One of the first things I was advised to do on my arrival  is to check the Shanghai Museum.

Located in the center of Shanghai in People’s Square, Shanghai Museum is a large museum of ancient Chinese art. The museum style and presentation surround visitors with artifacts demonstrating ancient wisdom and philosophy. The exterior design of the round dome and the square base symbolizes the ancient idea of a round heaven and a square land.

The museum is divided into eleven galleries and three exhibition halls. The eleven Galleries cover most of the major categories of Chinese art: Ancient Bronze, Ancient Ceramics, Paintings, Calligraphy, Ancient Sculpture, Ancient Jade, Coins, Ming and Qing Furniture, Seals, and Minority Nationalities.

The bronze ware of the Shang and Zhou dynasties contribute to our understanding of ancient civilization. The over 400 pieces of exquisite bronze wares cover the history of ancient Chinese bronze art.

The ancient ceramics collection is a special Shanghai Museum treasure. Among the more than 500 pieces are artwork from various dynasties, such as painted and gray pottery from the Neolithic age, primitive celadon from the Shang, Zhou and Warring States, mature celadon from the East Han Dynasty, the well known tri-colored glazed pottery from the Tang Dynasty, blue, white and black glazed as well as painted porcelain from the Song, Jin and Liao, and the brilliant works from Jingdezhen, Jiangxi, the center of the industry during the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties.

Chinese paintings and calligraphy have profound traditions and unique national styles. Masterpieces from different periods and genres are featured.

The Gallery of Chinese Ancient Sculpture focuses mainly on Buddhist sculptures.

Jade in ancient China was both decoration and the symbol of wealth and power. It was further personified to symbolize perfect morality. The elegance of jade wares glows through its crystal colors and vivid patterns.

The Ming and Qing dynasties witnessed the heyday of Chinese furniture. The gallery shows a refined garden-like residence of that time. Even a simple chair demonstrates Chinese culture and etiquette.

First of its kind, the Gallery of Chinese Seals, reflects the importance of seals in history from the Western Zhou to the end of the Qing Dynasty.

But my favorite of all pictured in this post is the Chinese Ethnic Minoritie’s Arts and Crafts. I literally went mad and with my camera , lucky me, that in China visitor’s are allowed to take pictures, I shoot everywhere I could to collect what in my life I have always been fond of, textiles and ethnic folk crafts. And because tstangram is not allowed in China I worked on the texture of the images to give it a vintage , textured look.

The costumes of these ethnic groups as symbols of their futures, vary greatly in material, design, cold,style and associated ornaments with their different ways of life, modes and production. religious faiths,aestethic standards and geographic environments.

Beautiful textiles with woven, printed or embroidered designs and distinctive artifacts such as metal eve, laquer,pottery,masks , carved and kitted work are the reflection of people’s wisdom in art creation, skills of craftsmanship and deep love for life!

Joelle’s Tips:

The Museum: Shanghai Museum  

Starting from 57^th Street, each of the five main Fifth Avenue windows examines the theme from a different perspective:

Built around a vintage collection of mixed-metal birds and jungle animals, “The Brass Menagerie” is set in a stylized tropical forest of metal and mirror and glimmers with leafy foliage of brass and steel.  Within this forest is a fantasy recording studio, with vintage microphones and a brass “primate” jazz combo.  A giant brass birdcage houses a surprise tenant, and the floor is covered several inches deep with a secret quantity of copper pennies.  For this window, a special dress was created by Naeem Khan.

“Breaking the Ice” invites viewers to a mid-afternoon arctic garden party whose guests include “couture plush” animals such as polar bears, a moose, an arctic mountain goat, a seal, and a of pair wolves.  All the animals have been upholstered in luxe white textiles and appliquéd with icy crystals, beads, and sequins.  A Baccarat chandelier adds luster.  The party hostess is the focus of attention in her specially designed dress and one-of-a-kind cape, all by J. Mendel.

Completely encrusted with hand-cut Italian mosaic tile, this intensely blue window is truly an undersea fantasy.  A single mannequin, in a seashell dress from the Alexander McQueen Spring 2012 collection, appears to be floating amid a massive collection of mosaic sea creatures. Everything is highly patterned, with swirling textures and oceanic colors.  “Testing the Waters” is quite the aquatic triumph as its production was 10 months in the making and is the most labor-intensive single window display in Bergdorf Goodman history.

“Teacher’s Pets” takes viewers inside a 3-dimensional paper classroom filled with black and white paper animals, including a life-sized paper zebra, ostrich, panda bear, aardvark, white peacock, and more.  As the “students” pose within a cascade of zoological textbooks, the teacher – dressed in a black and white lace Marchesa gown – presides over the paper bestiary.  Noted New York calligrapher, Bernard Maisner, provided hand-lettered labels, in Latin, for all the animals.

