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INDIVIDUAL STYLE UNITED SPIRIT KAVITA BLOGGER
It’s that time of year again to celebrate beauty, nature, life and sun-kissed skin. It’s that time to enjoy life — every second of the day. It’s that time to be cheerful and make the most of being alive. Therefore, we are dedicating this issue to one of the most global sensations that exists, whose trace can be can be found in every place and living thing. We all have this one thing in common: the experience of those moments of perfection that strike us with heavenly flashes and create a kind of magic that stirs up the most unexplainable feeling. It’s one that grows under our skins and causes each hair to stand on end, our heart to beat faster, our bloodstream to bubble like champagne. And it leaves a sweet aftertaste on our tongues like the most mind-bending chemical masterpiece that has been created as a gift for all the different life forms that exist. It’s stimulating and addictive — once you’ve had a taste of it, you immediately want more. We are, of course, talking about JOY. So, we sent out our most talented collaborators to all kinds of places and spaces to scope out as many aspects of this subject as possible and give you a wider perspective. Go enjoy and be more joyful. COVER PHOTOGRAPHY: MANUEL OBADIA-WILLS. STYLING: THÉOPHILE HERMAND. MAKE-UP: CÉLINE EXBRAYAT USING NARS. HAIR: SANDRA LAMZABI AT KAPTIVE. MODEL: DANIELLE DORCHESTER AT SUPREME PARIS. TOP: COURRÈGES
Editor-in-Chief Pejman Biroun Vand
Project Manager Joakim Lindgren
Music Editor Filip Lindström
Creative Direction Daren Ellis
London Fashion Editor Sara Dunn
Art Editor Ashik Zaman (Sthlm)
Fashion Co-ordinator Emma Thorstrand
Paris Fashion Editor Théophile Hermand
Contributing Designer Daniel Björkman
Managing Editor Gustav Bagge
Paris Editor Sophie Faucillion
Marketing Managers Magnus Rindberg Emma Viberg
Berlin Editor Andrea Horn
Contributing Fashion Editors Maria Barsoum (Sthlm) Josef Forselius (Sthlm) Carolina Herrera (NYC) Christopher Insulander (Sthlm) Fiffi Jenkins (Sthlm)
Contributing Editors Anna Åhrén (Sthlm) Tor Bergman (Sthlm) Johanna Bergström (Sthlm) Veronika Dorosheva (Berlin) Dr Ashkan Fardost (Sthlm) Iselin Page (Sthlm) Ole Siebrecht (Berlin) Contributing Photographers Johan Borgqvist (Sthlm) Alexander Gehring (Berlin) Oskar Gyllenswärd (Sthlm) Jesse Laitinen (Sthlm) Manuel Obadia-Wills (Paris) Daniel Roché (Berlin) Jasmin Storch (Sthlm) Paula Winkler (Berlin)
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To get noticed, sometimes you’ve got to cause a little mayhem first. So choose sensual separates and a stance that will soon get the conversation started Photography by MANUEL OBADIA-WILLS Styling by THÉOPHILE HERMAND
THIS PAGE, CLOCKWISE, FROM TOP LEFT: TOP BY WANDA NYLON; TOP BY JOSEPH, SKIRT BY WANDA NYLON, SOCKS BY FALKE, SHOES BY PIERRE HARDY; TOP BY GOSHA RUBCHINSKIY, TROUSERS AND BOOTS BY JW ANDERSON; COAT BY WANDA NYLON, TOP BY COURRÈGES, SHOES BY DIOR OPPOSITE PAGE: TOP BY COURRÈGES, JEANS BY CLOSED HAIR: MARC ORSATELLI. MAKE-UP: CAROLINE FENOUIL. MODEL: EKE DE HAAN AT WOMEN MANAGEMENT. SHOT AT: STUDIO LUXRELIEF 04
CHAOS THEORY
Rise and shine This is Morning Gloryville, a movement that is spreading the concept of conscious and sober clubbing around the globe. Wake up and discover a whole new way to begin and brighten your day Words by JOHANNA BERGSTRÖM Photography by ALICE PEPERELL & ALISTAIR VERYARD
Summer is finally here, with sunshine, flowers, beautiful greenery and those much anticipated extra hours of daylight, lifting our moods to a whole different level than in the winter. Summer is the time to relax, to enjoy life and to spend time with friends – or even alone – while recharging the batteries ready for autumn. But how to do this in a way that is fun, inspiring and energising? We have all been there: great party, great company, great outfit, fabulous cocktails, with the clock turning quickly from late night to early morning. And what a morning. In best-case scenario, you at least wake up in your own bed, preferably alone and having managed to get into your pyjamas. Your head is pounding, your tongue feels like sandpaper and you’re struggling with a sense of nausea that you know can only be cured by a fat-infused full English breakfast. And how many times have you asked yourself whether it was really worth it? This is where Morning Gloryville comes in. Started in east London in 2013 as a daytime-raving movement and safe platform, this is a dance party that features all the positive sides of clubbing, all the joy, playfulness and socialising, all the feelings of community and letting go – only there are no drugs or alcohol involved. The events now take place in more than 20 cities all over the world – from Amsterdam to Tokyo – and usually run from 6.30am to 10.30am, allowing you to gather energy for the new day, rather than leaving you completely drained, deflated and hungover the day after. Sober morning clubbing is a novel way to bring people and communities together. By challenging daily rhythms and conventional barriers, it gives a sense of new possibilities, adding a touch of magic and wonder to your day – and all this before the day has even really got started. “Morning Gloryville is the world as we would like it, a place where there is no judgement, where you can really unleash your human spirit and start your day with our community in a stylish, wild and unique way,” says Samantha Moyo, the club’s founder. The crowd at the events is a mixed one: mothers and babies, city workers, clubbers, hipsters, festival goers, grannies – you name it, everyone’s there. It seems that Morning Gloryville attracts virtually all different sorts of people. At the same time, though, it also brings out the best side of its guests, regardless of ethnicity, age, background, occupation, gender or preferences. The special atmosphere makes people open up. There is less prejudice and judgement, more connection and fun. When you think about it, it’s no surprise that the notion of “raving your way into the day” is gaining ground right now. People are becoming increasingly conscious about their consumption choices and green and healthy lifestyle trends are becoming more appealing all the time. Morning exercise accompanied by a kale smoothie suddenly has a lot more value than downing drinks on a nightclub dance floor into the early hours. During the Morning Gloryville parties, clubbers can also benefit from healthy and enriching add-ons from the movement’s partners, such as organic juices and coffee, yoga and personal motivation. “We choose to collaborate with people and companies who inspire us, who are enthusiastic and who share our ethical values,” Moyo continues. Even if you don’t like parties, early mornings, socialising or even organic coffee, there is still a lot of inspiration to be drawn from the Morning Gloryville mentality. Most of us live in a fast-moving society, where it is easy to forget to relax, to enjoy and to do what is good for you. Too often we spend time and energy on activities and people who take more than they give. And that is a difficult pattern to break. “A happy you means a happier world,” says Moyo. And by changing little things in your routines, you – and only you – are able set the foundation for a happier and better self and life. And perhaps this summer is the perfect occasion to start doing so. Look over your eating habits, ensure you get healthy amounts of sleep, aim to keep “things” balanced and remember to have fun – continue to play every day. “Africa and Africans inspire me because of their ability to see sunshine on a rainy day,” Moyo says with a smile, before dashing off to continue infusing the world with happiness. And that is how we are kicking off summer – by spreading the word of embracing and enjoying life. morninggloryville.com THIS PAGE AND OPPOSITE PAGE: MORNING GLORYVILLE CLUBBERS IN LONDON, WHERE THE MOVEMENT BEGAN
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GENTLY DOES IT Come, summer. Come, sun-kissed skin, freckles, tousled hair and a life without complicated make-up. Forget your hairbrush, brow templates and red lipstick. This is the time to let go and enjoy the simplicity of a natural look. Farewell, texture spray and styling iron. Welcome, salty water and soft wind. Let the sun, with some sunscreen, help create that undone effect of a sheer and carefree way of beauty. Photography by MANUEL OBADIA-WILLS Make-up by CÉLINE EXBRAYAT Styling by THÉOPHILE HERMAND
FACE: PURE RADIANT TINTED MOISTURIZER IN TERRE NEUVE, RADIANT CREAMY CONCEALER IN VANILLA, ILLUMINATOR IN ORGASM, AND DUAL-INTENSITY BLUSH IN PANIC. EYES: DUAL-INTENSITY EYESHADOW IN TARVOS AND TOPLESS. LIPS: LIP GLOSS IN ANGELIKA AND TRIPLE X. NAILS: NAIL POLISH IN ECUME ALL BY NARS
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FACE: PURE RADIANT TINTED MOISTURIZER IN TERRE NEUVE, RADIANT CREAMY CONCEALER IN VANILLA, ILLUMINATOR IN ORGASM, AND DUALINTENSITY BLUSH IN PANIC. EYES: DUAL-INTENSITY EYESHADOW IN TARVOS AND TOPLESS. LIPS: LIP GLOSS IN ANGELIKA AND TRIPLE X. NAILS: NAIL POLISH IN THASOS, BARENTS SEA AND IKIRU. ALL BY NARS HAIR: SANDRA LAMZABI AT KAPTIVE. MODEL: DANIELLE DORCHESTER AT SUPREME PARIS. FASHION: WANDA NYLON AND COURRÈGES
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Sole searching Christian Louboutin has been creating his namesake luxury footwear for almost 25 years, but as any woman who has worn a pair will tell you, his towering creations with that signature flash of colour are much more than just shoes Words by OLE SIEBRECHT Photography by ALEXANDER GEHRING & PAULA WINKLER Styling by ANDREA HORN
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Red is a warning colour. It means danger. Red is the colour of blood, meaning life. Red is the colour of fire, of flames. Red is a very powerful, flamboyant colour. And who knows this better than Christian Louboutin? The Parisian designer made the colour his signature. The soles of his world-famous high heels blaze in a striking red. Red like love? The French designer discovered his love for shoes at a very early age: the showgirls of Folies Bergère – a famous Parisian music hall – fascinated him, with their long legs, their attitude, their grace. They somehow burned into his memory and seem to inspire him to this day. Some years later, Louboutin went to a museum, where a warning sign caught his attention. It said: “Stiletto Heels Forbidden!” The young designer could not understand why someone would ever forbid something that beautiful. He became obsessed. Obsessed with shoes, with their styles and patterns. A remarkable career was about to start. But why the red soles? There might be a lot reasons, but Louboutin himself often tells of how he sat in front of his early sketches, dissatisfied with the results. There was something missing, a detail, a certain je ne sais quoi. Suddenly, he noticed the smell of nail polish in the air: his assistant was sitting at her desk, painting her fingernails. And at once he knew what was missing. He didn’t like the featureless, blank soles of his creations. So he took the nail polish and the world-famous red sole became the signature of his brand. These days, everybody knows his creations. High society loves them. Is there a red-carpet event where Louboutins don’t make an appearance? They’re in all the fashion magazines, even in the yellow press. Some people call them the best therapy against depression, something every woman dreams about. But why? Louboutins are more than articles of daily use. The designs are hard to define, they cannot be pigeonholed. They offer a great variety – you cannot pin them down to only one style. Solely their red soles and the super-high heels mark Louboutins out from others. In addition, the shoes
