULYDWH DLUFUDIW À\LQJ LQWR WKH 5L\DGK SULYDWH DYLDWLRQ WHUPLQDO Saudi Arabia. The collaboration builds on the two partners’ reputation for providing a superior and competitive level of service.

ON-DEMAND CHARTER 7KH EHVW RSWLRQ for ultimate ÀH[LELOLW\ ZLWKRXW WKH FRPPLWPHQW &KDUWHULQJ ZLWK 1DV-HW JLYHV clients access to the largest and PRVW FORVHO\ PDQDJHG ÀHHW LQ WKH region. We are focused entirely on VDIHW\ VHUYLFH DQG YDOXH %\ RZQLQJ PDQ\ RI RXU DLUFUDIW ZH DUH DEOH to make an immediate decision on aircraft availability. NasJet’s highly H[SHULHQFHG GHGLFDWHG GD\V D \HDU FKDUWHU GHSDUWPHQW EDVHG LQ 5L\DGK DUH DEOH WR SURYLGH instant competitive quotations. The NasJet block charter program has DOO WKH EHQH¿WV RI DG KRF FKDUWHU EXW ZLWK JXDUDQWHHG DYDLODELOLW\ ÀH[LEOH payment terms and billing based on DFWXDO ÀLJKW WLPHV Visit QDVMHW FRP VD IRU LQIRUPDWLRQ

ABU DHABI CLASSICS INTERNATIONAL CONCERT SEASON

OCTOBER 2014 - MAY 2015 PERFORMANCE CALENDAR FEBRUARY 17th 2015

APRIL 29th 2015

MAY 28th 2015

Staatskapelle Dresden and Christian Thielemann

Orchestra Accademia Teatro alla Scala: Opera Gala

Bertrand Chamayou : Solo Piano Concert, The Wanderer

8:00pm

Al Qattara Arts Centre, Al Ain

8:00pm Pre-concert Talk at 6:00pm

8:00pm

Emirates Palace Auditorium

Al Jahili Fort, Al Ain

FEBRUARY 18th 2015

MAY 12th 2015

BOOK NOW!

Staatskapelle Dresden and Christian Thielemann

TCA Abu Dhabi Classics Music Awards

Tickets are available now from Ticketmaster.ae

8:00pm

7:30pm

Al Jahili Fort, Al Ain

Emirates Palace Auditorium

For more information visit abudhabievents.ae

APRIL 28th 2015

MAY 27th 2015

Orchestra Accademia Teatro alla Scala with Mikhail Tatarnikov (conductor) and David Fray (piano)

Bertrand Chamayou : Solo Piano Concert, Global Encounters

8:00pm Pre-concert Talk at 6pm

8:00pm

Emirates Palace Auditorium

Manarat Al Saadiyat Auditorium

OfďŹ cial Media Partners:

Organised by:

RADAR

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MOMENTS IN THE CITY with ALEC BALDWIN & GEMMA ARTERTON by Mary McCartney, Photo © Mary McCartney for Zeiss Art Calendar 2014

! ,W¶V EHHQ VL[ \HDUV LQ WKH PDNLQJ EXW LW¶V ¿QDOO\ KHUH =HLVV $UW &DOHQGDU 7KH WRPH SXEOLVKHG E\ WH1HXHV DQG GHYHORSHG E\ D SOHWKRUD RI IDPRXV QDPHV LV EDVHG RQ WKH µER\ PHHWV JLUO¶ FRQFHSW ([FHSW KRZHYHU WKH PDOH DQG IHPDOHV IHDWXUHG KHUH DUH QRW \RXU DYHUDJH IDFHV 7KH\ DUH LQ IDFW VRPH RI +ROO\ZRRG¶V EULJKWHVW VWDUV )URP $OHF %DOGZLQ DQG *HPPD $UWHUWRQ SKRWRJUDSKHG E\ 0DU\ 0F&DUWQH\ WR 3DWULFN 'HPSVH\ DQG 5LQNR .LNXFKL =HLVV $UW &DOHQGDU ZLOO PDNH D JUHDW DGGLWLRQ WR \RXU FR̆HH WDEOH FROOHFWLRQ teneues.com

RADAR Objet of affection MAISON&OBJET kicks off its 20th year this month with its Paris show, running from January 23 to 27. From art and decoration to objects and furniture, if you’re looking for creative inspiration, you’ll find bags of it here. Its next stop is Singapore, with the annual MAISON&OBJET ASIA taking place from March 10 to 13 before moving to Miami Beach in May. maison-objet.com

> Jewellery from the 1800s through to present day will be up for auction later this month at Bonhams. The sale will see a series of brooches, gem-set pendants, rings and bracelets appear before collectors at its base in London on January 14. Pieces from Cartier, Chopard, Van Cleef & Arpels, and Tiffany & Co. will take the stand. Paddle at the ready. bonhams.com

Design in the city Bonalumi - Sculptures, Mazzoleni London, February 6 to May 8, mazzoleniart.com

Everything that’s great about modern British and contemporary art will be showcased at London Art Fair, held from January 21 to 25 at the Business Design Centre. Visitors can expect a colourful display of oil on canvas, silkscreen prints, lithographs and much more. Look out for works by David Hockney and Norman Ackroyd, on show at Enitharmon Editions’ stand. Also taking place in the city is the Bonalumi Sculptures. Running from February 6 to May 8, the exhibition features a selection of Agostino Bonalumi’s sculptural works from the 1960s onwards, highlighting the range of this pivotal Post-War Italian Art world ¿JXUH - 20 -

All the

Kingsman MrPorter.com and acclaimed director Matthew Vaughn have joined forces to launch a new menswear label, Kingsman. Inspired by his forthcoming feature film, Kingsman: The Secret Service, the bespoke 60-piece collection, which is featured throughout the film, will launch exclusively on Mr Porter later this month. Look out for Bremont timepieces, Drake’s pocket squares, and Turnbull & Asser shirting.

! 2SHUD *DOOHU\ LV VHW WR XQYHLO LWV ,FRQV RI $UW H[KLELWLRQ WKLV PRQWK WKH JDOOHU\ÂśV ÂżUVW H[KLELWLRQ GHGLFDWHG WR FRQWHPSRUDU\ PDVWHUV )URP 3DEOR 3LFDVVR DQG 5HQRLU WR -RDQ 0LUR DQG $QG\ :DUKRO WKH ELJJHVW LQĂ€XHQFHUV RI WK FHQWXU\ DUW ZLOO EH VKRZFDVHG KHUH Icons of Art will run from January 14 to February 4 at Opera Gallery, Gate Village Building 3, DIFC, Dubai. - 21 -

CRITIQUE

Film Paddington Dir: Paul King A young boy befriends a talking bear KH ÂżQGV DW D /RQGRQ WUDLQ VWDWLRQ AT BEST: “Paddington isn’t just the ÂżOP RI WKH \HDU LW PLJKW DFWXDOO\ EH RQH RI WKH ÂżQHVW IDPLO\ ÂżOPV HYHU made.â€? Daily Mirror AT WORST: “If Paddington is to turn into a movie franchise‌ far more attention will need to be paid to the storytelling.â€? Independent

Selma Dir: Ava DuVernay Based on the true story of Martin Luther King and the civil rights marches of Selma, Alabama. AT BEST: “Intelligently written, vividly shot, tightly edited, sharply acted...â€? Hollywood Reporter AT WORST: Âł7KH ÂżQDOH LV VR restrained that it’s jarring, rendering the actual march... something of an afterthought.â€? Slant

Leviathan Dir: Andrey Zvyagintsev In a Russian coastal town, Kolya is IRUFHG WR ÂżJKW WKH FRUUXSW PD\RU when he is told that his house will be demolished. AT BEST: “Stunningly shot and VXSHUEO\ DFWHGÂŤ WKLV LV ÂżOP PDNLQJ RQ a grand scale.â€? The Guardian AT WORST: “It’s certainly impressive, LI QRW TXLWH DV HDUWK VKDWWHULQJ RU hilarious, as some would have you believe.â€? This is London

Unbroken Dir: Angelina Jolie After a plane crash in WWII, Olympian Louis Zamperini survives 47 days at sea, only to be sent to a -DSDQHVH SULVRQHU RI ZDU FDPS AT BEST: “It’s moving, admirable, and occasionally exhilarating.â€? Entertainment Weekly AT WORST: “An interminable, redundant, unnecessary epic GHYRWHG WR VX̆HULQJ VX̆HULQJ VX̆HULQJ ´ New Yorker - 22 -

Books grief over the sudden death of her mother in a freak accident in 2006, has been highly anticipated, with the rights to overseas publishing the focus of a bidding war between VHYHUDO KLJK SURÂżOH SXEOLVKHUV 7KH hype was worth it, as the simple – \HW GHHSO\ D̆HFWLQJ Âą WDOH RI WKUHH FKDUDFWHUV DOO D̆HFWHG E\ GHDWK and loss has proven to be a smash hit. Book blog Whispering Gums believes the accessibility of the novel hides something much more weighty, saying: “This ‘sensation’ comes dressed as a light book and is, in fact, an easy and delightful UHDG EXW LW DOVR R̆HUV VRPHWKLQJ PRUH FRQWHQW ZLVH DQG VW\OLVWLFDOO\ ´ A fresh debut assures a fascinating future for the author, the blog

It is said that great comedy often hides great tragedy, and perhaps this is summed up most poignantly in the case of Richard Pryor. One of the most powerfully provocative comics of the 20th century was ÂżHUFHO\ FRQĂ€LFWHG LQ KLV SULYDWH life, as discussed in Scott Saul’s comprehensive biography, Becoming Richard Pryor. However, Saul prefers to focus on the more positive aspects of Pryor’s life – his comedy. According to the New York Times, the book “breaks new ground, even if it has a tendency to take its insights very seriously and its audience’s knowledge of the Pryor oeuvre for grantedâ€?. The newspaper continues: “It spends a long time on this tormented funnyman’s childhood

years in Peoria, but it wisely ends in 1978, when his personal life reached a turning point, and his career UHDFKHG LWV SHDN ZLWK D GHÂżQLWLYH concert routine.â€? Kirkus Review ÂżQGV WKDW Âł6DXO LV VRPHWLPHV JXLOW\ of forced analogiesâ€?. “Still, this is a ZHOO H[HFXWHG VWXG\ WKDW JLYHV 3U\RU due credit as pioneer, intellectual and artist,â€? it concludes. No less funny but with slightly

fewer demons to face, We Should Hang Out Sometime by Josh Sundquist is a true story of one PDQÂśV TXHVW WR ÂżQG RXW ZK\ KH has always remained single. At the tender age of 25, perhaps it is too soon for Sundquist to ask KLPVHOI WKHVH GHHS UHDFKLQJ questions. However, Kirkus Reviews appreciates the author’s use of humour: “Sundquist is a storyteller – Ă€DZHG ZU\ ODLG back and sympathetic. Anyone who’s felt awkward will alternately (or simultaneously) wince and burst out laughing at his earnest misadventures with stalkers, ‘Close )DVW 'DQFLQJÂś DQG Ă€RZ FKDUWV ´ It concludes that readers will “be rooting for Sundquist to hang out with a girlâ€?. Arts writer Alex Bernard says: “Sundquist’s style DQG VWRU\WHOOLQJ LV TXLFN VHOI deprecating, and a pleasure to read. He just makes it look easy. The results are technically simple prose, EXW LWV DLU RI H̆RUWOHVVQHVV PDWFKHV the book’s juvenile topics and lets the reader devour page after silly page.â€? The debut novel of Australian writer Brooke Davis, inspired by her - 23 -

continues, saying: “Besides the ORVV JULHI WKHPH /RVW )RXQG LV about many things – loneliness, love, friendship and caring, and, above all, about taking risks because this is your life. It’s not a challenging novel, as it wears its heart on its sleeves, but it is lively, inventive and wise. It will be very interesting to see what Davis does next.� The publishing world eagerly awaits.

CRITIQUE

Art It looks like the passion for pop art will continue into 2015 and beyond. As the zeitgeist extends, KRZHYHU JDOOHULHV KDYH WR ÂżQG more and more creative ways to look at the phenomenon that is pop. London’s Saatchi Gallery is one such destination, whose latest exhibition is titled Post Pop: East Meets West, and brings together work from 110 artists from China, the former Soviet Union, Taiwan, as well as the UK and USA. The Guardian’s Jonathan Jones says the exhibition, like all great pop art, “is full of trash, kitsch, commercialism and cynicism – and WKDWÂśV MXVW WKH JRRG VWX̆ /LNH RXU time, this exhibition is fun, shocking DQG ÂżQDOO\ WRR PXFK´ DGGLQJ Âł%XW it’s the best survey of contemporary art in any London gallery right now.â€? In the Telegraph, Mark Hudson appreciates the original purpose of the exhibition, saying: “The novelty of the Russian and Chinese art makes much of the Western work look tame‌ To my mind, Russia emerges as notional winner on the grounds of the sheer density RI NRRN\ PRPHQWV R̆HUHG ´ Until February 23. 3RS DUWÂśV LQĂ€XHQFH H[WHQGV 'RZQ Under with Pop to Popism, at Art Gallery New South Wales in Sydney. With more than 200 works exploring the origins of pop art, it’s an ideal entryway to understanding the prevailing ideologies behind the art form, and its enduring legacy both in Australia and abroad. The Australian’s Michaela Boland says: “It could be argued telling the story of Australian pop art in this international context is long overdue, and it’s no secret AGNSW is hoping to capitalise on the popularity and accessibility of WKH DOO IDPLOLDU DUWZRUNV E\ HQGLQJ ZKDW KDV EHHQ D GL̇FXOW \HDU IRU the gallery with a hit exhibition and big crowds.â€? The Guardian’s Andrew Frost writes: “Where Pop to 3RSLVP LV GL̆HUHQW WR \RXU DYHUDJH

blockbuster is the Australian art that has been interwoven into that familiar story. In the early galleries DORQJVLGH ZH ¿QG WKH ZRUNV RI 7RQ\ Tuckson, an abstract expressionist experimenting with found objects, and the collaborative paintings of Mike Brown, Ross Crothall and Colin Lanceley, with their funky, colourful assemblages that echoed early pop but also French New Realism. While early pop was forming, Australian artists were there at the heart of it.� On show until March 1. New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art eschews trendy pop culture with a new exhibition depicting old master artist Paul CÊzanne’s lifelong attachment to Hortense Fiquet: his wife, mother of his only son, and most painted model. Featuring 24 of the artist’s 29 portraits of Hortense, the exhibition Madame CÊzanne spans a period of more - 24 -

than 20 years, and is a chance to shine for one of the most mysterious women in art. Deborah Solomon of The New York Times writes: “There is something appealing about her plainness. She is nothing like her contemporaries in Impressionist pictures, who pass their days at boating parties and picnics, their long dresses billowing in the breeze, sunlight warming their skin. Madame CĂŠzanne, by contrast, looks as if she does not get out of the house much and could use a break.â€? In The Telegraph, arts writer Kathryn Hughes notes that CĂŠzanne treated his muse in an unusual, and SRVVLEO\ QRW Ă€DWWHULQJ ZD\ +XJKHV says: “While contemporaries such as Manet and Renoir continued to draw women as hazy erotic objects, out and about in the pleasure grounds of Paris, CĂŠzanne rendered Hortense as a still life, as if she were a bowl of apples.â€? Running until March 15.