In the final window, “Artists and Models,” a diverse collection of wood and leather folk-art animals from all continents gathers together.  The setting is a sculptor’s studio out of a folk tale, with an enormous assemblage of wooden creatures.  A mannequin, dressed in a mélange of designers, assumes the role of sculptor, assisted by several antique wooden artists’ models and by a quartet of antic leather monkeys.

 Joelle’s Tips:

The Store:

Bergdoff Goodman

The Source:

DVF

” It’s not the having it’s the getting” said Elizabeth Taylor once on an interview when asked how she felt to be the owner of a brand new stunning diamond tiara.

This week  I was  kindly invited by Jaime Bernice head of the PR department at Christie’s to admire in private one of the most spectacular  jewelry collections in the world , the  the celebrated film star, fashion icon, and humanitarian and my forever inspirational archetype Elizabeth Taylor .

Not only  I was surprised by the quantity of  breathtaking gemstones, historic jewels, and one-of-a-kind creations, , including an iconic 33.19- carat diamond ring and a 16th century pear-shaped pearl from one of her seven husbands, Richard Burton but of the magnitude of her haute couture and ready-to-wear fashion accessories, masterfully and theatrically displayed  among several rooms of the notorious auction house.

Any  privileged visitor of the three months tour in Geneva, Paris, Hong Kong, Dubai  Los Angeles London and Moscow who personally viewed this spectacular showcase of colorful taste and power  prior to the ending auction in new York city, was undoubtedly  dazzled with tremendous impact  by the late Hollywood star luminous beauty , lavish lifestyle and an unquenchable passion for diamonds and jewels that was fueled by the great loves of her life.

A total of 269 magnificent jewels from this storied collection is estimated to achieve well in excess of $30 million and will be auctioned here in New York on Dec. 13-14. Serious collectors will be able to try on  exquisite examples from the most celebrated of jewelry designers, including BVLGARI, Boucheron, Cartier, JAR, Schlumberger, Tiffany, and Van Cleef & Arpels, among others by appointment.  About 500 pieces of Taylor’s costume jewelry will be sold online at the same time.

Christie’s jewelry expert Rahul Kadakia explains  ”They’re from moments in that were very dear to her,” jewels that were purchased in Bulgari in Rome, at Cartier in New York and at auction. The stories behind them are as priceless as the gems themselves. In a 2002 memoir, “My Love Affair with Jewelry,” Taylor took readers on a personal journey of her collection, describing in her own words how she came to own each piece.

“I never, never thought of my jewelry as trophies,” she wrote. “I’m here to take care of them and to love them. . When I die and they go off to auction I hope whoever buys them gives them a really good home.” It’s an extraordinary collection of rubies, diamonds, emeralds and sapphires in intricate and bold designs , treasure troves of personal mementos and beloved gifts.

life Among the standouts is the 16th-century La Peregrina, one of the largest and most symmetrically perfect pear-shaped pearls in the world, which Burton purchased for Taylor in 1969 as a Valentine’s Day gift. The two had met in Italy on the set of the 1963 film “Cleopatra,” and married for the first time in 1964.

Once part of the Crown Jewels of Spain, the pearl later passed into the hands of Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon III and the Duke of Abercorn. When it came up at auction in New York, Burton snapped it up for $37,000, beating out the underbidder, a member of the Spanish Royal family.

Cartier later created a ruby and diamond necklace from which the pearl was suspended, a design that was inspired by the famous Velazquez portraits of Spain’s Queen Margarita and Queen Isabel wearing the pearl as a necklace. It is estimated to fetch $2 million to $3 million.

Taylor, who was married eight times – twice to Burton – died in March at age 79. The couple appeared together in about a dozen films, including “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” in which Taylor played an alcoholic shrew in an emotionally sadomasochistic marriage.

Burton was enamored of historical pieces, and in 1972 purchased the famous 17th-century Taj Mahal diamond pendant for Taylor’s 40th birthday. The transaction took place at John F. Kennedy International Airport because the couple didn’t have time to run into the city before catching a plane, said Kadakia.

The heart-shaped diamond is associated with one of history’s greatest love stories. It belonged to Emperor Shah Jahangir, who had the diamond inscribed with his wife’s name “Nur Jahan.” He later passed the stone on to his son, Shah Jahan, who built the Taj Mahal in memory of his wife Mumtaz, who died in childbirth.

“I would have liked to buy her the Taj Mahal but it would cost too much to transport,” Burton remarked after buying it. Cartier later recreated the diamond’s original silk cord as a gold rope-like necklace set with rubies and diamonds. The necklace has a pre-sale estimate of $300,000 to $500,000.

