AIR NasJet Mar'14

Page 1

2014

Produced in International Media Production Zone

IS SU E THIRT Y FOUR | M A RCH

THE CLASSICS Dubai gears up to host its annual celebration of vintage cars

TALKING ITALIAN Charting Italy’s enduring influence on style down the decades

MARCH FAIR The new addition to Art Dubai that’s set to spark investor appetite

SIX APPEAL The tailored travel itineraries you need to experience right now

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CONTENTS / FEATURES

Managing Director Victoria Thatcher Editorial Director John Thatcher

Fifty Four

Business Development Director David Wade david@hotmediapublishing.com

Mr Jackson Samuel L. Jackson on why it’s great being him.

Editor Tracey Scott tracey@hotmediapublishing.com

Sixty Two

Glam Rocks

Deputy Editor Richard Jenkins richard@hotmediapublishing.com

The rise and rise of Italian Fashion from 1945 to today.

Features Editor Lara Brunt lara@hotmediapublishing.com Senior Designer Adam Sneade Designer Andy Knappett Illustrator Vanessa Arnaud Production Manager Chalitha Fernando Advertisement Manager Rawan Chehab rawan@hotmediapublishing.com Advertisement Manager Sukaina Hussein sukaina@hotmediapublishing.com

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CONTENTS / REGUL ARS

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.

Sixty Eight Fourteen

Motoring

Radar The photography of Andy Warhol, David Lynch and William S. Burroughs, plus luxury suites galore.

The Emirates Classic Car Festival revs its antique engine.

Forty Five

Seventy Two

Jewellery

Gastronomy

What you can expect from this year’s Art Dubai fair.

New pieces from Chanel, %XOJDUL DQG 7L̆DQ\ &R plus behind the scenes ZLWK 9DQ &OHHI $USHOV

We take a peek inside Canvas, London’s latest ultra-exclusive eatery.

Thirty Eight

Fifty

Timepieces

Interiors

Unique and vintage timepieces are up for grabs in Dubai.

The most desirable objects on sale at Design Days Dubai.

Twenty Eight

Art & Design

Seventy Six

Travel

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Tailored travel is the new way to see the world. Six exceptional experiences await.

%LEGANCE IS AN ATTITUDE 3IMON "AKER

#ONQUEST #LASSIC

NASJET

March 2014

WELCOME ONBOARD

For many years NasJet has been the Gold standard for private and corporate aviation services in the Middle East and in June 2014 we will celebrate 15-years of innovationdelivered with a high level of professionalism and superior safety. As well as having the ability to provide a full range of services, we are particularly proud of our Aircraft Management capabilities, taking into account aviation is a hugely technical and complicated business, with a multitude of variables. This high level of expertise is only possible if an organization has the robust infrastructure, strategically positioned to handle those last minute unknowns. The daily challenges of operating in high temperature climates and retaining talented employees, forms a key part of whether your onboard experience is enjoyable or just plainly disappointing. This ÂżQH EDODQFH RI SUDFWLFDO NQRZOHGJH FDQ RQO\ come from many years of day to day 365/24-7 operating experience. We welcome regional competition with start-ups attempting to service a highly sophisticated market, this encourages us to take a closer look at the way traditional business methods have been disrupted in many equivalent industries due to macro changes, globalization and the power of Web 2.0. Our focus is on how we can harness some of these technological advances to further enhance your private jet experience. Over the coming few years, expect to see many fundamental changes both from us, your operator and product manufacturers. On this note, I hope you will enjoy the March issue of NasJet AIR, as we push forward into new frontiers for the next 15-years.

Ghassan Hamdan &KLHI ([HFXWLYH 2̇FHU

Contact Details: clientservices@nasjet.com.sa nasjet.com.sa T. +966 (0)11 217 2070 -9-

NASJET NEWS

NasJet looks to ‘Service Excellence’

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Meeting your exacting requirements and handling those last minute changes requires a certain type of person with a particular level of expertise not normally accessible through reading material. Also, once the knowledge has been acquired, how do you keep crew DQG RSHUDWLRQDO VWD̆ PRWLYDWHG WR FRQWLQXH ¿QGLQJ ZD\V RI H[FHHGLQJ your expectations? These and many other questions relating to ‘service excellence’ were actively debated prior to the launch of NasJet’s new internal ‘We Care’ program. It was concluded that superior service can only be genuinely delivered with passion and a personal desire to create the extraordinary. The program launched in January 2014 and each department minutely studied elements, which make a trip either simply enjoyable or potentially ‘wow’. (YHU\ PHPEHU RI VWD̆ LV committed to completing the program including the maintenance teams across the region and the latest communications skills are taught in weekly conference type settings, encouraging each NasJet member to see any given situation from a clients’ perspective. This can relate to the presentation of the aircraft, obtaining permits in a timely period or having a greater understanding of personal cuisine requirements. There is a particular focus on catering, since it’s the most SHUVRQDO HOHPHQW RI DQ\ ÀLJKW 7KH catering and onboard service teams have been working diligently with the Four Seasons Hotel & Resorts to deliver a ‘NasJet Signature’ menu based on seasonal produce. Another key element of the program concentrates on communication, being able to anticipate your needs before you even ask and relaying your feedback to an internal Committee tasked to examine and action. The ‘We Care’ program is certainly not a slogan but an ‘attitude’ and we encourage you to provide comment on your latest NasJet experience.

NASJET NEWS

Four Seasons Hotel Riyadh Reveals The Kingdom Suite NasJet clients offered exclusive rates to stay at spectacular new duplex suite

Riyadh has experienced a remarkable transformation over the past century, expanding itself into a thriving modern metropolis and major business hub. Tapping into the capital’s love of ultra-exclusivity, superior comfort, and eye-catching reinvention, Four Seasons Hotel Riyadh at Kingdom Centre has undergone an extensive multimillion-dollar renovation over the past 18 months launching itself into a whole new dimension RI H[FHOOHQFH EHÂżWWLQJ D KRWHO RI VXFK RXWVWDQGLQJ architectural merit. The latest treasure that has been unveiled by Four Seasons Hotel Riyadh at Kingdom Centre is its opulent new Kingdom Suite. The Kingdom Suite is the most KLJKO\ DQWLFLSDWHG DGGLWLRQ WR )RXU 6HDVRQVÂś PDJQLÂżFHQW portfolio of accommodations, and is destined to become the hotel’s ‘signature suite’. This spectacular new duplex VXLWH VSDQV WKH WK DQG WK Ă€RRUV JXDUDQWHHLQJ EUHDWKWDNLQJ YLHZV RI WKH FLW\ DQG R̆HUV DQ LPSUHVVLYH VTP RI SDODWLDO VSDFH IRU WKH H[FOXVLYH EHQHÂżW RI LWV occupants. Guests will surely feel like royalty with all the wonderful features that the Kingdom Suite has to R̆HU VXFK DV D OX[XULRXV EHGURRP D ODYLVK EDWKURRP

a dressing room, a makeup area, a walk in closet, a kitchen with a private access, a private elevator inside WKH VXLWH D SULYDWH ṘFH D OLYLQJ URRP D GLQLQJ URRP that can accommodate 10 persons and an 84� TV screen. A butler service is also available when booking the .LQJGRP 6XLWH R̆HULQJ H[FOXVLYH SHUVRQDOL]HG VHUYLFHV to expedite guest requests and ensure superior levels of comfort and convenience. As well as being aesthetically beautiful, the Kingdom Suite has also been astutely designed to enhance the OLYHV RI LWV LQKDELWDQWV R̆HULQJ D VWDWHO\ UHWUHDW SHUIHFW for formal social gatherings or relaxing personal time with family and friends. Combined with the intuitive excellence of Four Seasons signature service, the Kingdom Suite is the ideal home away-from-home for VIP guests looking to maximize the enjoyment of their stay in the Kingdom’s capital. With breathtaking views of the city, complemented by impeccable Four Seasons service, the much-awaited Kingdom Suite is now available for reservations and 1DV-HW FOLHQWV ZLOO EH R̆HUHG H[FOXVLYH UDWHV &RQWDFW Client Services on 00 966 (0) 11 217 2070 for further informaton.

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RADAR

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RADAR

Image: Taking Shots: The Photography of William S. Burroughs’ is at The Photographers’ Gallery (www.tpg.org.uk) until 30 March 2014. The associated book is published by Prestel. prestel.com

> You may know David Lynch as a filmmaker, but his mastery of the visual medium extends to photography as well. The Photographers’ Gallery in London is displaying his work in a gritty exhibition titled The Factory Photographs, running until March 30. Never before seen in Europe, the display is part of a trio supported with photography from William S. Burroughs and Andy Warhol.

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m a k i n g h i s t o r y, o n e g u e s t a t a t i m e )RU ÀYH GHFDGHV ,QWHU&RQWLQHQWDO *HQqYH KDV ZHOFRPHG VFLRQV RI UR\DOW\ FDSWDLQV RI LQGXVWU\ DQG LQWHUQDWLRQDOO\ UHQRZQHG LFRQV RIIHULQJ WKHP GLVFUHHW DQG OX[XULRXV VSDFHV WR EUHDWKH OLIH LQWR WKHLU EHOLHIV 7KH 5HVLGHQFHV GHVLJQHG E\ WKH JOREDOO\ DFFODLPHG 7RQ\ &KL DUH D VHOHFWLRQ RI WKUHH VWDWHO\ DFFRPPRGDWLRQV LQVSLUHG E\ WKH RSXOHQW SDODFHV RI WKH SDVW DQG GHGLFDWHG WR WKH OHDGHUV RI WRPRUURZ l i v e t h e e s s e n c e o f l u x u r y at g e n e va’ s m o s t p r e s t i g i o u s a d d r e s s and discover a place where history meets its future. R E S E RVAT I O N S

+41 22 919 32 61

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RADAR

Best foot forward

Dubai’s premier platform for design talent in the Middle East, Fashion Forward (FFWD), returns for its third season next month. The four-day showcase sees the region’s fashion industry head to Madinat Jumeirah for what is expected to be the best FFWD to date. Running April 10-13, look out for the new collections from Dior-inspired Ezra and Givenchy alumni Charbel Zoe, among many others.

> With polo season taking over Dubai this month, complete your polo-playing toolkit with this innovative riding helmet from Hermès – fitted with a polycarbonate cap and foam interior for shock absorption, and a ventilation system for breathability. Tested at the Saut Hermès au Grand Palais last year, it is the helmet of choice for riders. hermes.com

On time

As the dust from January’s SIHH begins to settle, the watch world is now gearing up for the next big show: Baselworld, the world’s largest watch and jewellery fair. Last year 1,440 exhibitors pitched up at the fair’s base in Basel to showcase their products to the world. From limited edition timepieces to fine jewellery, if it’s exclusive then it’s here. Big name brands waiting to unveil their latest products this year include Bulgari and its new timepiece, the sophisticated Octo Chronograph. From Graff, look out for the Diamond GyroGraff, a complication proposed in two iterations, each a limited series of 20. Chanel, meanwhile, is expected to reveal a number of new novelties to the world, including its Première Triple Row chain watch. baselworld.com - 17 -

RADAR

SUITE DREAMS

If you can’t decide where to fly to next, how about a 21-day, all-expenses paid trip to stay at ten of the world’s most luxurious hotel suites? You can bid for this trip at auction website auctionwhatidid.co.uk, or, alternatively, you can simply buy it outright from veryfirstto.com, for a cool GBP359,000. The list of destinations include The Penthouse Suite at the Four Seasons George V in Paris, the plush Royal Suite in Dubai’s iconic Burj Al Arab, the equally luxurious Bridge Suite at The Atlantis Resort in Bahamas, the Presidential Suite at the InterContinental in Hong Kong and the two-storey Sky Villa in Las Vegas’ Palms Casino Resort. - 18 -