Theatre An updated version of Shakespeare’s most problematic RI SOD\V 7KH 0HUFKDQW RI 9HQLFH VHW LQ PRGHUQ GD\ /DV Vegas, has opened at the Almeida theatre in London. It is a revival of Almeida artistic director Rupert Goold’s 2011 production for the Royal Shakespeare &RPSDQ\ LQ 6WUDWIRUG 8SRQ $YRQ ZKLFK VHHV \RXQJ noble Bassanio seek a loan to help him win the hand of wealthy heiress Portia, who appears on a game show in southern Belmont searching for a husband. His devoted friend Antonio agrees to guarantee the loan from the moneylender, Shylock, but Shylock demands D KHDY\ SULFH 7KH *XDUGLDQÂśV 0LFKDHO %LOOLQJWRQ ÂżQGV the production, with many of the original cast, “even more impressiveâ€? second time around. Juxtaposing WKH FDVLQR FXOWXUH RI 9HJDV ZLWK WKH VKRZEL] IDQWDV\ land of Belmont is Goold’s “most brilliant touchâ€?, VD\V %LOOLQJWRQ ZKR DOVR SUDLVHV WKH ÂłQRQ VWRS inventivenessâ€? of the production. But the triumph is that “it shows there is real heartbreak in the gaudily extravagant hotels of Nevadaâ€?. Fiona Mountford of the Evening Standard declares the production “exciting and enliveningâ€?, although, “perhaps inevitably, it tips over into excess and occasional elements of the updating jarâ€?. Susannah Fielding as Portia gives an “outstandingâ€? performance that is “by far the most thrilling aspect of Goold’s reimaginingâ€?, says Mountford. However, the Telegraph’s Dominic Cavendish says that the production “tries so hard to be novel, interesting and entertainingâ€? WKDW LW ÂłJHWV VWXFN LQ LWV RZQ RYHU PDULQDGHG FRQFHLW´ Until February 14. In Chicago, meanwhile, theatregoers can catch

Airline Highway at the Steppenwolf Theatre before it hits Broadway in spring. Written by Lisa D’Amour, D ÂżQDOLVW IRU WKH 3XOLW]HU 3UL]H LQ 'UDPD DQG GLUHFWHG E\ WZR WLPH 7RQ\ $ZDUG ZLQQHU -RH 0DQWHOOR WKH SOD\ VHHV D UDJ WDJ FROOHFWLRQ RI VWULSSHUV KXVWOHUV and philosophers gather in New Orleans to celebrate the life of Miss Ruby, an iconic burlesque performer who has requested a funeral before she dies. The party rages through the night as old friends resurface to pay their respects. Variety’s Steven Oxman says D’Amour “can write characters who have a degree of depth that makes you feel you can only know them so far, who DOZD\V KDYH PRUH WR UHYHDO´ 7KH SOD\ LV ³¿OOHG ZLWK ZLW and humanity and plenty of energy stemming nonstop from an ensemble that doesn’t have a weak link,â€? Oxman says. But the work could still reach for a higher climax and “remains just a bit too safe to make the type of splash it will need to make a commercial mark as a serious work on Broadwayâ€?, however, he feels it is a “beautiful playâ€? that has “much to teach usâ€?. In Chris -RQHVÂśV WKUHH DQG D KDOI VWDU UHYLHZ LQ WKH &KLFDJR Tribune, he says Mantello directs with “kindness, restraint and sudden bursts of energyâ€?, while D’Amour‘s ÂłIUHTXHQWO\ SRHWLF SLHFH RI ZULWLQJ´ LV D ÂżQH PDWFK IRU the group of distinguished Chicago actors “who imbue these characters with spunk, spirit and vulnerabilityâ€?. Jones also feels there’s work to do before the upcoming Broadway engagement, believing the play “sometimes YHUJHV RQ DQ XQLQWHQWLRQDO 'LVQH\ ÂżFDWLRQ RI WKH GLVSRVVHVVHG ,W LV DERXW D GHÂżDQW SDUW\ IRU VXUH EXW LW needs more edge, more grit.â€? Until February 8.

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ART & DESIGN

W

hen was the last time you looked in the mirror? Really took a few moments to study yourself, and tried to see yourself with new eyes – the way others see you? English artist Antony Micallef has spent the last four months doing exactly that, as KH SXWV WKH ÂżQLVKLQJ WRXFKHV RQ KLV stunning new series, Self, due to show at London’s Lazarides gallery in February. In an exclusive interview with AIR, the British artist says: “I’ve been making works for this show for the last year-and-a-half, but over the last four months I decided to scrap all my older work and get back to basics. I wanted to do what I’m really good at, which is painting heads.

‘There are no filters... nothing to make it look glamorous. I wanted it to be raw, intuitive on that human level’ :LWK DUW WKHUHÂśV D ORW RI IDVKLRQ DQG trends, and a lot of my work was dealing with popular cultures, but I haven’t shown for four years and I wanted my show to be really strong and deal with the fundamentals of painting.â€? For Micallef, the fundamentals were underpinned by a realisation that in their own way, all of his work has been about himself. He says: “I got to this point where I noticed that I’d make these political works with Banksy or crazy paintings, and I realised that they were intrinsically about me. I think I was actually commenting on the way I behaved. I saw myself as part of the problem, and I don’t want to get too preachy but I thought ‘I’m guilty of all these things too.’ I didn’t realise that I’d been painting myself for the last 20 years, so I thought this would be a good way of stripping it all back.

EXPRESS YOUR SELF Antony Micallef’s raw and introspective new series sees the pop culture expert getting back to basics, writes Richard Jenkins

7KHUH DUH QR ÂżOWHUV RQ WRS WKHUHÂśV nothing to make it look glamorous. I wanted it to be raw, intuitive on that human level. I feel like I’ve learned a new language. To be honest I feel like I’ve only just learned how to paint.â€? Stripping back as far as possible EURXJKW WKH DUWLVW WR KLV ÂżQDO destination – himself. Micallef agrees, saying: “That’s why the show is called Self. These are my 21st FHQWXU\ DOWHUQDWH VHOÂżHV ,WÂśV IXQQ\ because Kim Kardashian says that \RX JR WKURXJK GL̆HUHQW VHOÂżHV before you get the right one, and when I’m painting these heads I go - 26 -

through a really similar process. At OHDVW GL̆HUHQW KHDGV FRPH RXW before I choose one. I just wanted to strip it all back and it’s quite a traditional show in that sense. That’s basically what the show is about. Simple, watertight and not about fashion or anything pop cultural. It’s all about me, I guess!â€? A journey of self-discovery for Micallef means looking back to his beginnings. How did he unearth his DUWLVWLF WDOHQW LQ WKH ÂżUVW SODFH" +H says: “I always found school really GL̇FXOW :KHQ \RXÂśUH \RXQJ \RX MXVW ZDQW WR ÂżW LQ UHDOO\ , ZDV DOZD\V terrible at maths and English, and

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some work, and she got in touch and asked if I would paint her kids in the same way I do my black and white KHDGV ZKLFK DUH SUHWW\ GLVÂżJXUHG the way I paint them. But the reason I said no was that I don’t really see them as portraits. I get asked by quite a lot of people if I can paint them in this style, and it’s not the PRVW Ă€DWWHULQJ VW\OH RI SDLQWLQJ ,ÂśYH said no to other people, so I can’t just say yes to Angeline Jolie just because it’s her. And also I can’t do the job. I didn’t want to say yes and give her something that wasn’t true WR PH %XW , ZDV H[WUHPHO\ Ă€DWWHUHG by it, of course. But I can’t give her VRPH GLVÂżJXUHG SRUWUDLW DQG WKHQ say, ‘There’s your kids!’â€? On returning back home to Brighton after the LA show, Micallef was almost penniless – until he learned that the sales from the

‘I’ve always liked contrast... When you mix a darker image with a lighter image, there’s fusion there’

just had a really tough time in class. And I found that art class was the one thing I could do well, and people copied me for a change. It was the RQH WKLQJ , ZDV UHDOO\ FRQÂżGHQW LQ I never knew this, but my Dad kept all my drawings. And one day I went LQWR KLV ṘFH DQG , VDZ DOO WKHVH drawings of mine. It was like my ÂżUVW H[KLELWLRQ , QHYHU NQHZ KH NHSW them all. It really encouraged me.â€? After completing his education, Micallef taught himself every graphic design programme available, DQG IRXQG HPSOR\PHQW LQ WKDW ÂżHOG while painting every night. He says he had “a pile of rejection letters

from galleries, but at the end of the day that makes you work a bit harder and makes you a bit bulletproof, which you need in this industryâ€?. Micallef’s big break came in 2000, when he burst onto the art scene and took second place in the BP Portrait Award. Since then, his six solo shows have all sold out, some before even opening. The artist’s 2007 show in Los Angeles marked another tipping point in his FDUHHU Âą RQH LQWR ÂżQDQFLDO VROYHQF\ and even turning down requests from A-listers. Micallef recalls: “Loads of celebrities came along. Angelina Jolie came and she bought - 29 -

exhibition totalled up to over ÂŁ3 million. But it’s clear from talking to the artist that money is simply a means to an end, a necessary WROO WKDW DOORZV DUW WR Ă€RXULVK )RU Micallef, the answer to life lies in the art – looking at both the positives and the negatives in the world. He says: “I’ve always liked that contrast. It’s a bit like chemistry for PH :KHQ \RX PL[ D GDUNHU LPDJH with a lighter image, there’s fusion there. My best painting would be: imagine your favourite strawberry sundae, with glitter all over it, it looks amazing. But it tastes like battery acid. That would be my ideal painting. Something that looks amazing and beautiful, because that pulls an audience in. And once you have an audience, you pull out WKH GDUNHU VWX̆ ´ Self opens on February 13 at Lazarides Rathbone, lazinc.com

ART & DESIGN

M

any great cities around the world DUH GH¿QHG by their art. Bilbao has its iconic Maman sculpture, the giant spider that lurks outside the Guggenheim Museum. Paris’ Louvre holds the mysterious Mona Lisa. Art in the Middle East is represented best in Jeddah, one of western Saudi Arabia’s biggest cities, and by far its most artistic. It wasn’t always thus. Less than a hundred years ago, Jeddah was much like any other small coastal village in the Middle East. Sleepy, ZLWK ¿VKLQJ SURYLGLQJ PRVW RI LWV commerce. The village was even enclosed by high walls to keep marauders at bay. But in 1938, oil was discovered, transforming

Jeddah into a thriving centre of trading and the gateway to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. The walls of the city came down to make way for the rapid expansion, and high-rise buildings and skyscrapers began springing up. In the early 1970s, Jeddah’s mayor, Mohammed Said Farsi, looked at the streets of his city and was dismayed. He had envisioned a city that could hold its own with cultural heavyweights around the world. But what he saw was a characterless, dusty city indistinguishable from any other in the region. He began work on his legacy, the Jeddah %HDXWL¿FDWLRQ 3URMHFW $V ZHOO DV QHZ EXLOGLQJV SDUNZD\V DQG ÀRUDO DUUDQJHPHQWV WKH SURMHFW LQFOXGHG updating the city’s landscape with a vast array of striking sculptures. In total, approximately 400 sculptures

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now dot the landscape in and DURXQG -HGGDK IXOÂżOOLQJ )DUVLÂśV dream of making the city one of the world’s foremost destinations for art enthusiasts. Fady Jameel, author of new hardback Sculptures of Jeddah, says: “Over the years these sculptures have become very familiar to the UHVLGHQWV RI WKH FLW\ (QMR\HG E\ ERWK the individual and the collective conscience, we have grown up with them, playing alongside them as children, walking and relaxing amongst them as adults.â€? Sculptures of Jeddah features exclusive images of key works by international artists including Henry Moore, Joan MirĂł and Alexander Calder, as well as local artists like 0XVWDID 6HQEHO 6KDÂżT 0D]ORXP and Abdulhalim Radwi. The book LV SXEOLVKHG WR FRLQFLGH ZLWK PDMRU

The

City of Art

From early settlements to modern masters, Jeddah has long been at the forefront of art and sculpture. Richard Jenkins examines how the Kingdom remains ahead of its neighbours in artistic output

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ART & DESIGN renovation and restoration works known as the Jeddah Restoration 3URMHFW RQ VRPH RI WKHVH QRZ LFRQLF landmarks. The book “tells the story of the restoration against the background of Dr. Farsi’s original vision of the cityâ€?, says Jameel. “As part of the research, it was my privilege to meet the former mayor and to interview him. I also met Julio Lafuente, whose ideas for the EHDXWLÂżFDWLRQ RI WKH FLW\ ZHUH VR LQĂ€XHQWLDO MXVW VKRUWO\ EHIRUH KLV death in 2013. It is my belief that this renewal of Dr. Farsi’s vision for Jeddah signals a new golden age for the city – in art, in culture, in its urban environment. And it is my hope that the city of Jeddah, and WKRVH ZKR YLVLW ZLOO FRQWLQXH WR ÂżQG HQMR\PHQW DQG LQVSLUDWLRQ LQ WKLV XQLTXH DUWLVWLF ODQGVFDSH ´ German artist Ottmar Hollmann LV UHVSRQVLEOH IRU RYHU D GR]HQ ZRUNV LQFOXGLQJ WKH MDZ GURSSLQJ Cosmos, which stands at 36 metres, making it one of the biggest in the world. Perhaps the most playful of

the sculptures to be found is on the Corniche Road. The Accident depicts ¿YH FRORXUIXO FDUV WKDW VHHP WR KDYH crashed at curious angles into a huge cube of concrete – a reminder that the roads can be dangerous if not treated with respect. Another Lafuente piece is one that most would recognise as a symbol of Jeddah: The Bicycle. Constructed out of rusty scrap metals, this curiosity is all of 15 metres high, and is the world’s largest bike. 'HFDGHV RI KHDW WUḊF DQG JUḊWL have caused these works to lose some of their lustre, which is why WKH -HGGDK 5HVWRUDWLRQ 3URMHFW LV so important to the region. Over 20 of the works have been lovingly restored so far, and have found a home inside a new park along the 30km coastal road that runs beside the Red Sea, creating a visually stunning open-air museum. They may no longer be used as focal points to navigate the city, but their work in that respect is done – Jeddah is now a fully functioning modern

‘It is my belief that this renewal of Dr. Farsi’s vision for Jeddah signals a new golden age for the city – in art, in culture, in its urban environment’

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PHWURSROLV Âą DQG QRZ WKH ZRUNV ÂżQG a new beauty, standing alongside one another to be appreciated by new generations of visitors. Besides sculpture, Saudi Arabia has long been a proponent of other DUW IRUPV Âľ Âś LV D QRQ SURÂżW initiative named for the geographic coordinates of Jeddah, organised by the Saudi Art Council. It is comprised of a group of local art enthusiasts who wish to contribute to the local community through the promotion of art and culture in the city. The initiative seeks to maintain and develop the phenomenon that has, for decades, seen Jeddah at the forefront of Saudi Arabia’s contemporary DUW VFHQH 2I HTXDO LPSRUWDQFH ‘21,39’ presents Saudis with an opportunity to view and appreciate the artistic culture that exists and is developing in their homeland. Zeinab Abualsamh, director of the Saudi Art Council, tells AIR: “There is an established and growing number of Saudi artists working and exhibiting throughout the Kingdom. The initial programme presented two curated - 33 -

exhibitions featuring works from emerging and established Saudi DUWLVWV ZLWKLQ ÂżHOGV RI PRGHUQ DQG contemporary art. The programme DOVR KRQRXUHG WKH FDUHHU RI 6D̆H\D %LQ]DJHU RQH RI WKH ÂżUVW 6DXGL DUWLVWV to hold an exhibition in Saudi Arabia, by presenting a solo selection of her ZRUNV VSHFLÂżFDOO\ IRU WKH LQDXJXUDO edition of ‘21,39’. “In 2014, works by 24 Saudi modern artists were showcased in ‘Past is Prologue’ – collectively exhibiting a glimpse into the history of 20th century art in the Kingdom since the 1950s, including Abdulhamid Al-Baghshi, Kamal $O 0RDOOHP $EGXOMDEEDU $O <DK\D 6DIH\D %LQ]DJU DQG $EGXOKDOLP Radwi amongst others. The second edition of ‘21,39’ [beginning this month] will again focus on the talent in the country through exhibitions, talks, and interactions between the local community and visiting audience.â€? Sculptures of Jeddah is published by Booth Clibborn Editions; 21,39 runs from January 22 to 25, www.21-39.com.