“Jewelry was a way of life for Elizabeth Taylor. They were her friends. She enjoyed wearing them and it gave her a lot of pleasure because they reminded her of the great moments in her life, the great places in her life,” Kadakia said.

Like the time Taylor’s third husband, theater and film producer Mike Todd, presented her with a red leather Cartier box as she sat by the pool at a rented villa in the south of France. Inside was a ruby necklace, matching earrings and bracelet.

“She was so, so happy that she jumped into the pool wearing all this jewelry and started doing laps,” said Kadakia, adding that the pieces will be sold separately.

The Elizabeth Taylor Diamond,  Kadakia said its size and clarity – “as white as they can be and potentially flawless” makes it a perfect gem. Burton purchased it in 1968 at a New York auction for $305,000. At the December sale, it’s expected to fetch $2.5 million to $3.5 million.

“Elizabeth Taylor used to refer to it as her baby and wore it as much and as often as she could,” said Kadakia, including in nearly all her subsequent films.

Among the pieces of jewelry that Taylor purchased for herself was the Duchess of Windsor diamond brooch, which she got at auction for $620,000. Kadakia said she paid a big price for it for two reasons, to remember her friend and because the proceeds were going to a cause dear to her, AIDS research. The brooch is estimated to bring $400,000 to $600,000.

Christie’s also will be selling the star’s  20th-century decorative arts and film memorabilia from her Bel Air home on Dec. 14-16.  A portion of the proceeds from the exhibition admissions and publications related to the sales will be donated to The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation. Proceeds from the auctions will go to Taylor’s estate.

A few quotes about Elizabeth Taylor  just make you dream…

‘”  She looks at you with those eyes and your heart churns”

Richard Burton

‘ My personal philosophy of beauty is to always believe something wonderful is about to happen”

Elizabeth Taylor

‘ I can’t remember a day when I wasn’t famous”

Elizabeth Taylor

” She is like an eclipse of the sun, blotting out everyone”

MGM Producer Sam Marks

‘ A prisoner’s dream, a secretary’s fantasy,unreal unattainable”

Truman Capote

‘ Raptuously beautiful”

James Agee

Joelle’s Tips;

The Auction:

The Blogs

The videos:

The sources;

Christie’s : The Crown Jewels of Hollywood- The collection of Elizabeth Taylor

Huffington Post  Elizabeth Taylor Iconic Jewels Coming to Auction 

Peter Greenaway

Born in Milan, I spent my childhood near the Dominican Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie.

When the weather permitted, my Catholic nanny Maria took me on long walks in the neighborhood, and often just before lunch we would stop at the monastery refectory to gaze at the renowned “Last Supper” mural by Leonardo da Vinci. The theme was a traditional one for refectories, although the room was not a refectory at the time that Leonardo painted it. The painting was commissioned by Sforza to be the centerpiece of the mausoleum.

The lunettes above the main painting, formed by the triple arched ceiling of the refectory, are painted with Sforza coats-of-arms. Leonardo began work on “The Last Supper” in 1495 and completed it in 1498—he did not work on the painting continuously.

5oo years later on December the 4th at the Park Avenue Armory on 66th street, close to where I now live in New York City,  I am once again on my way to admire “Leonardo’s Last Supper”,  this time through the vision of Welsh-born filmmaker and multimedia artist Peter Greenaway.

Armory president Rebecca Robertson’s press release describes the exhibition as a “Multimedia Reverie.”  Peter Greenaway’s premier of this epic and immersive multimedia work marks the first U.S. presentation of the artist’s installation.

Through his incisive manipulation of chiaro-scuro, sound, and theatrical illusion, Greenaway creates a series of dynamic audio-visual environments that provoke new ways of seeing Leonardo’s masterpiece.

Prior my visit at the armory, I have been reading several articles, points-of-view and interesting critical pieces on the controversial exhibit like Holland’s Cutter of the New York Times, some of whose excerpts I am sharing on this post for further discussion. Is this new era of showcasing art a genius-like display of innovation or an art form of its own?

“A Vision by Peter Greenaway” is part of the artist’s ambitious ongoing series “Ten Classic Paintings Revisited”, an exploration of works from around the world that encourages viewers to retrain their gaze when experiencing classical and Renaissance painting, and that creates dialogue between this age-old medium and modern technology.