move from being classic, chic and kittenish to extravagant and dominant. Sometimes they’re colourful, with adventurous patterns, sometimes they’re monochrome and severe. Some might remind you of divine figures, with their wing-like elements, others appear dramatic and menacing, with their striking spikes. For a lot of people, Louboutins are not normal shoes. They see them as unique and beautiful creations, they are obsessed with Louboutin’s work – that is to say, his artwork. Louboutin’s designs have included some of the highest heels that have ever been made in the world of commercial and high-end shoe design. His talent for creating towering and unique beauties was nurtured during his time as a shoemaker for the cabaret and showgirls of the Pigalle area in Paris, which is known for its peepshows and sex shops. This could be one of the reasons for the versatility, the unconventionality of his designs. Louboutin seems to gather his inspiration from almost everything and everywhere. Those heels are another unique feature of his work: they’re a woman’s dream and nightmare at the same time. More a deadly weapon than a shoe, maybe. Who is able to go through daily life in those super-high heels without twisting an ankle? But maybe that’s the idea behind it: of course you can’t run through your life in high-heeled shoes. But do you have to? Is it really necessary to keep on running the whole time? The daily grind is enough: can’t we just slow down, pause for a while? Maybe that’s an inspiration, too. Which goes to show there is so much room for interpretation when it comes to shoes. Louboutin has created a platform for shoe lovers – for those who think shoes are more than just two bits of fabric you put on your feet before you leave home in the morning. His shoes seem to offer the possibility of expression, of communication. He leads people into a creative world that is aimed at people who think shoes are more – an obsession, an emotion, an approach. eu.louboutin.com
OPPOSITE PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: MIZIGOO SHOES IN SILVER, TROPANITA SHOES IN BLACK PATENT AND MALACHITE, AND FOLKLO SHOES IN MULTICOLOURED VELVET. ALL BY CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN
For as long as there has been an international gastronomy worth the name, wine has been the main alcoholic liquid in the kitchen for all basic dishes, stocks and sauces. Any chef knows that it is the fat in the butter and alcohol that really bring out the flavours. If the prophet of classic gastronomy, the legendary Auguste Escoffier, had come from a beer-drinking country instead of France, maybe the whole world would have long been using it in cooking, too. It is, however, a mistake to think that one type of beer will be like white wine and the other like a claret. Beer has its own requirements. You should, for instance, not use the same proportions. When you start to cook it, you get a lot of bitterness, so when it comes to cooking with beer, take it easy. This new field of top-class gastronomy is yet to be fully explored. New restaurants are being opened and cookbooks are being written as you read. In Belgium the godfather of beer cuisine, Stefaan Couttenye, has been working with beer in the kitchen for more than 30 years, and many around the world are following in his footsteps. In the beer-making countries of Europe, beer that had lost its
not a new thing. We know from archaeological evidence and even ancient recipes that beer was being made as far back as 5000 BC in Mesopotamia, today’s Iraq. Some historians even think that the mysterious “manna” that God provided for the Israelites during their travels in the desert, was, in fact, something to do with beer. In the old days, some kind of ale was the natural drink for all the family, often due to the fact that the water tasted horrible and was unhygienic. In England, beer drinking was also promoted by the government, since binge drinking of gin didn’t quite help to build up worker loyalty and create the work ethic that was desired in the early industrial society. The famous prints Beer Street and Gin Lane (1751) by William Hogarth contrast the sickly, hopeless inhabitants of Gin Lane with the happy people of Beer Street, who sparkle with robust health and great motivation – “Here all is joyous and thriving. Industry and jollity go hand in hand,” wrote Hogarth some years later. So continue to enjoy beer and food. It’s not exactly just hype. It might even be – as the old Guinness slogan says – good for you. * Yes, a small Swedish brewery used gold in tiny amounts as an ingredient recently.
Tasting Notes
Eat beer
The world is awash with craft beer. New microbreweries are popping up every week, each with a more astonishing name and design than the one before. But now this boom has moved one step further — are you ready to try “beer cuisine”? Words by TOR BERGMAN Some say beer has gone bananas; sometimes it’s flavoured that way, too. New, mysterious brews, with tropical fruits, gold*, or whatever the brewer has at his disposal, are being presented every day. Still, the kids love it, and people who just enjoy drinking have a splendid reason to do so, while seriously tasting and tweeting about every new brew that appears on the market. Thank God we have the Germans and their Reinheitsgebot, a law limiting the ingredients, to the joy of the conservatives. There, beer is made from old recipes and further refined, thanks to the wonders of the industrialisation of the late 19th century: cooling devices that allow exact temperature and, most importantly, control of the yeast. Almost every central European master brewer will tell
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you, “Anyone can make a spaced-out IPA in their own bathtub, but let them try making a perfectly balanced pils – over and over again!” Belgium is, of course, another major beer-producing country. It is also home of Lambic beer: brews that have been fermented spontaneously by being exposed to wild yeasts and bacteria, often in (according to legend and branding) monasteries and remote caves. In Belgium, beer is truly part of the culture, even though the old fields where hops and barley used to grow majestically are long gone. So maybe it’s no coincidence that it’s here that “beer cuisine” – the tradition of preparing food with beer, and needless to say, drinking beer while eating it – is becoming a thing.
MAIN PHOTOGRAPH: BEER STREET (1751) BY WILLIAM HOGARTH. CLOCKWISE, FROM CENTRE: COURTESY OF PILSNER URQUELL
freshness used to be the natural choice to put in a stew or soup. In Ireland there are countless recipes and in Sweden there’s a classic dish for which beer is vital: sjömansbiff, or “sailors stew”, which was traditionally made with beer, since fresh water was not to be wasted in cooking on board a ship. If prepared correctly, it’s a true delight. According to connoisseurs, dark beer should be used. So basically, there’s absolutely nothing revolutionary about using beer in cooking. What is new about “beer cuisine” is that it has turned up in haute cuisine. So much for cooking, but what about combinations where beer is the obvious choice? Well, every gourmet knows that porter, or stout, is the thing with oysters. Porter is also a classic for any kind of chocolate dessert. In Sweden a cold lager is the natural pairing with herring – wine is absolutely forbidden! Moules are mostly enjoyed with ale in Belgium, where moules frites is a national treasure. White asparagus spears and beer is the orthodox choice in countries where asparagus is treasured – the type of beer depends on the way you serve them. Spicy Asian food is another obvious combo, not to mention barbecue or any piece of Bavarian pork. Or to make it easier: do as they do in Belgium – drink beer with everything. This beer boom is, of course,
Nothing in this world should be too easy. As all beer fans know, there is actually a striking difference between a quality beer that has been poured correctly and one that has not. There are also different ways to pour in order to get a different experience. Here, Pilsner Urquell, usually described as the original pilsner beer, guide us in how to complete the perfect Pilsner meal! It’s the Czech way. NA DVAKRÁT / crispy This pour offers the traditional amount of foam, which will help keep the carbonation and make your beer stay fresh longer. This makes it the perfect choice if you want to sit down and enjoy a meal with friends and want your beer to last longer. The carbonation will keep things light and intensify the flavours, so it’s basically the ideal choice any time food is in the picture and your main focus. HLADÍNKA / smooth This pour will result in a bit more foam and less carbon dioxide, which gives your beer a smooth and creamy taste. This is exactly what you need when you are in the bar and ready to drink, or perhaps together with a lighter meal, such as starters or seafood. MLÍKO / milky This pour will be served in a tall glass, and almost looks like it’s a glass of creamy white milk. No need to worry – it’s not just foam, the beer is in there! The great thing about this style of pouring is the smooth mouthfeel you get, without the bubbles, which gives it an even sweeter taste that is balanced with a bitterness towards the end. Yes, it’s the ideal pour to combine with desserts. Anna Åhrén
HERE COMES THE
SUN No matter which urban landscape you find yourself in this summer, soak up all of the blissful vibes the city is sending you in luxe pieces that tell the world just who you are Photography by DANIEL ROCHÉ Styling by CAROLINA HERRERA OPPOSITE PAGE: COAT BY DIANE VON FURSTENBERG, TOP BY BERSHKA, TROUSERS BY RUBIN SINGER, PENDANT BY ARISTOCRAZY, SLIDES BY ADIDAS
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THIS PAGE: COAT BY BARBARA BUI, TOP BY H&M, TROUSERS BY MANGO OPPOSITE PAGE: COAT BY ERMANNO SCERVINO, TOP BY APC, SKIRT BY BARBARA BUI, SOCKS BY CLUB MONACO, TRAINERS (CUSTOMISED BY STYLIST) BY NIKE
TOP BY FE
THIS PAGE: DRESS BY KENZO, SOCKS BY FALKE, SLIDES BY ADIDAS OPPOSITE PAGE: DRESS BY ISSEY MIYAKE, SOCKS FROM BEACON’S CLOSET, TRAINERS (CUSTOMISED BY STYLIST) BY NIKE
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THIS PAGE: BRA BY CALVIN KLEIN OPPOSITE PAGE: COAT BY ERMANNO SCERVINO, T-SHIRT FROM BEACON’S CLOSET, SOCKS BY FALKE, SLIDES BY ADIDAS MAKE-UP: HELENA NARRA @ LIGANORD HAIR: BERT KIETZEROW @ LIGANORD USING LONDAPROFESSIONAL MODEL: LIZA O @ NEXTMODELS
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You’re not normal But that’s okay — you should be embracing your inner weirdo. Because when you do, you’ll discover there’s a whole world of oddballs out there who love exactly the same leftfield things you do — even airport carpets
FROM TOP: COSPLAY COUPLE; SUVARNABHUMI AIRPORT TERMINAL, BANGKOK © DAVID MCKELVEY; CHICAGO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT © NICOLA; © GAETAN LEE
