The blue album

Volume 04 — Issue 04

Neighbourhood Life + Global Style

Neighbourhood Up in smoke Life Deep waters Style Doing denim Music Out of the blue Culture Memoirs of melancholy + The Design Special

The blue album

G-Star Store Brussels

Rue Antoine Dansaert 48 operated by rdb1 sprl

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Publisher and editor-in-chief Nicholas Lewis Design facetofacedesign + pleaseletmedesign Writers Guy Dittrich Rose Kelleher Nicholas Lewis Philippe Pourhashemi Sam Steverlynck Robbert van Jaarsveld Randa Wazen Photographers/Illustrators Sarah Eechaut Yana Foqué Veerle Frissen Ismaël Moumin Melika Ngombe Yassin Serghini Siska Vandecasteele Virassamy Joke De Wilde Interns Kathy Boros (communication) Alex Chavot (graphic design) Joke De Wilde (photography) For subscriptions (5 issues)

The editor's letter

There was a point in the production phase of this edition where we tinkered with the idea of interviewing Portishead for our music section.

The band were just about to curate ATP’s I’ll Be Your Mirror festival in London and, as is the case with most summer revival projects (Pavement and Faith No More anyone?), the band kept popping up on our radar for all the good reasons.

For starters, memories poured in the minute the Bristol threesome’s debut album Dummy was loaded into the player. Olivia’s house parties in Tervueren / Tervuren, teenage benders in Julie’s flat in Schaerbeek and mix tapes that, at the time, went from Portishead and Mudhoney to Rancid and The Fugees. The album was lodged in my collective conscience of the blue, next to Massive Attack’s Blue Lines, Kool Keith’s Sex Styles, Del’s I Wish My Brother George Was Here and St Germain’s Boulevard (yes, really). Indeed, Dummy’s cover art was also predominantly blue – both its front and back covers were exercises in colour-coded restraint, giving you just the information you needed whilst still leaving lots to the imagination. Above all, going through Dummy’s tracklist all over again was heart-warming and bizarrely reassuring. Like seeing that childhood friend of yours for the first time in ages and staying up all night reminiscing about your first fag, your first flunk and your first fight. Memories. Some are good. Some are bad.

Some are easy, others painful. Some you’d rather erase, some you’d prefer engraving on your arm.

And so it is with our blue album. It’ll wrap you in a blanket of nostalgic warmth, cosy up to you and bring a smile (sometimes a tear) to your face. It’ll remind you of your teenage bedroom. Of that passion you used to entertain for aquariums. Of that time you actually knew the name of your neighbourhood cop. It’ll make you want to dig out those old VHS tapes of yours. It might even make you rollout the Rizzlas (blue, of course) and spark one up – just for old times sakes.

Transfer ¤ 21 (Belgium), ¤ 30 (Europe) or ¤ 45 (Worldwide) to account n° 363-0257432-34 IBAN BE 68 3630 2574 3234 BIC BBRUBEBB stating your full name, email and postal addresses in the communication box.

Add to that our design special, and its round-up on vintage design online galleries, and you could say we’ve been living in the past for the last few months. We promise our next edition, the white album, will see us return to our old selves though. But, just this once, it’s all about yesteryear.

Visit us thewordmagazine.be Like us facebook.com/TheWordMagazine Follow us @TheWordMgz Download us thewordmagazine.be/ipad

Nicholas Lewis

© Veerle Frissen

The Word is published five times a year by JamPublishing, 107 Rue Général Henry Straat 1040 Brussels Belgium. Reproduction, in whole or in part, without prior permission is strictly prohibited. All information correct up to the time of going to press. The publishers cannot be held liable for any changes in this respect after this date.

The blue album. A mirror vision of our past.

On this cover King fish

RADO r5.5 XXL / WWW.RADO.COM

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The contents

Neighbourhood

Style

The DESIGN Special

21

38

69

Le caillou bleu

Meeting Dries Van Noten

La Fabrika

22

46

74

Photographer Julie Calbert’s blue notes

Giving in to temptation

Open doors policy

26

50

78

G. Van den Berghe’s very own little avatar

She’s the one wearing the pants

Online design galleries

Life

Music

Culture

30

62

84

Teenage territories

Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs

Pictures speak louder than words

34

63

86

The big blue

Ghostpoet

If only the walls could talk…

TURN

hugo.com shop online hugoboss.com

IT’S yOUR HUGO JUST DIFFERENT

THE NEW FRAGRANCE FOR MEN FEATURING JARED LETO

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The contributors

It’s a Word’s world Sébastien Lenouvel graphic design and illustrator

Joke De Wilde photography intern

Yana Foqué photographer

Ismaël Moumin photographer

Page 28

Page 70

Pages 62, 63, 85

Pages 46, 47, 48, 49

About Current intern of our graphic design team, we were told that Sebastien possessed quite the talent as far as ball pen illustrations went. Having contributed to the visual identity of the Micro Festival and other small-scale, but nonetheless prestigious projects, Sebastien seemed like the right talent to turn to for our comical illustrative page, the study.

About Joke joined the team in May, eager to get to grips with the visual side of magazine-making.

She quickly settled in, getting into the thick of it by her second week, assisting photographers on hastily put together productions and scouring the city for fake wallpapers. Testament to the quality of her work, one of her portraits even ended up on the cover of our yellow album.

Interns – we don’t just ask them to make coffee for us.

About Antwerp-based freelance photographer Yana first popped up on our radar with her cutesy and intimate handwritten interviews in Q&A form she’d taken the habit of doing with certain artists (Twin Shadow, Efterklang, No Age and the likes) and which we published online. She has since moved on to the magazine itself, this edition marking the first time you’ll see her name in the masthead.

About It only takes a quick look at his blog roll to realise that Ismaël Moumin’s a rising star. Current first assistant to that other grand daddy of Belgian fashion photography Pierre Debusschere, we first worked with Ismaël for our March edition’s fashion special, getting him to capture a selection of items in the most suggestive and playful of ways.

Then and there, we knew we’d be working with him again in the near future.

Task For the study, we commissioned Sebastien to pen a parody of the many proposals to purchase Viagra we get in our inboxes everyday. Viagra pills being blue, what better starting point for a colour-coded piss-take?

Quote “In this edition, I wanted to show the absurdity of advertising touting the merits of a product that makes a man ‘effective’ and ‘sustainable’ and play with the difference between this image and the evocative real danger of the product.”

Task Living in Antwerp and having a knack for portraiture, we commissioned Joke to photograph Veerle Wenes, founder of design gallery Valerie Traan.

Quote “‘Into the wide blue yonder.’

I was looking for blue sayings to combine with my pictures and I found this one. I liked it.

It means : if you go into the wide blue yonder, you go somewhere far away that seems exciting because it is not known.”

Task This edition saw Yana trek it from north to south in less than two hours to interview Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs at Dour, chase Connan Mockassin for a throw-away exchange and photograph this month’s book selection for us.

Quote “I enjoy Sci-fi novels a lot – they put the future of the past on display. A good dose of nostalgia is what keeps you young. And I still make a list of things to do during the summer at the very end of it.”

Task The kind of photographer to enjoy a close complicity with the girls he photographs, we knew a feature on tight-fitting hot pants would be ideal for Ismaël.

He took two up and coming models to Tervueren / Tervuren’s Arboretum, and simply did his thing for a couple of hours.

We couldn’t have hoped for better.

Quote “Don’t really know what to say about the shoot ! It’s hard.

First shoot without Françoise Salinger… That’s all I can say really!” ismaelmoumimn.blogspot.com

© Persuado

A FILMMAKER

200 seconds

is all it takes to win up to €15,000 worth of Nikon film equipment

Nikon’s ‘I AM A FILMMAKER’ competition is for short films up to 200 seconds long. The competition is open to everyone, from students, pro and semi-pro filmmakers to advanced enthusiasts.

Your entry will be judged by a professional jury

So if you please both the jury and the public, you

which includes Jan Verheyen, Jaco Van Dor-

could win equipment worth €15,000 !

mael, Valérie Pierre, Rob Rombouts, Mark De

The competition is open until August 31st 2011,

Visscher, Jo Vermaercke and representatives

full details about it at www.nikonfilmfestival.be,

from Brussels Short Film Festival and Gent

which is also where you can upload your film

International Film Festival and with the support

and ask people to vote for it. The competition

from Scam-Sofam. There are two prizes to be

is being held in collaboration with the Brussels

won. The jury prize is €10,000 worth of Nikon

Short Film Festival and the Gent International

film equipment and the prize for the most public

Film Festival. A selection of entries will be shown

votes is €5,000 worth of Nikon film equipment.

during the Gent Film Festival.

www.nikonfilmfestival.be

NIKON

FILMFESTIVAL BELGIUM

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The blueboard Exhibitions Arts Music Shows Parties

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01. A 2007 edition of Exit magazine, one of the references we used when launching The Word. / 02. Terra blues crisps, made from natural blue potatoes and Bubbllicious bubblegum, blowing bubbles since 1977. / 03. Nirvana’s Nevermind and Pantera’ Far Beyond Driven. 90’s teenage angst at its best. / 04. Papermate’s flexigrip ultra pens. A trusted companion in hours upon hours of proofreading. / 05. The Word’s hoodies and polo’s, soon available to purchase online. / 06. Pairing a pair of Nike’s limited edition blue air max and a Balenciaga cashmere sweater. Mix and match to the fullest. / 07. Spa Reine still water, Belgium’s best export. / 08. The Fafi-designed POP up, a scented candle which comes with a diamond designed by the street artist herself. We love it for its intricately thought through packaging. And it’s blue. Available from Hunting and Collecting in Brussels. / 09. Blutak. Way better than drawing pins.

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Neighbourhood

Belgium ( 01  10 ) 03. The

art of storytelling

01.

Hailed as one of the most promising young artists in Belgium, Rinus Van de Velde’s charcoal drawings accompanied by witty texts relating to separate moments in his semi-fictional biography have caught the eye of the international art intelligentsia around the globe. His most recent exhibition will see him present a new series of drawings that circle around the theme of the artist studio. These drawings will tell stories that are to a certain extent autonomous and can be read individually from each other, leaving it up to the viewer to be directly challenged to imagine the larger story Van de Velde is aiming to share.

Courtesy Almine Rech Gallery, Brussels-Paris

What a joke

We all know Richard Prince for his Jokes, Nurses, Cowboys and Girlfriends series, as well as for his heavy use of rephotography.

A member of the influential Pictures Generation, the American artist had a strong hand in expanding the scope of conceptual photography through the use of appropriation.

This first solo show at Brussels’ Almine Rech Gallery gives the audience the perfect occasion to explore Prince's fascination with American culture, Borscht Belt jokes, car enthusiasm, pulp-literature and his unmatchable knack for elevating material directly sourced from the underbelly of society to the status of fine art.

Richard Prince : The Fug

Second Hand Second Life @ Tour & Taxis (Brussels), on 14th October – Acclaimed Belgian designers will once more present one of a kind creations made from second hand goods for the 9th edition of the now famous Petits Riens / Spullenhulp fashion show, which is auctioned at the end of the show to raise funds for the non-profit organisation.

 petitsriens.be

02.

Casting everything

Coinciding with the Polish presidency of the European Union, Wiels celebrates the pioneering and provocative practice of sculptor Alina Szapocznikow with one of her first large-scale surveys outside of Poland.

Focusing on her experimental period, the show gathers more than a hundred of her works, among which the tinted polyester casts of her lips and breasts transformed into everyday objects like lamps or ashtrays. A concentration camp survivor, Szapocznikow has used her art to give voice to personal issues such as the ambivalently sexualized and anguished experience of the female body, recollections of the war and the Holocaust, and finally, a dramatic examination of the cancer that brought her life to a premature end.

Alina Szapocznikow : Sculpture Undone, 1955-1972

 From 10 th September to 8th January  Wiels, Brussels  wiels.org

 From 8th September to 22nd October  Tim Van Laere Gallery, Antwerp  timvanlaeregallery.com 02.

Something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue

04.

By combining traditional analogue photography with digital editing, Florian MaierAichen has managed to create a language of his own and redefine the concept of landscape imagery. Abstract, unsettling and at times surreal, his pictures contain a poetic nature.

The images originate from sources as varied as documentary or textbook photos and escapist landscape paintings. From there on, the artist's visual vocabulary and broad technical repertoire take over, fully aware that it is in the pairing together of genres that an original view emerges.

© Roland Schmid. Courtesy the Estate of Alina Szapocznikow - Piotr Stanislawski

* The auction to go to

Rinus Van de Velde

03.

© Courtesy Tim Van Laere Gallery, Antwerp

 From 10 th September to 5th November  Almine Rech Gallery, Brussels  alminerech.com

Florian Maier Aichen

 From 13th September to 29 th October  Galerie Baronian Francey, Brussels  baronianfrancey.com

04.

* The store to drop by Pop-Up @ Atelier Solarshop (Antwerp), until 8th October – A mix of playful yet modern aesthetic objects and items will fill up the space of Atelier Solarshop for the third edition of their Pop-Up project.

The selection of exclusive, limited and numbered works by international young talents is available for five weeks only, so be sure not to miss out.

 ateliersolarshop.be

© Florian Maier-Aichen

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05.

The diary

05.

Back to basics

The question of sustainability has never been as relevant, be it in fashion, food or design, as it is today. The Design Museum’s current show examines the kind of design that illustrates the “art of reduction” – cutting back on materials and going for products with a longer life expectancy. The exhibition aims to provide the explanation behind the rational design logic in aspects such as the production process, spatial limitations or aesthetic trends, setting design icons ranging from le Corbusier to Eero Saarinen against similar figures from the worlds of fashion, food design and art.

Die Essenz der Dinge: Design and the art of reduction

© Hi-Cone, Vitra Design Museum

 Until 16th October  Design Museum, Ghent  designmuseumgent.be 06.

© Courtesy A.L.I.C.E. Gallery

06.

07.

Antoine Bouillot: Little Did They Know

* The show you can’t miss

© Gareth Hacker © Bob Verschueren

Donna Wilson, Ercol & SCP

 From 8th to 30 th September  La Fabrika, Brussels  lafabrika.be

It takes one to know one

After having infiltrated the Parisian fashion world aged barely 16 – where he worked on catwalk scenography, became artistic director and created identities for luxury brands such as Lanvin, JeanCharles de Castelbajac, Sampar or Gaspard Yurkievich – Antoine Bouillot decided to have a go at movie directing, before settling for visual arts. Visibly inspired – or affected – by his previous experience, the French artist’s vision of art became one of a tautological provocation with the world of luxury as an alibi, resulting in a body of work that accuses as much as it celebrates these two worlds.

 From 10 th September to 29 th October  A.L.I.C.E. Gallery, Brussels  alicebxl.com

08.

