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SOFFA ISSUE 20 Exploring the Theme of Enigma
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SOFFA: JOY FROM THE HEART OF EUROPE Discover the best and the most beautiful from the Czech Republic and Central Europe: exquisite design, inspirational stories, unknown interiors and hidden gems well worth your visit.
© SOFFA, s.r.o. 2017 | All rights reserved www.soffamag.com | info@soffamag.com Cover photo: Adéla Kudrnová
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Editorial | Welcoming Summer Travel | Call of the River SOFFA Evening | Celebrating in Style Delicate Mikulov | Festival of Dreams Come True
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Editorial
WELCOMING SUMMER n
One of the sure signs that summer is around the corner is the sudden appearance of notices like ‘away’, ‘can’t’ and ‘on holiday’ in the calendars of SOFFA team members. Because there really are only a few of us, aligning our summer adventures with the production schedule for a summer issue feels sometimes like an impossible challenge. But then we get to marvel at the beautiful photographs team members bring back from their holidays, especially as today’s amazing technology (I’m thinking here of smart phones) makes it possible for SOFFA to feature not only the photos from our professional photographers, but also from the ‘amateurs’ on the team. Now it is my turn – showing off my photographs from last year’s holiday in Slovenia. Where are you heading this summer? Do tell us. Looking forward to your summer stories!
Adéla Kudrnová | editor in chief
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THE FIRST CZECH SLOW LIVING MAGAZINE SOFFA, the magazine that inspires readers the world over, is now published in two language versions: English and Czech.
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Travel
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CALL OF THE RIVER IMAGINE A CAMPING SUMMER HOLIDAY — IN THE MORNING YOU WAKE TO THE SOUND OF BIRDSONG, IN THE EVENING IT’S YOUR SONG BY THE FIRE. ADD TO IT LUXURY ACCOMMODATION AND A GROUP OF LOVELY PEOPLE, AND YOU GET THE IDEA OF THE SLOVENIAN GLAMPING PROJECT KNOWN AS BIG BERRY.
text: Adéla Kudrnová | photo: Adéla Kudrnová and Ondřej Lipár
IT TAKES AN HOUR AND A HALF TO DRIVE FROM LJUBLJANA TO THE KOLPA RIVER, WHICH STRADDLES THE BORDER BETWEEN SLOVENIA AND CROATIA. THE CAMP SITS OUTSIDE THE VILLAGE OF PRIMOSTEK IN A TRULY SERENE SETTING. JUST A FEW METRES FROM THE BANKS OF THE RIVER, UNDER THE CROWNS OF OLD TREES, LIE EIGHT SPACIOUS AND LUXURIOUSLY EQUIPPED CONTAINER COTTAGES, EACH WITH ITS OWN TERRACE. THEY WERE DESIGNED SO THEY COULD BE EASILY MOVED TO OTHER LOCATIONS, BECAUSE THE OWNERS OF THE CONCEPT WOULD LIKE TO SEE IT SPREAD TO OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD.
An inseparable part of the Primostek glamping experience is the ability to connect with local growers and producers. Your breakfast, which arrives in a wicker basket, contains eggs, milk and honey from the nearby village. And at other occasions you can taste the local wine and spirits. What is even more important, however, is that Big Berry staff will introduce you to your local suppliers and give you a chance to look in on the secrets of their labour of love. You can also enjoy grilling events, cooking courses and talks on various interesting topics. Find out more at www.bigberry.eu. â–
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ABOVE AND RIGHT: Every container cottage is equipped with its own hot tub, ideal for watching the night skies. Summer-houses with recliners are perfect for an afternoon’s relaxation with a book.
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ABOVE AND LEFT: Big Berry is located in a traditional agricultural area. Old homesteads in the protected area of Lahinja offer a glimpse of what life was like in the olden days.
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ABOVE: The town of ÄŒrnomelj has a rich winemaking tradition. The most common local variety is the red Modra Frankinja, also known as Blaufränkisch.