“…From this we walk to a second, smaller enclosure, measuring the same size as the refectory of the Santa Maria Delle Grazie monastery, where “The Last Supper” still resides. Straight ahead is a replica of the painting, digitally scanned and printed on plaster, with its familiar image of Jesus seated among his perturbed apostles at a long table. A three-dimensional version of the painted table, replete with plates, knives and loaves of bread but with everything plaster white, sits in the center of the enclosure… ” ( via New York Times)

” … Special effects kick in. Images projected onto the replicated painting make figures look three-dimensional. The light in the depicted scene changes; sometimes seeming to come from above, sometimes from a mysterious background source. One group of apostles is momentarily spotlighted as the others fade into darkness; another group is set off with diagrammatic outlines. At regular intervals the whole scene goes dim except for the figure of Jesus, which radiates beams like a searchlight.” ( via New York Times)

Greenaway launched the series in 2006 with an evocative multimedia exploration of Rembrandt’s Nightwatch in the Rijks Museum in Amsterdam. In June 2008, he staged a one-night-only event with the original “Last Supper” in the refectory of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan

In June 2009, Greenaway exhibited his digital exploration of “The Wedding at Cana” by Paolo Veronese during the 2009 Biennale di Venezia and the film “The Marriage” about the same painting and installation at the Venice Biennial Film Festival.

“… As we walk back out through the drill hall we see that “Italy of the Cities” has been replaced by Mr. Greenaway’s take on Veronese’s “Wedding at Cana”. It might have looked great in Venice — what doesn’t?— but it’s underwhelming here. Digital reproduction and video recording of art can be valuable, letting us see things we would otherwise never see.” (via New York Times)

“Leonardo’s Last Supper: A Vision by Peter Greenaway” fuses  elements from his extensive study of thousands of years of painting to create a spectacular and unforgettable encounter.

“…A front section of the drill hall is enclosed with scrims for a kind of sound-and-light warm-up act called “Italy of the Cities,” conceived for the Italian pavilion at the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai.

Onto the wraparound scrims are projected video shots of Florence, Rome, Venice and Milan, accompanied by a musical pastiche that includes, all too inevitably, the theme (French, 18th century) from “Masterpiece Theater”.

…There’s no question that at a time when a museum visit can mean little more than snapping pictures on the run, persuading people to stop and look is a good thing. But the question becomes whether jumpily edited copies of paintings are an improvement over jumpy viewers.

…Mr. Greenaway also allows that entertainment was a factor he kept in mind when producing the work now at the Armory, though with its limited range of recycled effects, it doesn’t score high in that department.

… Then there is the “Last Supper” itself. In irreversibly degraded condition, it may one day have to be taken off view to preserve what’s left. At that point copies are what most of us will know of it. (Whether those copies should be colorized as Mr. Greenaway’s “Last Supper” has been, presumably to recapture its original look, will be a matter for debate.)

…Most insistently of all — it’s right there in the title — “Leonardo’s Last Supper: A Vision by Peter Greenaway” asks to taken as art on its own, but that doesn’t work either. Even as a form of appropriation art, the piece neither illuminates its borrowed material nor has anything new to say on its own.” (via New York Times)

I  have enjoyed playing with the concept of  ‘appropriation art’ through posting  my own pictures of Peter Greenway’s work at the Armory show. I have  inserted texts appropriated from other colleagues and finally created my own form of cognitive, visual subjective expression about the matter.

The reader will evaluate, simply absorb, transcend the information into something visually new and organic in a blog, or maybe  share it on Facebook.

At this point, my final thought goes to Leaonardo da Vinci… Would he approve this visual tech chain evolution if he knew it?

“Leonardo’s Last Supper: A Vision by Peter Greenaway” is organized and presented by Park Avenue Armory, the Superintendency for Architectural and Environmental Heritage of Milan and the Comune di Milano/Cultura, Italian Trade Commission, and supported by the Italian Ministry of Economic Development.

Portions of the work were first produced by Change Performing Arts in Milan in 2008 as an initiative supported by I SALONI MILANO, in collaboration with the Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities.

Additional support for the Park Avenue Armory presentation is provided by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council, The Robert Lehman Foundation and New York State Council on the Arts, A State Agency.

The inaugural week will continue with the opening of acclaimed designer, director and visual artist Robert Wilson’s “Perchance to Dream”, a multimedia installation featuring a series of video portraits  in collaboration with internationally renowned Italian ballet dancer Roberto Bolle, Etoile at La Scala ballet and principal dancer with American Ballet Theater in New York City.