07. British design at its finest The Brussels-based design showroom La Fabrika has invited Donna Wilson to create an installation in collaboration with established British manufacturers Ercol and SCP. Earning the accolade of British Designer of the Year 2010, Wilson has been quoted as being “wonderful with wool,” a “material marvel,” a “textile designer extraordinaire” and even an “all round textile legend.”

Characterised by a playful nature, tactile aesthetic and multicoloured palette, the young designer’s work ranges from colourful knitted creatures to striking upholstered furniture designs, which all promise to be a refreshing sight during this month’s Design September festival.

Raw Edges, from flat to full @ Hunting and Collecting (Brussels), from 8th to 25th September Design dealer Victor Hunt brings israeliborn, london-based designers raw edges to town for an extensive overview of their most recent work, the lot to be exhibited in the city’s favourite style boutique Hunting and Collecting.

 victor-hunt.com

* The festival to catch Electronic Weekend @ Bozar (Brussels), on 28th and 29th October – The creme of the crop of the current electronic scene takes over the Bozar for a weekend where local talent gets to mingle with international names like Modeselektor or Siriusmo. Ideal for those forced to go cold turkey at the festival season’s end.

 bozar.be 08.

Still life

Exclusively inspired by nature, Bob Verschueren has spent the past three decades developing a singular visual language. Rising on the international art scene with his vegetal installations, destined to vanish with every exhibition’s closing, the Belgian artist has also developed his own brand of “miniatures”: photographs of small sculptures assembled with twigs and found leaves. Displaying his new and previous creations, as well as featuring his recent audio works of plant sounds, the Botanique’s museum takes on the aura of an immersive forest, proof that one couldn’t dream of a better venue than the capital’s botanical gardens to offer an extended vision of this nature-lover’s work.

Bob Verschueren

 From 15th September to 6th November  Botanique, Brussels  botanique.be

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Neighbourhood

United Kingdom ( 11  16 ) 09.

The bear king

09.

11.

Walter Van Beirendonck: Dream The World Awake

 From 14th September to 19 th February  MoMu, Antwerp  momu.be Contradiction and harmony

Belgian sculptors Fien Muller and Hannes Van Severen have launched a furniture collection that is to have its debut during the Design September circuit. Having chosen to create furniture out of sheer necessity and function, both artists favour clear-cut storage boxes, tables, racks and lamps whose pure forms still manage to embrace the lush adornment in their completion and combination. Their furniture exist because of a logical necessity. A table with a table-leg turning into a cantilever lamp, an open cabinet where one of the shelves becomes a table, or a series of lamps that are no more than a socket, a cover and a cord. The surprise comes from the combination of colours, materials, functions and – especially – the commonness.

Gerhard Richter: Panorama

 From 6th October to 8th January  Tate Modern, London  tate.org.uk

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© Fien Muller. Courtesy Valerie Traan gallery

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* the fair you can't miss Frieze Art Fair @ Regent’s Park (London), from 13th to 16th October – It is one of the world’s most influential contemporary art fairs, and one that requires little introduction.

It's the chance to discover work by some of the most significant artists working today in one single weekend, and run into the likes of Kate Moss, Hugh Grant or Claudia Schiffer.

11.

 friezeartfair.com 12.

Muller Van Severen

 diito.be

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© Design Museum, London

Duende is in the house @ Diito (Brussels) from 15th to 30th September – The Eden ADN, a genetic design exhibition by boundarybreaking PR agency Duende promises to be one of Design September's highlights.

© Gerhard Richter

 From 8th September to 9 th October  Galerie Jerôme Sohier, Brussels  jeromesohier.com * The show you can’t miss

All hail the Kaiser

Without a doubt one of the most important artists living today, Gerhard Richter’s major retrospective promises to be the fall opening no art enthusiast could possibly miss. This is a unique chance to get up close and personal with a vast selection of the German artist’s paintings based on photographs, colourful gestural abstractions, squeegee paintings, portraits, subtle landscapes and historical paintings. Landmark pieces such as his The Skull and Candle paintings, Iceberg in Mist, a magisterial triptych of Cloud, Wald, and September, an image of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Centre in New York in 2001, will be present, as well as a series of glass constructions and mirror works he has been recently working on. © Scott Trindle

Antwerp Six’ most exuberant and larger than life figure has relentlessly been challenging the fashion world for the past three decades. Known for his colourful designs, his maverick fashion shows in Paris in the 90s, and the critical messages on society he proclaims with his designs, Walter Van Beirendonck will see the highlights of his career and creations celebrated in this comprehensive retrospective at Antwerp's fashion museum. In addition to silhouettes from his collections, the exhibition will provide an overview of the world he lives in, taking a deeper look into the narrative character of his oeuvre, his fascination for ethnography, rituals, science fiction and technology.

Shaping a nation

Some products and appliances seem so familiar and engraved in the collective mindset that it can be hard to imagine where they could actually stem from. Yet Kenneth Grange has been shaping the interiors and landscapes of Britain for the past 50 years, creating products that were not only a commercial success but also a joy to use. Kodak cameras, Wilkinson Sword Razors, Ronson cigarette lighters, Kenwood food mixers, Parker pens, the Adshel bus shelters, the Rural Post box for Royal Mail or the re-design of the London Taxi Cab are just some of his wellknown designs and are all currently displayed at the Design Museum, putting the last five decades of British design into perspective.

Kenneth Grange : Making Britain Modern

 Until 30 th October  Design Museum, London  designmuseum.org

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The diary

13.

13.

The golden age

© John Kobal Foundation, 2011

There used to be a time when Hollywood stars’ images were strictly controlled by the studios and only comprised of a handful of photographs that circulated around the world.

These portraits released to the public and press depicted the actors as glamorous and inaccessible, imbuing them with a mystique that would simply be unimaginable in today's paparazzi culture. This exhibition displays more than 70 original vintage prints of icons, amongst which James Dean, Marlon Brando, Elizabeth Taylor and Marilyn Monroe. This is a rare opportunity to view these important artefacts of a now extinct Hollywood studio system.

14.

Glamour of the Gods: Hollywood Portraits

 Until 23rd October  National Portrait Gallery, London  npg.org.uk

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Style over substance

Focusing on the 70s and 80s, the V&A’s new exhibition dedicated to Postmodernism will explore the radical ideas that challenged the orthodoxies of Modernism. And whilst many modernists considered style to be a mere sideshow to their utopian visions, the postmodernists saw style as being everything. The exhibition will also show how Postmodernism evolved from a provocative architectural movement to influence all areas of popular culture including art, film, music, graphics and fashion with over 250 objects revisiting a time when style was not just a “look”, but became an attitude.

Postmodernism: Style and Subversion 1970-1990

 From 24th September to 15th January  V&A, London  vam.ac.uk 16. The

* Last days to see

© Courtesy BP Archive

Jake or Dinos Chapman @ White Cube (London), until 17th September – London’s iconoclastic siblings have been shaking the art world for the past 20 years with their searing wit and provocative nature. For this exhibition, the brothers have worked in separate studios for the first time, unveiling a series of works confronting the whole idea of creative collaboration they have become famous for.

 whitecube.com 15.

© Private Collection

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© Courtesy the Artist and Sprüth Magers Berlin London

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Modernism’s poster boy

The Estorick Collection has gathered more than 50 pioneering works of graphic design and illustration to examine one of the key figures of British Modernism. A remarkably versatile artist, Edward McKnight Kauffer drew on a wide variety of styles in creating his works, from Japanese art to Fauvism, Constructivism and Surrealism. Yet it is his celebrated posters created for clients such as London Underground and Shell during the inter-war years for which he remains most famous, leading Kauffer to produce some of the most iconic and influential commercial imagery of the early 20th century. An absolute must-see for any graphic design fiend.

Edward McKnight Kauffer: The Poster King

 From 14th September to 18th December  Estorick Collection, London  estorickcollection.com

view from inside

Mayfair’s Sprüth Magers gallery will be hosting an exciting site-specific project by Joseph Kosuth, often referred to as “the father of Conceptual art”. The Mind’s Image of Itself – a play of architecture and the mind, is both a reflection on the architecture of the gallery space and of a suggested architecture of the mind. The installation is composed of an off register, a 1:1 wallpapered line drawing facsimile of the gallery rooms themselves.

Add to that a fragmented intellectual discourse made up of more than 150 meticulously selected quotes by diverse thinkers from a variety of sources put in play as wall texts and you're sure to be in for a highly conceptual experience.

Joseph Kosuth: The Mind’s Image of Itself

 From 10 th September to 1st October  Sprüth Magers, London  spruthmagers.com * Last days to see Mathilde Rosier @ Camden Arts Center (London), until 25th September – The French artist has transformed the Gallery 3 into a specially constructed environment, gathering paintings, sculptural assemblages and film, inspired by Freud, Jean Rouch and Tutankhamen’s tomb.

 camdenartscentre.org

Shave your style. “Make life your canvas.�

Emil Kozak, 29, Artist

Scan to watch exclusive footage of Emil shaving, styling and trimming his personal statement of style. www.braun.com/cruZer When you scan this bar code, the terms, conditions and privacy policy of the bar code reader that you selected will apply.

cruZer

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The diary

Holland ( 17  18 ) 17.

France

Poignant realism

17.

( 19  20 )

19.

From the globe with love

Sir Stanley Spencer's oeuvre is characterised by a wealth of themes that include biblical stories, landscapes, self portraits and domestic scenes and his unique figurative style of painting. That, in combination with his choice of subjects, have led him to become one of the most important British artists of the 20 th century. Spencer allows reality to dominate in his silent landscapes and intimate portraits, while fantasy and joie de vivre enjoy their heyday in some of his most famous paintings. Significantly contributing to the development of modern art, his work will be placed in an historical context alongside 20 works by English contemporaries such as the late Lucian Freud and Dora Carrington.

Now in its third edition, Photoquai is a biennial dedicated to non-western photography whose simple mission statement is to showcase artists whose work is little known in Europe. Curators have selected 46 emerging photographic talents from nearly 30 different countries such as Tanzania, Brazil, Cambodia, Russia, China, Bahrain or Iraq, each artist being revealed by the unique identity of their point of view but also by the context of their production and influences.

A unique voyage through the obsessions and fantasies of photographers and their visions of society.

Sir Stanley Spencer: Between Heaven and Earth

 From 13th September to 11th November  Musée du Quai Branly, Paris  quaibranly.fr

© Courtesy Tate, London

 From 17th September to 15th January  Kunsthal, Rotterdam  Kunsthal.nl

Photoquai: 3rd Biennal exhibition of world images

* The fair you can’t miss

18.

Visions arise

A prominent figure of the Düsseldorf School (alongside Andreas Gursky, Thomas Ruff and Thomas Struth), Axel Hütte has made a name for himself by injecting a painterly quality in his landscape photographs.

Hütte does not retouch his photos, nor does he direct anything, but he does consciously employ traditional techniques from classic painting such as central perspective, cropping, raised viewpoints, balanced compositions and imposing dimensions. Rotterdam's Akinci gallery will gather the photographer's recent works, in which the central theme of reflections in water emerge, pervading the prints with even dreamier aspects.

Fiac @ Grand Palais (Paris), from 20th to 23rd October – 165 exposing galleries spanning 21 countries will once more gather in the French capital’s Grand Palais for this modern and contemporary art mecca. Don’t miss the “parcours design” on the opening night, an event marking the reinforcement of the design and architecture selection.

© Axel Hütte

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 fiac.com

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20.

Axel Hütte

© Lek Kiatsirikajorn

 From 10 th September to 8th October  Akinci, Amsterdam  akinci.nl * Last days to see

 gem-online.com

20.

© National Portrait Gallery, London

Erwin Wurm, The Beauty Business @ Gem (The Hague), until 18th September – Wurm’s biting humour will be celebrated with this retrospective in which visitors will be invited to take part in the exhibition and become One Minute Sculptures. All they have to do is post pictures of themselves on Flickr and / or Twitter using the (hash)tag WURMGEM. How very 2011.

Hedonistic beauty

The second half of the 19 th century in Britain saw a shift from the ugliness and materialism that were predominant to a new idealisation of art and beauty reinforced by the painters, poets, decorators and designers of that time. Together, they defined an artistic style freed from the principles of order and Victorian morality, allowing the expression of sensuality. This exhibition will explore this British aesthetic movement through the works of Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Edward BurneJones, Oscar Wilde and Aubrey Beardsley, who all united in a quest to combine artistic creation and lifestyle, a quest that found fertile areas of expression in photography, the decorative arts, literature and modes of dress.

Beauty, Morals and Voluptuousness in the England of Oscar Wilde

 From 13th September to 15th January  Musée d’Orsay, Paris  musee-orsay.fr

BO ZAR MU SIC

28 & 29.10.2011

Co-production: Je M’en Fish vzw

Photo | Foto : Olivier Bruniels

CONCERTS, DJ SETS, AUDIOVISUAL ARTS

18

The diary

The pick of gigs to come Kitty, Daisy & Lewis @ L’ Ancienne Belgique on 15th September

Boots Electric @ Trix on 17th September

Omar Souleyman @ L’ Ancienne Belgique on 18th September

Sic Alps @ Vooruit Café on 22nd September

Shabazz Palaces @ L’ Ancienne Belgique on 28th September

Teeth @ Botanique on 14th October

The three Durham siblings

There’s no point denying

A legend in his own right

Sic Alps’ simple, stripped,

The first hip hop act to get

Being touted as Karl

– aged 18 to 22 – have been

the soft spot we have for

in his native Syria (where

nihilistic brand of garage

signed to Sub Pop, Shabazz

Lagerfeld’s favourite new

making waves with their

Eagles Of Death Metal

he is said to have released

might not be reinventing

Palaces appeared on the

band certainly raises the

swinging R&B, jazz and

frontman Jesse Hughes.

more than 500 tapes

the musical wheel, though

scene back in 2010 with its

stakes. Fortunately, Teeth’s

blues sound directly lifted

The self-proclaimed

in less than 20 years),

it sure does the trick when

self-debut titled, a blend

electro-noise-pop lives up

from the 50s, a decade

hillbilly and endearing

Souleyman’s singular

it comes to nailing the

of atmospheric and offbeat

to the hype. Playful, fresh,

they have been obsessed

sleazebag extraordinaire

style of beat-heavy and

hedonistic spirit of the

productions supported by

stylish, minimalistic yet

with for as long as they can

has taken some time off

synth-driven oriental

60s. Imagine the Beach

Palaceer Lazaro’s crystal-

very punchy, cynics might

remember. Soulful singing,

from the cock-rock band

music with an urgency

Boys mating with the

clear, hard-nosed delivery.

describe the Dalston trio

feel-good harmonica,

he shares with bestie Josh

akin to hardcore techno or

Kinks, add to that vocalist

The former Digable

as yet another bunch of

catchy handclaps, mom

Homme to embark on

punk has taken the western

Mike Donovan’s lazy

Planets frontman, a rap

hipsters, but who cares –

and dad backing them up

a solo journey as Boots

world by storm. Invited to

slur reminiscent of Brian

purist if there ever was

they put on a good show and

during concerts – it truly is

Electric. Cannot wait.

perform at AB during the

Jonestown Massacre’s

one, descends on Brussels

that’s all that counts, right?

capital’s “car free Sunday”,

Anton Newcombe, et voilà.

with his activist collective

a “bop till you drop” type of family affair.