TIMEPIECES

TARIQ MALIK While neither would admit it in their marketing materials, Officine Panerai and Rolex worked together to produce the watches that would inspire a new generation of ‘tool’ watches Back in 1935, the Italian Navy commissioned Panerai to create a professional diving watch that would be waterproof and the dial highly visible under water and in darkness. Panerai had a strong relationship with Rolex, and approached them to supply the watch movements and cases. While water-resistant watches were already developed, a true diver’s watch had not yet been created. In a 1935 Rolex catalogue, ZH FDQ ÂżQG WKH UHIHUHQFH D PP Oyster pocket watch adjusted to wear as a wristwatch. This was considered a huge and unsightly watch; but function over form was the call. Further to rotating the watch 90 degrees so the crown is at three o’clock rather WKDQ ZLUH OXJV ZHUH VROGHUHG WR WKH VLGH *LYHQ there were no removable spring bars, the leather straps had to be stitched onto the watch. These straps are now highly sought after by collectors; treated with oils and resins, they could be worn in both sweet and salt water with the simple requirement that they be rinsed after a dive. The watch prototype, maintaining the same UHIHUHQFH DV WKH 5ROH[ ZDV UHFHLYHG SRVLWLYHO\ Between 1936 and 1938, Panerai worked with Rolex DQG WKH ,WDOLDQ 1DY\ WR UHÂżQH LWV ZDWFKHV SURGXFLQJ QHDUO\ PRGHOV RI WKH IROORZ XS UHIHUHQFH which became the distinctive Panerai case shape. Some RI WKHVH LQFOXGHG WKH DUW GHFR LQVSLUHG &DOLIRUQLD dial, with Roman numbers on the top half and Arabic QXPHUDOV RQ WKH ERWWRP KDOI ,Q WKH was introduced with the improved physical feature of a protected crown guard. Since the watches were manually wound, the crown gaskets would wear down; the crown guard provided additional protection and maintained the water resistance, which was a record PHWHUV H[DPSOHV RI WKH ZHUH PDGH 7KH ODVW KLVWRULF UHIHUHQFH ZDV WKH PDGH E\ VSHFLDO request of the Egyptian Navy. This is the second rarest Panerai with only 30 examples delivered.

While Panerai’s history deserves the attention it receives, perhaps equally important is that the near SLHFHV MRLQWO\ PDGH E\ 3DQHUDL DQG 5ROH[ EHWZHHQ the 1930s and 1950s inspired an entire generation RI ¾WRROœ ZDWFKHV 7KHVH FDQ EH GH¿QHG DV D ZDWFK EXLOW IRU D VSHFL¿F SXUSRVH DQG DEOH WR ZLWKVWDQG harsh environments. Rolex learned as much from the production process as Panerai. The Rolex Submariner, released in 1953 to wide acclaim, and Panerai’s Radiomir share more than their forms would indicate. 7DULT 0DOLN LV FR IRXQGHU RI 0RPHQWXP WKH 8$(œV ¿UVW and only vintage watch boutique. Visit momentumdubai.com for information. - 34 -

AIR PROMOTION

A Thing of Beauty Mechanical poetry for enlightened feminine connoisseurs

W

hile many ladies prefer wearing men’s watches, this could be down to the fact that there is far more choice of style in the men’s sector. 2015 will see a dramatic increase in exquisite timepieces for women from many manufacturers, but Vacheron Constantin won’t be one of them – as ladies’ watches already have a central place in the history of its manufacture. This expertise dates back to the beginning of the 19th century, a period that saw the emergence of WKH ¿UVW ODGLHVœ SRFNHW ZDWFKHV 7KH creation of dedicated timepieces remains a strong point of the Maison, giving it a very special place within its collections and its developments. Witnessed in the new Traditionnelle moon phase and power reserve small model, WKH VXEWOH DQG UH¿QHG KRURORJLFDO complication is revealed in a feminine interpretation. Vacheron Constantin’s watchmaking traditions are well known as among the purest in the world. Since 1755, the Swiss manufacturer has been producing timepieces of unparalleled beauty. For 2015, the company introduces a new addition to the Traditionnelle collection: the moon phase and power reserve small model. Showcasing its assets within a pink or white gold exterior, the

Traditionnelle moon phase and power reserve small model boldly asserts an aesthetic imbued with authenticity. The charm of a VKLPPHULQJ ZKLWH PRWKHU RI SHDUO dial is framed by the dainty curves RI D PP GLDPHWHU URXQG FDVH VHW ZLWK URXQG FXW GLDPRQGV IRU a total of approximately 1.2 carats. /LW XS E\ WKH JHP VHWWLQJ RQ WKH bezel, lugs and crown, this discreetly UHÂżQHG PRGHO LV D GLVWLQJXLVKHG embodiment of the identity codes of the Traditionnelle collection to

‘A mother-of-pearl dial is framed by the dainty curves of a 36 mmdiameter case set with 81 round-cut diamonds’ which it belongs: a slender bezel, a knurled motif surrounding the VFUHZ LQ FDVH EDFN ÂżWWHG ZLWK D sapphire crystal, a painted minute circle, solid gold “Dauphineâ€? hands DQG IDFHWHG KRXU PDUNHUV 7KH understated elegance of this model is matched with a grey alligator leather strap, accentuating the timeless style of a timepiece that leaves nothing to chance. As with many Vacheron &RQVWDQWLQ WLPHSLHFHV WKH FDVH back is transparent, revealing the SUHVWLJLRXV KDQG ZRXQG FDOLEHU - 36 -

1410, which bears the Hallmark of Geneva, a highly demanding token of quality based on the strict criteria that only a few manufacturers are prepared to meet. This hallmark also guarantees exceptionally PHWLFXORXV KDQGFUDIWHG ÂżQLVKHV 7KH Ă€DW VXUIDFHV DUH DGRUQHG ZLWK CĂ´tes de Genève, the sharp edges DUH EHYHOHG DQG KDQG SROLVKHG DV DUH WKH Ă€DW KHDG VFUHZV 0RUHYHU the Traditionnelle moon phase and power reserve small model also perfectly meets the current demands of this independent label, of which WKH FHUWLÂżFDWLRQ QR ORQJHU FRYHUV WKH movement alone, as was historically the case, but instead the timepieces as a whole – raising the standard of the entire watch to the highest attainable level. Inside, the watch is equipped ZLWK D KLJK SUHFLVLRQ JHDU WUDLQ the sophisticated mechanism of this function – also referred to as an “astronomical moonâ€? – requires D VLQJOH GD\ DGMXVWPHQW RQO\ RQFH every 122 years. In addition to displaying the hours, minutes, small seconds and moon phases, WKLV PDQXIDFWXUH PRYHPHQW R̆HUV D SRLQWHU W\SH LQGLFDWLRQ RI LWV RYHU KRXU SRZHU UHVHUYH Regardless of whether customers pick the pink or white gold exterior, WKLV HOHJDQWO\ UHÂżQHG ZDWFK LV guaranteed to give a lifetime of SOHDVXUH WR ODGLHV RI ÂżQH WDVWH who are looking for authority and accomplished expertise in a watch designed especially for them.

Ĺ€ 9DFKHURQ &RQVWDQWLQ Traditionnelle moon phase and power reserve small model

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TIMEPIECES

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Words: RICHARD JENKINS

Far From

RUN

OF THE

MILL

The ultra-luxury watchmaker RICHARD MILLE may have started late, but it’s already in pole position for the future

S

ome watch brands take a while to get into their stride. Identifying a market, producing a distinctive timepiece and developing a brand identity – these things can take time. In some cases, years or even decades can go by before a company decides on these important matters. Every so often, though, a brand gets everything right from day one. Richard Mille is one such manufacturer. From the company’s very inception in 2001, the brand emerged fully formed and ready to take a place at the very top table of timepiece production. In the densely populated area of The Dubai Mall where most of - 39 -

the important watch brands have their stores, Peter Harrison, CEO of Richard Mille in Europe and the Middle East, is visiting the recently refurbished Richard Mille boutique. It’s a smallish cube that has just EHHQ UH¿WWHG ZLWK VW\OLVK ZKLWH cracked-glass panels, an update on its previous all-black façade. The reason for this, a representative says, is to make the space more inviting to women – more on which later. Harrison has been in the luxury watch industry for, in his words, “a very long time”. He continues: “Richard and I have been friends for nearly 20 years, and when he started his company 12 years ago we started to work together in a small way, and then in 2006 we formed a much

TIMEPIECES bigger partnership. It’s eight-yearsold now and we’ll continue as long as we’re both happy,â€? he says. And happy they should be. $OPRVW IURP WKH R̆ 5LFKDUG 0LOOHÂśV decision to use hyper-modern materials and techniques marked the company out from more historic brands – a deliberate decision, says Harrison. “A lot of watch companies – most watch companies – are 10 or hundreds of years old,â€? he says, “And that often holds them back and they’re constrained by their history. Whereas we don’t have a heritage to look back on that says we can’t do certain things. In terms of using new materials and new applications to watchmaking, it’s much easier for us to go forward. Our clients, particularly in the Middle East, are ready to embrace that kind of revolutionary approach to watchmaking.â€? 7KH ÂżUVW WKLQJ \RXÂśOO QRWLFH ZKHQ picking up a Richard Mille timepiece is its weight – or lack of it. Harrison says that’s the perfect example of how the company operates. “The biggest thing for us is we try to make watches that are extremely light,â€? he says. “Traditionally when you bought a watch, it was a big gold watch and the weight of it VLJQLÂżHG KRZ LPSRUWDQW LW ZDV Whereas we worked with a lot of our ambassadors like Rafael Nadal, and Felipe Massa, and they wanted something that was as light as possible – a watch that did the same VWX̆ DOO WKH RWKHU ZDWFKHV GLG EXW you couldn’t feel it on your wrist. We got to this record-breaking tourbillon watch we made for Nadal, which was 19 grammes. [That’s about the weight of eight US pennies, if not the cost.] Speaking of cost, the term “reassuringly expensiveâ€? could have been coined for Richard Mille. On the company’s website, the brand statement suggests that the horology world is ‘overpopulated’ – does Harrison agree? “Would I like to be in the middle-to-higher market?â€? he asks. “No, I wouldn’t. It is very overpopulated; you just need to walk - 40 -

into The Dubai Mall to see that. It’s an interesting industry but it’s very crowded. The thing I love about what , GR ZLWK 5LFKDUG LV ZKHQ ZH VHW R̆ to do something, we say ‘we want to make a watch that has a certain application in life, we want it to do this, this and this, be waterproof, DQG VR RQÂś :H JR R̆ GR WKH UHVHDUFK

GL̆HUHQFH ZLWK 5LFKDUG 0LOOH LQ WKH YHU\ EHJLQQLQJ <RX VHW R̆ WR PDNH something and the end result is what it is. It’s almost anti-marketing, and it’s been very successful.� So successful, in fact, that even selling fewer than 3,000 watches per year has still allowed the brand to expand and experiment. New

VKHÂśG KDG ÂżWWLQJV DQG RUGHUHG RU RXWÂżWV IRU WKH XSFRPLQJ VHDVRQ and the reason she did that was if she went to a party or a function, she wanted to be the only woman in the room wearing a particular dress RU RXWÂżW $QG WKH FRVW RI GRLQJ WKDW is maybe seventy, eighty thousand dollars a go. So when she came and

‘Ambassadors like Rafael Nadal wanted a watch that was as light as possible’ and development, make the watch, and the watch will then sell for, say, ÂŁ200,000. In the middleHQG RI WKH PDUNHW WKH\ VHW R̆ E\ saying ‘we have to make a watch for $4,000’. And then everything is compromised as a product. It’s done for a reason of pricing, rather than aesthetics or function. That was the

boutiques are opening in Qatar and Paris in 2015, and Harrison also has his eye on the ladies’ market. He says: “The female market is very important to us. I recently met a client who came to buy a few watches for the winter season. She is a couture clothes buyer and she’d just come back from Paris, where

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selected a few watches, the appeal was the same for her. She wanted to go into a room and be the only one wearing that particular watch, so she selected a few that were unique. That approach is something that only a IHZ SHRSOH FDQ XQGHUVWDQG RU D̆RUG to understand, but it’s something in our brand that holds great appeal.�

TIMEPIECES Piaget Maison Piaget presents an ultra-thin hand-wound chronograph to its iconic Altiplano collection. )RU WKH ÂżUVW WLPH WKLV incredibly slim line boasts a major horological complication. The house also heralds the return of YLQWDJH ZLWK WKH %ODFN 7LH a throwback to the heyday of the 1960s and ‘70s. The FXVKLRQ VKDSHG ZDWFK ÂżUVW DSSHDUHG EDFN WKHQ DQG LV being reintroduced in 2015 with subtle updates.

The Future of Time Geneva’s Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie takes place from January 19 to 23. Here are some of the most exciting timepieces that will be revealed

A. Lange & SĂśhne 7KUHH QHZ PRGHOV RI WKH 6D[RQLD ZDWFK IDPLO\ ZLOO EH SUHVHQWHG E\ WKH YHQHUDEOH *HUPDQ PDQXIDFWXUH WKH HGLWLRQV EHLQJ XSGDWHG VXEWO\ ZLWK MXVW D IHZ SUHFLVHO\ SODFHG DFFHQWV )RU H[DPSOH WKH KRXU PDUNHUV KDYH EHHQ PRYHG WRZDUG WKH SHULSKHU\ RI WKH GLDO DQG IRU WKH 6D[RQLD $XWRPDWLF DQG WKH 6D[RQLD 'XDO 7LPH WKH WHQV markers of the subsidiary seconds dial have been endowed with numerals. - 42 -

Roger Dubuis This most exacting of watchmakers has decreed ³7KH <HDU RI WKH 6NHOHWRQ´ DQG DW 6,++ will be presenting two skeleton-work Excalibur creations that each FRQ¿UP WKH XQLTXH DQJOH of the manufacture. The Excalibur Spider Skeleton Flying Tourbillon exhibits the signature feature of DOO 5RJHU 'XEXLV VNHOHWRQ watches while also being RSHQZRUNHG ZKLOH WKH Excalibur Automatic Skeleton features a groundbreaking microrotor.