Words by DR ASHKAN FARDOST One day in 2003, a friend and I met at a Stockholm coffee shop to discuss business ideas. It was one of those serious conversations about our futures and, more specifically, about starting our own business. Before arriving, I had been shopping for one of those tape recorders that journalists use (to do research for a book I was writing). I spontaneously turned it on in the middle of our conversation just to try it out. The following is an excerpt from our conversation. Friend: “Okay, hit it. What are the ideas you’ve come up with? I want to know all of them, even if you think they suck. No shame. We’re brainstorming here. Go for it.” Me: “Cool. Here we go. You love dogs. I love dogs. Right? French bulldogs, especially. What if we start a company that designs premium clothing for French bulldogs? Called something like Frenchiewear. That would be so cool.” Friend: “What? I’ve never heard of anyone who pays premium dollar just to clothe their dog. Also, the name sounds like clothes for French people. It’s just weird.” Me: “Okay. Well, what about pencils? Everyone uses them, but most are rubbish. Either you steal them from class or get them for free from somewhere. But imagine a store that specialises in pencils. Antique pencils, high-tech modern pencils, artistic pencils – whatever your needs, you can find the perfect pencil just for you. Like a Nike store, but for pencils.” Friend: “Seriously, dude, are you for real? An entire store just for pencils? You’d go bankrupt on day one. They don’t exist, because only a weirdo would give a damn about their pencil. Give me something good.” Me: “Okay, okay. Look, we travel a lot together, right? And sometimes we end up in an airport that we really love, without understanding why.” Friend: “Yes. Like last month, when we were in Budapest! Damn, I love that airport.” Me: “Exactly! I think the secret lies in the carpeting.” Friend: “The carpeting?” Me: “Yeah, I think the carpeting in airport terminals is the critical factor that makes an airport nice or crappy. I’ve been fascinated by airport carpeting for a while, to be honest. I’m thinking we could create a website that reviews carpets in airport terminals. We could make serious cash from advertising on that site.” Friend: “Carpets in airports? Who gives a damn about carpets in airports?! I thought we were having a serious conversation about a money-making business, man.” Me: “What if we create a TV show where we travel the world and document elevators in buildings?” Friend: “... ... …” Me: “Or an online community for people who believe they’re vampires.” Friend: “... ... … … …” Me: “Okay, last suggestion – an international event for rubber-duck racing.” Friend: “You’re insane.” Now, my question to you is this – do you think I’m insane? Do you think my ideas were stupid? Chances are that you probably do. And if you do, you’re actually the one who’s insane. Here’s why. First of all, I have a confession to make: that entire conversation is made up. But there’s a critical element of truth in it: all the ideas that the imaginary version of me came up with are 100% real. Yes, there is a website dedicated to reviewing airport carpets. There’s even a 14,000-fans-strong Facebook page dedicated to the carpet at Portland International Airport, Oregon. In other words, there is a large number of people who passionately care about the weird stuff above. How is this possible? And why is this even important? Because of these three reasons.
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2 People seek other people who share their interests and values For as long as us humans have existed, this behaviour has been deeply rooted in our DNA. But until now, the seeking part has been really difficult. Weirdos have been suffering in silence for millennia, afraid of being cast out from their social tribes if they deviate too much from what’s considered normal. Reason 3 solves this problem. 3 Technology – or more specifically, the internet This is the most critical and exciting reason. This is what connects reasons 1 and 2 and renders all of the crazy weirdness I told you about before possible. You can connect with anyone on the entire planet. So, if you have a weird idea, a weird fascination, a weird whatever, chances are there will be thousands of other people around the planet who are weird in exactly the same way as you. And for the first time in history, you can actually seek and find them. You are no longer alone, and never will be, if you choose not to be.
1 People are naturally weird I’m weird. You’re weird. Maybe you don’t buy clothes for your French bulldog. Maybe you don’t believe you’re a vampire, or maybe you don’t care about pencils, but you’re weird in one way or another – either through a hobby, an interest, a secret fascination, something. For example, I love jet airliners. In fact, I love them so much I purchased flight-simulation software, a flight stick, throttle, the whole shebang. In my spare time, I spend hours in front of my homemade flight simulator. I calculate routes with maps that are synched with real-world airline traffic and I fly. From Stockholm to Reykjavik. From Berlin to New York. I might even be able to land a real Airbus 320 by now (well, I know how to get the autopilot ready for landing, so if the autopilot is broken we’re done for). I’m not making this up, I love doing this. It’s one of my many weird fascinations. And guess what? There are hundreds of online communities for people like me. We fly planes together, discuss their aerodynamics, even design our own planes, sell them on online stores specialising in flight-simulator airplanes… You get the idea. There’s a sprawling and bustling online world that awaits and welcomes all hobbyist computer pilots who are out there in the world. So, what’s your weirdo fascination? You have one, too, I know it! If you’re afraid to admit it, or think people will ridicule you, here’s a piece of inspiration: I had a colleague who had a passion for laminating stuff and therefore actually had a laminating machine at home. Yes, a machine that laminates paper and makes it plastic-y. Again, not making this up. This colleague loved laminating stuff, among many other interests, of course, and I think it’s freaking awesome.
So, in summary, the reasons all the weird stuff is possible are 1) we are inherently weird in our unique ways; 2) we are programmed to connect with other people, and the more unique the reason for our connection, the deeper the connection; and last but not least, 3) we now have the means to connect with virtually ever other human being on the planet. In other words, being weird is not weird any more. Technology and the internet killed normal. We can see it in every facet of our world today, and it’s not only visible on the surface, such as in the examples in the beginning of this story. In fact, the uprising of weirdness and niche interests is completely transforming how the entire economy works (more on this in another article, perhaps, but in the meantime, you can check out a piece that appeared in Wired called The Long Tail by Chris Anderson, who saw this happening already in 2004). That’s how much of an impact and power the weirdo in you has. And whether you decide to turn it into a business, start a community, or just find like-minded people to share it with is entirely up to you. None is better than the other, as long as you don’t keep it a secret. Because if you do, you’ll never forgive yourself the day you realise what you’ve been missing out on. So, step up and dare to be the real and weird version of you. Because you were born this way and you should celebrate it. And there are billions of us who want to celebrate it with you. See you around, weirdo <3
London calling We meet four young women tapping into what they enjoy most about life and using it to showcase their diverse talents, be it in music, jewellery design, publishing or art. They’re intriguing the world around them and they’ve chosen to do it all in the creative hub that is the UK’s capital Interviews by ANNA ÅHRÉN Photography by JESSE LAITINEN Styling by MARIA BARSOUM JAANA-KRISTIINA ALAKOSKI Artist Having moved from Sweden to London two years ago, Jaana-Kristiina Alakoski, now 24, has been unleashing her talent at Central Saint Martins, where she is studying for a BA in fine arts. She uses a rare kind of imagination and modern digital techniques to find a way to distort reality as we know it, offering new perspectives of the world to be found within and around us. What are you drawn to and what do you seek to explore through your art? “I’ve mainly been trying to understand and contextualise Instagram art. This is my way of investigating identity and socialisation processes – by placing and portraying myself in the midst of such things. It also means I can investigate social-media usage and stuff like that. Both in video and performance in the context of Instagram, but also more and more outside of Instagram.” Have you got a dream project you are currently fantasising about? “I want to write a book, do a really thorough study about social-media usage linked to class, gender and race issues. Intersectional analysis, basically.” Where will we find you this summer? When you’re in your creative zone, what is your state of mind? “I pretty much hang out in east London, but I’m currently collecting places with lawns all over the city, so I can just go and hang out spontaneously, wherever I happen to be. They might be small ones, big parks or medium ones. As for my state of mind – tunnel vision.” Your art often features nudity, body and skin. How and why is it important to you? “It started with an interest in feminism and the realisation of how much oppression against women is expressed through something sexual. This includes sexual actions against women, the sexual limitation of women and sexualisation of bodies that look like they are women. Nudity can be an easy way of communicating that you want to talk about sexuality. It is definitely a signifier of sex. But I have also gone in another direction, where nudity is just body. I think it’s dangerous to think that a naked body is always linked to a sexual situation. Nowadays, most of my art doesn’t feature nudity and whenever I investigate body issues, it’s in relation to either digitality, consciousness or the body’s relationship with a person’s internal processes.” jaanakristiina.se Instagram: @jaanakristiina 28