Joelle’s Picks:

The Exhibition: “Leonardo’s Last Supper: A Vision by Peter Greenaway”  643 Park Avenue
New York, NY 10065 (212) 616-3930 Park Avenue Armory

December 3, 2010 – January 6, 2011  Tuesdays – Sundays 11:00am – 8:00pm
(Showings are on the hour starting at 12:00pm and last approximately 45 minutes. Last showing of the day is 7:00pm)

The Film Director: Peter Greenaway

The Source :New York Times : Adding Bells …

The Lecture :Peter Greenaway: “Nine Classic Paintings Revisited”

The Book: “Last Supper” by the art historian Leo Steinberg (Zone Books; 2001)

The high-resolution photography and three-dimensional scanning: Factum Arte

The house I visited this week and its contents were bequeathed to a private foundation in 1970, and subsequently made available to the general public as a museum. While we walk around I will give you an overview of the story behind this remarkable couple.

David Van Buuren was born in Gouda, Holland, in 1886. He settled down in Brussels in 1909 and entered the banking sector. During his financial career, there were great political and economic events of the 20th century. He married the Belgian Alice Piette (1890-1973) and began a period of 30 happy years with the cultural vocation of their Art Deco house.

The house, bought in 1928, has a outdoor architecture typical of the Amsterdam School, while the indoor decoration characterizes an “Art Deco” whole by Belgian, French and Dutch designers. The Van Buurens made their villa a “living academy”, with rare furniture, carpets, stained-glass windows, sculptures and international masterpieces. This “private memory house” became a museum in 1975 according to the will of Alice Van Buuren.

From 1928 to 1970 the house became a “Salon” as in the 18th century. People such as Dufy, Prévert, Lalique, Diaghilev, Satie,Magritte, Chanel, Ben Gourion, and many other VIP’s of that time were regular visitors.

The famous “Salon” consisted of three enchanting  living rooms opening one onto other, with Art Deco furniture made of exotic woods (sycamore, Macassar’s ebony), as in the central part, the music lounge. Van Buuren sponsored several charities and cultural activities which Alice continued until their Private Foundation in 1970, to which she bequeathed her house, works of art and gardens.

The “modern idea” of the owners, which summarizes the “avant-gardisme” of the Twenties, is a triumph of harmony between furniture and “objets d’art”. The cozy-corner, 1918 armchairs by Dominique, cushions by Sonia Delaunay, carpets of cubist style by J. Gidding.  A wealth of rich and unusual materials perfect in their detail:

Horsehair from the Cavalry school of Saumur, Cordovan leather, parchment, metal, mother of pearl, ivory, enamels. The light floods through the huge windows in their picture-like frames, bringing to life the colors of objects, paintings and carpets.

On the floor of this cozy corner, one can admire the stunning a carpet “Futurist painting” by Jaap Gidding, dating around 1915. This designer of the Amsterdam School uses different creative skills, and made stained-glass windows as well as several carpets of the house, finding his inspiration in the undulating shape and the vivid colors of the young lady painted by Van Dongen, following the idea of Matisse and the Fauvist.

On their return, Alice became the first curator of her collection, and took in hand the gardens with René Pechère, a landscape designer. She continued the sponsoring activities of her husband, helping artists, ceramists, sculptors, dancers, opera singers and scientific researchers. She also became closer to the Royal family, especially Queen Elisabeth of Belgium, and together they met in her house with young winners of the famous musical competition. The house seemed to live in the spirit of the Twenties, round Eric Satie’s piano.

David and Alice traveled a lot after World War II. Van Buuren took overseas the most famous Belgian paintings of his collection (and this explains the present success of James Ensor or G. Minne in the U.S.). Alice became vice-president of the YWCA and gave her financial help to the Queen Elisabeth Archeological Institute of Jerusalem, where she financed the building of Collegium Fabiolanum. Golda Meir, Ben Gourion, Shimon Peres, Moshe Dayan and Itzaak Rabin often visited the villa which interested political and military events of the Middle East between 1960 and 1970.

We are now going to the first floor. The mezzanine has beautiful 1928 paneling in ornamental Japanese style lacquer with Dutch geometrical design. These are by the artist Dominique, 1928. A 1898  bronze sculpture “Kneeling Man” by  Georges Minne, looks at the crowd from the first stairway steps, Art Deco stained glass windows and Chinese cloisonné vases decorate the hallway.

We arrive in a very elegant room. It’s here where David Van Buuren used to work, the desk in a combination of rosewood and walnut, made in 1928 by Dominique from a Van Buuren sketch. It brings together in the center of a walnut top a writing pad covered in shagreen, a precious material of the Art Deco period made of white shark’s skin.

The design of the carpets by J. Gidding follows the theme found in the furniture. Partner-Manager at the Cassel Bank & Co, he taught financial deontology at the Free University of Brussels. On left the wall “The Torrent”, by H. Seghers, 17th century.

The modern collection of paintings has a variety of portraits that Van Buuren particularly appreciated. As a pastime he attended The Art Academy of Antwerp and knew personally painters such as Kees Van Dongen, or C. Permeke, from whom he bought paintings.