RADAR

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T

he year is 2009 and Tom Hudson has been asked to help his old school, Eton College, organise a knees-up with former students living in the Middle East. Knowing Britain’s educated elite only too well, he needed more than posh grub to lure them to his preferred meeting point in Dubai. His bait of choice? Polo. “Polo was the perfect draw,â€? says Hudson. “Eton has a long association with polo, and so I turned to our old sporting rivals Harrow to see if they would accept the challenge of a match in Dubai – Eton vs Harrow matches have been played for more than 200 years, but this was to be WKH ÂżUVW HYHQW KHOG LQ WKH 0LGGOH East.â€? With the teams sorted, Hudson needed horses – and lots of them. “We partnered with the Habtoor family, who kindly provided the polo ponies,â€? says Hudson. “We DOVR DUUDQJHG D VHFRQG Âż[WXUH IRU

DQ 2[EULGJH WHDP Âą SOD\HUV IURP 2[IRUG DQG &DPEULGJH XQLYHUVLWLHV Âą WR SOD\ +DEWRRU 3ROR , KDG H[SHFWHG only 150 invited guests to attend, but was amazed to see, through word of PRXWK RYHU H[SDWV DQG ORFDOV line the pitch side with picnics.â€? Around the same time as Hudson’s galloping Eton reunion, an old university friend, Ed Olver, had EHHQ DVNHG WR Ă€\ RI WKH 4XHHQ RI England’s horses to the United Arab Emirates to perform an equestrian display for The Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi at ADIHEX. “This was D KXJH VXFFHVV DQG FRQÂżUPHG WKDW events such as these serve to be an H[WUHPHO\ LPSRUWDQW FXOWXUDO EULGJH between countries,â€? says Hudson. Âł(G DQG , DJUHHG WR FRPELQH H̆RUWV and grow ‘British Polo Day’, starting with incorporating the British Army Polo Team into the event.â€? Fast forward to 2014 and British Polo Day – comprising three cups – is a roaring success, with events taking place in various locations around the world: Abu Dhabi and

Dubai this month, Marrakech in April, the US in May, England in June, Russia in July, and China in September. $QG ZKDW FDQ ZH H[SHFW IURP this month’s event in Dubai, which takes place on March 28 and sees (WRQ SOD\ +DUURZ 2[IRUG FRPSHWH against Cambridge and the British Army challenge Habtoor Polo? “We always like to constantly improve on the day without tinkering with too many fundamentals,â€? says Hudson. “This year in Dubai we’re adding cycle polo in partnership with Brompton Bikes. Cycle polo used to be an Olympic sport and ZHÂśUH SOHDVHG WR EH KRVWLQJ WKH ÂżUVW H[KLELWLRQ F\FOH SROR PDWFK LQ WKH Middle East.â€? Brands, too, are keen to get a slice of the action this year: -DHJHU /H&RXOWUH LV WKH ṘFLDO timekeeper of the event, Virgin Atlantic is assisting players with Ă€LJKWV WKH ,QWHU&RQWLQHQWDO +RWHO Group is providing accommodation, Abercrombie & Kent is drawing up

PASSPORT TO THE WORLD Who knew that an Old Etonian reunion would ripen into one of the highlights on the annual polo calendar? Tom Hudson, co-founder of British Polo Day, hadn’t a clue, as AIR discovers‌

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RADAR the itineraries, and Land Rover will ferry guests and players around the emirate. “We have 30 partners who all mutually complement each other and make the events far bigger and greater than the sum of their parts,â€? says Hudson. “By establishing this amazing ecosystem of partners, we are able to create events of the same high standard, be it on the Great Wall of China or in Mexico.â€? Hudson’s association with polo started relatively late when, aged 18, he joined a Cavalry Regiment of the British Army and learned to ride and play the sport. “After leaving the Army, I then became a lawyer and did not have the chance to play until I was posted to Dubai in 2008. There I took it up again and was able to play polo before work most days. Galloping around in the early morning sun is a pretty unique privilege.â€? 5HĂ€HFWLQJ RQ %ULWLVK 3ROR 'D\ÂśV ÂżYH \HDU KLVWRU\ ZKDW LV WKLV SROR entrepreneur’s greatest achievement so far? He’s particularly proud of the US$650,000 (and counting) raised for various chosen charities, with a personal goal of US$1 million by \HDU HQG %XW RQH HQFRXQWHU ZKLFK leaps to mind is this: “A particular

‘I expected 150 guests to attend, but was amazed to see over 1,000’ personal highlight was being invited to 10 Downing Street with all our global partners last year in recognition of our success to date. It proved that the events were more than just about polo and served a much broader purpose.� It was Sir Winston Churchill who famously said that a “polo handicap is a passport to the world� and for Hudson: “We like to think of %ULWLVK 3ROR 'D\V DV D ZD\ IRU RXU partners and guests to enjoy this unique access to the world.� Visit britishpoloday.com for bookings. - 22 -

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CRITIQUE

Art As arguably one of the 20th century’s greatest photographers, Henri Cartier-Bresson’s work has been the subject of many careerspanning exhibitions. A decade after his death at the grand age of 95, a new retrospective at Paris’s Centre Pompidou aims to go beyond the image most people know – of a celebrated photojournalist dubbed ‘the eye of the century’ and cofounder of the Magnum agency – and present a more nuanced portrait of the artist. Bringing together some 500 SKRWRV ÂżOPV SDLQWLQJV DQG drawings, the exhibition follows the photographer’s journey, from Surrealism to photojournalism and later drawing, debunking the myth of the ‘pure’ photographer who never XVHG Ă€DVK IRU H[DPSOH DORQJ WKH way. “There emerges a thoroughly engaging version of Cartier-Bresson, an intellectual with a camera, reacting acutely to the world around him,â€? writes Francis Hodgson in the Financial Times. While The Daily Beast’s Sarah Moroz believes “this anniversary show reinforces that he is as substantial a presence as everâ€?, Hodgson feels Cartier-Bresson’s LQĂ€XHQFH KDV ZDQHG Âł7KLV LV D VWXG\ of a national monument but one whose great lessons have lost their urgency in the age of Instagram and of the citizen journalist with an iPhone.â€? In London, pioneering British pop artist Richard Hamilton is the subject of a major retrospective at the Tate Modern. The Telegraph’s Mark Hudson declares the exhibition “a knockoutâ€?, adding: Âł7KH ÂżUVW DUWLVW LQ WKLV FRXQWU\ WR embrace conceptualism and digital technology, who paved the way for the YBAs three decades later, Hamilton may yet prove to have been WKH PRVW VLJQLÂżFDQW %ULWLVK DUWLVW RI the second half of the 20th century.â€? Groundbreaking pieces on show

include Just what is it that makes WRGD\ÂśV KRPHV VR GL̆HUHQW VR appealing? (1956), acknowledged as WKH ÂżUVW H[DPSOH RI SRS DUW RQ HLWKHU side of the Atlantic. Highlights from his 1960s work include the depiction of Mick -DJJHU KDQGFX̆HG WR DUW GHDOHU Robert Fraser following their notorious arrest on a drugs charge in the Swingeing London 67 series (1968–9). The Guardian’s Laura Cumming believes the show could have been better edited for the Tate’s cavernous rooms. “Hamilton’s art – so suave, elegant, precise and streamlined as the consumer design it often represents – is generally domestic in scale. But crowding the walls doesn’t help.â€? Across the pond, internationally acclaimed Chinese artist, Xu Bing, brings his monumental Phoenix installation to New York City’s - 24 -

Cathedral of St. John the Divine. The two mythological birds, measuring 90 and 100 feet each, are suspended from the cathedral’s ceiling. Fashioned from debris salvaged from Beijing construction sites, Bing created the work in response to the poor working conditions of migrant laborers. “This is not just a critique about labourers in China, it is about D VXEMHFW WKDW D̆HFWV XV DOO ,WÂśV DERXW fair pay and human wages for all people,â€? The Very Rev. Dr. James A. Kowalski, the dean of St. John, told the New York Times. The works will be on view for a year.

Film The Monuments Men

Dir: George Clooney An unlikely platoon of soldiers, historians and academics join forces during World War II to rescue art masterpieces stolen by the Third

Reich and return them to their rightful owners. AT BEST: “It is riveting, suspenseful, harrowing and exciting.� New York Observer AT WORST: “Clooney has transformed

The Grand Budapest Hotel

Enemy

Dir: Denis Villeneuve A university lecturer believes he has found his exact doppelgänger after VSRWWLQJ KLP LQ D ÂżOP +H VHHNV out his lookalike and, becoming increasingly paranoid, engages him in a complex and dangerous struggle. AT BEST: “Denis Villeneuve’s Enemy might have the scariest ending of DQ\ ÂżOP HYHU PDGH ´ Film.com AT WORST: Âł7KH SDFH GHÂżHV contempo comfort levels, unfolding like a slow-motion, spied-throughamber episode of ‘The Twilight Zone’.â€? Variety

a fascinating true-life tale into an exceedingly dull and dreary caper pic cum art-appreciation seminar – a museum-piece movie about museum people.� Variety

Dir: Wes Anderson $ Ă€DPER\DQW FRQFLHUJH KDV D KDELW of seducing the ageing aristocratic guests. When one dies in mysterious circumstances and leaves him a valuable painting, it sets in motion a chain of mayhem and murder. AT BEST: “The cult director has bolstered the whimsical humor and trademark character studies with a raucous crime caper, and it’s a riot.â€? The Daily Beast AT WORST: Âł$V WHUULÂżF DV DOPRVW DOO of the performances are, as a whole Omar package it fell just slightly short of Dir: Hany Abu-Assad the promise of its parts.â€? The Playlist A Palestinian baker in the Occupied Territories who routinely climbs over the separation wall is arrested after the killing of an Israeli soldier. Tricked into an admission of guilt, he agrees to work as an informant. AT BEST: “With a cast consisting almost entirely of young, new, inexperienced talents, Abu Assad GHOLYHUV DQ H̆HFWLYH FUHGLEOH drama.â€? Screen International AT WORST: “The complexity of AbuAssad’s previous movies is traded in for weak genre thrills.â€? Time Out New York - 25 -

CRITIQUE

Theatre Sam Mendes’s epic new production of King Lear at London’s National Theatre, starring Simon Russell Beale in the titular role, has been garnering widespread praise. As frequent collaborators in Shakespeare productions for over 20 years, Mendes and Russell Beale’s latest pairing has been highly anticipated. “I am delighted to report that this production was well worth the wait,â€? writes Paul Taylor in the Independent. Shakespeare’s tragedy tells the story of an ageing, tyrannical king who decides to divide his kingdom between his three daughters, according to which of them is most eloquent in praising him. When one daughter IDLOV WR Ă€DWWHU KLP VẊFLHQWO\ KH JLIWV KHU VKDUH WR KHU devious sisters with tragic consequences. “Staged in the vast Olivier [theatre], it’s a powerfully searching account of the tragedy that fuses the familial and the cosmic, the epic and the intimate, and ponders every detail of the play with a fresh, imaginative rigour,â€? writes Taylor. The Telegraph’s Charles Spencer says that, while there is much more to admire than decry, the punishing threeand-a-half hour running time and some overblown GLUHFWRULDO Ă€RXULVKHV PHDQ WKLV SURGXFWLRQ ÂłGRHVQÂśW quite do full justice this greatest of playsâ€?. Regardless, the combination of Mendes, Russell Beale and an outstanding cast has ensured a sell-out season. Donald Margulies’ Pulitzer Prize-winning drama, Dinner With Friends, returns to the New York stage for WKH ÂżUVW WLPH VLQFH LQ DQ 2̆ %URDGZD\ UHYLYDO E\ accomplished director Pam MacKinnon. The play explores the relationship between two married couples: Gabe and Karen, and Beth and Tom. Their lives have become inseparable – raising kids, socialising and holidaying together – until the day Beth GURSV D ERPEVKHOO 7RP KHU KXVEDQG RI \HDUV KDV left for another woman. Suddenly, the four are forced to investigate their friendship as a group, as individuals and the relationships within their marriages.