LAO RA Musician As you tune in to Lao Ra’s music, you feel a certain kind of texture. The 24-year-old has a way of layering things up, she creates her own mix of things, and it comes all the way from her Colombian roots to whatever moves her heart at this very moment. We are already falling hard for her sense of outspokenness and rebelliousness. You were raised in Colombia’s capital, Bogota, a Catholic city, during the war on drugs. One can feel its influence on your transatlantic music, as it radiates a sense of inner freedom. How did music find its way into your life? “Bogota wasn’t the safest city, so we used to spend a lot of time indoors and I would spend hours watching MTV. It was so different from our culture, but at the same time it was easy to understand and relate. Just like a Disney movie, it was a fantasy world that I wanted to be part of. Music has the biggest role in my life – it’s my mission.” You once said, “We all are wild at heart and we can’t help our behaviour because we were made this way.” What did you mean by this? “For me, being wild means being free and fearless. It is then that creativity can flourish. You can only access that place of deep creativity if you’re not restrained by expectations, fears or rules, etc. I think the idea of being wild means I am free to create, free to say, free to express.” What have been the highlights of your time in London? “My highlights so far have been playing KOKO [in Camden, north London] – supporting Rejjie Snow – and XOYO [in east London] – supporting MØ. And now that I have a record deal, what excites me is that I’m making a life out of music and that is just an absolute dream.” How does the city inspire you? What is your personal “style mantra”? “This city is such melting pot of styles, cultures, colours, foods, everything. It inspires me to mix things up. It has taught me that things don’t need to match to work together. My personal style mantra would be less is more, but more is also more.” Future visions – what are you looking forward to? Any new ideas you are longing to explore? “I’m looking forward to writing my new song, whatever that might be. I haven’t even started yet, but it excites me to know that I’m going to create something from scratch.” laora.co Instagram: @laoramusica
THIS PAGE: JAANA-KRISTIINA WEARS, FROM TOP, JACKET BY CHEAP MONDAY, TROUSERS BY BACK, SHOES BY DR MARTENS; TOP BY GIORGI ROSTIASHVILI, TROUSERS BY BACK. LAO RA WEARS SWEATSHIRT AND TROUSERS BY STELLA MCCARTNEY, TOP BY ACNE STUDIOS, SHOES BY REEBOK OPPOSITE PAGE: LAO RA WEARS SWEATSHIRT BY STELLA MCCARTNEY, TOP BY ACNE STUDIOS, EARRINGS BY STYLIST STUDIO
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FELICIA SWARTLING Jewellery designer Thanks to her startling talent and an avant-garde aesthetic, Felicia Swartling, 26, has carved out a strong niche for her jewellery line, FESWA. The trajectory her life has been following has taken her from Central Saint Martins, London, to holding showrooms at Paris Fashion Week for SS16 and AW16 and, this year, being one of the eight designers selected by Swedish Fashion Talents for AW16. For her latest collection she used the renowned model and artist Ingmari Lamy as one of her muses, capturing the look and feel in a way that only mystical creatures can. Feel the vortex into the world of FESWA open, where all ruling forces are truly visceral. When an artist starts exploring their craft properly for the first time, it can often all click into place at once. How did it begin for you? “It sounds a bit like a love story, but I suppose that’s what it was, still is and always will be. About seven years ago I picked up a torch for the first time and started to melt and play around with some scrap silver and simply fell in love. “It’s hard to describe, but I remember feeling like I had finally found my material. I was studying a foundation course out in the countryside of Sweden, we were introduced to a lot of different art expressions, such as sculpture, woodwork, painting, textile and ceramics, but when I started working in the metal workshop I was hooked. “Since then, my obsession, love and hunger for jewellery have grown beyond anything I’ve ever felt before, to the point where jewellery has become more than something you just wear. It has become a part of me, a language through which I can express myself.” How would you describe the feel of your design process? How do you tap into your creative flow? “Apart from seeing the finished object in front of you, I find the research stage one of the most rewarding stages. To find new designers, artists or spheres to draw inspiration from is just so satisfying, you know, when you see something and get that tingly feeling in your stomach. Haha, I sound like I’m crazy, but this is how I feel sometimes, when I find something that sort of depicts it all. So I get addicted. “Sketches and paint-ups have never really been my thing. I always start testing out new designs or ideas using either wax or air-drying clay, or directly in silver, to get a full visualisation of how the piece will sit and function on the body. Yet, equally as important is how the three-dimensional views relate with and juxtapose each other to emphasise and enhance each piece’s dual quality. Also, using a plinth gives my jewellery a feature to inhabit a space where the pieces can be admired purely as sculpture.” What is it about London that enchants you? You are originally from Sweden – is there anything special you miss? “When it comes to London, it’s the energy, pulse and mentality. There are no restrictions to what you can or can’t do and there’s no pressure to try to fit in, which is vital – feeling suppressed by the limitations of rules and how things are supposed to be perceived is a trap and I’m not going for it. But there is hope for Sweden – Ulrika Nilsson, who is behind the store and agency JUS. She has an eye for the importance of individuality and uniqueness, which is reflected through the brands she represents and the store itself. To have received support and belief from her means more than words.” Tell us about your latest creations and what they symbolise to you? “It’s about generating alluring and eternal objects, in which timeless and conventional elements are combined with futurism to emphasise, provoke and deconstruct classic jewellery for an ageless clientele. I want to open up, question and provoke conventional preconceptions about what jewellery stands for, to show that jewellery can be and is so much more than just body adornment. “There’s a need for a Rei Kawakubo in the world of jewellery. Everything is too safe – it’s either pavé settings, hearts, skulls or butterflies. It’s so regimented. What I see is a space that is lacking something more ground-breaking, thoughtprovoking and avant-gardist and I’m determined to fill it with a jewellery aesthetic that makes you feel something beyond the mainstream.” feswa.se Instagram: @_feswa_ 30
NASSIA MATSA Sales executive/writer/ publisher/drummer This is the kind of person you want to hang out with anytime, any day and anywhere. Nassia Matsa, 26, has got a certain kind of energy and enthusiasm, which, combined with a clever mind and talent, transforms into charisma. She shows us how to get things done and how the pursuit of happiness – exploring our passions – is nurturing in countless ways. You are truly an allstar. You work in the commercial department of the science, culture and business title Wired, you have your own publishing company, called THIS_IS_HARDCORE, you are a freelance writer and you’re a drummer in the punk band Ex-Presidents. What is the unifying passion behind it all? “I’m just naturally really curious, so I satisfy the thirst to educate myself by being involved in different undertakings. I’m a lover of magazines, independent publishing, music and my friends, so what I do is a modus operandi to synthesise all my ‘lovers’ into my daily routine.” In 2012 you came up with the idea of FAQ FOOD. What was it born out of ? “It started as my final project when I was completing my master’s at London College of Fashion. I enjoy cooking and I don’t really take it seriously. I feel that other magazine titles glorify food, but at the same time they are creating the image that cooking + good food is only for the middle classes, whereas for me, cooking is a life skill. If you know how to cook, you’ll never starve and you’ll always be healthy. I took this and I released my aesthetics on a publication. Raw, not beautified. Funny and sexualised, because food is lust. A salute to the aesthetics of the mid-noughties’ post-hardcore bands’ merchandise, if you like.” You currently live in Hackney, east London, and FAQ FOOD focuses a lot on the area. What makes it special? Any under-the-radar places we should be keeping an eye on? “I really love east London, but unfortunately bankers love it as well. It combines interesting people, rough places, raw aesthetics and it feels like something new can always be found here. However, gentrification is too violent – it’s happening too quickly in east London. Independent fashion labels had to leave a building around the corner of where I live, as the rent was increased by 400%. I don’t know how, but some places have survived – such as the mighty Dolphin [pub], where intoxicated dreams go to die every Saturday until 5am.” You once said, “Think it, don’t dream it. It’s much more effective.” What’s your advice for young creatives? “Don’t listen to anyone’s advice – do what you want to do.” facebook.com/FAQFOOD Instagram and Twitter: @nassia__ THIS PAGE: FELICIA WEARS, FROM TOP, HOODIE FELICIA’S OWN, DRESS BY RICK OWENS, RINGS BY FESWA; TOP BY CRAIG GREEN, T-SHIRT BY ACNE STUDIOS, SHORTS BY RICK OWENS, RINGS BY FESWA. NASSIA WEARS JACKET NASSIA’S OWN, TOP BY WOOD WOOD, SHIRT BY BACK OPPOSITE PAGE: NASSIA WEARS TOP BY FILA, TROUSERS BY GIORGI ROSTIASHVILI, BOOTS BY ACNE STUDIOS
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Pilgrim’s progress Sink Like a Stone, the brand new EP from the queen of infectious synth pop Naomi Pilgrim, is already making ripples — but taking a stand and making a difference in the world is just as important to her as making music Words by FILIP LINDSTRÖM Photography by OSKAR GYLLENSWÄRD Styling by EMMA THORSTRAND Special thanks to LEE JEANS
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Before the release of her debut single in 2013, No Gun, Naomi Pilgrim used to sing backing vocals for artists such as Lykke Li. With her successful solo debut, she caught the opportunity to make her own music, to sing her own songs and speak her own mind. Pilgrim’s self-titled EP, released early the following year, was just as well received as No Gun and the acclaim created anticipation for her next release. That anticipation has been rewarded, because Pilgrim has shown us that she is an important artist, being able to point out social injustice with her pop songs. It is a beacon of hope, knowing that music can still be a powerful thing and that a song can still change something in this world of ours. When you meet her, you are instantly drawn in by her contagious positivity. Sitting outside in the spring sunshine, the Swedish-Bajan singer starts off our interview wearing a pair of beautiful big sunglasses, which she removes halfway through. They go very well with the casual street style she is rocking. Her new EP, Sink Like a Stone, has just been released and we’re discussing the inspiration behind its title track, which has already received lots of attention since it came out on April 15. Although the subject of the song is a dark one, Pilgrim’s positive message shines through. “Sink Like a Stone comes from my frustration about Eric Garner [the African-American man who died of a heart attack in New York in 2014 following police brutality],” she says, “but also about prejudice in general. I think all prejudice is so unfair – it’s not a good way to live your life and it harms people.” When she utters the word “unfair”, the effect an event like Garner’s death has had on her is palpable. She seems like a person with great empathy for others, something she brings to the fore with her artistry. In the middle of our conversation she starts singing some of the words to Mama, another track on the EP, to help explain the meaning of the song – “Maybe someday it’s my turn.” The track is
