Lzlsllslls

THE WILD AND FREE ISSUE

Singapore

01

2020

ISSN 2301-3397 SGD8.00

The pole vaulter

paul rudd Ant-Man—and soon-to-be Ghostbuster—dishes on why he doesn’t want to be known as nice, the pressure of classic remakes and the money he’s owed.

THE ART OF GENEROSITY

ENJOY RESPONSIBLY

Contents January 2020 | Volume 12 | No. 85 | The Wild and Free Issue

ON THE COVER Paul Rudd Photography Charlie Gray Coat, by Bottega Veneta; T-shirt, by Bill Hicks.

T H I S WAY I N 16 18

Neil before God Love The Page is lit Under a Sky of Red

by Sufian Hakim; a serialised story

WAT C H E S

STYLE

23 24 26 28 30 32 42 46

59

Essentials of style Tie one on Essentials of style Shorts suit Essentials of style Ivy at the edge Essentials of style Gore-Tex Essentials of style Leopard print Essentials of style Go tux yourself Fashion spread Asa Butterfield Essentials of style Why Elvis still matters Fashion spread High frequency

62 64 66 67

Watches Steel sports, blue dial Watches Hermès watchmaking Watches Maximilian Büsser Watches ESQnA: Thierry Stern Watch spread Wild things

Photograph by John Tsiavis. Styling by David Bonney.

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Contents January 2020 | Volume 12 | No. 85 | The Wild and Free Issue

PORTFOLIO 76 88 95

96 99

115

Photograph by John Tsiavis. Styling by David Bonney.

122

Cover story Paul Rudd Feature Nudity By the numbers Wild and free in the 21st century What I’ve learned Peter Soh Special feature Esquire Neighbourhood Photo essay Sean Myers Feature Flex

8

Global Friend of the Brand Hu Bing

All Watches Chinatown Point Tel: 6636 3376 Cortina Watch Paragon Tel: 6235 0084 Capitol Piazza Tel: 6384 3250 • Raffles City Tel: 6339 9185 Mandarin Gallery Tel: 6732 0892 Emperor Watch & Jewellery The Shopping Gallery at the Hilton Tel: 6737 2896 Sincere Fine Watches Takashimaya Shopping Centre Tel: 6733 0618 • Sincerewatch.com Basement Takashimaya Shopping Centre Tel: 6694 4181 Corum Watches Singapore Pte Ltd Tel: 6272 9429

Automatic, Damascus steel with black DLC treatment, limited edition corum-watches.com

Contents January 2020 | Volume 12 | No. 85 | The Wild and Free Issue

MAHB

134

135 136

138 142

143 144 146

148

150

Food Coriander Leaf Food BBR

by Alain Ducasse Drinks Octomore 10 Travel Rafles Siem Reap Travel Byron Bay Grooming Taming your beard Music Sound of 2020 Technology Beats Pro Solo Art Singapore Biennale Art ESQnA: Daniel Ashram

154

156

158 160

Art Haring and Basquiat Cars SUVs and of-road Cars Jaguar’s head of design Cars Kia electric Books Round-up

T H I S WAY O U T 162

ON THE SPINE Illustration Mark de Winne Combine issues No. 85 to No. 95 and be rewarded with the complete illustration.

10

Blank canvas Maxwell N Burnstein

Photograph by John Tsiavis. Styling by David Bonney.

132

This way in

Editorial

Art

Production

IT

Editor-in-chief Norman Tan Features Editor Wayne Cheong Fashion Editor Eugene Lim Associate Fashion Editor Asri Jasman Writer Joy Ling Writer Derrick Tan Chief Sub-editor Jacqueline Danam Editor-at-Large (Watches & Jewellery) Celine Yap Contributing Motoring Editor Daryl Lee Group Digital Creative Producer Vanessa Caitlin Interns Ingrid Walker Chantelle David

Art Director Rebecca Chew Junior Art Director Penn Ey Chee Picture Editor Kenny Nguyen

Contributing

Writers & Stylists Adrienne Westenfeld, Ben Boskovich, Ben Paynter, David Bonney, Jane Rocca, Jonathan Evans, Josh Sims, Kristen Ingersoll, Neil Humphreys, Richard Sloan, Sufian Hakim, Zoey Goto

Hearst Magazines International

Photographers & Illustrators Charlie Gray, David Bay, Elinor Carucci, Gabe Chen, John Tsiavis, Mark de Winne, Maxwell N Burnstein, Menelik Puryear, Nick Thompson, Sean Myers, Studio Oooze

Management

Advertising

President Michael von Schlippe

Sales Director Audrey Wu Senior Account Manager Cornelius Cheng

Esquire

Editors-in-chief

International

Bulgaria Vladimir Konstantinov China Liang Zhaohui Colombia Alberto Sanchez Montiel Czech Republic Jiri Roth Greece Kostas N Tsitsas Hong Kong Kwong Lung Kit Kazakhstan Yuriy Serebryansky Korea Eric Byungjoon Min Latin America Alberto Sanchez Montiel Malaysia

Editions Group Production Director Anna Tsirelnikova Media Trafic & Client Services Coordinator Dao Thu Ha Prepress IMV Repro Senior Reprographic Prepress Technician Phuong Ngo Reprographic Prepress Technician Anh Bui

Marketing & Digital

Accounts & Administration

Senior Vice President/ General Manager/ Managing Director Asia & Russia Simon Horne Director of International Licensing & Business Development Richard Bean Senior Vice President/ Editorial & Brand Director Kim St Clair Bodden Deputy Brands Director Chloe O’Brien

Marketing Director Natasha Damodaran Regional Head Steven Khu Digital Project Manager Ilias Kimpaev

Administrator HuiYing Soh Admin & HR Manager Archana Gowda

IT Manager Marcos Sangga

Middle East Matthew Baxter-Priest Netherlands Arno Kantelberg Poland Andrzej Chojnowski Russia Sergey Minaev Serbia Milan Nikolic Spain Jorge Alcalde Taiwan

Published by Indochine Media Pte Ltd (201214107E), MCI (P) 072/02/2019, 1 Syed Alwi Road, Song Lin Building #02-02, Singapore 207628, Tel: (65) 6225 4045.

By permission of Hearst Communications, Inc., New York, New York, United States of America.

Esquire Singapore is available on board all Singapore Airlines flights in first- and businessclass cabins.

Printed Percetakan Zanders Sdn Bhd, 16 Jalan BK 1/11, Bandar Kinrara, 47180 Puchong, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia.

The views expressed in the articles and materials published are not necessarily those of Indochine Media Pte Ltd (201214107E). While every reasonable care is taken in compiling the magazine, the publisher shall not be held liable for any omission, error or inaccuracy, and accepts no responsibility for the content of advertisements published. Please notify the publisher in writing of any such omission, error or inaccuracy.

Editorial contributors are welcome, but unsolicited materials are submitted at the sender’s risk and the publisher cannot accept any responsibility for loss or damage. All rights reserved by Indochine Media Pte Ltd (201214107E). No part of this publication may be reproduced and/or transmitted in any form without the publisher’s permission in writing.

12

Thailand Satiya Siripojanakorn Turkey Togan Noyan United Kingdom Alex Bilmes United States Michael Sebastian

This way in

Editor’s letter

let’s smash this N O R M A N TA N Editor-in-chief, Esquire Singapore

@musingmutley

By the time you read this, I would have spent a good part of a fortnight sailing around the ports of New Zealand’s South Island, watching the morning sun break on The Remarkables in Queenstown, unsuccessfully masking a cheeky grin every time a local says the number six and leaving footprints on the trails around Milford Sound.

There’s something incomparably restorative about nature; the wilder the landscape, the more remote and untouched the location, the greater the release. Three. Deep. Breaths.

Sure we have the world’s largest indoor waterfall with the Rain Vortex in Jewel at Changi, but you literally have to elbow people out of the way just to see, for all intents and purposes, rain. The only release you’ll be getting is when you… Leave. The. Airport.

As we start a new year, this idea of being wild and free (the theme for this month’s issue) runs deeper than just getting of the beaten track. Physical freedom does not equate to mental or emotional freedom. Indeed, you could be hiking up Fox Glacier and still be as trapped as the millennia-old air bubbles in the ice beneath your feet.

To be free is to be able to embark on new adventures, be curious and give things a go. Which is why, with the blessing of the man who signs my pay cheque, I’ve launched a fine jewellery capsule with friend and jeweller, Carolyn Kan—the Carrie K x Ophir collection.

It all started when I wanted to create a solid gold bracelet to remember my late grandmother who passed away last year. She fled a communist China to set up a new life with her husband in Malaysia and raised seven independent and brilliant children.

She never went to school, but was one of the wisest people I’ve ever met. So, to honour her, I designed the Wisdom bracelet as a modern, medieval crown inspired by King Solomon and his hallmark as one of the wisest men in history. People started approaching Carolyn and me about the collection. We caught up over tea and realised there was a gap in the market for unisex fine jewellery that was unapologetically bold yet elegant, so we said, “hey, let’s give this a go”.

The Carrie K x Ophir collection consists of the Wisdom bracelet and Wisdom ring (yes, those pieces at the top of this page) handcrafted from 18-carat yellow or white gold. Want to get some wisdom in your life? Hit us up on socials: @ophir.crown

Talking about giving things a go, turn to page 99 for our special report on Esquire Neighbourhood 2019. Every year we host a signature event to bring the Esquire world to life. It’s driven by our goal to create content that inspires our readers to add value to themselves and the world around them.

In 2018 we hosted our Esquire Shophouse event where we saw over 1,000 people come through six rooms over three floors in one shophouse to connect with like-minded people and spark meaningful conversation. But for Esquire Neighbourhood, we decided to raise the bar. With a total of 35 activities held over 12 locations in the Duxton Hill precinct, we had over 7,000 people come through the neighbourhood for cocktail workshops, fitness classes, creative masterclasses, VR activations, panel talks and a silent cinema amongst a bevy of other pursuits.

It was amazing to see that, even though we are so digitally connected today, at the end of the day, we all still hunger for real face-to-face human connection. So proud of the team for pulling of this mammoth event with such class and finesse.

For 2020, we remain committed to telling stories that inspire and inform those who are already well-informed and are an inspiration, by continuing to shoot exclusive covers with people who are shaping society (check out our profile on Paul Rudd on page 76 that was shot on the rooftop of Robert de Niro’s building in New York City); bring you insightful journalism on topics that intrigue (read Josh Sims’ investigation on why nudity continues to get us so riled up on page 88); and deliver cutting-edge fashion content for fashion novices and fashion-lovers alike (don’t miss the spread, ‘High Vibrating Frequency’, on page 46).

But as we are never one to rest on our laurels, there are some changes too. ‘This Page is Lit’, dedicated to showcasing local writing talent, is now a serialised novel by Singapore author Sufian Hakim (each issue will see a new chapter from his original postapocalyptic tale, ‘Underneath a sky of red’ written exclusively for Esquire Singapore); ‘Expert Opinion’ has been replaced with ‘By the Numbers’, an infographic powered by the bright minds at international ad agency TBWA; and to close each book, the new artist for ‘Blank Canvas’ is analogue collage artist Maxwell N Burnstein.

Stay tuned, there are more exciting developments to follow.

This is just the beginning. Enjoy the issue and here’s to a smashing 2020. Let’s hit it out of the park for sex, I mean, six.

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Column

Neil before God Esquire Singapore asks Neil Humphreys to lay himself bare and explore his visceral response to our cover theme. To kick of 2020, he examines his deep love of the outdoors and why the natural world is such a sexy thing.

MANY years ago, I was nearly attacked by a fox. It caught me of guard. I was peeing in the street at the time.

As I staggered through a London housing estate in the early hours, urinating in a straight line to prove that I wasn’t pissed, a sudden howling interrupted my low.

On a deserted street, I spotted a feral fox trotting in my direction.

I zipped up quickly.

I was only 18 and didn’t fancy the ravenous beast confusing my shivering organ for a chicken frankfurter.

In a drunken haze, I quickened my pace. So did the fox. He must have spotted the chicken frankfurter. He must have had good eyesight.

Panic took hold. There’s nothing like the heady mix of eight pints of cider and the thought of losing a teenage penis to turn a weary wanderer into Usain Bolt.

Eventually, the scrawny animal gave up the chase.

But that intoxicated date with a famished mammal encapsulated my relationship with the natural world.

There wasn’t one. Emaciated foxes, stray dogs and pigeons crapping everywhere were the only visual clues that life existed beyond the thousands of people crammed into red-brick boxes.

The natural world was a Tolkienesque fantasy, a distant utopia illed with wondrous creatures sharing exotic terrains from another dimension. David Attenborough’s documentaries were essentially myths for council estate kids sidestepping dog shit on their way to school.

And then a monkey nicked my tube of Pringles and I fell in love.

I met my irst long-tailed macaque at the Bukit Timah summit when I was about 22. It was love at irst bite. The little bastard polished of the Pringles in seconds.

L

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E 16

(I learned two valuable lessons that day. Never feed wild animals. And never run down Bukit Timah screaming: “There are killer monkeys up there. Sod the children. Save yourselves.”)

Of course, whenever I suggest that my infatuation with wildlife began in Singapore, I am usually rewarded with a hollow laugh. I get it. There’s an apparent contradiction, like claiming my sex obsession began at a monastery.

There’s not much around to sustain my addiction.

But in terms of the astonishing breadth of biodiversity, I might as well have swapped East London for the Amazon.

Instead, I swapped foxes for long-tailed macaques, smooth-coated otters, black-spitting cobras, monitor lizards, wild boars, Brahminy kites, feather-legged spiders and red-breasted parakeets.

There are many others, but the species above have all been spotted within walking distance of my apartment.

I still live in a housing estate, only now the company includes red-breasted parakeets rather than red-breasted women who thought sunblock was for wimps.

I succumbed to ‘biophilia’ in Singapore.

According to the ‘biophilia hypothesis’, humans are drawn to nature because we evolved in it. Our history is shared, entwined. A walk ‘outdoors’ is efectively a walk indoors. We’re going home. We’re visiting old neighbours.

(At least that’s what I said to myself when I encountered a cobra near Lorong Halus and almost soiled myself.)

The sobering reality for the chest thumping, sabrerattling bores among us is that our relationship with nature is laughably one-sided. We need nature and not for the obvious, emasculating reason either (ie. in a planet versus people pistols-at-dawn duel over climate change, the planet wins. Every time.)

Column

The average forest isn’t thirsting for likes, shares and cultural acceptance.

Just consider what the natural world gives us.

First, there’s the humbling lesson in sustainability.

Our forests are Ebenezer Scrooge on Christmas eve.

They give and take the bare minimum. Nothing more.

Ecosystems are harmonious. Trees absorb as many nutrients as they need. They don’t eat a tin of baked beans and then store six more because there was a twofor-one special in the supermarket (guilty). Long-tailed macaques rely on the forest canopy during inclement weather, rather than stash a dozen free umbrellas from a dozen road shows (again, guilty.)

A walk around any of Singapore’s forest fragments reveals what a balanced environment looks like, one that isn’t destroying itself through overconsumption.

And it’s green and inviting and beautiful.

Now consider what the natural world takes away.

Noise. Bosses. Deadlines. Exams. Annoying relatives.

Social media. Echo chambers. Racism. Intolerance. Rage.

Traic jams. Electric scooters. Pointless queues for pointless products and Singaporean emcees who use fake American accents, the natural world removes them all.

They loat away with the forest breeze, leaving behind only a sense of profound calm and a faint, lingering desire to strangle anyone with a fake accent (because some things never leave us).

Plus our insuferable social comparisons disappear.

The average forest isn’t thirsting for likes, shares and cultural acceptance. Inhabitants, in all forms, are accepted in a chastening display of diversity.

No one cares how they look—or are perceived—in

the natural world, which is just as well as there are some really ugly lora and fauna.

Take the tropical pitcher plants. Native to Singapore, they are long, dangly, bulbous things and often pinkish in colour. Clumped together, they resemble an old man’s testicles.

But do they care? No! Every species is free to hang out and look like any phallic symbol it wants.

To witness life in all sizes and scrotum shapes is a liberating experience, one that should be made mandatory as the natural world and its concrete counterpart continue to butt heads in Singapore.

The blitzkrieg eforts to manufacture a city in a garden have seen two tribes—the indigenous and the idiotic—overlap and clash. As one side loses its habitat, the other side has a tendency to lose its mind.

When wild animals are encountered on the fringes of housing estates, there have been calls to ‘send them back’ to the zoo, expressing Trumpian levels of ignorance.

The answer is to send everyone back to where they came from. Let’s all return to our remaining forests in 2020 and spend a bit of time on nature’s clock, just for a day or even a few hours.

We react to tactile experiences. If we see it, we might want to save it.

So, seek out Singapore’s green havens. Savour the sunbeams streaming through the trees and the abundance of colourful life at every turn.

And then, ind the pitcher plants and take a selie beneath those glorious dangling testicles.

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This page is lit

Underneath A Sky of Red

WORDS BY SUFFIAN HAKIM

“The moon had been observing the earth close-up longer than anyone.

It must have witnessed all of the phenomena occurring—and all of the acts carried out—on this earth. But the moon remained silent; it told no stories.”

Haruki Murakami, 1Q84, published in 2009

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Illustration by Rebecca Chew

Chapter One: The Rising Moon

This page is lit

D AV I D W O N G U S E D to have a recurring nightmare. It stopped when the bombs fell.

In it, he and his family were running away from some unseen horror. Lestari sprinted ahead as David carried his children, but their weight would be too much to bear. His femur snapped. Bleachwhite splintered bone tore through his thighs from the inside.

And then, at that very moment, he would wake up sweating, the weight of this world and the next on his shoulders.

The nightmare had melted away with the ice.

But it came back that evening.

When he awoke gasping, beads of perspiration cascading down his face, Lestari was holding him with her cold, careworn hands.

Behind her, the moon could be seen against the orange-pink sky and the icy winds of nuclear night were howling down the sun.

She cupped his face and leaned in so that their faces were a mere breath apart. She was 40 but she looked as she did at 30, when the world began falling apart around them. “You’re all right,” she whispered and kissed his lips. “I’m here. The kids are here. We’re safe.”

David’s shuddering eased.

“Come now, love,” said Lestari, pushing herself of the linenwrapped stack of tattered magazines and disused sponges that was their mattress. “It’s almost time for dinner.”

He rose with his wife and passed under the rust-red rebar at the threshold between their bedroom and their living room.

Their living room was devoid of furniture, the loor was raw and uneven, and there was a gaping hole in the wall where their two children sat, looking out to the rubble of Sembawang and the broken world beyond.

“Let’s prepare for dinner, kids,” Lestari called to them. She lit Mason jar oil lamps around the house, placing them on the loor where their soft glow would not be seen by the outside world.

But the children remained.

“There are pelesit near the outer limits.” Adam, the older of the two, pushed his dark curls away from his eyes and pointed towards the south-east. There, a rubble barrier, formed of the carcass of the once-proud MRT tracks, provided a natural barrier against the rovers from beyond. People were out there, carrying torches, their cackling, cajoling voices carrying all the way to David and his family.

“There are always pelesit near the outer limits,” David grunted.

“Start the ire. We eat in 30 minutes.”

“I want to go closer and see what they’re up to,” said Adam with dangerous enthusiasm. “What if they head in our direction?”

The boy was old enough to remember when entire cities were swallowed whole by the oceans. He was old enough to remember when half a dozen nations launched bombs that obliterated the very notion of nations. Adam was 14 when the last prime minister of Singapore gave his inal speech announcing the dissolution of the republic. “The crescent moon and the ive stars will rise again!” the late, great Karthik Murugan had declared heroically.

Adam should therefore be old enough to not be this stupid.

“We do as I’ve trained you to do and we don’t create a situation that we cannot control. You being out there, playing spy like a big man—that is creating a situation we cannot control.” David willed himself to soften his tone. “I am protecting you, Adam. These rules aren’t for fun.”

“Nothing here is for fun!”

“Everything we do is designed to keep you alive.” David kept his voice even, but his temper showed in the subtle reddening that spread across his broad face.

“Come on, Adam, help me with the irewood,” Sarah said softly.

The boy sighed and followed his sister towards the service yard.

“This isn’t living,” the boy muttered as he sauntered away, just audibly enough for his father to hear.

His mother heard it, too. Lestari took David’s hand in hers.

They exited their home. A short corridor later, they were in an open space about the size of their living room. To their left was the bricked-up doorway to the stairwell and to their right was a gaping hole, the remnants of a wall that had been sledgehammered open.

Beyond that was a dark chasm that used to function as an elevator shaft. David stepped to the edge of the abyss and reached out to the left. His hands curled tightly around a rusty rung of the service ladder and he climbed out to the landing three storeys above, where a makeshift Mason jar oil lamp sat on the loor. He lit it and held it aloft in the elevator shaft. Under the lickering glow, Lestari began her ascent.

There, 15 loors above the detritus of Sembawang, they had set up a small sandbox garden, where a neat ive-by-ive arrangement of lettuce grew. At the other end of the corridor, there was a makeshift cardboard coop of ive chickens.

As they got to work on the lettuce, Lestari said: “You need to go easy on them, David. They grew up in a world much diferent from this one.”

David grunted as he picked up a head of lettuce and peeled it to ind a blackened, rotten core. “This is the world now,” he said unapologetically, linging the lettuce aside.

“Do you remember what you scolded Sarah for two nights ago?”

“No.” “You scolded her for saying, ‘The moon has risen’.”

David shrugged. “The moon doesn’t rise. Our language perpetuates misconceptions like this. The sun and the moon have always been above us. We just think they rise and fall because we rise and fall. We are small creatures, never meant to inherit this world. The sooner they understand that, the better their chances of living.”

“Listen to me,” Lestari said gently. With equal care, she placed aside a healthy, rich green head of lettuce. “They need a parent, not a drill sergeant.”

“Parenting has evolved, Les.” He gestured to the night. “Do you think there’s room out there for talking about what university they want to go to, or to read them bedtime stories, to ask them about what the latest social media craze is? None of those things exist anymore. Our kids, on the other hand, need to continue existing.”

“Existing, yes. But they’re not living.”

“And how exactly do you live in a world like this?”

Lestari opened her mouth to answer, but the next human voice that the both of them heard came from the opposite block.

It was clearly in the accent of a pelesit and it was shouting: “There, on the 12th loor!”

David’s eyes met Lestari’s. “The children!”

Tune in to the next issue for the next chapter of Underneath A Sky of Red.

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Still life

Photographs and styling by Sean Ashley and Dionna Lee of Studio Oooze.

1|5

Leather high-cut Claudio sneaker (top) and leather Claudio sneaker, both by Ermenegildo Zegna XXX.

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Style 23

46

67

The suit goes casual

Warp and weft

Wrist takers

Why wear long pants when short ones are so much cooler?

We’ve woven a fashionable lattice with the season’s best pieces.

Take a gamble on these wild timepieces, but don’t worry, they won’t bite.

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Coat, by Ami Paris; turtleneck sweater, by N Peal.

Ami’s belted overcoat is a more-than-worthy execution of the season’s cosiest outerwear lex.

If you’ve ever felt inclined to wear your bathrobe outdoors, you are not alone. Every weekend, on cofee runs across the globe, millions of men feel the same longing. But they don’t have to, thanks to one cosy bit of seasonal outerwear: the belted overcoat.

Outside of looking rather chic while you grab your morning paper, for designers, belted overcoats are a playground for texture and colour. Here’s why we especially love this option from Paris-based Alexandre Mattiussi’s label, Ami.

evening out, layering it with a jacket and trousers or jeans and a sweater, then throw it on over sweats and a tee to snag a bacon-eggand-cheese the next morning. Who’s that handsome devil relecting of the glass display cases? You, the coolest guy in the deli.

I T ’ S E A S Y— A N D E N V Y I N S P I R I N G .

Even down to its creamy beige colour, there’s no better way to bring #robelife to the streets. That other guy out walking his dog is going to wish he were belted up like you are. Oh, and those deep pockets? Go ahead and throw an extra breakfast sandwich in one, if for no other reason than because you can.

I T ’ S S U P R E M E LY V E R S AT I L E .

This is your perfect night-to-day piece. You can dress it up for an

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Words by Ben Boskovich. Photograph by Menelik Puryear

Tie one on

Style

Essentials of style

Fresh new (shorts) cut Enough with the linen/unlined suits—the shorts suit is the latest trend to rise in a climate where wardrobes are getting increasingly casual.

Words by Eugene Lim. Getty

Pharrell Williams at The Lion King premiere in London, 2019.

The shorts suit is not a new fad—New Age fashion pundits will be quick to point out that Pharrell Williams irst broke out the look at the 2014 Academy Awards, with a Lanvin tuxedo jacket worn with matching shorts and no socks.

Then you have the uniform of Thom Browne, who brought an avant-garde edge to tailoring, wearing his signature shrunken suit jacket with a pair of matching shorts and brogues.

Like we said, the shorts and tailored jacket combination might not be new, but there was a time when the fashion world was up in arms about it. Case in point: when Pharrell irst debuted the look, there was a heated debate in the Esquire oice.

A colleague of mine was so irate that he ended the conversation by saying: “There is a time and place for everything, respect the occasion.”

He has a point, but Pharrell wasn’t breaking the rules for the sake of it; he was just ahead of the curve. We weren’t ready for it then, but the time and place for wearing shorts with your suit is right now. Luxury fashion houses like Prada, Berluti and Bottega Veneta have presented their variations for the upcoming season. Our favourite version comes from Fendi—a beautiful notch lapel jacket that is slightly longer, with straight-cut shorts in a matching fabric.

But before you start cutting your trousers short, there are some things that you should note. Like a suit, you want it to it your frame, meaning not too tight or loose. The look tends to sit better on a lankier frame, so if you lean towards the stockier side consider a shorter jacket with a slightly looser pair of shorts that run longer.

While the look might have been revolutionary years ago, it is the next logical step in the suit evolution.

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Prep and punk share a deeply personal rebellious streak.

Put ’em together and you’ve got a look that’ll raise eyebrows for the right reasons.

Jacket, by Paul Stuart; rugby shirt, by Rowing Blazers x Lands’ End; sweater, by J Press; trousers, by Rowing Blazers; loafers, by GH Bass & Co; socks, by The Elder Statesman.

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Words by Jonathan Evans. Photographs by Menelik Puryear

Ivy at the edge

Style

Essentials of style

THE RUGBY SHIRT Forget the oxford (for now). A striped rugby shirt gives the whole look a graphic punch-up.

T H E S W E AT E R It’s all about the colour here. Think bright... then go even brighter.

THE BLAZER Try it oversized to change up the feel. And don’t be afraid of brass buttons.

Consider this: between punks and preppies, one group embraces the concept of f**k-you pants—and it ain’t the punks. The style subcultures have more in common, at least in ethos, than you might expect. It’s just that for preppies, the jacket of choice isn’t a biker but a blazer (which nowadays is as likely to be made by the streetwear-friendly brand Rowing Blazers or the skate-infused label Noah as by J Press or Brooks Brothers).

The approach, though, is all about going for it, rules be damned. So if you’re looking to give your prep staples a shot in the arm, do it. Take those brands and mix ’em all together. Launch the colours into highlighter territory. And feel free to play with bigger its and extra layers. Even with some two-tone loafers (beloved by both groups!), you won’t be mistaken for any kind of actual punk.

But don’t be surprised if you earn a nod from one or two for your commitment to convention smashing.

THE CORDS A wide wale is the way to go.

Add a big ol’ cuf to match.

Blazer, by Polo Ralph Lauren; sweaters, by Paul Stuart; rugby shirt, by Lands’ End; trousers, by FE Castleberry.

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There’s no repelling this Gore-Tex is an inevitable trend that has been seeping for a while now.

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Style

Essentials of style

Words by Asri Jasman

Facing page: not only does the Prada Linea Rossa line feature Prada’s signature use of nylon, it’s also topped with Gore-Tex for extra weatherproofing.

Gore-Tex has been around for decades. And just as Velcro (the company) has become the ubiquitous term for everything, well, Velcro, Gore-Tex is poised to reach a similar status for all things weatherproof.

It’s not an unfamiliar name by any account, but its application may seem rather surprising. Gore-Tex’s raison d’être was dedicated to serious outdoorsmen who wanted clothes that could work in tandem with their gear in almost any situation and environment. A Gore-Tex product is characteristically waterproof and windproof, while also providing suicient comfort thanks to the material’s breathability.

As with most things created for function irst, there was hardly anything stylish about a Gore-Tex design. All that mattered to all the dads before us was that it worked extremely well in that niche segment; an additional boon that they could tackle multiple hurdles of being in the great outdoors.

Yet, just as dad sneakers have managed to wiggle their way into fashion’s style vocabulary, so has Gore-Tex, albeit in a sneakier way. If you’re currently sporting a pair of Timberlands, or a pair of Adidas sneakers, or even suede Clarks desert boots, chances are, they’ve got a fair bit of Gore-Tex incorporated. Its revolutionary sock-liner—introduced in 1982—paved the way for dependable protection against external moisture. Which makes perfect sense for footwear brands to tap into the innovation in order to provide even better protection against an issue that afects everybody— outdoorsy or not.

Fashion’s never-ending obsession with utilitarian style has blurred the lines between function and style, so much so that brands such as Patagonia, The North Face and Moncler have established themselves beyond their technical roots. With climate change skewing weather patterns, it’s only wise to have fashion items that are prepared for sudden downpours too. Gore-Tex is no stranger on fashion runways, having continuously collaborated with a spectrum of brands that want to inject functionality into their designs. A Gore-Tex label has become a seal of technical authenticity and approval. The Prada Linea Rossa line—a more technical-focused collection by Prada—uses Gore-Tex fabric innovations for optimal performance, while preserving its house codes and elegance.

There’s no reason to view Gore-Tex as a fashion trend because it isn’t; it has only gotten more visible. The company made its debut appearance during the autumn/winter 2019 show season at Paris Men’s Fashion Week last year and has a dedicated Instagram account (@goretexstudio) showcasing its work with contemporary fashion brands.

All it has to do now is to work on being more sustainable and environmentally friendly (its main component is expanded polytetraluoroethylene; a plastic) and it could very well be the Velcro of weatherproof fabrics.

Above: there’s no better way to achieve some street cred than sitting logo to logo with Supreme.

Below: an ASICS x Gore-Tex collaboration that’s engineered for extreme wet weather.

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Take a

walk on the

wild side

Leopard prints have been around for a while now, and it is time to take the plunge.

Celine.

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Words by Eugene Lim

Burberry.