 Plays Amsterdam

 Play Amsterdam

on 15th September

following the release of

 Play Paris

 Play London

their second LP, Black Up.

(The Lexington)

(Glazart) on 23rd

Decidedly softer than its

on 21st September

the gig is free, so no excuse.

(Paradiso)

 Plays Tilburg

(Melkweg)

 Plays Paris

(013)

September

predecessor, it is one of the

(Nouveau Casino)

on 12th September

best rap albums of the year.

(Paradiso)

 Play Paris

on 16 th September

 Plays Antwerp

 Play Amsterdam

 Play Amsterdam

on 13th September

on 13th October

(Occii)

(La Maroquinerie)

 Plays London

on 12th October

(XOYO)

on 13th September

(Madame Jojo’s)

on 19 th September

 Plays Paris

on 27th September

(Trix)

on 24 September th

 Play London

(Point Ephémère)

 Play Amsterdam

on 14 th September

(Melkweg) on 29th September

Soul Asylum @ L’ Ancienne Belgique on 16th October

Saul Williams @ Botanique on 20th October

Sonic City @ De Kreun on 29th October

The Ex @ VK on 29th October

Gablé @ Beursschouwburg on 5th November

Silver Apples @ Trix on 8th November

Yes, the “Runaway

The highly respected and

By inviting Melvins,

These veterans of Dutch

Pigeonholing this joyful

Silver Apples were already

Train” grungers from

versatile modern-day poet,

Factory Floor, HTRK,

punk emerged at the height

and whacky French quartet

experimenting with

Minneapolis are back.

MC, musician and actor

Mark Ernestus, Legendary

of the genre in 1979 and

is simply impossible.

primitive synthesisers in

As a matter of fact, they

is on the road to defend

Pink Dots, Tannhauser

survived its downfall.

Gablé crosses over genres

1967 (before Kraftwerk

never really left the scene,

Volcanic Sunlight, his

Sterben Und Das Tod,

Undergoing several line-up

and styles, overthrowing

even formed), producing

they just somewhat failed

fourth offering, which sees

Standish/Carlyon, and

changes during their three-

any expectations of what

a new kind of trippy and

at following up on that

him take things where he left

Sightings; the LA-

decade career, their sound

a normal “band” could

psychedelic electronic sound

1993 worldwide hit.

them on his previous Trent

based Liars – who were

evolved from anarcho-

possibly be, with an

that would go on to influence

Recent material might not

Reznor-produced opus

asked to curate this day

punk to new-wave, even

unexpected freshness.

krautrock, dance music

have been met with great

and steer even further in a

festival in Courtrai/

incorporating free jazz,

Their bubbly and

and indie rock. It wasn’t

enthusiasm, but if you’re

strange electro pop vibe.

Kortrijk - demonstrate the

afrobeat, blues and folk,

unpredictable live shows

until the late 90s that they

impeccable, versatile and

whilst never losing their

have cemented their

finally got the recognition

dying to whip out that flannel shirt from the attic,

 Plays Amsterdam

slightly offbeat taste one

relevance, edge or mythical

reputation as the band

they deserved, leading now

you know where to go.

(Bitterzoet)

would rightfully expect

onstage energy.

to watch, incorporating

sole-member Simeon to hit

on 17th October

of them.

hoovers amongst other

the roads again.

 Play London

 Plays Paris

 Play Paris

surrealist elements. Simply

(HMV Forum)

(La Cigale) on 3rd

(Jazz A Villette)

expect some serious fun.

on 15th October

November

on 4 th September

 Plays London (Corsica Studios)

 Play Utrecht

 Play Paris

(Ekko)

(Point Ephémère)

 Plays Rotterdam

on 26 th October

on 2nd November

(WORM)

on 27th October

on 7th November

. t s r fi G IN it is V ? t a Exp pport ? If so, you need su Are you an expatriate vide actly what ING can pro and advice. That’s ex ents. and insurance requirem for all your banking ev , en deals with everything Our ING Expat service

bank Belgium : accounts, before you arrive in at ING e, etc. To find out wh cards, rental guarante our hesitate to call one of can do for you, don’t 464 66 64. advisors on + 32 (0)2

www.ing.be/expat

ING Belgium SA/nv – Bank – avenue Marnix 24, B-1000 Brussels – Brussels RPM/RPR – VAT BE 0403.200.393 – BIC (SWIFT): BBRUBEBB – IBAN: BE45 3109 1560 2789 (Account: 310-9156027-89). Publisher: Philippe Wallez, cours Saint-Michel 60, 1040 Brussels.

20

The papers Cinema Photography Industry Society Publishing Rise and shine

The blue papers We walk the beat with the local boys in blue, talk to prodigy movie maker Gust Van den Berghe about his latest feature Blue Birds, meet the founder of boutique photography publisher Le Caillou Bleu and, finally, talk to photographer Julie Calbert about her on-going series of Polaroids Into the Blue. Think we might have gone a little over-the-top on this colour-coded trip for once?

Writers Robbert van Jaarsveld, Rose Kelleher, Nicholas Lewis & Sam Steverlynck

Neighbourhood

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ˆ “ Le Caillou Bleu, essentially, is Fabrice’s very intimate ode to photography on paper ”

© Sarah Eechaut

ˇ

Le Caillou Bleu Listening to Fabrice Wagner (pictured above) describe Le Caillou Bleu, the boutique publishing imprint he founded six years ago and which now counts 20 fine art photography books to its name, you get the sense that this is more than just a commercial venture for the Strasbourg-born Frenchman who arrived in Brussels in 1995. With a somewhat looseended focus which defines itself by its wholehearted acceptance of photography in all its forms (“Le Caillou Bleu publishes photographic works of every kind, without favouring any specific artistic trend,” states the ‘about us’ page on the company’s website), the Brusselsbased publisher mostly acts as a springboard for otherwise little or unknown photographers.

“The image comes first,” says Fabrice when we meet him one Wednesday afternoon in his Schaerbeek townhouse “it doesn’t have to be (the work of a) professional.” A one-man band

with more than a facet to his game (he takes care of everything from his books’ graphic design and art direction to their international sales and distribution), Fabrice belongs to that rare breed of new generation publishers: confident in their vision, patient in the achievement of their goals and driven by a deep-rooted passion for what they do. And it is this last point that really shines through in the case of Le Caillou Bleu, which, essentially, is Fabrice’s very intimate ode to photography on paper, an extension of himself. Indeed, you get the sense that his back catalogue of books acts as his private gallery, every new book he brings out more akin to a recent addition to an already growing collection than a mere new entry in an Autumn / Winter catalogue. He talks fondly about the photographers whose work he has published (Frank Rothe, André Cepeda, Philippe Herbet, Jean-Luc Fournier amongst others), investing himself to the fullest in nurturing their career and taking word of one of them getting a major exhibition in an international gallery as a personal victory, one which seems to go way beyond the need to breakeven at the end of the month – “I live with the

editing work I do for other publishing houses,” he says, somewhat reassuringly. Asked how he believes his books differ from that of another publisher, his response is immediate: “their finish – distributors love my books – and (the fact that) the price is affordable.” In the end though, the personal and non-linear way in which the selection is made is really what is the most endearing about the independent publishing house. Nothing is too calculated, and nothing is too provoked. Everything is the work of instinct and emotional appeal. “I’ve published the works of a pensioner, as well as having published the works of a student,” continues Fabrice. And, why Le Caillou Bleu?

“My son, Thomas, used to paint stones in blue when we were on holidays.” Simple… (NL) Le Caillou Bleu has just published Satoru Toma’s book ‘Ask the cat’ to coincide with the Japanese-born, Brussels-based photographer’s current exhibition of the same name at Espace Photographique Contretype, which runs until 4th September. cailloubleu.com contretype.org

22

Photographer Julie Calbert’s blue notes “I like telling stories with oneiric undertones,” says 25 year old photographer Julie Calbert.

A recent graduate of Brussels’ INRACI, the Brussels-based artist creates and captures mystifying, mysterious and, at times even

The papers

mesmerising atmospheric moments, solemnising timeless instants of beauty that often owe more to their past existence than their present one. More akin to snapshots of the unexpected than to calculated compositions of the predicable, Julie’s impressive body of work considering her young age delights in its sheer beauty and maturity. She possesses an uncanny ability to detect the meaningful in a sea of everyday, spotting those little things you wouldn’t necessarily see, let alone deem worthy of a photograph: a chandelier, a landscaped-wallpaper, lakes in Sweden, eerie forests. It is the way she

captures these, however, that makes her work so endearing and distinguishes it from the rest.

Indeed, the blue tones used throughout her many series, omnipresent and defining, hark back to her fascination with dreams and memories: “(the colour) brings a certain lightness to my images,” she explains “just like in dreams or memories.” A dreamcatcher then. (NL) juliecalbert.be Visit thewordmagazine.be/wonders/JulieCalbert for a complete gallery of Julie’s work.

Neighbourhood

23

24

The papers

ˆ “ An enduring analogy for the wistful, the local bobby walked the beat, escorting kids home who'd snuck out of school or sleepovers ”

© Virassamy

ˇ

Good old fashioned police work How many policemen does it take to change a lightbulb? One, but he's never around when you need him. An unexceptional joke says it all. Once the heroes of TV and film, the cop of popular imagination has degenerated into an estranged bureaucrat at best. Ye olde neighbourhood policeman, on the other hand, is one of nostalgia's greatest hits. An enduring analogy for the wistful, the local bobby walked the beat, escorting kids home who'd snuck out of school or sleepovers. He always had time for a chat, and he was always a “he”. Due to the rise of statistics-based policing, today's university-educated boys and girls in blue are more likely to be involved in obsessive record keeping than community relations. “There is a lot of paperwork now,” says 3rd District Police Inspector Louis De Langhe, “About 75 percent of the job. When I started, we were outside more and the job was based on action. Now it's all statistics.” On the force for 33 years now,

Louis is a decided graduate of the old school.

He is nostalgic for the neat and uncomplicated days when beat policing was the ideal of public policy. “I know the people. The young officers today don't know the people. They look for big criminals. They are looking for glory, and they don't want to walk the beat. They prefer to go around in cars.” He holds regular community meetings. These softly softly measures project a nice image of the police. Most people don't care about national crime figures based on data in far-flung cities. They care about finding the delinquent who stole their garden gnome. The sight of a uniformed officer on foot is more reassuring than an aloof face emerging from the depths of a patrol car. “I hate going in the patrol car.” says Louis “You see nothing. You can go by bike too, but if you park your bike on the corner, you come back and it's gone.” His beat includes the well-behaved Chatelain / Kastelein quarter, but also the more colourful Matonge. As soon as he steps out of the station, a woman asks Louis for directions. Her hands are clasped respectfully in front of her, the uniform producing a strange reverential effect. He stops every few metres to drop in on local business owners. He is on kissing terms with many of them. He watches out for illegal parking, breaches of red lights.

A soccer referee in his spare time, Louis has

the psychology and eye of an sentinel. He spots amateurs filming a movie in front of a church.

An enquiry reveals they don't have permission from the commune, but he drops it. “We are not in Cuba. I don't want to be repressive, to be a bear, I'm more like a lion. In Matonge they call me Bwana Louis.” he laughs. Ça va ? Ça va...

Louis shouts in the window of a Lebanese snack.

“That's if you are polite with me. Two weeks ago, this stupid guy stole a bottle of Adidas perfume. ¤ 3.50 it cost. He tells me “Fuck you”.

I don't even know this guy, and he tells me “Fuck you”! So I call a patrol car.” Saluting workers in a beauty shop, Louis adds “But it's not always necessary to make a report. If I see someone with a joint, I put it out. I use my judgement, and if my boss says it was a bad decision, I say OK, but I was in the street and you were in the office. And he says OK, it's your decision. On the street, I'm the boss.” Rue du Bailli is busy with shoppers. “I saw some of these girls at six years old with their parents. Now I see them in Place Chatelain / Kasteleinsplein 20 years later with their own kids. That's what you get being the neighbourhood police: you get to know the people.” (RK) Rose spent two days walking the beat with Inspector Louis De Langhe in and around Ixelles / Elsene.

Neighbourhood

25

ˆ “ The only difference is that there is no tape, no disc, no cashier to pay and no overhead cost including the rent of the real estate, maintenance, power… ”

© Virassamy

ˇ

Above the cloud: from hard to no copy In the last years, the long-play phonograph record has made a nearly unprecedented comeback after its near death at the hands of the compact disc. Industry statistics showed that in 2010, sales of vinyl records increased by 14 percent – a rare triumph in a bloody war that is being lost on all fronts. It marked a cultural turning point ; musical journalists marveled over what they called the return of decency in a realm of decay. True music lovers will find their way to quality and the new releases that matter to them – they said – regardless of how many low bitrate mp3's you bombard them with. Maybe so, but then why did the same report indicate that some of the top selling artists included such upcoming talents as Jimi Hendrix and Bob Dylan ?

Sure, you know some people who buy a bit of vinyl or the occasional cd, but not the way they

used to do it before the days of P2P, Rapidshare and Youtube. Speaking of which, when is the last time you bought a DVD or rented a movie ?

If you’re thinking “last week, why do you ask ?”

Then congratulations, you belong to that dying breed, the upstanding citizen. Most probable though, you belong to the download-and-share tribe, the on-demand generation used to getting whatever the fuck it wants at the mere click of a button (often red). The only difference is that there is no tape, no disc, no cashier to pay and no overhead cost including the rent of the real estate, maintenance, power… So then what are you paying for? A rain of bits coming from a cloud.

The only overhead cost is a buzzing basement full of servers and hard drives… And of course copyright coin. It's that same statistical mindfuck: getting a 25 percent discount doesn't count for shit if all it means is that you're being ripped off more efficiently than before.

Thus, the question remains: how are the Kaisers Of Content going to save their sharkskin suits? So far, the majors still seem to think that they can turn this thing around on a legislative level – and get everybody to pay again. And the truth is that they are probably going to succeed.