her way of honouring her beloved mother and also communicating that it is possible to help your fellow man when you have been blessed with a good life. “I was born with a privilege, because I was born in Sweden,” she says. “We haven’t been involved in a war for more than 200 years and that means we are in a position to do good things for the rest of the world. And many people do. That makes me ask myself why am I an artist? What is it that I want to do? Is it because I want to make music and be important? What is my ‘why’? “My friends and I all have good energy, we have lived lives and we have things to say. Not everybody has the chance to make their voice heard.” Pilgrim feels she can make a difference in the world by taking a stand as an artist. As a cofounder of Falling Whistles in Sweden, she is making a difference. The non-profit organisation is campaigning to bring peace to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, by investing in projects that create sustainable jobs and stability at a community level throughout the war-ridden country. The EP’s final song is I Wonder. Pilgrim explains that it’s about longing and wondering if a relationship really feels right. The three tracks obviously provide an interesting mix of subjects and, together, they create a forceful entity. For Pilgrim herself, this summer looks set to be one to enjoy and remember. One of the high points will be her slot at the Stockholm Music & Arts festival next month. She will perform on Trädgårdsscenen, a stage that will be headlined by Patti Smith each night of the three-day event. As Pilgrim looks forward to playing her new material during the coming months, we can look forward to listening to what her songs have got to say. Sink Like a Stone EP is out on Cosmos. Stockholm Music & Arts, July 29-31, Skeppsholmen; stockholmmusicandarts.com
THIS PAGE: ONE-POCKET SHIRT OPPOSITE PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: CREW-NECK SWEATSHIRT AND ULTIMATE ONE-POCKET SHIRT; OVERSIZED BIB AND OVERSIZED T-SHIRT; OVERSIZED BIB AND PRINTED WOVEN T-SHIRT; RIDER JACKET AND SKYLER JEANS; WESTERN SHIRT; GRAPHIC T-SHIRT AND BIB SKIRT ALL AVAILABLE AT LEE.COM HAIR AND MAKE-UP: LILLIS HEMMINGSSON PHOTOGRAPHER’S ASSISTANT: ELLEN NYKVIST STYLIST’S ASSISTANT: ALICIA ROSATI
Dot-to-dot puzzle Come and explore the eccentric, wonderful world of the prolific Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama Words by ISELIN PAGE Special thanks to MODERNA MUSEET, STOCKHOLM
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Swallow antidepressants and it will be gone Tear down the gate of hallucinations Amidst the agony of flowers, the present never ends At the stairs to heaven, my heart expires in their tenderness Calling from the sky, doubtless, transparent in its shade of blue Embraced with the shadow of illusion Cumulonimbi arise Sounds of tears, shed upon eating the colour of cotton rose I become a stone Not in time eternal But in the present that transpires – Song of a Manhattan Suicide Addict by Yayoi Kusama
Eighty-seven years ago – 1929 – in the Japanese city of Matsumoto, Yayoi Kusama was born, the fourth child of a conservative upper-middle-class family. Her childhood was anything but what she wished for. She grew up with little encouragement from her parents, who did not approve of her dream of becoming an artist. By at the age of 10 she was already determined to spend her time painting, but her mother repeatedly took away her ink and paper. In 1957, Kusama found herself forced to choose between her family and her dream. With support from her psychiatrist she chose her dream and moved to New York City to become an artist. With only a small loan from a relative and a few artworks, she established her own artistic practice in the urban heart of America. In New York Kusama was met by a white male-dominated environment that characterised the art scene of the 1960s, and came up against both sexism and racism early in her career. Influenced by other avant-garde artists she gradually developed from being a painter to being what can be described as an environment artist. Her practice now comprised a variety of media, including drawing, sculpture, film, performance and installation. Her work showed attributes of feminism, minimalism, surrealism, pop art and conceptualism, but most important was maybe the abstract expressionism, rooted in her autobiographical and psychological experiences. By exposing her persona, marked as it is with obsessiveness, she has created environments and invited viewers to participate in her absurd but fascinating, and sometimes disturbing, universe. When entering one of Kusama’s large-scale works, the viewer is confronted with repetition and patterns reflected in mirrors, covering complete rooms. She tempts us with surroundings that force the mind to explore the boundaries of space and challenge us to separate what is real from illusion – leaving us, eventually, with deeply existential questions. Kusama’s artistic expression has influenced and inspired many art forms. She is a published writer and
poet, and has created notable work in film and fashion design. One could almost say that Kusama is her art. How she dresses, writes, sings, designs and creates always comes from her fascinating perception of the world we live in. In 1973, Kusama returned from New York to Japan in unstable health. Soon after her return, she checked herself into the Seiwa Hospital for the Mentally Ill in Tokyo. Here she took up permanent residence, and the hospital became the place she calls home. With her studio located nearby, she is still a very productive artist, who spends her days deeply focused and surrounded by several assistants. Kusama has worked her way though all the areas that culture has to offer and enriched it with different expressions. However, there is one element that has followed her for a longer time than any other: what she calls the polka dots. These have become her signature, and are based on hallucinations that started appearing to her soon after her arrival in the United States in 1957. Back then, the undiscovered talent was walking the streets of New York. Surrounded by concrete, she headed towards the Empire State Building. Soon she found herself on the top floor, looking down on the city, and what did she see? Dots – polka dots. At that moment the young artist made a promise to herself: one day, I will conquer the city of New York with my art and the mountains of creativity that move inside of me. Today, Kusama is one of Japan’s most internationally recognised contemporary artists. One of her more comprehensive solo shows is currently on tour, and is on display in Stockholm this summer. So there is only one thing left to say: enjoy Kusama! “Dots are symbols of the world, the cosmos. The earth is a dot, the moon, the sun, the stars are all made up of dots. You and me, we are dots” – Yayoi Kusama Yayoi Kusama: In Infinity, June 11-September 11; Moderna Museet, Stockholm
THIS PAGE, FROM TOP: KUSAMA WITH PUMPKIN, INSTALLATION VIEW FROM AICHI TRIENNALE, 2010 KUSAMA WITH DOTS OBSESSION, INSTALLATION VIEW FROM YAYOI KUSAMA: ETERNITY OF ETERNAL ETERNITY, MATSUMOTO CITY MUSEUM OF ART, NAGANO, JAPAN, 2012 OPPOSITE PAGE: CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: KUSAMA WITH ONE OF HER INFINITY NET PAINTINGS, NEW YORK, C1961 SUIT (C1962) KUSAMA IN INFINITY MIRROR ROOM – PHALLI’S FIELD, INSTALLATION VIEW FROM FLOOR SHOW, R CASTELLANE GALLERY, NEW YORK, 1965 © YAYOI KUSAMA. COURTESY MODERNA MUSEET, STOCKHOLM
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Master of the mix
Art deco, Japanese pop culture and our current obsession with selfies — all this and more can be found in the colourful and clever new collection from the fashion designer Yuhei Mukai Words by VERONIKA DORECHEVA Photography by DAVID PAYR
As a Japanese man living in Vienna and studying fashion at the city’s University of Applied Arts, the designer Yuhei Mukai draws inspiration from both Asian and European cultures. For his recent collection he combined elements from the European art deco movement of the 1920s with contemporary Japanese teenage culture, creating a collection that celebrates the spirit of youth. It’s a playful selection of clothes, made even more so by the bright colours used and the childlike drawings that spread out over smooth velvets. Intricate patterns cut into the fabric resemble engravings and woodcuts, as well as designs created by the famous Wiener Werkstätte community of visual artists in early-20th-century Vienna. The pieces themselves come in sporty shapes and silhouettes – a tracksuit is cut from velvet, a fabric typically used in more elegant garments. This out-ofcontext choice adds to the fun and stylishness of the collection. It’s easy to feel the joy with which Mukai uses his creativity to mix up elements and references. Why did you call this collection 3-A MUKAI? “It means 3rd grade and A class – I was in the 3rd grade in A class of my university in Vienna when I designed this collection. Also, the tracksuit I used to wear as part of my old school gym uniform had a label in it with my name and the class name on.” What was the main inspiration for the collection? “The way Japanese high-school girls dress nowadays and the art deco fashion of the 1920s.” The collection is quite eclectic. Why are you interested in such cultural mixes? “Living in Vienna, I’m always influenced by European and Japanese cultures, so it was natural for me to mix ideas inspired by both. Art deco artists in the 1920s were also influenced by Asian culture. I referenced both in my collection to create a new aesthetic.” This collection also reflects the popularity of social-media sites, such as Instagram, and the way in which people produce and use the images. Could you tell us why? “Selfies and self-produced images are very important elements of youth culture, so I used Instagram as a research tool when I was working on this collection. I developed a print that features my face and I used it throughout as a metaphor of the current mood and obsession of the new generation.” What kind of connection do you see between this collection and the theme of enjoyment? “Youth culture nowadays enjoys new trends and uses creativity to follow those trends, as did the artists of the art deco movement. This energy of joy and creation is the core inspiration for my collection.” Why did you choose to work with such bright, bold colours? “The first colour I chose for my collection was green – the colour of my school gym tracksuit, which I loved when I was in high school. Then I just picked the colours that would match the green.” There are images of your collection that feature a smiley – lamps that look like smileys, smileys painted over the walls. Why did you use them? Were they meant to express joy? “I spotted the smileys on the staircases at my university and I loved the idea of using them as a backdrop for the images of the collection, because of their ambiguous character. The smileys express emotions such as joy and happiness, but some of them actually look like they are crying, so to me they also express the mixed, complicated feelings often associated with adolescence.”