Dries Van Noten.

that’s what we are here for: to break it down for you and prevent your next leopard-printed purchase to be the style equivalent of a mid-life crisis.

Like any print, the best way to get introduced to it is to take it one piece at a time. You want to start with garments in familiar silhouettes that are usually printed—like a camp collar shirt. Options from Burberry and Wacko Maria are great pieces to start with. Also opt for prints in a khaki-based colour before experimenting with bolder options.

Pick a it that is similar to other shirts that you already own.

Avoid shiny fabrics and pairing it with other clashing prints (you’ll end up looking like an optical illusion). When you have that down pat, the world is your leopard-printed oyster. Experiment with pieces like the acid-washed renditions that come in the form of jackets and outerwear from MSGM or even this beautiful doublebreasted corduroy number from Noah Clothing.

And just like that, you’ve tamed the leopard. It’s menswear’s inal frontier and you now have the road map to conquer them.

Who hasn’t dreamt of heading to a safari in Africa and hanging with lions—a literal walk on the wide side. Not to burst that bubble but the reality is a lot tamer—it’s more glamping than camping, and most of the time, you sit in a well-armoured jeep and have experts guide you through.

That notion is not unlike adding some leopard prints to your style repertoire. I mean we all wish that we could pull of leopard prints with the same ease as rock-gods, but the truth is that you want it in small doses. And much like the well-meaning guides at the safari, we are here to show you the way.

Leopard prints have always been a part of the menswear canon, but this year, it seems like the print is everywhere. Brands from streetwear staples like Noon Goons and Neighbourhood to luxury fashion house such as Dolce & Gabbana, Burberry and Versace are bringing them back in a big way.

Now leopard prints are deinitely not an easy style move to make—it’s one of the most advanced steps you can take in your sartorial journey, but as the old adage goes: you only live once. But

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Just because you’ve been invited to a black-tie event doesn’t mean you have to look boring.

Here’s a bold way to hit refresh in a formal setting.

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Words by Daniel Dumas. Photograph by Aaron Richter. Styling by Nick Sullivan

Go tux yourself

Photograph by Jefrey Westbrook. Prop styling by Claire Tedaldi / Halley Resources

Boot, by Givenchy; glasses, link bracelet and bolo tie, all by Chrome Hearts; silver comb, by Tifany & Co; card holder, by Celine by Hedi Slimane; lighter and ring, both by Cartier; cuf bracelet, by Hermès.

Facing page: leather jacket, tuxedo shirt, tie, evening scarf and trousers, all by Dolce & Gabbana.

1.

GIVE YO U R WEEKEND RIDER THE NIGHT OFF

2.

NOT ALL L E AT H E R I S C R E AT E D EQ UA L

3.

THE JACKET IS AN INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY

That badass grime-covered Schott Perfecto you wear while ripping around on your Ducati?

Leave it at home for black-tie events.

Your jacket should be made from a lighter leather, like goatskin. You’ll keep warm outside yet stay cool inside—even tearing up the dance floor.

After the party, your new luxe leather can be worn with jeans, with khakis, with anything, really.

As the years go by, it’ll look better with age.

L E T L O O S E W I T H L E AT H E R

Does the idea of donning a full tux to attend a formal gala make you want to gag on a canapé? If so, consider ditching the traditional tuxedo jacket for leather. Admittedly, this is an extremely advanced style move best reserved for very speciic situations (yes: red carpet at the Grammys; no: the Nobel Prize banquet), but it can be pulled of. The nucleus of the outit is—surprise!—the jacket. Opt for a model that’s jet-black and extremely clean, like the biker from Dolce & Gabbana at left. Ground it with a pair of traditional tuxedo trousers and pepper in a generous helping of outside-the-black-tie accessories: silver bracelets, Chelsea boots, maybe a bolo tie. Then hit the party. It doesn’t matter if you’re a desk jockey by day—you’ll be a rock star that night.

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Shirt, blazer and scarf, all by Celine.Â

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Here he comes It took eight episodes for Sex Education’s Otis Milburn to inally masturbate to completion. But it took years of doing ilm and the right script for Asa Butterield to jump into his biggest career hit yet.

Words by Asri Jasman Photography by Nick Thompson Styling by Richard Sloan

Sex Education, rather ironically or not, takes a look at the lives of teens within a rural community in England as they navigate coming of age, sexuality and romance, all while subtly highlighting the need for a substantial sex education syllabus in the real world.

At least, that’s how it comes across.

We found ourselves introduced to sex-related issues and terms we were not taught in school. In an episode that focused on bodyshaming—speciically, vagina-shaming—Sex Education broached the topic of how there isn’t a ‘normal’ or ‘acceptable’ appearance to the female body part. Through a subplot between two girls in a one-sided relationship, the show touched on how sex isn’t just a physical concept.

And for Asa Butterield—who plays Otis Milburn, a 16-year-old struggling with self-pleasuring, a sex therapist mother and gaining notoriety as the school’s sex guru—it’s the term ‘vaginismus’. “I didn’t know there was a term for it and that it’s actually quite common,” Butterield tells us. “I sort of became more appreciative of the vast spectrum of people’s sexualities and how diferent everyone can be—their quirks, likes and dislikes, and how personal they are.”

Butterield is by no means a stranger to acting. His credits count ilms helmed by the likes of Martin Scorsese and Tim Burton, and span multiple genres. Sex Education is his irst lead role in a television series and especially in such a bingeable format.

It has very little to do with opportunity, but rather, the consensus that the quality of stories that the small screen has been producing is on par with that of ilm.

“I’d always wanted to do a longer form television show. When I read this script, it seemed to just tick all the boxes. It’s British, so I was ilming in the UK; it’s a comedy, which I really enjoy doing and I’ve been doing more now; it sort of felt quite original and like we were treading on new ground,” he explains. “And the characters were really, really well-written, and that’s what I connected with more than anything.”

The characters in Sex Education are refreshingly diverse and while at times that may seem idyllic, reality comes in the form of

real-world prejudices and drama. Otis’s best friend is Eric Eiong, an openly gay teen who comes from a strictly religious Ghanaian family, and battles with inding acceptance as an individual. In one episode, Otis dresses up in drag together with Eric to watch the musical Hedwig and the Angry Inch as part of their annual tradition on the latter’s birthday; a kind of relationship that’s quite unheard of onscreen.

“Otis and Eric are diferent energies and quite complement each other; I think they bring the best out of each other, which is quite rare to ind. And it’s a really important relationship to show— that a gay, black guy and a straight, white boy have been able to be best friends and support each other and never be shoehorned in, and for it to be a part of their relationship. I think that’s really nice to see,” Butterield concurs. Ofscreen, he and Ncuti Gatwa “clicked really quickly” and it’s apparent in the interviews that they’ve done together too.

With a show that has ‘sex’ in its title, deals with sexual issues and centres around teens with boundless sexual energies, the sex scenes in Sex Education are never gratuitous; they serve to push the narrative forward. Butterield got of lightly by not having had to partake in intimate sexual scenes as compared to his other cast members. He says: “The scenes are always a little bit awkward but you get over it quite quickly.” But Butterield being in such ilming situations is set to change in the second season.

“He’s got a girlfriend now so he deinitely has more intimate scenes with Trish [Patricia Allison portrays Otis’s girlfriend Ola, a relationship that formed at the end of the irst season]. And he’s also discovered masturbating at the very last episode so there’s a lot of that going on. So yeah, they’ve deinitely amped up the sex scenes for season two but not crazily. It’s still got heart,” Butterield expands on what to expect for the upcoming season.

There will be a chlamydia outbreak in school, the arrival of new students, the expansion on previous relationships (and oneofs), complicated family dynamics and a host of other general school-related issues. Yet what’s also central to Otis’s character

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is his relationship with his sex therapist mother Jean, played excellently by ’90s icon, Gillian Anderson.

“Gillian is a lot of fun to work with. She doesn’t take herself too seriously so I felt very comfortable around her. We’ve found a very nice sort of dynamic in this mother-son relationship, which felt very natural and it kind of just went from there,” Butterield tells us.

As the irst season progressed, we witnessed how that rather strange but close relationship between Otis and Jean began getting increasingly estranged and complicated. It hit its peak with Jean assuming a romantic relationship with her handyman, who also happens to be the father of Otis’s new girlfriend. As if dealing with a sex therapist for a mother wasn’t diicult enough…

That’s one of the draws of the series: there’s hardly anything ‘normal’ about Sex Education to begin with. While the series is set in modern-day UK, the students don’t wear uniforms. In fact, the colour treatment and styling is decidedly ’80s—full of neon brights, an individualistic sense of fashion overall and entirely seen through a pastel-hued ilter—as a nod to the teen movies

by John Hughes. Otis’s deining piece of clothing (he wears it everywhere) for example, is a vintage, colour-blocked Wrangler jacket that Butterield says “a lot goes into keeping it safe” because there’s only one of it. “I can’t wear it when I’m eating lunch and take it of whenever I get the chance,” he muses.

You’d see Butterield change up his hair now and then (“If I know I’ve got some time where I know I can change my hair, I just go for it”), but just like his character, there’s an attachment with the clothes in his own wardrobe. “My wardrobe, honestly, hasn’t changed that much in the past year or two. I’ve got enough clothes that I don’t have to buy anymore, which is quite nice; till they start falling apart,” he says. There’s also an ainity for Japanese fashion but he says “it’s sort of changing”.

What hasn’t changed though is the sense of measured control and humility that has been there since the beginning of his career.

When asked about his dedicated following, Butterield only had nice things to say about them, especially about them being protective of his career.

With Netlix being the streaming giant that it is, the platform has brought to fore young talents that seem to have been plucked from obscurity thanks to its slate of teen-focused original series.

Now-familiar stars such as Noah Centineo of To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before and Sierra Burgess Is A Loser, as well as Jacob Elordi of The Kissing Booth fame had their time as Netlix’s It boys. For fear of Sex Education discounting Butterield’s pre-Netlix career to a new audience, fans took to social media to highlight his already impressive portfolio.

“A lot of them have been my fans for a long time. It’s nice that people are protective, but I don’t get too caught up in that,” Butterield responds.

Netlix reported that Sex Education was watched by 40 million accounts within the month of its release. And with the second season being highly anticipated, we’re putting it out there that there really isn’t anything for fans to be protective or concerned about.

Asa Butterield has come. And we have a feeling it’ll be more than twice.

Shirt, by Prada; glasses, by Cutler & Gross.

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T-shirt, by Hanro; jumper and trousers, both by Prada; glasses,

by Cutler & Gross.

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T-shirt, by Hanro; necklace and neck tie, both by Prada.

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Shirt and jacket, both by Martine Rose; trousers, by Ferragamo; glasses, by Cutler & Gross; socks, by Falke; shoes, by Manolo Blahnik.

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Shirt and trousers, both

by Louis Vuitton; jacket,

by Martine Rose.

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Style

Vest, dungarees, blazer and shoes, all by Celine.

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Groomer: Lee Machin using Tom Ford. Production Manager: Alexandra Oley

Essentials of style

Vest, by Salvatore Ferragamo; jumper and trousers, both by Ermenegildo Zegna.

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Why Elvis still matters on the 85th anniversary of his birth

B L I N G C U LT U R E

Elvis was born in a wooden shack in the Deep South of America and spent his early years living a hand-to-mouth existence. Having risen above his impoverished childhood and found monumental fame with his irst number one hit by the age of 20, Elvis was able to inally indulge his taste for ostentatious fashion. He did this spectacularly in 1957 when he sported a sensational gold suit for the album cover of 50,000,000 Elvis Fans Can’t be Wrong. The dazzling outit, which cost USD10,000, was a forerunner to bling culture, where hip-hop stars use lashy clothing and diamondencrusted jewellery to visually signal that they’ve hit the big time.

Designer Tommy Hiliger agrees that Elvis was “the irst white boy to really bling it up”. What Elvis’ blinding suit lacked in subtlety, it made up for in spectacle, communicating to the world that the poor boy from Mississippi was ready to take his throne as the golden boy of entertainment. A diverse range of entertainers including Tupac, Brandon Flowers and Justin Bieber have since sported the spectacular gold suit, whilst Versace and Costume National have also paid homage to Elvis’ extravagant outit.

It wasn’t just with his clothing that Elvis splashed the cash.

During his lifetime Elvis bought over 260 cars, many of which were gifted to friends and occasionally even strangers. In 1968, Elvis made his most extravagant purchase—a Series 75 Fleetwood Limousine, which he spent USD65,000 (the equivalent of almost half a million US dollars now) to paint it with 40 coats of crushed diamonds. There were also various private jets with gold-plated bathrooms and a mountain of bling jewellery that would be handed out to fans in the front row of Elvis’ concerts, as if they were sweets.

Anyone who has visited Elvis’ beloved Graceland mansion in Memphis can also testify that the notorious Polynesian-themed Jungle Room blows most oferings from MTV Cribs out of the water!

“Fashions fade, style is eternal,” declared the late fashion pioneer Yves Saint Laurent.

The legendary performer Elvis Presley, who was born on 8 January 1935, is one of those rare icons whose style inluence has outlived their career.

Elvis Presley, the King of Bling.

The Memphis Flash, as he was known in his youth, continues to inluence contemporary design culture, from pop stars and highend fashion houses to street style. Walking through most major cities, it is hard not to notice the guys and girls channelling their inner Elvis, with Americana and rockabilly styles being constantly reworked and revived on the streets. “Even today, a distilled version of Elvis’ look has iltered down into the wardrobes of many self-respecting teenage rebels,” acknowledges the British menswear designer Joe Casely-Hayford.

Zoey Goto, author of the book Elvis Style: From Zoot Suits to Jumpsuits, takes a look at the King of Style’s legacy and cherrypicks his most enduring style contributions.

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Ring photograph by Heritage Auctions

T H E P O M PA D O U R

Even as a high school student, Elvis understood that hair was loaded with social meaning. While his fellow classmates sported the standard post-war short back and sides, Elvis set his sights higher and looked toward Hollywood’s leading men such as Marlon Brando, Tony Curtis and the debonair Dean Martin for guidance.

Teenage Elvis lost no time in trying to coax his own hair into a greased, inger-curled quif, falling seductively across his forehead, which caused controversy, as it was higher, slicker and wilder than his contemporaries. Elvis teamed his sky-high pompadour with a duck’s-tail—achieved by combing the hair from the ears to meet and overlap at the back of the head so it resembled the back-end of a duck. The young Elvis also threw into the mix a pair of menacing sideburns, adding a dose of rugged Southern truck driver to his look. His long, greased-back style exhibited the same lack of conformity that would later be witnessed with punk mohawks and skinhead number one cuts.

When Elvis joined the army in 1958, he received the most famous military haircut of the 20th century when his trademark pompadour and sideburns were replaced with a standard GI cut.

The world’s media witnessed the Samson-like spectacle, with many heralding it as a symbolic moment in the demise of rock and roll.

“Hair today, gone tomorrow,” Elvis quipped, as Life magazine took no less than 1,200 photos of the session. The haircut grieved his fans, causing some to shed tears at the sight of Elvis’ fallen locks.

Style

Essentials of style

As a fashion statement, Elvis’ white suit is all about the Deep South.

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Elvis’ hair inspired a generation of teenage rebels globally, including the British Teddy Boys who used lashings of Brylcreem to imitate the slick, patent leather appearance of Presley’s style.

Elvis’ timeless pompadour hairstyle continues to inluence contemporary performers, with Bruno Mars (who, incidentally started his show business career as an Elvis impersonator) and Rihanna adopting variations of Elvis’ rebel hairstyle. In recent years, the men’s grooming brand American Crew has launched a range of products to help with achieving Elvis’ legendary quif.

with gender stereotypes. His fondness for make-up—at which he was so adept he would often apply his girlfriend’s mascara—and penchant for lace and navel-baring cropped shirts were seen as efeminate and highly suspicious.

Elvis also helped in liberating men to wear colours that previously had been considered exclusively for females, including bubble-gum pink clothing. “Back then, ‘real men’ wouldn’t wear pink,” says Hal Lansky of Lansky Bros, Elvis’ favourite tailoring house in Memphis.

Elvis continued to push gender boundaries throughout his career, famously making loral prints cool in the 1960s by wearing a red hibiscus shirt for the movie Blue Hawaii. Tropical prints continue to symbolise relaxation and leisure time, and the Hawaiian shirt has more recently been revived courtesy of Prada.

By the late ’60s, Elvis’ lamboyant, body-skimming jumpsuits opened the door for a new generation of male peacock. To be sexual, provocative and a little efeminate became accepted on both sides of the Atlantic, with young men rejecting the orthodoxies of standardised masculinity and experimenting with clothing previously reserved for women. Performers such as David Bowie took Elvis’ jumpsuit silhouette to extremes, wearing spandex body-stocking catsuits designed to attract the erotic gaze, while Mick Jagger wore a white dress for a gig in Hyde Park, somehow leaving the stage every inch the virile male. “The

G E N D E R - F L U I D FA S H I O N

When Elvis burst onto the scene in the mid-1950s, he managed to single-handedly change the way that America, and much of the world, dressed. As many Americans attempted to put the chaos of WWII behind them, they now faced a fresh set of anxieties with the rise of the Cold War era. A climate of conformity was created, which was particularly evident within men’s fashion and the domination of sack suits from Brooks Brothers, teamed with club ties and penny loafers. The look was all about heritage, respectability and allegiance—and comply they did, with 70 percent of all suits sold in the late 1950s belonging to the Ivy League style.

Within this climate, it took courage to stand apart from the crowd. Elvis’ image was seen as antagonistic as it so skilfully played

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Jumpsuit photograph by Heritage Auctions; photograph by the Library of Congress

The showy and dashing style of Elvis inspired young performers like David Bowie.

Facing page: the King in black leather for his Comeback Special.

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Essentials of style

and D&G have since lirted with the idea of head-to-toe denim and the consciously casual style continues to grace runways seasonally.

THE WHITE SUIT

Elvis understood the power of attention-grabbing white stage wear. As a young man, he had seen the local blues musicians in Memphis wearing brilliant white suits, which became illuminated on stage under the lighting. To ensure that all eyes were constantly on him, Elvis used this tactic for one of his outits worn for hugely successful ’68 Comeback Special television programme, where he stepped onto the stage wearing a dazzling white, Southern plantation-style suit. His subsequent wardrobe from the 1970s featured many white jumpsuits—as the stadium crowds by this point had reached into the multiple thousands, it was Elvis’ best hope of still being seen by the fans at the back. As someone who didn’t work with a fashion stylist, Elvis remained very much the engineer of his own image and the white suit was just one many of the style tricks that he employed over the years.

The white suit ofers style over practicality and signiies wealth and power. It has historically been the uniform of fallen empires and tragic adventurers such as Howard Hughes and Jay Gatsby. Head-to-toe white clothing soon become a favourite with extrovert celebrities on the red carpet, while the high-street retailer H&M attempted to make this look accessible with a white plantation-style suit for its eco-conscious collection.

R O C K A N D R O L L B L A C K L E AT H E R

It remains one of the deining moments in Rock and Roll history— Elvis dressed head to toe in provocative leather, gyrating his way through the ’68 Comeback Special concert. Having spent a number of years making increasingly bland movies in Hollywood, Elvis had found himself in desperate need of reclaiming his crown as the King of Rock and Roll and showing the world that he was still relevant.

Looking at Elvis on stage, dressed head to toe in slim-itting black leather, it is hard to avoid the fact that he looks a little fetishistic. The Japanese fashion designer Atsuko Kudo, who designs stage wear for Lady Gaga, agrees that Elvis’ leather costume is “a very powerful male fetishistic look. We all dress for sex appeal and attention, and this look does that in a very major way—he was like a peacock.” The designer acknowledges that as this was Elvis’ comeback performance, the pressure was on to “make a big statement and to dress in a way which empowered him”.

Since Elvis wore the iconic ’68 Comeback Special costume, black leather stage wear has become a tried-and-tested formula for entertainers looking to shed their former image like a skin and replace it with some rock and roll authority. Stars such as Suzi Quatro, Bono, Robbie Williams, Britney Spears and Lady Gaga have also worn interpretations of Elvis’ seductive leather suit, securing its place in fashion folklore.

lamboyance of Elvis’ stage wear liberated men to wear clothes that were more outrageous than they had worn since the 19th century,” acknowledges the Savile Row tailor Edward Sexton.

DOUBLE DENIM

“Elvis’ legacy can really be seen in the enduring appeal of jeans and jackets,” says the British Esquire editor Alex Bilmes. Towards the end of the 1950s, Elvis famously wore double denim—the pairing of a denim jacket with denim jeans—for his role in the ilm Jailhouse Rock. Dressed as a prison inmate in a itted striped shirt, denim jacket and drainpipe jeans with thick, white stitching highlighting the seams, Elvis looked every inch the beatnik hipster.

Jailhouse Rock helped to cement denim’s onscreen association with youthful rebellion, an ailiation previously evoked by Marlon Brando’s portrayal of an outlaw biker, clad in Levi’s 501 jeans in The Wild One and James Dean playing the frustrated, suburban teenager in his Lee 101 Riders jeans in Rebel Without a Cause.

In his of-screen wardrobe, Elvis tended to avoid denim as it reminded him of workwear and the poverty of his childhood. However, by endorsing a range of Elvis Presley Jeans for Levi’s, and through his movie career that included many onscreen denim moments, Elvis had become, in the collective mind at least, the archetypal denim wearer. Design houses such as Calvin Klein, Chloé, Ralph Lauren

So how has Elvis Presley managed to remain a menswear icon 85 years after his birth? Perhaps the answer lies in the fact that although he may have dipped in and out of fashion throughout his career, he always retained his natural style. All that Elvis was— from his fondness for gravity-defying hairstyles to his theatrical stage wear—was an uncompromising expression of his unique identity. Now that’s true style.

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high

Reimagining the season’s strongest looks

vibrating —caught in motion.

frequency Photographs by John Tsiavis

Styling by David Bonney

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Shirt, by Fendi.

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Anorak, by Givenchy; sunglasses, by Mykita.

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Shirt, track pants, watch and rings, all by Gucci.

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Style

Jacket and pants, both by Louis Vuitton; cap, by Bally.

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Coat, knit, trousers and scarf, all by Hermès; sneakers, by Emporio Armani.

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Trousers and shoes, both by Saint Laurent; earrings, by Gucci.

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Shirt, shorts, socks and shoes, all by Dior.

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Parka, shirt, shorts and bolo tie, all by Prada.

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Jacket, overalls, vest and flower brooch, all by Celine.

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Grooming: Gavin Anesbury using Hair Rituel by Sisley. Lighting: Mike Pedersen Styling assistant: Tina Milani. Production assistant: Christopher Xi Models: Anthony / Five Twenty Management Sydney; Mateen / Chic Management Sydney; Simon / IMG Sydney

Style

Jumpsuit, by Bottega Veneta; hat, by Burberry.

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Coat and pants, both by Burberry.

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A gathering of Singaporeans who have a head for success and a heart for community.

From business leaders and policymakers peacocking in pinstripes, to consultants and creatives brainstorming in T-shirts, The Esky Club exists to challenge and break down mediocrity (and that carcinogenic notion of ‘good enough’) in order to stir up and instigate purpose-driven action on social issues—both at home and abroad.

It’s iron sharpens iron kind of stuff. Sure, there might be cuts and bruises (to your ego), but they will be soothed with generous lashings of whisky, thought-provoking debates and soul-building conversation on matters that, well, matter.

Want to join? You need an invite.

Best way to secure an invitation?

You do you, and the rest will follow.

Style

Watches

Code blue Stainless steel plus a blue dial equals the perfect sports watch.

It’s a tried and true formula, but is there really enough room for this many variations on a theme?

If there’s just one thing that would make watch collectors scream “take my money!” it’s a stainless steel luxury sports watch. Works like catnip but only if said watch comes with an integrated bracelet and even better if there’s a blue dial thrown in. No other watch category can lay claim to such a fervent pool of ready buyers.

Moreover, the excitement isn’t isolated to small pockets of the market. It’s a worldwide phenomenon. Buyers on all corners of the globe are snapping them up like they’re going out of style.

Demand for some of the hottest models has so far outstripped supply that getting one at an authorised dealer feels like an urban legend. You’ve heard the stories but never actually seen it happen.

Apparently getting on the waiting list is your only chance but then expect to wait forever. When will the watch come? Nobody knows. Even if they did, they wouldn’t tell you. You never actually own that insanely gorgeous timepiece, you merely get a queue number for the next generation.

How did it all come to this? Let us start with a flashback to the 1970s.

Patek Philippe Nautilus Ref. 5711/1A.

Words by Celine Yap

THE THREE KINGS

Audemars Piguet 41MM Self-winding Royal Oak.

Audemars Piguet, like all other Swiss watchmakers, was in crisis mode. Deep in the throes of the Quartz Crisis, every company was desperately seeking a way out of this catastrophe. Yet rather than submitting or surrendering to this new technology, Audemars Piguet doubled down on mechanical haute horlogerie. You could say it practically went rogue.

Then-CEO Georges Golay approached the prominent watch designer Gerald Genta in 1972 to create a statement watch. The brief: to create the world’s first luxury sports watch in stainless steel but furnished with a movement of utmost finesse. Oh and he needed it by the next morning. Genta agreed. He pulled an all-nighter and amazingly presented the design for what was to become the Royal Oak, and the rest as you know it, is history.

Vacheron Constantin Overseas Automatic 41MM Steel Blue.

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Watches

Reference 5402 is one of the most important watches in modern watchmaking. It and its contemporary iterations such as Ref. 15202, Ref. 15400 and so on birthed the concept of a luxury sports watch in stainless steel. Before the Royal Oak, luxury meant platinum, gold and diamonds. Before the Royal Oak, luxury meant classic gent’s complications. Before the Royal Oak, luxury and sports were two separate worlds. Before the Royal Oak, unsightly parts of the watch such as its screws should never be exposed.

Before the Royal Oak, 39mm for a watch case was unthinkable.

Before the Royal Oak, the watch industry was a completely diferent world.

But even though Audemars Piguet’s Royal Oak was the progenitor of all luxury sports watches, the one that brought these watches to the point of no return was the Patek Philippe Nautilus, incidentally also a Gerald Genta creation. Introduced in 1976, the Nautilus bore some resemblances to the Royal Oak—pseudo-octagonal case, blue dial, inspired by portholes on a ship, integrated bracelet in stainless steel—and was famously sketched on a napkin in just ive minutes.

Today, thanks to the manufacture’s extremely eicient, memorable and universally valid Generations campaign, a Patek Philippe timepiece has become the ultimate gift that keeps on giving. Own one and the future of your kid or kids will be sorted— or something to that efect.

Hold on, doesn’t that apply to all Patek Philippes, and not just the Nautilus? Yes, but the Nautilus in stainless steel being the (for lack of a better phrase) entry-level Patek Philippe, it ofers the heavenly combination of achievable price meets iconic status.

That’s why despite the horologically rich arsenal of chronographs, calendars, repeaters and more, Nautilus Ref. 5711/1A is the single most sought-after timepiece in Patek Philippe’s entire portfolio.

Coming in second is the Aquanaut, rising up for very similar reasons—and also because it’s the next best thing to a Nautilus.

Throughout his career, Genta designed a number of prominent watches. The Omega Constellation, IWC Ingenieur, BulgariBulgari, Gerald Genta Octo which later became Bulgari Octo… none came close to the hype of the Royal Oak and Nautilus.

But perhaps the Vacheron Constantin Ref. 222 did, albeit unintentionally. As the manufacture’s irst sports watch, this was a Jorg Hysek design and intended to mark Vacheron Constantin’s 222nd anniversary. That it did, and also paved the way for the Overseas collection in 1996. It shares the wonderful combination of stainless steel case with integrated bracelet, but ofers a unique bezel inspired by the Maltese cross, which is the manufacture’s emblem.

Panerai Luminor Marina.

Tudor Black Bay 36.

Tissot Gent XL Classic.

B L I S S F U L LY B L U E

Following in the footsteps of Audemars Piguet, Patek Philippe and Vacheron Constantin, other players started to ofer their take on the steel-sports integrated bracelet watch. Turns out it wasn’t too diicult to make one, since the blue dial trend was already making huge waves on all levels of the industry. The enduring popularity proved the cerulean hue does have staying power and is not just a passing fad. Almost every brand that has a sports line now ofers a bracelet model with a blue dial.

Coming in strong, Piaget’s Polo S had its eye on the Nautilus’

Piaget Polo S.

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pie. Launched in 2016, it took its fair share of hits from watch collectors who expected a little more originality, but in retrospect it was merely a little ahead of its time. Today it is abundantly clear that the market is big enough for additional players, who are a welcome relief for the two key brands.

Panerai and Bulgari also threw their hats into the game. All three presented stainless steel versions of an existing watch but upped the ante with specially designed bracelets: Panerai Luminor Marina and Bulgari Octo. The Bulgari Octo in particular has won over numerous fans by making the most out of its Swiss-Italian heritage: combining exceptional feats of haute horlogerie with impeccable design.

Even brands on the more accessible end of the luxury spectrum have cottoned on. For a song, the Tissot Gentleman balances timehonoured aesthetics with a Powermatic 80 calibre that operates on a silicon escapement. Tudor dressed its robust tool watch, the Pelagos, in brilliant blue but of course the signature snowlake hour hand still takes most of the spotlight.

Chopard Alpine Eagle.

T H E N E W A R R I VA L S

If the 1970s was a Golden Age for luxury steel sports watches, then maybe the 2010s was when it truly became cool again. This was a decade of abysmal lows and glorious highs. But most notably, watchmakers found the courage to reinvent, to break the mould and give innovation a long, hard think. Three watch brands closed 2019 by taking a big bold step, launching a completely new watch collection—all of them steel sports watches.

Bell & Ross came up with the neither square nor round BR 05 line which is a natural extension of its bestselling BR 03. Targeting stylish urbanites, this is the irst Bell & Ross collection that ofers a bracelet option. And while the aesthetics does overlap with many existing steel-sports watches on the market, its accessible list price positions it well below the Royal Oak and Nautilus, thus opening the segment up to a wider range of buyers.

Chopard’s new watch, the Alpine Eagle, also entered the fray.

Again it bears a number of common features such as exposed screws and an integrated bracelet—frankly, there are only so many ways you can rejig the formula—but kudos to the manufacture for ofering that unique engraved dial and an ethically produced stainless steel alloy called Lucent Steel A223. Alpine Eagle is also the only watch in this category with direct ties to environmental conservation via the Eagle Wings Foundation.