Van Cleef & Arpels 7KH )UHQFK ¿QH MHZHOOHU ZLOO EH XQYHLOLQJ D QHZ WUHDVXUH WURYH RI LWV famous Cadenas watches – true icons of the maison. The Cadenas ZDV ¿UVW FUHDWHG LQ DQG VKDUHV D VW\OLVWLF KHULWDJH ZLWK 9DQ &OHHI $USHOV¶ IDPRXV =LS QHFNODFH 'HVFULEHG E\ WKH EUDQG DV ³D MHZHO WKDW WHOOV WKH WLPH´ WKH HGLWLRQ KDV EHHQ HQODUJHG DQG RQ RFFDVLRQ DGRUQHG ZLWK ZKLWH GLDPRQGV

Officine Panerai $ VSRUWLQJ KHDUW EHDWV ZLWKLQ WKH QHZ /XPLQRU 'D\V &KURQR )O\EDFN $XWRPDWLF &HUDPLFD D UXJJHG \HW VWLOO EHDXWLIXO timepiece. The sophisticated P.9100 manufacture chronograph PRYHPHQW H[HFXWHG HQWLUHO\ E\ 3DQHUDL LV VDIHO\ KRXVHG LQVLGH WKH QHZ PP EODFN FHUDPLF FDVH ZKLFK LV H[FHSWLRQDOO\ UHVLVWDQW WR VFUDWFKHV FRUURVLYH DJHQWV DQG KLJK WHPSHUDWXUHV - 43 -

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Flights of Fantasy $V ¿QH MHZHOOHU\ EUDQG 9DQ (\FN PDNHV LWV 0LGGOH (DVW GHEXW $,5 VLWV GRZQ ZLWK IRXQGHU $ORQ *DUW\ WR WDON DUW DQG LQVSLUDWLRQ

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JEWELLERY

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read and write, introducing them to the beauty of bird watching and encouraging them to protect the natural environment. Just as much thought has gone into the packaging. Instead of a standard ring box, each piece is presented in a beautiful black box, complete with fragrance and music, ZKLFK UHVHPEOHV D WZLUOLQJ EDOOHULQD MHZHOOHU\ box. Finding a company that could produce such a design was a challenge, says Garty. Âł, VWLOO UHPHPEHU P\ ÂżUVW PHHWLQJ ZLWK WKH 6ZLVV ÂżUP 7KH\ VDLG Âľ:RZ ZH KDYH QHYHU seen anything like this. You’ll have customers EX\LQJ PRUH MHZHOOHU\ MXVW WR JHW DQRWKHU ER[Âś ´ he laughs. 7KH RULJLQV RI 9DQ (\FN GDWH EDFN WR *DUW\ÂśV time spent in Antwerp, a world centre for diamond trading. “My apartment was right behind the Royal Museum of Fine Arts, which , XVHG WR YLVLW UHJXODUO\ 7KHUH ZDV RQH SDLQWHU who I remember the most – Jan van Eyck,â€? KH UHFDOOV 7KH WK FHQWXU\ )OHPLVK DUWLVW LV RIWHQ FUHGLWHG DV WKH ÂżUVW PDVWHU RU HYHQ WKH inventor of oil painting. “He was one of the ÂżUVW ZKR DFWXDOO\ SDLQWHG SUHFLRXV VWRQHV DQG MHZHOOHU\ DQG KH GLG LW ZLWK VXFK GHWDLO WKDW you almost want to touch it.â€? Inspired by van Eyck’s innovative approach and his motto in life, Als Ik Kan (‘As I Can’), Garty decided to name his new brand after the Greater Bird of Papua ring (opening page), artist, “a name that symbolises a blend of art which takes its inspiration from the bird’s DQG MHZHOOHU\´ ZKLFK KDV EHFRPH WKH EUDQGÂśV VSHFWDFXODU Ă€RZLQJ SOXPDJH $W LWV KHDUW LV manifesto. “For example, we commissioned a 3.69-carat fancy brownish yellow diamond a master watercolourist to paint the birds surrounded by a sweep of white and fancy \HOORZ GLDPRQGV /LNH DOO 9DQ (\FN SLHFHV RQ IRU XV ´ VD\V *DUW\ 7KH FOLHQW DOVR UHFHLYHV original sketches by Poplanska, along the inside is a tiny pink sapphire, a hallmark with information about the bird that intended to be seen only by the owner. LQVSLUHG WKH VSHFLÂżF SLHFH Inspired by the long tail of the Princess Why does he think Stephanie’s Astrapia bird, discovered in 1884 9DQ (\FN ZLOO FDSWXUH and named in honour of Princess Stephanie the imagination of of Belgium, the ring (left) sits horizontally DFURVV WKH ÂżQJHUV DQG IHDWXUHV D IDQF\ LQWHQVH collectors in this region? “Middle orangey yellow diamond of 2.22 carats Eastern clients surrounded by yellow and white diamonds. look for quality 7KH :LOVRQÂśV %LUG RI 3DSXD OHIW craftsmanship, meanwhile, is admired for its astonishingly bright colours and exuberant double-spiralled identity and meaning behind WDLO 7KH HSRQ\PRXV ULQJ ULJKW LV MXVW DV the beauty,â€? eye-catching, with a 0.71-carat fancy brownhe says. “I pink diamond illuminated by a halo of yellow sapphires, itself surrounded by a sprinkling of EHOLHYH 9DQ (\FN represents all of blue sapphires, on a blue sapphire-set white these qualities.â€? A select gold band. 7KH EUDQG SODQV WR VXSSRUW D VSHFLÂżF FKDULW\ number of pieces will be available by appointment with each collection, in this case the Papua Bird Club. Founder Shita Prativi aims to teach RQO\ DW ,QÂżQLW\ 'LDPRQGV children in isolated areas of South East Asia to 'XEDL YDQH\FN MHZHOU\ FRP her Eternal Dove brooch designed exclusively for Queen Elizabeth II. “As you can imagine, everyone approached Ivonna after she won,â€? Garty says. “When I met her recently in London, where she was named in Professional Jeweller’s Hot 100 list, I asked her, ‘How come when I approached you two years ago you immediately said yes, even before I had sold one ring?’. She said it was because our brand best represents innovation LQ WKH ÂżQH MHZHOOHU\ ZRUOG ´ Each piece in the collection is named after the bird that inspired it, and represents more than 1,000 hours of design, development, JHP VHOHFWLRQ DQG ÂżQLVKLQJ 7KH SLHFHV DUH DOO limited edition, with only 10 of each design available worldwide; once the 250-piece collection is released no more will ever be produced. One of the most striking pieces is the

‘Each piece represents more than 1,000 hours of design, development, gem selection and finishing’

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On January 8, Elvis Presley would have celebrated his 80th birthday. AIR looks at the remarkable impact of the undisputed King of Rock ‘n’ Roll Words: LARA BRUNT

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efore Elvis, there was nothing,â€? John Lennon said of those pre-rock and roll days of the early 1950s when singers like Perry Como crooned politely in front of dance bands. We all know how the Elvis Presley story HQGV GHDG RQ WKH EDWKURRP Ă€RRU LQ $XJXVW DW WKH DJH RI D EORDWHG FDULFDWXUH RI his early self. Yet, as his millions of diehard fans know, Presley was the man who helped VWDUW D UHYROXWLRQ LQ PXVLF WKH VLQJHU ZKR KDV sold more than one billion records worldwide and still holds the record for the most Top 40 hits (a staggering 104). $FFRUGLQJ WR $GDP 9LFWRU DXWKRU RI 7KH (OYLV (QF\FORSHGLD 3UHVOH\ÂśV ÂłEUHDNRXW VLQJLQJ VW\OH LQĂ€XHQFHG D ZKROH JHQHUDWLRQ RI ZKLWH URFNHUV DQG FRQWLQXHV WR GR VR WR WKLV GD\´ 3UHVOH\ÂśV HQGXULQJ DSSHDO LV ÂłSDUWO\ EHFDXVH DV 5R\ 2UELVRQ VDLG Âľ+H ZDV WKH ÂżUVWHVW ZLWK WKH PRVWHVWÂś SDUWO\ EHFDXVH KLV career was so long and varied that he sang VRPHWKLQJ IRU HYHU\RQH ´ 9LFWRU FRQWLQXHV “For an entire generation he represented their \RXWK DQG ZLOG \HDUV SOXV OHVW ZH ORVH VLJKW RI WKH IDFW KH ZDV D WUXO\ H[FHSWLRQDO VLQJHU ´ (OYLV $DURQ 3UHVOH\ ZDV ERUQ RQ -DQXDU\ LQ 7XSHOR 0LVVLVVLSSL WKH VRQ RI *ODG\V DQG 9HUQRQ 3UHVOH\ +H JUHZ XS LQ D FORVH NQLW LPSRYHULVKHG IDPLO\ VXUURXQGHG E\ JRVSHO PXVLF RI WKH 3HQWHFRVWDO FKXUFK $IULFDQ $PHULFDQ EOXHV VLQJHUV LQ KLV QHLJKERXUKRRG FRXQWU\ PXVLF UDGLR SURJUDPV DQG HYHQ RSHUD +H ÂżUVW SLFNHG XS D JXLWDU DJHG DQG ÂłORFDO KHUR 0LVVLVVLSSL 6OLP HQFRXUDJHG (OYLV WR VLQJ DQG OHDUQ WR SOD\ JXLWDU ´ VD\V 9LFWRU ,Q WKH IDPLO\ PRYHG WR 0HPSKLV ZKHUH 3UHVOH\ ZDV H[SRVHG WR GHOWD EOXHV RQ %HDOH 6WUHHW WKH IDPRXV VWRPSLQJ JURXQG RI OHJHQGV OLNH 0XGG\ :DWHUV DQG % % .LQJ Âł,Q KLV WHHQ \HDUV (OYLV ZHQW WR PXVLF FOXEV DQG OLVWHQHG WR KLOOELOO\ DQG EODFN MXNH MRLQWV WR KHDU 5K\WKP ÂľQÂś %OXHV ´ VD\V 9LFWRU $UWLVWV VXFK DV $UWKXU &UXGXS 5R\ +DPLOWRQ &O\GH 0F3KDWWHU %LOO\ :DUG DQG WKH 'RPLQRHV %REE\ %ODQG DQG /LWWOH -XQLRU 3DUNHU VKDSHG KLV HDUO\ H[SHULHQFHV Âł+H DOZD\V DFNQRZOHGJHG KLV GHEW WR KLV $IULFDQ $PHULFDQ LQĂ€XHQFHV DQG WKH HDUO\ \HDUV RI KLV FDUHHU ZHUH LQ SDUW D UHVXOW RI KLV LQLPLWDEOH EOHQG RI WKHVH LQĂ€XHQFHV ´ DGGV 9LFWRU $IWHU JUDGXDWLQJ IURP KLJK VFKRRO LQ an 18-year-old Presley began working at a machinists’ shop and planned to become a - 50 -

WUXFN GULYHU 7KDW VXPPHU KH GURSSHG E\ WKH 0HPSKLV 5HFRUGLQJ 6HUYLFH KRPH RI WKH 6XQ 5HFRUGV ODEHO ZKHUH DQ\RQH FRXOG PDNH D LQFK DFHWDWH IRU 86 DQG UHFRUGHG 0\ +DSSLQHVV DQG 7KDW¶V :KHUH <RXU +HDUWDFKHV %HJLQ $IWHU 3UHVOH\ UHFRUGHG 6XQ RZQHU SURGXFHU 6DP 3KLOOLSV DVNHG VHFUHWDU\ 0DULRQ .HLVNHU WR QRWH GRZQ WKH \RXQJ PDQ¶V name, which she did along with her own FRPPHQWDU\ ³*RRG EDOODG VLQJHU +ROG ´ 7KH UHFRUG ERVV ZDV RQ WKH ORRNRXW IRU DQ DUWLVW ZKR FRXOG EULQJ WKH VRXQG RI EODFN PXVLFLDQV WR D EURDGHU DXGLHQFH $V .HLVNHU RQFH UHFDOOHG ³2YHU DQG RYHU , UHPHPEHU 6DP VD\LQJ µ,I , FRXOG ¿QG D ZKLWH PDQ ZKR KDG WKH 1HJUR VRXQG DQG WKH 1HJUR IHHO , FRXOG PDNH D ELOOLRQ GROODUV ¶´ 3KLOOLSV WHDPHG 3UHVOH\ XS ZLWK JXLWDULVW 6FRWW\ 0RRUH DQG EDVVLVW %LOO %ODFN EXW QRWKLQJ UHDOO\ FOLFNHG

‘His breakout singing style influenced a whole generation of white rockers, and continues to do so to this day’ XQWLO -XO\ ZKHQ DIWHU D WHGLRXV VHVVLRQ WKH WULR EURNH LQWR D FUDFNOLQJ XS WHPSR YHUVLRQ RI $UWKXU &UXGXS¶V 7KDW¶V $OO 5LJKW $ IHZ GD\V ODWHU 0HPSKLV GLVF MRFNH\ 'HZH\ 3KLOOLSV SOD\HG WKH VRQJ RQ KLV 5HG +RW DQG %OXH UDGLR VKRZ ,W ZDV DQ LQVWDQW KLW ZLWK OLVWHQHUV 7KDW¶V $OO 5LJKW UHJDUGHG E\ PDQ\ DV WKH EOXHSULQW RI URFN DQG UROO EDFNHG ZLWK %OXH 0RRQ RI .HQWXFN\ EHFDPH WKH ¿UVW RI ¿YH VLQJOHV UHOHDVHG RQ WKH 6XQ ODEHO In early 1955, Presley met Colonel Thomas Parker, who soon became his manager. Towards the end of the year, Parker negotiated WKH VDOH RI 3UHVOH\¶V 6XQ FRQWUDFW WR 5&$ 5HFRUGV IRU D WKHQ XQKHDUG RI 86 $W WKH &RXQWU\ 'LVF -RFNH\ &RQYHQWLRQ 3UHVOH\ was voted the year’s most promising male artist and regarded as the hottest new star in WKH PXVLF EXVLQHVV ,Q -DQXDU\ DW WKH DJH RI 3UHVOH\ KDG KLV ¿UVW UHFRUGLQJ VHVVLRQ IRU 5&$ LQ 1DVKYLOOH ZKLFK LQFOXGHG +HDUWEUHDN +RWHO DQG , *RW D :RPDQ , )RUJRW WR 5HPHPEHU WR )RUJHW ± KLV ODVW VLQJOH IRU 6XQ DQG ¿UVW IRU 5&$ ± ZHQW WR QXPEHU RQH RQ WKH FRXQWU\ FKDUWV ZKLOH +HDUWEUHDN +RWHO EHFDPH KLV ¿UVW DFURVV WKH ERDUG KLW KROGLQJ GRZQ WKH WRS VSRW IRU HLJKW ZHHNV +LV VWULQJ RI KLWV LQ DQG µ LQFOXGHG 'RQ¶W %H &UXHO +RXQG - 51 -