Better yet: they’re going to do it by making you think you got a good deal. They haven’t yet figured out that they don't really need a carrier;

that in fact, they can significantly up their profits by uploading one high quality master file onto a central server instead of shipping containers full of Blu-rays off to other markets. Prognosis: most carriers will disappear while a select few will take on the status that vinyl holds today: a luxury item for the connoisseur, the expert cultural consumer. Everything else will come out of the cloud. In a way, it makes perfect sense. Even on an ecological level, it seems like the smart thing to do. Why press billions upon billions of dvd’s, Blu-rays, newspapers, books and cd’s and ship them all over the world when it’s way easier to just upload it straight onto your corporate server and make it available worldwide to all your paying customers with the click of a button? Doing it any other way seems like a waste of time, energy and resources. Of course it can't be a win-win for everybody: if everything is in the cloud, there will no longer be a need for bookshops, press shops, record stores, libraries, video stores…

At least not as we know them. There will be a time when a paper magazine – much like the one you’re reading right now – will be like a limited edition 10" Radiohead EP: a vintage symbol of nostalgia you keep on your bookshelf to indicate that you know how to appreciate the finer things in life. (RVJ)

26

The papers

ˆ “ We went through some heavy stuff.

Death, quarrels with tribal chief, locals ripping us off… ” ˇ

Director Gust Van den Berghe’s very own little avatar Having your final-year project screened at Cannes’ Film Festival must be every film student’s ultimate dream. It did become reality however for the then 24 year old Gust Van den Berghe, who’s Little Baby Jesus of Flandr premiered at the prestigious festival to critical acclaim. For his debut, Van den Berghe – an ambitious yet down to earth director who graduated in 2009 from Brussels’ RITS film school – used the little known Flemish Christmas play En waar de sterre bleef stille staan by Felix Timmermans as a starting point. In Van den Berghe’s version though, the play’s three kings are played by mentally handicapped actors – like the majority of the crew – contributing to the film’s uncanny atmosphere. Shot in the Flemish countryside, the grainy black and white film contains long frames of desolate landscapes that at times evoke the universe of

Bruegel, whilst also revealing a voice of its own.

Van den Berghe's second film Blue Bird – based on another obscure fictional story, this time L'Oiseau Bleu (1908) by Maurice Maeterlinck, Belgium’s one and only Nobel price winner for Literature – was also selected for Cannes’ Quinzaine des Réalisateurs, rejecting any claim that the wunderkind was just another one hit wonder. As the original story about two children looking for a magical blue bird is too dated for today’s (western) readers, Van den Berghe wisely set the story in Africa where the belief in ghosts and the supernatural is still well-and-truly alive. In their quest to find the bird, the children wander through a near-mystical landscape, meeting their deceased grandparents and a group of yet to be born children. This journey of life and death is a rite of passage, which is further emphasised in the end, when the mother notices that her children have outgrown their clothes.

Blue Bird is a deliberate and simple story about the loss of innocence. At its core, the movie is more about the subdued atmosphere and poetic beauty than the story itself. Most interestingly perhaps, the film’s overall aesthetic, atmosphere and tone are enhanced by Van den Berghe’s use of visual technique. Though shot in colour, the film’s blue tint was reached at through the use of a filter, which was constantly graded in a studio – a time-consuming process that can be compared to the act of painting every one of the movie’s frames. Indeed, Van den Berghe refers

to Blue Birds as “My own little avatar”. The blue hue gives the film almost a physical dimension playing with the viewer’s perception, while the horizontal format works wonders for the shots of Togo’s vast landscapes.

Both of Van den Berghe’s movies were made without professional actors (people with Down syndrome for the first and locals for the second), and with a very low budget (a mere 60,000 euros) : “To find money, you almost have to be as creative as in making your film,” he jokes. As in order to finance his debut, Van den Berghe was a guinea pig for several medical tests (he also apparently engaged in some illegal activity but nothing we can talk about on these pages). Shooting a film in Africa wasn't easy either : “It was literally madness! The only certainty we had is that there was no money. We went through some heavy stuff.

Death, quarrels with tribal chief, locals ripping us off…” That being said, the restrictions – the lack of electricity which forced the crew to use memory cards – did serve to keep the director on his toes. Tellingly, the agitation during production didn't overshadow its final result, as Van den Berghe says, “it contributed to the energy animating the film.” The general mood however is one of poetic tranquility of which Van den Berghe – though just starting to develop his oeuvre – already seems to have made his trademark. (SS) Visit thewordmagazine.be/wonders/bluebirds to watch the movie’s trailer and a gallery of stills.

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The study Graphic design Illustration Talent Jokes

The Word & Levis presents

The blue album’s colour chart

S0.40.50 T0.40.30

S6.14.75

S0.40.60 S5.48.41

S0.15.80

S4.26.64 S0.50.40

S6.09.77

T0.20.70 S0.50.50

T0.10.80

— A collaborative study in different shades of blue

30

The Word on Industry People Heritage

Teenage territories Your teenage bedroom was the first time your personality really took shape. From the tacky Beverly Hills 90210 posters you blutacked to the wall to the love letters you scribbled on the back of your bed, your bedroom was your world. It said more about you than the Wrangler jeans your mum forced you to wear. It was who you were.

Photographer Sarah Eechaut

Eva Van Kerkhove

28 years old, clinical child psychologist.

Life

Magalie Flerackers

25 years old, masters in Sinology student.

31

32

The Word on

Stijn Van Hoey

34 years old, sports coordinator.

Life

Yves Van Kerkhove

31 years old, music product manager.

33

34

The other Word on Passion Photography

The big blue

When the Indian Ocean is nothing but a distant dream yet your little one insists on a face-to-face with Nemo, your next best option is bringing it to the living room. And, as we realised whilst meeting some aquarium diehards, that can mean anything from single-room, table-topped fishbowls to fully automated, wall-mounted monster aquariums.

Photographer Veerle Frissen

Life

35

Steven van Aeldeweereld, 31

Bought his first aquarium aged 25 and now counts 36 fish, all of them Cichlids from Lake Malawi except for one, “a fish from my previous aquarium that I really wanted to keep.�

He is most proud of his Pseudotropheus Demasoni, a blue and black striped cichlid from Lake Malawi.

36

The other Word on

Erik Lievens, 62

Bought his first aquarium in 1987, aged 38.

Owns approximately 60 fish, all of them Cichlids. Erik estimates he spends around 250 euros per year on his aquariums.

Life

37

Dirk Van Damme, 54

Bought his first aquarium at the tender age of 12 and today owns eight (two large aquariums in the living room, the largest of which is a whopping 1,600L, and six in the back room).

Owns over 100 fish, all of them Cichlids from rivers in Brazil and Argentina. Dirk finds it difficult to pick one fish over another : “You will always see, that when you favour one fish, something bad will happen to it.”

Jan Jacobs, 34

Bought his first aquarium aged 21 and today owns three. One for show, and one for emergencies (in case a fish gets sick, is attacked by another fish or, worse, needs to be quarantined). His aquariums are inhabited by 10 fish, a few Scarlet cleaner shrimps, a sea star, a black sea urchin, a hermit lobster and a few sea snails. “Currently, I have a black and orange clownfish mating with each other and I’m very excited about the result.”

Visit thewordmagazine.be/wonders/thebigblue for our full feature of aquarium obsessives.

The encounter

38

People Talent Industry

Meeting Dries Van Noten (or the day my heart stopped beating) Despite being part of fashion royalty, Dries Van Noten really is an idealist and true romantic at heart. I remember meeting him for the first time in Paris a few years ago, in the run up to one of his menswear shows, and being touched by his honest nervousness. What struck me the most though was his humility and sense of distance. And that there is where Dries’ real appeal lies : in fashion, but somewhat removed from it.

Writer Philippe Pourhashemi

The thing about Van Noten’s clothes is that you can actually wear them – everything you see on the catwalk will end up in stores. His frocks aren’t made to sell more lipstick. This sense of reality is as rare as it is refreshing in an industry where designers often rely on shock value to make the headlines. Blame it on the recession perhaps, but conceptual fashion doesn't cut it any longer. There’s a yearning for the authentic, qualitative and crafty that Van Noten has come to be synonymous with. In fact, he has enjoyed support from the international press ever since his early beginnings, even though he never advertised in it. “I think that, for a very long time, our decision not to advertise was not a choice, but more of a necessity as we simply didn’t have the budget. Since then the company

has grown, and our decision not to do it remains, but for different reasons. We do not necessarily want to increase the price of our clothes to fund the advertising and I personally don’t feel that my collections should be associated with a specific image or person. When it comes down to the press, I think that – after 25 years – people get to understand your thought process a bit more. They respect that I’m an independent designer and I respect their point of view, too, whether it be praise or criticism.”

“Independence” is an important factor for the home-grown designer. His company is privately owned and he doesn't have to answer to anyone, except himself. In a weird way, Van Noten could be Antwerp’s answer to Giorgio Armani, who still owns his name after

more than 35 years in the business. However, Van Noten admits he did consider getting a third party involved when things got challenging.

“I remember back in the 90s when many young designers – including myself – were under huge amounts of pressure to sell to the big groups.

When Galliano and McQueen were sold, my business partner and I did think twice about whether or not it would have been a good idea to seek financial help. We decided to forgo that option, got through the worst part and came out stronger in the end, with the ability to work at our own pace and no constraints. I cannot really speak for anyone else on that matter, because I’ve only ever had to make decisions independently.”

This free-spirited approach also serves to shape the designer’s aesthetic. Indeed, one of Van

Style

39

Noten’s skills is the subtle way in which he astutely balances references in his clothes, avoiding clichés and stereotypes. For his last womenswear collection, he had opulence and collage on his mind. “I had the pleasure to see an amazing exhibition on the Ballets Russes at the V&A museum in London last year. I was enthralled by the different ways in which the wardrobe masters were able to create new costumes out of old ones. Sergei Diaghilev – the founder of the Ballets Russes – was also a huge inspiration. This idea of bringing movement and asymmetry to the silhouette was something I found very powerful.” Shown in one of the ridiculously grand reception rooms of the Hôtel de Ville in Paris, the collection was a multisensory experience, offering a heady and idiosyncratic take on luxury. The Thin White Duke's “Heroes” played on the soundtrack, giving a fiery and poetic vibe to the presentation. Bowie is, in fact, one of the designer's major musical obsessions “His music has been an endless source of inspiration throughout my life. He was able to capture the essence of his music through his wardrobe choices. Besides the endless variety of his looks, Bowie was a true chameleon who had this ability to change constantly. I was referring mainly to two of his periods: the “Just a Gigolo” film – shot in the late 70s – for the menswear's winter collection and “Ziggy Stardust” for the womenswear.

It felt perfectly normal to use his music for both shows.”

ˆ If a designer creates 12 collections a year, I do believe he or she will get burnt-out pretty quickly. ˇ Despite having both feet on the ground, Van Noten can nonetheless be vulnerable and sensitive at times. He leaves room for doubt in his life and still questions his choices as a designer. When he talks about the end of a collection – and the whole process that leads to the fashion show – his emotional side takes over “I suppose you could say that there is that element of postpartum remorse. After working on something for more than six months, it is tough moving on to the next collection straight away. You do feel sad initially, but there is a great sense of accomplishment, too. Then, of course, you wait to see how people will react.

This heightened sense of anticipation runs a little longer until you’re fully involved with the next collection.” The increasing speed of fashion is not something that leaves him indifferent either. With the steady rise of mass clothing chains and the amount of product and styles out there, “designer fashion” has had to reposition itself, jump on the collective bandwagon or stick to what it does best. This has led to more and more collections being produced annually by luxury brands, something Van Noten believes clearly affects the designers’ creativity. “Look at all the collections people

have to design each year, including pre-collections and accessories. If a designer creates 12 collections a year, I do believe he or she will get burnt-out pretty quickly. Ideas should be nurtured and have a chance to grow before being pushed out the door to make room for new clothes. It’s hard enough doing two lines each season. I have enormous respect for other designers who – year in, year out – continue to produce excellent work. As a designer, it all boils down to my love for the craft and always wanting to push and grow.”

Van Noten is less forgiving to the fashion circus and its pretentiousness. His clothes work for different body types and nationalities, proving that the industry does not have to be narrow-minded to survive: “It would be foolish for a designer to think that his entire client base is sample sized. Sadly, fashion can be too elitist sometimes, often economically, though hopefully never creatively. My main basis when I work on a collection is to create garments that anyone can include into their own wardrobe. I want people to be able to mix pieces up and make them a part of their own style.

There is no better feeling than seeing someone walking down the street wearing something you designed in a way you wouldn’t have expected it to be worn.” There is a generosity in Van Noten’s approach that does not apply to other designers’ work. He is fascinated with exoticism and foreignness, letting his fertile imagination do the travelling, “The idea of different cultures being incorporated within my collections is obviously something very dear to me. I like to learn more about them, through reading or exhibitions. I guess I’m fascinated with other

ways of life, cultures and history. I will often use these rituals and traditions in my work, but always in a contemporary way.”

I have a confession to make: Dries Van Noten is one of my fashion heroes. Season after season, he produces beautiful, wearable clothes I want to have. His shows move me, too. He manages to create the right atmosphere and lures you in, without being pushy or in your face. Walking into his flagship store in Antwerp is like sneaking into an old, cosy English library, full of hidden gems and promises. His generosity as a human being shines through, from the drinks and tasty nibbles he serves his audience at shows, to his support of new designers. In fact, he makes a point of returning what he received, “Each year, we hold seminars in the studio with students from the Royal College of Antwerp. This is a time where members of my team and I have the opportunity to show fashion students the ins and outs of running a fashion company. It is an important thing as an ‘established’ designer for me to do, considering the years of support the industry gave me when I was growing. When I was selected to be president of the fashion jury at the Festival d’Hyères in France last year, this was another way for me – with the help of some extremely talented editors, designers and stylists – to advise younger designers on where their energies should be focused on, giving directions to the ones we thought were the most promising.” They say you should never meet your heroes, but, honestly, that’s just a load of BS if you ask me. driesvannoten.be

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The insider

© Yassin Serghini

Retail Heritage Vintage Consume

A blast from the past Pièce Unique is a mecca for fashion lovers with a tendency to look to the past for class. Opened in January 2010 by Nathalie Gutterman – a bubbly, fun-loving French woman whom many refer to as “NG” – the boutique specialises in rare vintage finds and second-hand pieces. The 90 square meter space has a warm and friendly feel and it hasn’t taken NG very long to get to know the neighbourhood. “When I was looking for a place, a friend of mine suggested I open in this area and I’m glad I did. I love it here. My original idea was to have a consignment shop with clothes from contemporary designers, but my son and I found these amazing dead stock pieces from the likes of Yves Saint Laurent and Thierry Mugler. All the original tags were still attached and I decided to include them in my selection.” Despite the owner's sourcing skills and eclectic taste, Pièce Unique was not an overnight success “When I opened last year, I only had vintage and hardly any clients. Most of the pieces I showed were from the 80s and people didn’t seem to get them. My very first client bought a fur coat from the 70s and I realised there were people here who really knew and appreciated vintage. In fact, this same woman still is a client and only buys Hermès scarves.