And the brand which took the biggest step, however, has to be A Lange & Söhne because until Odysseus, the German manufacture never had a presence in the world of sports watches.

Probably the dressiest watch in this arena, it represents A Lange & Söhne’s idea of sporty elegance. With two outsized windows, one for the day and another for the date, Odysseus throws in a little extra practicality, which is great, but there’s no denying it remains the most polarising A Lange & Söhne timepiece to date.

This is only a tiny fraction of all the steel-sports blue-dial watches out there, and if we heard right, there’ll be more to come.

Tudor dressed its classic tool watch, the Black Bay, in brilliant blue but of course the signature snowlake hour hand still takes most of the spotlight.

Bell & Ross BR 05 Blue Steel.

A Lange & Söhne Odysseus.

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Creative interpretations of watchmaking by Hermès include these pendant watches, which ensure the timepieces are protected from shock.

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Hand to heart

Words by Celine Yap

Watchmaking at La Montre Hermès is a potent mixture of integrity and soul.

It’s 9am in Paris. The historical Hermès store on 24 Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré is not yet open for business, but inside it’s already buzzing with activity. Only one section of the premises remains still, discreetly shielded from prying eyes, and pretty much a mystery to all but the most distinguished VIPs of the French maison. It is the Émile Hermès Museum where antiques and artefacts dating back to the time of founder Thierry Hermès are lovingly preserved, studied and archived. In other words, it’s the treasure room.

With some items going as far back as 1837—the year Hermès was founded—one could spend a full day here and not even skim the surface of the maison’s beautiful story. An organised chaos of relics such as furniture (many of which were made by famed Parisian company L’Escalier de Cristal), carriages, saddles, numerous paintings (mostly of horses), desk objects, travel accessories, tchotchkes, collectibles and curiosities ills the space. An elegant but sporty carriage called a phaeton with its open top and oversized wheels stands in the middle of the room, still dressed in its original leaf green coat. “Our records show it was made for a young lady,” says Stephanie Lavarrie, curator of the Emile Hermès Museum.

High above the ireplace is the painting by French artist Alfred Dedreux which inspired Hermès’ logo featuring a duc carriage drawn by a horse. This explanation by Laurent Dordet, CEO of Hermès Horloger, provides some interesting insight. “Duc in Latin means to drive. A duc carriage is not a simple carriage, it’s a sport carriage. That’s why Hermès is constantly associated with sport.”

The museum, however, represents only a fraction of the Hermès conservatoire, which houses a collection of over 60,000 items either made or commissioned by the maison for its customers.

All of them, great and small, carry the proverbial red thread that unites every Hermès object—creativity matched with equal parts integrity and soul. Look at the travel cases which contain every amenity known to luxury living. They’re indispensable to the savvy travellers of yesteryear. Even timepieces, which admittedly weren’t an Hermès speciality at the beginning, had been reimagined to accompany travellers and sportsmen. Before Hermès stepped into the world of horology, there was only one way to wear a watch, and more or less only one look for all watches.

“Our mandate is to always ofer the best to our customer,” says Marc Stolz, director of the Hermès conservatoire. “At the beginning of the 20th century, people spend a big part of their lives travelling to big cities in horse-driven carriages. Eventually, they were also the irst to move on to motorcars. For Hermès it was of course a problem, since our primary business was saddlery.

Fortunately, we found many other ways to service the clientele.”

Thinking far out of the box, Hermès’ earliest timepieces were meant to follow the wearer everywhere and complementing, indeed elevating, their lifestyles. But timepieces in those days were far

from shock-resistant so the maison came up with some of the most inventive solutions that combined timekeeping with functionality, comfort and style. All of them connect, one way or another, to Hermès’ most emblematic know-how: leather. The famous belt watch, which has a timepiece set into the buckle, came about from the goling world; Hermès made many bags and accessories for golfers. It even made a timepiece with 18 counters, one for each hole of the golf course, which helps players keep track of their swings.

Then there was the unique Ermeto desk clock made in a leatherclad case that winds the movement each time it opens and shuts.

Because Hermès wasn’t a watchmaker, movements came from the best Swiss suppliers of the period: Universal Genève, JaegerLeCoultre, Movado. Stolz elaborates: “The engines come from Switzerland because the French were not very good for this. But the Swiss can’t make bracelets and cases like we can. This,” he stresses, picking up a gold mesh bracelet watch, “is French tradition.”

He continues: “We’re not doing everything at Hermès, but we have a lot of knowledge and expertise in what we want to have.

Since the 1930s, Hermès was famous for creating highly functional sports watches which were more reliable and solid than others.”

This philosophy of working only with the best artisans and of mastering a craft in your own time continues well into the 21st century, although watchmaking content at Hermès has grown by leaps and bounds. In 1978, the maison created La Montre Hermès in Bienne, the heart of the Swiss watch industry, where a new chapter of haute horlogerie was being written. Next in 2006, it acquired a stake in movement specialist Vaucher Manufacture Fleurier. That ensured a steady supply of in-house calibres crafted to Hermès’ exact speciications. Then in 2012, it took over dial maker Natébar and case maker Joseph Erard, uniting them in 2017 at Les Ateliers d’Hermès Horloger in Le Noirmont. Now all that’s left is the inal puzzle piece: straps.

Hermès has always used its own leather straps but they were shipped in from France. Since 2006, a dedicated atelier within the Bienne manufactory was set up, housing its leather supply along with designers and artisans who work on each strap from start to inish. Hermès is the only watch brand that produces its own leather straps, so it could be well argued that in-house watchmaking doesn’t get more exclusive than at La Montre Hermès. As a leather specialist, it is only natural.

Referring to how the irst Hermès timepiece began as a modiication of a leather bracelet, Lavarrie notes: “The irst step of a Hermès watch is the leather strap.” To a typical watchmaker, for whom that step is always the movement, that would be doing things the opposite way around. But then again, Hermès has always been slightly diferent from everybody else. It’s called art de vivre d’Hermès.

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What I’ve learned: Max Büsser The creative director of MB&F discusses watchmaking creativity, his best life lessons and who to listen to when designing a watch—no one.

C R E AT I V I T Y A N D I N N O VAT I O N is about expressing yourself. It’s not about listening to others. That’s why the bigger brands that are market-driven are not taking any creative risks and smaller artisan brands are where all the innovation comes from. Do not listen to the market, create what you believe in.

when it was going into bankruptcy. Those were probably the best things which happened to me because I discovered how to build or save a company from the bottom up.

W H E N YO U W O R K in a big successful company, you’re one guy in a little cubicle and you have no idea how it’s happening. We were dead both times and so how do we save this company? That gave me not only the courage but the knowledge to create MB&F from scratch. If I’d been in a very successful brand I would have never had either the knowledge or courage. So working for semibankrupt companies is a great thing.

S U R R O U N D YO U R S E L F with super-talented people who have transversal thinking and are ready to take risks.

B U T YO U S H O U L D still know your history. People in this industry now have no idea about the historical product. I’m not even talking about two, three hundred years ago when all the innovation was done. Some don’t even know what was done 20 years ago.

I ’ V E U N D E R S T O O D over the years that I have no idea who I’m going to be, how I’m going to turn out or what I’m going to be thinking tomorrow. If you told me when I just started MB&F that I was going to create a round watch, I would have said, “no, never!”

If you told me I was going to create an art gallery one day I would have said, “what are you talking about?” If you told me seven years ago I was going to live in Dubai, I would have said, “what’s wrong with you?”

A G R E AT T R E E needs great roots. You can’t be innovative and break the mould if you don’t know how the mould was made.

W H AT I N C R E D I B LY I N N O VAT I V E , creative or well-made product you’ve done doesn’t exist if you don’t have an ampliier and loudspeaker. At MB&F, I write the music, we assemble the orchestra, we play the music which is recorded on a CD—the watch is the CD, for people who still remember CDs—and then you need an ampliier and a loudspeaker. That is the press, our retail partners, our fan base, the people who believe in us.

I ’ V E TA K E N strong, powerful decisions but I never saw them coming. So that means I have no long-term strategy or goals because I know that the man I am is always going to change.

C O M P L I M E N T S H AV E M E A N I N G when they come from people you admire. At GPHG [Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève] 2012, when we got the prize for Legacy 1, I was standing next to Karl-Friedrich Scheufele for the photo session. We didn’t know each other then, we barely said hello. He looked at me and said, “I’ve only twice in my life bought a watch which is not from my brand. One is a Lange One from Mr Günter Blümlein and the other is a Simplicity from Mr Dufour.” Then he said, “I would like your piece to be my third.”

I L E A R N E D the basics when I was at Jaeger-LeCoultre. I’d just

come out of college, I had no idea about everything. My love for watchmaking was shaped there because we were product people.

That’s where I learned that the heart of any brand is the product.

AT H A R R Y W I N S T O N , I learned the power of collaboration.

When I irst arrived, my team was seven people and nobody was technical at all. And we had nothing. I had to ind suppliers who would do everything, so I learned how to work with people.

Through the power of collaboration, there was of course the Opus series later on.

I A L S O L E A R N E D about myself. That I was capable of saving that company. I’m still amazed that I was capable of doing what I did then. But in my path of self-discovery, I discovered in the middle of all that, when I was becoming incredibly successful, I hated my life. I felt I had sold out and become a marketeer. Hence it’s thanks to them that MB&F exists. Without those two, it would never have existed.

T H E P R O B L E M W I T H DNA is that it prevents you from being creative. DNA is the biggest enemy of innovation because it gives you grooves and you can’t get out of the grooves. For me, once something is done, it’s done. I don’t want to do the same thing again. So if there were a DNA at MB&F, it’s not to have a DNA.

I WA S E X T R E M E LY L U C K Y to enter Jaeger-LeCoultre when it was just coming out of bankruptcy and into Harry Winston

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A N O T H E R C O M P L I M E N T which I’ll always remember was when we created LM1. We worked with Kari [Voutilainen] on that piece. But Kari hadn’t seen the inished piece, just parts of the movement and drawings. He came to our booth at Basel and when I showed him the watch, he was like a kid again. In those days he didn’t really show much emotion, very Finn. He put it on, looked up and asked, “would you swap?”

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E S Q : So it’s right to say you value the unquantifiable, like trust, over the quantifiable, like revenue?

T H I E R R Y S T E R N : Totally. Trust is very important. I remember my dad was very sad when we started to use contracts. In his time, business was just shaking hands and it was done. For us we cherish the relationship more than just making money. Money will come if you have a good product, so don’t worry about that.

Worry more about the close relationships of trust. That will make the difference.

E S Q : With family businesses come legacy and it can be a doubleedged sword. For Patek Philippe, legacy and patrimony is a big topic. Do you feel the burden of legacy on your shoulders?

T H I E R R Y S T E R N : Of course. I’ve been talking about this with my sons already. I said, “listen, I made my choice when I was young, so the pressure now on my shoulders, I chose to have it.”

You can never be prepared for everything, it’s something you learn by growing, but I accepted it because I really wanted to do it. I told my kids, they have to choose their own destiny. If they’re willing to take over, fine, I will be here to help. But if they’re not, I’m not going to force them.

E S Q : Wouldn’t that be such a shame though?

T H I E R R Y S T E R N : I’ve seen this, especially in Asia, where there

is no choice but to take over. You cannot kill the life of your kids [sic] by giving them no choice. Then what happens? They will be unhappy and the business will not be doing as well because of this.

I’d rather see my kids working at whatever as long as they enjoy it.

ESQ&A: Thierry Stern

E S Q : Then what would your plans for Patek Philippe be?

T H I E R R Y S T E R N : I can always find somebody to handle it.

There are lots of fantastic people, CEOs you can hire who will take over Patek Philippe for maybe one generation, and then we find again someone to take over. It’s not a big deal.

He’s made some pretty wild decisions as president of Patek Philippe—the Calatrava Alarm Travel Time comes to mind—but it’s all part of the job.

E S Q : In 2015 when you launched the Calatrava Pilot’s Alarm, there were some mixed reactions. Do you think it’s harder to launch new watches nowadays?

T H I E R R Y S T E R N : No, it’s always been the same. It was the same with Twenty-4, everybody said we were crazy. The Aquanaut was also like this, and now the Pilot. But if I do it, it means I believe in it, and it will work. So when people said, “oh I don’t know…”

I know that six months later they will call me back asking for the pieces.

E S Q : Patek Philippe has maintained very long relationships with many family-owned retailers around the world. Would you say that you prefer to deal with family businesses as compared to groups?

T H I E R R Y S T E R N : It all depends if I agree with the rules that we’re willing to have, how we’re going to sell the watches. But to be frank, yes I prefer to deal with family-owned businesses. It’s a different type of relationship. Groups have been here since the ’80s.

They have to answer to shareholders and so they’re a little more aggressive, it’s normal. But I do not like dealing with people who don’t follow our rules.

E S Q : Why is that so important?

T H I E R R Y S T E R N : Because our customers will not accept it.

E S Q : The 5212A was also something quite different. Were you trying to get a younger audience as some people think?

T H I E R R Y S T E R N : Not at all. If you look at this watch it could look like it’s 50 years old. And it’s not, which is why I like it. People appreciate these type of watches but it’s not all you should do. I always say we have a wide selection and this is one of them. But I’m really willing to have all the collections constantly evolving.

That’s what I like to do... and ideas, there are always plenty.

They believe in Patek Philippe as passionately as the people running the company. So our partners also have to be passionate. We have been proving to the world that we can be very good, do very good business, keeping this type of relationship. It’s long term. That’s maybe the biggest difference between family-owned and groups.

For groups, the vision is five years. For families, five years is nothing.

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E S Q : Do you think people have fully come around to that model now?

T H I E R R Y S T E R N : Yes totally.

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wild things There’s nothing simple or traditional about these statement-making timepieces that are designed for collectors with an individual spirit.

Photographs by Gabe Chen Styling by Asri Jasman

BELL & ROSS BR 01 Laughing Skull 46MM in micro-blasted steel case on an ivory alligator leather strap.

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ROGER DUBUIS Excalibur Huraćan Performante 45MM in titanium case on a black rubber and black Alcantara strap.

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DE BETHUNE DB28 Steel Wheels Blue 42.6MM in titanium case on a black alligator leather strap.

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CARTIER Tonneau Skeleton 52.4MM x 29.8MM in platinum case on a blue alligator leather strap.

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S E V E N F R I D AY T2/02 45MM x 45.6MM in gunmetal PVD case on a brown leather strap.

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CORUM Admiral AC-One 45 Squelette 45MM in titanium case on a blue vulcanised rubber strap.

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Photographer assisted by Ah Yee

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Still life

2|5

Wooden Vincent Van Gogh printed skateboard (set of three),

by The SkateRoom at Mr Porter.

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Mr Nice

Happy birthday (suit)

Reserved for nature

Paul Rudd wants his world to get smaller, and no, it’s not a reference to Ant-Man.

Will naturism be the new hashtag fad for 2020?

An island on the Thames ofers a back-to-nature vibe like no other.

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Coat and shoes, both by Bottega Veneta; jeans, by Swonne; T-shirt, by Bill Hicks.

AFTER DECADES O F STA R D O M , PAU L RU D D, THE NICEST GUY I N H O L LY W O O D, WA N TS H I S WO R L D TO GET SMALLER.

WORDS BY ADRIENNE WESTENFELD P H O T O G R A P H S B Y C H A R L I E G R AY

STYLING BY KRISTEN INGERSOLL

Coat, by Bottega Veneta; sweater, by Hugo Boss; jeans, by Swonne; shoes,

by Giorgio Armani.

Sweater, by Hugo Boss.

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I F Y O U ’ V E H E A R D anything about Paul Rudd, it’s likely that he’s a Nice Guy. Nary a scandal nor a salacious rumour has touched him in decades of stardom; meanwhile, anecdotes about his singular kindness abound, with Parks and Recreation co-star Amy Poehler calling him Mr Perfect and Stephen Colbert describing him as “the nicest person on the planet”. Rudd has made a long and fruitful career of lending his afable sensibility to a series of iconic comedies, as well as tender, afecting ilms about love and friendship. Now 50, Rudd has taken his career in surprising directions, from a science iction television series to a starring role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe—meanwhile, his reputation remains as polished as ever. Rudd doesn’t hate the Nice Guy label, though he’s not eager to be pigeonholed—and he’d be the irst to let you know.

“I’m ine with people thinking I’m a nice person,” Rudd says.

“I don’t want people to think I’m a mean person; I wouldn’t want to be an unkind person. But when I hear that over and over again, I don’t want it to be the number one thing people say about me.”

What’s the number one thing for which Rudd wants to be known, you might ask? “Pole-vaulting,” he quips, with that signature wry, surprising wit.

If pole-vaulting fails, Rudd may very well be remembered for Living With Yourself, the high-concept Netlix science iction series in which his everyman sensibility is weaponised to its greatest efect. In Living With Yourself, Rudd stars as Miles, a disafected marketing executive whose bottomless, soulsucking ennui pushes him to make a radical bid for hope—with radical consequences. On the verge of losing a major client, Miles takes the advice of a co-worker, who directs him to an expensive miracle spa promising complete physical and spiritual rejuvenation. After cashing out his fertility treatment fund to go under the knife, Miles regains consciousness buried alive in a shallow woodland grave, where he awakens vacuum-sealed in cling ilm. Upon hitchhiking home, Miles is stunned to meet his own doppelgänger, ensconced in his house and inhabiting his life. Miles soon learns that the procedure wasn’t a rejuvenation, but a cloning, and had it gone as planned, the original Miles would have stayed in that grave while the supercharged Miles stepped fully into his life. What follows is the simultaneously comic, heartfelt story of their tug-of-war to share custody of one job, one marriage and one life, all without arousing suspicion. For Rudd, who identiies deeply with the emotional extremes of each Miles, the chance to play two characters with the same face was seductive—and a career irst.

“I relate to both versions of Miles,” Rudd says. “I think they’re two sides of the same coin, really. I can absolutely relate to the original Miles as we meet him, and I can also relate to the enthusiasm and fearlessness at times followed by insecurity that the new Miles eventually starts to feel. The show really covered a spectrum of emotions.”

Toggling between two iterations of the same character demanded that Rudd embody a litany of subtle changes, some skin-deep and others less obvious. As the original Miles, Rudd seems a man lattened by world-weariness, all lank hair, threeday stubble and sallow skin. As the new Miles, his clothes it better, his spine seems straighter, his familiar, buoyant smile surfaces more freely. Yet despite their outward diferences, both

iterations of Miles traverse similar psychological territory, with each one questioning which of them is real, which of them is more deserving of their one precious life.

Among the standout beats of the series is the poignant journey into the heart and soul of Kate, Miles’ wife, who inds herself seduced by the prospect of a new beginning with the vivacious man she married, yet left cold by the disheartening reality of a partner who hasn’t shared in the lived experience of their ups and downs. Rudd notes that New Miles doesn’t have the “scar tissue” of life’s vicissitudes—just “the memory of it”. Indeed New Miles is fundamentally unequipped for the brutality of life as he’s experiencing everything for the irst time, from the painful end of a relationship to the simple human pleasure of feeling the wind rule through his hair. He makes his way through the world with an unsustainable euphoria, only to be hurt down to his core by the slings and arrows of life, lacking as he is any hard-earned defences.

In one pivotal scene, when Kate has run away with New Miles for a romantic getaway that sours quickly, New Miles vents: “Why can’t I be happy for once?” Kate remarks: “Because you didn’t earn it.” In parsing how the lows of life counterbalance and foreground the highs, Rudd is thoughtful about the existential complications of happiness, evaluating the degree to which it must be earned.

“I think happiness is leeting,” Rudd says. “It’s moments. I mean, there are babies that have happy moments. Did they earn that? I think we all have our happy moments. We try to hold on to them as long as we can, then they go away. Then we have our bad moments and we recognise the bad moments for what they are; those are bad moments that help us appreciate the happier moments coming along down the road. I would like to think we don’t have to earn that.”

Living With Yourself is a sharp portrait of marriage’s agonies and ecstasies, of the rage, grief and resentment that punctuate every joy and triumph—and of how a clean slate would sap a relationship of the meaningful bond shared adversity can cultivate. Rudd confesses that it was this exploration of selhood and its mutation throughout the course of relationships that attracted him to the script. The show asks what constitutes our best selves and why we so often fail to live up to those ideals in our relationships with the ones we love most. Yet despite the original Miles’ extended dark night of the soul, the series ofers a hopeful vision for his future, as well as the future of anyone who sees themselves relected in Miles’ struggle.

“I think you can reboot,” Rudd says. “It takes getting honest with yourself and I suppose in many cases, it involves heavy doses of therapy or real inward self-analysis. I suppose all selfanalysis would be inward, which is redundant. But I don’t think that being in a spiral of depression and immobility is anything that has to last forever.”

One might think that completing a Netlix project would leave Rudd with some sense of enlightenment about the approaching content singularity. Though Rudd is just as behind on his everlengthening queue as anyone, his view of the crowded streaming landscape is a generous one and a characteristic stroke of optimism.

“It’s deinitely changed,” Rudd says of the ilmmaking business. “I see it in the movies that are being made now—what gets funded and how quickly they leave the theatres. There are so many formats. There are so many content providers. There’s

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a lot of quality stuf getting made, but the way we watch it is so diferent. I feel like I’m watching less than I ever have, but maybe it’s like music. Maybe it’s always been overwhelming and if something speaks to somebody, they’re going to ind it.”

Up next, Rudd will star in a more traditional project: a new Ghostbusters ilm. Slated for theatrical release in July 2020, this Ghostbusters departs from the franchise’s standard New York City playground in favour of a suburban setting, with Rudd reportedly starring as a seismologist who blows into town to investigate a series of mysterious earthquakes. The ilm is written and directed by Jason Reitman, son of Ivan Reitman, who directed the original ilms. For Rudd, who saw Ghostbusters in cinemas multiple times as a teenager, the Reitman lineage threaded into this project made for a singular experience.

“That was one thing that did feel diferent than working on just anything,” Rudd says. “There was something about Jason being behind the camera and Ivan Reitman being there too, producing and talking to him for a while. There was something really special about it because it does seem like it’s the family business to a certain extent. To be a part of that is an honour. I certainly felt honoured to be invited to the party.”

This Ghostbusters will ignore the events of 2016’s Ghostbusters, the Paul Feig-directed comedy that saw an all-female cast of Ghostbusters strap on proton packs in an alternate universe divorced from the two original ilms. Though largely commended by critics, Feig’s Ghostbusters was subjected to a barrage of racist and misogynistic online abuse, with trolls mobilising against the ilm in a GamerGate-esque smear campaign. Any actor would be forgiven for experiencing trepidation when wading into such a hotly contested franchise, yet Rudd isn’t sweating how moviegoers respond to the ilm.

“I feel excitement more than anything else,” Rudd says. “I don’t really worry too much about the other stuf. I don’t know if that serves any purpose. You just can’t take on the importance of something to so many people. You hope people enjoy it like they do the original movies. You hope it turns out all right and that’s really all you can do.”

Though he may be more unalicted by them than most, Rudd is no stranger to great expectations. In 2015, he entered the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Scott Lang, a master thief who saves the world from imminent danger by shrinking down to ant size with the help of a supercharged shrinking suit. Rudd describes his AntMan experience as “surreal”, noting how the extreme visibility of the project is unlike anything he’s experienced before.

“It’s an honour to be part of something so major in so many people’s lives, especially kids,” Rudd says. “It’s strange that no matter where we go in the world, people know these characters and have really strong feelings about them. I came to it a little bit later, but I went to a Comic-Con in San Diego. We went there to announce Ant-Man so I hadn’t even ilmed any of it yet. I went to Hall H and I was there with all the other Avengers. It was the irst time I had seen them all. The experience was similar to going to a music convention with The Beatles. The response from the Marvel fans was deafening.”

To join the Avengers isn’t just to star in a popular franchise with a colossal cult following—it’s to become part of a staggering commercial machine that spans the globe. Avengers merchandise

rakes in over USD1 billion yearly, according to CNBC, allowing characters like Ant-Man to loom large in the imaginations of children everywhere.

“Being an action igure is pretty cool, I’ve got to say,” Rudd says. “The irst time I saw myself as an action igure, I couldn’t believe it. When I saw myself as a Lego igurine, I really tripped out because I loved Legos growing up. I see myself as a Lego piece, then an action igure, then a Pez dispenser. I’m not so jaded that I don’t get a kick out of all of that.”

It would be easy for someone whose titles include Ghostbuster and Ant-Man to let fame corrode their sense of self. Yet Rudd, a level-headed Kansas City native, has a characteristically Midwestern sensibility about fame.

“I try to put everything in its proper place,” Rudd says. “It doesn’t deine who I am. It’s a part of who I am now—it’s something that I love and it’s my job. But I view myself as a dad and a husband and a friend and all of those things way before I would ever view myself as Ant-Man or a movie star. I don’t; I just don’t. I don’t come from this; I don’t live in California. It’s a really fun job.”

Rudd’s turn as Ant-Man comes as the discourse surrounding Marvel movies continues to evolve in surprising new directions, with legendary ilmmaker Martin Scorsese making headlines by arguing that Marvel movies aren’t cinema. Scorsese compared the ilms to “theme parks”, claiming that “it isn’t the cinema of human beings trying to convey emotional, psychological experiences to another human being”. Rudd is sceptical of the discourse, yet also a deep believer in the emotional power of Marvel movies.

“It seems to me that this gets asked of people just to keep a story going,” Rudd deadpans. “I love Martin Scorsese. I think I know where he’s coming from and I know where we’re coming from when we’re making these movies. If we’re talking about what art is meant to create, isn’t it some kind of response, some feeling, some emotion? I know these movies create that for many, many people. If there’s anything to mourn, it’s that middlebudget ilms are harder to make now, even in light of all the diferent streaming services. You can’t get stuf made, but I tend to think that these movies are really good movies.”

Owing to his latest turn as a screenwriter, Rudd has a more direct hand in the making of movies than before. Rudd, who dryly describes himself as a “B-minus” writer, wrote the screenplay to Ant-Man as well as its 2018 sequel, Ant-Man and the Wasp.

Screenwriting has shifted his on-set perspective, allowing him a new vantage point as a storyteller.

“When you’re writing, you’re thinking of the movie as an entire thing,” Rudd says. “If each character works, what their arc is, what they’re dealing with, what their backstory might be. By the time we’re ilming, I have a much clearer understanding of what the movie is. We change it all while we’re shooting, but I feel like I know it better. It’s really interesting when an actor shows up and says their lines as they interpret them and then it becomes its own thing—it’s no longer this thing that lived in my head.”

Now at the midpoint of his career, as he broadens his resume with screenwriting and producing, Rudd has grown relective, particularly about what he values outside his day job.

“I really value my privacy,” Rudd says. “You’ve got to stay grounded in the world and as I get older, the things that really bring me joy are smaller things. As a result, I want my world to get smaller.”

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Hooded jacket, by Hermès.

As for his strategies to protect his privacy, chief among them is staying of social media. You won’t ind Rudd uploading vacation photos to Instagram or riing jokes on Twitter, though he isn’t immune to social media FOMO. “There is a bit of a feeling that I know the world is functioning in this way,” Rudd says. “There’s a language that’s being spoken and there are ways in which people are relating to one another that’s diferent from what I know. Sometimes I think, God, I’m not speaking this language! Does that make me feel like I’m not a part of the human race? In some ways, but I don’t feel it too deeply.

Certainly never enough to start up one of those accounts and I think that overall I’m happier for it. I never had an iPhone until I got one for Christmas. Growing up, I never had pagers. I never wanted to. I just don’t think it’s healthy to always be reachable. I think we all need our own headspace and time to be alone with our thoughts, not so attached to our phones and scrolling. If I had social media, I’d get addicted like it seems so many other people are.”

Were Rudd active on social media, he’d likely be more entrenched in the day-to-day online culture wars, particularly as they relate to the luctuating state of comedy. The Judd Apatow era that made Rudd a household name has largely ended, with the bro comedy genre (think The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Knocked

Up) now seeming dated and downright distasteful. Rudd is optimistic about the future of comedy, though not without concerns about what some perceive as an online mob mentality.

“I think it’s an exciting time for comedy,” Rudd says. “I think that you can still be daring. I don’t think that people necessarily want to be hurtful to others. I don’t think that’s a goal, but the world has deinitely changed. People talk about not wanting to perform at colleges in the same ways as they used to. Everyone’s afraid of testing out material because somebody might have a phone, then there’s a whole judge and jury out there online, so it seems to me that comedians ind this tricky. However, I don’t do stand-up, so I can’t speak for them. But sometimes you think, God, these are jokes. It would be nice if everyone could just laugh again. It’s important that the human race laughs because that’s the way we hear each other.”

Though Rudd is known primarily for his work in comedies, he never set out to be a comedian—in fact, he studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, later travelling abroad to study Jacobean drama in England. Such an education lent him a nuanced perspective on the interplay of comedy and drama.

“I didn’t imagine that I’d be going into comedy,” Rudd says.

“People sometimes talk about me as a comedian, but I never did

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Cover story

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Cover story

Jacket, by Ermenegildo Zegna; shirt, by Brunello Cucinelli; jeans, by Swonne; belt, by Giorgio Armani.

“I’M PLEASED AND PROUD T H AT I’ V E B E E N A B L E TO SU STA I N A CA R E E R T H AT’S G O N E I N S O M E D I R ECT I O N S I WO U L D N E V E R H AV E P R E D I C T E D.

THERE ARE A LOT OF I N C R E D I B LY TA L E N T E D P E O P L E I N THE WORLD, MUCH MORE THAN ME , AND I’VE BEEN LUCKY ENOUGH TO DO THIS,

W H I C H I S H U M B L I N G .”

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Plaid jacket, by Brunello Cucinelli; denim shirt, by Swonne.

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Grooming by Rheanne White

Leather shirt jacket, by Tod’s; turtleneck sweater, by Hugo Boss; jeans, by Levi’s.

stand-up. My background was classical theatre. I never thought in terms of comedy or drama, really. I just liked comedy. I have a desire to do interesting roles and diferent things, but even as a kid, before I was an actor, I remember thinking that there were so many actors that I thought were funny and that people didn’t talk about them in the same way. Comedy wasn’t as important as the serious stuf. I never agreed with that; I don’t think that’s true.”

Even as Rudd’s career has taken surprising turns into uncharted waters, it has retained serious staying power and cultivated within Rudd a deep sense of gratitude.