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It’s showtime Whether through clay, collage, photography, paint or performance, these are the young artists whose practices look set to keep the energy running through Sweden’s contemporary-art scene
Malin Gabriella Nordin
With your recent exhibitions at and for Gallery Steinsland Berliner in Stockholm, it appears that, over the course of just a couple of years, you have quickly become a frontrunner in the next generation of Swedish painters. What’s your background regarding art? “My dad is very interested in art, and was throughout my upbringing, and he also paints himself, so art was omnipresent. It was as though there were never any other options and there was never a time when I was choosing between this and something else. I’ve had the good fortune of having parents who never questioned what I was doing. When I started out at preparatory art school [in Stockholm] and even at the art academy [Bergen National Academy of the Arts, Norway], I realised how many people struggle to convince their parents to let them follow their path as artists, since it’s not the most secure or most financially viable way to go.”
Many practices today are nondescript, insofar as there’s no ownership by visible artist figures extending to the art on display. However, you strike me as an artist who is very much out there and of whom people are aware. There is a known face behind the art. What are your thoughts? “I’m not quite sure why that is. I imagine it’s tied into social media. For me, Instagram has become a portfolio of sorts, where I also put out quite personal photos. It can be a tricky line to draw regarding how much of yourself to share. I think it’s positive when it comes to galleries and artists and you are allowed to learn more about the processes behind the art you see and the people creating the works in a different way.” Among your many accomplishments, you recently collaborated with the Swedish fashion brand Filippa K and had a book published by OrosdiBack in a noted artist-book series. What stands out for you as a defining moment as an artist? “I’m very grateful for all the things I’ve been able to do and experience – all the exhibitions and projects and the people I’ve met through doing them. To have
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Your imagery sits between the mystical and ethereal, emphasising the grandeur and beauty of natural surroundings, and has often been marked by intervention. How meticulous does the process relating to scouting out locations need to be? “There are a lot of uncontrollable circumstances that have to line up perfectly in our favour before we can start photographing for real. But looking for the best spot to realise an idea is also a part of our work that we truly enjoy. We are interested in the interplay between the view of nature and photography. So the travelling has to do with our working with landscapes and romantic scenery, but also with the inspiration and chance to work undisturbed that it gives us. We are out working for months, and if everything goes well, we return with a handful of photographs.” An earlier project of yours, Watching Humans Watching, presents the dynamic between humans and animals and was part of a book of the same name that won the Swedish Photobook Award in 2012. What can you tell us about the project? “That series was a starting point for us as a duo, and though our methods have shifted since, we are still very much on the same path. Back in 2008 we got interested in how groups of tourists in nature show flock behaviours. They move in seemingly predetermined patterns and dress in clothes that mimic the colours of unfamiliar surroundings. “We started to travel to places we knew people would go to explore what is perceived as ‘untouched’ nature. By detaching ourselves from the tourists, we were able to approach them with the same distance a nature photographer applies when working with wild animals. If anyone noticed us, we had to move on. It started as an investigation of the human relationship with nature and the open landscape through the concept of humans as animals. But, with time, it also came to deal a lot with our expectations of what nature is supposed to be like. Many of the tourists in the photographs are truly mesmerised by the nature they are in, but many of them also seem to be waiting for some kind of magic to happen, like they are expecting triple rainbows, unicorns and dinosaurs.”
Interviews by ASHIK ZAMAN
Your practice has evolved from delicate and distinctive collage works and sculpture to more abstract-orientated painting, which you showed recently at this year’s Market Art Fair in Stockholm. What informs your work today? “Irrespective of techniques, my work is very much about composition and feelings – feelings that arise and are liberated while in the act of creating. Feelings about how colour and form affect each other and their surroundings and how balance and tension is created, depending on composition. It’s about exploring my curiosity and how I can create a work with colour, texture and form. Painting and sculpture is very carnal and direct for me. It’s fast, intense and messy. Collage work, however, is very timeconsuming and meticulously focused. With a collage I can sit for hours and only move a fraction, a millimetre. Two very different mind frames come into play and it’s nice to shift between the two. “I don’t want to get stuck in something just because other people appreciate it, and I try to shift between various techniques that might offer new entries and perspectives. I want a work to bear a feeling of completion but also feel marked by opportunities. Everything surrounding me is processed and channelled into what I do. I’m fascinated by nature, both inside and out. The works become a notion of what I see when I close my eyes – all that is fleeting, the thoughts and imagery that flash by continuously.”
Inka and Niclas Lindergård
the opportunity to work with Gallery Steinsland Berliner… Jeanette and Jacob really are so passionate about what they do and give me tremendous support, which means everything to me. I love them. “In 2013 I was invited by Jan Verwoert to take part in a group exhibition in Vienna, which felt huge. Jan has meant a lot to me personally and for the progress of my work. I met him through the art academy in Bergen, where he was a guest lecturer from time to time. He opened up a lot of doors in my mind that I didn’t know were there.”
What’s next for you in 2016? “This summer I will be working in my studio. The past few months have been quite packed with exhibitions and a book release, etc, so I’m looking forward to getting back inside my little bubble. Right now I’m planning the upcoming year, which will entail a few exhibitions and, moreover, Yundler Brondino Verlag will be releasing a book about my work, which I’m really looking forward to.” malingabriella.com
How does the process of working on site operate between the two of you? “We often end up photographing just before, during and after either sunrise or sunset. The colours of the sky and the intensity of the light is usually good for 20 to 30 minutes. This means that, when everything lines up the way we want and we start pressing the button, there’s often a bit of stress and excitement involved. The shoots often involve some kind of action or gesture, so one of us is managing the camera and the other carrying out the action, though we take it in turns to push for a couple more shots and an extra 50 tries when the other one wants to go home. Much of our work would not be possible to do alone.” What excites you most about contemporary photography today? “Oh, that’s tricky. Japan is coming in strong. A couple of years ago, it was really hard to find any photography from Japan besides [Hiroshi] Sugimoto, [Nobuyoshi] Araki, Rinko [Kawauchi] and a couple of others. Now it feels like there are new, really interesting young names and books all the time. Otherwise, contemporary photography is generally experimenting with the past and the digital present from within the realm of the medium, making use of old and new tools and responding to the mass circulation and consumption of images.” You’re working on a new book and also preparing for your first solo show at Grundemark Nilsson Gallery in Stockholm. What will we be able to see? “Using landscape photography as the waypoint, the works in the exhibition have their base in reworkings of visual clichés and the characteristics of the photographic medium. Sunsets are pulled down to earth, a cloud of glitter is suspended midair in the form of a sparkling nebula from the NASA archives, the Yosemite Half Dome is covered by a black blob. “We view our actions – be they throwing powder into the wind or building a sculpture out of branches – or light briefly colouring some rocks as performances done in alliance with the landscape, the elements and the camera. This time we are going up a bit in print sizes and we are working on a couple of sculptural objects that will communicate with the works on the walls. “It’s great to be showing in Stockholm and, fingers crossed, we will also have the new book – The Belt of Venus and the Shadow of the Earth – ready by then.” inkaandniclas.com
THIS PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: BECOMING WILDERNESS XXVII (2015); THE BELT OF VENUS AND THE SHADOW OF THE EARTH IV (2013); THE PENTAGRAM POSITION XV (2014); FAMILY PORTRAITS III (2015). ALL BY INKA AND NICLAS LINDERGÅRD OPPOSITE PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: L (2015) BY MALIN GABRIELLA NORDIN; SPIRITS FLY, FINGERS CURL (2015) BY MALIN GABRIELLA NORDIN; NORDIN IN HER STUDIO © ERIK WAHLSTROM; BIRD (2015) BY MALIN GABRIELLA NORDIN
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Julius Göthlin