She’s obsessed with them.” NG’s enthusiasm for extraordinary clothes is contagious and she’s not the kind of woman who will take no for an

answer. When she looked at vintage stores in Brussels, she noticed the wow factor was often missing. “When I choose vintage clothes, I want Couture or iconic pieces. It has to be exceptional. This is not something you find easily here and I felt there was a gap in the market. Even though I mix contemporary brands with older pieces, vintage is something I’m truly passionate about.”

ˆ It’s a very small world.

If you go to clothing auctions in Paris, you will always see the same faces fighting for designer clothes. These people hate each other's guts so much it makes the whole scene rather comical. ˇ A quick tour of Pièce Unique's stockroom gives you an idea of what she means. Racks of pristine vintage frocks would give any die-hard fashion fiend instant hot flushes. Courrèges, Paco Rabanne, Chanel and Issey Miyake are all there, as well as more recent pieces from Helmut Lang, Jil Sander or John Galliano. There even is a silk

madras Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche dress with a fitted bust and full skirt. The tags are still on and its condition is remarkable. In fact, it’s no secret designers have been plundering vintage clothes for years, giving their collections that reassuring, familiar feel. Escaping the retro dance has become impossible in fashion, as every season brings images from previous decades. The 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s are constantly reinterpreted, even though quality standards tend to be lower now. “The thing about vintage is that it stands the test of time. It is rare, too, which means that competition amongst dealers is pretty fierce. It’s a very small world.

If you go to clothing auctions in Paris, you will always see the same faces fighting for designer clothes. These people hate each other's guts so much it makes the whole scene rather comical.”

If price can be an issue for Belgians, NG also sells to international clients who understand the value of vintage, “I sold this beautiful, white Courrèges coat to a young Parisian couple the other day. She tried it on and he bought it for her as a present.” This autumn, Pièce Unique will expand, opening a gallery space where the ever-resourceful NG will showcase one-off vintage, as well as selected works from innovative, upcoming artists. (PP) Pièce Unique Rue Franz Merjaystraat, 167-169 1050 Brussels

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42

The showstoppers Fashion Beauty Consume

One for you, one for me We have a little bit of everything for everyone this month.

We have a perfume for him, shoes for her, a bag just for her, a heavy-knit cardigan for him (although she’ll probably stretch it to the max on those crispy Sunday mornings) as well as a raincoat they might even snuggle into together if really needed. Either way, we’ve got it covered.

01.

If you’re planning to take the boat out this Autumn…

S.N.S Herning is a Danish knitwear brand who’s been on the clothing racks of every self-respected ‘serious’ style boutique for the last year or so. As the story goes, the company used to manufacture outerwear for the Danish fishing industry, apparently using Latvian knitters to hand-stich their heavy-duty jumpers and cardigans. The quality and design of the garments was such that the local population started to wear the brand casually, giving it an entry into society that launched its ensuing dominance of that very peculiar of niches – unparalleled craftsmanship, a particular attention to detail and a light-heartedness that makes one melt (each piece comes with a hand-stitched label specifyi ng the name of the person who made it). Now if that didn’t sell it for you, just imagine how dapper you’ll look this winter in a tight-fitting, sturdy-looking navy blue cardigan. I bought one last winter and have literally never had as many people comment on something I wore. (NL) S.N.S Herring.

Available from Mapp (Brussels) and Houben (Antwerp). sns-herning.com

Style

43 02.

Faire and square

Obsessed with graphic styles and contemporary shapes, Frenchman Nicolas Ghesquière has offered consistent and directional collections at Balenciaga for more than a decade.

His accessory line keeps on growing each year too, and now includes bags, shoes, jewellery and watches. The designer's sharp sense can be found in these sleek sunglasses, which are as unisex as they are timeless. In fact, plastic has never looked so good. Black shades are out this season : go for blue instead and we promise you a brighter future. (PP) Balenciaga square frame sunglasses (¤265).

Available from Louise 54 (Brussels) and Louis (Antwerp). balenciaga.com

03.

Scent of a winner

Perfumes can be a tricky one to balance, especially so for men. Too fruity, and you come across as being too precious, too girly. Too strong and you come across as being too macho, too sexist. First impressions really do count you see, and the right scent is half the battle won. If you want to go a step further though, and make sure the entire battle is won well before the meet has even taken place, try Chanel’s latest perfume, Bleu de Chanel. Manly enough to reassure yet discreet enough not to overshadow, the eau de toilette – which comes in an intense blue developed especially for the bottle – is a balancing act in sensorial superiority : it’s fresh, energetic and, most important of all, self-assured. (NL) Bleu de Chanel 100ml bottle (¤71).

Available nationwide from Ici Paris XL. chanel.com

04.

I’ll never let you go

If skinny jeans were the trousers that defined the first decade of this new millennium, Keds certainly were the accompanying shoes. The thing about Keds you see is their longevity.

Even when worn to their ultimate limit, the street-smart sneakers manage to retain their prime positioning in our wardrobes. Fact is, although they might be drenched in festival mud or have holes in their soles the size of lunar craters, there’s nothing that’ll stop us wearing them. Not even a new pair of leather patterned, navy blue ones we, actually, could see replacing the white ones we’ve had since 2008 – and which aren’t remotely white anymore… Hmm… Might get the new ones after all. (NL) Keds Veronica Navy shoe for women (¤85).

Available from Fresh (Brussels) and Lux Street Fashion (Antwerp). keds.com

The showstoppers

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05.

Do you remember the time ?

K-Way. The name alone brings back memories of 8.20 am starts, playground hustles and cigarettes you didn’t even know how to smoke yet. One of those brands – similar to Walkman, Chevignon and Chippy – that forever stays imbedded in your teenage subconscious. Kind of like when you hear Roxette’s The Look on the radio and it instantly transports you back to that first kiss you managed to blag behind the school football field. What’s more, with the rain making a triumphant comeback, there’s really no better investment you could be making at the moment. (NL) K-Way reversible jacket (¤290).

Available at farfetch.com kway.be

06.

Kinky heyday

The first word that comes to mind when looking at Carine Gilson's lingerie line is “exquisite”. Using the finest Chantilly lace and Lyon silks, her pieces are utterly feminine and hand-crafted in Belgium, exuding just the right amount of retro charm. Coloured underwear can be risky, but it avoids any vulgar connotations in Carine's hands.

Her designs are destined for girls who know a thing or two about seduction and are confident enough to flaunt it. This chemise is embroidered with contrasting lace and can also be worn as a dress. Indeed, it'd be a shame to hide such beauty under layers of clothing. (PP) Silk-satin chemise with lace (¤790).

Available from Carine Gilson (Brussels). carinegilson.com

07.

Bag raider

Launched by Nina Bodenhurst, Niyona reconciles great design with a functional and free-spirited essence. Bodenhurst arrived on the scene in November of last year aged 26, having first had stints with both Delvaux and Nathan-Baume. Entirely made in Belgium and working with nothing but the finest of leathers, it is her ability to respect the past whilst firmly looking to the future that attracted us to her collection in the first place.

That, and her ‘Le Lewis’ bag, an oversized, rectangular-shaped holdall perfect for extended city breaks with him or her. (PP) Niyona Lewis ‘Le Lewis’ (¤840).

Available from Must (Brussels). niyona.com Go to page 96 for full stockist information.

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The nod Play Photography Fashion

Giving in to temptation Having our girls-of-the-moment fool around in some tight-fitting hot pants is bound to make us come across as macho pigs only too willing to objectify women the way the media always has. And, whilst you may have a point, just take a minute to actually look at the images, and tell us if you don’t agree: they’re sensual, playful and, yes, attractive. So, macho pigs maybe, but macho pigs with taste.

Photographer Ismaël Moumin

Rinsed denim page short RAW correct line by G-Star

Style

47

03.

04.

Left – Kenya short Wrangler / Right – Cruz short G-Star DNM

48

The nod

Right – Mini short G-Star Women / Left – Black denim short I kks Women

Style

49

Mini shorts Z adig & Voltaire

Photographer’s assistant Kelly De Block Make up Maud Eben Models Ine and Justine @ Jill Models Management

With special thanks to Françoise Salinger, Nina Juncker and 254 Forest Studio.

Go to page 96 for full stockist information.

50

The fashion Word Fashion Consume Photography

She’s the one wearing the pants She might come across as the shy, comfortable-in-the-background type, but make no mistake, she’s really the one keeping it all together. She’ll set the tone, decide what they listen to, where they go, who they see and, more importantly, what they wear.

The pillar of the pair, her man nothing but an accessory to her own happiness and satisfaction.

Photographer Sébastien Bonin

Fashion Jennifer Defays

Style

Jean jacket Isabel Marant, Flower Indress, Gloves Hermès, Stockings Wolford

51

Shirt Wrangler, Collar Ann Demeulemeester

Megane — Jacket Wrangler, Trousers Dries Van Noten, Scarf Ann Demeulemeester Vintage Ian — Jacket Lee, Shorts Diesel, Sunglasses KTZ by Linda Farrow

Jacket and jeans G-star by Marc Newson , Hat Hermès, Scarf Stylist’s own, Mittens Hugo Boss

Dungarees Levi’s, Gloves Haider Ackermann

Megane — Jeans jacket Gervaise Gournay, Shorts Diesel Black Gold, Necklace Maison Martin Margiela, Boots Hermès Ian — Overalls Levi’s, Sunglasses Jeremy Scott for Linda Farrow and Trainers Bernhard Willhelm for Camper

Jeans Dior Homme, Pins Les Petits Riens

58

The fashion Word

Shirt Wrangler

Style

59

Photographer SÊbastien Bonin Photographer’s assistant Bettina Genter Fashion Jennifer Defays Retouching Jonathan Steelandt Hair and make-up Esther Models Megane @Keens

Ian @Imm Go to page 96 for full stockist information.

Megane - Shirt Wrangler, Boots Nathalie Verlinden Ian - Jeans Dior Homme

60

The columns Talent Nostalgia Rise and shine Electronica New release

Deniz Kurtel — Since the release of her eponymous debut album ‘Music Watching Over Me’ earlier this year, rising star Deniz Kurtel’s broody and atmospheric productions have won the hearts and minds of house revival fans the world over. We recently caught up with her via email after a missed opportunity for a proper, face-toface conversation at Brussels’ airport.

When and where was your LP recorded?

How long did it take you to record?

(The album was made) between 2009, when I first started making music, and mid 2010. (It) took about one and a half years. I was mainly in Brooklyn during this time, except for the summers, when I was in Berlin. I didn’t have anything sitting in my hard drive because I had just started making music and Damian Lazarus suggested that I make an album for him after he heard the first few tracks I made, and for a year after that I was working on completing the album.

If I understand it right, you first started doing your LED installations at Wolf & Lamb parties, then started making music, then hooked up with Crosstown Rebels via Damian?

I met Zev and Gadi (Wolf+Lamb) at one of their first parties back in 2005 and shortly after, we started living together, and I was making

LED installations for their parties. Being into this kind of music for a long time, and being around friends who DJ and produce, I wanted to try it for myself. I didn’t really have a plan to do it full time, or even make an album, it was just something I got into out of curiosity and for fun. And then Damian heard from someone that I was making music and was curious to hear it. That’s how I got involved with Crosstown.

Crosstown Rebels seems like the perfect home for you. Can you talk to us about the dynamics within the label? How supportive was the label with this first LP? Yeah they’ve been super supportive with everything since the beginning. The LP was actually Damian’s idea, I didn’t even have that sort of a plan in my head, I had just started experimenting with music. They’ve also been very supportive last year when I first started playing. I’m happy I started touring with them, everything felt much safer.

Do you consider yourself more of a studio or live show kind of musician?

Definitely more as a studio musician. I started playing just to support my music.

Can you talk to us about one of your most memorable parties / dj sets?

So far some of my most memorable parties have been my gigs at Fabric in London and Electric Pickle in Miami. Fabric is very special for me because it’s the first place where I had my LED installation properly working with my live show. I had it at Pacha in New York before that, but there were a few problems setting it up and I don’t think the club was really suitable for it. And Electric Pickle is my favorite club in the US, and even though I only started playing February of last year, I already played there seven times, and every time it’s been magical.

Can you tell us the five tracks that would definitely be included in a live sets of yours at the moment?

The L Word, my remix of March of No Coincidence, Best Of (the new freestyle version), Love Saves the Day Remix, and the M.E.S. remix I made with Gadi.

When and where are you at your most creative?

I think when I’m moody, also when I hear really good music.

What’s the best/funniest thing anyone has said of your music up to now?

That it made them cry (not funny, but definitely one of the best things).

What is your favourite colour to use in your LED installations? How do you actually go about creating them? Do you start with a pen and a paper, or is it all done ’on location’?

I use blue a lot, and usually the colder tones of colors. I always start with pencil and paper. I draw and write and plan everything in detail for a long time before I start creating it.

Because I build the whole thing myself, I have to calculate every little element that goes into it ahead of time.

What do you have planned for the summer and the rest of the year?

This summer’s been a lot of touring and collaborations with other artists. I started working on a new album with Art Department, and some tracks with Tanner Ross, Voices of Black, Gadi Mizrahi, Pillow Talk and Greg Oreck. (The) rest of the year will be devoted to completing these projects, and more touring. denizkurtel.com crosstownrebels.com wolflambmusic.com

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© Yassin Serghini

Music

Jane’s addiction: Marianne Faithfull’s Broken English I think I must have been around eight when I first heard Marianne Faithfull’s Broken English. My dad always used to have a great taste in music so I was brought up with Marianne Faithfull, Kate Bush, Patty Smith, The Rolling Stones, Van Morrisson, Pink Floyd, etc… But Marianne wasn't my favourite at the time, I was more into Kate Bush and Carole King when I was a kid. But then as every normal teenager I rejected my dad's music and went my own way, listening to a lot of northern

soul, disco and early Chicago house. Then, 14 years later, my good friend Ran introduced me to her again. He had just finished reading her biography and lent me his copy. I read it whilst re-discovering the Broken English album. It really moved me. I’ve always found Marianne to be a very intriguing person. After having read her biography, I knew she had been fighting addiction her whole life, yet she did it all by herself. She's a very strong person, having lived an extraordinarily difficult life. She had her first hit in 1964 with As Tears Go By, the first song ever written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. When you look at the video, you see a very young, beautiful girl with a little, angellike voice. After having a huge hit with the song, she got into a four year relationship with Mick Jagger. The couple became notorious as part of the swinging London scene. After their relationship ended, she’d been living in the streets for years with a huge drug and alcohol addiction, trying to survive while being the daughter of a baroness. Then suddenly, after having effectively been written off as a one-hit wonder, she reappeared again in 1979 to shock everyone with this dark masterpiece. It also revealed a dramatic change to her voice. The melodic

vocals on her early records were replaced with a raucous, deep voice, affected by years of smoking, drinking and drug use. Marianne puts a lot of emotion in a song when she sings it.