“Sometimes I’ll look around and realise that I’m now the veteran on set,” Rudd says. “I’ve been doing this a long time, and I’m pleased and proud that I’ve been able to sustain a career that’s gone in some directions I would never have predicted— and that I’ve just been able to work. There are a lot of incredibly talented people in the world, much more than me, and I’ve been lucky enough to do this, which is humbling.”

In considering the length of his fruitful career, Rudd is reminded of a memory from way back at the beginning of his life as an actor—something he’s been ruminating on that illuminates how these decades have changed him. That memory transports him to his early 20s when, as an aspiring actor who’d just moved to Los Angeles, Rudd was rear-ended at a stop light.

“I got out and the guy was crying,” Rudd recalls. “I said, ‘It’s cool, accidents happen, it’s no problem.’ I was super nice, and he said, ‘My dad’s going to kill me; our insurance rates will go up.’ I said, ‘Hey man, don’t worry about it. Here’s my number. We don’t

need to go through insurance; I don’t want your rates to go up.’ I did something really nice.”

When Rudd had his car repaired to the tune of USD600, he eschewed the insurance middlemen as promised and met up with the driver’s father, who baulked at the price and ofered to give him USD200. Rudd argued that USD200 wouldn’t pay the bill, to which the man said: “My son described the damage; there’s no way that was USD600. Here’s USD200.”

“I took the USD200 and I drove away, realising I was out USD400 by being nice to this person,” Rudd says. “It’s always bothered me, even in that moment. This is how I’ve changed.

When he told me that, I said, ‘All right, just give me USD200.’ I was stunned. If that happened now, I would key of on the guy.

I would say, ‘Absolutely not—USD600 is what it cost.’ The ‘nice’, it stays with you, because sometimes you get screwed by being nice. I think I hold onto the rage underneath it a little harder and longer than I once did. But I still think people should be kind, people should be nice, because the world is rough.”

Rudd laments that he never got the driver’s name as he jokes that he’d love to call him out in print. He’s eager to get the Esquire fact-checking department involved in this ongoing investigation and he’d like to pay an uninvited visit to the driver’s house, wherever he may be now.

If you’re reading this and remembering that you rear-ended Paul Rudd 20-some years ago, it’s time to come clean. Rudd has a few things to say to you—but he’s a nice guy, so he probably won’t demand that USD400.

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IN THE BUFF Yes, there are some places in the world where taking of all your clothes isn’t restricted to nudist resorts.

“ Yo u d o n ’ t k n o w how you’re going to feel before you try it,” says Nick De Corte. “After all, you’ve never seen so many naked people in one place at a time. You start of thinking that this is all very weird. You start wondering if you’ve let yourself in for some kind of giant orgy. But then you soon forget that you’re naked at all. And then you start connecting with people. You’re relieved of the idea of hiding because, you know, there’s nowhere to hide when you’re naked.”

De Corte is, with his partner Lins Van Wambeke, a Belgian traveller and naturist, recounting his experiences on his blog Naked Wanderings. In his mid-30s, he somewhat cuts against the stereotype of those who choose to spend their leisure time at designated beaches and resorts without a stitch on: the portly 50-something German, bronzed all over, naked bar his Birkenstocks.

“And they all seem to play petanque,” laughs De Corte.

But then naturism—also known as nudism, and, for the sake of art fans everywhere, not to be confused with naturalism—has seen a seismic shift over the last decade. Naturist events are popping up both in cultures where it has no real history—in South America, in Asia—and in cities too, where it has also not traditionally been found.

“Acceptance of naturism has a lot to do with the local culture, of course,” says De Corte, “and it’s very new to some parts of the world, but that’s what is allowing it to attract the attention of younger people, that and its association with environmentalism too. We were cautious in the beginning and kept our interest in naturism private. But it turns out that while, for some of our friends, it’s a bit of a joke, most just don’t care. Some have even joined us.”

Indeed, getting younger people into naturism may prove crucial to its survival—or at least that of the many events at which it’s most readily embraced. In Germany, being naked in nature— or ‘FKK’ as it’s called in naturism’s spiritual home, as it was here that the modern movement was pioneered during the late 19th century—has seen oicial membership numbers halve over the last 40 years as it’s come to be considered as old-fashioned and over-regulated. Similarly, Nicky Hofman, of the Naturist Society Foundation in the US—where some states criminalise the promotion of pro-nudist views—notes how the older generations of naturists are, inevitably, dying out, and that bringing younger

people into the movement’s leadership roles is proving tough— they like to experience naturism but not necessarily in an organised way. “They understand how naturism is slowly being normalised, but they’re not joiners,” she argues.

All the same, the opportunities to strip of only seem to be growing. As De Corte has found, in person, you can now ind nudist resorts on six continents—presumably climate change has some way to go to make Antarctica an appealing location for it just yet. Some 20 years ago, he reckons, naturist events were strictly private ones. Now naked public events are on the rise. The World Naked Bike Ride this year reached 70 cities in 20 countries, in part to protest against car culture and the climate catastrophe, but also in defence of going naked. In November the artist Spencer Tunick, who has organised some 75 large-scale nude shoots around the world, returns to Australia to shoot his latest on a Queensland beach, this time for the fashion chain The Iconic. May will even see the next World Naked Gardening Day. There’s naked dining, naked weddings, naked volleyball (among other ball sports).

“When we irst did a naked event in 2017, it was just to prove that’s it was possible,” says Julien Penegry, of the Parisian arts centre Ponte Ephemere, organiser of the Beautiful Skin shoes-only nudist club night—one that, thanks to its popularity, is set to run every other month—and an art exhibition (not about naturism) that visitors were invited to visit naked. Remarkably, of the hundreds who attended these events, most were irst-time naturists.

“Many people assume that it’s impossible to have a naturist life in the city, that it’s something you only do for a week or two a year somewhere under the sun,” Penegry adds. “But naturism for many is a life philosophy that they want to embrace as widely as possible.

It’s about encouraging the idea that naturism is, really, very simple.

It’s not dangerous. It’s not shameful. The problem is more the other people who ind it disturbing. They make assumptions. It’s like seeing someone walk barefoot and assuming they’re homeless rather than just wanting to make contact with the ground. But those that try it tend to conclude that they’ve just had a completely diferent experience to anything they’ve done before.”

It’s not for everyone. Naturally, the idea of being naked in front of friends or strangers is the stuf of nightmares for some people.

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Illustrations by Rebecca Chew

wor ds by josh si m s

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Being naked in public is one of the most commonly reported anxiety dreams, psychologists interpreting this as the subject being embarrassed by something people don’t know about them, a response to feelings of guilt or inferiority, or to being deprived of attention. In other words, they don’t really know. But to call that fear ‘natural’ isn’t right either. After all, while clothes have many uses—protection, identity, display, to make our species distinct from other species—nakedness was the normal attire for early human history; for some cultures it, or part-nakedness, still is.

And yet nakedness in public is, broadly, limited by most ‘advanced’ societies—counted ofensive or some kind of public nuisance—and not without often sexist contradictions: as the ‘free the nipple’ campaign asked, why is it OK for a man to bare his chest but not a woman? Parents encourage their children to cover up as soon as they show bodily developmental signs of puberty, passing down the negative assumptions surrounding nakedness and its perceived dangers or anti-social nature.

As argues Bouke de Vries, a political philosopher with Umea University, Sweden, and author of the paper The Right to be Publicly Naked: A Defence of Nudism, nakedness has become a social taboo. It’s one—ever since Adam and Eve clothed themselves in shame, having been ejected from the Garden of Eden—that has been underscored especially by religious belief. States, he argues, should recognise the right to go naked in public as a distinct right rather than trying to protect it under existing rights; that it should be recognised for the well-being it engenders and recognised as part of an individual’s freedom of expression. He doesn’t buy restricting nudism on the grounds of causing ofence because some bodies are unsightly, for example, or that it might lead to deviant behaviour. Nor, as some claim, that it causes a health risk— the facts just don’t suggest as much.

“A lot of this has to do with how we are socialised. The ideas we have about nakedness as a result of decades of exposure to media and advertising, for example, which tend to be a long way of the truth,” he argues. “I’ve swum naked and that’s about it for my nudist career. And that was because I’d forgotten my swimming gear. But it’s odd that on a warm day in so many places I couldn’t walk around naked if I felt like it. As with other practices, unless good reasons for restricting it can be put forward, it should be allowed. And with nudism those reasons seem to be absent.

All the same, it’s not all that surprising that society has such a mixed up, messed up take on nakedness. It’s at once symbolic of degradation and of innocence, even of authenticity. The Internet in particular has meant we have the potential to be bombarded with images of nakedness, and yet we still struggle with the nakedness of children and teens, or indigenous people —such that Facebook feels itself compelled to remove images of the latter if its subjects are insuiciently clothed. Ridiculously so, to modern mores, in the 16th century loincloths were painted over the nudes in Michelangelo’s ‘Last Judgement’ fresco in the Sistine Chapel and remained there for 200 years. And yet today the idea of a partially exposed breast— in order to do what breasts are designed to do, feed babies—can still throw some into paroxysms of moral panic. Put a rape scene in a movie and it might win an Oscar. Put a ‘full frontal’ scene in one and it won’t even get considered for nomination.

How might the practice of sexting, for example, be shaping future attitudes to our nakedness? How might our interest in

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i t ’s n o t all that surprising that society has such a m i x e d u p, messed up take on na k e d n e s s. i t ’s at once symbolic of degradation and of innocence, even of a u t h e n t i c i t y.

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while public nakedness can be a discipline, shared nakedness can sometimes also be sensual, even erotic.

perhaps positing naturism a s a w ay to explore sexual feelings could be its real and lasting appeal.

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pornography be diminished if nakedness was more a matterof-fact, unremarkable experience? Studies have suggested that children who grow up around nakedness have a greater acceptance of their own bodies later in life. Why is it that nakedness is a guaranteed way for anyone to get media coverage—or, as you might have noticed in yourself, to draw in a reader? Why is nakedness— and female nakedness especially—an efective form of protest as the feminist group Femen or the anti-war group Breasts Not Bombs has found? Why is it that Stephen Gough—known as The Naked Rambler, described as a prisoner of conscience and a man surely ahead of his time—has spent serial prison terms amounting to some 10 years in Scotland after getting arrested for not wearing any clothes, most conspicuously for his court appearances? Take nakedness out of context and we just don’t know what to do with it.

It’s small wonder then that, while the opportunity to be free of clothes is on the up, legally nakedness is still a quagmire. Most countries have not been encouraged to reassess their relevant laws.

Canada’s, for example, prohibit “indecent acts” but its approach to public nakedness is, as in many nations, largely a fuzzy grey area.

Likewise in the UK, nakedness isn’t an explicit ofence but various ofences may apply depending on the circumstances. New Zealand, similarly, has upheld a conviction for disorderly conduct for nakedness in the street, just because that’s a place where nakedness wasn’t commonplace. Brazil has a crime it calls “public outrage to modesty”. Australia—despite Spencer Tunick—has indecent exposure laws that only refer to the genital area, making naturism challenging. In some countries religious/cultural restrictions come in. The penal code of Qatar, for example, forbids the wearing of revealing clothing, so no clothing at all is out.

And, yes, in Singapore, public nakedness is illegal, even if you’re at home and your neighbours catch an eyeful. If you want to strip of, you’ll have to visit the nearest dedicated resorts in Bali or Thailand. The world is still a long way from being relaxed about public nakedness.

Yet those who espouse naturism tend to be really enthusiastic about its beneits. They speak, as Nicky Hofman does, of the simple expression of a free choice that society seems reluctant to give entirely: that of whether or not to wear clothing. They speak of the literal and perhaps psychological weight cast of, free at least of clothing’s restrictions. They speak of the levelling efect: stripped, literally, of the clothes and ornaments by which we signal who we are or, more precisely, who we want people to think we are. People are forced to leave their assumptions about others at the changing room door. There’s small opportunity for status; personality is all that counts. And there’s more to naturism too.

“You forget the fact that you’re naked very quickly because everyone else is nude. It provides a diferent mindset entirely as to what it means to be nude. Naturism isn’t bigger than it is solely because not enough people are getting to experience it,” suggests Pam Fraser, spokesperson for British Naturism, a campaign group for naturists, organiser of Naked Social—a naked comedy night; of NKD—a ‘clothing optional’ festival for naturists, targeting young families and 20-somethings; and of the new Freedom Festival launching in the UK in May. “Older people tend to be fairly relaxed about being naked, perhaps because they’ve reached a point in their lives when they think ‘screw it, I don’t really care what people think anymore’.

They’re not busy editing their selies for Instagram,” adds Fraser.

“But the fact is negative body image is a huge issue for a lot of people, and a lot of younger people especially. Faced with the pressures imposed by social media, they ind that naturism is a corrective.

You soon learn that naked people are normal people and they all have their lumps and bumps, that we’re all a long way from the [computer-corrected] images of nakedness we’re fed by the media.

“Obviously, getting into it requires either a leap or small steps,” she adds. “One guy I knew came [to NKD] and he really didn’t like his body—he preferred being covered up. And on the irst day he was literally shaking at the thought of being naked. But the next day he was naked. And he loved it. Naturism teaches you that you don’t need to be ‘perfect’. You can be happy with yourself, with your own presence.”

And yet naturism, despite its long history, despite the progress it is making towards some kind of normalcy, is not without its complexities and subtleties. Many naturists claim, for example, as Fraser does, that “there’s really no connection between nakedness and sexuality. I’ve never felt assessed sexually at a naturist event as I have wearing a dress out at a club,” she says. But this is a relatively new position, one that, it might be said, brushes human sexuality under the carpet.

Dr Glenn Smith, author of Social Nudity and Sexual WellBeing, has noted that naturism’s early exponents recognised what seems blindingly obvious: that while public nakedness can be a discipline, shared nakedness can sometimes also be sensual, even erotic. Only later, and typically in more sexually conservative countries, was naturism considered acceptable by censoring sexuality: running events in more isolated locations, operating by strict regulations and so on.

Given more modern day, media-exploited concerns about paedophilia and what Smith calls “highly selective” research on nakedness and sexual crimes, it’s hardly surprising that sexuality is an aspect naturists want to downplay. But Glenn has argued for a more progressive management of naturist environments so that the experience of naturism as exotic is not stigmatised, while those who experience it as asexual aren’t exploited either.

Perhaps, he argues, positing naturism as a way to explore sexual feelings in a more real way could in fact be its real and lasting appeal. It might even be what gets younger people into naturism in a lasting way. As Hofman puts it: “Of course being in a naturist environment doesn’t mean you’re not looking, but what counts is that it’s respectful.”

“Yes, there’s a very special sense of freedom in naturism. You genuinely do feel more a part of nature. And for me and for others that’s become an ideology, a way of life—one that causes you to relect on those ways of living that society more typically ofers,” adds Christoph Muller, assessor for the International Naturist Federation. “Clearly it’s not asexual because we’re all men and women. But the experience of naturism distances you from the sex question pretty fast. The fact is that people have their own issues and don’t always want to think about them and naturism too much. But they should.”

And many are, getting onboard with naturism and getting their clothes of. They’re ready to take their skinny dipping a step further.

How long it will take for society to ind some indiference and leave them to it is another matter. The battle to go bare goes on.

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Stories.

A space to dream.

To spark conversation.

The wild and free iSSue

Singapore

01

2020

ISSN 2301-3397 SGd8.00

The pole vaulter

paul rudd Ant-Man—and soon-to-be Ghostbuster—dishes on why he doesn’t want to be known as nice, the pressure of classic remakes and the money he’s owed.

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By the numbers

#1 travel trend in 2020

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What I’ve learned...

Peter Soh

Profession

‘Madman’ of the ad world

S O U T H - E A S T A S I A will be the future in advertising. Everyone talks about Greater China but that’s done. Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Singapore could be a regional centre of creativity.

Age

67

W H AT T H E H U M A N R A C E can learn from history... is that humans do not learn from history.

H A L F O F M Y L I F E , I worked out of Singapore and I didn’t really pick up the kiasu (‘scared to lose’ in Hokkien) syndrome probably because I’ve nothing to su. I have no fear. Nothing is holding me back.

I S A I D ‘C O U L D B E ’ because what Singapore does not have is

creativity. It’s not in our culture. Organising a festival or a movie week once a month is not going to do it.

A R T S C H O O L S in Singapore rejected me because my grades weren’t that good. But what has graphic design got to do with the grades for history, geography, math, etc?

N O W T H E YO U N G E R G E N E R AT I O N is too arrogant. They think they know a lot. I tell my students that I’m not any smarter than they are but I see more than any of them. Until now, I still peruse the library or the bookshop.

P E O P L E A S K how they can be like me. And I tell them, don’t be like me; be yourself.

C R E AT I V I T Y has to be almost like a religion.

I WA S A YO U N G J U N I O R C R E AT I V E and I asked Paul Arden, how can I be a better creative and he said, “live a life”.

I told him that we don’t always get good briefs and Arden said, “write your own”. These two things aided in my success.

I H AT E P L A G I A R I S M . It’s not honourable. My friend told me that I should be lattered that people are copying me.

I N C H I N A , some people would take my artwork and use them in their portfolios. There were times when some of these same people came for an interview with me. I didn’t have the heart to tell them... I mean, how stupid can you be to just blatantly steal the artwork and not even know who did it? They didn’t even change the text, it was all word-for-word. At least, make an efort.

G R O W I N G U P, I learned English from BBC Newcastle so I spoke with the accents, inlections and all. There is also another reason, which I must confess: at the time, I was interested in convent girls rather than Chinese school girls so the English education helped.

T H I S W O R D , ‘ L E G A C Y ’ , it doesn’t mean anything. I just want to start coaching and sharing—not teaching—sharing my experience and helping them with their work.

I N M Y E A R LY D AY S , I freelanced by translating English

ad copy into Chinese. I told the ad executives that if I translate directly, it won’t make much sense in Mandarin. I asked if I could restructure it and they said not to worry about it. They said that it doesn’t matter because not many people will read it. I was upset because I was doing a job that no one would read.

I TA L K . I don’t present myself. The way I talk to you is the same way I do my presentation. It makes people listen. That’s my storytelling.

T H E M I S C H I E V O U S S I D E of me saw an opportunity: my creative director is ang moh, the client is ang moh; if I do anything, they won’t know. So I started to rewrite it and it was eventually discovered by the client marketing guy, who told the agency that my Chinese copy was good. I won honours for all my copy in the Chinese category.

M Y A D S A L WAY S have a truth that the audience will agree with. Consumers are not idiots.

I D O N ’ T L I K E people commenting on the Internet and hiding behind some anonymous name. Once, at the kopitiam, there were a group of uncles complaining about the PAP, Lee Hsien Loong, too many Indians, so on. I walked over to them and I said, ‘don’t mind me. I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation. Tell me... have any of you worked overseas? I just wanna know based on what comparison that allows you to make that sort of comment? Are you comparing us to the Indonesians, to the Malaysians? Laos, China, India, Thailand? And if given a chance that you can exchange our government with any of the other countries, which one of them would it be?’ They couldn’t answer me. The kopitiam boss gave me another teh and said ‘good’.

D U R I N G T H E J U D G I N G , every copy has the name of the person or agency that wrote it. They saw ‘Peter Soh from Ogilvy’, ‘Peter Soh from Batey’, ‘Peter Soh from Saatchi’, ‘Peter Soh from BBDO’... they were probably asking if this idiot, Peter Soh changed agencies every two months.

I S E V E R Y T H I N G T R A N S L ATA B L E ? As far as I’m concerned.

If I haven’t screwed it up yet.

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Interview by Wayne Cheong. Photograph by David Bay

Name

Portfolio

What I’ve learned...

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Still life

3|5

From left: leather dragon charm and leather dragon key charm, both by Loewe; marble Vivienne bag charm and key holder, by Louis Vuitton.

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FOSTER THE PEOPLE This year, we turned Duxton Hill into a lively place with 35 activities spread out over 12 locations.

Here’s what went down during Esquire Neighbourhood.

wor ds by chantelle d avid, d aryl le e , de r r i c k tan, e dna g abr i e la c h an, ing rid walker, joy ling, nor m an tan and way ne c h e ong.

Our minds are perpetually overloaded, distracted by bits of info from our smartphones or TVs. Our need to constantly stay connected and up-to-date has resulted in shorter attention spans— always scrolling, always refreshing for new content. The relationship we have with our smartphone also changes the way we communicate with each other; human interaction isn’t required to have a conversation. With an awareness of just how much time we spend glued to the screens, community engagement events are readily greeted with open arms.

Thus, Esquire Neighbourhood, an event that’s meant to foster community and build human engagement. We organised Esquire Shophouse last year, a weekend event that was meant to bring the Esquire magazine

to life with masterclasses to create meaningful conversation through creativity and community sequestered within one venue: a three-storey shophouse. This year, we went bigger and took over the Duxton neighbourhood with 35 activities held in 12 areas. By way of analogy, last year’s event was like reading a few pages of the magazine, while this year’s event was experiencing the entire book.

So. On Saturday, 16 November, over 7,000 participants flocked to Duxton for a full day of activities following the opening party at Kilo Kitchen the night before. Designed to inspire men to build a life that matters, the activities included talks (presented by Martell and Corum), workshops, music performances, fitness classes (with three yoga classes sponsored

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by lululemon), masterclasses, virtual reality sessions (organised by Zegna), games and more.

While we couldn’t fully eradicate the use of smartphones during our activities (we understand, your social media followers need to be kept updated), there was much socialising, learning and engaging with other members of the community.

When the sun dipped behind the horizon and darkness blanketed the sky, we ended the day with an outdoor showing of Life is Beautiful at Restaurant Alba and sipping on Strongbow ciders. As the dust finally clears, we marvel at the work put into setting up and operating Esquire Neighbourhood. Here, we recap some of the event’s highlights.

Illustration on previous page by Hazirah Rahim

Esquire Neighbourhood Special Feature

Esquire Neighbourhood Special Feature

ESQUIRE MASTERCLASS

Face front Location: Monument Lifestyle, 75 Duxton Road.

In the intimate Putting Your Best Face Forward masterclass, one of Singapore’s most respected public speakers, host and media personality Anita Kapoor, shared her tips and tricks on presenting and public speaking.

H E R E A R E O U R TA K E A WAY S :

1. Find your authentic self Embark on a personal self-discovery journey to get closer to your own truth because you have to get real with yourself before you can get on stage and share parts of yourself with other people.

ESQUIRE SHARES

Dare greatly

Illustrations by Penn Ey, Chee

Location: Monument Lifestyle, 75 Duxton Road.

Called Men of Duxton: Daring Greatly, the sharing session was moderated by Debra Langley, venture partner with Lyra Ventures. Iris Sangalang and Dustin Ramos, founders of Monument Lifestyle, a part café, part retail space and key location for Esquire Neighbourhood, shared the creation journey behind their men’s lifestyle brand, Duxton.

In the initial stages of creating the Duxton brand, the husband-and-wife duo held focus groups with diverse groups of men and were surprised to learn that every participant had some sort of insecurity about their body.

“Each of them apologised for the way their body looked before we began. That

was crazy to see,” said Sangalang. This inspired the couple to build a brand that would celebrate men and their everyday struggles, and recognises that they don’t always have to be perfect.

During the session, the audience was asked the question: ‘What does it mean to dare greatly?’ Here were some responses: “Daring greatly to me is encouraging myself and my family to pursue their passions. Although I grew up in a very strict household with limited choices, I want to make sure that my son gets to explore all the possibilities available to him.”

“Daring greatly does not mean not being afraid. It means that if you’re afraid, you should be authentically afraid.”

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2. Work on the agility of your mind Read, meditate, exercise—do whatever it takes to clear your headspace before it’s go time so you can quickly and creatively solve any problems that come up during your time on stage and always be in control.

3. Never try to copy someone else’s presentation style Imitation may not be the sincerest form of flattering yourself. Understand yourself and find what works best for you.

Esquire Neighbourhood Special Feature

E S Q U I R E PA N E L

Fostering creative communities Location: The Co, 99 Duxton Road.

“As soon as you ask, ‘what’s in it for me?’, you have lost the whole purpose and concept of community.”

Panellist Javier Perez shares on the greater good in mind—the element of trust in community. Essentially, reinvigorating creative spaces is looking at investing

in the long-term community of the neighbourhood as opposed to shortterm monetary value. It takes consistent commitment to create connection based on a common interest or shared geographical location.

In addition to Perez, the panel talk on creating spaces to foster community

consisted of Lorenzo Petrillo from LopeLab (the man behind Urban Ventures and Keong Siak Festival), Michael Lints from Golden Gate Ventures (who shared on how technology is helping to connect people) and Jasper Wong from Pow! Wow! (the world’s leading mural festival that travels the globe).

T O P TA K E - H O M E P O I N T S : L O R E N Z O P E T R I L L O : “In modern society, because we are all so busy with our own schedules and deadlines, we forget to stop and talk to our neighbours.”

M I C H A E L L I N T S : “We may be more connected digitally, but we still hunger for real human connection.”

L O R E N Z O P E T R I L L O : “Trust and community can only be developed through consistent human connection over a shared interest or shared geography. It takes commitment, but the reward is a greater sense of self, improved general morale and a support network.”

J A S P E R W O N G : “When we started Pow! Wow!, many landlords didn’t understand why painting murals on empty walls would help them and their community. I had to pay for the first Pow! Wow! festival with my credit card. But there’s something about art that draws people together and starts conversations.

Now we have people asking us to come and change their space with a Pow! Wow! festival all the time. We do about 10 events a year. Art has the power to transform communities.”

J AV I E R P E R E Z : “As soon as someone says, ‘What’s in it for me?’, you have missed the whole point of community. For

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community to thrive, you need to have the greater good in mind, not just your own bottom line. And the great thing is, in the long run, when you invest in creating spaces that encourage people to visit and linger, that encourages tourism into that area; it will translate into a better bottom line for all.”

N O R M A N TA N : “Men need to learn from women on how to reach out and create community. The women in our lives do this naturally, whereas men still tend to white-knuckle it out when going through tough times. We need to reach out when we need help or see other men in need of help.”

Esquire Neighbourhood Special Feature

BOOKS

The poetry of gin Location: Littered with Books, 20 Duxton Road.

about the use of diction in poetry, and about connecting diction to the use of a key word and its variants. The third exercise required participants to have knowledge of the subject matter—in this instance, Nair talked about the origin of Monkey 47.

Having tasted Monkey 47 gins and being intimate with its notes, participants had pen and paper at the ready to compose an original poem that included or wasinspired by two key words: ‘barrel’ and ‘Monkey 47’. At the end of the masterclass, participants of the winning poems took home a bottle of Monkey 47 gin.

Alcohol is a great social lubricant. It can loosen the tongue, banish shamefacedness and bolster courage. But can alcohol foster creativity?

Local poet, Marc Nair, led a poetry workshop, sponsored by Monkey 47. The best poetry, as we paraphrase Nair’s tutelage, is the one that’s focused on the development of imagery, narrative and a point of view.

In a verb exercise, Nair had participants build a word bank by ‘expanding the image’ and in the second exercise, Nair talked

BOOKS

Writing your story Location: Littered with Books, 20 Duxton Road.

Writer Neil Humphreys taught a creative writing masterclass in the only way he knew how—with frankness and aplomb, while sharing anecdotes and profering applicable tips. If you need help to becoming a writer, here are some tips to get you going: •

•

• • •

Be that fish out of water; stories with alienation create empathy and immediately draw audiences to the character.

Self-deprecation works. It puts you front and centre as the brunt for humiliation, while your readers relate to your situation without being at the receiving end of it.

Write your headline. This reminds you of your goal as you’re writing.

Take a risk; the worse thing that could happen is that it gets edited out in the final draft.

Write the story in your own voice; this is a narrative that is solely yours and no one else’s. With a unique voice, you’ll rise above the other conventional stories.

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Esquire Neighbourhood Special Feature

E S Q U I R E PA N E L

E S Q U I R E TA L K

What makes a man today?

Yaya papaya

Location: The Co, 99 Duxton Road.

Bettina von Schlippe led the Self-Promotion in the Digital Age talk. As CEO and founder of fashion and lifestyle PR agency RSVP, which has 21 years of experience in Russia and Singapore under its belt, von Schlippe touched on today’s hyper-connected world and how the first impression someone has of you is usually your digital footprint. What are people finding—or not finding—about you online? How can you build a presence and stand out in today’s competitive online world?

Location: 75 Duxton Road.

The cultural understanding of masculinity is changing. From traditional Asian fathers who don’t know how to share their feelings to the toxic masculinity that alienates men and fuels suicide, what is the diference between a ‘good man’ and a ‘real man’? Ultimately, if you think about it, traits that define a ‘true man’—strength, integrity, honesty, vulnerability— are just what it means to be human. Moderated by editor-in-chief Norman Tan, the panel consisted of speaker, host and TV personality Anita Kapoor; emcee and maestro Gibran Baydoun from private-members club 1880; and singer, actor and personality Ben Kheng.

TA K E A WAY Q U O T E S :

Anita Kapoor: “Instead of phrasing the question about ‘what makes a man?’, I think it might be wiser to ask, ‘What makes a human?’. Because a lot of the traits and attributes that make a ‘man’—integrity, compassion, honesty, empathy and so on— are actually what it means to be a decent human being.”

Norman Tan: “There is a problem with ‘cancel culture’. Yes, some people did horrible things and there should be consequences for their actions, but sometimes people also make mistakes. And if they are honestly contrite and want to change their ways, our current culture of disqualifying that person entirely—demanding people to quit their job, vilifying them online so they can’t possible re-enter an industry— is scary. We’re all imperfect humans. Where is the grace?”

Gibran Baydoun: “I’m glad that people are acknowledging that there are diferent ways to be a man.

Just because you don’t like to play football and drive fast cars doesn’t mean you’re not a man. Sometimes being vulnerable requires the most strength. Not everyone dreams the same.”

Benjamin Kheng: “I’ve never really fit into the classic stereotype of what makes a man.

I am naturally an emotional and sensitive person, which is very diferent to my dad, who is more of the traditional Asian father figure. He never really expresses his emotions. But recently he has been leaving handwritten notes for me saying that he is proud of the man I’ve become, and I’ll respond to his letters with my own notes. It’s a start, but it’s about meeting him where he is comfortable. It’s his way of showing me love and afection.”

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THREE SNIPPETS WE OVERHEARD AT T H E S E S S I O N :

1. “You are responsible for what you put, or do not put, out there.”

You’re your own PR rep here, so the onus is on you to decide what you share with the world and how you share it.

2. “How many of you have Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn accounts?”