'RJ /RYH 0H 7HQGHU $OO 6KRRN 8S DQG -DLOKRXVH 5RFN 0HDQZKLOH 3UHVOH\ÂśV KLS VKDNLQJ SHUIRUPDQFHV RQ D VHULHV RI 79 YDULHW\ VKRZV LQFOXGLQJ WKH 0LOWRQ %HUOH 6KRZ DQG (G 6XOOLYDQ JHQHUDWHG K\VWHULD DQG FRQWURYHUV\ LQ HTXDO PHDVXUH Âł+LV UDZ VH[ DSSHDO ZDV RI SDUDPRXQW LPSRUWDQFH WR KLV LPPHGLDWH SRSXODULW\ KH ZDV RQH RI WKH ÂżUVW HYHU IRFXVHV RI PDVV SXEOLF IHPDOH ORQJLQJ ´ VD\V 9LFWRU Âł(OYLVÂś ZD\ RI PRYLQJ RQ VWDJH UHVXOWHG LQ KLP EHLQJ EDQQHG IURP PDQ\ YHQXHV DQG IDPRXVO\ ZKHQ KH ÂżUVW DSSHDUHG RQ 79 KH ZDV VKRW RQO\ IURP WKH ZDLVW XS ´ %REELH $QQ 0DVRQ DXWKRU RI ELRJUDSKLFDO HVVD\ (OYLV 3UHVOH\ $ /LIH DQG PRUH UHFHQW QRYHOV VXFK DV 7KH *LUO LQ WKH %OXH %HUHW believes Presley was at the peak of his career GXULQJ WKH 6XQ 6HVVLRQV DV KLV ÂżUVW UHFRUGLQJV later became known. “I don’t think he ever DJDLQ GLG DQ\WKLQJ TXLWH VR RULJLQDO IUHVK DQG DXWKHQWLF DV 7KDWÂśV $OO 5LJKW 0\VWHU\ 7UDLQ *RRG 5RFNLQÂś 7RQLJKW DQG 0LONFRZ %OXHV Boogie,â€? she says. Âł$IWHU LW ZDV DOO GRZQKLOO LQ D ZD\ HPRWLRQDOO\ >DW OHDVW@ ´ VKH FRQWLQXHV Âł,Q (OYLV ZDV LQ D PRYLH >/RYH 0H 7HQGHU@ DSSHDUHG RQ QLQH PDMRU 79 SURJUDPPHV HDUQHG D PLOOLRQ GROODUV DQG ERXJKW D KRXVH RQ $XGXERQ 'ULYH LQ 0HPSKLV IRU KLV SDUHQWV , WKLQN EX\LQJ WKHP WKHLU ÂżUVW KRPH ZDV WKH height of his personal achievement and he was not really happy after that.â€? 3UHVOH\ÂśV FDUHHU PRPHQWXP ZDV LQWHUUXSWHG LQ E\ D WZR \HDU VWLQW LQ WKH $UP\ LQ *HUPDQ\ ZKHUH KH PHW KLV IXWXUH ZLIH 3ULVFLOOD $ IHZ PRQWKV EHIRUH KH VKLSSHG RXW KLV EHORYHG PRWKHU GLHG Âł+H QHYHU HYHU JRW over that and it set the tone for the rest of his OLIH ´ VD\V 0DVRQ Âł2Q WKH RQH KDQG KH ZDV WU\LQJ WR EH IDLWKIXO WR KHU PHPRU\ Âą VKHÂśG always been his moral compass – and on the RWKHU KDQG KH FRXOG EH H[WUDYDJDQW EHFDXVH VKH QHYHU ZDQWHG KLP WR EH H[WUDYDJDQW ´ VD\V 0DVRQ )RU PXFK RI WKH V 3UHVOH\ ZDV SUHRFFXSLHG ZLWK PDNLQJ ORZ EXGJHW ÂżOPV 0XVLFDOO\ KH ÂłMXVW JURXQG WR D GHDG VWRS´ VD\V 0DVRQ Âł+LV PXVLF ZDV QRWKLQJ EXW FRPPHUFLDO SRS IRU D ORQJ WLPH ´ $QG ZKLOH 3UHVOH\ÂśV 0DFKLDYHOOLDQ PDQDJHU WRRN SHU cent of the singer’s earnings and played on his fear of slipping back into the poverty he had NQRZQ DV D FKLOG WKH WZR KDG ÂłDQ D̆HFWLRQDWH UHODWLRQVKLS´ VD\V 0DVRQ “The Colonel always made it seem like he might slip back into poverty if he didn’t take

WKLV QH[W GHDO (OYLV GLGQÂśW DOZD\V VHH KRZ he was being cheated, and if he did see, he accepted it. [The relationship] got stormy WRZDUG WKH HQG EXW (OYLV QHYHU H[WULFDWHG KLPVHOI IURP LW +H GLGQÂśW WUXVW RXWVLGHUV DQG VXUURXQGHG KLPVHOI ZLWK SHRSOH ZKR FRXOG JLYH KLP PRUDO VXSSRUW ´ 6XUURXQGHG E\ KLV Âľ0HPSKLV 0DÂżDÂś 3UHVOH\ WXUQHG LQFUHDVLQJO\ LQZDUG ,Q 0D\ KH ZHG 3ULVFLOOD LQ /DV 9HJDV DQG WKHLU GDXJKWHU /LVD 0DULH ZDV ERUQ WKH IROORZLQJ )HEUXDU\ 7KDW VXPPHU IHDULQJ KH KDG EHHQ IRUJRWWHQ E\ WKH PXVLF ZRUOG 3UHVOH\ UHNLQGOHG KLV FDUHHU with an electrifying “comebackâ€? television VSHFLDO 9LFWRU VD\V Âł6LQJOHKDQGHGO\ WKLV show revived a career that had been heading WRZDUGV LQHYLWDEOH REVFXULW\ IRU FORVH WR D GHFDGH ,W DOVR GLUHFWO\ OHG WR KLV WHQXUH LQ /DV 9HJDV ZKLFK EURXJKW (OYLV KXJH DXGLHQFHV EXW XOWLPDWHO\ WLHG KLP GRZQ WR D SHULRG RI UHSHWLWLRQ DQG SHUVRQDO H[FHVV ´ )DPH XOWLPDWHO\ GHVWUR\HG KLP VD\V IHOORZ 6RXWKHUQHU 0DVRQ Âł3HRSOH GRQÂśW XQGHUVWDQG KRZ KLV EDFNJURXQG VKDSHG KLP EHLQJ D SRRU FRXQWU\ ER\ D 6RXWKHUQ LQQRFHQW ZKR UHDOO\ GLGQÂśW NQRZ ZKDW KH ZDV JHWWLQJ LQWR +H

‘His raw sex appeal was of paramount importance to his immediate popularity’ had no models to follow for how to deal with KLV IDPH 3HRSOH ODXJK DW KLP IRU D ORW RI KLV EHKDYLRXU DQG KLV LQGXOJHQFHV DQG WKH ZD\ KH JDLQHG VR PXFK ZHLJKW EXW DOO RI WKHVH LI \RX SXW WKHP LQ FRQWH[W FDQ EH H[SODLQHG E\ KLV FXOWXUDO EDFNJURXQG ´ VKH VD\V :KDW PRVW FRPPHQWDWRUV DQG PXVLF IDQV DJUHH RQ LV WKDW 3UHVOH\ ZDV D FXOWXUDO SKHQRPHQRQ ZKR FKDQJHG PXVLF IRUHYHU 9LFWRU VD\V Âł(OYLVÂśV FDUHHU ODVWHG VR ORQJ DQG FRYHUHG VR PXFK JURXQG – there are recordings RI (OYLV VLQJLQJ FORVH WR D WKRXVDQG VRQJV – that the very variety of what he sang is one of WKH UHDVRQV ZK\ KH EHFDPH VR SRSXODU ´ 0DVRQ DJUHHV WKDW KH KDG VRPHWKLQJ IRU HYHU\RQH Âł+H MXVW KDG D XQLTXH EOHQG RI FRXQWU\ PXVLF DQG 5K\WKP ÂľQÂś %OXHV SRS PXVLF DQG 5RFN ÂľQÂś 5ROO JRVSHO DQG /DV 9HJDV showman,â€? she says. “Beyond that, he was a really great singer, especially the ballads and the gospel. I don’t know how he’ll be UHPHPEHUHG LQ WKH IXWXUH ZKHQ WKHUHÂśV QR ORQJHU D WDQJLEOH FRQQHFWLRQ EXW IRU QRZ KHÂśV SDUW RI RXU KLVWRU\ ´ Long live The King. - 52 -

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American

HUSTLER

From Disney princess to smouldering star of grown-up, Oscar-winning pictures, Amy Adams’ transformation may have come late – but it’s been worth the wait

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LWK ÂżYH 2VFDU nominations over nine years, Amy Adams has established KHUVHOI DV RQH RI +ROO\ZRRGÂśV ÂżQHVW DFWUHVVHV ,Q ÂżOPV OLNH 'RXEW 7he Master, 7KH )LJKWHU DQG PRVW recently, Big Eyes, she captivated DXGLHQFHV DQG FULWLFV DOLNH ZLWK the intensity and vulnerability of her performances. And in 2013’s American Hustle, she displayed a sultry side that the somewhat shy DFWUHVV KDG KLWKHUWR NHSW XQGHU wraps. “In American Hustle my character was an idealised version of myself DQG , GRQÂśW NQRZ LI , ZRXOG HYHU

have the courage to present myself that way in real life,â€? the 40-yearold actress tells AIR. “I thought for a while that I would never wear a really low cut dress after doing that ÂżOP EXW WKHQ , NLQG RI VDZ WKDW , could be a little bolder in my fashion tastes. [Laughs] Now I don’t mind going bra-less or wearing more UHYHDOLQJ RXWÂżWV ´ As Adams’ career steadily gathered momentum so did her FRQÂżGHQFH. “,WÂśV NLQG RI HPSRZHULQJ to wear sexy clothes. I’ve gained a ORW RI FRQÂżGHQFH LQ P\VHOI DQG ,ÂśYH EHHQ DEOH WR XVH WKDW LQ P\ ZRUN <RX need to have a fearless attitude when you’re acting if you want to create a performance that reaches people and \RX FDQÂśW KROG DQ\WKLQJ EDFN LQVLGH - 55 -

\RXUVHOI LQ WHUPV RI ¿QGLQJ WKH HPRWLRQDO OHYHO \RX QHHG 6R , NHHS pushing myself as far as I can go and hope for the best!� All of this seems a long way from $GDPVœ EUHDNWKURXJK UROH LQ œV Enchanted, in which she played a naïve and gentle Disney princess who found herself in gritty New <RUN &LW\ +HU LQQDWH VZHHWQHVV carried her through the role, and it would have been no surprise to see her playing similar parts in the ¿OPV WKDW IROORZHG 1RW D FKDQFH $GDPV ODXJKV ³, WKLQN ZKHQ , GLG 7KH 0DVWHU DQG 7KH )LJKWHU SHRSOH started wondering if I was as sweet as they thought. I’m pretty strongwilled when it comes to certain things and I can be very stubborn

and opinionated although I’m trying to be less so. I’m generally a pretty cheerful person and I admit that I smile a lot in life. But when I get angry I’m not very pleasant to be around and I’m not someone who ZLOO EDFN GRZQ IURP D FRQIURQWDWLRQ if the need arises. Earlier in my life , ZRXOG OHW WKLQJV JR DQG EDFN GRZQ but then I saw that that doesn’t do you any good.â€? A few years before Enchanted, Adams realised that her career was VWDOOLQJ DQG VKH QHHGHG WR PDNH some fundamental changes in her life. She recalls: “In my late 20s I got to a place where I realised that I was approaching my career and my personal relationships in the wrong way and that I needed to change my attitude or I would be a very unhappy person. I felt very insecure DQG ORVW , NQHZ , KDG WR UHWKLQN D lot of things about my life. I stopped worrying and stressing myself about HYHU\WKLQJ DQG , EHJDQ WR WDNH more chances and learn to trust my instincts more. It was a scary time for a while but it turned out to be a very good decision.â€? 7KDW UXQ RI 2VFDU ZLQQLQJ ÂżOPV is a testament to Adams’ decisionPDNLQJ +HU ODWHVW PRYLH LV \HW DQRWKHU FXULRXV UROH LQ 7LP %XUWRQÂśV Big Eyes. She plays American artist Margaret Keane, who became embroiled in a celebrated clash ZLWK KHU KXVEDQG :DOWHU &KULVWRSK Waltz, excellent as always) over the authorship of a celebrated series of paintings of children with large, sad eyes that gained mass appeal in the 1950s and ‘60s. As part of D VHOI VHUYLQJ PDUNHWLQJ VWUDWHJ\ Walter Keane promoted and sold the paintings as his own until the couple divorced and Margaret found WKH FRXUDJH WR ÂżQDOO\ DVVHUW KHUVHOI DV WKH UHDO DUWLVW 7KH UROH FRPHV DW a crucial time for womens’ rights, as feminism is discussed and debated at all levels. Adams says: “Margaret really believed that as a woman, people would not buy her art. [Her husband] convinced her that [as a man] he could sell more art at a higher price than a woman... But

the way Margaret created the eyes which were what attracted so much DWWHQWLRQ WR KHU ZRUN %XW RI FRXUVH I could never master her technique,â€? admits the actress. “I’m good at arts and crafts and I’m also good at sewing, as I’ve discovered repairing my daughter’s clothes,â€? she laughs. Away from the movie sets, Adams tries to live as normal a life as a multiple-award winner can do. Âł, HQMR\ KDYLQJ D ORW RI IULHQGV RXWVLGH WKH ÂżOP EXVLQHVV DQG QRW to isolate myself from the everyday world because that’s where I draw D ORW RI P\ LQVSLUDWLRQ LQ P\ ZRUN , OLNH PHHWLQJ SHRSOH ZKR KDYH interests outside of my narrow world and I love feeling that I can have a pretty normal life. I still prefer to UXQ LQ WKH SDUN UDWKHU WKDQ WUDLQ in a private gym with a personal WUDLQHU , WDNH P\ GDXJKWHU WR VFKRRO HYHU\ PRUQLQJ GXULQJ WKH ZHHN DQG , RIWHQ VSHDN ZLWK RWKHU SDUHQWV ,WÂśV important to me not to let myself get trapped in a celebrity bubble. I would dread that feeling.â€? Adams’ young daughter was named after the Italian air force base where her father was stationed and she herself was born. She says: “I wanted her name to connect her to similarly, claiming to be very UHVHUYHG :K\ LV WKDW" Âł, JUHZ XS LQ my own story in life and how much I a big family,â€? she begins (Adams’ has VWLOO ORYH ,WDO\ 0\ ÂżDQFp DQG , KDYH four brothers and two sisters). “And I always been impressed by the deep was always happy to let other people VHQVH RI FXOWXUH DQG VW\OH \RX ÂżQG LQ KDYH WKH DWWHQWLRQ , DOZD\V OLNHG WKH Italy and I’m sure we’ll spend a lot of time over there with our daughter. IHHOLQJ RI EHLQJ LQ WKH EDFNJURXQG I still feel a sense of attachment to DQG XQOHVV ,ÂśP ZRUNLQJ WKDWÂśV VWLOO Italy. I often sing Italian songs with my natural state. I remember that $YLDQD DQG VKH MXVW ORYHV LW ´ when I was starting out I loved So what future roles is this doing musical theatre [she started performing in her early 20s] and felt FKDPHOHRQ ORRNLQJ IRUZDUG WR WDNLQJ Âą PRUH OLNH $PHULFDQ +XVWOH WKDW so happy when I would get to sing FDQ VKRZ R̆ KHU GDUN VLGH" Âł:H DOO and dance, I still had to overcome bottle up anger or negative energy my anxiety about performing in and sometimes you need to get rid of front of people. But then it turned out to be one of the happiest times of that and in my case I have a creative RXWOHW IRU DOO WKRVH GDUNHU HPRWLRQV my life. And I’m still at it!â€? and frustrations,â€? she says. “All that So, did she go method when pent-up anger is very useful when researching the role of Margaret .HDQH Âą SHUKDSV MRLQ VRPH SDLQWLQJ you play characters that have a more aggressive and nasty side.â€? FODVVHV WR UHDOO\ LQKDELW WKH UROH" Maybe this butter-wouldn’t-melt, “I was mainly concerned with the nice as pie Disney princess isn’t so way she handled the brush and sweet after all. applied the paint, and especially eventually she felt that she could no longer live with that lie and decided to come forward.â€? 7KH UROH LV FHUWDLQO\ MXLF\ DQG Adams was eager to add yet another FRPSOH[ FKDUDFWHU WR KHU &9 6KH says: “It’s fascinating for me to be able to play an artist. Playing Margaret was a great opportunity to get to explore her mind and VLWXDWLRQ 0\ ÂżDQFp LV DQ DUWLVW and it’s such a unique story that I’m so glad to have been able to WHOO KHU VWRU\ , DOVR JRW WR VSHDN WR 0DUJDUHW ZKLFK ZDV WKH NH\ IRU me because there wasn’t a lot of information about her that I could research. She’s a shy and introverted person and she expresses herself best through her art.â€? Adams often describes herself

‘I always liked the feeling of being in the background and unless I’m working that’s still my natural state’

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Words: Fred Allen / The Interview People. Additional copy by Richard Jenkins

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Hippie chic

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,QĂ€XHQFHG E\ KHU upbringing in the Middle East, designer Thea Porter brought boho chic to the world in the 1960s. Ahead of a new exhibition, Lara Brunt looks at her life and legacy...