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we are happy to present czech and slovak brands, services and ideas at modern market in prague
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SOFFA Evening
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CELEBRATING IN STYLE! WE INVITED OUR FRIENDS AND PARTNERS TO CELEBRATE SOFFA’S TWENTIETH ISSUE, WHICH CZECH READERS CAN FOR THE FIRST TIME SAVOUR IN THEIR NATIVE TONGUE.
text: Patrik Florián | photo: Adéla Havelková and Michaela Karásek Čejková
SHORTLY AFTER THE CURRENT ISSUE – THE ENIGMATIC SOFFA 20 – HIT THE NEWS STANDS, WE CELEBRATED ITS PUBLICATION AT THE RECENTLY OPENED GALLERY SMETANAQ WITH AN EVENING FULL OF RIDDLES AND SURPRISES. THE TWENTIETH ISSUE WAS BLESSED BY EDITOR IN CHIEF ADÉLA TOGETHER WITH TERAZA DEBNÁROVÁ, THE STAR OF THE MAGAZINE COVER. PUZZLES AND GAMES WERE COMPLEMENTED BY A FASHION SHOW AND EXCELLENT FOOD AND MUSIC. WE THANK OUR GUESTS AND PARTNERS FOR A WONDERFUL EVENING AND OUR DEAR READERS FOR HELPING US FULFIL OUR BIG DREAM.
A warm ‘thank you’ to our partners for their help in organising the event: the space at Gallery SmetanaQ was furnished and decorated by Decstore.cz, Butlers and Catness Design; Angelato prepared the ice cream with an unexpected flavour; Moët & Chandon provided the bubbles for the toast; and last but not least, Fotonaut ensured fun and laughter with their entertaining photo booth.
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LEFT: Our first Czech issue, the enigmatic SOFFA 20, was blessed by none other than Tereza Debnรกrovรก, the mysterious beauty from the cover. With palms full of fairy dust she wished our magazine great luck, and the floor of Gallery SmetanaQ sparkles to this day.
ABOVE AND LEFT: Decstore.cz was responsible for the gorgeous decorations. Our guests enjoyed riddles and competitions with prizes from the following partners: Catness Design, perfumery Vavavoom and Poly&Fold.
ABOVE: The evening included a fashion show featuring the work of the Czech fashion designer Kateřina Plamitzerová (pictured below). Clothes from the Nihon Lobendau collection, featured by models from Ely Management, were complemented by jewellery designed by Markéta Kratochvílová (also pictured below).
Delicate Mikulov
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FESTIVAL OF DREAMS COME TRUE JIŘÍ MACEK FROM GALLERY KŘEHKÝ TRAVELLED THROUGH MIKULOV COUNTLESS TIMES AND WAS SO INSPIRED BY THE TOWN THAT HE FOUNDED THE KŘEHKÝ MIKULOV ART DESIGN FESTIVAL. text: Helena Novotná | photo: Křehký Mikulov archives
CALLING ALL DESIGN LOVERS – THE KŘEHKÝ [DELICATE] MIKULOV FESTIVAL IS ABOUT TO BEGIN! AT THE SEVENTH ANNUAL EXHIBITION OF CZECH AND INTERNATIONAL ART DESIGN, THE HALLS OF MIKULOV’S BAROQUE CHATEAU WILL ONCE AGAIN DISPLAY A WIDE SELECTION OF APPLIED AND FINE ART. TO LEARN HOW MIKULOV AND THE PRAGUE GALLERY KŘEHKÝ JOINED FORCES, AND WHAT WE SHOULD LOOK FORWARD TO IN THIS YEAR’S FESTIVAL, SOFFA SPOKE TO JIŘÍ MACEK, THE CREATIVE DIRECTOR OF DESIGNBLOK AND CO-FOUNDER OF THE MIKULOV FESTIVAL. MAKE SURE YOU’RE THERE ON THE LAST WEEKEND OF MAY!
Unlike Designblok, which attracts a broad audience, the Delicate Mikulov art design festival draws true design aficionados. How did the festival come to life? And what exactly is Delicate Mikulov? The second question is a question we often ask ourselves. When I talked about it recently with Jana [Zielinski, co-founder], we decided it was a result of several coincidences. The main coincidence was Mikulov itself, a place where we regularly stopped on our business trips to Vienna. Mikulov was the home of our friend and designer Daniel Piršč, and together we planned to exhibit his work at the Mikulov Chateau. And from this plan came the idea to link the exhibit to something bigger, to utilise this beautiful place and to draw in people who would otherwise only drive through on their way to Vienna and back.