These four powerhouses are the most-used social media platforms in Singapore and around the world.

They are all big platforms, but none of them were created equally. You should have a presence on each of them, but have a think about which you should choose to invest more of your time in.

3. “How many of you have Googled yourself? You’ve never Googled yourself? Oh, come on!”

We’ve all been there—and if you haven’t, we bet you will now.

Google yourself and have a look at how your online presence appears to someone else on the Internet.

What does your online profile say about you?

Esquire Neighbourhood Special Feature

FA S H I O N

Virtual reality: enter the Zegna world Location: S4 Capital, 69 Neil Road.

winter 2019 show from the front row, sat in an interview with artistic director Alessandro Sartori and were given a rare opportunity to visit the historic Casa Zegna, all while never leaving the comfort of the beautiful set-up at Media Monk.

But the experience is not all just virtual; selected key pieces from the Ermenegildo Zegna Couture autumn/winter 2019 show were also presented and guests had the opportunity to try them on and learn more about the pieces from a tactile point-of-view.

With the rise of the digital age, fashion has become a lot more democratic—fashion shows are streamed live around the world, you can watch interviews with your favourite creative director and you can access places you never knew existed. That’s all great and dandy, but at Esquire Neighbourhood, we debuted the world’s first virtual reality tour of the world of Zegna, created exclusively for Esquire Singapore, so you could be at the heart of the action.

Readers got to see the Ermenegildo Zegna Couture autumn/

Illustrations by Penn Ey, Chee

We could go on about the experience, but let’s hear it from the guests who tried it first-hand:

“It’s nice to see the show, hear the interview with Alessandro Sartori. But the best part is the chance to see the Zegna castle—it’s really beautiful.”

“I love it, don’t have to be dressed up to attend the fashion show.”

“It’s almost like a real-life experience, to be seated there.”

“I really like the #UseTheExisting coat—upcycling doesn’t mean it can’t look elevated.”

“I like that Alessandro Sartori says that he doesn’t use the same show location twice. And with VR, I don’t have to fly to Italy to see it.”

“I like the Zegna castle because I get to see a side of Zegna I wouldn’t have before.”

“Man, these boots are really light!”

“One-and-a-half-hour queue for the VR experience? That’s like a queue at Disneyland, but sure we will wait for it.”

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Tips on having a good virtual reality experience 1. Get a good VR system, like Google’s Oculus Rift. Bad ones have slow frame rates that will cause motion sickness or hypnotise you.

2. Don’t get excited and move your head too quickly. Like most things in life, slow and steady is best.

3. Make sure you have no obstacles around you before enjoying the VR experience.

4. VR is great, but also limit the time you spend on it. Too much VR has been linked to an increased risk of near-sightedness.

5. Lastly, avoid bringing along friends who enjoy pranks—you might end up with notes on your back that say ‘kick me’ or they might start shaking you while asking, “eh bro, do you feel an earthquake?”.

Esquire Neighbourhood Special Feature

DRINKS

A cognac in the drink machine Location: Huls Gallery, 24 Duxton Hill.

From grape growing to bottling, Martell brand ambassador Lucas Mulliez took guests through each step of the cognac-making process with highlights of the house’s history that spans more than three centuries.

After learning that Martell double distills its clear wines and has its eaux de vies aged exclusively in fine-grained oak barrels from the French forest of Tronçais, guests were treated to a tasting of three signature cognacs.

Martell VSOP aged in red barrels ‘Red’ is a reference to the reddish colour of aged oak where barrels have reached the perfect stage of maturity before being selected for this cognac.

GROOMING

Doing that ’do Sheer volume doesn’t faze the grooming professionals at Sultans of Shave.

Location: Sultans of Shave, 15A Duxton Road Attaining hair envied by many requires more than maintaining healthy locks. That’s fundamental. To give it a full-bodied shape, some tricks should be executed.

At two workshops, Sultans of Shave’s grooming experts showcased their hair volumising techniques, which attendees can include in their usual routines.

But it’s not an arduous task; all you need is time. Barber Lee San from Sultans of Shave breaks it down for us in the following tips, which work best with a Dyson hairdryer.

Tip 1: Use a towel first to get most of the moisture out.

Hair must be damp so as to create shape and volume.

Tip 2: Now use a hairdryer on the warm air setting.

When hair is dry, switch to cold air to give a shiny finish.

Tip 3: Keep the hairdryer slightly away from your scalp to prevent direct contact with heat. Use a round brush to grip the roots of the hair.

Tip 4: Blow it outwards to give volume to the hair.

Martell Cordon Bleu Ideal for special occasions, this international emblem of excellence is endowed with beautiful complexity and rich aromas thanks to a high proportion of grapes from the Borderies, the tiniest and most sought-after of the growing areas in Cognac.

Martell XO The house’s interpretation of the prestigious Grande Champagne terroir reveals the intensity and depth of its eaux de vies, leading into an exceptionally long and robust finish.

Did you know?

The category of a cognac is determined by the ageing time of the youngest of the eaux de vies that composes its blend: VS (Very Special): two years VSOP (Very Superior Old Pale): four years XO (Extra Old): 10 years

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Did you also know?

Christophe Valtaud is the ninth cellar master in Martell’s 300 years of history. Valtaud bears the heavy and unique responsibility of blending Martell cognacs according to the centuries-old style of the house.

It’s a respectful knowledge that has passed from master to master since Jean Martell. In addition to Valtaud’s expertise, the cellar master has a perfect nose, unparalleled palate and a near-magical talent for alchemy.

Esquire Neighbourhood Special Feature

DRINKS

Filled with the agave spirit Location: Lucha Loco, 15 Duxton Hill.

Guests sampled four unique Mexican liquors before trying their hand at making a margarita behind the bar at Lucha Loco.

Tequila ArteNOM Selección 1146 Anejo This anejo is expertly aged in used Cabernet Franc wine barrels from the Loire Valley of France; 60 percent aged for two years and 40 percent aged for three years. The two maturations are then slowly integrated together and aged for a final year in toasted American white oak previously used to age Tennessee rye whisky.

The result is a rich amber liquid with hints of butterscotch, citrus, spices and vanilla on the nose and a complex palate of tofee, walnuts, orange flan and dark chocolate.

Mezcal Machetazo Cupreata Made from the rare wild Cupreate Agave grown in the mountains of Mochitlan, its sweeter flavour is due to ideal mineral absorption caused by the higher elevation. The mezcal is 100 percent handcrafted, with the agave cooked in an earthen stone oven and exhibiting less smokiness than typical espadin mescal.

Crushed in an Egyptian mill, fermented in wooden barrels and twice distilled in copper, the resulting flavour profile consists of notes of fennel, dill, radish peel, crushed aloe and bitter chocolate.

The finish is long, clean and fruit-driven.

Arquitecto Blanco Tequila No non-agave fermentation sugars, no difuser and no additives were used in the production of this beautiful unaged tequila.

Arquitecto Tequila has a deliciously bold, agave forward taste profile that sparkles with bright aromatics and is also one of the smoothest and cleanest tequilas, so it can be enjoyed without the fear of a nasty hangover. Arquitecto is also the world’s first premium eco-friendly tequila leveraging the ecoSpirits platform which uses a low carbon, low waste spirits distribution technology.

Banano Loco Exclusive to Lucha Loco, this unique mezcal digestive was created by beverage director Ajay Parag. Made from a base of espadin Los Danzantes Joven Mezcal, bananas that are not quite ripe are sliced and brushed lightly with organic raw honey and freshly grated cinnamon before dehydration to concentrate the flavour. The result is then infused with the mezcal for 12 hours, creating a bittersweet symphony in perfect harmony with the smoky liquor.

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Esquire Neighbourhood Special Feature

DRINKS

Corum cocktails Location: The Co, 99 Duxton Road

Inspired by the three collections of Corum watches, participants learned to make three exclusive cocktails with various spirits including Havana Club rum. One, using Altos Blanco Tequila, is a nod to the Damascus steel of the watch case. Damascus steel is also used in the crafting of fine blades. Likewise, the Coa is a special blade used by jimador workers who harvest agave plants in Mexico.

Time is at the heart of watchmaking and is also at the core of tequila production. The blue weber agave, the only species of agave that can be used to make tequila, takes between eight and 12 years to mature before it can be harvested.

Altos Tequila uses traditional techniques such as Tahona, where a large stone wheel drawn by a horse or donkey allows for a richer taste in the final product. Pair it with simple ingredients and you’ve got yourself an easy cocktail.

Tommy’s Margarita 45ML Altos Blanco Tequila 20ML fresh lime juice 15ML agave nectar 1 pinch salt 1.

2.

3.

Pour all ingredients into a shaker and fill with ice.

Give a good shake for about eight seconds, then strain into a chilled glass.

Serve either neat or on ice.

DRINKS

Presented by Guinness: brunch with Singapore Social Location: Kilo Kitchen, 97 Duxton Road.

OVERHEARD: “Where is Tabitha Nauser? I only came here to see her. She is fire!”

“I’m so proud of this show. It was the first time I worked on a show representing Asians and I’m thankful for the opportunity to showcase the real lives of successful Singaporean men and women on a global scale.” — Sun de Graaf

“Do you think the show will be good? I hope it’s not terrible. But to be honest, good or bad, everyone in Singapore is going to watch it and then slam it. It’s the Singapore way.”

“I must say, this was a fantastic event. Everything from the location and food to the live music and trivia, it was so much fun and so well executed.” — Kara Duncan

“I hope they don’t show the scene of me at the beach and eating pasta!” — Mae Tan

“I don’t have to be the overall winning team at trivia today. I just don’t want to lose to Sukki’s team.”

— Vinny Sharp

“Oh Vinny is late? That’s so Vinny. I can’t remember an occasion when he was on time.”

“I don’t know how this show is going to change my life. But I was myself throughout the entire show. What you see is what you get.” — Nicole Ong

“The thing about unscripted shows is that they film for 10 hours a day and they will only use two minutes. Also bear in mind that they also have to weave all our lives together in one coherent narrative.

It’s all in the edit.”— Vinny Sharp

“Although I’m used to performing in front of an audience, it’s a lot diferent to have a camera follow you for months. I realised I’m such an awkward person. I always see myself as that geeky IT girl with glasses.”

— Sukki Singapora

“Pour me another glass of Guinness!”

— Nara Chompunich

“Wow. Sam Driscoll’s voice is really good.

There is so much local talent here in Singapore.” — Mae Tan

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“Sukki looks amazing. I love that she always makes an efort and turns up looking put together.”

“The Guinness-infused ribs are delicious. I didn’t realise you could cook with Guinness.”

“It’s not meant to be a documentary on Singapore. It’s the personal stories of five people who happen to live in Singapore.”

Esquire Neighbourhood Special Feature

DRIVE

The three things nobody tells you about test-driving cars You’d think it’s just about rocking up at a showroom, signing a few forms and of you go, right? That’s what a test drive is about… mostly. But there’s a bit more to it than that, if we may make so bold. Okay, these test driving life hacks won’t turn you into Lewis Hamilton, but hey, at least you’ll come close.

Dress to impress: Nobody is saying you should come in a racing suit with your helmet, but you should at least wear comfy, sensible shoes. This means flip-flops are out as are formal leather shoes. They’re fine-ish if you’re familiar with a car, but in an unfamiliar one, not so much. Wearing flexible shoes will allow you to feel the pedals better and can play a part in influencing what you think about a car’s throttle/brake feel.

DRIVE

Cleverly does it

Illustrations by Penn Ey, Chee

Location: Duxton Hill Carpark They say experience is the best teacher and going by that, what some drivers found out at Esquire Neighbourhood was that Skoda’s cars are, well, Simply Clever.

In case you weren’t there (shame on you!), there were a bunch of test drives happening at the Duxton Hill carpark.

The test drives were, of course, courtesy of Skoda. As if the oversized brand mark and Make the Smart Move billboard weren’t enough clues. The three cars Skoda brought along—the Octavia compact saloon, Kodiaq SUV and Superb executive saloon—were also branded with its social media channels and the #IntheSmartSeat hashtag.

The carmaker’s tagline, Simply Clever, refers to the nifty, small details baked into every Skoda that makes your life that much easier.

This could take the form of big things, such as the true sevenseater practicality of the Kodiaq or the liftback tailgate of the Superb (giving it an absolutely cavernous 625-litre boot), a feature it shares with its little brother, the Octavia.

But being Simply Clever is also more than headline-grabbing features. It could also be about the little things, such as hooks built into the boot of the Octavia to keep your things from sliding around, interior door panels shaped perfectly for large drinks bottles in the Superb, or a cleverly integrated trash bin in the interior door panel of the Kodiaq.

And it’s all these smart features that drivers got a chance to experience for themselves at Esquire Neighbourhood. In addition to that, they also got to see just why Skodas are about more than clever features, they’re also pretty good cars.

Driving on a specially planned route with a mix of road types (city, major roads, highways, twisty bits), our guest drivers felt for themselves the road presence of the Kodiaq, opulence of the Superb and nippiness of the Octavia.

And given how the drivers looked at the end of their stints in each Skoda, it also couldn’t have escaped anyone’s notice that they came away impressed.

Take a seat: We can’t stress how important a good seating position is in evaluating a car’s merits (or demerits, even). Sit such that your knees are slightly bent even when depressing the brake pedal fully, adjust the steering wheel so that your elbows are at a slightlyless-than-90-degree angle, and grip it at the three- and nine o’clock positions. Why is this important? Sitting well will allow you to best feel the car, if it has a confident demeanour, if it has accurate steering and so on.

Easy does it: It’s understandable if you’re intimidated by an unfamiliar car. In fact, we get that way too. To alleviate that, take a quick walk around the car to judge how long/ wide it is and take note of any potential obstacles you might encounter on the way out, such as heavy trafic or a narrow exit. Conversely, don’t be too eager to test its full capabilities straight out the gate. Take a little time to figure out how powerful its engine is, how it handles around corners and most importantly, how well it stops.

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MUSIC

Party pulse The musicians curated by Umami Records share tunes that get them hyped up.

What’s a neighbourhood takeover without some good music? Theodora, YAØ, Lincoln Lim, Valiantes, thecolorfractal, Cadence and Royal Estate got their respective venues, Kilo Kitchen and Monument Lifestyle, beating to their groovy pop-rock tunes. Got an unidentified song that’s been bugging your mind since attending one of these mini gigs? Peruse the set list here for the appropriate antidote. While you’re at it, add more celebratory feel-good tracks as recommended by these selected Umami Records-curated musicians too.

T H E C O L O R F R A C TA L Set List ‘Waiting Room’ ‘As Long As You’re Next To Me’ ‘Division’ ‘Lost Lagoon’ ‘Everything’ by Rafe ‘The River Song’ by Plainsunset ‘Don’t Lose The Plot’ ‘Where The River Knows My Name’ ‘Twenty Three’ Go-to party tracks ‘Sir Duke’ by Stevie Wonder Reason: Classic Stevie Wonder song about the magic of Duke Ellington and the music of Stevie’s idols. The nasty horn lines put me in a special kind of mood.

‘It Runs Through Me’

by Tom Misch ft. De La Soul Reason: Great song about the empowerment and strength that music gives. Love the subtle nod to the rhythms of Brazilian samba.

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‘Feel It All Around’ by Washed Out Reason: A feel-good song all about sonic textures and space. Nothing hits quite like two chords and a blanket of sound.

CADENCE Set List ‘Pendulum’ ‘Come Home’ ‘Rumination’ ‘Alive’ ‘Fugitives’ ‘Walls’ ‘Zara’ ‘FLMP’ Go-to party tracks ‘Sold’ by Liily Reason: Perfect driving alternative rock soundtrack to running out of the ofice as fast and as far away as possible.

‘I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight’ by U2 Reason: Title says it, but in all honesty, we party only about as crazy as this mid-tempo number. We’re huge U2 fans and mad glad we finally got to catch them!

‘Amour t’es la’ by Snarky Puppy Reason: Our guitarist Nathan enjoys cooking and making cofee. This one’s his perfect accompaniment for making evening cofee and cooking up a storm at parties he throws. And c’mon, it’s Snarky Puppy. All that skill!

R OYA L E S TAT E Set List ‘Finding Love’ ‘Give Yourself A Try’ ‘Another’ ‘Circles’ ‘Stranger Things’ ‘Mess’ ‘Lany’ ‘Pacing’

THEODORA Set List ‘Lines’ ‘JULY’ ‘Fault Lines’ ‘DLMK’ ‘Talking Insane’ ‘I Don’t Feel Like’

YA Ø Set List ‘Wish U The Best’ ‘No Stress’ ‘Honesty’ by Pink Sweat$ ‘Got Me Feelin’ ‘RHCF’ ‘Scenery’

Go-to party tracks ‘Complicated’ by Mura Masa Reason: One of my favourite songs and it’s a bit bittersweet, which I love.

Go-to party tracks ‘I Feel It Coming’ by The Weeknd Reason: It has an ’80s funk disco vibe that reminds me of the dance floors of the past.

‘Loyal’ by PartyNextDoor Reason: It’s Drake and PartyNextDoor!

‘Life Is A Highway’ by Rascal Flatts Reason: My guilty pleasure is listening to country music. I remember watching Cars by Pixar when I was a kid and the soundtrack really stood out to me.

‘#selfie’ by The Chainsmokers Reason: We are a self-indulgent society, aren’t we. #sgsocial

‘Stronger’ by Kanye West Reason: It’s one of those songs that elevates this wild energy in me, and in others too!

‘Alive’ by Empire of the Sun Reason: Reminds me of a simpler time.

‘679’ by Fetty Wap Reason: I don’t know why this song sticks like it does, but every time I hear it in the club I get with it immediately.

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Go-to party tracks ‘1901’ by Phoenix Reason: That intro.

Esquire Neighbourhood Special Feature

GAMES

So much fun, it’s almost illegal Location: Xiao Ya Tou, 6 Duxton Hill ‘Xiao ya tou’ is Mandarin Chinese for ‘little rebel’ or ‘little imp’ and that’s a fitting name for this restaurant bar that serves modern Asian cuisine with a cheeky twist. With walls covered in retro posters and quirky Asian paraphernalia, this cosy shophouse had the perfect fun and casual ambiance for our Esquire Games Room.

Participants flexed their gaming muscles in four Asian-inspired games as they competed to win fabulous prizes such as Karl Lagerfeld fragrances, Claude Bernard watches and Fossil bags.

But everyone walked away a winner with bottles of Erdinger Weissbier and Erdinger Dunkel in hand (psst: did you know that Erdinger is fermented in the bottle, like champagne, instead of in a fermentation tank? Bottle fermentation is what gives the beer its distinct and fresh malty taste).

What are these games you ask? Simple entertainment that anyone can play for their next house party.

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A NEAT way to fat loss goals Personal trainer Matt Benfell teaches you how to increase your NEAT. Location: Duxton Hill Carpark

MAHJONG M E M O RY GA M E According to participant April Yeap: “Why is this so damn hard?” Our version of the classic memory game, using mahjong tiles instead of cards.

When it comes to changing our physiques or exercising for general health we all know that exercise burns calories to various degrees, whether it’s weight lifting or cardio based training. But have you ever heard of NEAT? Personal trainer Matt Benfell, who hosted our ASICS-sponsored strength and conditioning circuit, breaks down the often forgotten benefits of NEAT and how it’s an important aspect of our overall fitness regiment.

NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis) is the amount of energy we use on daily activities including walking to the MRT, working and even fidgeting. The number of calories you can burn from NEAT can vary, from barely anything to enormous amounts, depending on the person and their day. In some cases, NEAT can account for more daily calorie-burning than a dedicated exercise routine. Yes, read that again, it’s not a typo.

For example, Dave gets the bus to work and sits all day in front of the computer before getting the bus home and lounging on his sofa watching TV his daily calorie burn is likely minimal. Jef cycles to work and barely gets a chance to sit down throughout the day, running between meetings then hitting the gym before cooking at home. His calorie burn across the day will be huge.

The importance of having a higher NEAT has been thoroughly researched, with results promoting not only fat loss goals— through the increase of daily calorie expenditure—but a myriad of health benefits.

TEA PONG Our take on the party game Beer Pong, done with traditional tea cups instead. Use a mishmash of any cups you can find for an added challenge.

Illustrations by Penn Ey, Chee

H E R E A R E F O U R E A S Y WAY S T O I N C R E A S E YO U R N E AT T O D AY:

HIGH / LOW In this classic card game, players guess if the next card will be of a higher or lower value than the previous. The best way to enjoy the game is to go as fast as you can while shouting and maybe take a sip of your drink each time you get a wrong guess.

1 . Try not to sit for too long, especially if your job requires a lot of desk time. Get up intermittently and go for a walk, take phone calls while walking or standing.

2 . Taking the steps rather than the elevator or escalator, especially when taking the MRT, is an easy way to increase your daily activity and burn more calories.

Don’t be that person who takes the lift one floor up.

GUESS THE NUMBER OF CANDIES Take a huge glass jar, fill it with copious amounts of traditional Asian candies (yes, there were plenty of White Rabbit Creamy Candies in ours) and let your guests guess how many candies they think are inside.

Reward the closest guess with a nice prize or maybe just the whole jar of sweet treats.

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3 . Walking or cycling to and from work, rather than getting a taxi or public transport, is a strategy Benfell says he has found works very well for his clients. Yes, he knows it's hot in Singapore.

4 . We’ve all heard of the 10,000 steps a day target. So if this is something you are currently trying to work on, a walk before or after work can help massively.

Esquire Neighbourhood Special Feature

FITNESS

Body assessment by Orchard Health Clinic at lululemon FITNESS

Location: lululemon athletica, 79 Duxton Road

Here’s how to improve your sleep and recharge your energy levels: Stay away from your electronics an hour before bedtime Blue light from lamps, mobile phones, computers and TV screens can make it dificult to fall asleep as it inhibits melatonin release to the brain. Keeping electronics out of the room will strengthen the mental association between your bedroom and sleep. If you have your phone or computer close by, the temptation of using them will be higher and it will wake up your brain, resulting in broken sleep.

Up on the cosy fourth floor of lululemon Duxton, also known as the Luoft, an expert from Orchard Health Clinic whipped open a therapy table and gave complimentary one-on-one consultations and on-thespot treatment.

We sat down with Olga Colombo, an osteopath at Orchard Health Clinic, who gave us three tips to maintain good sleep hygiene and improve sleep quality.

Sleep hygiene is a behavioural and environmental practice developed in the late 1970s as a method to help people with mild to moderate insomnia. It is a variety of diferent practices and habits that promote good night-time sleep quality and full daytime alertness. Obtaining a healthy sleep amount of seven to eight hours is important for physical and mental health.

Make sure your room is cool enough Your bedroom should be around 20 degrees Celsius for optimal sleep experience. A dark environment will also facilitate good sleep. Use heavy curtains, blackout shades or an eye mask to block light to tell your brain to switch of. Mattresses and pillows should be comfortable. Lower the volume of outside noise with earplugs or a ‘white noise’ appliance.

Cultivate an active and healthy lifestyle As little as 10 minutes of aerobic exercise per day, such as walking, can drastically improve night-time sleep quality. It will be best to avoid strenuous workouts close to bedtime as it stimulates the body to secrete the stress hormone, cortisol, which helps activate the alert mechanism in the brain. Try to finish exercising at least three hours before going to bed.

Tippy toes Experiment with Barre Lab to realise an envious pair of firm glutes.

Location: Barre Lab, 60 Duxton Road

We at Esquire Singapore always love a challenge. Thus, besides providing HIIT sessions conducted by CruBox and yoga routines headed by lululemon, barre was introduced for the first time at Esquire Neighbourhood.

Slots for the barre flow workshop were snapped up within minutes after it was made available for registration online. Guided by and held at Barre Lab, participants said the barre flow choreography was a pleasant surprise because of how it difers between various instructors.

Interestingly, the majority of the attendees were women. We asked Jasmine Chong, co-founder of Barre Lab, on this phenomenon and to tell us more about the benefits of barre.

E S Q : Describe the diferent types of barre and their purposes. Who should do which type of barre and why?

J A S M I N E C H O N G : At Barre Lab, we have four types of classes. Like building blocks, a beginner will start with Barre 101 where we focus on alignment. A step up will be Barre Power where we add cardio into the mix. Finally, we have Barre Flow— our dance-inspired class. And Barre Stretch is the ultimate feel-good class to stretch out all those tired muscles post-class.

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Go with the flow Location: Duxton Hill Carpark.

There’s the hustle and bustle and there’s the calm of Esquire Neighbourhood; the oasis of tranquillity made its presence felt at the empty parking lot. While earlier in the day, the sun was beating down, participants disregarded the heat and got into the correct frame of mind as they slipped into each yoga pose and mediation. Organised by lululemon, there were three yoga sessions in all.

The first class, Inside Flow Yoga, was led by Freedom Yoga. In this session, music was paramount as participants

moved—or flowed—from one posture to another according to the beat of the rhythm. For the second—Flow and Vibe Yoga—participants continued in their usual yoga poses and then went for a tipple.

Somatic Flow Yoga, the last session of the day, allowed participants to be more mindful by integrating the body and mind.

Using principles of somatics, yoga and neuroscience in their poses, participants left the sessions more centred as the sun slowly set behind the horizon.

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E S Q : How can men be enticed to do barre and what are the ways it could benefit an individual?

J A S M I N E C H O N G : Barre is a lowimpact way to work out. Even with injuries, barre is suitable for men and women. Men can definitely benefit from the ‘turn-out’ positions since most of their workout options hardly train the ‘turn-out’ muscles.

Also, barre can improve mobility.

E S Q : So why haven’t men jumped on the barre bandwagon yet?

J A S M I N E C H O N G : Barre is so new in Singapore. And it is still perceived to be very female-centric because of the heavy dance-inspired moves.

Here at Barre Lab, we always have options for men to take a squat instead of a curtsy if they like.

Esquire Neighbourhood Special Feature

FITNESS

Get your workout in wherever you are CruBox co-founder Bebe Ding shows you how.

Location: Duxton Hill Carpark

HIIT (high-intensity interval training) is a form of cardio exercise done in short, intense bursts followed by quick intervals of rests. An efective HIIT session can be done in a short period of time as long

Exercise One: 30 high knees (Drive your right knee up toward your chest and switch to your left knee, one foot on the ground at a time.)

Illustrations by Penn Ey, Chee

Exercise Two: 10 tuck-jumps (Kick of the ground with both feet as hard as you can simultaneously, driving both knees up toward your chest.)

Exercise Three: 20 slow and 20 fast ab bicycles (With your back on the ground, hands behind your head, take your left elbow to meet your right knee in front of your chest. Switch sides slowly and extend the lower leg out fully, two inches above the ground. Switch sides every two seconds 20 times, then every second for another 20 times.)

you keep up the intensity. Although it might seem daunting, its health benefits are undeniably efective for fat loss, calorie burning—more so than steadystate cardio—increasing metabolism

Exercise Four: 20 jump squats (Stand with feet slightly wider than hip-distance apart, bend knees and sit butt back with chest lifted. Jump into the air as high as possible, landing soft onto the balls of your feet)

Exercise Five: 20 burpees (Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, bring palms to the floor, shoulders over palms. Jump feet back into a high plank with butt down and core engaged, then jump feet back to the outside of hands. Explode and straighten legs, jump up with arms reaching overhead.)

Exercise Six: 30 plank jacks (Starting in high plank, engage the core and jump feet in and out like jumping jacks.)

and building a healthier heart, while also yielding important mental health benefits.

And as Bebe shows you, HIIT can be done anywhere, quickly and without equipment, with the 20-minute CruHIIT workout.

Exercise Seven: 30 jump lunges (Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, jump with your right leg forward as you lower the body down but keep the back knee one inch of the ground. Exploding and jumping up, switch legs mid-air and land in a lunge on the other side, powering through the balls of your feet.)

Exercise Eight: 30 mountain climbers (Start in a high plank, shoulders over palms and core engaged. Tuck right knee into chest with toes of the ground, then as you bring the right foot back to starting position, switch to the left knee.)

Exercise Nine: 20 pikes (Starting in high plank, jump with both feet together to the back of your arms, keeping the butt high in the air and toes on the ground. Jump back into plank and then repeat, making sure to straighten legs and engage the core.)

Repeat exercises one to four as many times as possible in 10 minutes. Rest for two minutes.

Repeat exercises five to nine as many times as possible in 10 minutes. End with stretching.

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Of the grid An oasis awaits just an hour’s drive from London.

WORDS AND PHOTOGRAPHS BY SEAN MYERS

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On the Isle of Sheppey, a nature reserve bordering the Thames estuary situated of the north coast of Kent, is an idyllic retreat only an hour from the bustle of London.

Following a stretch of motorway south-east of the capital, the route takes you across the older bascule bridge, with the modern suspension bridge towering above you. You then turn onto a long winding access road (built by the Canadian army during WWII), passing a herd of Angus cattle and abundant bird life.

Before the road was built, access was only possible by ferry from the mainland.

The lat marsh landscape seems so out of place in this part of England. This bumpy drive feels like a decompression from the stress of city life. Your eyes are able to rest on the horizon. In the distance is the heavy industry of Sheerness, connected by the

huge bridge that delivers its workers to every shift. In the other direction is The Swale, a tidal channel to the North Sea. At the end of the access road, beyond the working farm buildings, are four shepherds’ huts. With no connection to the national grid, you are free to enjoy the picturesque landscape and sounds of the birds. Rising at sunrise and opening the top stable door reveals a beautifully framed view down to the water.

In the evenings, you have to rely on solar power and gas lamps.

A communal kitchen is housed in a simple green wooden hut.

The burners are fuelled by a mustard yellow gas canister, which is continually disturbed by the resident mole. In winter, a wood log burner heats the shepherds’ huts. Evening entertainment is watching the murmurations of the starlings and lapwings in the sky with marshmallows roasted on your own irepit.

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“I was expecting to see lots of birdlife, but what struck me most was the aural landscape. You need to be there to experience it in person. Not just the peace and quiet, but I had a small murmuration of starlings fly directly over my head in the evening. I’ve seen plenty before, but never experienced the sound of all those tiny wings skimming low and directly above me.

It’s important people can experience these places and these moments so they have a connection with special places and with nature.”

“The hut was just so homely and everything was thought of. And lighting the firepit at dusk has to be one of the most amazing memories we will never forget. We are so chufed to have given our little girl her first night under the stars. And when she woke at 5.45AM, what better way than going to sit outside in a blanket and watch the sunrise. We also made friends with three lovely curious ducks. Ava was in her element!”