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s Swinging London hit its stride in the 1960s, musicians, actors, artists and designers began looking to the “mystic eastâ€? for inspiration. With her intricately decorated, layered and hand-painted designs, Thea Porter was one such designer who created the ‘haute hippie’ style so beloved of rock stars such as the Beatles and glamorous socialites like Talitha Getty. ,QĂ€XHQWLDO \HW RIWHQ RYHUORRNHG WKH GHVLJQHU LV WKH subject of a new retrospective that opens next month at the Fashion and Textile Museum in London. Thea 3RUWHU Âľ V %RKHPLDQ &KLF LV WKH ÂżUVW H[KLELWLRQ WR explore her work in detail, with over 150 textiles, garments, artwork and photographs exploring her LQĂ€XHQFHV DQG HYROXWLRQ DV D GHVLJQHU “Most of Porter’s designs exhibit a multi-cultural LQĂ€XHQFH ´ VD\V H[KLELWLRQ FXUDWRU DQG IDVKLRQ historian, Laura McLaws Helms, “blending together the world of her childhood with the world of high fashion. It is this rich combination of experience, travel and passion for the Middle East that imbues her creations with such lasting appeal and renders them worthy of a museum retrospective.â€? Born in Jerusalem in 1927, the daughter of Reine and Morris Seale, a respected Arabist and biblical scholar, Porter was raised in Damascus, after her parents settled there in 1933 to work as missionaries. “In her unpublished memoir, written in the late 1980s, she recounts memories of shopping with her mother in the Damascus souk and being completely captivated by

everything around her: ‘My interest in textures, fabrics, clothes, in the scents and colours of the Near East, was awakened at a very early age...’â€? says McLaws Helms. Porter moved to Beirut in the 1950s, where she met and married Robert Porter, an economist attached to the British Embassy. In between travels to Iran and Jordan, she studied painting and started designing dresses, mixing with Beirut’s bohemian set and often dancing until dawn in the city’s nightclubs. In 1964, Porter moved to London with her eight-yearold daughter Venetia (her marriage later ended in 1967), and turned her attention to interior design. After a variety of jobs and commissions, she opened a store on Greek Street in 1966. “She brought with her all of these PHPRULHV DQG LQĂ€XHQFHV WKH\ LPPHGLDWHO\ PDQLIHVWHG in the interiors she designed and in the objects she chose to import,â€? says McLaws Helms. “The shop was described as ‘an Aladdin’s Cave’ of beautiful Middle Eastern furniture, decorative arts, rugs and antique garments.â€? Using the fabric of antique caftans, originally purchased to make cushions, Porter began designing clothes. Her eclectic creations were an immediate hit. “Markets were full of clothes that were imported from key places along the ‘Hippie trail’ from Afghanistan DQG 0RURFFR EXW 7KHD ZDV WKH ÂżUVW WR UHPDNH WKH VDPH exotic styles in luxurious fabrics,â€? explains McLaws Helms. “Celebrities and rock stars commissioned pieces, and her designs very quickly appeared in newspapers DQG PDJD]LQHV E\ VKH KDG TXLW GHVLJQLQJ LQWHULRUV to focus completely on fashion.â€? Her debut collection in June 1968 featured mainly menswear with some full-length evening gowns and mini-dresses, however, Porter soon focussed on womenswear. She introduced seven key pieces into her collections: the abaya, the Gipsy dress, the Faye dress, a brocade dress with sheer side panels, the Wrap-over dress, the Chazara jacket and a Sirwal-like skirt. Bianca Jagger, Elizabeth Taylor and the Begum Aga

‘Using the fabric of antique caftans, originally purchased to make cushions, Porter began designing clothes’ Khan were seen wearing her exotic designs, along with prominent Arab clients such as Princess Dina of Jordan. In 1971, she opened a boutique in New York, and, by 1974, Los Angeles Times’ fashion editor, Marylou Luther, declared: “No soiree for the soignee set is complete, it would seem, without its fair share of long MHZHOHG JRZQV RU Ă€RDWLQJ DED\DV ZLWK 3RUWHU ODEHOV ´ “Porter’s abayas generated remarkable commercial success,â€? says McLaws Helms. “They were popular for their ability to hide the body beneath the billowing

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)ORUDO FRWWRQ YRLOH *LSV\ GUHVV 3KRWRJUDSK E\ :LOOLH &KULVWLH

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folds, while subtly hinting at the female form beneath due to their transparent fabrics.â€? The designer also took the traditional baggy siwal trousers worn in the region and “reinterpreted them into a tightly waisted skirt with voluminous draped folds that fell either to the knee or the ankle,â€? McLaws Helms explains. “Usually made from jersey, they were easy to both wear and pack, and therefore particularly desirable to Porter’s jet-set clientele.â€? Textiles were always key to her design aesthetic. “Her ZRUNURRP ZDV ÂżOOHG ZLWK D ZLGH YDULHW\ RI DQWLTXH DQG Middle Eastern fabrics she had collected, and then grew to include silks from major French manufacturers, as well as special order patterns for which Porter provided design direction and had manufactured exclusively for her shop. One section of the exhibition looks at the close working relationship Porter had with several textile designers, and the beautiful designs that emerged from their collaborations,â€? the curator explains. 3RUWHU ZDV DOVR LQĂ€XHQFHG E\ WKH ZRUN RI )UHQFK couturier Paul Poiret and Spanish artist-designer Mariano Fortuny, both at their peak in the 1910s. “The connections between the work of Poiret and Porter are visible in their passion for Turkish trousers, turbans, tassels and kimono blouses, all of these exotic Eastern garments that celebrated the beauty of textiles,â€? says McLaws Helms. “Fortuny’s designs also exhibited the VDPH Âż[DWLRQ RQ TXDOLW\ WKURXJK WKH LQYHQWLRQ RI D VLON pleating process for his ‘Delphos’ gowns – Porter began

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‘Porter’s distinctive designs have a timeless appeal – unique and mysterious without seeming like costumes, they transcend the moniker of vintage’ WR LQFOXGH SOHDWHG VLON FKL̆RQ LQ KHU FROOHFWLRQ LQ ÂżUVW IRU FDSHV DQG ODWHU IRU JRZQV DQG FRFNWDLO GUHVVHV ´ As the 1970s went on, Porter’s designs took on a more FODVVLFDOO\ (XURSHDQ ORRN UHĂ€HFWLQJ WKH JHQHUDO VKLIW away from the hippie styles of the late 1960s towards a more ‘retro’ 1930s and ‘40s style. “Porter still produced reworkings of her signature abayas for each collection, but overall the majority of the styles took their form and silhouette more from the West – glamorous Hollywood style gowns, chic lace jackets and skirts, strapless cocktail dresses,â€? comments McLaws Helms. “They were GL̆HUHQWLDWHG IURP RWKHU GHVLJQHUV EHFDXVH RI WKHLU XQLTXH HQHUJ\ Âą D FRQĂ€XHQFH RI H[RWLF FRORXUV VKDSHV and textiles – which gave Thea’s designs a lusciousness that seduced and invigorated her clients.â€? In 1977, she opened a boutique in Paris, at a time when designers such as Yves Saint Laurent and Kenzo Takada were also exploring ‘ethnic’ themes. However, despite her success, the business eventually went into liquidation in 1981. Porter continued to produce collections throughout the 1980s and later wrote her

unpublished memoir, Thea Porter’s Scrapbook, in which she says her ambition was to ‘make dresses beyond trendies and tat, that 30 years from today will still be beautiful, the way Fortuny’s clothes are beautiful today’. The designer who gave us boho died of a lung infection in 2000, aged 72. And while her name has been gradually forgotten, her legacy lives on among those in the know. “Porter’s designs continue to sell for thousands of pounds at auction and from vintage dealers, and are collected by celebrities and fashion GHVLJQHUV KHU LQĂ€XHQFH UHVXUIDFHV FRQWLQXDOO\ RQ WKH catwalk, as can be seen in the bohemian looks shown by many designers for spring/summer 2015,â€? says McLaws Helms. “For stars from Kate Moss to Julia Roberts, Thea Porter’s distinctive designs have a timeless appeal – unique and mysterious without seeming like costumes, they transcend the moniker of ‘vintage’ and are as multilayered and intriguing as their maker.â€? 7KHD 3RUWHU Âľ V %RKHPLDQ &KLF LV RQ VKRZ IURP )HEUXDU\ WR 0D\ DW WKH )DVKLRQ DQG 7H[WLOH 0XVHXP LQ %HUPRQGVH\ /RQGRQ IWPORQGRQ RUJ

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Pulp

FICTION

Barry Forshaw sits down with James Ellroy, the selfproclaimed ‘Demon Dog’ and greatest crime writer on earth. But is his bark worse than his bite?

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ette Davis’ warning is something that any interviewer of James Ellroy PLJKW SURÂżWDEO\ bear in mind. His abrasive reputation is legendary, and the self-styled ‘Demon Dog’ RI $PHULFDQ FULPH ÂżFWLRQ KDV DOVR described himself as ‘the greatest living crime writer’, a soi-disant observation that a great many of his contemporaries – and thousands of readers – would agree with. False modesty is not James Ellroy’s thing. But this man who has shaken out all the exhausted tropes of American FULPH ÂżFWLRQ OLNH ORRVH QDLOV OHDYLQJ behind something as ambitious, corrosive and unsettling as anything in the genre, is famously unsparing with interviewers: he has them for breakfast. This reputation was on my mind as I approached the Taj Hotel near Buckingham Palace (he was in the UK as part of a promotional tour). What’s more, it had been communicated to me that he was none too pleased with my review of his latest novel, the gargantuan 3HUÂżGLD – even though I’d tried to suggest that the book’s vaunting ambition made the work of most of his contemporaries seem like PLQQRZV LQ 3HUÂżGLDÂśV IRUPLGDEOH wake. Certainly, no genteel, collegiate encounter was on the cards. This, after all, was a man who in his own abrasive autobiography My Dark Places goes some way to explain why his work is often a descent

into a neon-lit, hellish Los Angeles – and his own psyche. That book presented an unvarnished picture of his terrifying childhood. His mother was murdered when he was only 10 years old, and his teenage years were a smorgasbord of drugs, alcohol and D YDULHW\ RI R̆ NLOWHU REVHVVLRQV Now a robust 66, Ellroy has a reputation for taking no prisoners. Am I – in American argot – about to get handed my head? There is little argument DPRQJ D¿FLRQDGRV WKDW (OOUR\œV monumental LA Quartet (The Black Dahlia, 1987; The Big Nowhere, /$ &RQ¿GHQWLDO DQG White Jazz, 1992) is the greatest of modern crime-novel sequences. Starting with a relatively simple premise (a killing at an all-night diner is under investigation by three LA cops, each of whom has a very GL̆HUHQW DJHQGD (OOUR\ XWLOLVHV the discursive narrative to produce a massive panoply of Los Angeles in the 1950s, more assiduously detailed than the work of that other great chronicler of the area, Raymond Chandler. Blending his ¿FWLRQDO VFHQDULR ZLWK UHDO HYHQWV and characters, the picture-postcard vision of the city (with its non-stop sunshine, glistening beaches and universal prosperity) is swiftly undercut by Ellroy’s penetrating vision of the darker side; but his real subject is the psyches of his three YHU\ GL̆HUHQW SROLFHPHQ It is in this area that the true greatness of the novels lies, for while the psychology of his protagonists is laid open with scalpel-sharp - 65 -

precision, the task is always accomplished in prose which is as accomplished as anything in literary ÂżFWLRQ 3HUKDSV WKH Âł*UHDW $PHULFDQ Novelâ€? might spring from the pen of marauding Visigoth Ellroy, writing DERXW WKH GHÂżQLQJ HUD RI SRVW ::,, America, stirring into his heady EUHZ UHDO OLIH ÂżJXUHV VXFK DV -). cross-dressing FBI supremo J Edgar Hoover, and gangsters such as Vito *HQRYHVH %XW WKHQ VRPHWKLQJ happened: Ellroy’s subsequent books were couched in an eccentric ÂłWHOHJUDSKHVH´ SURVH VR VSDUH EXW dense) that it cost him many readers – while not, however, denting his reputation one iota. As I head towards the hotel’s sumptuous Jaguar Suite, I wonder: do I bring up this audacious change of method? My teeth are gritted. But as James Ellroy walks into the room – tall, elegant, and with the look of a bookish intellectual UDWKHU WKDQ D YRODWLOH VWUHHWÂżJKWHU – I suspect I’m in for a somewhat GL̆HUHQW H[SHULHQFH IURP WKH RQH I expected. It seems my English politeness is a plus; Ellroy has a Hannibal Lecter-like respect for politeness over all else, and tells me later that he has walked out of interviews in which he has felt that the interviewer has been rude. So: where to start? A discussion of 3HUÂżGLD SHUKDSV" 1R WKH ÂżUVW WKLQJ we discuss is how he feels about today’s news that the Republicans now rule the roost in the Senate and that Obama’s presidency is of the lame duck variety. He hadn’t heard WKH QHZV DQG LV HODWHG Âł5HDOO\" ,V

that the case?â€? he asks, grinning. Âł7KDW UHDOO\ SOHDVHV PH Âą , FDQÂśW wait to ring up my left-wing friends and rub that in.â€? So, I ask, is he an unapologetic right-winger? Âł:HOO ,ÂśP LQ WKH FRXQWU\ RI Margaret Thatcher and Winston Churchill, both heroes of mine – as was Ronald Reagan. In fact, all three shared something other than sensible right-wing views: a love of splendid, old-fashioned oratory.â€? But oratory (in at least two of those cases) written by others, I demur‌ Âł7KDW GRHVQÂśW PDWWHU ´ VPLOHV (OOUR\ Âł:KDW WKH\ VDLG Âą DQG KRZ they said it – is what counted.â€? To the book. I ask if Ellroy really needs to do this kind of promotional tour: exhausting, multi-country, multi-event. Surely his books will sell whether he publicises them or QRW" Âł<HV ´ KH UHSOLHV Âł%XW WKH\ will sell more if I do Manchester one night and Rome a week later. Besides,â€? – he looks me in the eye – ÂłVRPHWLPHV WKH ERUHGRP LV DOOD\HG when I’m asked something I haven’t been asked.â€? No pressure for me, then. How – in his sixties – are his energy levels for these kinds of MXQNHWV" Âł, KDYH WHUULÂżF HQHUJ\ levels. And I’m good at husbanding my resources. I’m able to focus on the things that are important in my life and to cut out the crap. For instance, if a restaurant or bar is playing loud rock music – which I loathe – I simply get up and go. I cut short a meal the other night because the restaurant was simply too loud. If there is going to be music in my life, it will probably be Beethoven. Experiencing genius recharges one’s own batteries and is immensely good for the soul. I don’t allow myself too much untoward stimulation. I want fewer people in my life – I’m not looking for new friends. Most of the time I live in a sort of monkish seclusion; I see a friend and his wife, and we watch things like The Killing – both the American and the Danish versions. The original, incidentally, is about 30 times better. I don’t

assiduously read what my crimeÂżFWLRQ FRQWHPSRUDULHV DUH ZULWLQJ however.â€? Ah, yes – the soul. Does Ellroy share with the Republicans whose victory pleased him a strong belief LQ *RG" Âł$EVROXWHO\ ´ KH DQVZHUV Âł,ÂśP DEOH WR ÂżQG *RG HYHU\ZKHUH DQG WKDW R̆HUV PH WKH VDPH VRODFH as the music of Beethoven. After my grim childhood and a life which has hardly been peaceful, I know the value of things which now give me SHDFH Âą VXFK DV *RG