“Woman Thinking” by K.Van Dongen is the portrait of the painter’s wife, and it sensual qualities make it comparable to the “Red Ballerina” (1907-1908), an oil painting at the Hermitage Museum of Saint Petersburg.

In 1924 the gardens covered only 26 ares (100 m²), and now cover 1,5 ha. There is great harmony of style and time between the J Buyssens’s garden and the Art Deco house. 45 years later, Alice considered René Pechère’s gardens as a complement of her villa.

The actual garden is made of the “Picturesque Garden”, “The Labyrinth”, and “The Garden of the Heart”. “Picturesque Garden” was designed by Jules Buyssens, a landscape architect, in the twenties, and represents the geometrical ideas of Art Deco. This jewel of greenery in the center of Brussels can be visited all year round. René Pechère transformed the Art Deco gardens into a landscape garden (1968-1970).

Specialist in the protection of historical patrimony, he created 900 public and private gardens. His “Labyrinth” or “Dedalus” – the name of Icarus’ father – has an itinerary with 1300 yew trees on 500 m, where “The Song of Songs” is illustrated by 7 sculptures in bronze made by the Belgian André Willequet. There are only 2 mazes in Belgium.

The maze of René Pechère was made in 5 months (1968) and evokes the shelter of the Minotaur, from where Icarus and Dedalus escaped thanks to Ariadne’s help. Open air exhibitions of contemporary sculptures are organized in the orchard. Since 1991, there have been 3 Triennial Prize Exhibitions of sculpture. This year 2000 there will be an exhibition of Sculptures by Olivier Strebelle in the park. From 2002 the Sculpture Exhibition will take place every two years as in the past.

The “Garden of the Heart” was conceived in 1970 on a small area of 2.5 and is made of yew trees and boxwood, representing 12 little hearts with a heart-shaped hedge around.This ” secret garden “, according to René Pechère, gives the romantic touch to the enclosure, intended for private meditation and dream.

Joelle’s Tips:

The Museum: Van Buuren 41 Léo Errera Avenue 1180-Brussels /Tel : + 32 2 343 48 51 Fax: + 32 2 347 66 89

Victor Horta

At the turn of the 19th century, Brussels went through a period of un-rivaled effervescence. The city was beautified under the impetus of King Leopold II,

new districts were divided into plots and turned into neighborhoods in formerly suburban municipalities such as Ixelles, Schaerbeek or Saint-Gilles, the boundaries of which tend to merge with those of the City of Brussels proper.

Naturally, the middle classes, merchants and artists opted to have their houses built in the style in vogue: Art Nouveau, also known in English as “Modern Style.”

This style was launched in 1893 by two architects, Victor Horta and Paul Hankar: the Tassel House and Hankar’s own private home were the first tokens of a new aesthetic.

The use of metal structures allowed the architects to indulge in amazing innovations, and to open out the facades and interiors to allow light to flood in. Three types of motifs tend to predominate: the arabesque, the floral or animal pattern and the feminine silhouette.

At the turn of the century, under the influence of the Viennese Secession, forms tended to become geometric, as circles were combined with squares with greater frequency.

Hundreds of houses, but also schools, cafés, and shops rivaled for originality. Craftsmanship in ironwork, wood, stained glass and mosaics attained the acme of quality.

The buildings of Strauven, Hamesse,Vizzavona, Sneyers,Cauchie and many others turned Brussels into one of the European capitals of Art Nouveau, alongside Vienna and Barcelona.

Whereas the blaze of Art Nouveau would burn bright for a dozen years or so before being followed by Art Deco, also very richly represented in Brussels, it still lives on in many streets of the Belgian capital.

And It’s on a sunny afternoon that I receive a phone call at  home from the Mr Charles Picque , the Minister- President of culture and tourism of  Brussels- Capital also responsible for the so called  BIP.  Mr Pique addresses to me in Portuguese with a warm intent, I imagine, of making my stay in the European capital of culture and tourism  very enjoyable.

”  Joelle”  – he says now in French – ” we are  glad to invite you to our  2009 and fifth edition of the Art Nouveau Biennale truly hoping that you will find our cultural event as well as others we carry in the city quite interesting! ”

I thought Belgian people were cold but honestly Mr Pique is so charming that I’ am definitely drawn to learn more , after a pause almost as a professional actor he carries on:  ” The circuit we are promoting at the moment is called  Voir et Dire Bruxelles. Miss Nastasia Sellens will call you to set a time for you to come and visit us here at the recently inaugurated PIB that I assure you , you will much appreciate.”