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“We loved the reserve and were captivated by the wildlife and the habitat. The sheer number and variety of birds was breathtaking and we can still hear and see the murmurations in the big skies over the reserve. It was very special to wake to the marvellous view from The Ferryman’s (even without a sunrise) and to have our own private reserve outside the window, with the prospect of an early morning visit from the short-eared owls or the hare.”

“There is a strange kind of beauty in seeing the marsh in those conditions.

In his wet weather gear, we enjoyed a long walk on Tuesday, seeing all kinds of birds and taking lots of pictures. I was able to sit on the bed and look at the marsh through the long window. It was a real rest for me after a dificult year. By Wednesday, the weather improved dramatically and we were able to take advantage of the hides and enjoyed seeing the expansive skies in the changing light. On both mornings, we deliberately woke up early so that we could witness the stunning views at sunrise from the hut.”

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Photo essay “The drive in takes ages as there is lots of opportunity to see things by using the car as a hide. I stayed in one of the cosy shepherds’ huts which are a great way to escape from the world and immerse yourself in nature on the marshes. I had some stunning encounters with lapwings, hares, kestrels, marsh harriers and lots more.

Loved waking up to the dawn and going for a walk down to the hides with very few people around. In contrast at night there are the owls hunting in front of the big power stations that light up the horizon like Christmas trees. It’s an odd mix of nature and industry, but it works!”

“We had one night in the saltbox shepherds’ hut at the beginning of November. It was absolutely perfect.

The hut is small but comfortable. The bed is so dreamy and waking up to the view is just dreamy. Not much wakes me up for sunrise but that was worth it. We spent the evening sat out around the firepit toasting the complimentary marshmallows (which is a great touch).”

“We went in the middle of November and the hut was warm inside so you can’t get cold. The outside bathtub was a little bonus and we were also able to use the little firepit outside at night to just relax and make smores. And the view you wake up to in the morning is really lovely!”

“Wanted to try to escape the hustle and bustle of London without the normal long drive (Snowdonia, Lakes etc.). Our night at Elmley did the job perfectly.

It is a 100 percent relaxation detox in wonderful surroundings (inside and outside of the huts).”

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www.elmleynaturereserve.co.uk

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Joseph Encinia.

Facing page: Jared McCann.

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were his electives. He could have picked any one of dozens of poses.

He opted to challenge his nemesis head-on, calling out the pose that had made Encinia the most respected of all male yoga competitors.

“Scorpion!” McCann exclaimed.

LONDON, JUNE 2014

Hundreds of it, cheerful women, men and children poured into the lobby of a blocky, socialist-style conference centre in Central London, where vendors hawked stretchy tights, jewellery and coconut water. A sign welcomed attendees to the International Yoga Sports Federation’s 11th annual world championship. Thirty-two countries were represented. As the crowds awaited the start of the women’s division across the hall, the opening act was under way.

Inside the darkened auditorium, the small audience clapped politely as bare-chested men in Speedos took their turn on the stage. The judges, a mix of renowned yoga teachers and former champions, gazed on at groin level. As the competitors moved through their poses, they called out each one’s name—“Standing Head to Knee!” “Standing Bow!” “Rabbit!” Competitive yoga, like yoga itself, is for everyone. But in a sport dominated by women, the men can sometimes overdo it in an efort to be seen.

While attempting a painful-looking pretzel-like formation, one contestant wobbled and fell over.

The rules of competitive yoga are simple: three minutes, seven poses—one in each of ive required categories, two electives—each held for at least ive seconds. The key is to show no signs of exertion.

Launched in 2003, the sport was the brainchild of Rajashree Choudhury, herself a celebrated champion in India, arguably as a means of promoting her husband’s business. Years earlier, Bikram Choudhury had moved to Los Angeles, bringing with him a type of yoga never before practised in the US. Colloquially known as hot yoga and later copyrighted under his irst name, Bikram yoga became hugely popular here and around the world, at one point boasting more than 1,500 branded outposts. While Bikram, a selfappointed “yogi to the stars”, ran teacher-training retreats and worked with the likes of Madonna, George Clooney and Kobe Bryant, Rajashree devoted herself to spreading the Bikram gospel.

This competition was perhaps her crowning achievement.

In London, a human Ken doll in a ire-engine-red Speedo took the stage. His smile projected pure conidence; his every muscle gleamed. He bowed, then turned to stand in proile—the set position. His name was Jared McCann, his body-fat percentage was in the single digits, and one opponent concerned him more than the others: Joseph Encinia.

Encinia was a legend. He was as lexible as a gymnast, as strong as a weight lifter and almost hairless. He’d honed his powers of concentration by staring at candles and he enjoyed demonstrating his talents in the most public of spaces, such as the mall, where ridicule was all but guaranteed. He’d been to India, where, it was rumoured, he’d taught the rich and famous at a Bollywood megagym. He sported a sun-and-moon tattoo on one shoulder and a lotus lower on the other—Hindu symbols associated with yoga.

His signature move was a handstand-backbend combo known as Scorpion that involves curling your spine until your feet rest atop your head.

McCann and Encinia had known each other for years. They were approximate friends and unspoken rivals. In contest yoga, you must never admit you’re facing anyone other than yourself.

Onstage, McCann steadied himself, trying to breathe evenly. If he wanted to win, he’d need to clear his mind and focus on his own routine. After nailing the ive required categories, all he had left

N E W YO R K C I T Y, 2 0 0 4

A decade earlier, McCann was on day three of a three-day bender.

He’d been awake for all of it, camped out with other partyers at a friend’s upscale loft in East Village. They’d mixed cocaine with Ecstasy and booze and tried to make themselves feel less hollow by contemplating deep things. “What is real?” McCann asked aloud. One thing, at least: every so often, someone called a dealer to ensure the stash didn’t run out.

Truth was, McCann didn’t understand life—or at least the absurd conventions he was expected to follow. Growing up in Texas, he’d struggled to identify why he felt so diferent. It wasn’t until his teens, after he’d moved with his mother and her second husband to Hawaii, that it dawned on him: he was gay. But that only made things harder with his Southern Baptist mother, who enrolled him in conversion therapy and prayed for her son’s soul.

McCann got himself kicked out after the irst session.

He sought refuge in the piano, pouring his emotions into the works of Bach, Rachmaninof and Chopin. At the University of Texas, he studied music and Japanese, both of which he loved, but which didn’t turn him into the most marketable job candidate.

Seeking like-minded people, or at least people who didn’t think he was an aberration, he moved to New York and started moonlighting as a musician. He played original compositions anywhere with an open mic and a piano, crooning lyrics such as “We are the master / You are the slave” and “If you just move silently / I’ll judge you by your stillness”. McCann wasn’t in it for the money (though he’d go on to release, in 2010, an electro-pop album called The Dungeon). This was about working through some things.

On his way home from the bender, McCann paused in front of a second-storey hot-yoga studio across the street from his apartment. It wasn’t the irst time he’d stopped there. But that day, peering up at the bodies made gauzy by the fogged-up windows, he made a decision, one of the most consequential of his life.

Partying wasn’t making him happier or helping him face his inner demons or leading him toward self-actualisation. Hedonism had failed him. It was time to try something new.

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Type illustrations by Rebecca Chew

D A L L A S , E A R LY 2 0 0 0 S

Slayer, Metallica, Megadeth: as a teenager in Oak Clif, a rough neighbourhood in Dallas, Joseph Encinia spent whole days in his room, headbanging along to concerts recorded on VHS tapes, cranking the volume, feeling the rage. Matthew, his twin brother, was rarely around, always trotting to or from sports practice.

They didn’t look anything alike. Matthew was tall and sturdy, while Joseph was shorter and overweight. The extra kilos were partly a side efect of the prescription cocktail Encinia took to treat rheumatoid arthritis. He was diagnosed when he was eight; he had knee surgery when he was 11, which required him to walk

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MCCANN

ENCINIA

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S TA N D I N G B O W P U L L I N G

T WO CHAMPS, THREE MOVE S, NO ERRORS

with a cane for months; and at 13, he nearly died. It happened during the summer between eighth grade and high school. For several days, he’d experienced a severe shortness of breath; after his face turned blue, his mother rushed him to the hospital. He passed out in the backseat of the car and woke up in the ICU. He’d just had a heart attack.

That was Encinia’s worst scare. But in many ways, both big and small, the illness has deined him. Physically, sure: to this day, his right elbow is bulbous and his shoulder easily pops out. But also mentally—he’d always felt like an outsider.

He graduated from high school with his nose pierced, his black hair grown long. He played guitar and contemplated pursuing music. Somewhere along the way, he abandoned the hope of living up to the image of manhood he’d idolised and that his twin brother embodied: conident, athletic, virile. You’re not strong enough, said the voice inside Encinia’s head. You’re not healthy enough. You’re not... enough.

One evening in 2005, while waiting in line outside a metal show, he spotted a girl seated in full lotus, her face at peaceful rest. He imagined what just one inch of that Gumby-like lexibility might do to help his brittle body. He walked over and asked her how she’d learned to do it. She told him about Bikram and invited him to join her at a class in Dallas. Encinia’s irst time in the room, its temperature set to 105 degrees, the heat was so sufocating that he feared the onset of another heart attack. But afterward, he felt invigorated. He discovered that years of inactivity had left his body surprisingly supple—sort of like fresh clay. He kept coming back. He’d never been able to jog or lift weights because they made his body feel like it was tearing itself apart. But yoga brought on a diferent kind of pain, a pain that could be harnessed. If there was any chance this might heal him, he was willing to risk death to be transformed.

BOW

demonstration of progress and a way to stay accountable. Within a year of that irst class, he sojourned to a store that specialised in men’s underwear, purchased his irst pair of short-shorts, and enrolled in a regional contest in Austin. Onstage for this irst time, he fell lat on his face. He took last place, but he felt supported.

Now he could only improve.

McCann was just three months into his practice when the studio owner pulled him aside. It was time, she said, to compete in the New York regionals so he’d better straighten out his sloppier stretches. Saying no wasn’t an option. Later that year, McCann surprised himself by taking third place. He liked being recognised as good at something and liked the mental game of blocking out the fact that anyone was watching or that it mattered.

One rival was in Texas, the other in New York, but both joined the competitive-yoga circuit for similar reasons. They wanted— felt urgently compelled—to push their practice. Encinia needed it for his ailing body. McCann needed it to keep a healthy mind.

They were seeking new methods to advance, each in his own way. McCann sought other styles of yoga and he attended semisecret sessions around New York that tackled obscure Bikramstyle poses. He stayed up late with his spiritual friends, listening to the deep thrum of chakra-healing music, trying to become one with the universe.

Encinia raised money via a 150-day yoga marathon to attend a three-month teacher-training course in Waikiki in 2007, taught by none other than Bikram Choudhury. When Encinia returned to Texas, his body felt like a high-performance machine, sort of like a sports car. Thing is, he wasn’t sure how to drive it. That led him to San Diego to study under a yogi named Jim Kallett, who pushed Encinia to perform impromptu routines just about anywhere.

Still, he needed more, so he went to India—yes, to work at that Bollywood mega-gym, but also to train alongside two world-class competitors in the women’s division.

By then, Bikram Choudhury was a wealthy man, thanks to the signiicant training fees he charged instructors to teach his copyrighted sequence of poses. He lived in an 8,000-square-

N E W YO R K , 2 0 0 4

The studio McCann had stumbled upon happened to be one of the hottest spots in New York at the time. Literally: the space was equipped with three heat sources—electric, radiator and infrared—and humidiiers to dial up the steam.

The owner compared the practice to giving birth. Shortly after his epic bender, McCann signed up for a class. Like Encinia, he loved it. On subsequent visits, McCann noticed that the best students landed the prime spots on the loor, near the front of the room.

With each session, he could feel the impurities seeping out of his pores. His practice expanded to the metaphysical. He read a 1970s self-help book recommended by his New Agey grandmother. One lesson in particular resonated with him and became his mantra: the more you give, the more you get. Over time, his movements became less stif and he moved closer to the front row.

D A L L A S , A U S T I N & N E W YO R K , M I D - 2 0 0 0 S

When Encinia irst heard about competitive yoga, his irst thought was that he’d always wanted to be involved in a sport.

Though going head-to-head against other practitioners felt wrong, he decided that each performance would be a personal

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Growing up in Texas, McCann struggled to identify why he felt so diferent. He sought refuge in the piano.

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foot mansion in Beverly Hills. He owned more than 40 luxury cars, including a monogrammed Rolls-Royce. He had grand plans, telling Yoga Journal in 2009 that his next goal was to “stop terrorism”. His downfall was still a few years away. In 2013, the irst of several lawsuits would be iled against him by former female employees and students who claimed he sexually assaulted them.

He vehemently denied the allegations, telling HBO’s Real Sports in 2016: “Why would I have to harass women? People spend one million dollars for a drop of my sperm.” He lost one case—brought by his former attorney, who alleged she’d been sexually harassed by him and ired for refusing to cover up the claims of another accuser—and was ordered to pay USD6.8 million. He’d become a pariah in the competitive-yoga scene and Rajashree iled for divorce. Rather than pay the court-ordered damages, Bikram led to India, where he lives today as a free man.

Today, McCann remembers the exchange as a moment of karmic fullness, while Encinia says he doesn’t recall the interaction. Back then, he says, McCann was “very little on my radar”.

The next morning, Encinia awoke with renewed focus. He wasn’t going to give up; he was pushing himself to let go. I don’t care if I win or lose, his inner voice said. I’m just going to have fun.

That’s exactly what he did. After moving through the compulsory categories, he began to freestyle, stringing poses together rather than ending one before starting the next. That meant point deductions, but Encinia didn’t care. If playing by the rules hadn’t worked out for him, why not bend them?

From a seated position with his legs in front of him, Encinia pushed up and swung his legs up and behind until he reached a full handstand, then lowered himself into Peacock, a plank with his feet hovering a few centimetres above the ground, the pose held in place with just his arms, which is as hard as it sounds. For his inale, he started on his belly, in Locust, then achieved his own metamorphosis. He pushed up into a handstand, then curled his legs over his head: Scorpion. “It was beautiful,” McCann said of his rival’s performance that day. “He was a star.” When the judges revealed the results, Encinia’s name was at the top. He was the world champion. McCann came in fourth place.

LOS ANGELES, JUNE 2011

It wasn’t their decision to share a hotel room. But the Yoga Federation had booked just one room for McCann and Encinia at the Westin near LAX for the 2011 World Championship. Given the choice, most humans prefer not to sleep alongside a stranger, especially if that stranger is the competition. Then again, a hotyoga class places you in extreme proximity to the sweat of several bodies so the federation’s logic wasn’t a far stretch. Anyhow, that’s how McCann and Encinia got to know each other.

McCann arrived irst. He claimed one bed and waited. He did his best to relax. This was his irst appearance in an international competition—focus was paramount. His yogic austerity was tested when Encinia arrived with his girlfriend, Carolina, a modern dancer and a part-time pitchwoman for a yoga clothing line, there to work the lobby booth. She’d be staying in the room, too.

Encinia wasn’t bothered by the sleeping arrangements; he was focused on winning. He’d placed second in the past two world championships and didn’t intend to do so again. Shortly before it was his turn to compete in the semi-inals, he and Carolina left the room, she to the lobby and he to the auditorium, where he huddled backstage. There, he missed McCann’s masterful performance.

The eruption of applause afterward? It was hard to miss that.

Encinia’s turn. At irst, he felt his body fall into a low so natural that it required no thought. For his balancing backbend, one of the ive compulsory categories, he performed Standing Bow, which is sort of like a vertical split. As Encinia extended one leg back, a stage light caught his eye and blinded him just long enough to send him of balance. He pitched sideways, breaking the pose. Once he slammed a foot to the mat to catch his fall, he igured it was all over.

Back at the hotel room, Encinia sought distractions in a movie and bottle of wine with Carolina. They had only a few sips, but in the monastic world of yoga, that qualiies as cutting loose.

When McCann returned, Encinia, mustering his most Zen tone, asked how it had gone. “You made the inals!” McCann said, smiling. “We both did.” Despite the slip-up, Encinia managed to place in the top 10. But he still seemed unsettled, so McCann ofered some advice: onstage distractions afect those who aren’t focused internally. “You lost your focus—that’s what happened,” he said.

S A N F R A N C I S C O , N E W YO R K & L O S A N G E L E S , 2 0 1 2 – 1 3

Despite his defeat, McCann had one consolation: Encinia couldn’t enter the following year. Per the federation guidelines, world champs couldn’t participate in future competitions. Which meant that McCann had only one person to overcome: himself.

In 2012, as expected, he stormed the national championship, thereby qualifying for worlds. But Rajashree Choudhury, who’d become something of a mentor to him, took McCann aside to say he wasn’t ready to be number one, that he needed to focus on perfecting form, not inesse. McCann made a pilgrimage to San Francisco for a week-long training session with Mary Jarvis, then the international coach for the USA Yoga team. In the small studio where Jarvis taught, with worn carpeting and electric heaters strung from the rafters, she put McCann on a regimen that treated poses like gym reps, performed in a never-ending loop. He spent the irst half of the trip ighting back tears brought on by pain.

The hard work didn’t pay of, not that year. Ego got in the way.

In the inal round of the 2012 World Championship, McCann performed the Scorpion but tried to go further than Encinia had, only to somersault over. For the second time in as many years, he’d lost, this time inishing in third place.

McCann walked away from the disappointment with a personal mantra that would make Icarus proud: don’t reach. The following year, at the 2013 World Championship in LA, he performed the same routine he’d failed the year before, this time with fewer lourishes, a better-controlled Scorpion and no errors. He placed irst; he was the world champion. Finally, he thought.

N E W YO R K , 2 0 1 3

McCann spent the next few months enjoying the spoils of victory.

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There was no prize money, but he travelled with Rajashree to studios throughout Europe to give demonstrations. He was a world champion, just like Encinia. Their low-boil rivalry was over; they’d be on equal footing for the rest of their lives.

Then McCann got an email from the Yoga Federation’s board of directors announcing that the rules were changing. Moving forward, former champions would be allowed to compete. In essence, the event would crown the champion of champions.

Among the people authorising that move: Joseph Encinia.

In the wake of his 2011 triumph, Encinia had joined the board and now he’d helped change the rules, efectively afording him another shot at glory. He had no qualms about the move. What other sport forces its best athletes to retire in their prime?

Couldn’t the pressure push everyone to a higher plane? Wouldn’t that in turn inspire more people to compete? Plus, he would be pitted against McCann—should McCann care to defend his title— and inally prove who was best.

At irst, McCann resisted. He thought of sitting this one out.

What did he have left to prove and to whom? But he quickly dispelled the notion. The next world championship would be unlike any other and whoever won would have bragging rights forever. (Except, of course, that you aren’t supposed to brag.) Little did he or Encinia realise that the next generation of competitors was rising up, biting at their ankles, eager to dethrone them.

uncoiled and touched his feet back down to the mat in such a way that gravity seemed optional.

It was time to ofer a transcendent inishing combo. McCann irst called out Full Standing Bow, a twist on Standing Bow. Instead of holding one leg vertically like it’s a lagpole, you guide it over your shoulder, tucking it snugly below your chin, then spread your arms wide. McCann planted one leg, carefully raised the other straight up behind him, and reached back to grab his ankle and tug it forward. So far, so good.

Halfway through that pull, something felt of. His back foot wasn’t gracefully moving toward his chin as expected, so he did the only thing he could think of. He yanked, pulling the inverted leg into position. It didn’t look pretty.

After his performance, Encinia obsessed over whether he’d tipped his head up too much during the Palm Tree handstand. McCann wondered why he’d violated his own rule about never yanking oneself.

Neither man paid much attention to Homison, who did a wild routine. He called out Mountain, assumed full lotus, then hiked up his knees and pressed his arms together above his head. He called out Om, then hoisted himself up on both hands, tucked one leg over his shoulder and wove the other around one elbow and beneath the other. To the untrained eye, it looked like a slow-motion exorcism. It was an audacious performance, lawlessly executed, like Babe Ruth’s called shot in the 1932 World Series.

When it was time to announce the winner, all the men came onstage. Their scores were projected on the scoreboard overhead.

Encinia came in ifth. McCann nabbed second. Both now stood shoulder-to-shoulder, their skin glistening under the hot lights.

The emcee made it oicial: “And the winner of the 2014 Yoga World Championship is... Zeb Homison!”

Still in his star-spangled Speedo, Homison beamed.

LONDON, JUNE 2014

Minutes before McCann, clad in his skimpy red Speedo, took the stage at the 2014 World Championship in London, he cautiously eyed Encinia. Encinia, in black boxer-briefs, eyed him back. Both men now lived in New York and they’d tried to avoid comparing themselves to each other.

They also tried to tune out the standoish newcomer in the star-spangled Speedo, wearing headphones. His name was Zeb Homison, he was a studio owner from Pittsburgh and he was at that moment rocking out to Katy Perry. He’d been chasing the duo for years, always just outside the spotlight. But that had all changed at nationals, held two months earlier in San Antonio, where veterans such as McCann and Encinia had played it safe to ensure advancement but avoid injury or embarrassment. Homison had gone all out and come in irst place. This afternoon, no one knew what to expect from the young upstart.

As Encinia approached the mat, the crowd began applauding.

Though he couldn’t see her, he knew Carolina was in the audience; they’d be married six months later. He lashed a smile and gave a thumbs-up.

Encinia knocked out the compulsory categories one by one with near perfection. For his irst elective, he opted for a handstand pose called Palm Tree. The mechanics may be simple, but the pose is all elegance, proof of grace’s triumph over raw lexing. For his second elective and last pose, he went for—what else?—Scorpion, and nailed it. The crowd went wild.

McCann approached the mat to equally enthusiastic applause and shape-shifted his way toward the provocation: he called out Scorpion and sprang into a handstand before smoothly draping his feet backward on top of his head. It looked perfect and he

In 2014, Rajashree, the woman who’d started it all, announced that she was stepping down as president of USA Yoga. She would go on to divorce Bikram.

(She declined to discuss her ex-husband for this story.) The calls for competitive yoga to be recognised one day as an Olympic sport, which she had championed for years, quickly died away.

In the wake of Rajashree’s departure, Encinia was nominated to serve as president of USA Yoga, a position he held for three years. He now works as an in-demand journeyman instructor at studios throughout New York.

Homison felt no need to defend his title the following year. He still teaches at his studio in Pittsburgh.

McCann became the literal poster boy for USA Yoga, modelling the poses for its oicial rulebook. He also opened his own studio, in Brooklyn and he hired the current men’s competitive-yoga champion, the ifth consecutive American to earn the title. To this day, both McCann’s and Encinia’s classes ill and life is good. They live and work near each other, but they don’t talk much—though they never really did. Neither has returned to competition.

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As a teen, Encinia spent whole days in his room, headbanging along to Slayer, Metallica and Megadeth.

Still life

4|5

Slow Dance eau de parfum 50ML, by Byredo (left) and I Don’t Know What eau de parfum 100ML, by DS & DURGA.

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Man at His Best

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For peat’s sake

That Hemsworth efect

Strokes of genius

Octomore takes a softer approach with its 10th series.

A certain bay in Australia has been attracting attention lately, and for good reason.

Discover the best of Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat in a new retrospective.

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MaHB

Food

The culinary pioneer In 1991, Samia Ahad traded her business suits for kitchen whites and began her culinary journey. Since graduating from the iconic Institute of Culinary Education in New York City, Ahad continued to refine and perfect her craft, from apprenticing at Quilted Girafe to working at March Restaurant alongside Michelin-starred chef Wayne Nish.

In 2001, Ahad made her culinary mark in Singapore, opening one of the first multi-concept restaurants, Coriander Leaf, pan-Asian restaurant and culinary education space, with cooking classes and a food-based team building programmes on site. Since then, Ahad has opened The Screening Room, a multifaceted space that innovatively marries her love for food and film.

We had a chat with Ahad—who was notably charismatic—about her drastic career change, culinary philosophy and the most perverse menu she has created, inspired by The Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal.

E S Q : Is your admiration of food based upon creativity or academia?

S A M I A A H A D : My love for food is very academic. I’m not a great eater. My interest in food is learning the culture of where the food comes from. I’m not what they call, and I don’t like this term, a foodie. I eat because I have to, because my stomach tells me to.

late in life, I didn’t start cooking till my early 30s. I had never cooked before this, nor was I interested in cooking. For me, it was a complete change of career.

Previously, I had my own travel agency in London, but it was the beginning of the Internet, so it was the end of my business as I had known it. I had also just moved to New York, I had nothing to do and no papers to work, so I started cooking at home and quite enjoyed it. I found whoever came over also loved the food. So I said, let me go to chef school and I professionally trained in classic French cuisine. And I guess as they say, the rest is history.

E S Q : Why did you trade your business suits for kitchen whites?

S A M I A A H A D : I started cooking very

E S Q : Was culinary school challenging?

S A M I A A H A D : It was gruelling. I think it’s changed now, but it used to be

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Words by Ingrid Walker

Samia Ahad brings pan-Asian cuisine to the Lion City.

MaHB

Food

a very abusive environment. Physically, with the hours and the heat, we didn’t have air-conditioned kitchens then.

One time I put up a thermometer in our restaurant during service and it was 145 degrees Fahrenheit. I mean you know it’s seriously hot when you have sweat pouring down your calves. So you really only stay in the business if you have a passion for it.

E S Q : How did you go from completing culinary school to opening Coriander Leaf?

S A M I A A H A D : Okay, that was another journey. When I finished culinary school I worked in restaurants in New York for about four years, till I got pregnant. I worked in a professional kitchen till I was seven months’ pregnant, till they threw me out because they couldn’t get by me in the aisles. But restaurant life and family life don’t go together, so then when I had my son, I took some time of. During this period, I started teaching, doing consultancy and also writing, contributing to food magazines in the US, I even went back to my culinary school and I taught a few classes there. So I always stayed in the field, just at my own pace. I then moved to Singapore, like most expat wives, because of my husband’s job. And then, I decided to open Coriander Leaf.

E S Q : Do you have a culinary philosophy?

S A M I A A H A D : It’s all about simplicity, the simpler the better. My philosophy is that the ingredients should be the star, not the chef or the technique. I’m a little bit of a purist.

E S Q : The menu is divided into five flavour profiles. Do these profiles encompass traditional and interpreted Asian dishes?

S A M I A A H A D : Absolutely, I keep the food as authentic as possible. But what I also try and do is re-interpret dishes.

Especially with Asian food, there are some cuisines that are really very heavy, so I’ll lighten it up and simplify it. If you look at the menu, I do it in five flavour profiles: fresh, familiar, spicy, umami and sweet, as I find that people usually come in with preconceived notions of cuisines. I’ve also got rid of the notion of appetisers and mains course, the diferent courses is a very Western concept, it’s not an Asian concept, an Asian concept is eating family style and sharing.

E S Q : Were there dificulties opening a pan-Asian restaurant?

S A M I A A H A D : What we do here at Coriander Leaf is represent the breadth of Asia, all the way from Turkey to Japan.

So my biggest struggle has been to

Samia’s Signature Frontier Chicken.

explain our menu as it is often described as fusion. For me, fusion is the culinary F word. Whatever dish we are doing from whichever country or culture, we try and represent it true to its origins. Although I might marry diferent techniques, I certainly don’t play with flavours.

E S Q : Was the plan always to open Coriander Leaf with an onsite cooking studio for culinary classes?

S A M I A A H A D : I never really wanted to open the restaurant, I only wanted to do the culinary classes initially. But it was 2001, and it would not have been a standalone business in Singapore.

The cooking school was always part of the restaurant, that’s where my real passion lies.

E S Q : Do you think anyone can cook?

S A M I A A H A D : Especially Asian cultures, they always say that the flavour’s in your hands. It’s an old Asian saying that means you can make a recipe and I’ll make the same one, but both will taste diferent because of the hand that’s cooking it. And I always dispute that. I don’t think the flavour’s in your hands, I think the flavour’s in your taste buds. And I think people who know flavours and have educated palettes can cook well.

E S Q : We know about your love for food, but how about your love for film.

Why did you decide to marry the two by opening The Screening Room?

Spiced Valrhona Lava Cake.

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S A M I A A H A D : I was hosting a dinner with a bunch of friends and they said let’s watch The Godfather and I said okay, but let’s do a dinner surrounding it. So I did some research and did you know that The Godfather had 52 food scenes in it? So I took scenes and lines from the movie and based dishes around them. That’s really what started it, that dinner. So it sort of started at home and then I got the opportunity to do The Screening Room. If you want a quick 101 of any culture, what do you do? You taste the food and you see a movie. It is superficial, but it allows you to get the gist. And if you enjoy the food or the movie, you might delve deeper into the culture. To be honest, I am surprised nobody had married the two together because, for me, it was the perfect marriage.

E S Q : Do you parallel films screened to the menu served?

S A M I A A H A D : During my first two years at The Screening Room, I always had a menu related to the movie we were screening. My favourite of course—and this shows the perverseness of my personality—was The Silence of the Lambs. Mind you, nobody ordered the menu but that was fine, I just had fun doing it for the menu; sort of rolled The Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal together. It was dead easy. Most cuisines, do ofal, I did foie gras because you know, liver—that reference comes from Hannibal. And of course, I did a lamb dish. I would’ve loved to do brain cartilage; it’s delicious but I don’t think anyone would have ordered it. For the faint-hearted, I said you can have a glass of Chianti and fava beans. But I think I was before my time because nobody got it here. After a while there was too much wastage so it sort of phased out.

E S Q : When cooking, what dishes evoke powerful emotions and memories?

S A M I A A H A D : That has to be a dish from my own country and my own childhood. I am originally from Pakistan but left when I was 18.

E S Q : If you were to leave a culinary legacy, what would you want it to be?

S A M I A A H A D : I hope that I infected someone with the passion that I have, I think passion is infectious. And I think some people have been infected. In fact, I just got a very nice message from someone last month who had interned with me when he was 14 years old and is now a chef. He said thank you, you are the one who really inspired me and infected me with your passion. And I also hope to inspire people to cook more because that was the whole idea.

Langosta a la Menorquina.

Noshing with nonchalance An Alain Ducasse adjunct that’s unrestricted to only the prim

Ducassee entrusted BBR’s culinary undertaking to chef de cuisine, Louis Pacquelin, who has worked closely with him for many years and is specially picked to represent Ducasse here.

Unlike restrictive course-only restaurants, BBR by Alain Ducasse serves sharing plates and regular-sized dishes.