The Hollywood Reporter’s Frank Scheck is impressed: “Director Pam MacKinnon’s sensitive production fully mines the work’s subtle depths while serving as a strong showcase for its quartet of veteran New York stage performers.â€? Time Out New York’s David Cote agrees: “The core reason why the new Dinner succeeds is obvious: a director and four actors are listening carefully to the text and gracing every nuance with intelligence and sensitivity.â€? Charles Isherwood in the New York Times is less convinced. “While Jeremy Shamos [as Gabe] brings the requisite measures of feeling to his performance, some of the other actors only skirt the depths.â€? 7KLQJV DUH ORRNLQJ XS IRU $QGUHZ 8SWRQÂśV ÂżUVW VROR season at the helm of the Sydney Theatre Company without wife Cate Blanchett, who has relinquished her role as co-artistic director to focus on her acting career. :KLOH 8SWRQÂśV ÂżUVW SURGXFWLRQ 7UDYHOOLQJ 1RUWK IDLOHG to excite the critics, storytelling project The Long Way Home has received more positive reviews. The play is a series of vignettes that tell the stories of Australian military personnel deployed on operations in Iraq, Afghanistan and East Timor, and the challenges they face reintegrating back into civilian life. Upton recruited Stephen Rayne, who staged a similar project, 7KH 7ZR :RUOGV RI &KDUOLH ) LQ /RQGRQ LQ WR direct returned soldiers alongside actors. Jason Blake in the Sydney Morning Herald praises the soldiers’ performances. “Most prove more than adequate performers and all bring their unimpeachable authenticity to the stage in their voice, gait and posture.â€? The Guardian’s Vicky Frost agrees: “They bring home both the destructive futility of war and the bravery of WKRVH ZKR ÂżJKW LQ LW Âą ZKHWKHU \RX DJUHH WKH\ VKRXOG be doing so or not.â€? After its short, successful run in Sydney, the play is now embarking on a national eightweek tour.

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Books

In the Wolf’s Mouth begins in Sicily in 1926, with the stories of AngilĂš Cassini, a young shepherd caught up in corruption, and Cirò Albanese, a local 0DÂżRVR 7KH EXON RI WKH book, however, takes place towards the end of WWII. It follows the parallel fates of Will Walker, an DPELWLRXV %ULWLVK ṘFHU DQG 5D\ 0DUÂżRQH D naive American GI. Both ÂżQG WKHPVHOYHV LQ 1RUWK Africa and Sicily where their fortunes join up with WKRVH RI WKH PDÂżD KRRG Albanese. WWII is new territory for author and poet Adam Foulds, so how does he fare? The FT’s Rebecca Abrams is impressed: “Foulds deploys his SRHWLF SURVH WR IXOO H̆HFW WR HYRNH the terror, brutality and randomness of battle.â€? The Spectator’s Simon Akam is not convinced: “The sense of place is vague and the battle scenes formulaic,â€? Akam writes. “He has considerable talent. But his latest novel warns of the pitfalls of writing about what you do not know.â€? 1LFKRODV *UL̇QÂśV 3LQJ 3RQJ Diplomacy looks at another great FRQĂ€LFW 7KH ERRN H[SORUHV WKH curious tale of how the 1971 World Table Tennis Championships in Japan helped to thaw icy relations between America and China during

the Washington Post feels *UL̇Q IDOOV VKRUW DV DQ analyst. “Oddly, he doesn’t really explain table tennis — how it’s played, what makes a top competitor, why Asians dominate the sport. And while his book is subtitled ‘the game that FKDQJHG WKH ZRUOG Âś *UL̇Q doesn’t explore what that change means today.â€? In 1977 Japan, mildmannered salesman Oda Sotatsu confessed to a series of mysterious

WKH &ROG :DU *UL̇Q FKURQLFOHV the history of ping-pong, from the eccentric Englishman-turnedCommunist who popularised the game through to its role in the Nixon era dĂŠtente, and shows how it has been inherently political from inception. The Telegraph’s Julia Lovell applauds the book as engaging DQG ZHOO UHVHDUFKHG Âł>*UL̇Q@ also maintains a powerful human dimension throughout. The Chinese side of events is fascinatingly related WKURXJK LQWHUYLHZV WKDW *UL̇Q conducted with members of Mao-era table tennis teams, many of whom – despite the international glory that they won for their country – were persecuted as ‘spies’ during the Cultural Revolution.â€? However, Steven V. Roberts of - 27 -

disappearances he didn’t commit, and then inexplicably refused to speak in his own defense, in Jesse Ball’s Silence Once Begun. Years later, an American journalist aims to uncover the truth and the novel is a compilation of interviews, letters and photographs that form an LQFUHDVLQJO\ FRQĂ€LFWHG SRUWUDLW RI Sotatsu and his alleged crime. “Ball has built in a few genuinely surprising twists that exist solely because of how the story is structured. That’s an accomplishment,â€? writes Carolyn Kellogg in the LA Times. Victoria James of the Japan Times believes the clever narrative tricks are undermined by stylistic excess and irritating anomalies, yet concludes: Âł, FRQÂżGHQWO\ SUHGLFW \RX ZRQÂśW UHDG another book quite like it all year.â€?

ART & DESIGN

MBITION

ARTISTIC

As the Middle East prepares for the eighth edition of Art Dubai, AIR takes a look at what art collectors can expect to find at this year’s fair… - 28 -

S

even years since its launch and Art Dubai has evolved into an event of international VLJQL¿FDQFH 6R VLJQL¿FDQW LQ IDFW that over 200,000 visitors have attended the fair since its inaugural show to explore the regional talent showcased there. And while the backbone of the fair is the contemporary gallery programme – made up of more than 70 galleries – it is the introduction of the Art Dubai Modern programme at this year’s event, running March 19-22, that is creating quite a creative stir. Devoted entirely to modern Middle Eastern and South Asian art from the 20th century, it will include 11 galleries presenting solo and twoSHUVRQ VKRZV ,QÀXHQWLDO PRGHUQ masters set to showcase include

the late Anwar Jalal Shemza, one of Pakistan’s greatest artists whose work has gone under the hammer at Christie’s and Bonhams in previous years. Much anticipation also surrounds conceptual artist Rasheed Araeen,

in the Middle East and South Asia outside of Europe.� Another booth Carver and the fair’s curators are particularly excited about is the late self-taught painter Hamed Abdalla, an Egyptian artist whose work will be on display with visiting gallery Karim Francis. Perhaps the highlight of the modern programme, however, is the special tribute to Abdul Qader Al Rais, one of Dubai’s most-acclaimed artists. “To those of you who are familiar with the UAE art scene Abdul Qader Al Rais is really seen as the father of today’s artists,� says Carver. “We wanted to honour him with a look back at his work in the 60s and 70s and really show the history of the Gulf and the Gulf scene.� For collectors of modern art, investment opportunities at this year’s fair are huge. Victoria Gandit Lelandais, Art Dubai’s Collector’s Circle coordinator, says: “Art Dubai is an incredible platform for collectors and art enthusiasts to acquire art, not only as the largest international fair in the region, but also because the structure of the fair makes the programme a real platform for discovery. “It is important to have a vision of where you want to go with your collection. You can either decide to collect artists, this is what we call collecting vertically, or you can collect artworks from the same region, period, theme, or artistic

‘Art Dubai is an incredible platform for collectors and art enthusiasts to acquire art’ a Pakistani artist appearing at Art Dubai with London’s Grosvenor Gallery. “Rasheed Araeen is hugely LQĂ€XHQWLDO RQ %ULWLVK DUWLVWV DV ZHOO as artists in South Asia,â€? says fair director Antonia Carver. “And this LV WKH ÂżUVW WLPH KH KDV UHDOO\ EHHQ appreciated or shown to this extent - 29 -

movement, and this is what we call collecting horizontally.� But for new collectors, Gandit Lelandais says this: “Be patient, train your eyes, know what you like and what you dislike, and in the end, always buy something that you like. At Art Dubai one has a broad

ART & DESIGN RYHUYLHZ RI DOO WKH GL̆HUHQW DUWLVWV galleries, mediums and trends lending themselves to help one gain a more comprehensive vision of Middle Eastern art. The fair features the world’s best-known artists but also emerging talent, and is an ideal place for younger collectors to begin.â€? Running alongside Art Dubai LV 'HVLJQ 'D\V 'XEDL D ÂżYH GD\ fair aimed at bringing the most exclusive, rare and unique design creations to the region. And according to Design Days Dubai fair director Cyril Zammit, highlights at this year’s event include Carpenters Workshop Gallery, “which is SUREDEO\ WKH PRVW LQĂ€XHQWLDO contemporary design gallery in the world these daysâ€?. Zammit adds: “They are based in London and Paris, and they always mix very KLJK HQG SURGXFWLRQ DQG ÂżQLVKLQJ

of design pieces. For more classic pieces from the late 20th century I would say another French gallery called Galerie Yves Gastou. They have a great selection of classic pieces from early 1960s to early 1970s.� First-time participant Ymer & Malta also sits highly on Zammit’s ones-to-watch list, with pieces starting at around US$27,000. And like Art Dubai, Design Days Dubai, which runs March 17-21 at The Venue in Downtown Dubai, will be welcoming a number of new countries to this year’s event, including Jordan, Algeria and Pakistan. So in light of today’s thundering market for Arabian art, is Dubai the go-to place in the region for artists, gallerists and collectors? Quite possibly. - 30 -

Text: Tracey Scott Images: Supplied

‘The fair is the ideal place for young collectors to begin’

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Prank canvas

From obscurity in Europe to international acclaim in Dubai, Ruben Sanchez is living one of the greatest success stories in contemporary art. Hazel Plush visited his UAE enclave as he geared up for his debut at Design Days Dubai

A

t this very moment, Ruben Sanchez is psyched. Beneath his measured gaze, his mind is buzzing – look carefully, and you’ll spy a spring in his step and energy in his paint-splattered hands. Watch even closer, and you might catch his face breaking into a secret grin. I can’t see him right now, and I don’t suppose you can either, but I know that he’s stoked – because this month he’s doing what he never dreamed possible. It’s 1992. A 13-year-old Sanchez hops over the crumbling threshold of a derelict house in a sketchy nook of Madrid. His backpack clunking with aerosols, he’s got one eye out for the police, and the other on his target: a raspy old wall, beaten by the elements but ripe for a spray paint makeover. He’s been working RQ WKRVH JUḊWL DUFV DOO GD\ ¹ IRUJHW school, he’s giving that a miss for a while. The streets and the skate parks are where he belongs, so why shouldn’t he use them as canvas? In 2012, few things have changed. Sanchez is wiley and beardy, working as an artist in Barcelona – but he’s still looking out for spots for his tags. Times are hard, so between the skate park, streets and studio he makes ends meet as a graphic designer, a reluctant 9-to-5er. His JUḊWL LV VKDUSHU PRUH VXUUHDOLVW than anything else on the street – and that’s what catches the eye of a Dubai-based talent scout, in town on the hunt for Spain’s next big thing. The scout reported back to Tashkeel, a gallery and studio in Nad Al Sheba, who responded with DQ R̆HU RI D \HDU ORQJ UHVLGHQF\ Ruben Sanchez, school drop-out and life-long tagger and skater, was to be given his own solo exhibition in the world’s fastest-growing city, with resources and funding at his

‘When they offered me the job, I was like let’s go!’ ÂżQJHUWLSV 6XGGHQO\ ZDV looking up. We meet in November 2013, the day after the opening of The B Side, Ruben’s solo exhibition at Tashkeel. Âł:KHQ WKH\ R̆HUHG PH WKH MRE , ZDV like ‘let’s go!’,â€? says Sanchez, with twinkling eyes. “It’s the kind of thing \RX MXVW GRQÂśW WXUQ GRZQ , YRZHG WR make the most of every moment, to paint every day.â€? He has stayed true to his word: The B Side is the result of 12 months of experimentation, - 33 -

exploration, and plain hard graft. And it’s like nothing I’ve ever seen before. Sanchez has eschewed canvases for reclaimed wood and old signposts, daubing vibrant Cubiststyle faces, bodies and animals in bright pastels and primaries on discarded timber pieces. A painting of a maudlin-faced coconut peers from a construction site sign that Sanchez pilfered from a skip. A bosseyed wooden totem pole sits in the