She has a way of spitting out the lyrics. If you compare her version of Working Class Hero to the original one of John Lennon, you can see that hers is grittier. There’s also another song on the album where you hear her cracked voice spitting out very aggressive lyrics “Why d’ya do it”, one of my favourites! It's definitely her best album according to me. I really like the harshness, the bitterness of it. It also was very controversial at the time of its release, the title song was some kind of a dedication to Ulrike Meinhof, a well know terrorist.

The above is part of a new series where we hand the pen over to Lady Jane, and get her talking about an addiction of hers.

Something, someone or somewhere that is close to her heart.

Jane is the founder of the Catclub, Brussels’ pre-eminent monthly house night. She also is about to start a new night called Black Out, and whose first date will see Permanent Vacation’s Wolfram perform a live show at Tour & Taxis on 17 th September. Make sure to pencil it in. catclub.be

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The columns

The last thing you could accuse Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, known as Orlando Higginbottom to his friends and family, is that he didn’t think long and hard about his stage name. Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs. You ain’t about to forget that one now, are you? And, to be honest, even if his name was, say Benny Blando or some other form of industry-constructed ‘brand name’, his output would ensure he remained firmly at the top of your music chain. ‘Garden’, latest single ‘Trouble’ (”it’s about trying to get with someone and knowing that whatever happens, it’s always going to turn out wrong”) and, our favourite, ‘Household goods’ all have this uncanny ability to stay engraved in your mental playlist.

One listen, and you find yourself humming the track’s vocals or its baseline for the rest of the day. Ever since creeping up on to the scene a few years ago with his first EP on Greco Roman Records (Joe ‘Hot Chip’ Goddard’s berlinbased label), the rosy-cheeked, Oxfordshire talent has been building up considerable industry credit, as much for his danceable, melodious electro than for his memorable live shows – complete with dancers wearing dinosaur costumes. Initially the whole thing grew out of sheer boredom. TEED (the abbreviated version of his world record-worthy stage name) was “a reaction against deejaying,” and people that forgot what dancing was all about.

His work shares a lot of similarities with dance music from the nineties: the heavy juicy basses, the synths (naturally) and the enchanting vocals. There’s nostalgia too, lots of it: “When I was young there were some albums I’d listen to A LOT. For six months I would just listen to one album. Unkel’s debut album Psyence Fiction (1998), early jungle music,” and those early influences can still be found in the music he’s making today. “There’s also something about the sound and production of that time.

The naivety of some of the dance records that were produced back then that is inimitable.”

But there’s more than the 90s to his music. For starters, he gets his inspiration through a lot of channels. Records that nobody would expect him to have: classical music, Motown, eastern European folk music and Japanese traditional music. “In general, I’ve got some weird stuff,” he says. And in his line of business it helps that late

© Yana Foqué

Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs

ˆ I like the idea of things falling apart and chaos.

Everything can be, no is, part of the music.

Sometimes the feedback is the best aspect of a show. ˇ nights inspire him too. “There’s two reasons for that: going out and listening to music is always inspiring – even when it inspires you in a bad way – you want to go home and make your own thing. Also, I find good creativity in being tired.

In tiredness you are in a more open and relaxed atmosphere.” And by ‘relaxed atmosphere’ he means his studio, where he keeps his many

synths and even a vegetable patch. “Studio’s are absolutely essential. I think all producers will agree with me on that. You have to feel good about where you are and you have to want to be in that room. Almost committed, because god knows how much time you will spend there.”

He obviously likes spending time there – three EP’s worth of time. “I do everything myself.

I like the way I work, like I did before.” All this serves to imbue his songs with a carnival-like essence and in the live performances. It’s a Cagean thing. “I like the idea of things falling apart and chaos. Everything can be, no is, part of the music. Sometimes the feedback is the best aspect of a show. Music shouldn’t be too precise. All these influences infuse his music with an eclectism unlike any other: one minute he’s singing profoundly (as on ‘Trouble’). The next he’s belting out a dancefloor banger (as on Sickly Child). (YF) TEED is currently working on his debut album on Polydor Records. His favourite dinosaur is the Iguanodon. myspace.com/totallyenormousextinctdinosaurs

Music

63

Hype’ em and type’ em You could do worse than allow Leuvenite lawstudent-come-blogger Jarri Van der Haegen choose your desert island discs. Disco Naiveté, the music blog he founded in October 2009 and which today clocks up an impressive 75,000 unique monthly visitors, is his intimate universe, a curated blog roll of videos, MP3s and imbedded players with no particular musical allegiance. The playlist features yards of miscellany, from the indie pop of Twin Sister and Grizzly Bear, to Beach House’s dream pop, Joanna Newsom's harp, the bouncy beats of M.I.A. and even the androgynous voice of Antony and the Johnsons. The blogosphere is packed with a cache of freebie music, from the “hits” (whatever that means) to genuinely bizarre new quote unquote music, and Jarri is just another geek on the horizon hyping the bands he dearly loves by digging deep for those hard-to-find covers, radio sessions and b-sides – a cover of Chris Isaak’s Wicked Game by Washed Out for example. Happily, he peddles his “Play” buttons without tempering our enjoyment with saccharine sweet copywriting or death by description. His is a less-is-more approach to blogging, accentuated only by the frequency of

his activity – a couple of posts per day, at least.

As refreshing as the other side of a pillow on a clammy autumn night, Jarri addresses his disciples in a rare, unfussed and genuine voice.

Here's a sample of what the disco don had to say about SSION's new LP, BENT: “Very recommended: it’s fun, danceable, gay’ish pop in a non-Britney way, etc etc etc.” This “etc etc etc” is not a cop out. “I don't want to be the person

who tells someone what feeling or atmosphere a song should create, that's up to the listener.”

You’re damn right. Add to that some thoughtful mix tapes and soft interviews with mainstream-eschewing alt-musos (We have band, Cocknbullkid and Local natives to name a few), and you've got yourself a new bookmark. (RK) disconaivete.com

There are so many things to like about Ghostpoet’s debut album ‘Peanut Butter Blues & Melancholy Jam’ (Brownswood Recordings, 2011) that it’s hard to know where to begin.

There’s that very British blend of self-depreciation – constant downplays and self-mockeries.

There’s the hypnotic, lazy baritone voice – at times slurry, as though the 27-year-old MC’s repeatedly falling over himself. The distorted and distant bass line that echoes in the background, constructing and carrying each song – so present you’d be forgiven for thinking that Ghostpoet is sometimes nothing but an accessory to the bass. The broody, atmospheric and at times even tempestuous moods – character traits symptomatic of someone having recently moved from the idyllic city of Coventry in the West Midlands to the oppressive megalopolis of London. The eternal repetitions – rallying cries of desolate desperation for a confused and jilted generation of the unheard that manage to warrant your utmost attention. The many ramblings on the ironies of modern life – “Run away, be a real man and fight another day, I

© Yana Foqué

Ghostpoet

heard that on the TV program, so it must be right, right, right, right,” he sings on the album opener One Twos/Run Run Run. There’s the undercurrent of downbeat humour – witty and twisted yet customarily insightful. Then, most endearing of all, there’s the humanity,

intimacy even, of his offbeat delivery - never quite marching to the beat, like he’s always running late. And that there is exactly what carries it home. (NL) ghostpoet.co.uk

64

The columns

Slove Slove is playful. It’s sexy and suggestive. It teases you. Even leads you on sometimes. It’s highly addictive too. Like that girlfriend of yours you spent all night with, and still want more. Slove. Slow + Love as we find out when we speak with Léo Hellden and Julien Barthe, the two men behind what is arguably one of the most exciting albums to come out of Paris this year.

Music

A lot has been made about the recent revival the French music scene is going through, especially so in the indie/electro/house scene. Where do you feel you fit into this, given that, although very French in some ways, your overall sound seems to lean more towards the other side of the Atlantic…

Julien: I think our melody and sounds come from the UK’s beats and sequence scene, but also from “savoir faire” old school house and a very French touch for sampling…

peace of mind, with doing something you really love doing, something very positive for your well being. The “si tu as un plan cheval, let me know,” I guess, is a bit ironic, not sexual, but more like “let's make shit happen.”

Can you talk to us about the various different people involved in the making of the album?

Julien: In the beginning, Léo and me started pop songs which tilted towards dance music and we suggested them to singers we knew…

One of the things I like the most about Le Danse is the drums. They’re rhythmic, come in at the right moment and always provide just the right amount of tempo to a song’s backbone.

I particularly think they hit the right spot on Carte Postale. Who does the drumming?

Julien: I mostly take care of the drums, mixing real drum samples with techno drums.

What is both you guys’ background? Have you always worked in the music industry?

What were you doing before Slove?

Julien: I studied graphic design and used to play bass and guitars in an indie pop band until 1993, then discovered DJing in 1995. I started to produce singles as Plaisir de France on Pro Zak Tax record in 2000.

Léo: I started in 1997 as a guitarist with Swedish singer Jay Jay Johanson and worked with him for about five years. Since then, I've worked on different projects and moved gradually into composition and production. I worked for some time for antiquarian booksellers first in Stockholm and later in Paris. Right now I’m not doing it anymore but wouldn’t mind doing so again at some point.

Can you tell us a little about the atmosphere in the studio whilst recording?

Where was the LP recorded? How long did it take? Did you develop any routines/ habits (good or bad) whilst recording?

L. We share a studio in Paris and spend much time there talking and making music.

The Slove album took about two years and an intense six months of finalising.

Who does what in the band? How do you go about composing a track?

Julien: Positions aren’t fixed. Sometimes Léo suggests a melody and I’ll respond or vice versa.

Carte Postale is probably the most fun-loving yet sexy track I’ve heard in some time. Somehow, I imagine 30-something bored housewives wearing headbands all working out a sweat to the song. The vocals couldn’t be any simpler, yet they seem laced with ‘insider’ references. Who is singing? What’s with the number counting?

And, most importantly, what’s with the “Si tu as un plan cheval, let me know”? I assume it is telling that the counting stops at 69…

Léo: The singer is Anne-Laure from Appaloosa. We contacted her after hearing The Day. For us it's a perfect pop song. I'm not sure about what she meant with the lyrics. I’m just happy that I was around when she recorded it.

When she’s recording she puts herself in a state, an out of body experience, and I don't think that neither me nor Julien expected that style but were both amazed. It was intended as a demo but we basically didn’t touch the song after her recording to not fuck up the presence of the performance.

Anne-Laure Keib: This song, I was back from a trip to Camargue, South of France. I took this trip after someone dear to me, died. He was someone very destructive. I arrived in the most lovely place, near Les Saintes Maries de la Mer, owned by a British woman, and it was eight hours of horse backriding, everyday, for three weeks, and it was amazing. One of the happiest moments of my life actually. When I came back, Leo and Julien asked me to write a song and sing for them. They were into the stuff I have been doing for my band, Appaloosa. I was in front of the mic and started to count. I guess this counting is about when you go through borderline or painful experiences, and find a stability and

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ˆ I’m just happy that I was around when she recorded it. When she’s recording she puts herself in a state, an out of body experience, and I don't think that neither me nor Julien expected that style but were both amazed. ˇ You have several projects you’re working on at the same time. Can you tell us a little more about them?

Léo: Tristesse Contemporaine is a project with Mike (also on Slove) and Narumi, a Japanese keyboardist and vintage clothes shop owner. We just completed our first album, produced by Pilooski. As for Aswefall, which I do together with Clement, our second album came out last year. We’re working on new songs now and hoping it doesn't take five years until the next one.

Julien: I'm always running Plaisir de France, remixing many French pop personal hits.

Who are you listening to at the moment?

What's the last album you bought? Were you listening to anything in particular whilst recording the album?

Julien: At the moment I’m listening to indie pop, lots of edits and electronic dance music.

The last album I bought is the soundtrack for "My Little Princess” by Bertrand Burgalat and Mogwai. During the album’s recording sessions, I was listening to a lot of house revival from Mark E , Eddie C, Noze, as well as edits and remixes from Joakim, Pilooski, Superpitcher, Inflagranti, Cosmo vitelli, Get a room and Datassette.

When and how did you guys meet?

Léo: First time we know of is at Sonar in 2005. We were playing in the same party, Julien with Sweetlight and me with Aswefall.

Some years later we met again in Julien’s studio. I was renting the studio next door on a short term basis to finish the second Aswefall album. We ended up sharing Julien's studio and started making music together.

What’s in store for you until the end of the year?

Julien: Good remixes of fFash and a release of two Plaisir de France remixes of a French 80's band Mikado.

Slove’s debut album is out now on Pschent. plaisirdefrance.net/artistes/slove pschent.com

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The throw - away project Talent We love Festival Backstage

Civil Civic A guitar, a bass, keyboards and one big, fuck off beat machine are all this Australian duo exiled in Europe need. The fun loving criminals, in Belgium over the summer as the headlining act to Liege/Luik’s Microfestival, fill loudspeakers with their deafening yet melodious math rock. Layers upon layers of sounds which, inevitably, draws comparisons to Battles.

High-octane, take-no-prisoners rockers who dutifully took on the challenge of going through one of our disposable cameras without returning it with nothing but crotch shots.

An exception to the rule – in every sense of the term.

With thanks to Damien Aresta

Music

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myspace.com/civilcivic Visit thewordmagazine.be/radar/civilcivic for the band’s complete throw-away project.

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The DESIGN Special

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© Veerle Frissen

The DESIGN Special

La Fabrika Like all good design-focussed shopkeepers in Brussels, Kelly Claessens, the unassuming but no-nonsense founder of La Fabrika, will hang the triangular prism of Design September, the city’s annual design fair, above her door this year. The pale blue banner symbolises more than just a shop selling design. La Fabrika is bigger than its carefully curated collection of furniture and interior design. The single glass façade at the edgier, canal-end of Brussels’ fashionable Rue A. Dansaertstraat is only a fraction of the story. Come September the window will be transformed into a riot of colour, showcasing the works of Scottish designer Donna Wilson for the duration of the festival. Best-known for her knitted, scary-cutesy animal cushions, La Fabrika will show Wilson’s wider talents with sofas, armchairs, knitted cushions and pouffes.