Combinations from the menu are endless but if you ask us for recommendations, we’ll start of with Pulpo a la Gallega and Pissaladiere. The former provides a tender yet savoury bite that can be rubbery if not executed well, while the latter is a moreish Ducasse personal favourite.

With the mains, seafood reigns. Cataplana de Marisco, a hearty Carabinero shrimp and shellfish stew, will definitely comfort the belly. If appetite’s craving for red meat, Lomo a la Brasa, Mojo Verde should do the trick. The masterfully grilled striploin steak is served with an addictive green sweet bell pepper sauce. That condiment really complements the juicy cut.

Save some stomach space for the iconic and robust Tiramisu together with Tiger Story, BBR’s signature vanilla entremets inspired by the room. That’s what we call a happy culinary ending.

Dining at an Alain Ducasse establishment will never be a chill episode. When word got out that Ducasse was launching a slightly relaxed concept compared to his other celebrated gourmet institutions, people wondered if he was going after the mainstream dollar. Au contraire.

Housed at the former Bar and Billiard Room of Rafles Hotel Singapore, BBR by Alain Ducasse evolved from its former gentlemen-favoured club to a cosy and inviting modern Mediterranean restaurant. We’re serious. By keeping it casual, the space continues to be the social gathering space of choice for travellers and the local community alike.

BBR by Alain Ducasse marks the chef’s first Mediterranean sharing and grill concept presented in Southeast Asia.

Enamoured by the flavours of the Mediterranean at a young age, Ducasse presents the culinary essence of Portugal, Spain, Italy and France sections of the Mediterranean coast.

Location-wise, the high ceiling (rare in Singapore) contributes to the spacious and airy ambience. Colours and décor are decidedly warm and vibrant, courtesy of acclaimed Paris-based firm Jouin Manku while still honouring the layout of this heritage space.

Ask to be seated near the large open kitchen at its heart. There, a striking blue sculpture reminiscent of a giant fish swimming across the sea transports diners to the Mediterranean without getting drenched. Behind it, a lively bar serving spirits referencing BBR’s heritage and Mediterranean elements puts diners into a blithe mood.

BBR by Alain Ducasse is located at Rafles Singapore, 1 Beach Road, Singapore 189673. For more information and reservations, head over to www.bbr-byalainducasse.com.sg.

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Words by Derrick Tan

and starched shows no signs of slack at all.

MaHB

Drinks

The Octomore 10.4 is finally available, with a retail price of SGD334.99. The 10 series (if most of them are still unsold) are available at La Maison Du Whisky, The Wall as well as online at Asher BWS and Simply Whisky.

A softer approach Since its first distillation in 2002, Octomore has garnered a reputation for its heavily peated single malt whiskies.

Now, in its 10th series, Octomore is going for a ‘softer smoke’.

Words by Wayne Cheong

So, you’ve developed a standing for yourself. A rep, if you will. You’re known for your heavily peated single malt whisky; the term ‘cult classic’ is uttered in the same breath as your name. So, what do you do now?

Why, you upend the public’s expectations of you.

Now in its 10th series, Octomore—ye ikon of heavy peated drink—opted for a ‘scaled back’ approach to its line.

It might have a ‘softer smoke’ but it is still potent, like wild grizzlies. But with ribbons in its fur.

The crux of the 10th series’ experimentation lies in the reduced phenol parts per million and a focus on complexity. 10.1 is a five-year benchmark of the series that’s distilled from Scottish barley and matured in ex-bourbon casks. 10.2 is matured in two casks: the first in ex-American oak casks and then in French oak casks. This results in a balance between the “tropical fruit notes of the Sauternes and the floral, fruity Octomore spirit”.

10.3 gets its malt from Islay’s farmer, James Brown.

The unique Islay terroir feeds into the maturation process with six years in only ex-American oak casks. And finally, 10.4 is the youngest at three years old, ever to be released.

It’s matured in Limosin oak casks that were highly toasted to lessen the tannins. What you get are dry fruits and chocolate; and are limited with a 12,000-bottle run.

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Travel

1932’s Chay Yor Bampong Modern Spring Roll.

Glory restored Rales Grand Hotel d’Angkor renews with a formal

Words by Derrick Tan

dining venue named after its inception year.

A fresh coat of paint does wonders.

Along with renewed easily accessed power ports and USB charging stations, they can make or break your lodging experience away from home.

These small touches were rather unexpected, especially in a rustic and laid-back city like Siem Reap, Cambodia. And only the Rafles brand is able to bring modernity into a storied French Quarter without desecrating its distinctive art-deco interior.

Located next to the National Museum and just 15 minutes away

from Siem Reap International Airport, Rafles Grand Hotel d’Angkor provides a luxurious oasis for visitors who are in town to explore, of course, Angkor Wat, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Formerly known as just The Grand, it was designed in the late 1920s by architect Ernest H́brard in French colonial style. The hotel’s interior combines Khmer art and furnishings with art deco influences. Renowned for its wrought-iron and timber elevator, it served as an early base for archaeologists, explorers and visitors

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to the rediscovered temple complex of Angkor. The Grand was taken over in 1997 at the invitation of Cambodia’s HRH King Sihanouk by Fairmont Rafles Hotels International. Thus, transforming into Rafles Grand Hotel d’Angkor.

Both the Rafles Grand Hotel d’Angkor and the also recently refurbished Singapore counterpart are imposing in their architecture and share the same white-paint-coat DNA. Most of the facilities and interiors such as the iconic Elephant Bar and the record of having the largest pool in Siem Reap are kept intact, save for some technological upgrades like the inclusion of automated cofee machines and furnishing swaps (comfy Simmons-branded beddings). So, the haven may look familiar yet updated.

Now onto the latest addition to the hotel, 1932. Conceived as the landmark property’s signature finedining restaurant, it is the only venue in Siem Reap where you can sample royal Khmer cuisine. Just two establishments in Cambodia are permitted to serve it, the other being its sister Rafles Hotel Le Royal in Phnom Penh.

Led by Rafles Grand Hotel d’Angkor’s executive chef Angela Brown, the Royal Khmer Menu features textures and exotic flavours that whet the taste buds.

Highlights are not limited to mango and prawn salad, spicy and sour lobster consomḿ, grilled lamb chops in ginger sauce, and red chicken curry in coconut.

The winning dessert, pumpkin custard, is made from scratch.

Originally from Brisbane, Australia, Brown earned her chef stripes in a number of Sofitel kitchens around the world including London and Bangkok but eventually settled down in Siem Reap for nearly three years. “Khmer cuisine is a combination of refined, simple, delicate flavours. They pop out, but don’t knock you over. Unlike Thai recipes”, says Brown.

Crafting traditional Khmer recipes with a modern approach, Brown elevates local well-known dishes into tasty spectaculars. “Not fusion, but dishes that can be adapted to a Western palate,” Brown adds. First impression counts and Brown’s amuse-bouche is an open-faced spring roll presented in a playful approach with the sauce and peanuts hidden from sight. Totally unexpected and you get to see the crucial ingredients that make up the ubiquitous spring roll.

No Rafles is complete without a sling. And here, it’s aptly named Grand Hotel d’Angkor Sling, gin-based with a twist of galangal and ginger, which is ofered as an aperitif.

For reservations or enquiries about Rafles Grand Hotel d’Angkor, call +855 23 982 598 or email bookus.siemreap@rafles.com

MaHB

Travel

The power of Byron Bay Whether you’re on a quest for some chakra realignment or simply want to get away from it all, this beachside retreat may be the answer to your prayers.

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Travel

Words by Jane Rocca

Above: Elements of Byron. Facing page: the Bower barn.

As far as Australian beachside towns go, it doesn’t get more hyped than Byron Bay, the most easterly point in Australia located at the top end of NSW and under an hour’s drive south from the Gold Coast.

This is where hippy dropouts once lived in abundance in the ’60s and ’70s and where today’s world travellers and cashed-up celebrities have adopted as their destination of choice. It’s the mix of hippy shakedown and beachside luxury reimagined that’s given Byron Bay a new lease of life in the modern era of travel in a bid to lure stressed-out city folk to its calm state of mind and place.

Byron Bay is the place you go for a wellness getaway to realign your chakra, drink single origin cofee, swim all year round and where mindfulness has always been part of its DNA. This is where tea leaves are brewed for yin and yang’s sake and yoga on the beach is a real thing.

Hollywood actors like Chris Hemsworth and Matt Damon have purchased homes in the area— some reports are even calling it the Hemsworth efect with rumours that his brother Liam is also in the market to buy a home there.

Actresses Margot Robbie and Isabel Lucas, Aussie documentary filmmaker Damon Gameau and international supermodels Jordan Barrett and Gemma Ward all have ties to the popular holiday spot.

Byron is where you can watch whales at the right time of year—they

migrate south between May and November—and climb to the top of the famous lighthouse for the most easterly breathtaking coastline view.

Those who want to shop local can head to the organic markets as they weave from spots in Byron Bay to Bangalow, another gorgeous hideout tucked in the hills of the Northern Rivers.

It’s also the home of the annual Byron Bay Bluesfest, which is held every year over the Easter weekend. This year, Lenny Kravitz, the Dave Matthews Band and George Benson will headline the bill.

The festival, which has been running for more than 30 years, is renowned for its ability to score huge headline acts and has been compared to the likes of Glastonbury and Rock in Rio in Rio De Janiero, Brazil.

“Byron has perfect weather pretty much all year round,” says Australian promoter and entrepreneur Peter Noble, festival director of Bluesfest. “We have a 24 degrees average in autumn and our region is where the rainforest comes right down to the sea. Those who come here do so for the festival, but also for everything on ofer too. It’s the second most toured place in NSW and the blues festival is a destination event where people love to come and we give them an excuse to stay.”

New York’s godmother of punk Patti Smith returns for a second time and the Dave Matthews Band will clock their third time on the bill this year.

“We’re a festival bands love to play,”

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says Noble. “And we’re up there with Glastonbury, but we’re capped at 30,000 people and provide a premium event.

It’s great for families and I remember Earth Wind and Fire telling me after they played that they wanted to take the audience with them. They’re engaged and watching, they aren’t distracted entirely by their phones.”

The key to a great time is sorting your accommodation well in advance of the festival itself as hotels, resorts and Airbnb charge inflated prices in this popular period. The hottest tip is to share with friends to split your costs.

But it’s the rise of luxury and bespoke accommodation that’s truly a reflection that Byron Bay is realigning her chakra to fit with the demand for better quality places to stay and eat.

It’s become a foodie’s paradise with an abundance of local produce that shines in restaurants and cafes, where organic, biodynamic and sustainable are fused with a philosophy that’s akin to this seaside town.

The arrival of Elements of Byron three years ago is proof that travellers want luxury, convenience, a place to chill, a quality spot to dine and a topnotch spa to boot.

There are over 200 self-contained villas with an eco-friendly nod. There’s a large outdoor pool suitable for families yet private enough with cabanas, while a private adult area pool is the latest addition and where you’ll find a Mexican theme for all drinks and food supplies.

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Travel

Interior of the Bower barn.

While the destination is hugely popular among Australians, more international visitors are coming here too.

Families usually opt for a two-bedroom villa with two bathrooms and zero cabin fever attached. According to Elements of Byron’s Jeremy Holmes, nature plays a strong part in the resort’s message.

“You never really feel like there’s as many people here as the villas are all detached and ofer total privacy and seclusion,” says Holmes. “The resort is tucked into a gorgeous landscape of mature trees of diferent ecologies, fringed by endangered rainforests that we look after and by the Pacific Ocean and Belongil estuary on one side. The entire property is enveloped by nature and it is a key part of our story how we designed the resort.”

Those keen to make Byron Bay a permanent place to live is the reason why Habitat at Byron Bay is expanding on the fringe of this town.

This is where old-school hippy values merge with curated modernism. It’s where bars, cafes, a fitness centre and

shopping precinct live in harmony in the name of work-life balance.

Habitat’s Easy Street Living apartments enter the market this January. Think modern residential and architecturally designed homes that come with free e-bikes, on-site car shares, unlimited use of a solar train that takes you to the centre of town, surfboard lockers and a Subpod compost system in your private garden.

If this is the New Age then Habitat wants you to slow down and consider the planet before you move in.

Housed within the precinct is Habitat Collective, a local concept store with a purpose. All profits are donated to support the homeless in Byron Bay while also supporting local artisans who sell their wares.

While Byron Bay streets are still ruled by tie-dye wearing fire twirlers, you’ll find a new fashion brigade changing the street style, where linen resort looks have found their way on the Byron Bay Instagram hashtag which now has more than 2.5 million followers.

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At Bower at Byron Bay, a hotelmeets-motel accommodation comes with a 1960s kitsch layout complete with New York boutique hotel makeover.

The Bower ofers a range of rooms from a deluxe king with a bath, super queen with an extra single bed and the Bower barn and large House for extra bedding options. The circular pool is ideal for adult time, although also suitable for families, but you get the feeling this is the place for good-looking crew who want to fake it until they make it. The staf is super friendly, the rooms well-appointed.

They host plenty of events, such as Activated Probiotics launches for a wellness nod, while footballers and their partners book in for a pre-wedding feast up the road at Elements.

We can thank the surfers of the ’60s for rediscovering Byron Bay because it’s led the rest of the world to be captured by her charm. Whether you go there for an alternative lifestyle choice, a healthy one or a reason to unplug from the rat race, Byron won’t disappoint.

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Travel DINE

Left and above: dining at Barrio is like eating at home with your family and friends.

which has been around since 1947 and converted into a health-conscious destination for delicious brekkies to creative burgers and the peanut butter cacao bowl for some earthy goodness. www.byrongeneralstore.com Topshop Byron Bay A hilltop chilled-out place to eat, serving breakfast and single origin cofee with burgers on the side. It’s become a foodie institution where organic, paleo and gluten-free don’t get death stares. www.topshopbyronbay.com.au

Photographs by Jess Kearney

Bayleaf If you like your breakfast in a light and industrial setting, then Bayleaf is your ticket. This is where you go for creative meals like coconut quinoa bowls, breakfast greens and where you’ll find the delicious Mork chocolate for your next hot choc order. You get the idea that everywhere you go, there’s something wholesome on the menu. www.bayleafbyronbay.com

Barrio A modern bayside Spanish-inspired eatery located at Habitat and run by the team behind Harvest in Newrybar.

This is where Argentinian-style food is flame-grilled and locals love to dine.

The kitchen is run by Argentinian-born chef Francisco Smoje. A cocktail and a decent wine list too. barriobyronbay.com.au

families on a property that spans 80 acres, is also where you’ll find Three Blue Ducks. It’s a bustling place that’s always packed with diners keen to eat the local produce. It’s all about community here, farm to table is the food philosophy and ethical growers, interesting dishes and the goodness of local produce shines. www.threeblueducks.com thefarm.com.au

Three Blue Ducks Located at The Farm, where chooks, pigs and cows are a huge attraction for

The Byron Bay General Store The closest place to eat breakfast when you stay at Bower is the General Store,

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Rae’s An exclusive resort fit enough for the Rolling Stones when they visit, this is still a main attraction for those who want boutique luxury. The restaurant within ofers contemporary Australian cuisine with a Mediterranean influence, where head chef Jason Saxby serves local burrata with charred asparagus and macadamias and free pork cotoletta is delivered with salsa verde, rocket and horseradish. We also love the spa and luxe rooms. What’s more, you get the secluded Watego’s Beach to greet you in the morning. www.raes.com.au

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Grooming

How to tame your beard Get the soft, full, luxurious beard you’ve always wanted.

OIL IT UP Beard oils, creams and balms nourish your whiskers by feeding them with all sorts of vitamins and nutrients. The beard in turn is hydrated and has a healthy shine. While there’s nothing overly complicated about beard oils,

there are certain techniques to ensure optimum softness. Through trial and error, you would have discovered how much product works for you as this varies for each individual, but when and how often are you applying? If you’re not doing so daily and straight after your morning shower, start now. Post-shower your beard will be its cleanest and your pores will have opened up nicely, allowing the product to be applied evenly, plus moisturising your skin to prevent itchiness.

COMB, OFTEN Using a quality beard comb can mean the diference between a coarse beard and a soft, groomed one. It’s a must-have in order to efectively apply beard oil and to manage those wild stray hairs. Not only does a beard comb prevent ingrown hairs and make a beard look fuller, it can be used to train your beard to look exactly as you want it. With daily brushing, you can

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condition the hair to grow in a certain direction, achieving the beard style you desire. If that’s not motivation enough, think of how much easier it will be to get ready in the morning once your beard is growing in the right direction.

TRUST IN THE PROFESSIONALS Having your beard trimmed by professionals is the key to a fuller-looking beard. There’s a multitude of techniques that barbers use to give you the perfect look, from combing the beard upwards to find unruly hairs, to defining the neckline ensuring you don’t grow a neck beard.

After all, if you were to try it alone, your chances of making a mistake are fairly high if you’re inexperienced—and once a mistake has been made, it’s not as quick to rectify as it was to cause. With that said, our friends at Sultans of Shave recommend visiting your barber every two weeks while growing your beard.

Words by Chantelle David

Looking around at the Jake Gyllenhaals and the Jason Momoas of the world, you decided to grow a beard—and you thought it was going to be easy, didn’t you? You thought that giving the razor a break and the occasional trip to the barber would do the trick, right? Well the truth is, every bearded fellow meets certain challenges with an unruly beard.

Growing a beard comes with time, perseverance, dedication and care.

We’ve spoken to the experts at Sultans of Shave to share with you all their beard wisdom so you can own your beard and stop your beard from owning you.

MaHB

Music

Station 2020 We’re betting our fortunes on these artists to be the next big thing.

Words by Derrick Tan

Sure, these names may seem familiar and some of them made their debut years ago. But all they need is genuine interest and keen ears to propel their careers forward.

Listen: Strange Celeste The 25-year old Britishbased Jamaican songstress is already on the radar of many prominent UK music purveyors and has won the coveted Brits Rising Star Award. Neo soul oozes efortlessly from Celeste’s honeyed choral, resulting in selling out all of her 2019 London shows. Apparently, Elton John added Strange to his playlist too.

Listen: Early Joy Crookes She might be only 21 but her husky yet delicate voice is cultivated beyond her years.

The Bangladeshi-Irish South Londoner is a soulful storyteller for millennials. Sophisticated jazz isn’t complicated at all and Crookes makes it relatable thanks to empathetic songwriting that appeals. The outcome? She was invited to performed at Glastonbury Festival 2019 and sold out her headlining Europe tour too.

Listen: Hypersonic Missiles Sam Fender Fender is grittier and a pragmatist compared to his peers. Rather than charming and impressing his listeners, the North Shields singer-songwriter touches on weighty topics such as toxic masculinity and suicide with ‘Dead Boys’. Kudos to that.

Also, his brave anthemic Brit rock tunes reminds us of Tom Petty and Bruce Springsteen.

Better watch your back, Harry Styles.

Listen: Jules Julien Chang Baltimore native Chang has music in his blood. His maternal grandparents attended the prestigious Peabody music school, where Chang learned piano at the age of six. That helped the Baltimore School for the Arts music alum to execute every instrument on Jules. The album transcends genres and isn’t contrived despite its experimentation. Polished yet not amateurish, the psychedelic lead single ‘Of The Past’ serves as an ideal introduction of what Chang is capable of.

Listen: Blood Harmony Finneas Billie Eilish emerged in 2019 with ‘Bad Guy’. Now, it’s time for her elder brother to follow suit.

Finneas O’Connell writes and produces entirely for Eilish, which led to her nominations in various Grammy 2020 categories. That’s an afirmation, of course. Stylistically, Finneas favoured the earnest and cinematic singer-songwriter route instead of spotlighting hypermodern beats. Fret not, there are still dark undertones in certain parts of Blood Harmony.

Listen: Bank On The Funeral Matt Maeson As a Neon Gold Records artist, the Virginia native doesn’t beat around the bush.

Namely, he presents his truest emotions and feelings in all his compositions. Three years in the making, Maeson’s debut album ploughs through his experience, moulding him into a formidable singer-songwriter who constructs powerful and memorable melodies. The selfempowering ‘Tread On Me’ and ‘Go Easy’ are highlights.

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Technology

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Technology

Free solo

Words by Wayne Cheong

Welcome to the best noise-cancelling wireless headphones from Beats by Dre.

Beats by Dre has released Solo Pro, its first on-ear noise cancelling headphones.

President of Beats by Dre, Luke Wood, says that since being absorbed into Apple, the audio brand is able to tap into Apple’s proprietary inventions like the H1 chip. The H1 chipset allows users to utilise the Hey Siri commands and share audio with others using the Audio Sharing feature.

And for those times when the world gets too loud, the active noise-cancelling (ANC) feature on the Solo Pro headphone generates a sound that cancels out any lowfrequency noise before it reaches the ear.

While ambient noises are blocked out, the device further adjusts for leakage caused by hair, earrings, diferent ear shapes and movement of your head as you go about your day.

Additionally, it simultaneously checks what you’re hearing while noise cancelling is applied against the original music content to clear out unwanted discrepancies to ensure impressive audio fidelity.

Turn on the Transparency mode and Solo Pro turns of its external microphones for a natural filter of environmental noise.

You can hear what’s important like announcements or the honk of a car. Y’know, important stuf that won’t disrupt your listening pleasure.

The device is fitted for long-wear comfort with metal sliders that adjust for a more durable and personalised fit. It looks like a singular structure without any visible separation at the hinges and when you fold it, it immediately switches of; unfold it and it powers on. Users can operate the controls (volume, song skips, etc) on the right ear cup and switching between ANC and Transparency. And if you’re worried about battery life, it can run for 22 hours with ANC and Transparency turned on and for 40 hours with those features turned of. With the included Lightning cable, you can get up to three hours of playback with a 10-minute charge.

Beats Solo Pro retails for SGD429 and comes in black, ivory and grey. Along with the core colours are Pharrell Williams’ More Matte collection consisting of dark blue, light blue and red. The Beats Solo Pro is available at Apple and electronic stores, as well as online at apple.com/sg

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Art

Every step counts

Image courtesy of the artist

Delve into the minds of Singapore Biennale 2019’s curatorial team.

Hera Büyüktaşçıyan, ‘A Study on Endless Archipelagos’ (detail).

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Art

Showcasing 77 artists and collectives with their respective work is no easy task. Nevertheless, the sixth edition of Singapore Biennale is able to suitably exhibit over 150 works across a breadth of diverse mediums including film, installation, sound art and performance in their desired forms. Among them are many firsts and new commissions that have never been presented in contemporary art biennales and exhibitions internationally.

Singapore Biennale has always been firm with regional history and bonds. So the six-man curatorial team, led by artistic director Patrick Flores, who is a professor at the Department of Art Studies at the University of the Philippines and curator of the Vargas Museum in Manila, handpicked pieces that “exemplifies the transformative potential of art while reflecting on our contemporary condition and take steps towards thoughtful change”.

To know more about Singapore Biennale’s art selection process and anchor theme, we approached two curators from the SB2019 team, Andrea Fam (assistant curator at the Singapore Art Museum) and Goh Sze Ying (curator at National Gallery Singapore), to explain their creative disposition.

Words by Derrick Tan. Image courtesy of Singapore Art Museum

E S Q : What made the curatorial team decide on the theme of ‘Every Step in the Right Direction’, a work by Amanda Heng?

A N D R E A FA M : The Biennale title is inspired by Amanda Heng’s work ‘Let’s Walk’. The focus on her piece was to draw attention to what may be overlooked, in the case of the step and the act of walking, a simple and ordinary movement. In Amanda’s work, walking also takes on added value in promoting deliberation and sharing, connecting with pasts and each other, which the Biennale’s proposition encapsulates.

E S Q : Are most of the works site-specific?

A N D R E A FA M : A number of works, such as Boedi Widjaja’s ‘Black—Hut, Black—Hut’ are site-specific [meaning they are not swappable], but the majority of them are not. We have tried where possible to present works in ways that resonate with their environments, such as the groupings of works found at Gillman Barracks where several narratives directly correspond to the history of the site. The beauty of the way several of the works have unfolded is that they would have been able to converse with a variety of other sites too.

E S Q : Why the idea to not show all the works in a particular location for convenience?

G O H S Z E Y I N G : The Singapore Biennale has always been presented across a number of venues, and this very question of space has been an interesting challenge as we consider how to combine the breadth of venues and sites involved with the

to continue with the discussion started with the two previous editions to ofer artistic perspectives which trace our common histories and cultures.

G O H S Z E Y I N G : Even today, the conversations and relationships among the countries in the region are constantly shifting, making it important to continue to deepen and strengthen our understanding of these dynamics.

E S Q : What are some of the pieces in SB2019 that are a must-see for visitors and why?

A N D R E A FA M : Some must-sees are works by Hera Büyüktaşçıyan, Robert Zhao, Ruangsak Anuwatwimon, Lê Quang Hà, The Mamitua Saber Project (that includes the Bakudapan Food Study Group, Propaganda Department and Mark Sanchez), Larry Achiampong and Wu Tsang. Whilst the Biennale holds many gems, the above listed is an efective entry into considering the biennale’s diferent curatorial approaches by the six biennale curators.

We have each located diferent research trajectories and the above is a sampling of such.

G O H S Z E Y I N G : Works by Laurie Anderson and Hsin-Chien Huang, Lani Maestro, Amanda Heng, Pooja Nansi and Jason Wee. These artworks encourage and invite visitors to ‘move around the city, sensing it with more alertness to details or just getting acquainted with it for the first time with generous excitement’ [from head curator Patrick Flores’ foreword in the Short Guide]. In this sense, the Biennale resists becoming an exhibition of serial objects, exhausted with oneof visits to the key venues. Instead, this dispersal ofers visitors a somatic experience, allowing, in [Flores’] words, a way for the body to thus move with the Biennale.

Boedi Widjaja, ‘Black—Hut, Black—Hut’, 2019 (detail).

conceptual impulse.

Though the Singapore Art Museum’s buildings are closed for redevelopment, the Biennale has also occasioned the opportunity to engage with the city as a whole and involve not only its traditional art and cultural institutions but to also stage work in the public and unexpected sites such as Far East Plaza.

E S Q : Tell us more on the purpose of Singapore Biennale and its focus on regional contemporary art from Southeast Asia and even greater Asia.

A N D R E A FA M : Historically, the countries of Southeast Asia, East and South Asia have intertwining and shared histories. With Southeast Asia as a vantage point, the Biennale aims

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E S Q : Lastly, what should art practitioners and the audience do to achieve ‘Every Step In The Right Direction’?

G O H S Z E Y I N G : SB2019 invites us to consider our relationship with our current condition and think about the decision-making process that is critical and relevant to all of us.

Through the gathering of people, the public can decide on what could be the right direction with others in an atmosphere of warm encounters and possible solidarities. The Biennale works invite the audience—whether onlookers or participants—to afirm common aspirations as well as discuss diferences.

Singapore Biennale 2019: Every Step In The Right Direction runs from now to 22 March across 11 venues in the city. Visit singaporebiennale.org for more information.

ESQ&A: Daniel Arsham Luxury watch retailer, The Hour Glass, turned 40 recently. To celebrate, it invited contemporary artists to create objets d’art. We interviewed one of these artists.

Egyptian water clocks but metallic nanoballs take the place of water. The pieces are shown at the Malmaison boutique in Knightsbridge and are available for sale.

We talked to Arsham about his bronze hourglasses. Arsham is a multidisciplinary artist of renown, who cut his teeth on stage design for modern dance choreographer Merce Cunningham and founded Snarkitecture, a design studio, with Alex Mustonen.

While Arsham has amassed an

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impressive body of work, he’s probably better known for his examination of recognisable objects that have been weathered by time.

E S Q : Tell us about your work at The Hour Glass.

D A N I E L A S H R A M : I’ve worked in bronze before and I’ve made hourglasses as well. The idea of the hourglass documents the passing of time and previous hourglass pieces that I’ve made have objects in either bulb.

Interview by Wayne Cheong

To celebrate its 40th year in the luxury business, The Hour Glass asked contemporary artists—Marc Newson, nendo, Studio Wieki Somers and Daniel Arsham—to create works around the theme of time. Called Then Now Beyond, the exhibition boasts pieces like nendo’s cuboid-shaped clock sculpted from a singular form with two hands sliced from the structure. When the hands reach 12, for a second or two, the clock looks like a perfect cube. There’s Newson’s timepiece that is inspired by the ancient

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Art

If you turn it, the sand uncovers one object and covers another and when you flip it, it continues the cycle. Cyclical archaeology. It’s buried and uncovered and so on.

For the pieces at The Hour Glass, each hourglass has a clock and a camera; the clock is a recorder of time and the other freezes time. The polish on the exterior came about by accident.

I’ve never used polished bronze in that way but something about how it bends light and the space around it felt fitting.

The breaks that reveal the objects within are done by hand. If you notice, each is diferent.

E S Q : How long was the process?

D A N I E L A S H R A M : We started a year ago when I talked to Talenia (Phua Gajardo; founder of The Artling and curator of Then Now Beyond) for the project. I’ve worked with hourglasses before and this is for The Hour Glass, so it made sense to do something around that. There are often things that I’ve sketched in my notebooks that I’ve never realised. One of the first versions of the hourglass that I wanted to produce was [supposed to be] cast aluminium.

The foundry that I worked with made huge communist statues of Mao; their skill level is incredible. They are able to do things that some of the other foundries could probably do but they will have to think about it. These guys were very willing: anything that I ask them to do, they will be like, ‘no problem, we’ll figure it out later’. It’s a very Chinese way of doing something.

E S Q : How is this collaboration with The Hour Glass diferent from the others you’ve done?

D A N I E L A S H R A M : Watchmaking is kind of an art unto itself. It involves precision and craft. And the other thing that I’m super happy about is that I’m a huge fan of nendo and Marc Newson; to allow my work to be in that context was thrilling as well.

E S Q : Have you met them yet?

D A N I E L A S H R A M : Not Marc, no.

But I’ve met Oki Sato from nendo.

E S Q : You’ve professed an interest in sci-fi. Is there anything from the field that can help us understand your work better?

D A N I E L A S H R A M : Movies like the Blade Runner and Back to the Future series, which are more pop culture.

On certain occasions, I’ve integrated some of those elements in some of my work. Two years ago, I did a full-scale cast of the DeLorean. When that car first came out, it was supposed to be the projection of the future but it failed.

Nothing worked on it. The company went bankrupt, the guy went to prison...

All of these crazy things happened. The DeLorean, of course, became an icon in the film. There is something about looking through the lens of the past at these visions of the future. When you look at things like Fritz Lang’s Metropolis, it’s often their version of the future, a kinda utopic version. My vision isn’t dystopic but maybe more in the middle.