ART & DESIGN

‘I still don’t think of art as a career. It’s great if I get paid and people like it, but most of all I just want to have fun. If it’s not fun, I don’t want to do it’

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ART & DESIGN

corner, its desert-scavenged timber smooth to the touch. “The B Side is all about experimentation, transforming WKLQJV ´ 6DQFKH] VD\V Âł:KHQ , ÂżUVW started painting in Spain, I gathered wood pallets – there are lots of them

of the partnership. He’s riding the wave of 2013’s successes, and his plans for 2014 are unfurling: “I want to make a huge artwork, painted with the wheels of skateboards doing tricks – it would bring together my two loves.� With a solo exhibition

Text: Hazel Plush Images: Supplied

‘I vowed to make the most of every moment, to paint every day’ around. Canvas was expensive, so I’d paint on the wood. Now, if you gave me the chance to paint on a white wall or a destroyed wall, I’d choose the destroyed wall. You’re using the wall, making it part of the art. “My space is like a scrap yard: I look for materials that most people wouldn’t pay attention to,â€? he says as my eyes stray through a glass patio door to an old Porsche, painted cyan and orange, with a camel bone thrust through its tyre‌ “Ah! That’s 944,â€? he says ZLWK D FKXFNOH Ă€LQJLQJ RSHQ WKH back door of the gallery to reveal the piece outside. “I found the 3RUVFKH LQ D 6KDUMDK VFUDS \DUG cut it in half, and added camel bones and reclaimed wood to remind people of the old ways of getting around.â€? The dissected car sits pride of place in a bougainvillea-fringed courtyard with – what else? – a VNDWH SDUN MXVW DURXQG WKH FRUQHU We chat in the pink late-afternoon light, listening to the roar of skateboard wheels on ramps, Sanchez leaning on the Porsche’s turquoise bonnet. Art doesn’t get much cooler than this. Skip a few months to March 2014, and Sanchez is gearing up for Design Days Dubai. His 12-month Tashkeel residency is over, but he’s still working with the gallery, and this is the pinnacle

and an international portfolio in the PDNLQJ LV 6DQFKH] ÂżQDOO\ EHFRPLQJ a serious artist? “Never! I still don’t think of art as a career. It’s great if I get paid and people like it, but most RI DOO , MXVW ZDQW WR KDYH IXQ ,I LWÂśV not fun, I don’t want to do it.â€?

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TIMEPIECES

FREDERIC WATRELOT Christie’s Specialist for Watches on the ladies watches to look for at this month’s Dubai sale The success we experienced in Dubai with the re-launch sale in October 2013, as well as the very dominant Middle Eastern bidding in the established watch sale in Geneva last November, was a clear indication of the appetite among our clients in the region for exceptional, unique and vintage watches. The number of lots offered in the sale this season has more than doubled in response to the demand we have seen among this group of collectors at all of our international watch sales since October 2013. This month (March 20) my second watch auction will take place with a larger than ever selection of ladies watches. You might ask why. When Elizabeth Taylor’s jewels went on show in Dubai prior to their sale in New York in December 2011, the crowds of visitors had an opportunity to be dazzled by what was one of the most important private collections of jewellery ever offered at auction. The sale also included her watches and the most spectacular to my mind was the gold, diamond and emerald snake bracelet watch by Bulgari. The diamond encrusted head of the serpent lifted to reveal the watch below, while the tail was picked out in a similar scattering of glittering jewels. Two tiny emeralds picked out the piercing eyes from among the stones. It made an incredible US$974,500,

combining as it did that perfect combination of spectacular design from one of the world’s great luxury brands, exquisite jewels and, uniquely to the items in the sale, a precious, personal piece chosen for the legendary star. Following the serpent theme and again by Bulgari, is a watch known as the Tubogas model, with an articulated 18-carat gold bangle that wraps around the wrist. It carries an estimate of between US$6,000 and US$8,000. Another braceletdesign is from Cartier and known as the Panthere, with one end of the bangle featuring an 18-carat gold headed panther, his eyes picked out by two emeralds and his tail featuring a rectangular case watch face. Sticking with the more traditional watch design is a fine and rare ladies’ 18-carat gold, diamond and sapphire-set wristwatch, made around 1979 by that most enduring of watch brands, Rolex and expected to fetch around US$15,000. In total contrast, a spectacular tangerine, white gold and diamond-set automatic chronograph wristwatch, circa 2004 by Audemars Piguet, makes a strong statement. An impressive 18-carat white gold and diamond-set automatic wristwatch by De Grisogono has a quirky face with oversized numbers set within its rectangular-shape which is surrounded by baguettecut diamonds. The automatic piece is estimated at around US$65,000US$80,000. This all goes to show that whilst you may have missed your chance to bid on Ms. Taylor’s magnificent watches, there is still time to try on, and possibly bid on, a magnificent watch at auction in Dubai. - 38 -

BACK in TIME Tariq Malik, purveyor of unique and vintage timepieces at Momentum Dubai, on the lure of historic models

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TIMEPIECES

T

he term vintage conjures up a wealth of imagery and emotion in the watch collector’s ZRUOG EXW GHÂżQLQJ the term can be tricky. Antiquorum, the world’s largest dedicated watch auction house, broadly draws the line at 1990. The ‘Quartz Crisis’ of the 1970s which brought about the advent of accurate, cheap and mass-produced watches, is claimed by others as a critical period for modern watches. This shift to mass production nearly destroyed the Swiss watchmaking industry; in 1970, there were 1,600 watchmakers in Switzerland, this number dwindling to 600 by 1983. Mechanical watches made a comeback when people tired of quartz watches’ short lifespans. A mechanical watch could survive generations if properly cared for, and discerning buyers were again

willing to pay a premium for such timepieces. Taking inspiration from the past, the industry was reborn. *RLQJ EDFN LQ WLPH WKH ¿UVW UHDO need for accurate timekeeping came with the development of precise astronomical and navigational tools. For navigators, a compass was LQVẊFLHQW RQH QHHGHG WR WHOO WLPH accurately in order to determine longitude. This is one of the reasons watch designers take so much inspiration from the shipping and aviation industries. The demands of modern militaries inspired further innovation. A requirement for increased precision, interval timing, OXPLQRXV GLDOV VKRFN SURR¿QJ ZDWHUSURR¿QJ DQG WHPSHUDWXUH tolerance provided a boost to functionality and durability. Side by side with this evolution, the move away from pocket to wristwatches was a major catalyst in mechanical and design possibilities. From an aesthetic point of view,

the vintage market is necessarily composed of watches that have stood the test of time and whose design continues to intrigue collectors over the years. Those seeking an XQGHUVWDWHG HOHJDQFH ÂżQG D VWURQJ connection with vintage watches. The late Gerald Genta, a legend in the watchmaking world, had an incredible impact on watch design with the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, Patek Philippe Nautilus, IWC Ingenieur as well as the Omega Constellation and Universal Geneve Polerouter. Because of this, vintage watches are taking a more prominent role in the watchmaking world as they are increasingly seen as timeless creations. Vintage has now reached the mainstream, even attracting private investors and investment funds. From an investment perspective, vintage watches hold their value extremely well and are increasingly seen as a way of

‘From an investment perspective, vintage watches hold their value extremely well and are increasingly seen as a way of diversifying an investment portfolio’

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diversifying an investment portfolio in turbulent times. :DWFKHV DUH YDOXHG IRU WKHLU ÂżQH craftsmanship and engineering. Movements such as the Valjoux 72 DUH KLVWRULFDOO\ VLJQLÂżFDQW DV WKH\ allowed watchmakers to modify parts and create unique designs. Heuer, Rolex and Longines used Valjoux-based movements in many of their important watches. Collectors prize them as they continue to work accurately after more than 40 years. Heuer has been recognised as a market leader in professional timers for sports racing. Heuer, in a joint venture ZLWK %UHLWOLQJ ZHUH WKH ÂżUVW WR develop an automatic chronograph movement, cementing its leadership in this space. In the late 1960s, they launched the Caliber 11 movement; and in the same year the Monaco.

For most collectors, the value of vintage watches is due to a number of factors, such as historical VLJQL¿FDQFH WKH EHDXW\ RI LWV movements, and design. Watches made for soldiers in WWII, for instance, carry an historical appeal. The experiences of soldiers, divers and pilots bring to mind the ideals of heroism, adventure, discovery, and those ideals have been captured in the watches designed for them. In 1938, G. Panerai & Figlio, designed a military watch for the Italian navy. Their iconic style remains an inspiration till today. More so than other industries, watchmakers use this historic DSSHDO LQ WKHLU PDUNHWLQJ H̆RUWV using landmark occasions and fantastic settings to introduce new movements and designs. Rolex was a leader in creating - 41 -

waterproof wristwatches; when Mercedes Gleitze swam the English Channel she wore a Rolex Oyster; highlighting Rolex’s technical advancements. Rolex were pioneers in their ability to market these milestones. Vintage watches reach their peak value when they possess both provenance and rarity. Steve McQueen’s association with Heuer’s Monaco, the Rolex Daytona made famous by legendary actor Paul Newman and James Bond’s Submariner are among the best known examples. Add to that the H[WUHPH GL̇FXOW\ FROOHFWRUV KDYH LQ ¿QGLQJ SDUWLFXODU SLHFHV DQG \RX have a perfect storm of a timepiece. The marriage of all the elements discussed above is what completes the ideal vintage watch but starting a watch collection doesn’t necessarily require big money. Collecting, like taste, is a subjective matter, and interesting watches can be bought in the US$1,000-US$5,000 range. Loyal collectors and fans have played a critical role in developing and maintaining the archives of existing watchmakers and those long gone. Online forums can be found dedicated to all types of brands, from Rolex to Heuer to Seiko. Most books about watches have been written by enthusiasts, not the brands themselves. Collectors regularly discover new information, continuously expanding on the wealth of knowledge found in these communities. Vintage watches mark the personal experiences of their owners and our role at Momentum is to help in preserving their histories. Our own business is one of give and take; sharing our experience and knowledge with clients as ZHOO DV EHQH¿WWLQJ IURP FOLHQWV more knowledgeable of particular EUDQGV DQG HUDV 7KHUH LV D GH¿QLWH grassroots feel to the vintage watch community, and with a continuous desire to learn from each other, it is a branch of watch collecting that is only getting more exciting.

Dubai Mall | Dubai Marina Mall | Mall of the Emirates | Wafi | Gold Souk

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JEWELLERY

> Bulgari has launched a magnificent new mini-collection of four necklaces celebrating the seasons. Featuring a foliage-inspired motif, each individual leaf has been carefully sculpted to be slightly unique. For winter, the leaves sparkle with diamond pavé, while spring, summer and autumn dazzle with bold coloured gemstones. bulgari.com

> Chanel’s new Jardin de Camélias collection includes necklaces, bracelets, cuffs, brooches and rings all featuring the delicate bloom, which is a symbol of purity and longevity in Asia. Glittering with 187 brilliantcut diamonds and citrushued stones, these stunning drop earrings are sure to turn heads. chanel.com

> In the 1920s, Coco Chanel was so captivated by the camellia that it became one of her style signatures. In homage, the French fashion house has created a new collection devoted entirely to its legendary founder’s IDYRXULWH ÀRZHU 7KLV ZKLWH JROG sparkler is set with a marquisecut gemstone surrounded by diamonds. chanel.com

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> For timeless elegance, it is hard to go past a pearl. Tiffany & Co. has a wonderful selection of rings featuring these lustrous wonders of the sea, including cultured South Sea, white, golden and Tahitian pearls in diamond and platinum settings. Perfect for spring soirées. tiffany.com

JEWELLERY

1.

FROM

SKETCH TO SHOWPIECE

2.

Van Cleef & Arpels’ new exhibition, In Praise of Hands, is offering visitors to this year’s Design Days Dubai a rare glimpse into the workshop of its master craftsmen: the Mains d’Or. AIR gets a sneak peek at what’s on show... - 47 -

JEWELLERY

3.

‘Each part must be polished, as seen here, sometimes taking up to 150 hours per piece’

4.