Arriving at this wonderful renovated classic building at rue Royale ,the Lloyd a former bank, a very pretty, young  and blue-eyed Nastassia comes in my direction with a large smile, fully equipped with a very organized and generous press kit, DV s and several well-designed brochures  and a  ‘ global passport’.

She introduces me to the president of  Voir et Dire Bruxelles ,Isabelle Paellinck also very charming and visibly at ease with her role. My Belkin voice recorder, a few pencils, my Mosleskine notebook, and here we go in a strenuous half hour questions-and-answers about everything I should, I should not, I could or not visits during my stay the city over the next three weekends.

After digesting the substantial amount of information delivered by these two passionate monsters of efficiency I realize that there are good and very bad news.

The good news are that through a passport I will be able to examine the theme of  “From Art Nouveau to Art Deco” offering me the unique opportunity to visit more than fifty  interiors of buildings in Brussels gems from the inter-war years,

many of which remain relatively unknown,  during these first four weekends of October. Among the most interesting architectural establishments and many splendid private mansions especially opened to the public, schools, industrial buildings, public buildings, more modest houses, hotels and shops and several of which have become part of  the ‘UNESCO World Heritage List’ in 2000.

The bad news, is that I will not be authorized to photograph the interiors of any of the buildings designed by Victor Horta due to extensive and complicated copy-right regulations inflicted by the Horta family heirs  to the public including the building owners.

Having received the news with  deep frustration, my immediate reaction was to smile at these two young women and leave.

How could I work on a Brussels Edition if I cannot photograph myself the Horta Buildings and bring to thousands  thirsty readers worldwide ? (Some of  the pictures you see in this section are from the hotel Hannon, a very beautiful interior by the way.)

But looking at reassuring  Nastassia and Isabelle, I realized of the importance of carrying on with the visit without worrying about this specific detail and focusing on the the importance of the such cultural and unprecedented event while understanding how these buildings have been preserved, inhabited and sometimes completely changed, while remaining remarkable witnesses to this priceless heritage.

Due to space and time restrictions, some of the interiors were only  accessible by prior reservation.

Among those: Maison et Atelier Horta, Hôtel Ciamberlani, Hôtel Solvay, Hôtel Max Hallet, Hôtel Otlet, old personal house of  François Hemelsoet, Maison Eugène Leman, Maison Cauchie Cauchie’s self designed home,

Hôtel Van Eetvelde, Maison Frison, (today the extraordinary Tribal Arts and Antiques J Visser ) Ancienne Banque D’outremer, Maison Autrique, Maison privée rue Van Hasselt, Maison privée rue Lecharlier, Maison privée avenue Duray et la Villa Beau-site, Maison privée rue Monrose, Hôtel Astoria.

During the four weekends we also had access to this remarkable extended list of fascinating landmarks: I have tried to insert as many links as possible, with to transport you into this not-to- be- missed experience if you are in Brussels next time.

To list a few: Demeuldre factory , Coperta Atelier and the beautiful iron structure of this 1810 porcelain factory, former Aegidium movie with his eclectic 1905 facade and Moorish-Style dance -hall, former personal house of Adrien Blomme

whose building is laid on a cental open staircase,

former Wielemans-Ceuppens brewery Gregoire House, Hannon Hotel Private House – rue Coenraets , Saint-Augustin church grandiose example of the Art Deco Style , Solvay Hotel Town hall of Forest,

Wielemans Hotel Former hotel of the Control of the Telephones and the Telegraphs prestigious Art Deco building that has High-quality interior offices, former Niguet store , Former RVS buildin and his superb stained-glass windows, , Former workshops of the Colpaert Master glassmaker , Hanse Office ,

Private House – rue Van Hasselt, Quaker House , Schools «La Ruche/Josaphat» designed by Henry Jacobs, Strauven House , three houses of Henri Jacobs,( absolutely beautiful)  Hostel Eugène  Leman Haus, Former printing house NIMIFI , Vaucquez Textile Shop ( now Belgian comic Strip Center).

Former building of Constancia Insurances , Former warehouse Wolfers Frères has a monumental staircase designed by Victor Horta, now a branch of KBC bank, Hotel Crowne Plaza -

Le Palace Hôtel with inspiration in the works of Gustav Klimt ,L’Archiduc , Medical Foundation Queen Elizabeth , Private House – rue F. Lecharlier , School Catteau -Victor Horta ,Tavern “L’Espérance” , Wine palace,

Blerot House along with other houses in the street,brings together beautiful elements of flowers and some period furniture, Boelens House, Delune House ,

Flagey – Former building of INR,( Newly inaugurated trendy cultural center) Former masonic lodge, Former overseas bank, Former warehouse Old England (MIM), Palace “La Folle Chanson“,Villa Bea (Charming facade). Finally, I wanted to include in this itinerary a  19th century,  construction techniques, with the use of metal and glass as construction materials, made a new type of building possible: the greenhouse.