Your work after studying at the Royal Institute of Art, Stockholm, included geometric-orientated collages and drawings, and has since revolved around large-scale spray paintings alluding to space and galaxies. What can you tell us about this body of work? “During my years at the Royal Institute of Art, I was working a lot around the idea of using boredom as a creative asset. During very labour-intensive projects I used to cut and paste painted strips of paper into minimal blocks of large abstract compositions and architectural structures, where the purpose was to investigate how barely visible gradients in a complicated pattern of repetitions can trick the brain into experiencing movement – to suggest a third and a fourth dimension. “After many years of working with this slow-paced method, I increasingly started to feel like I had reached a point where I had got the answers to the questions I was interested in and started to feel the urge to break the structure that I had built up for myself. I really missed the more experimental part of allowing chance and accident to drive me, rather than preplanned ideas, and quite naturally, my methods of work crossed over to starting to use spray paint in a form that dealt with the ideas of trying to break the rules of the two-dimensional format but still stay within a two-dimensional world. “I have always been very attracted to painting, but have a weird relationship with it. The idea of being able to enter a two-dimensional object that creates a world is very appealing to me. However, I have always been distracted by the fact that a painting usually leaves behind traces of the person who made it, making it hard for me to ‘believe’ it to be something more than a beautiful object, which takes away most of the mysterious qualities for me. “During the past few years I have been very hooked on the idea of making paintings without actually touching the canvas with brushstrokes and such. By using spray paint, I have opened up a way of working in a more undefined format than before, but that still has a lot of connections with my previous works and touches on the topic of what is being created in the gap between chaos and order, fragment and reality.” As an emerging artist, what’s your opinion of today’s art market? “That’s a difficult question. Generally, here in Sweden at least, I feel it is very hard to enter the art market today as a young, unestablished artist. There are relatively few galleries and spaces that dare to bring in such artists, which is a bit of an issue in terms of making the scene more vibrant. Therefore, I am very happy to have the chance to work with Belenius/ Nordenhake gallery, which I feel is a gallery that has a nice balance between older and younger artists. That creates something very interesting and necessary. “I feel like, right now, there is a bit of a transition phase, where younger artists are getting more of their inspiration and ideas about art from social media and the internet in general, which is changing the art market a lot in ways that I feel have a lot of pros and cons. But at the end of the day, it’s mostly positive.” You’ve got a new solo show coming up at Belenius/ Nordenhake gallery. What can we expect to see? “In my upcoming exhibition – Automatic Target Recognition – I have been working further with materials such as spray paint and similar in large-scale paintings where the associations lead to the rhythm of the body, as well as between the outer and inner depths in a transition from macro- to micro-cosmos. In the process of making the new works I have allowed myself to leave more room for accidents, chances and allowing the individual qualities of the materials I work with to decide the result, rather than having a strict idea of what I want the work to look like from the beginning. “The title of the show refers to a device that is being used to recognise objects and targets based on data being captured from sensors. This technique is being used in airport body scanners and other safety systems, and is something I’ve been fascinated about mimicking in different ways to let structures in the materials decide where the paintings are going.” What’s in store for you in 2016? “Right now I’m putting all my energy into the upcoming exhibition. Later this year, I have a couple of shows in the States, along with some other very interesting projects coming up in the autumn that I am looking forward to but cannot speak much about at the moment. But before that, I will take the time to get some longed-for weeks of pure vacation!” juliusgothlin.com 40
You’re also a performance artist and performed during Stockholm Art Week, held earlier this year at the historic Drottningholm Palace Theatre (DTM). What can you tell us about it? “Hubris, dream… I want so badly to be back on that stage. When I was asked to do a performance for DTM, I was working with Jenny Palén on a two-week project called Eva Is the Snake in Paradise at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts. We were really happy with the show, so we ended up developing that for DTM. The timeframe for DTM was 20-30 minutes. The stage floor with its inclination and mechanical thunder effects were good starting points. At the academy we worked with installations, thinking of scenography and performance, so it was important to keep the space in mind when we developed the show for DTM. “We wanted to create a balance between humour and seriousness inspired by divas such as Marlene Dietrich, through the costumes, the characters and the moves. The script consists of songs I wrote with my partner Peter Holm many years ago. I also wanted to work with the music duo Siri Karlsson and hear their arrangements of the songs.” What’s next for you in 2016? “Jenny and I plan to continue working with the show and I just sent sculptures to Körsbärsgården Konsthall, in southern Gotland, for a group show that will run until September 30. Apart from that, I look forward to spending more time at IASPIS in Stockholm, where I have a residency going until the end of September, and then continuing to work in my studio with ongoing projects.” evamag.se
Éva Mag
In past work you interacted in a very physical manner with your clay sculptures, almost appearing as though you were wrestling. How did you arrive at working with clay? “It was the period where I just had my second child and my body was very weak. I thought about my great-grandmother. She gave birth to 14 children. I started to visualise the body of a woman and how theoretically she could be penetrated while she is breastfeeding a child and at the same time she could have a new baby growing in her belly. Immense energy evolved in me as I thought of this image. The clay responded to my basic needs of physical resistance. “Collaboration with an artist friend came at the right time. I could work with the imagery in drawings and then, later, a 24-hour performance, where the idea was to sculpt a woman out of a huge amount of clay and make her stand on her feet, both physically and metaphorically. “After starting my master’s I was able to make full-size bodies with the same core idea of making bodies stand up on their feet. Where it looks like I am wrestling with the body, I was trying to find lifting techniques to make the body stand up with the least amount of damage. The body was, of course, way too heavy and I literally couldn’t breathe.” After graduating from the Royal Institute of Art, Stockholm, you had a busy year, including shows at Galleri Riis and hangmenProjects in Stockholm and participating in a group show at Sven-Harry’s Art Museum, Stockholm, which focused on the frontrunners of contemporary art today in Sweden. What would you recognise as the defining moments in your practice and career so far? “Clay totally opened up my practice. The nature of the clay and my limitations decided the developments. I saw the inner armature of sculpture as an obstacle, which is why the fabric skin, sticks and stands became the world surrounding the body, the exoskeleton. The exoskeletons in my work represent the psychological, cultural, societal and political environments that shape us. “Both my parents were tailors and I grew up in a full-on DIY culture, which extended from pig slaughtering to building houses, along with the problems associated with being an isolated family in a new country without the support offered by big families in Transylvania. I see my experience and the urge to understand as knowledge, both technically and psychologically speaking – the kind of knowledge I believe people and society don’t value enough. It feels like papers matter more than looking at what people really are made of. People’s experiences are a resource, no matter how they grew up. “Site-specificity as well as collaboration have also been important steps in my development. A good example is the show at hangmenProjects, where there was a drain in the middle of the room. An old idea to make an ice sculpture suddenly became possible.”
THIS PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: STILL FROM STAND UP, 2014; I DREAM OF MEADOWS, INSTALLATION VIEW FROM THE SPRING EXHIBITION, THE SWEDISH ROYAL ACADEMY OF ART, 2015; A MOMENT OF GEOMETRICAL HAPPINESS, INSTALLATION VIEW FROM KÖSZÖNÖM/TACK/ THANKYOU, GALLERI RIIS, 2015; ICE ON RAWHIDE, FROM HOW MUCH WEIGH A MOUNTAIN? WITH MAGDALENA NILSSON AT HANGMENPROJECTS, APRIL 2016. ALL BY ÉVA MAG OPPOSITE PAGE, ALL WORKS: UNTITLED (2016) BY JULIUS GÖTHLIN
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In Aniara, Harry Martinson’s classic book of 1956, there is an all-knowing computer that has stored the entire history of humankind in its memory. Almost viewed as divine, the computer, called Miman, is worshipped by the characters in the book. Nicole Sabouné chose to name her hit album of 2015 after it, which puts the music in a great context. The eight tracks on the record portray humanity’s shared history and are accompanied with an atmospheric, grandiose sound. The result is as compelling as Miman itself. “I chose Miman, because it is a very strong, symbolic character in the book, with nice features and force,” says Sabouné, whose own force and drive has seen her creating waves on the music scene since she was 21 – veteran members of the music press talk of her powerful voice as “taking no prisoners”. Through Miman, Sabouné has learned more about herself as a songwriter and producer. She worked with the same band as she did on her debut album of 2014, Must Exist, which has been described as being full of “gothic darkness”. Each member of the group contributes to the sound with their own personal touch, but the last word is always Sabouné’s. “I’m building a stable foundation to stand on, a way to work,” she says. “I hope I will stay brave enough to keep on evolving and take risks. Right now I am in a flow where I write by myself and experiment. That is how songs [from Miman] like Lifetime and We Are No Losers came to be, while a song like Rip This World was written from the start with Niklas Stenemo. Sometimes I write without understanding anything. Sometimes I write and understand way too much. Sometimes I write and think it’s worthless and sometimes I think it’s totally okay.” Creating by herself and with others is something Sabouné does outside of her music as well. She has worked with in-demand brands such as Nand and her presence is just as captivating when it comes to magazine photoshoots. For ours, the rebellious spirit of Dr Martens seemed a perfect match for her style and music. “I’m not always comfortable with modelling,” she says. “I enjoy it more when the concept has been created by me and my friends, or people who inspire me, where I am in control and can co-work in a different way. But it’s always a challenge and you learn a lot from doing things outside of your comfort zone. “I don’t dress in the latest fashion, but try to find clothes I feel comfortable in and look good in. But I do like clothes that I wouldn’t wear otherwise, and it’s interesting how a garment can look completely different in a photo. Of course, there’s a limit – sometimes, people want you to wear something based on the assumptions they’ve made about you, but they might not always get it right. That can get tricky.” As for the summer, Sabouné has several big festivals coming up, so there’s lots to look forward to – for her and her fans. “This summer is going to be fantastic. Stockholm Music & Arts is the show I’m most nervous about, but it’s also the one I’m most looking forward to. I’ve wanted to play that festival ever since it started. It’s going to be a lot of fun!”