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1. In-house designers draw the centerline to determine the equilibrium of a Van Cleef & Arpels necklace. 2. A gouache sketch of the final design goes for colour tracing before being passed to the mock-up maker. 3. From mock-up, the piece is then passed to the jeweller. Here, the jeweller positions the different sections ready for stone and diamond cutting. 4. Before reaching the smelter or sculptor, each part must be polished, as seen here, sometimes taking up to 150 hours per piece. 5. A craftsman perfects the Van Cleef & Arpels’ signature ‘mystery setting’ technique, a technique originally pursued by Alfred Van Cleef and Julien Arpels in the early days.

Images: Francesco Cito ©Van Cleef & Arpels

> The exhibition will run March 17-21 at The Venue - Downtown Dubai.

5.

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INTERIORS

As the days are getting longer and the garden is starting to come to life with colour, Mother Nature’s LQÀXHQFH RQ WKH VSULQJ LQWHULRU design trends is clear to see. The new ÀRUDO WUHQGV LQ WH[WLOHV KRPHZDUHV and accessories create a feeling of new beginnings, breathing fresh ideas into beautiful schemes that will revitalise your home for the season ahead. At January’s furniture fair Maison & Objet in Paris, spring ÀRUDO LQÀXHQFHV ZHUH WR EH VHHQ LQ abundance with countless brands taking on the theme and displaying their collections in dusky pinks, fresh greens, pale blues and lemon yellows. One of my favourites came in the form of Anna Torfs, the luxury contemporary crystal manufacturer, whose stunning vases, glasses and display pieces were presented in an DUUD\ RI ÀRZHU\ WRQHV HQRXJK WR brighten up anyone’s day.

SARA COSGROVE Harrods’ head of interior design on springtime florals

In contrast to Anna Torfs’ muted contemporary crystal, the team visited the spectacular Maison Baccarat which took spring styling to a whole new level. Festooning the huge dining tables at the Maison with crystal vases displaying DPD]LQJ ÀRUDO FUHDWLRQV LW UHDOO\ brought their classic crystal pieces to life and demonstrated how to create a gorgeous lifestyle setting by channelling this beautiful fresh spring trend when dressing a space. In terms of furniture, Ginger and Jagger and the eponymous Munna upholstery brand also brought some botanical elements to life within their new collections. Their elegant console tables had legs that were inspired by the delicate shapes of the branches of a tree and their beautiful sideboards featured

impressive timber veneers that had been combined with organic sculptural detailing that was also LQĂ€XHQFHG E\ WKLV SURYHUELDO QRG WR nature. We were also particularly taken with the beautiful light mixtures of white lacquer with rosepink coppers which embellished bleached timbers in an original compilation of furniture and ÂżQLVKHV Moving on to decorative accessories, BAOBAB – a brand known for its gorgeous scented candles and room fragrances – was totally decked out in this new Ă€RUDO VW\OH WR VKRZFDVH D VHOHFWLRQ of mood-enhancing aromas all presented in glorious branded packaging that delivered their message for a fresh new season. Home furnishings and accessories ZHUH DOVR LQĂ€XHQFHG E\ WKH WUHQG De Gournay celebrated some fantastic new fabrics and wallpapers in their exquisite shop on Rue des Saints-Pères in central Paris. We were utterly delighted with the wonderful selections of intricately decorated hand-painted silk and paper wall coverings that displayed DQ DUUD\ RI Ă€RUDO SDWWHUQV VXFK DV magnolia, lillies, as well as other enchanting nature-inspired themes. The impressive use of metallic backdrops, mixed with matt SDLQWHG GHWDLO UHDOO\ VKRZHG R̆ WKH UHÂżQHG PRWLIV XVHG WKURXJKRXW WKH collections. Spring is truly in the air.

> Produced as a limited edition of just 40, this hammered aluminium Coque Armchair, produced in 1975, has been signed by the designer Philip Hilquily and once belonged to renowned collector Henri Samuel. It is an investment that will reap dividends as the designer’s work becomes more and more rare. On sale at Design Days Dubai designdaysdubai.ae

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> Claude Glass is part wall clock, part mirror and all abstract beauty. Each minute, the scenic landscape on this conceptual timepiece transforms to reflect the changes of the conditions throughout the day. Your home needs this. victor-hunt.com

> Begin your collection of Nakkash pieces with this irresistible sideboard. Tiles on the outside give way to an interior finished with exquisite gold leaf. A perfect unity of the contemporary and classic. On sale at Design Days Dubai designdaysdubai.ae

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INTERIORS

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INTERIORS

Coveted COLLECTABLES A new antiques emporium houses pieces from one man’s private collection of 19th century French treasures

W

ithin the sleek structure of one of Dubai’s most recognisable architectural masterpieces lies a cache of exquisite antiques from 19th-century France. The pieces for sale at the 19th Century Antiques gallery in Jumeirah Emirates Towers represent WKH 0LGGOH (DVWÂśV ÂżQHVW FROOHFWLRQ from this period – and one man’s private passion. Antiques collector Behroz Javaheri has spent more than a quarter of a century acquiring his vast collection RI ÂżQH IXUQLWXUH PDQWOH FORFNV and art. “I have been passionate DERXW DQWLTXHV VSHFLÂżFDOO\ WK FHQWXU\ )UHQFK ÂżQH DQG GHFRUDWLYH DUWV DQG IXUQLWXUH IRU DV ORQJ DV - 53 -

, FDQ UHPHPEHU ´ KH VD\V :LWK D background in the family jewellery business that involved selling DQWLTXH SLHFHV LW ZDV LQHYLWDEOH that he would be drawn to beautiful objects. “From a young age my interests tended to gravitate towards the antique side of the business. I have spent my adult life collecting and maintaining these pieces and now have one of the largest FROOHFWLRQV LQ WKH ZRUOG ´ Javaheri’s collection focuses solely on art and furniture from a period FKDUDFWHULVHG E\ ÂżQH FUDIWVPDQVKLS and exceptional quality. Artisans were often inspired by classical GHVLJQV GUDZLQJ RQ /RXLV ;,9 /RXLV ;9 DQG /RXLV ;9, VW\OHV Âł7KH 19th century is renowned for some of the most famous cabinetmakers of DOO WLPH ´ VD\V -DYDKHUL Âł7KH TXDOLW\ of materials and precision to details can be seen in such things as the EURQ]H PRXQWV DQG ZRRG YHQHHUV and are admired by collectors and VFKRODUV IURP DURXQG WKH ZRUOG ´ The gallery’s seven halls display UDUH IXUQLWXUH JLOW EURQ]H PDQWOH FORFNV DQG JDUQLWXUHV EURQ]H DQG PDUEOH VFXOSWXUH RLO SDLQWLQJV DQG porcelain by renowned artisans VXFK DV +HQU\ 'DVVRQ )HUGLQDQG %DUEHGLHQQH 5DLQJR )UqUHV DQG Pierre-Jules MĂŞne. Uncovering furniture in good condition is one RI WKH FROOHFWRUÂśV ELJJHVW FKDOOHQJHV making them his favourite pieces to collect. “My collection includes many unique pieces that were made in small production runs of only two or three pieces. Over the past 150 years many pieces of furniture have been GHVWUR\HG RU GDPDJHG ´ KH VD\V :KLOH 'XEDLÂśV DQWLTXH PDUNHW LV VWLOO GHYHORSLQJ -DYDKHUL EHOLHYHV interest in collecting will continue to grow as art lovers’ are exposed to the genre. “Currently the antique market LV VPDOO KRZHYHU VLQFH WKH RSHQLQJ of 19th Century Antiques over six months ago we have received an overwhelming amount of support. There is a high level of appreciation IRU TXDOLW\ OX[XU\ JRRGV ZKLFK LV LQ OLQH ZLWK WKH FROOHFWLRQ R̆HUHG DW WKH JDOOHU\ ´ 19centuryantiques.com

‘I DON’T DEN Y THE FACT THAT BEING Samuel L. Jackson on Hollywood racism, politics at the Oscars & golf with Obama

WHO I A M IS A GRE AT THING’ - 54 -

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here’s an awkward moment, for me at least, near the beginning of my meeting with Samuel L. Jackson in a hotel bar in Atlanta, Georgia, when I ask him for his opinion on 12 Years a Slave and he leans back in his leather chair, strokes his grey cashmere beanie hat and responds: “Are you asking me that because it is a frontrunner for the Oscars, or because I am black?â€? I actually blush. While I’m asking him simply because his opinion matters (having starred in more than 100 ÂżOPV VLQFH ZKLFK KDYH WDNHQ LQ PRUH WKDQ D UHSRUWHG 86 ELOOLRQ DW WKH ER[ ṘFH KHÂśV ṘFLDOO\ WKH KLJKHVW JURVVLQJ DFWRU LQ history according to Guinness World Records), I suppose I am also asking him because he’s black. 0RUH VSHFLÂżFDOO\ EHFDXVH KH LV RQH RI WKH most successful black actors of his generation, one of the few (alongside Denzel Washington and Will Smith) who has managed to build a career in roles where race is irrelevant to the story. And I’ve just begun saying sorry, DGGLQJ DQ DSRORJ\ IRU PDNLQJ RQH RI P\ ÂżUVW TXHVWLRQV DERXW D ÂżOP KH GRHVQÂśW HYHQ DSSHDU in, when he laughs out loud. He’s just teasing. Âł7KH\ ZHUH MXVW FRPLQJ LQ WR ÂżOP <HDUV ZKHQ ZH ZHUH FRPLQJ RXW RI ÂżOPLQJ 'MDQJR Unchained [Quentin Tarantino’s western in which he plays Stephen, a scheming house slave]. We shot on the same plantations. I UHFRJQLVHG D ZKROH EXQFK RI WKH VDPH VWX̆ LQ it.â€? A pause. “What did I think of it? Well...â€? It becomes evident over the course of the following answer, and over the course of the subsequent two hours, that you don’t need to tiptoe around Samuel L. Jackson. He is

But I’m not real sure why Steve McQueen wanted to tackle that particular thing.â€? The subject of the slave trade? “I would WKLQN WKDW LI DQ $IULFDQ $PHULFDQ GLUHFWRU went into a studio and pitched that particular ÂżOP WKH\ ZRXOG EH OLNH ÂľQR QR QRÂś ´ :K\" Âł,W LV D ÂżOP DERXW $IULFDQ $PHULFDQV D GDUN SHULRG RI KLVWRU\ WKDW WKH\ GRQÂśW OLNH WR H[SORUH in that particular way. But because it’s Steve and he has this reputation for doing all these DUW ÂżOPV DV RSSRVHG WR WKH YLVFHUDO ZD\ DQ $IULFDQ $PHULFDQ GLUHFWRU ZRXOG WHOO LW ´ +H orders tonic water from a waiter who has been hovering and continues. “Take, for instance, WKH GL̆HUHQFH EHWZHHQ <HDUV DQG D ÂżOP OLNH Fruitvale Station, which deals with racism in America now [it is based on events leading to the death of Oscar Grant, a young man killed E\ D SROLFH ṘFHU@ ,W H[SODLQV WKLQJV OLNH WKH shooting of Trayvon Martin [the black teenager NLOOHG LQ E\ D QHLJKERXUKRRG ZDWFK guard], the problems with stop and search, and is just more poignant. America is much more willing to acknowledge what happened in the past. We freed the slaves! It’s all good!â€? He waves his hands in mock celebration. “But to say, ‘we are still unnecessarily killing black PHQ OHWÂśV KDYH D FRQYHUVDWLRQ DERXW WKDWÂś ´ 6R he thinks the fuss about 12 Years is just a way WR DYRLG WKH UHDO LVVXHV" Âł([DFWO\ ´ This is far from the last thing Samuel Leroy Jackson has to say about race. After revealing that he was at Michelle Obama’s 50th birthday party over the weekend, and that he made arrangements to play golf with the President while there (“He said, ‘when we gonna play?’; , VDLG ÂľZKHQ LV \RXU GD\ R̆"ϫ ZH JHW RQ WR his disenchantment with a political system he considers “jackedâ€? (“I wouldn’t ever have

‘Life is not so bad. I am Samuel L. Jackson!’ routinely referred to as “the coolest man aliveâ€? RQ WKH EDVLV , VXVSHFW RI FHUWDLQ MLYH WDONLQJ streetwise performances in Quentin Tarantino ÂżOPV EXW LQ WKH Ă€HVK KH LV FRRO IRU D GL̆HUHQW reason: his complete lack of uptightness. Dispatching his two black male assistants DV VRRQ DV KH DUULYHV KH FKHHUIXOO\ JRHV R̆ WRSLF FXUVHV OLNH D WUXFNHU LV GHOLJKWIXOO\ XQ PC (when I ask him for advice on what to do LQ $WODQWD KH UHFRPPHQGV D VWULS FOXE Âł<RX haven’t lived until you have been to Magic Cityâ€?), and, sure enough, he has no problem SUR̆HULQJ YLHZV RQ RWKHU SHRSOHÂśV ÂżOPV “Look, I’m glad 12 Years got made and it’s wonderful that people are seeing it, and there is another view of what happened in America.