‘I’m not looking to relax. I want to write better and better books’ Âł7KH PXUGHU RI P\ PRWKHU LV VRPHWKLQJ WKDW D̆HFWHG WKH subsequent course of my life – and continues to do so.â€? He smiles gently (something I’m realising is his default mode – no channelling of WKH Âł'HPRQ 'RJ´ LQ WKLV LQWHUYLHZ Âł0\ PRWKHUÂśV NLOOLQJÂŤ , DOZD\V wonder how long it will take before it comes up in any interview.â€? (I avoid pointing out that it was Ellroy himself who brought it XS Âł2I FRXUVH WKDW WUDXPD ZDV LPPHQVHO\ LQĂ€XHQWLDO IRU UHDVRQV I wrote about in My Dark Places, and the excessiveness of the event was perhaps a harbinger of the excessiveness of the life I was to lead – until now, that is.â€? I also avoid mentioning that I’d ZULWWHQ WKH UHYLHZ RI 3HUÂżGLD ZLWK which he was not best pleased, but ask him how he responds to the critical reception of any new book. Âł3HUÂżGLD KDV KDG VRPHÂŤ interesting reviews, some of which get the book wrong, but I don’t UHYLHZ WKH UHYLHZV , FDQÂśW D̆RUG WR take on board hostile criticism of, for instance, my attempts to take ULVNV ZLWK ODQJXDJH %XW 3HUÂżGLD LV WKH ÂżUVW RI D QHZ TXDUWHW DQG WKHQ I’m thinking of writing a trilogy, and in all of these I’m planning to do - 66 -

VRPHWKLQJ GL̆HUHQW ´ I ask if it’s something of a 'DPRFOHDQ VZRUG EHLQJ ÂłWKH greatest living crime writer’; that can’t be too relaxing, can it? Âł1R Âą LW LVQÂśW EXW ZULWLQJ LV one area where I’m not looking to relax. I want to write better and better books. Sometimes the writing process is not an organic progression, but something VKRFNLQJ /$ &RQÂżGHQWLDO Âą LQ LWV entirety – came to me as something RI D V\QRSWLF Ă€DVK DQG LQ WKH EDFNODVK RI WKDW Ă€DVK , UHDOLVHG that whatever I could conceive, I could execute. It was a seismic, lifechanging moment.â€? Ellroy leans back and sips his mineral water; he doesn’t drink any more. I am by now starting to wonder if the dyspeptic view of Ă€DZHG KXPDQLW\ RQH JOHDQV IURP KLV ERRNV LV LQ IDFW LOOXVRU\ Âł,ÂśP DQ RSWLPLVW ´ KH H[FODLPV Âł:KDWHYHU people may think, I have an ameliorative view of human nature.â€? %XW ZKDW DQJHUV KLP" Âł'R \RX ZDQW to know what I really hate in people? 1LKLOLVP ´ Ah ha – so I’ve found an area which may channel a little of the Ellroy bile which has been conspicuously absent so far in our talk. One source of anger, surprisingly, is the youthful audience he spoke to in London’s trendy Shoreditch the night EHIRUH Âł+LSVWHUV 7KH\ ZHUH all so nonconformist in an utterly conformist way; they all resemble each other; the fashion accoutrements are a straitjacket. I GR ÂżQG KLSVWHUV LPPHQVHO\ VHOI regarding, and bizarrely enamoured RI VTXDORU LQ D UDWKHU H̆HWH ZD\ ´ But isn’t Ellroy himself the hippest of writers? He smiles wryly. Âł$OO , FDQ VD\ LV WKDW , OLNH WR surround myself with square people. I was never really ‘hip’. The hipsters like rap: misogynistic, semi-literate doggerel. The voice of urban youth? *LYH PH D EUHDN 5DS DV DUW" 1R $UW should encompass the world, open avenues and cross boundaries. At least, it’s what I try to do.â€?

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MOTORING

Back on Top As the enfant terrible of Red Bull and Ferrari, poached and then discarded by Lotus, Dany Bahar has had a career of highs and lows. With his new company, Ares Performance, he’s hitting the heights again

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MOTORING

I

n the world of motorsport, it’s safe to say that Turkish-born, Swissraised Dany Bahar divides opinion. A quick Google of the entrepreneur’s time as head of Lotus brings up articles that say things like “he was a disaster in almost every wayâ€?, and that he was quick to give himself a huge salary and slow to turn the company’s fortunes around. Bahar’s dismissal from the company would suggest that his critics may have a point. On the other hand, Bahar counter-sued Lotus after his sacking, and during his time at the company, increased sales, volume and turnover by 20 per cent. So which version of Bahar is the real one? Can his new company, Ares Performance, prove his worth to the industry once and for all? Bahar was born in Turkey in 1971. He began his career in sports marketing, publicising inline skating in the sport’s halcyon days, the 1990s. From there, he took a step into wealth management, working in Lichtenstein and looking after some of the company’s most important clients, like that of Red Bull owner Dietrich Mateschitz. In 2002, Bahar joined Mateschitz at Red Bull, and was the driving force behind introducing the brand to the world of motorsports. “Speed was their main focus so we developed the Formula One strategy, and it never disappeared,â€? says Bahar. “I then made the jump to Ferrari, which was road cars, and I never had any experience with road cars. The then-chairman wanted to rejuvenate the whole customer base because the average age of the owners was 64.5, really old, and children never bought Ferraris. I went there in 2006 and started to rejuvenate the ZKROH EUDQG DQG WKHQ , JRW WKH R̆HU to manage a car company myself, to do a complete rebuild in the English market at Lotus. It didn’t turn out to be that big a success. I had a big fallout with the new owners and things got settled out of court. And then, my core team of seven to eight people and I went for a skiing

weekend in the Austrian Alps and I said, ‘What are we gonna do? Are we gonna go back to our old jobs, or are we gonna take a risk?’� When Bahar says that his time at Lotus “didn’t turn out to be that big a success�, he is understating

and house renovations on company expenses, costing them millions. Bahar hotly disputed the allegations, and the matter was settled out of court. Bahar was out of a job, but sitting on an idea. “‘I said, ‘Do you know what’s missing? At the

‘Put simply, it’s a high-end car customisation service based in Modena, Italy, that turns supercars into super original cars’ VRPHZKDW 5LJKW R̆ WKH EDW KH EOHZ WKH URRI R̆ WKH 3DULV 0RWRU 6KRZ LQ E\ XQYHLOLQJ ÂżYH LQFUHGLEOH concept cars that he claimed ZRXOG EH EXLOW ZLWKLQ ÂżYH \HDUV Âą something he had no intention of doing. Lotus also claimed that he put outrageous travel, shopping - 70 -

very top, that niche, something is missing. Yeah you can buy a McLaren P1, you can buy a LaFerrari, whatever. But 400 people have the same thing. 500 people have the same Bugatti,� he says. Ares Performance was born. Put simply, it’s a high-end car

customisation service based in Modena, Italy (the home of Ferrari), that turns supercars into super original cars. But until you sit inside the sometimes strikingly GL̆HUHQW SURGXFWV $UHV PDNHV Âą often transforming vehicles entirely Âą LWÂśV KDUG WR VHH RQ SDSHU KRZ LW GL̆HUV IURP RWKHU FRPSDQLHV R̆HULQJ VLPLODU VHUYLFHV %DKDU LV dismissive of these rivals, saying: “We don’t want to be compared with a Brabus or a Mansory, it’s a GL̆HUHQW WKLQJ 7KH\ XVH SODVWLFV and we are an engineering company. In all other areas it’s about individuality: watches, fashion, VKRHV Âą HYHU\WKLQJ \RX ZHDU \RX ZDQW WR KDYH LW GL̆HUHQW ULJKW" 7KLV LV WKH VDPH 7KH ÂżUVW MRE ZH KDG ZDV the Mercedes G Class. The G Class is so popular here [in Dubai] but the interior is so basic. I don’t want to use materials like plastic, so we went to Mercedes and saw which FDUÂśV LQWHULRU ZRXOG ÂżW LQWR D * &ODVV We realised the C Class is perfect in width, so we took the dashboard from the C Class and built it right in, and the same with the rear. And it looks phenomenal. The customer loved it so much he wanted three of them.â€? Bahar claims to know most

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of his customers already. Ares Performance is about to open two Middle East showrooms (one in Dubai and one in Abu Dhabi, to complement the existing ones in Japan and Los Angeles), but the mogul says most of his orders come “from a network of names that we knowâ€?. He says: “When you own 100, 200, 300 cars, you are known in the automobile industry. Then we try and get an appointment, and present what we want to do, ask if it’s of interest. We leave our brochure and let them think, and three out of ÂżYH WLPHV WKH\ FDOO $QG WKH FOLHQW asks a million questions because these people know everything. The client has to come twice to our factory in Italy to see everything, and the engineer visits him maybe ÂżYH WLPHV WR XSGDWH WKH VWDWXV RI the car. It’s very tailor-made. To be honest the showroom is not needed, none of our orders have been from our showrooms.â€? And with that, Bahar has just summarily dismissed the whole reason for AIR’s interview. But he also reveals that Ares Performance was projected WR GHOLYHU ÂżYH FDUV WKLV \HDU Âą DQG they’ve taken 25 orders. So which half of Dany Bahar is the real one? Turns out it’s bit of both.

GASTRONOMY

GUESS WHO’S COMING TO DINNER? Kristian Brask Thomsen takes gastronomes on a culinary tour of the world’s best restaurants, writes Lara Brunt

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o table at Noma in Copenhagen? All booked out at El Celler de Can Roca in Barcelona? Time to give Kristian Brask Thomsen a call. A former sommelier and restaurant manager and now selfproclaimed “international bon vivant”, Brask Thomsen aims to host the most interesting dinner parties in the world – and secure those impossible-to-get reservations in the world’s most lauded dining destinations. Dining Impossible, his roving VHULHV RI ¿QH GLQLQJ GLQQHU parties, sees 16 guests visit a VSHFL¿F FLW\ RU UHJLRQ IRU WKUHH days of dining and sightseeing,

with privileged access to the chefs and restaurateurs. Launched in 2012 in Brask Thomsen’s native Copenhagen, events have since taken place in New York, Barcelona and San Sebastián, at Michelin-starred establishments and those that regularly appear in the top 10 of the LQÀXHQWLDO 6DQ 3HOOHJULQR :RUOG¶V 50 Best Restaurants list (including this year’s number one, Noma, and number two, El Celler de Can Roca). Guests have dined at Albert Adrià’s Tickets in Barcelona, Korean hot spot Jungsik in New York, and three Michelin-starred Azurmendi and Arzak in San Sebastián. “So we get around,” laughs Brask Thomsen. Choosing the right mix of restaurants is key. “In New York it was important to me to take - 72 -

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Photo: Kristian Brask Thomsen by Jan Cooman.

GASTRONOMY millionaires, sports stars, actors, entrepreneurs and foodies. I’m quite sure I even had a spy once,“ he adds. Âł3HRSOH GR EXVLQHVV WKH\ EHFRPH friends – I have even had two couples who have got married because of these events,â€? he says. There are number of regulars on his exclusive guest list, too. “I usually try to have 50 per cent regulars and 50 per cent newcomers, which gives a good energy because it’s not just 16 strangers – there is a bond already and they become part of a globetrotting dining family.â€? Once guests arrive at the destination,

‘I have even had two couples who have got married because of these events’ their days are free to do as they please before meeting up for a predinner reception, followed by the main event. “It’s a little bit formal in the beginning but we usually end up dancing on the tables, literally sometimes,â€? he laughs. :KHQ LW FRPHV WR PHQXV %UDVN Thomsen says chefs often prepare their signature dishes, but they also like to experiment. “In Barcelona if Albert AdriĂ knows he comes as the last act after Jordi Cruz [of ABaC] and Joan Roca [of El Celler de Can Roca] then there’s a good chance he will extend his menu and try some new things in order to impress my guests,â€? he says. Dubai-based Alex Christiansen, who has attended

Photo: ABaC by Marco Pastori.

the DNA of the city, which is very GLYHUVH ZLWK YHU\ GL̆HUHQW FXLVLQHV so I took Jungsik, the world’s best Korean restaurant and two star Michelin; Atera, which is a two star Michelin dining counter and a very sexy restaurant; and Eleven Madison 3DUN ZKLFK LV $PHULFDQ VWRU\WHOOLQJ DQG QXPEHU IRXU RQ WKH :RUOGÂśV %HVW list,â€? he explains. Brask Thomsen is a fan of Japanese cuisine for “the pureness, the artisanship, where one chef has one particular skill and that one skill is outrageously goodâ€?, and the fusion RI 3HUXYLDQ DQG -DSDQHVH FXLVLQHV IRXQG LQ 3HUX %XW LW LV 1HZ 1RUGLF and molecular that still excites him the most. “I don’t see a dining scene in the world beating Copenhagen,â€? KH VD\V Âł7R PH LW LV WKH ÂżUVW FXOLQDU\ language that has been created in many decades.â€? He continues, “Barcelona, where I live, and Copenhagen, where I’m from, are similar in that they both used to be culinary second citizens. But with Ferran and Albert AdriĂ inventing El Bulli cuisine, in the same way that Nordic cuisine has emerged in Denmark, these two destinations have become absolutely EHDXWLIXO ´ :KLOH PROHFXODU LV ÂłPRUH OLNH D +DUU\ 3RWWHU FXLVLQH D PL[WXUH RI DOO WKHVH GL̆HUHQW things that [the chefs] do their own interpretation ofâ€?, New Nordic is “more like a child of the earthâ€?. “Ingredients we haven’t used in Nordic gastronomy in a hundred, SHUKDSV ÂżYH KXQGUHG \HDUV ,WÂśV so pure, so delicious, so new‌ it’s something else.â€? So how does the experience of dining at these restaurants with %UDVN 7KRPVHQ GL̆HU IURP YLVLWLQJ them independently? The company for one, he says. “My guests are very diverse. It would be very easy for me to make a billionaires’ club but I’m not interested in doing that because if I only have 16 people around the table who are extremely wealthy it will tend to be a bit boring if it’s >EDVHG RQ@ SXUH ÂżQDQFH 6R , KDYH D good mixture of billionaires, multi-

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Photo: noma by Mikkel Heriba.