events, not for a second Designblok. It’s perfect for a small festival that can focus on little gems – rather than products aiming for mass appeal – and on art design itself, an area very close to my and Jana’s heart. It’s a festival of objects that don’t have a primary function, so we can explore the question of whether or not they are necessary. Did it take long before people started to attend the festival regularly? It only took three years to develop a strong support base. There are now many people who like to meet in Mikulov and the festival has become stronger than we ever expected. What’s on this year’s programme? We always collaborate with at least one other gallery. This year it is Vienna’s Rauminhalt and Bratislava’s Kabinet. Each year we try to select new names and projects that straddle the worlds of art and design, and to introduce them through simple installations and displays at the exhibition, which is open through the
How quickly did the exhibition morph into a festival? Straight away we started to question the usefulness of a one-off event, and whether anyone would actually come. Mikulov is ideal for small
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ABOVE: The renowned Czech designer Jiří Pelcl will meet the challenge of this year’s theme ‘Forest and Hunt’ by showcasing his collection of forest glass. RIGHT: The Italian designer Patrick Rampelotto has become a favourite with the festival founders. This year he will introduce his new product – the blue settee.
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LEFT AND BELOW: The Baroque chateau is a perfect setting for displaying minimalist installations and exhibitions. The ceramic set in muted colours is the work of the Slovak designer Simona JaniĹĄovĂĄ.
whole summer. Our programme also includes events that are focused on national and family traditions – outings to the chateau garden, film screenings and concerts. This creates a unique atmosphere that draws to Mikulov the best Czech designers together with their families. They come to enjoy a place and an event very different from what Prague would offer.
and who will introduce his new collection. And based on feedback from regular visitors, it seems the highlight of the festival will be our Saturday trip to the woods near Mikulov, where we’ll listen to ceremonious trumpeting traditionally sounded at the end of a hunt. After all, the theme of this year’s festival is ‘Forest and Hunt’! And what will Gallery Křehký show at this year’s festival? This year our gallery is preparing a very ordinary and practical object suitable for every home, one from which we expect high commercial success – a home altar! (long laughter) The project is a collaboration between the designers Michal Bačák and Klára Šumová and we have been talking about it for many years, so we hope it comes off well. We were inspired by old portable altars as well as individual ‘altars’ that adorn our homes – mementos, talismans, pebbles from a beach, photographs. We’ll introduce two altars at the festival: the finished one from Michal and Klára and an unfinished one, to which visitors will be able to add their own photos and objects. Everything about the idea was inspired by our collective passion for history, nature and design.
The image you paint exudes a wonderful community atmosphere… That’s exactly it! People walk around the exhibits, talk to each other informally and without any hurry, while their kids run around the meadows. We love it. We linked the festival to our label Křehký [Delicate], as the label is very family oriented. We are driven by our belief in the importance of family life and gatherings. And that’s why we offer dinner sets, serving bowls and vases, so that as many people as possible can gather around the table, eat well, converse and find time for what is important. Křehký Mikulov embodies our dreams of how a community should look and function, how it should be open and inclusive. A community where people get together to eat, drink, relax and enjoy themselves. What’s the main draw of this year’s festival? This time we will introduce many students and fresh graduates. One of these is Patrick Rampelotto, an Italian designer who studied design in Vienna
More information about the festival can be found on the Gallery Křehký Facebook page: www.facebook.com/ galeriekrehky/ ■
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Křehký Mikulov 26. – 28. 5.
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Adéla Kudrnová I editor in chief adela@soffamag.com Lenka Hlaváčová I art director & designer lenka@soffamag.com Yasmin Keshmiri Hejduk I creative editor yasmin@soffamag.com Lina Németh I photographer lina@soffamag.com Adéla Havelková I photographer & graphic designer adela.h@soffamag.com Helena Novotná I editor & distribution helena@soffamag.com Patrik Florián I editor & fashion stylist patrik@soffamag.com Aleksandra Sidorina I production manager & make-up artist aleksa@soffamag.com Max Smrčka I production manager
www.soffamag.com info@soffamag.com +420 775 555 035 +420 777 623 346
max@soffamag.com Michaela Polnická I brand manager michaela.p@soffamag.com Terézia Bělčáková I sales manager terezia@soffamag.com Naďa Fidrmucová I sales manager nada@soffamag.com
Ingrid Martonova I English translation Peter Stannard I English revision & proofreading
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