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imagined a black man becoming president, but equally I wouldn’t have imagined a group of people willing to let the country go to hell rather than help himâ€?); Republicans (“When they see the words ‘food stamps’ they see a black woman with three kids coming into a ZHOIDUH ṘFH ZKHQ WKH IDFW LV WKH\ DUH DOVR cutting food stamps to our servicemen who IRXJKW LQ $IJKDQLVWDQ´ WKH GL̇FXOW\ RI raising a daughter, now 31, in such privileged circumstances that she grew up thinking UDFLVP GLGQÂśW H[LVW Âł$OO ZH FRXOG GR LV JLYH KHU the armour, and say one of these days someone is gonna call you a n*****, and sure enough WKH\ GLG´ WKH ÂżQDQFLQJ RI EODFN ÂżOPV Âł,V Hollywood racist? The place doesn’t operate

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‘If I am having a low day in my head for whatever reason, I just leave my house, people recognise me and it makes me feel better’

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Text: Sathnam Sanghera Images: Corbis

latent racism: that John Travolta got put forward for Best Actor in Pulp Fiction even though Jackson was on screen for the same amount of time; and Travolta went on to be R̆HUHG 86 PLOOLRQ D UROH ZKHUHDV -DFNVRQ got a fraction for his subsequent movies. Âł,Q WHUPV RI FDWHJRULHV +DUYH\ :HLQVWHLQ won’t have his own people running against HDFK RWKHU +DUYH\ JHWV ZKDW +DUYH\ ZDQWV ´ $QRWKHU HOHFWURQLF GUDJ Âł$V IRU WKH PRQH\ SHRSOH ZDQWHG WR SD\ -RKQ ZKDW WKH\ WKRXJKW KH ZDV ZRUWK IRU WKHLU ÂżOP , FDQÂśW EH DQJU\ DERXW WKLQJV , KDYH QR FRQWURO RYHU 6R , JRW WR PDNH IRXU WLPHV DV PDQ\ PRYLHV IRU WKH VDPH PRQH\" 7KH WKLQJ LV , ZDQW WR PDNH IRXU WLPHV DV PDQ\ PRYLHV ´ -DFNVRQ ZKR DFWXDOO\ PDNHV ÂżYH WR VL[ ÂżOPV D \HDU LV RSHQ DERXW KDYLQJ UHSODFHG GUXJ DGGLFWLRQV ZLWK FRPSXOVLYH ZRUN DQG KDV VR PXFK JRLQJ RQ WKDW LWÂśV KDUG WR NHHS WUDFN :H ZHUH RULJLQDOO\ GXH WR PHHW LQ WKH 8. ZKHUH KH KDV UHFHQWO\ EHHQ VKRRWLQJ DQ DGDSWDWLRQ RI 0DUN 0LOODUÂśV FRPLF VHULHV 7KH 6HFUHW 6HUYLFH ,Q $WODQWD KH LV UHKHDUVLQJ DQG VKRRWLQJ WKH DSRFDO\SWLF WKULOOHU &HOO EDVHG RQ WKH QRYHO E\ 6WHSKHQ .LQJ 6RRQ KH ZLOO UHWXUQ WR /RQGRQ WR VWDUW ÂżOPLQJ WKH ODWHVW $YHQJHUV LQVWDOPHQW but when it comes to his nine-picture contract ZLWK 0DUYHO 6WXGLRV WR SOD\ 1LFN )XU\ KH VWUXJJOHV WR UHFDOO KRZ PDQ\ KH KDV GRQH DOUHDG\ Âł6HYHQ" , WKLQN ´ Although I guess we should be sparing with WKH V\PSDWK\ IRU DV ZHOO DV WKH PDVVLYH SD\ IHDWXUHV FKHTXHV KH DGPLWV KH KDV D FODXVH LQ KLV FRQWUDFWV WKDW DOORZV KLP WR SOD\ KLV EHORYHG JROI WZLFH D ZHHN ZKLOH ÂżOPLQJ $QG VRPH PLJKW VD\ WKDW KH VKRXOG DFWXDOO\ EH PRUH GLVFULPLQDWLQJ LQ WKH UROHV KH DJUHHV WR given that despite being brilliant in The 51st 6WDWH DQG -DFNLH %URZQ DQG &RDFK &DUWHU KH KDV DOVR DSSHDUHG LQ KLV IDLU VKDUH RI WXUNH\V .LVV RI 'HDWK 7KH *UHDW :KLWH +\SH DQG others. I work up to the question: is it true he didn’t NQRZ ZKLFK FKDUDFWHU KH ZDV SOD\LQJ LQ 6WDU :DUV (SLVRGH , 7KH 3KDQWRP 0HQDFH XQWLO KH ZDV ÂżWWHG IRU D FRVWXPH" Âł<HV ´ ,V LW WUXH KH DFFHSWHG WKH OHDG LQ 6QDNHV RQ D 3ODQH RQ WKH EDVLV RI WKH WLWOH" Âł<HV , VDZ LW LQ WKH WUDGHV D IULHQG ZDV GLUHFWLQJ LW , VDLG ÂľLV LW DERXW VQDNHV RQ DQ DHURSODQH" , ZDQQD EH LQ LW ϫ :RXOG KH FRQFHGH KH KDV D UDWKHU UHOD[HG DSSURDFK WR FKRRVLQJ UROHV" Âł,W LV QRW D UHOD[HG DWWLWXGH ´ +H DGMXVWV KLV GHVLJQHU VSHFWDFOHV DQG EUXVKHV WKH ODSHO RI KLV VPDUW JUH\ EOD]HU Âł:KDW \RX JRWWD XQGHUVWDQG LV WKDW , VSHQW a lot of time in the movies as a kid. I used to JR RQ D ZHHNHQG QLQH LQ WKH PRUQLQJ DQG ZRXOGQÂśW FRPH KRPH WLOO QLQH DW QLJKW 6RPH PRYLHV , WDNH EHFDXVH WKH\ DUH WKH NLQG ,

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ZRXOG KDYH ZDWFKHG DV D NLG OLNH 6QDNHV RQ D 3ODQH , DOZD\V ZDQWHG WR UXQ DZD\ IURP something dangerous and scream and all that VWX̆ ´ +H ODXJKV , VXSSRVH KH ZDV SURYHG ULJKW LQ WKDW FDVH , VD\ IRU LW KDV EHFRPH something of a cult classic. “It’s a better movie than the title suggests. But it didn’t make as PXFK PRQH\ DV LW VKRXOG KDYH ´ 0RQH\ LV D UHFXUULQJ WKHPH ZLWK -DFNVRQ $ERXW EHLQJ LQ *XLQQHVV :RUOG 5HFRUGV KH VD\V Âł1RWKLQJ FRPHV ZLWK LW H[FHSW WKH NQRZOHGJH , PDGH D ORW RI PRQH\ IRU D EXQFK RI SHRSOH DQG , GRQÂśW HYHQ KDYH SHU FHQW RI LW ´ $ERXW KLV UDUH VXFFHVV DV D EODFN DFWRU KH VD\V Âł+ROO\ZRRG RSHUDWHV RQ WKH EDVLV RI PRQH\ VR ZKHQ \RX VD\ WR PH ,ÂśP FRORXUOHVV RU ZKDWHYHU LW MXVW PHDQV ,ÂśYH FUHDWHG D VSDFH ZLWKLQ WKDW FRQWH[W ´ $ERXW <HDUV KH DGGV Âł:DV WKH VWRU\ ZRUWK WHOOLQJ" <HDK )LQDQFLDOO\" 7KH ODVW FRXQW KHUH ZDV PRGHUDWHO\ 2. ´ I suspect this unromantic approach to his DUW LV MXVW D UHĂ€HFWLRQ RI KLV GU\ FKDUDFWHU +LV ZLIH RI \HDUV KDV FRPSODLQHG WKDW KH LV ÂłHPRWLRQDOO\ GLVFRQQHFWHG´ DQG ZLOO QRW HYHQ VD\ Âł, PLVV \RX´ ZKHQ VKH FDOOV KLP RQ VHW Âł%XW , OLNH WDONLQJ WR KHU ´ KH SURWHVWV Âł, FDOO KHU HYHU\ GD\ ´ , DOVR VXVSHFW WKDW KLV UHDOLVWLF approach helps make him popular with the VWXGLRV 7KDW FRPELQHG ZLWK WKH IDFW WKDW KH KDV IHZ DUWLVWLF SUHWHQVLRQV KDV QR GHVLUH WR UHWLUH Âł)RU ZKDW" 6LW DURXQG DQG ZDLW WR GLH" , ZDQW WR NHHS FKXJJLQJ DORQJ´ DQG KDYLQJ RQFH EHHQ D ERRNLVK FKLOG ZLWK D VWXWWHU FDQÂśW quite believe where he has ended up. ,QGHHG KLV HQWKXVLDVP IRU HYHQ ZKDW DUH QRUPDOO\ FRQVLGHUHG WKH GRZQVLGHV RI DFWLQJ is almost as striking as his frankness. It turns RXW KH DFWXDOO\ HQMR\V WKH MXQNHWV WKDW DUH part and parcel of promoting blockbusters Âł7UDYHO DOO WKRVH DPD]LQJ KRWHOV DQG QLFH IRRG ZKDWÂśV QRW WR OLNH"´ +H OLNHV VHHLQJ KLV RZQ ÂżOPV Âł, GLJ ZDWFKLQJ P\ ZRUN ´ $QG KH HQMR\V WKH IDPH JRLQJ DV IDU DV FROOHFWLQJ WKH DFWLRQ ÂżJXUHV RI WKH FKDUDFWHUV KH SOD\V LQ PRYLHV SXOOLQJ XS WR WRXULVW EXVHV LQ /$ DQG VD\LQJ Âł+H\ \RX VHHQ DQ\RQH IDPRXV \HW"´ $UH WKHUH DQ\ QHJDWLYHV WR FHOHEULW\" Âł3HRSOH ZDQW PRUH IURP \RX WKDQ WKH DYHUDJH SHUVRQ RQ WKH VWUHHW $QG , GRQÂśW WDNH SKRWRJUDSKV ´ $OWKRXJK LPPHGLDWHO\ DIWHU VD\LQJ WKLV KH DJUHHV DV ZH GHSDUW WR D SKRWR ZLWK RQH PHPEHU RI WKDW DLUOLQH FUHZ Âł, GRQÂśW GHQ\ WKH fact that being who I am is a great thing. If I DP KDYLQJ D ORZ GD\ LQ P\ KHDG IRU ZKDWHYHU UHDVRQ , MXVW OHDYH P\ KRXVH SHRSOH UHFRJQLVH me and it makes me feel better. I walk around DQG JHW UHDVVXUHG WKDW \RX NQRZ OLIH LV QRW VR EDG ´ +H ODXJKV Âł, DP 6DPXHO / -DFNVRQ ´

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Words: RICHARD JENKINS

London’s V&A opens the doors to its brand new exhibit, The Glamour of Italian Fashion 1945 - 2014