Photo: Tickets by Moises Torne. Photo: noma by Mikkel Heriba.

dinner parties in Copenhagen, Barcelona, San SebastiĂĄn and New York, agrees. “It’s like tapping into this database of private food critics,â€? he says. “The chefs know they can push us to the limit, so I think an extra dimension of creativity comes to the table.â€? Magnus Kjøller is another DubaiEDVHG HSLFXUHDQ ZKR ÂżUVW DWWHQGHG an event in Copenhagen after trying – unsuccessfully – to get a table at Noma. He’s since dined at events in Barcelona and New York. “Everything starts out about the food and the restaurant, but as the evening progresses, it evolves and becomes about the people,â€? he says. “The food is important but the company is a major part as well.â€? - 75 -

This year, Dining Impossible will expand and visit Hong Kong in late March, New York in May, Chicago in June, Copenhagen in HDUO\ -XO\ 3DULV LQ $XJXVW 6DQ SebastiĂĄn in September, Barcelona in October and then Alba in 1RYHPEHU IRU WUXĚˆH VHDVRQ 7KH itinerary will include old favourites and a sprinkling of newcomers. “If the restaurants provide a great experience, I will have them as part of the itinerary every year,â€? %UDVN 7KRPVHQ VD\V Âł:H OLYH LQ D time where chefs are rock stars and foodies are groupies, but my guests are not groupies, meaning they are not the guests who go to a restaurant MXVW WR FURVV LW R̆ WKHLU OLVW ´ bon-vivant.dk

TRAVEL

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Mi casa es su casa After dodging, surviving and narrowly missing a series of global catastrophic events, Mark Weingard set about taking some seriously “positive action�. His first optimistic undertaking? Converting the site of his tsunami-struck home into a luxury boutique hotel. He tells AIR his story...

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ou get people who make it big in banking and blow their cash. Then you get people who make it big and bring about change. Mark Weingard is of the latter sort. $,5 PHHWV :HLQJDUG LQ D FR̆HH shop in Dubai, the second stop on his latest head-spinning business trip (Copenhagen, Russia and Malta are next on his itinerary). With the FR̆HHV RUGHUHG WKH TXHVWLRQV VWDUW ³,WœV QRUPDOO\ WKH ¿UVW WKLQJ WKDW people talk about with me,� laughs the 48-year-old Mancunian after I predictably ask him about his three near-death experiences – 9/11, the Bali bombings and the tsunami. For the sake of stomping over old ground (for Mark, not us), we whizz through this whirlwind period in Weingard’s life: On September 11, 2001, the former trader had a meeting scheduled at the World Trade Centre. He was running late and called Fuji Capital to inform them of his plight. The company told him not to bother coming in because a plane had just hit the North Tower. Moments later, the second plane hit the South Tower, killing 23 employees of the company he had been scheduled to meet just minutes earlier. The following year, this time in Singapore, Weingard split from

KLV WKHQ ÂżDQFpH $QQLND /LQGHQ $V D UHVXOW RI WKH VSOLW /LQGHQ Ă€HZ WR Bali with her best friend. Together they partied in the Sari nightclub when a bomb exploded, killing everyone except said best friend. If it hadn’t been for the split Weingard would’ve been Bali-bound, too. Two years later, in 2004, Weingard spent Christmas at his house in Thailand when the Boxing Day tsunami struck, in which more than 230,000 died. He survived. “When these things happen to you in your life, when you have these moments where you feel like you are very lucky, it makes you reassess life itself,â€? he continues. “And I think that when you lose somebody that

I was – the philanthropic side – but it came out much stronger because of what happened. It made me a more positive person generally; it made me somebody who realises that you have to take positive action because of everything.� The hotel comes hand-in-hand with Inspirasia, a Bali-based foundation into which he is donating 10 per cent of Iniala’s revenue, plus 5 per cent of everything spent on anything from food to massages. Set up in memory of his late partner, the charity focuses on funding small to medium-sized grants for families in South and Southeast Asia. Born in Manchester in 1966, the former derivatives trader has

‘The hotel comes hand-in-hand with a foundation into which he is donating 10 per cent of revenue’ you love in such a terrible way, you want to do something positive to be able to deal with everything.â€? By positive Weingard is referring WR KLV ÂżUVW IRUD\ LQWR KRWHOV ,QLDOD Beach House – located on the site of his old house in Phuket, which was damaged in the 2004 tsunami. “For me I think the things that happened to me over that three-year period very much shaped who I am today. I think that was obviously within who - 77 -

dabbled in waiting (“I was the world’s worst waiterâ€?); enrolled, and dropped out of, university; developed and shutdown a travel website (“I decided to launch something called Travelmine, which was trying to take on the /RQHO\ 3ODQHW DQG GR DQ RQOLQH travel guideâ€?); built and sold a trading platform for (according to one report) “telephone-numberW\SH VXPV´ EHIRUH ÂżQDOO\ ODQGLQJ

TRAVEL in the hotel business. “I’m not just in hotels,” he explains, “I do other VWX̆ DV ZHOO ,¶P GHYHORSLQJ ṘFHV GHYHORSLQJ EXLOGLQJV LQ 0DOWD >ODWHU WKLV \HDU KH ZLOO EH UHQRYDWLQJ WZR WRZQKRXVHV DQG FRQYHUWLQJ WKHP LQWR D KRWHO@ DQG ,¶P LQYROYHG LQ RWKHU LQYHVWPHQWV 6R , GRQ¶W MXVW GR hotels.” ,W LV KLV KRWHO WKRXJK ZKLFK VHHPV WR EH KLV NH\ IRFXV WKLV \HDU +DYLQJ UHFHQWO\ FHOHEUDWHG LWV ¿UVW ELUWKGD\ ,QLDOD %HDFK +RXVH VLWXDWHG RQ 7KDLODQG¶V 1DWDL EHDFK KDV DOUHDG\ JDUQHUHG TXLWH D UHSXWDWLRQ -XVW ODVW \HDU WKH .DUGDVKLDQV WRRN RYHU WKH OX[XU\ URRP SULYDWH UHVLGHQFH DIWHU KDQGSLFNLQJ LW DV WKHLU EDVH ZKLOH ¿OPLQJ .HHSLQJ 8S ZLWK WKH .DUGDVKLDQV $QG ZKLOH KDYLQJ .LP . HW DO VWD\ RQ VLWH UDLVHG LWV SUR¿OH VRPHZKDW WKH VHOO ZDV DOUHDG\ WKHUH WR VWDUW ZLWK ³,W¶V D PL[WXUH EHWZHHQ D KRWHO YLOODV DQG D KRPH ´ VD\V :HLQJDUG ³)RU PH ZKHQ SHRSOH FRPH WKH\ UHDOO\ IHHO DW KRPH LW¶V QRW OLNH D QRUPDO KRWHO <RX IHHO YHU\ FRFRRQHG YHU\ ORRNHG DIWHU ´ ,Q D SODFH SHSSHUHG ZLWK ERXWLTXH KRWHOV KRZ GRHV ,QLDOD GL̆HU" ³(YHU\WKLQJ PDNHV LW GL̆HUHQW ´ he explains. “There’s not just one WKLQJ 7KH GHVLJQ REYLRXVO\ EHFDXVH LW LV VR XQLTXH DQG HDFK URRP LV

‘When people come they really feel at home; it’s not like a normal hotel’ FRPSOHWHO\ GL̆HUHQW ,W¶V WKH FUHDWLYH HOHPHQWV LQ HYHU\ VLQJOH DVSHFW ± WKH JDVWURQRP\ WKH DUW WKH GHVLJQ DQG HYHQ WKH OHYHOV RI VHUYLFH WKDW ZH JLYH ´ 7KH GpFRU IRU :HLQJDUG ZDV HVVHQWLDO LQ WXUQLQJ KLV IRUPHU KRPH LQWR VRPHWKLQJ WKDW FDQ EH HQMR\HG E\ WKH PDVVHV )URP VXLWHV inspired by the Russian matryoshka GROO WR WKH (JJDUDW :RQJFKDULW GHVLJQHG 6LDPHVH 7ZLQV 6XLWHV HYHU\ GHWDLO FRQWULEXWHV 1RWKLQJ LV DFFLGHQWDO (YHU\WKLQJ PDWWHUV ³,W¶V WKH FUHDWLYH LQQRYDWLYH WRXFKHV - 78 -

WKDW ZH KDYH WULHG WR EULQJ LQ WKDW PDNH XV GL̆HUHQW IURP DQ\ZKHUH HOVH ´ H[SODLQV :HLQJDUG ³$ ÀRRU that is made out of memory foam, HYRNLQJ WKH IHHOLQJ RI VWHSSLQJ LQWR D VDQG GXQH LQ WKH GHVHUW WKH ¿UVW NLGV¶ KRWHO LQ WKH ZRUOG (YHU\WKLQJ LV WU\LQJ WR WDNH WKLQJV WR DQRWKHU OHYHO ´ :KLFKHYHU YLOOD RU VXLWH \RX WDNH WKHUH DUH WKUHH EHDFKIURQW YLOODV DQG D SHQWKRXVH WR FKRRVH IURP HDFK JXHVW KDV DFFHVV WR D SHUVRQDO GULYHU EXWOHU FKHI VSD WKHUDSLVW DQG KRXVHNHHSHU DQG VL[ KRXUV RI spa treatments per day if you take D YLOOD WKUHH KRXUV LI \RX WDNH WKH penthouse. Too, Iniala is home to the aforementioned kids’ hotel and $]LDPHQGL WKH JRXUPHW UHVWDXUDQW KHOPHG E\ WKUHH 0LFKHOLQ VWDUUHG FKHI (QHNR $[WD &HUWDLQO\ :HLQJDUG KDV WKH EXVLQHVV DFXPHQ WR EXLOG D hospitality brand. But, does he HYHU PLVV WKH EX]] ± DQG PRQH\ ± WKDW FRPHV ZLWK EDQNLQJ" ³, GHFLGHG WR VHOO EHFDXVH , ZDQWHG WR GR VRPHWKLQJ GL̆HUHQW LW¶V QRW WKDW , GLGQ¶W HQMR\ LW , ORYHG ZKDW , GLG WR EH KRQHVW , ZDWFK ZKDW¶V JRLQJ RQ WRGD\ DQG , VHH EXVLQHVV opportunities here, there and HYHU\ZKHUH DQG ,¶G PDNH PRUH PRQH\ LI , ZDV VWLOO WUDGLQJ EXW LW¶V not just purely about money. It’s DERXW FKDQJH ,¶P \HDUV RI DJH DQG ,¶P QRW JRLQJ WR EH DURXQG IRUHYHU $QG ,¶P OXFN\ HQRXJK WKDW , KDYH EHHQ VXFFHVVIXO LQ P\ OLIH WKDW , GRQ¶W KDYH WR EH GULYHQ E\ PRQH\ ´ )RU D PDQ ZKR KDG EDVHG KLV OLIH RQ G\LQJ DJHG ± :HLQJDUG¶V IDWKHU GLHG LQ D FDU FUDVK QLQH GD\V VKRUW RI KLV WK ELUWKGD\ OHDYLQJ KLP GHYDVWDWHG DQG FRQYLQFHG WKDW KH ZRXOG VKDUH WKH VDPH IDWH ± ZKDW KDV EHHQ KLV PRVW YDOXDEOH OHVVRQ WKXV IDU" ³:H DUH D VXP RI WKH SHRSOH ZKR VXUURXQG XV DQG WR VXFFHHG LQ OLIH \RX PXVW VXUURXQG \RXUVHOI ZLWK JRRG SHRSOH <RX FDQ QHYHU GR DQ\WKLQJ RQ \RXU RZQ ´ KH FRQFOXGHV UDWKHU SRVLWLYHO\ iniala.com

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LIFE LESSONS

WHAT I KNOW NOW Giovanni Soldini

Skipper, Maserati racing yacht I’ve had many captains who have taught me how to navigate a boat DQG QDYLJDWH OLIH :KHQ , GLG P\ ¿UVW WUDQV $WODQWLF RFHDQ >UDFH@ DW P\ FDSWDLQ ZDV D \HDU ROG $PHULFDQ He taught me how to use a sextant DQG GR HYHU\WKLQJ E\ KDQG ZLWKRXW XVLQJ D FDOFXODWRU , OHDUQHG D ORW RI WKLQJV IURP KLP QRW MXVW DERXW VDLOLQJ EXW KRZ WR DSSURDFK OLIH 7KH UXOH , WU\ WR OLYH E\ LV WR ZDNH XS KDSS\ 7KH ZD\ WR GR WKDW LV WR WU\ DQG GR WKH WKLQJV \RX UHDOO\ ZDQW WR GR LQ OLIH ± WR IROORZ \RXU GUHDPV DQG QRW MXVW GR VRPHWKLQJ EHFDXVH RWKHU SHRSOH VD\ \RX QHHG WR ,¶P D YHU\ OXFN\ PDQ >EHFDXVH@ ,¶YH managed to live my life as I wanted. 6DLOLQJ DQG UHFRUGV JR KDQG LQ KDQG because you need to have goals. I’ve GRQH PRUH WKDQ WUDQV $WODQWLF FURVVLQJV DQG WZR VLQJOH KDQGHG DURXQG WKH ZRUOG UDFHV , ZDV UHDOO\ ¿JKWLQJ WR UHDFK P\ JRDOV 7KHUH DUH PDQ\ WKLQJV ,¶G VWLOO OLNH WR DFKLHYH 7KLV \HDU >IRU H[DPSOH@ ZH¶OO DWWHPSW D QHZ UHFRUG IURP 6DQ )UDQFLVFR WR Shanghai. 7R EH DIUDLG VRPHWLPHV LV D JRRG WKLQJ %HLQJ VFDUHG PDNHV \RX DZDUH RI \RXU OLPLWV :KHQ \RX DUH DW VHD \RX¶UH QRW SHU FHQW LQ FRQWURO :KHQ WKHUH LV DQ HPHUJHQF\ QRUPDOO\ \RX GRQ¶W KDYH WLPH WR EH VFDUHG <RX MXVW QHHG WR WKLQN YHU\ fast about how to save the situation. ,¶YH VDLOHG PRVW RI P\ OLIH VLQJOH handedly – you have a close UHODWLRQVKLS ZLWK WKH ERDW \RX VWDUW WR XQGHUVWDQG KRZ LW PRYHV WKH QRLVHV LW PDNHV :LWK 0DVHUDWL ,¶YH EXLOW XS D YHU\ JRRG WHDP )RU PH WKDW ZDV D QHZ H[SHULHQFH ± LW¶V QLFH WR VKDUH VRPH RI WKH ELJ HPRWLRQV DQG EXLOG GHHS UHODWLRQVKLSV - 80 96 -

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