Modern gothic With a post-punk sound, mesmerising vocals and an edgy style all her own, it’s no surprise 25-year-old Nicole Sabouné is being hailed as the future of Swedish rock. We caught up with her before she headed out to electrify the stages of this summer’s festivals Words by FILIP LINDSTRÖM Photography by JASMIN STORCH Styling by JOSEF FORSELIUS Special thanks to DR. MARTENS PASCAL 8-EYE BOOTS BY DR. MARTENS, KATARINA BANGATA 15, STOCKHOLM
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Miman is out on Woah Dad! Sabouné will appear on the Trädgårdsscenen stage, Stockholm Music & Arts, on Saturday, July 30
THIS PAGE: SHIRT AND SKIRT BY JOSEPHINE BERGQVIST OPPOSITE PAGE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: T-SHIRT BY IDA KLAMBORN; HOODIE BY ACNE STUDIOS, SKIRT BY BACK; DRESS BY IDA KLAMBORN; SWEATER BY IDA KLAMBORN, SKIRT BY BACK; BLOUSE BY IDA KLAMBORN; BLOUSE BY IDA KLAMBORN, SKIRT BY BACK HAIR: KAROLINA LIEDBERG @ LINKDETAILS MAKE-UP: JOSEFINA ZARMÉN @ LINKDETAILS PHOTOGRAPHER’S ASSISTANT: CORNELIA WAHLBERG
HAIR AND MAKE-UP: BROOKE HILL, MODEL: MONICA WISEMAN AT JE MODEL MANAGEMENT
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From the top Giles Price has pushed the boundaries of traditional landscape photography through the aerial perspective he uses. His latest project, documenting the development of the 2016 summer Olympic Games in Rio, will give us the best seats in the house Words by ANNA ÅHRÉN Photography by GILES PRICE
THIS PAGE, RIGHT: LONDON 2012 OLYMPIC STADIUM WITH OPENING CEREMONY BEING CONSTRUCTED, 2012. BELOW, FROM LEFT; PJ WALSH, CONSTRUCTION FOREMAN, 2012; AQUATIC CENTRE AND WATERLOO POOL, 2011; JAGMINDALD SINGH GREWAL, LANDSCAPE GARDENER, 2012; HOCKEY PITCH, 2011. ALL FROM THE E20 12 UNDER CONSTRUCTION SERIES. BOTTOM: GILES PRICE IN BAKU, AZERBAIJAN, 2015 OPPOSITE PAGE, FROM TOP: ROCINHA FAVELA, RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL, 2014; MARACANÃ STADIUM, RIO DE JANEIRO, 2014
Giles Price’s work is compelling not only because of its beauty or the fascination it creates – it has the power to shake people out of their narrow-mindedness and make them see things from a wider and higher perspective. He is well known for producing photo stories and portrait series all around the world, including for clients such as The New York Times and The Telegraph magazines. His work could be described as conceptual documentary photography. “It’s about telling stories about the world and time I live in that I feel need to be told,” Price says, as we discuss what it is about his work that brings him joy. “If you’ve captured something with an authentic and honest approach, it will hold up.” This is exactly what we need today – people with the motivation and skills to create things that make us question what is all too often taken for granted about the world around us. Yes, many photographers try to photograph the world in new and different ways, but for Price, it’s about what “simply holds true”. The aerial perspective offers a whole new form of social documentary. How were you initially drawn to this? “I was drawn to aerial landscapes because I wanted to make a project documenting the construction of the London 2012 Olympics. The IOC and LOCOG [the UK-based company that organised the games] had put in place some very draconian laws restricting people from being able to photograph the construction. They built a 12km blue fence around the site and regularly stopped people who were trying to take pictures. In 2009, I realised the airspace over the building site was free to fly over. I found a local company who needed some aerial imagery of a new factory and that paid for me to fly over the site and start documenting it, which I then did every six months. “I liked the vertical satellite/Google Earth view, as this gave it a surveillance feel, as well as some visually
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capture the workers in the locations that I had shot from the air – this made for some interesting diptychs of the two views. “The final image I made was of the midway construction point of the opening ceremony in the Olympic stadium. This was on the last day before a no-fly zone was put in place six weeks before the Games started. It was a guerrilla-style piece of work from start to finish, which made it all the more enjoyable. The finished project, E20 12 Under Construction, is a social document of the largest urban regeneration in London for 150 years and part of the cultural legacy of the 2012 Olympics.”
interesting abstract imagery. The reportage aspect of this abstracted view became very interesting to explore. This was before drones and, unless you had military government satellites, you couldn’t look at one place in real time. Google can’t do it – yet. After a few flights I realised I needed to add the human aspect and document the workforce who were hidden away in this other world that I could see from the air. LOCOG and the main arts boards were not interested in what I was doing, so I approached the construction firms and asked them if I could take portraits of their workers. Luckily, they all agreed and I got access to shoot. Visually, I wanted to
You have been documenting the development of the Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro and the 2016 Summer Olympics since 2014. The Games are an event with the potential to encourage growth in the country, but in reality it also includes challenges, such as social tensions and environmental problems. How do you think the Games have affected and will continue to affect the city and the people? “The Maracanã was shot for The New York Times Magazine for their World Cup issue. While I was there, I started to document the transformation of the city during the build-up to their Olympics. The difference I’ve found with this project, compared with the London 2012 Olympics, has been the socioeconomic aspect – the visual difference of society is far more pronounced than in London. “When I went back in 2015, there was antipathy towards the Games from most people I met in Rio. I think that’s partly because these are the first Olympics to ever be held in South America. The Brazilians have a few Olympians, but it’s really a football nation, so they didn’t seem to have much affinity with the Games themselves. I think some of the infrastructure being put in place will help local people, but vast
amounts of money will be spent on things that will not benefit many. “Now you have political problems, zika virus and corruption allegations extending into some of the construction projects. The Olympics are a case-bycase thing – sometimes they work on all levels and sometimes they don’t, and it’s the legacy of what is built and how it’s used that signifies whether it’s been a long-term success.” You visited Rio three times during a 39-month period. How has it influenced you, personally and professionally? Any moment you will never forget? “The first time I went to Rio I wanted to fly over Rocinha favela, which is one of the largest in South America. It has a big gang problem – the gangs are heavily armed with military-grade assault rifles and rocket launchers. They have also successfully shot down police helicopters, so when I asked if I could get a picture over it, I was told there was no way. In the end I found a former police pilot who agreed to fly me. It made for an unnerving flight, which brought home those aspects of Rio’s social problems both visually and physically. “The Rio project has only been released from the air. This has been for many reasons, but what has resulted is a social documentary with a modern feel. This has presented a very interesting process for telling more in-depth and nuanced stories in a visually different way.” If we widen our perspective we can all play a part in shaping our world. Price inspires us to seek new perspectives, no matter how tricky the process involved, and his work has become a reminder that the things we do and the choices we make will, eventually, leave a trace. gilesprice.com
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That’s the spirit Gin and tonic is probably the most iconic highball cocktail. Once introduced by the British in the tropics, it soon found its way into mainstream western society. From sunny Spain — where G&Ts are practically the national drink — to Nordic summer nights, this is a drink we’ll never lose a thirst for Words by ALFREDO L JONES Photography by VEERA KUJALA, KIMMO SYVÄRI & MIKKO KOSKINEN
The idea of using rye as the cornerstone of the Finnish gin was very clever. Along with wild botanicals foraged from the region, it gives the spirit a unique style that soon gained the Kyrö Distillery Company recognition. Today, the brand’s products are sold in more than 20 countries. And last year it was selected as the best gin for a gin and tonic at the International Wine & Spirit Competition, for which distilleries from 90 countries took part and 150 varieties of gin were submitted. But the Finns had a secret recipe. “We served our Napue gin with a twig of rosemary and a few icy cranberries. And tonic, of course. A good tonic,” Koskinen says. Gin was actually invented by the Dutch, but the English took it up about 400 years ago and spread it around the world. It consists of an extremely pure spirit, flavoured with botanicals, such as coriander seed and cinnamon bark, but most importantly, juniper berries. These are what make a gin taste like a gin. At Kyrö Distillery Company, their most famous gin’s other key components are deeply rooted in the very heart of Finnish nature. “Our Napue rye gin is made from sea buckthorn, cranberries, birch leaves and meadowsweet, giving the scents and flavours of an early-morning, misty Finnish meadow,” Koskinen says. He loves gin, of course, and his favourite way of drinking it is in a Ramos gin fizz – a true challenge for a busy bartender, since the cocktail has to be shaken vigorously for over a minute. The result is heavenly. Still, in the world of cocktails, it is hard to ignore the gin and tonic. The trajectory of the drink has taken it from being that rather bitter tipple used for medicinal purposes in outposts of the British Empire to becoming a mainstay in clubs and bars by the First World War and then synonymous with American country-club lounges. With its regular appearance on the TV show Mad Men, it got an extra swing into our era. Now, this summer, maybe it’s time for our Finnish friends to show us how best to enjoy an ice-cold G&T.
The Finn Gin Serves 1 1 shot of Napue gin 200ml tonic A sprig of rosemary A few cranberries Sisu – that stoic determination is something quintessentially Finnish. It was that bravery that helped them stand up against the Russians in the Second World War, and maybe you need the same guts when you set your sights on making the best gin in the world. And so it was decided, during a conversation held in sauna, that a distillery should be constructed on the banks of the River Kyrö, in Isokyrö, a small town of about 5,000 inhabitants in Finland’s Ostrobothnia region. That decision proved to be a very clever one – Kyrö Distillery Company is now a successful manufacturer of the essence that provides the foundation for a great gin and tonic. Winston Churchill, who himself enjoyed a drink or two, is supposed to have said: “The gin and tonic has saved more Englishmen’s lives and minds than all the doctors in the Empire.” He was referring, of course, to the old story that gin and tonic was introduced by the army of the British East India Company in India as protection against malaria – a key ingredient of tonic water being quinine, then used in the prevention and treatment of the mosquito-borne disease. It wasn’t long before someone discovered that tonic tasted much better with a splash of gin, and the bartender’s best friend was born! It’s a concoction that requires no
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unusual ingredients and is incredibly simple to make – anyone can prepare the perfect aperitif. Finland is not known for having a cocktail culture, but the founders of Kyrö Distillery Company weren’t deterred. They were certain they had a market in their own country. As they sat there, deliberating in the nude, they also asked themselves why no one in this part of the world had made a great gin out of rye – something there is plenty of in Finland. “We understood that a Finnish gin distillery would be something rather unexpected. And that is naturally always a good thing,” says Mikko Koskinen, co-founder of the company. Back in the early 18th century, gin was regarded as the “infamous liquor” and a true nuisance. Politicians and religious leaders argued that gin drinking encouraged laziness and criminal behaviour. In 1729, in an attempt to put an end to this, the British Parliament passed a Gin Act, raising the tax payable for the spirit. It naturally resulted in riots. The working man loved his gin, and it was not until the much adored English poet Lord Byron started to enjoy a gin cocktail now and then – often in Venice – that it found its way into higher circles of society. Once introduced there, gin was bound to stay.
Fill a tumbler with ice, pour in the gin and tonic, then garnish with the rosemary and cranberries.
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