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here’s a long catalogue of things that the Italians do better than everyone HOVH &R̆HH SDVWD JHODWR VXSHUFDUV RI course. It almost seems unfair that we’re duty bound to add fashion GHVLJQ WR WKH OLVW DV ZHOO +RZHYHU D QHZ H[KLELWLRQ RSHQLQJ VRRQ DW London’s historic Victoria & Albert 0XVHXP LV SURRI WKDW ZH PXVW 7KH Glamour of Italian Fashion 1945 – ZLOO UXQ IURP $SULO WR -XO\ 2YHUVHHQ E\ 6RQQHW 6WDQ¿OO WKH V&A’s curator of 20th century and FRQWHPSRUDU\ IDVKLRQ WKH GLVSOD\ FKDUWV ,WDO\¶V LQÀXHQFH RQ VW\OH VLQFH WKH HQG RI ::,, XS WR WKH SUHVHQW day. 6WDQ¿OO WHOOV $,5 ³7KH 9 $ FROOHFWLRQ KROGV H[DPSOHV RI

‘It wasn’t until the 1950s that Italian Design received an international boost in reputation’ H[FHSWLRQDO ,WDOLDQ GHVLJQ DQG PDMRU H[KLELWLRQV SURYLGH D valuable reason to research our RZQ FROOHFWLRQ DFTXLUH NH\ SLHFHV and conduct extensive academic UHVHDUFK DURXQG WKH VXEMHFW 7KH 9 $ KDV D ORQJ WUDGLWLRQ RI ZRUNLQJ with Italian designers including the major exhibition Versace at the V&A in 2002 and Fashion in Motion with *LDQIUDQFR )HUUp LQ 7KHUH KDV QHYHU EHHQ D FRPSUHKHQVLYH overview of Italian fashion and with IDFWRUV OLNH D VKLIWLQJ HPSKDVLV RQ SURGXFWLRQ DQG WKH HVWDEOLVKPHQW RI new generations of designer talent; ZH IHOW WKLV ZDV D SLYRWDO PRPHQW ´ ,PPHGLDWHO\ DIWHU ::,, D̈XHQW ,WDOLDQ ZRPHQ KDG RQH main source for fashionable JDUPHQWV WKHLU ORFDO WUDGLWLRQDO GUHVVPDNHU ,W ZDVQ¶W XQWLO the 1950s that Italian design received an international ERRVW LQ UHSXWDWLRQ when Hollywood stars including - 64 -

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(OL]DEHWK 7D\ORU $XGUH\ +HSEXUQ DQG *UHJRU\ 3HFN DGRSWHG WKH country’s style. Salvatore Ferragamo DQG +HSEXUQ¶V UHODWLRQVKLS ZDV built on the actress’ love for his EDOOHW ÀDWV DQG WKH VKRHPDNHU HYHQ GHVLJQHG D SDLU RI VXHGH SXPSV HVSHFLDOO\ IRU WKH JDPLQH EHDXW\ It wasn’t just the fashion that Hollywood fell in love with during the ‘50s and ‘60s – the country’s beautiful climate and glorious VFHQHU\ VDZ QXPHURXV ¿OPV VKRW WKHUH LQFOXGLQJ $QWKRQ\ DQG &OHRSDWUD DQG 5RPDQ +ROLGD\ SHUKDSV WKH PRVW LFRQLF PRYLH RI WKLV HUD 'XULQJ WKHVH VSHOOV RI +ROO\ZRRG DFWLYLW\ GHVLJQHUV ensured that the stars were welcomed into their stores – along ZLWK SDSDUD]]L DQG UHSRUWHUV ± WR PD[LPLVH SXEOLFLW\ )URP WKDW SRLQW RQZDUG ,WDOLDQ GHVLJQ ZDV RQ DQ XQVWRSSDEOH ZLQQLQJ VWUHDN (PLOLR 3XFFL 0LOD 6FK|Q 0LVVRQL %XOJDUL ± ZHUH DOO NQRZQ IRU WKHLU VSHFWDFXODU and vivacious design. Elizabeth 7D\ORU ZRUH %XOJDUL MHZHOOHU\ DW KHU ZHGGLQJ WR 5LFKDUG %XUWRQ 0DULO\Q Monroe was buried in a Pucci gown. ,Q 6FK|Q¶V H[TXLVLWHO\ VLPSOH GHVLJQV ZRQ DFFRODGHV DW 7UXPDQ &DSRWH¶V OHJHQGDU\ %ODFN DQG :KLWH %DOO GH¿QHG E\ 9RJXH DV WKH µ3DUW\ of the Decade’. %\ WKH V DQRWKHU IDFHW WR WKH ,WDOLDQ IDVKLRQ HPSLUH ZDV emerging – the ideal of the Fashion )DPLO\ )DPLO\ UXQ HQWHUSULVHV OLNH Versace and Armani brought their EROG SDWWHUQV DQG XQVWUXFWXUHG IRUPV WR WKH PDLQVWUHDP 7DNLQJ advantage of the boom in advertising and commercialism during that GHFDGH WKH ,WDOLDQ IDVKLRQ KRXVHV were now truly worldwide ventures ± IURP (XURSH WR 1HZ <RUN WKHVH FRXUDJHRXV PDUULDJHV RI FRQFHSW PDWHULDO DQG GHVLJQ FRQTXHUHG WKH IDVKLRQ ZRUOG $FFRUGLQJ WR 6WDQ¿OO the Italian national character is strongly rooted in the institution of WKH IDPLO\ ³7KH VXFFHVV RI IDPLO\ businesses in the fashion industry is D UHÀHFWLRQ RI WKH HPSKDVLV SODFHG - 66 -

RQ IDPLO\ WLHV LQ ,WDOLDQ VRFLHW\ ´ VKH VD\V Âł7KLV LV D WKHPH WKDW UXQV WKURXJK WKH ZKROH SHULRG RI WKH exhibition where many of the fashion labels included are still family-run with second or third generation family members from Missoni to Versace. It’s also interesting to see the number of women who are running these businesses in a country where many areas are male GRPLQDWHG ´ $ NH\ VWUDQG RI WKH H[KLELWLRQ shows how men’s tailoring has been RQH RI ,WDO\ÂśV SULPH H[SRUWV ,Q WKH V 5XELQDFFL SLRQHHUHG VW\OLVK VXLWV ZLWK GHWDLOV VXFK DV VOLP ODSHOV QHDWHU OLQHV DQG OLJKWHU IDEULFV 7KH ZHOO KHHOHG (QJOLVK JHQW ZRXOG ORRN to Italy for his tailoring rather than 6DYLOH 5RZ LQ RUGHU WR NHHS XS ZLWK KLV PDLQODQG (XURSHDQ FRXQWHUSDUW 5XELQDFFLÂśV LQĂ€XHQFH RQ PHQÂśV WDLORULQJ FDQ EH IHOW HYHQ QRZ ZLWK VKDUS OLQHV D SHUHQQLDO LQ DQ\ VXLW PDNHUÂśV RHXYUH WKH ZRUOG RYHU So that’s the history of Italian fashion – what lies in the future? Âł/LNH IDVKLRQ V\VWHPV LQ PRVW RI

‘Elizabeth Taylor wore Bulgari jewellery at her wedding to Richard Burton. Marilyn Monroe was buried in a Pucci gown’ WKH UHVW RI (XURSH WKH IXWXUH RI Italian fashion lies in the luxury HQG RI WKH PDUNHW ´ 6WDQÂżOO EHOLHYHV Âł7KH Âľ0DGH LQ ,WDO\Âś ODEHO LV YHU\ KLJKO\ YDOXHG LQ HPHUJLQJ PDUNHWV and it’s interesting to see that Dolce and Gabbana have recently introduced a couture line. In recent years Donetella Versace has brought EDFN WKH $WHOLHU FRXWXUH ODEHO DIWHU D VHYHUDO \HDU KLDWXV 7KH Armani PrivĂŠ line is very coveted IRU WKH ÂľUHG FDUSHWÂś DQG ZH DUH seeing that borders are also more SRURXV IRU H[DPSOH ,WDOLDQ GHVLJQHU *LDPEDWWLVWD 9DOOL SUHVHQWLQJ couture in Paris. All this activity indicates that there is clearly a GHPDQG IRU ,WDOLDQ FRXWXUH ´ - 67 -

MOTORING

HOOKED ON CLASSICS

The Emirates Classic Car Festival brings together collectors from all over the globe

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Words: RICHARD JENKINS - 69 -

MOTORING

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J

ames Bond’s Aston Martin DB5 nuzzles up alongside a gleaming Rolls-Royce Phantom, while a 1966 &RUYHWWH 6WLQJUD\ ÀRDWV behind them, begging for attention. This isn’t a petrolhead’s dream garage; it’s the Emirates Classic Car Festival 2014. Mohammed Bin Rashid Boulevard, for just one short week, becomes the hottest place on the planet for any serious car collector. Overlooking Dubai’s towering Burj Khalifa, the palm tree-lined street will play host to a spectacularly rare line-up of vehicles – including, since 2011, motorbikes and sidecars.

(particularly important in older cars), historical car value and even awarding points for presenting the car in its original colour. Meanwhile, the public also has the opportunity to cast a vote in the “Popular Choice� category. Last year’s winner of the coveted UAE Award was His Highness Sheikh Sultan Bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, for his chrome-andsilver masterpiece of a Mercedes 220 SE. The winner of the Popular Choice Award was His Excellency Dr. Mohammed Bin Sulayem for a 1920 Bentley, one of the oldest and most historically valuable cars on display. The beauty and the unpredictability of the Emirates

Images: Supplied

‘Last year’s occasion was so popular that it was extended for an extra two days’ As you progress through the rows of lovingly restored, priceless pieces of history, you can almost see the progress of automotive design. From the oversized hood ornaments of the Bentley and Rolls-Royce supercruisers to the dramatic space shuttle curves of the Ferrari F40, it is simply not possible for a car enthusiast to walk away without being tempted to add just one more piece to his collection. If you have a type of vehicle that usually attracts you, it’s also a wonderful opportunity to spread your wings and think about branching out into a new area of automotive luxury. Who knew that a humble Fiat 500 Giannini, so common in the 1960s, would today be winning awards for its exclusivity and beauty? The very best of each type of car is awarded with a hotly fought for honour. Overall awards include the UAE and the Dubai Award, ZKLOH PRUH VSHFLÂżF SUL]HV DUH handed to the Pre-WWII category, and the more esoteric Custom Truck and Micro Car categories. A jury of classic car experts votes on parameters including car originality, cleanliness of the engine

Classic Car Festival is that you never know what desirable treasures will be unearthed from one year to the next, due to the fact that entry is open to anyone with a classic car. Simply complete an entry form RQ WKH ṘFLDO ZHEVLWH DWWDFK D picture of your vehicle, and soon you could be behind the velvet ropes competing for the Best in Show award against the most unique and jaw-dropping vehicles ever made. With over 200 cars on show, \RX DUH JXDUDQWHHG WR ¿QG something you want. Each decade is represented: German tourers of the 1940s, American muscle cars from the 1960s; glamorous, alien sports models from the 1980s and even Hollywood success stories like Back to the Future’s Delorean DMC 12. In fact, last year’s occasion was so popular that it was extended for an extra two days. 2014’s event is scheduled to run in downtown Dubai from February 27 until March 3, but the demand to see some of the rarest automobiles in the world could see the dates extended further. Although as any true car collector knows, the show could last the whole year round and it still wouldn’t be long enough. - 71 -

GASTRONOMY

Words: RICHARD JENKINS

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20’s COMPANY Michael Riemenschneider’s first London restaurant, Canvas, only holds 20 diners per sitting. What’s going on inside?