Getting the involvement of a luminary such as Wilson, nominated Designer of the Year in the British Design Awards 2010, is not a bad coup for Claessens who only opened La Fabrika last November. Behind the residential feel of the street-facing shopfront lies the real heart of

La Fabrika. The walls of the large semi-basement industrial space are hung with angular, wall-mounted ply display boxes to celebrate individual products. “An ‘available collection’ is what I have chosen. One with items that are not easy to find elsewhere,” explains Claessens of the selection that includes the low-slung homeliness of the Oscar Sofa from Matthew Hilton and the bright lacquer of the Satellite cabinets by BarberOsgerby. A choice that ranges from the 1956 Shaker-inspired design of the Love Bench

by Lucia Ercolan to the laid-back simplicity of the Eugene lounge chair from Stefan Diaz released last year. Availability is taken literally and financially with Claessens, for example, currently not stocking Interni Edition products due to their bespoke qualities and wide choice of finishes making delivery times tricky but also their high price point. At the back of the main space and only partially visible through a cut-out slot in the rear ply wall is a tempting overview of the studio of designer Benoît Deneufbourg. Together with Deneufbourg, Claessens’ long-term partner, La Fabrika has a second-string to its bow, offering interior design services with two residential projects currently underway. “It needed real guts to just jump into

the retail experience,” confides Claessens, “but I felt an overwhelming urge that was stronger than myself.” Gratified by the positive reactions of her first visitors, “they were literally jumping up and down with excitement,” Claessens has seamlessly progressed from her on-line shop window to the realities of shop life. She purchases all her stock without any recourse to the supplier in the event of non-sale. Manageable if you are selling apples but a more formidable risk with tables worth thousands of Euros.

Being the first Belgian stockist for both SCP and Ercol takes some doing; gaining exclusivity given La Fabrika’s brief existence is remarkable. “My clients appreciate the story behind the objects I am selling,” explains Claessens.

Stories that might be as straightforward as the heritage of the simple three-legged Stool 60 by Alvar Aalto for Artek compared with the considerably more affordable four-legged version sold by Ikea. Either you get it or you don’t and Claessens’ clients do. (GD) La Fabrika Rue A. Dansaertstraat, 182 1000 Brussels lafabrika.be

The design papers

© Joke De Wilde

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Part of the furniture Breezing through the atrium of Veerle Wenes’ new-ish gallery in Antwerp feels a lot like arriving a bit too early for a housewarming in an exquisite new home. Design furniture is strewn about like actors in a conversation. It’s unclear if they’re part of the latest exhibition or if they’re leftovers from a recent spring cleaning bout.

Case in point: we’re not entirely sure whether to stack our things on them or just gaze admiringly. We do both. Veerle doesn’t seem to mind.

Everything in the Valerie Traan (Valerie is Veerle’s full name, and Traan means teardrop, if you were wondering where the name comes from) gallery is, or was, or could be, functional. And beautiful – the great balancing act between art and design. “There must always be a practical application for the pieces I exhibit.

You must be able to use it, or it must talk about utility in art. The last exhibition by Goele De Bruyn was 100 used bars of soap laid out like an archaeological find.” The soap, she says, was

useful once. The gallery is Veerle’s dream stage for functional, beautiful things. “I wanted to be in the centre.” she says. “I didn’t want to be in a hype area, like Zuid, but among ordinary people. When you walk out the door, there are rich people, poor people, people who are into art and people who are not…” Once a nunnery (her neighbours to the back are still in the habit), the gallery is surrounded by an ivy-covered medieval church. “We restored the entire building,” she says of the former furniture showroom.

There is certainly something of a showroom about the gallery. There is something of the sanctity of the church within this space, too.

It’s the stained glass looming over the patio, it’s the intense calm. That odd visitor, the church, lends solemnity to our shuffling between things that are all the more attractive for being useful.

Her roster of talent has so far come largely from Belgium (Bram Boo, Diane Steverlynck, Muller van Severen and Studio Simple to name a few), although this is no national sport for Veerle.

“I don’t care where the artists come from. I select those whose work I like, but I also have to like the people because we go through a period of intensive working together.” The current exhibition is by a Flemish couple, Fien Muller and

Hannes Van Severen. The artists, a sculptor and a photographer, changed their medium at Veerle’s behest, and created a suite of bookcases and shelves using marble and plastic. “It’s amazing to see people doing something they never did before. It gives a lot of energy to me and to them.” She adds “It’s not really art. It’s made for using, but it’s beautiful.” A door swings open onto a chic dining room, like the pages of a glossy design mag flicking open. “I live here, too.” says Veerle. “I don’t want a gallery where I open the door at 11 o’clock and close it at 7, a sterile, concrete place with no life. Living and working have to mix, what I do in my private life is much the same thing as what I do in my work life.” We ask about the upstairs terrace, a closed, pebble-covered square secluded by tall walls and dotted with plants and loungers.

“It’s a beautiful space, but I haven’t sat out there since opening in November, I’m too busy” she confesses. (RK) Fien Muller and Hannes Van severen will be exhibiting their furniture project at Jerome Sohier from 8 th September to 1st October. valerietraan.be jeromesohier.com

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The intrusion Talent Interiors

Pol Quadens

Some people need their commute to work to wake up, whilst others much prefer merely having to go down a flight of stairs to make it on time for nine. And, with his sprawling 600 square meter loftcome-atelier industrial conversion, it’s safe to say Pol Quadens firmly belongs to the latter. “Living with my designs helps (shape) my thinking process,” says the designer when we meet to discuss the merits of living where you work. “I can draw upstairs, and instantly create downstairs,” he continues, motioning towards a sink he designed and made himself, and which he obviously is particularly proud of (it came up twice in our hour-long conversation). Sitting at one of his Corian dining tables, talking about the way in which he likes to bring a new piece he designed up from the studio and ‘live with it’ for a couple of days upstairs in his loft, it becomes apparent Pol’s output and overall oeuvre (his more recent work has been taking a closer step towards art than design) is deeply defined by his surroundings. This is a man that lives by extension. A man who, to put it in his own words, “lives how he works and works how he lives.” We step into his singular set-up to see if indeed you can mix work and pleasure.

Photographer Veerle Frissen

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The DESIGN Special

Pol Quadens has an exhibition running at the Mercedes House in Brussels, from 9 th to 25th September 2011. polquadens.com mercedeshouse.be

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The invitation Talent Behind-the-scenes

Open door policy The world of designers can sometimes be an intriguing one. One that, for one reason or the other, draws you in and makes you want to know more. How, you wonder, do they get to the end result? How do they actually do what they do?

And where do they do it? What do their studios look like? What tools and machinery do they work with? Are their office walls covered with scribbled-on post-its and patent applications or are they more the folders classified alphabetically on their iMacs type? We visit four Belgian design practices’ studios and discover a world not that much different than what we had imagined – sketches and unfinished prototypes lying about, all types of materials at arms’ reach and, most importantly, an FM radio.

Photographer Sarah Eechaut

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The DESIGN Special

Maarten Deceular

“We’ve been in this space since last summer only. It's a temporary thing since we have to move out by the end of November at the latest unfortunately. We all got really attached to the space, even though rain drips in buckets spread out across the studio and in winter it is freezing cold. But the space 'feels' so nice. When it's sunny there's a terrific atmosphere in there. It's a five-minute walk from my house, so for me the location couldn't be better. The entire space is about 500-600 square metres, and my 'corner' in it would be around 75 square metres.

I also quite like the neighbourhood, Place Bethlehem for example, is wonderful to have dinner at on summer evenings, there's also one of the best pizzeria's in the whole of Brussels. The building used to be a furniture factory that went bankrupt. We found the office in the same state as the previous owners left it, everything still quite intact, catalogues and unpaid bills everywhere, personal things like children’s’ drawings, unopened mail,…

Collages of the furniture they produced, together with images from magazines were hanging on the walls, self-made shelving (which we are using now) everywhere.

We have a very flexible studio, everything depends on the projects we're working on.

Sometimes there are three tables, sometimes only one.” maartendeceulaer.com

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The invitation

Raphael Charles

“The studio was founded in 2007 and is located in the Koekelberg district of Brussels.

I live in one of the city’s last dead end streets – old worker houses, quiet surroundings, like a small village. My neighbours are people who work at Medecins sans frontières, a taxi driver, a lorry driver, a pianist…” raphaelcharles.com

Studio Simple

“Studio Simple stands for objects and projects who have a clear relation with simplicity and time, local production and resources; hence a combination of what can be found nearby and something new, focusing on design footprint awareness.The name Studio Simple means ‘creativity rules, keep it simple and D.I.Y’.

The studio was founded in 2007, in Ghent.

It is located in a coal merchant’s house dating back to 1900. It still has the original stables.

We spend the most time in the atelier part of the studio, which has 300 square metres.” studiosimple.be

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The DESIGN Special

Tom Mares

“My studio is located near Rue Antoine Dansaertstraat, downtown Brussels, near the canal between the city centre and Molenbeek.

I’ve been here for a year, but founded my practice in 2007. The building is occupied by a melting pot of dancers, sound engineers and all other kinds of creative types.

The neighbourhood too is a melting pot of creativity and different cultures. It’s interesting to see the night shops and telephone shops combined with fancy art galleries and trendy boutiques. wearenodesign.be

Atelier 4/5

“Atelier 4/5 provides an alternative to the mass production of furniture in creating unique furniture and lamps made from items found at flea markets. We founded the practice in a bar in 2009 and have a studio in the centre of Brussels, close to Place Anneessens.

The studio is one big open plan space with different zones… One to paint, one to stock all the furniture found at the flea market, one to work and one to expose our finished work. atelier4cinquieme.be

Visit thewordmagazine.be/wonders/opendoorspolicy for our complete series on designer studios.

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The round-up Industry Innovation Consume Passion

Online design galleries With its high rent and exorbitant stock costs, it is no surprise that the world of design is no different when it comes to online convergence. Ebay swarms with hawkers pushing their Eames chairs, Designaddict is full of design galleries flogging their wares whilst the most courageous have branched out on their own, opening their very own online shop fronts. Here, we turn our attention to those dealers and gallery owners who have opted for clicks, visits and Paypal payments instead of noisy tills, rigid opening hours and unpredictable footfall.

Writer Nicholas Lewis

Photographer Sarah Eechaut

The DESIGN Special

City furniture

With over 14 years in the game, it’d be fair to say that city-furniture.com founder Lenz Vermeulen is a pioneer. Having first started buying up furniture on Brussels’ flea market to re-sell it on ebay, he quickly moved on to opening up his own gallery on Antwerp’s Klosterstraat aged 24. “It failed. My knowledge wasn’t good enough and I couldn’t survive on it at the time,” reveals the straighttalking dealer. He then took a step back, realising his knowledge of design needed to be perfected if he was going to make a living out it. Having grown up with design his whole life (his grandfather owned a lighting shop in Antwerp), it wasn’t long before Lenz was back on his feet, this time focusing all his energy on the web, and ebay more specifically. “At the time, it was the best way to ensure my collection could be seen around the world but, after

several years on ebay, I grew tired of working for them, because that is essentially what you do,” he continues, as way of explaining why he decided to branch out on his own.

Several years later, his website city-furiture. com clocks up an impressive 300,000 page views per month, and has without a doubt become a force to be reckoned with in the online vintage design world. And this is no surprise, given the appeal his website exudes, the strength of his collection but also, more importantly, the hard work put into it: “Most of my time is spent on sourcing and photographing pieces, as well as on search engine optimisation and Facebook,” he continues, fully aware of the power of the web to further his venture. city-furniture.be

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The round-up

Be-dsgn

By day, Philip Logie and Bart Dujardin are languages and economics teachers respectively. By night, the pair shape-shift into vintage design dealers.

And, although the term ‘dealer’ might be too harsh a word to describe the duo (think of them more as design enthusiasts), there’s no denying the two friends (they’ve known each other since their teens, teach at the same school and even owned a team-building company together in their former lives) possess a sharp commercial nous. Their collection (mid-priced, ‘easy’ pieces aimed more at design beginners than seasoned collectors), reveals a knack for knowing what the people want, and knowing how they want it.

The website’s navigation is clean-lined, photography is immaculate (it’s all done in-house, by Philippe himself) whilst the site’s design couldn’t be any more enticing. As far as periods go, the online gallery essentially operates in the 1950s-1990s range, whilst also making a particular effort to champion obscure Belgian designers (which explains the website’s clumsy yet explanatory name). Case in point, when we meet, Philippe (the gallery’s buyer) suddenly came to life when talking about his love of De Coene (the Kortrijkbased licensed manufacturers for Knoll that declared bankruptcy back in the 1970s), Novalux’s Rudy Verelst and Georges-Charles Vanrijk. “Belgian design is very badly documented, and some people (wrongly) equate that with a lack of quality.” says Philippe, who came back to the importance of archiving and documenting several times during our conversation. Vintage design retailers, yes, but with an educational approach. be-dsgn.com

Jimmy Beyens

Jimmy Beyens moves in the upper echelons of design dynasty.

The 23 year old, surprisingly confident for his age, founded his upper crust online gallery two years ago, on the back of his father urging him to do so. Housed in a magnificent villa just 15 minutes north east of Brussels, his collection tilts towards the exclusive and hard-tofind – pieces with a story. The trained architect and interior designer, conscious of the hard-nosed and sometimes uppity world of vintage design, first took it upon himself to self-document, doing his homework by reading tome after tome of design books to spruce up (perfect even) his design knowledge. “I spent hours, sometimes even nights, reading up all kind of material,” confesses the fresh-faced entrepreneur. And it shows. With a slight preference for seating, his Scandinavian-tinted collection clearly speaks to the initiated (the collectors, resellers and interior architects), buyers for whom a 14,000 euros price tag is nothing compared to the satisfaction they’ll get out of sitting at their 1959 Kho Liang Le-designed three piece lounge unit that used to be part of the fixtures and fittings at the old Rolls Royce headquarters, and even comes with a metal plate as proof. Now if that doesn’t warrant a premium, what does? jimmybeyens.com

The DESIGN Special

Alainko

A social and political studies graduate, you could say Alain Hens stumbled into design by accident. The 31 year old first got a foothold in the design field on the suggestion of a friend of his who was also flogging pieces he found at flea markets on ebay. The more Alain sold on ebay, the more he got a sense for where the demand really was – vintage design. Being at the time in the middle of a Masters at university, he persuaded the administration to let him use the basement as an office-comewarehouse, marking the first beginnings of Alainko (“The name was suggested to me by ebay when I first signed up,” he says anecdotally “as Alain was already taken and I didn’t want Alain 69.”). Describing his online gallery as a bridge between the ordinary and extraordinary with a wide net of interest, Alainko specialises in what is closest

to his heart: French and Belgian design.

“This is because I have easier access to them geographically…I guess this geographical reality is an important thing in my business.”

Asked why he opted for an online gallery as opposed to a physical one: “I still ask myself this question everyday…The client potential was and still is so tremendous. If I have an item that has been viewed about 900 times in one week (on my website), I wonder how many times that same item would have been seen in a shop during a week… 56 times maybe?”