E S Q : Are you optimistic about the future?

D A N I E L A S H R A M : I think I have a lot of belief in human ingenuity and oftentimes, these sorts of global-scale problems are only possible to solve once enough public consensus is galvanised around said issues. Maybe that’s starting to happen with regard to the environment. It’s not something that I directly relate towards my work per se but I’m optimistic.

E S Q : What do you want people to understand about your work?

D A N I E L A S H R A M : So much of my work is a reinterpretation of the every day. It might sound kind of obvious but most artists are working with an assumption that a lot of people know certain things that are kinda universal.

So, when I make a work that involves something from contemporary culture that reference point can work here in Singapore or in New York or in Tokyo; it’s universal. That’s the accepted reality.

My work is often a subtle shift from that. I’m taking an object and oftentimes, pushing it outside of this moment in time: into the future or into the past. It’s a play on reality.

E S Q : But you don’t like to give overt meanings to the things you do.

D A N I E L A S H R A M : My work has always spoken a lot but I have not spoken a lot on what it meant. I’ve often felt that if I were to say the direct meaning of what the work was, it would close down all other potential interpretations and meanings of it.

E S Q : What did you learn from working with Merce Cunningham?

D A N I E L A S H R A M : Early in my career, I worked as a stage designer for Merce Cunningham, who was a choreographer. One of the most amazing things about experiencing his work was—you’re sitting in the audience and the works are generally an hour and 20 minutes, sometimes that hour and 20 minutes felt like forever and sometimes, it felt like 10 minutes just zoomed by.

This ability to compress and stretch experiences of time was important to what I did and still important to what I practise today in my work.

He started in the 1950s. He was a dancer in Martha Graham’s dance

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company and Martha’s very traditional.

I mean, her work was a reaction to 19th-century ballet rules and all that, so her work was a step from that but still narrative. Merce took the idea of dance—completely abstractly, no narrative, no structure to speak of—and he separates the music, his work and the stage design and each group have to work separately. They didn’t know what the others were doing. That idea of bringing in other disciplines into his own practice, subconsciously I took a lot from that and I’m not afraid of working on diferent kinds of medium.

E S Q : Do you think art belongs solely to the galleries?

D A N I E L A S H R A M : Art can be elitist.

It’s often not found in everyday life. Art is supposed to be an interpretation, it’s supposed to exist in everyday life.

Very early in my work, I started to allow the works to exist in places that you wouldn’t expect and in certain cases, collaborate with other entities that allow me to bring the work to people who won’t normally have the chance to visit a gallery or museum.

E S Q : Assume that in the far future, when archaeologists were to discover your house, what is one object they should find?

D A N I E L A S H R A M : Just one object?

E S Q : Well, top five. Up to you.

D A N I E L A S H R A M : I dunno, it’s a lot.

One of the things that I collect are smallscale figures through art history dating back to the second century BC. These are terracotta figures and I think that all of these objects are the same scale.

They are from diferent eras. For me, it’s a way for humanity throughout history trying to interpret themselves through these scaled-down figures. I’ve a 19thcentury [Honoré] Daumier, a caricature artist. There’s a sculpture from the Meiji era of Daruma, the Japanese monk.

I’m interested in how diferent cultures see themselves. I also collect sneakers, books and artworks.

E S Q : Are you precious about your collection?

D A N I E L A S H R A M : I mean, I care for them but in my house, I’ve two young boys and they mostly understand not to touch. But I believe that they should be lived with. I also collect furniture, some historical, some new designers, and I don’t stop my children from being around them.

Then Now Beyond exhibition is showing at Malmaison by The Hour Glass and will run until 31 January. The interview has been edited for clarity. For the full interview, visit esquiresg.com

MaHB

Design

In a world first, Keith Haring | Jean-Michel Basquiat: Crossing Lines brings more than 200 artworks by two iconic 20th-century American artists to the National Gallery of Victoria.

It’s the first time both artists’ works sit side by side in a major retrospective, where careers are mapped, a friendship line is traced and their profound political expression through art is paralleled.

Theirs was an art world of collaboration, the pair coming together on several occasions—taking to public spaces and galleries, reminding us why New York was synonymous with groundbreaking art in the ’80s—in a scene that also starred William S Burroughs, Andy Warhol (who was also their close friend and mentor) and a pre-pop star Madonna.

Haring and Basquiat’s prolific yet short-lived careers saw them create an abundance of work from painting to sculpture, found object to journal entries. They commented on police

Short-lived, yet prolific They both died before the age of 35, yet the impact Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat made on the art world lives on to this day.

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Words by Jane Rocca. Photographs by William Coupon

Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat at the opening reception for Julian Schnabel at the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, 1987.

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Design

Jean-Michel Basquiat ‘Untitled’ 1982 acrylic and oilstick on wood panel 183 x 122.5CM.

Jean-Michel Basquiat ‘Because it hurts the lungs’ 1986 acrylic, collage on wood 183 x 107 x 21CM.

brutality and racism and questioned the commercialisation of the art world long before their works became the most soughtafter at art auctions.

Sadly they both died young: Haring at the age of 31 in 1990 from AIDS and Basquiat aged 27 in 1988 from a heroin overdose.

They inspired popular culture and created a visual language through the use of signs, symbols and words to convey their deepest thoughts. There were moments of political rage as they sought to provoke social change through their art and used their voices to express concern when America was ruled by President Ronald Reagan and NYC declared bankrupt and unsafe.

According to art historian and guest curator Dr Dieter Buchhart, who spent many months in Melbourne working on bringing this mammoth show together with the help of international collectors and the artists’ respective foundations, Haring and Basquiat met in New York in the ’70s and had a huge respect for one another.

“They weren’t rivals, but the rivalry between them inspired them to get better at their art,” says Buchhart.

The exhibition plots each artist’s journey from when they didn’t know each other to when they were collaborating and sharing gallery spaces. Theirs was a world of grafiti, poetry and a cut-up style of sign and symbol use to create a dialogue that would define an era.

Basquiat was the first African American artist to receive attention worldwide. While he was alive, works sold easily for USD50,000 a pop, but it wasn’t until a Sotheby’s auction in New York in 2017 that an ‘Untitled’ painting of a skull sold for USD110.5 million to Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa.

“Basquiat didn’t politicise through the microphone but he was highly political in questioning identity, questioning every day racism and other major challenges of society,” says Buchhart. “On the other hand, Haring was supporting rallies against apartheid, addressed nuclear threat and wanted protection against AIDS.” But it’s the insight into journals and notebooks that really dig deep into the psyche of both visionaries. They hung out in New York’s art community, a place where musicians, performance artists and writers leaned on each other for creative inspiration. They lived parallel lives, often moving in the same circles and crossing paths along the way. This show maps those intersections and revels in all they created at the time.

“In the exhibition you have beautiful pages of Haring’s text in contrast to Basquiat’s. There’s an obituary that Haring wrote for Basquiat after his death on 12 August 1988 for Vogue and you see he rewrote it a few times,” Bucchart says.

Haring sketched the following tribute to Basquiat: “The intensity and directness of his vision was intimidating. He

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was uncompromising, disobedient... He revealed things.

He removed the emperor’s clothes... His expertise at the assembling and disassembling of language has revealed new meanings to old words. He used words like paint. He cut them, combined them, erased them and rebuilt them. Every invention a new revelation.”

Haring’s best works are on show including the ‘Untitled’ 1983 piece featuring a computer on top of a caterpillar’s body crushing an army of people beneath it. The symbolism of technological advancement over humanity raised all sorts of paranoia about the time, with Haring at odds with the rise of personal computers and video games and their impact on human life. He was ahead of the times in predicting the rise of technology in the modern world.

Haring also brought attention to politics, from the epidemic of AIDS to South Africa’s apartheid as seen in works like ‘Prophets of Rage’ in 1988, but it’s the deeply moving tribute to his friend Basquiat in ‘A Pile of Crowns’ (1988), which you’ll find toward the end of the exhibition, that reminds viewers of the deep loss he felt after his friend’s departure.

According to Buchhart, Haring was the forerunner of emoji culture today and in his time managed close to 10,000 subway drawings. He produced hundreds of drawings through New York’s subway system, creating up to 40 on a single day. He was inspired by pop art, which fuelled his desire through grafiti and gave New York its vibrant underground streetstyle.

“Haring was inspired by Egyptian art and was one of the first to use symbols as language,” says Buchhart. “Meanwhile,

Basquiat was building these knowledge rooms with his work when he was alive too. He was a visionary and would paste diferent kinds of information and create out of it a new room of thinking.”

New York in the 1980s was described as dirty and dangerous. The city was broke and the Lower East Side was a place for crime, drugs and murder. Basquiat was seen hanging with his girlfriend Madonna before she became a pop star, Grace Jones and Jerry Hall were hanging at Club 57, and stylist and Polaroid 1980s queen photographer Maripol captured much of this burgeoning nightlife and art scene on camera. Some of these Polaroids appear on the walls inside the exhibition, with portraits of Haring, Basquiat, Madonna, Jones and Exene Cervenka from LA punks X. “New York in the ’70s and ’80s was a time for freedom. That has gone from New York now,” says Maripol, who met Basquiat in 1979. “Not having the pressure of a high-paid job to pay high rent certainly created a spirit then that isn’t the same now in New York. The ’80s was an era of free thought and exchange.

We’d go clubbing, lived without air-conditioning in the most oppressive summer. There was a lot of camaraderie and free sex and free love. But let’s not forget, we were the children of the ’60s and those who came before us paved the way for us to take it some place else.”

She is also known for the production and art direction of the 1980 film Downtown 81, assisting filmmaker Edo Bertoglio. It starred Basquiat and has been described as an ‘urban fairy-tale for its unique documentation of New York City’s pioneering

Keith Haring ‘Untitled’ 1982 acrylic on vinyl tarpaulin with metal grommets 308.6 x 301.6CM.

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Keith Haring ‘Prophets of rage’ 1988 acrylic on canvas 304.8 x 457.2CM.

was an implied generosity and a strong sense of continuous interchange and interconnectedness between artists back then, and a feeling of support and care… Many of the Haring and Basquiat works that I was fortunate to collect are a result of the artists’ generosity towards a close circle of friends.

Keith, in particular, was always giving artworks to his dearest companions. I think he understood how important it would be for his friends and he even thought about their families and children, too.”

“Downtown was cheap to rent, easy to squat and it gave room for artists at the time so they could be part of the scene,” says Buchhart. “It was dangerous and looked like a war zone and it was declared bankrupt. It was the moment these two geniuses emerged and gave us an art scene we are still talking about.”

Both artists were inspired to work across various artistic media—an important role model was Warhol who had been doing it since the 1960s.

“I go on instinct and intuition,” adds Warsh of his collector style. “I was manic about these artists at the time and I started collecting early on because I felt it was from an honest place.

There was a liveliness and energy about downtown and around Astor Place that really fed the works by Haring and Basquiat.

I feel privileged I was there and I have now become a huge collector of Kaws’ [Brian Donnelly] work now. I feel Kaws is the next generation of what Haring and Basquiat did. In fact he was inspired to do pop-ups and bring art to the people just like Haring did in the mid-’80s. It’s a very exciting time.”

artistic and musical culture at the end of disco and the beginning of hip-hop and new wave’.

Larry Warsh, a New York publisher and art collector, was in Melbourne for the worldwide premiere. He hung out in the New York’s ’80s art scene and became friends with Haring and Basquiat. He collects their works and initially paid as little as USD1,000 to USD10,000 for some pieces.

“I have a deep-rooted history with the time and with the artists and their work,” says Warsh, who published Basquiatisms and is working on a Haring version for release in 2020.

“What gravitated me to champion these artists and collect their work was their monumental energy and with this exhibition it has been recreated to remind us of the impact of the 1980s and that era.”

Some of Warsh’s works are on loan; the keen art collector says you don’t need to have lived in NYC in the ’80s to understand the gravitas of these iconic artists.

“Anybody can learn about Haring and Basquiat’s creativity and who they were by seeing this show,” Warsh says. “We really see how these guys created a language from the streets that is forever a permanent visual dialogue we can turn to.

These two artists charted new territories and became a global phenomenon. For me it’s so interesting to see how they created a language through words and how these words were placed and interpretations made and how they morphed into paintings with collages over the years.”

Warsh describes those New York moments in an essay he wrote for the Crossing Lines exhibition catalogue: “There were always parties, exhibitions and special events and the city was bursting with raw spirit. It was obvious to me that something groundbreaking was taking place, something akin to what we see today in terms of the expansion of popular culture. There

Keith Haring | Jean-Michel Basquiat: Crossing Lines is on show at National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne until 13 April 2020.

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Cars

Mercedes-Benz G500 4x4 Squared.

Forget your average road-going modern SUV, these wild children will slake your thirst for the great outdoors and then some.

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Words by Daryl Lee

Wild ones

MaHB

Cars

ARIEL NOMAD Ariel is well-known for building stripped-down, no-nonsense purist machines like the Atom. So no surprises, then, when it decided to built an Atom for the of-roading set. The result is the Nomad, and to look at, it resembles an Atom seen through the lens of the Mars Rover.

The same principles used on the Atom also apply to the Nomad. Extreme lightness thanks to its tubular steel chassis and quite possibly the most intimate driving experience one could hope for outside of a single-seater Formula One car. That, or sticking your feet through the floor and running along, Fred Flintstone-style.

Which is something you could conceivably do since the Nomad comes with nil creature comforts. Things like protection from the elements, a windscreen and even panels to prevent mud from splashing up onto your feet are optional extras.

BOWLER BULLDOG The sixth vehicle to bear the Bowler name looks like a Land Rover Defender on the outside, but underneath its skin, it’s something completely diferent. Underneath its blocky body panels lies a full aluminium spaceframe with an FIA-approved integral roll cage that’s also a stressed member of the chassis.

If that sounds like race car gobbledygook, it is, because Bowler has been building and preparing of-road racing machines for over 30 years now. The Bulldog can be taken for multi-day rally raid races and when you’re done bashing dunes, you can bring it down to the shops to pick up some groceries.

Of course, you’ll have to live with the spartan interior, fixedback bucket seats, six-point racing harness, dearth of cabin storage and the near-total lack of refinement. But hey, nobody said living with a race car was easy…

HENNESSEY VELOCIRAPTOR 6X6 There are a lot of cars you can buy for USD349,000. For not much more money, you could buy yourself a new Lamborghini Aventador, but good and special though the Lambo may be, the Hennessey Velociraptor 6x6 is arguably special-er and good-er.

And the Velociraptor 6x6 will probably come in more handy during a zombie apocalypse.

Anyway, the Velociraptor 6x6 sounds like astounding value if you think about it. For that money, you get the base Ford F-150 Raptor twin-cab truck, a bespoke powertrain featuring a 600HP twin-turbo motor, an uprated stainless steel exhaust system and a tougher suspension system from Fox. Plus, Hennessey will thrown in an extra rear axle, too.

Sufice it to say, the Velociraptor 6x6 is capable of going of-road and thanks to its dual-cab nature, you won’t be short of space for your zombie-slaying crew… which kind of puts a completely new spin on the term ‘calling shotgun’.

M E RC E D E S - B E N Z G 5 0 0 4 X 4 S Q UA R E D All Mercedes-Benz G-Class models—afectionately known as the G-Wagen—can go of-road and the clue is in its name of Geländewagen, which roughly translates from German as ‘of-road vehicle’. However, some G-Wagens are more G than others, or according to Mercedes-Benz, “only a G-Class can be better than a G-Class”.

The most obvious example of that is the G63 6x6, which like the Hennessey, has a total of three axles and six wheels. There’s even a Mercedes-Maybach version with a folding soft-top, because why not. Everyone needs a super-luxury, six-wheeled truck in their lives and anyone who says diferent is lying.

Anyway, the G500 4x4 Squared takes the extreme ground clearance and all-terrain ruggedness of its six-wheeled cousin and subtracts an axle, which is quite handy considering most places aren’t exactly built with triple-axle monster trucks in mind.

From top: Ariel Nomad; Bowler Bulldog; Hennessey Velociraptor 6x6.

Once upon a time, the notion of an SUV that couldn’t handle the path less travelled would be a laughable one. These days, that’s been turned on its head because an SUV meant primarily for sojourns of the beaten track is an almost alien concept.

Not with these four cars, however. While they are legal to use on the tarmac, that’s not where they shine. These cars look like they’re built tough, and they are. Tough enough that you won’t have to worry about going around obstacles, you could simply go through them.

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Jaguar Vision Gran Turismo Coupé.

Great leap forward Just like its iconic bonnet ornament, Leaper, the British carmaker is jumping headlong

If there was an industry we could choose not to be in at the moment, it would be automotive design. To say the industry is facing seismic changes would be understating things somewhat.

Electric cars will be all the rage in the next few years, with most carmakers promising a full sub-range of electric vehicles, or electrified versions of their current line-up, by 2025. Then you have the small matter of autonomy and the prospect of the fully driverless car.

These changes will have huge implications on the way we interact with vehicles, and naturally, the way they’re designed.

The compact nature of electric drivetrains and the negation of the steering wheel means traditional vehicle silhouettes and interior layouts could go out the window.

A vehicle’s interior could fully be dedicated to cabin space, which means a sort of lounge on the inside and a sort of eggshaped blob on the outside, which is probably the least exciting thing we could think of designing.

However, at least one car designer isn’t too worried about the future. That car designer is Julian Thomson, the newly minted head of Jaguar’s design team. A man who’s taking over the reins from the industry legend that is Ian Callum and becoming only the third Jaguar design director in the carmaker’s history.

No pressure, right? And we haven’t even got to the bit about increasingly stringent crash safety and emissions legislations, which will also have an impact on how cars will look in the future. But this is a job Thomson is relishing. “The world is changing so quickly. It’s very exciting being in charge of such a brand. As a car designer, there are certain brands that you really want to define and Jaguar certainly is one of those.”

While there’s still a huge question mark over the sort of cars we’ll be driving (or not) in the future, it’s pretty clear the people of tomorrow will not want to be driving the cars of yesterday. That is to say, the cars their parents drove, instead

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Words by Daryl Lee

into the future with new design boss Julian Thomson and its first digital concept car.

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Cars

The interior of the Jaguar Vision GT Coupé has been designed to fuse Jaguar’s heritage with its contemporary interior philosophy of progressive luxury, purity, driver focus and stunningly intricate details.

wanting something more innovative and modern, according to Thomson.

A delicious bit of irony, then, since not too long ago, Jaguar was famous for having one foot in the past, peddling retroinspired cars in the 1980s and 1990s.

But what if, I put it to Thomson, those younger folks might want an aforementioned egg. After all, you hear so much about the modern urbanite not wanting to own a car and instead electing to use ride-hailing services that will one day no doubt be ruled by driverless vehicles.

To which he responds: “I think a lot of people will arrive at very realistic transport options, whether it’s eggs, ride-hailing or car-sharing, it makes a lot of sense. But equally, I think there will also be a lot of people who really enjoy the interaction with a product like a car. The car still represents a dream of mobility, so I think the future for luxury carmakers like Jaguar, the future is still very good.”

He also mooted the idea of how younger city-dwellers wanted cars more suited to urban environs and “diferent bodystyles”. Sufice it to say, Thomson would not be drawn into a discussion on what the next Jaguar could be, but I’ll just say there’s a gaping hole in the line-up for a compact hatchback, a shooting brake and, dare I even dream it, a revival of the XK grand tourer that ended its production run in 2014 without a replacement.

As for what future Jaguars could look like, Thomson wouldn’t be drawn into specifics, though he did mention they would not have the sort of ‘same sausage, three lengths’ styling language that so dominates the car industry these days. A deliberate move, Thomson opined, to break into the Chinese market where brand consistency and therefore, recognisability, is paramount.

“I don’t just want to do diferent sizes at Jaguar, but they also ought to have a design language that’s instantly recognisable. Straightaway, you know it’s a Jaguar. It’s not a particular grille or headlight design. We’ll have a ‘face’, but our cars will have a distinct sculptural form,” he says.

“We’ll always have the best-proportioned cars and that proportion is important to us. We are a human brand and we want to show the brand is created with love and emotion, like a piece of art. Jaguars need to make a connection with your heart and that’s why we’re diferent. We don’t just want to be brash,” he continues.

And that vision (excuse the pun) might be best embodied in the Jaguar Vision Gran Turismo Coupé, unveiled on the sidelines of last November’s Tokyo Motor Show. It’s a fully electric hypercar, so theoretically, Thomson and his team could give it any form, but elected to give it a profile that resembled the carmaker’s most storied cab-rearward, front-engined cars, something he described as “more Jaguar, more British”.

Interestingly enough, he says that video games are where “pure concepts have gone to live now, where they can be really elaborate and so far-reaching”.

“In terms of that Jaguar concept, it’s the ultimate realisation of the brand. We can push even harder, go even crazier.”

Thomson is referring, of course, to how concept cars these days have to have some kind of grounding in a production reality.

This is something I lamented, though Thomson set me straight. “The gap between exciting production cars and concepts are really small. It’s not that production cars have gotten boring, it’s because they’ve gotten more exciting.

“If you do a good concept car and can’t deliver on that in your production cars, you’re going to disappoint your customers. People see a concept car and they also see the promise of a production car. They’ll go, ‘I want that, I want to buy that’.”

Now, you’ll excuse me if I say that sounds downright terrifying, but it’s perhaps I’m just not the glass half-full sort.

Either that or I’m not the new head of design for Jaguar cars.

Where I see terror, Thomson sees opportunity.

“The market is such that people now expect very creative solutions, so it’s a great time to be a designer. Almost anything goes,” he says.

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Cents and sensitivity The Kia Niro EV is a car I desperately want to love. After all, it seems to be trying so very hard to impress. You could say that about every one of the Korean carmaker’s products, but doubly so for the first electric car Kia is selling in Singapore: the Niro EV. It’s dificult to tell the diferences

between the electrically powered Niro from its dinosaur-burning counterparts, though there are a few telltale signs from the outside, subtle though they may be.

There’s the blanked-out grille with a flap for the charging port, metallic blue accents on its front/rear bumpers and the absence of a tailpipe. Oh, and a little

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‘eco electric’ badge on its tailgate. How you’ll definitely be able to tell the Niro EV apart from its combustion-engined brethren is in its price tag. It costs— are you sitting down?—SGD195,999 excluding dealer rebates/discounts. And it could cost even more than that were it not for its A1 VES band, which attracts a

Words by Daryl Lee

Kia’s first electric car here is fantastic in all aspects, but for its price.

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SGD20,000 rebate from the authorities.

So, what other cars could you get for 200 big ones? How about the 2.1 Kia Ceratos, 1.6 Niro Hybrids, or... I don’t know... a BMW 320i or a Mercedes-Benz C180? And let’s not forget about the annual road tax bill the Niro EV attracts.

As you know, road tax for electric cars is calculated based on its KW output, and in the Niro EV’s case, that’s 150KW (204HP), which translates to SGD2,246.

It’s another scandalously high number, roughly equivalent to what the owner of a three-litre petrol car would have to pay.

But put those scary numbers away for a moment and consider the Niro EV on its own merits, and trust me when I say there are a good number of them.

To start with, its (claimed) 455KM range, which is roughly equivalent to what you’d get out of a full tank in a similarly sized conventional car and, most importantly, is thoroughly believable.

The amount remaining in its ‘tank’ is on prominent display on the left of the digital instrument cluster, and it’s mildly entertaining how fiddling with the temperature will give you a few kilometres more/less range. It’s all displayed in real time and you can see the numbers jumping about.

On that note, hitting a button on the HVAC controls allows you to disable the passenger-side ventilation, so if it’s just you in the car, you can get a little more range out of the Niro EV’s batteries.

S P E C I F I C AT I O N S ENGINE Asynchronous electric motor B AT T E R Y R AT I N G 64KWH POWER 204HP TORQUE 395NM 0-100KM/H 7.8 seconds TOP SPEED 167KM/H TRANSMISSION Single-speed E N E R GY C O N S U M P T I O N 147WH/KM RANGE (CLAIMED) 455KM VES BAND A1 (SGD20,000 rebate) PRICE SGD195,999 (including COE)

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It’s little touches like these that lend the impression that the Niro EV is a considered car and thoroughly engineered. If you need proof as to how far the Koreans have come in terms of carmaking, you only need to look to the Niro EV. There’s a reassuring solidity to the chassis and it takes well to being thrashed, driven calmly and everything in between, which is one of the surest indicators of a well-sorted car.

On that first bit, it has 204HP, putting the Niro EV in hot hatchback country, and with 395NM at its disposal, that’s in the neighbourhood of what you’d get in a mid-range sports car like a Porsche 718 Boxster S. Kia says the Niro EV will do 0-100KM/H in 7.8 seconds, though given the always-on nature of the electric motor’s power delivery, it feels a good deal quicker than that. Spot a gap in trafic? Yeah, go for it. No waiting for the transmission to perform a kickdown, no waiting for the engine to gain revs, just instant power. It’s almost like playing a video game.

The bad news is that the Niro EV, like most electric cars with decent outputs and without sporting pretensions, its Achilles heel is its tyres. There’s a disjunct between what its perky powertrain is capable of delivering and what its squishy, comfort-biased tyres are able to support.

What else, what else. Oh, the Niro EV is also, to use industry parlance, fully loaded. It’s got the aforementioned digital instruments, paired with a 7.3-inch touchscreen, wireless phone charging tray, ventilated seats, blind spot monitoring system, reverse camera and LED headlights/tail lights with an automatic high beam.

It’s clear the Niro EV comes to the party dressed to impress, though again, there’s the rather large elephant in the room of its price tag.

Apparently, though, we (as in private buyers) don’t form a key part of the Niro EV’s target audience. Kia dealer Cycle & Carriage is pitching the Niro EV at fleet customers, and the long-term benefits— lower cost of electricity per kilometre versus petrol, lower maintenance costs of electric cars—are definitely attractive from a business standpoint.

Like I said earlier, the Niro EV is a car I desperately want to love and having tooled around in it for several days, I do. I’ve long maintained that electric cars are great everyday workhorses—the silence, smoothness and instantaneous acceleration are deeply appealing.

But, as for whether I’d want to drop nearly 200 grand on one and pay three times the road tax of a ‘regular’ 1.6-litre car, well…

MaHB

Books

Into the unknown A risk can pay of handsomely.

All you have to do is follow the

The sheltered comfort zone is snug. But nothing new and unexpected can penetrate the safe territory if you don’t allow it. Why not take a chance and perform a leap of faith to journey towards the unexplored? Because life can be much livelier and more climactic than it is now.

These titles are available at Books Kinokuniya.

10 Minutes, 38 Seconds in This Strange World Elif Shafak What can be done in less than 11 minutes? Here, it provided enough time for one to reflect on their life before leaving the mortal world—like the protagonist, an ailing prostitute named Tequila Leila in Istanbul. As expected, her life isn’t smooth and cosy. Shafak’s love letter to the city underlines issues faced by Turkish citizens: violence, heartbreak and grief. Such memories can be painful, but it colours the human life too.

Know My Name Chanel Miller Jane Doe and Emily Doe, so who’s who? Thus, Miller decided to step forward with a memoir after shocking millions through a letter she anonymously penned preceding this. In the light of #MeToo, it’s important to reclaim your rights and dignity. By putting up a face and identity, Miller is fuelled by the support from other victims too and in return, shares her healing process to give others strength. Truth and facts will always triumph.

The Man With No Borders Richard C Morais When death comes knocking at your door, what would you do? For someone who seems to have it all, Spanishborn, Swiss-based banker José María Álvarez is racing against time to tie loose ends and set things right. It’s all just a façade. Deep dark secrets have haunted him since boyhood and a dying tyrant deserves no sympathy. Yet, before his last breath, Álvarez wishes to alter his repulsive demeanour. Yes, Morais shapes Álvarez to be very detestable (till I almost hurled the book at an open window).

The Water Dancer Ta-Nehisi Coates Hailed as one of the best non-fiction writers (Time and The Atlantic) and essayists of his time, all eyes are on his debut novel. And he delivers as expected. Conjuring the black/negro American slavery narrative, his lead, Hiram Walker, harnesses the super power of teleportation that requires water and strong feelings to activate.

Between ‘Tasked’ and ‘Quality’, Hiram tackles racial superiority while navigating the portrayed early African American life.

Fleishman Is In Trouble Tafy Brodesser-Akner So they say, marriage is the tomb built for love. Brodesser-Akner’s first novel looks into modern-day relationships and the consequences of emotional neglect plus infidelity. Staying faithful and ‘till death do us part’ is enforced after you put a ring on the finger. But when the relationship is flawed, do we stray? Nobody is right or wrong even if the real truth is revealed from the failed marriage. Instead, it’s how we handle every situation presented to us. Also, midlife crisis is real.

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Words by Derrick Tan

words in these nervy writings.

Still life

5|5

Aluminium Personal case,

by Dior and Rimowa.

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Water World Melting ice caps and rising sea levels are creating observable changes in coastal communities around the world like Venice, Italy. High tides that devastated the historic city in November 2019 have shown the real and lasting impact of climate change.

The worst flooding in 53 years paralysed the 120 islands and landmarks like St Mark’s Basilica, featured in the artwork.

Recurring tides of 0.6M or more, called Alta Aqua by Venetians, have become increasingly worse over the winter months. Strong winds and a stalled anti-flooding project until 2022 have left the

city unprotected from “the efects of climate change”, tweeted the city’s mayor, Luigi Brugnaro.

Venice demonstrates the global impact of sea levels rising 20CM since the 1880s, according to Climate Central. ‘Water World’ visualises the scientific research available to help readers understand the impact of climate change, like melting in the polar caps. There is nothing to stop the environmental shifts, but our collective efort can slow the cycle through education and action.

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Analogue collage by Maxwell N Burnstein

Blank canvas

Esquire Singapore.

At your fingertips.

On the go.

@esquiresg

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The wild and free iSSue

The wild and free iSSue

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The pole vaulter

ISSN 2301-3397 SGd8.00

ISSN 2301-3397 SGd8.00

The pole vaulter

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paul rudd Ant-Man—and soon-to-be Ghostbuster—dishes on why he doesn’t want to be known as nice, the pressure of classic remakes and the money he’s owed.

Ant-Man—and soon-to-be Ghostbuster—dishes on why he doesn’t want to be known as nice, the pressure of classic remakes and the money he’s owed.

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Elegance is an attitude Jung Woo-Sung

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