T

here’s every chance you’ve entertained more dinner guests yourself. It’s hard to comprehend just how little room 20 people take up in an otherwise normal, if a little compact, restaurant. With London spoilt for choice ZKHQ LW FRPHV WR ¿QH GLQLQJ RSWLRQV a good restaurateur knows that standing out from the pack is just as important as the menu. Last year saw a new wave of small cover; exclusive venues opening across England’s capital, and Michael Riemenschneider saw his chance WR PDNH D PDUN ZLWK KLV ¿UVW

‘I can’t eat mushrooms, so I came up with the idea - why don’t you make your own menu?’ restaurant opening there – a ‘create your own’ tasting menu. “The concept was pretty easy because I’m a chef, I like to eat out and there’s always something on the menu to tickle my fancy,� Riemenschneider tells AIR. “But for example I hate celery, I can’t eat mushrooms so from that point I came up with the idea – why don’t - 73 -

GASTRONOMY

‘People love it because they can literally have whatever they like. It’s working very well so far’ Seasonal treats like pigeon with chocolate mix with year-round favourites to create a rotating menu of 16 dishes. “[At Canvas], diners will have a unique experience, food that they probably haven’t had before. I trained very classical French, but I learned very modern cooking with Heston and Pierre Gagnaire. I also took recipes from my Grandma, the core of what she gave me and tweaked it. And as a little homage to her I’ve got some of her recipes on the menu like bread and butter pudding. It’s very German and French with British ingredients, but you choose your own dishes. If you ZDQW ÂżYH GHVVHUWV \RX FDQ KDYH ÂżYH desserts.â€? Riemenschneider’s training at WKH KDQGV RI VRPH RI (XURSHÂśV ÂżQHVW FKHIV KDV LQĂ€XHQFHG KLV VW\OH LQ WKH kitchen – and not just when it comes to food. “My head chef says to me that he’s learned more from me since we opened a few weeks ago, than - 74 -

he learned from Ramsay in three years,â€? he says, matter-of-factly. “That’s because I’m in the kitchen every morning, every lunch, every dinner and that’s what I pride myself on. I don’t shout or scream in the kitchen, I’m very relaxed. When I do get stressed in the kitchen I get very quiet. I’m six foot six and people are more scared of me getting quiet than me shouting at them.â€? Ultimately, it’s the quality and vivacity of Riemenschneider’s cooking that will keep customers coming. What’s the one dish that any visitor to Canvas shouldn’t miss? “It’s always the langoustine dish. It’s been on my menu for the last eight or QLQH \HDUV LI , WDNH LW R̆ FXVWRPHUV would complain. The langoustines are poached for six hours; they melt in your mouth. The sweetness of the langoustine and the pungency of the veal afterwards is the key. It’s the only thing that stays on the menu all the year round. If it works, it works.â€?

Images: Supplied

you make your own menu? So far people love it because they can literally have whatever they like. And it’s working very well so far.â€? Having cut his teeth working with the leading lights of European cuisine like Pierre Gagnaire and Gordon Ramsay, 5LHPHQVFKQHLGHUÂśV ÂżUVW VROR RXWLQJ was The Abbey in Penzance. Following that restaurant’s closure in 2010, the Swiss chef moved his sights to Cheshire, opening Riemenschneider’s at the Highwayman, focusing on locally sourced ingredients. The next step was to take on London, and create an atmospheric new way of dining. Riemenschneider says, “[The atmosphere is] very personal, last night all the tables started interacting with each other which was quite interesting. I always bring one of the dishes out so that everyone knows that I am cooking, and yesterday everyone was going ‘Oh my god, what was that – I didn’t have that!’ and all the tables were talking to each other saying, ‘I should have ordered that’. It’s very high-end food, but very approachable.â€? So with a luxury menu and gorgeous venue taken care of, why did Riemenschneider decide to take the route of allowing just 20 lucky visitors per sitting? “It wasn’t a case of going down a route,â€? protests the chef, “It was more the fact that I fell in love with the site – it’s one of those things like you meet a girl and fall in love. I walked past this place and just thought ‘wow,’ and asked my agent to take a look at it, and he told me it was for sale. They had 32 seats but it was very crowded, so we did 20 and in terms of sittings, it’s determined by how many courses you have. If somebody orders 15 courses the table is theirs for the whole night. We’re not going to kick anybody out.â€? In his quest to fuse classic European cuisine with unexpected modern twists, Riemenschneider has created a tasting menu with a breathtaking amount of variety.

TRAVEL

UTTERLY UNIQUE AIR curates six exceptional experiences from the finest purveyors of tailored travel

Go wild in East Africa With incredible landscapes and iconic wildlife, an African safari is on most travellers’ to-do lists. Capturing the beauty and majesty on celluloid – or digital these days – is a skill in itself, with many returning with a wobbly and out-of-focus memento. Not so when you team XS ZLWK OHJHQGDU\ ¿OPPDNHU DQG Academy Award nominee, Alan Root, who will not only be your personal wildlife guide through Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, but will also shoot and produce a bespoke documentary of your journey. 7KH %ULWLVK ERUQ ¿OPPDNHU JUHZ up in Kenya and has worked in every corner of the continent. Travelling exclusively by helicopter, you will spot the famous Big 5 and track endangered mountain gorillas, while Alan regales you with epic true tales of showing American zoologist Dian )RVVH\ KHU ¿UVW JRULOOD $V 'DYLG Attenborough once declared: “Alan Root sets the standard.” Who are we to argue? brownandhudson.com - 76 -

Tee off in Scotland The Old Course at St Andrews, Scotland is the most iconic golf course in the world. Who better then to guide you across the perils of the 600-year-old links course than three-times Open Championship winner Sir Nick Faldo? St Andrews was the scene of one of Faldo’s most memorable victories. In 1990 he shot 18-under par – a feat only surpassed by Tiger Woods a decade later – to win his second major of the year. The Travel AttachÊ can organise a round with Faldo, or with most of the world’s top golfers, at St Andrews or pretty much anywhere else across the globe. So no more excuses next time you tee R̆ thetravelattache.com

Bullfight in Spain &RUULGD GH WRURV EXOOÂżJKWLQJ LV regarded by many as a sacred art form; a long-held tradition that has left a lasting impression on Spanish literature, art, music and dance. To understand the intricacies and passion of this Spanish spectacle, join renowned matador Raul Gracia Herrera, ‘El Tato’, at Fuenterry ranch in AndalucĂ­a in southern Spain, known for rearing exceptional bulls. Tato will take you behind-thescenes to meet world-famous matadors, breeders and bulls, exploring on foot or on horseback. You’ll train with an expert and watch PRXQWHG EXOOÂżJKWHUV PDVWHUIXO matadors and young apprentices test their skills. But will you have the nerve to step into the ring? joyaexperience.com - 77 -

TRAVEL

Get arty in Amsterdam With private views and access to exclusive collections, an expertled art tour is an enriching experience. And with the reopening of the Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh Museum last year, Amsterdam is just ripe for exploring. Accompanied by preeminent portrait painter, Urban Larsson, you’ll have the inside track into Amsterdam’s Golden Age – the 17th century when Dutch art, science and military power was at its peak – through visits to museums and private houses in this elegant canal city. Larsson is a traditional oil painter and, as well as portraits, he creates beautiful still life paintings, landscapes and nudes. Originally from Stockholm, he has studied in Florence at the only atelier in Europe where Traditional Realism is taught. You’ll visit his studio and discuss the techniques that have taken him all over the world to capture the likeness of prime ministers and SUHVLGHQWV ,QVSLULQJ VWX̆ cazloyd. com - 78 -

Back to nature in New Zealand

Go drifting in Sweden If hurtling across a frozen lake in a powerful Porsche 911 – sideways – sounds like your idea of adventure, then extreme ice driving in far north Sweden is for you. Lake Kall, in the shadow of Mount Åre, is renowned in rally circles as one of the best places in the world to hone your driving skills (and is where many top teams put their vehicles through WKHLU SDFHV With an ex-World Rally Championship instructor at your side, you’ll learn how to master D VSHFLDOO\ PRGL¿HG EUDNH horsepower 911 rally car with fully studded tyres on a series of meticulously prepared lake circuits lined with snow banks. Once you are au fait with the pendulum-rhythm of drifting, you’ll soon be able to slip out of grip and move into a graceful slide - all at breakneck speed, of course. Intense and exhilarating, get set for the ride of your life. quintessentiallytravel.com

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New Zealand is a geological wonderland, with volcanoes, glaciers, and geysers galore. Those with a keen interest in science can start on the bubbling JHRWKHUPDO ¿HOGV RI WKH 1RUWK Island, discovering the secrets of the Waimangu region with leading volcanologist Bryan Hughes. Then take a helicopter to the top of Mount Tarawera volcano where you can walk along the lip of this geological giant that last erupted in 1866. Flying south over the Cook Straight, you’ll soon see the South ,VODQG LV FRPSOHWHO\ GL̆HUHQW WR the North. Here, the tectonic plates have collided to create the majestic Southern Alps, with snow-capped peaks and glacial valleys. To help unravel this natural diversity, take a trek on the mighty Franz Josef glacier with a renowned glaciologist to learn how climate change is D̆HFWLQJ 1HZ =HDODQGœV SULVWLQH environment. Just don’t mention hobbits. brownandhudson.com

LIFE LESSONS

WHAT I KNOW NOW Clare Milford Haven

Marchioness of Milford Haven & Jaeger-LeCoultre Friend of the Brand I think my father has been the biggest inspiration in my life. Sadly, he died when aged only 58 and I was 23, but he still remains WKH VWURQJHVW LQÀXHQFH LQ P\ OLIH +H WDXJKW me about hard work, good manners and high standards, but he also had a great sense of fun. +H VSRLOHG PH ZLWK ORYH EXW QRW ZLWK PDWHULDO WKLQJV +H ZDV D JHQWOHPDQ WKURXJK DQG through. 7KH ELJJHVW FKDOOHQJH , KDYH IDFHG ZDV ORVLQJ P\ VRQ VHYHQ \HDUV DJR +H ZDV \HDUV ROG DQG KLV GHDWK ZDV YHU\ VXGGHQ DQG YHU\ WUDJLF ,W WXUQHG P\ ZRUOG XSVLGH GRZQ DQG , ZDV QRW VXUH DW WKH WLPH KRZ , ZRXOG VXUYLYH VXFK D WKLQJ +RZHYHU , DP IRUWXQDWH WR KDYH WZR RWKHU FKLOGUHQ ZKRP , DP GHYRWHG WR DQG , UHDOLVHG WKDW , KDG WR somehow set an example and be strong for them. 6RPHWLPHV \RX FDQQRW FKDQJH ZKDW happens to you in life, and that VX̆HULQJ LV LQHYLWDEOH EXW KRZ \RX UHVSRQG WR WKRVH OLIH FKDQJLQJ HYHQWV is key. 6XFFHVV FRPHV ZLWK PRWLYDWLRQ determination and hard work. It also FRPHV ZLWK DQ DELOLW\ WR RYHUFRPH WKH SLWIDOOV DORQJ WKH SDWK WR VXFFHVV WKH saying ‘failure isn’t falling down, it’s not getting up again’ is something that I truly VXEVFULEH WR , EHOLHYH WKDW LW LVQ¶W QHFHVVDU\ WR EH UXWKOHVV WR EH VXFFHVVIXO , WKLQN FKDUP DQG DQ DELOLW\ to work harmoniously with people and gain WKHLU UHVSHFW LV PXFK PRUH LPSRUWDQW 1HYHU WDNH DQ\WKLQJ RU DQ\RQH IRU JUDQWHG and always be true to yourself. , DP E\ QDWXUH D YHU\ ORYLQJ DQG D̆HFWLRQDWH person and as I get older I realise how LPSRUWDQW LW LV WR VKRZ \RXU ORYH WR RWKHUV 6RPH SHRSOH LQ WKLV ZRUOG DUH YHU\ ORQHO\ DQG XQKDSS\ DQG , EHOLHYH LW LV YLWDO WR UHDFK RXW DQG PDNH HYHU\RQH IHHO ORYHG DQG VSHFLDO - 80 -

Discover Luxury

The largest selection of genuine 19th century French antiques in the region, 19th Century Antiques includes rare furniture, bronzes, paintings, clock sets, and vases of exceptional quality and taste.

JUMEIRAH EMIRATES TOWERS, BOULEVARD | DUBAI, UAE TEL: +971 4 3887000 FAX: +971 4 3887111 | WWW.19CENTURYANTIQUES.COM

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