With a refreshingly laidback and unpretentious approach to his online dealings, it is the length at which Alain goes to to get his pieces that distinguishes him from the rest. Once, he managed to bag a lot of 200 chairs from a Dutch contact in exchange for a crate of Duvel and a pudding pie. Priceless. galeriealainko.com

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The design showstoppers

Man Vs machine From industrially-engineered machines to handmade crafts, we’ve touched upon the entire spectrum of the design industry with this month’s selection of design novelties.

Photographer Melika Ngombe

For book keeping

Coffee tables primarily serve as a presentation display for your lingering collection of magazines of the month, yet none have ever incorporated their purpose as astutely as this 100 percent Belgian-made one. Taking the concept of meaningful integration to new heights, designer Antoinette Ribas manages to make magazines part of the table, using their spines to bring a rainbow of colours to the table’s top. Made of a 2mm sheet of steel that’s been folded, cut out and lacquered, the table is a godsend for media junkies incapable of sifting through their monthly subscriptions.

Tablemag (¤ 725).

Available from Rose (Brussels). thetablemag.com

For sitting

Being more fascinated with what the past has to say than what the future has to offer comes with certain drawbacks: often, the furniture pieces we love so much simply aren’t available anymore. Passing time, it can have a destructive effect on one’s passion you see, and leave you in a constant state of frustration. Not if denim imprint G-Star RAW and German design deity Vitra have anything to do with it though. Indeed, the pair have just joined forces to re-edit a collection of 19 Jean Prouvé-designed pieces (everything from stools, chairs and coffee tables) under the Prouvé RAW banner, re-igniting a fiery debate in the design world about the merits of creating and producing new ‘stuff’ when the old one is so effortlessly beautiful. The collection only actually hits stores come October, so we had to make do photographing its exquisite press pack for the moment. Can’t wait for the real thing though.

Prouvé RAW collection (from ¤ 575).

Available from Vitrapoint (Brussels and Antwerp). g-star.com

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The DESIGN Special

For tea time

There’s not a lot that Muuto can do wrong in Word HQ. The playful and poignant Nordic design firm, always one to see the funnier side in life, operates on the fringes of the design world, never taking itself too seriously and always daring to go a step further in bringing a smile to your face. True to form, its Bulky tea set, designed by Swede Jonas Wagell, is the perfect, quirky addition to the table top.

Packing the right kind of curves in all the right places, and with a colour palette with sunny dispositions, we guarantee rooms full of laughter if this is what you’ll be serving tea in.

Muuto Bulky tea pot (¤ 69), tea cups (¤ 29 for the pair) and sugar bowl (¤ 29).

Comes in white, grey and yellow.

Available from Design District (Leuven). muuto.com

For grooming

With all the attention our facial hair has been getting of late (we’ve recently discovered the merits of clean-shaven appearances), it’s only normal that we thought it high time to upgrade our toolbox and go professional. Thing is, there’s only so much your usual, run-of-the-mill shaver can do and, if shape-shifting ‘staches or quirky sideburns are your thing, you’ll need to get serious about your machinery. And there is no more serious about facial hair than Braun’s latest range of hair-toning shavers and trimmers, the CruZer range. Precise and playful, Braun’s CruZer range (which includes a Beard&Head device as well as a Face device) is not only your best shot at achieving style supremacy when it comes to facial fantasies, it’s also one of the rare shavers that’ll actually look as good as the style it carves out.

Braun CruZer Beard & Head and Facial. braun.com/cruzer

For reading

What is it about denim brands and design?

All of a sudden, jean makers seem to have caught the design bug, preferring their moulds to their stitches and their prototypes to their samples. More often than not though, denim brands’ foray into design leads to disaster, essentially because of the former’s lack of experience in the field. As in anything, you need a partner with experience to make things work, a fact Diesel seems to have understood.

Partnering up with Italian lightning supremo Foscarini, the flashy denim maker has created a range of luminaries of all sorts to suit the needs of its statement-making loving masses.

Diesel Fork Lamp by Foscarini (Price available on request).

Available from Espace Bizarre (Brussels). diesel.foscarini.com

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The shelf Arts Photography Publishing

Pictures speak louder than words You’d think that three months of holidays would have convinced us to pick up a ‘proper’ book – you know, fiction, philosophy or what not – and finally get into some ‘adult’ reading. Not really, still very much into fine art photography books, although we did give the selection a slightly more, lets say, educational lean this time – just to keep the intellectuals happy.

Writer Nicholas Lewis

Photographer Yana Foqué

Places, Strange and Quiet (2011)

by Wim Wenders Hatje Cantz

In a Lonely Place (2011)

by Gregory Crewdson Hatje Cantz

Behind the Zines: Self-Publishing Culture (2011) Gestalten

At times intriguing, at others downright hilarious, Wim Wenders’ photography captures the everyday absurdities he encounters on his many travels – everything from oversized cowboys sporting Wrangler denim skirts to windowless backyard sheds and deserted former submarine assembly plants. With characteristic wit, the celebrated filmmaker creates visual statements on non-descript places which draw meaning not from their subject matter but, rather, from Wenders’ watchful gaze, and the notes accompanying each photograph. Opposite a photograph depicting a Bavarian policeman looking onto Italian activists running amok through a field for example, the sentence reads: “The G8 in Germany…Protesters ran through the fields, Italian activists carrying a sign PACE. A Bavarian policeman turned to his colleague: “Look, these idiots don’t even know how to spell PEACE.”” It’s simple, self-explanatory and works wonders. Pure Wenders.

Best known for his highly staged, film-like photography, Crewdson also has a more intimate and intuitive side to his work, one which somehow seems more improvised and less restrained. Although the celebrated photographer shot to prominence with his sometimes glacial series Beneath the Roses (2003-2008), Crewdson manages to counter his tendency towards the pre-determined with rather more personal series such as Sanctuary (2009), a black and white documentary which captures Fellini’s famed Cinecitta studios in Rome, or Fireflies (1996), which reflects the artist’s interest in nature. In each of the series though, Crewdson’s ability to contrast an overriding sense of sadness with an unquestionable and somewhat naïve beauty remains the unsettling element that makes of his visual aesthetic one of the most innovative in contemporary photography today.

However limited their print run, the impact self-published fanzines have had on the growth of certain counter-cultures and musical movements make them the undeniable and ultimate voice of independent thinking. The precursor to blogs, what really distinguished these homemade, low budget boutique publications was their approach to art direction, graphic design and production. Antiquated print presses were preserved merely to achieve a particular finish, paper stocks mixed-and-matched to rainbow effect, 3D typefaces created out of pure ‘zine zeal and binding techniques so advanced even the Japanese couldn’t catch up. An exhaustive, well put together and, above all, accurate survey of the culture in itself, Behind the zines manages to succinctly capture the movement’s essence without reading like a how to guide.

From Polaroid to Impossible (2011) Hatje Cantz

Along with the demise of the Polaroid Corporation came the realisation that its legendary Polaroid Collection housed in New York and Europe would need to be auctioned off to pay angry creditors and administrators.

Aghast, a movement made of artists, museums and photography lovers and led by the Polaroid-perfected artist Chuck Close came to life, mobilising itself to ensure preservation of the 16,000-strong collection which includes instant photography by the likes of Ansel Adams, Robert Mapplethorpe, Andy Warhol and Helmut Newton. The group succeeded in its quest to avoid a sale, and this book is the result of their perseverance.

Jeff Wall, The Crooked Path (2011) Bozar Books and Ludion Global Denim (2011)

by Daniel Miller & Sophie Woodward Berg Publisher

The dominance denim enjoys over other textiles in the fashion industry is unparalleled.

It’s a natural monopoly of the global uniform, one which has rarely been investigated. From the streets of Mumbai and the back alleys of Mexico City to the urban townships of middle America and the rural villages of central Africa, nothing says effortless cool the way a pair of jeans does – be they boot cuts, slim fits or baggies. But what, exactly, makes them so ubiquitous? What is their anthropological meaning when taken in their local contexts?

At times a heavy read that can make you feel like you’re back at college, Global Denim uses the Great Depression, Bollywood screenings and Rio de Janeiro’s funk balls to reach a set of conclusions explaining the unquestionable rise of denim as the global garment of the world.

The accompanying book to the Canadian photographer’s monumental exhibition of the same name currently on show at Brussels’ Bozar, The Crooked Path represents Wall’s attempt to make sense of his body of work in a very public manner by contextualising it, confronting it even, to the works of his contemporaries and icons. Using as starting point a simple picture of a landscape, Wall proceeds to historically reference his work – large-scale photography framed in light boxes for the most part - opting for total transparency as far as inspiration goes: he makes no secret, for example, of having taken inspiration from Delacroix’s La Mort de Sardanapale for The Destroyed Room, his 1978 depiction of a ransacked room. And that is the beauty of Wall’s work: conscious of its debt to the past, but keen to translate it for the future.

Visit thewordmagazine.be/dribbles/theblackbooks for more photographs of the books as well as Amazon purchase links.

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ďƒ• From left to right

From Polaroid to Impossible (Hatje Cantz), Jeff Wall (Bozar Books and Ludion), Global Denim (Berg Publishers), Behind the Zines (Gestalten), In a Lonely Place (Hatje Cantz) and Places, Strange and Quiet (Hatje Cantz)

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The book Heritage Photography Nostalgia

If only the walls could talk…

You want to get to know someone, get underneath their skin.

Similarly, the best way to get to know a house, apartment or room you’ve just moved into is by taking a closer look at its walls – the wallpaper, the family portraits, the tapestry.

And that there is when you start thinking to yourself : if only these walls could talk…

Photographer Siska Vandecasteele

Igor’s house in Antwerp

Culture

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Mr Decuypere’s house

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The book

An old house in Brugge

Sarah Eechaut’s house on the outskirts of Ghent

Culture

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Boarding school Leiekant in Kortrijk

Visit thewordmagazine.be/wonders/talkingwalls for our full feature on wallpapers.

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The portfolio Arts Graphic design Talent Rise and shine Play

Emil Kozak’s shades of blue

Graphic designers, if you ask us, don’t get half as much of love as they deserve. Part of that can be down to the fact that they operate on the fringes, preferring the familiarity of the backstage to the shine of the spotlight. Part of that is also down to the fact that they’re the last great technicians of the creative communities, geeks with one foot firmly in a bucket of cool. They take inspiration from their everyday, sucking up their surroundings whilst delving deep into their subconscious to shape a visual narrative imbued with a steadfast vision and a very personal aesthetic. Most often than not, the designer’s personality seeps through his work. And so it is for Danish designer Emil Kozak, one of the chosen endorsers for Braun’s new cruZer, whose early days as a skater

ended-up shaping the rest of his career. “I guess what really hooked me on skateboarding was the creativity,” he says from Barcelona, where he moved to from his native Denmark for, as he puts it, his ‘love of skateboard (and his girlfriend).” After an initial phase of lots of “staring at the ceiling because of the language barrier,” Emil managed to set up a design practice in the city that focuses on art direction, graphic design, illustration and communication for wellknown, influential culture and fashion imprints such as Eastpak, Burton or Nike. ‘Danish design made in Barcelona’ became his tag line. Think Northern pragmatism with Southern warmth.

Today, Emil’s inspiration net is cast slightly wider, with everything from mother nature and

photography to surfing and pop culture giving him enough material for reflection and creation. And, with a visual style that tilts towards the playful and good-humoured, it is no wonder he has taken his art to, well, the canvas. Here, we take a sneak peak inside Emil’s studio to survey some of his blue-tilted work… emilkozak.com

Culture

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The portfolio

Culture

Artwork created exclusively for The Word by Emil Kozak

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5.

November — December

What you need to do Transfer ¤ 21 ( Belgium ), ¤ 30 ( Europe ) or ¤ 45 ( Rest of the world ) to bank account number 363-0257432-34 ( IBAN BE00 363 2574 3234, BIC BBRUBEBB for international transfers ), stating you full name, the address to which you wish the magazine to be sent to as well as your email address in the communication box.

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Hotel Amigo offers you a special package : the “Art Amigo” Illustrated catalogues of the pick of current Brussels exhibitions await you in your room, together with an entry ticket.

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The stockists Consume We love

Aider Ackermann (at Stijl)

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Dries Van Noten (at Stijl)

Rue A. Dansaertstraat 74 1000 Brussels +32 (0) 2 512 03 13 Dries Van Noten (at Modepaleis)

Nationalestraat 16 2000 Antwerp +32 (0) 3 470 25 10 driesvannoten.be Espace Bizarre

Balenciaga (at Louise 54)

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Rue des Chartreux 19 Kartuizerstraat 1000 Brussels +32 (0) 2 514 52 56 espacebizarre.com

Balenciaga (at Louis)

Lombardenstraat 2 2000 Antwerp balenciaga.com

Fresh (for Keds)

Bernard Willhelm for Camper (at Ra)

Gervaise Gournay

Kloosterstraat 13 2000 Antwerpen +32 (0) 3 292 37 80 camper.com Carine Gilson

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Hugo Boss

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The future is free But free don’t come cheap Support The Word Magazine and subscribe to receive your five yearly issues at home

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5.

November — December

Before we leave you…

Play The team

Why did we choose to end the year on a white note? It’s simple really.

We figured it’d be the perfect way for us to atone of all the sins we’d fallen victim to during the year.

Call it our very own whitewash, our last chance to redeem ourselves with one, magical stroke delivered by the tip of a worn-out Tipp-ex eraser.

Our last shot at letting it all out, indulging in our every fix, follies and fantasies, before setting the dirt aside for the pure. A transitional phase if you will.

Not so much of a clean album, more of a ‘in the process of getting clean’ album.

Raw and uncut, yes. 100% pure product, certainly.

But with nothing but good intentions, we promise.

A virgin suicides fashion feature The word on white socks (preferably with flip flops) Corner shop cocaine kaids Undercover with transparency advocates White street thugs Money laundering conspiracy theories White-collar crime, private investigators, corporate espionage Recovering drug addicts and alcoholics

The Word’s WHITE album ( + the food special )

Leontien Allemeersch

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Out on 10th November 2011

Hotel Amigo offers you a special package : the “Art Amigo” Illustrated catalogues of the pick of current Brussels exhibitions await you in your room, together with an entry ticket.

For more information please contact +32 2 547 47 07

The art of simple luxury Hotel Amigo Brussels

Rocco Forte & Family Brussels S.A. • Member of the Leading Hotels of the World Rue de l’Amigo 1-3 • B-1000 Brussels Tel. : +32 2 547 47 47 • Fax : +32 2 513 52 77 enquiries.amigo@roccofortecollection.com www.roccofortecollection.com

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