In 1873, architect Alphonse Balat designed for King Leopold II a complex of greenhouses which complement the castle of Laeken, built in the classical style. The complex has the appearance of a glass city set in an undulating landscape. The monumental pavilions, glass cupolas, wide arcades that cross the site like covered streets, are much more than an anecdote on the architectural applications of iron and glass or on little greenhouses of exotic plants.

Voir et Dire Bruxelles, (“Seek and Tell Brussels”) is a round-table group of the following themed cultural tourism associations: ARAU, Arkadia.be, Chatterbus, Itinéraires and Pro Velo. Each association has its own identity and specialism, which adds to the diversity of the round table.

Together, the five associations organize varied programmed of high-quality, themed, guided tours, either on request for groups throughout the year or for individual members of the public on fixed dates between March and December. Since it was set up in 1994, Voir et Dire Bruxelles has organized several joint-events, of which the most well-known and successful is the Biennial Art Nouveau Event.

Maybe I was not allowed in certain places to make use good use of my camera, but certainly tried and hopefully achieved to- Seek and Tell-  about the Art Nouveau and Deco loud and hidden atmosphere in Brussles to all those of you who have chosen to follow this post from different parts of the globe.. I truly hope you enjoyed the ride.

Joelle’s Tips:

The organizations: Voir e Dire Bruxelles 2/4 , rue Royale B-1000 Bruxelles /Tel +32 (0)2563 6151 /Fax 32 ( 0) 2 563 6161 / for other tours:  info@voiretdirebruxelles.be

BIP: 2/4 , rue Royale B-1000 Bruxelles /

Photo Credits: All photos representing the works of Victot Horta are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 and public domain. Ecxept courtesy who of photographers, Henry Townsend,  François Bernardin,  Mary Sullivan , J Visser Gallery. Other Credits Albert Videt

Need to through a party in the same atmosphere?  Choose Events at Horta at the magnificent Hôtel Max Hallet Avenue Louise 346  1000 Bruxelles / Tel: 02 648 81 11 / Fax: 02 646 71 11 / info@events-at-horta.be

Sources: Vivre l’Art Nouveau by Françoise Aubry, Curator of the Horta Museum, Brussels

And because of my profession, having developed home and fashion accessories in this country for more than a decade, the decision on the last day of my stay to rush to the Craft Museum was taken very conscientiously.  I knew it was a must but had no idea the place, together with its shop, would turn out to be one of my favourites in the world, alongside the Musee de Quai Branly in Paris.  But what I like the most is a concept of its own.  I will explain.

The institution of the museum, aimed at housing objects of antiquity, is of Western origin.  Indians themselves did not have a tradition of setting up museums of fragmented sculptures, rusted swords and cut-out-of-context paintings.

Broken images were immersed in holy water, worn-out objects were left to decay and merge with the very earth from which they were created.

It is due to the continuous process of abandonment of the old and the reproduction of the new that the traditions of craftsmanship have formidably survived in India.

As India adopted a ready-made Western archaeological museum concept in the 19th century, it missed out the fact that, unlike the West, the ‘past’ and ‘ present’ are not so severely divided in its case, and it therefore failed to give adequate importance in its museums to the evolving context of its culture -

The living practices of rituals, festivals, and weekly markets; picture-shows of itinerant storytellers; the materials, techniques and tools of  artisans;

the cultural changes and the attitude towards the past and the contemporary tradition as such.  It is this overlooked dimension of Indian culture which is emphasized in the concept of the craft museum.

The low-lying museum building most appropriate for displaying India’s rural and tribal arts is designed by the renowned architect Charles Correa to act as a metaphor for an Indian village: street-affable, accommodating and active.

A walk across the crafts museum building would be through open and semi-open passages covered with slopping, tiled roofs aligned with old carved wooden Jharokhas, doors, windows, utensils and storage jars and perforated iron screens.

Through courtyards with domed pigeons houses adorned with arches and latticework panels, terracotta shrines dedicated to basil plants, massive temple chariots and vermilion-covered anicolic wait side altars, providing every now and then a peek through a window into vast museum galleries.

The museum’s collection of about 22,000 objects covers a range of bronze images; lamps and incense burners; ritual accessories; utensils and other items of everyday use; wood and stone carving; papier mache; ivories; dolls, toys, puppets, and masks; jewelery; decorative metalware including Bidri work; paintings; terracottas and cane bamboo work.

The museum’s rare collection includes carved figures of the Buddha, folk deities of coastal Kerala, tribal bronzes from Chattisgarth and carved architecture of Gujarat represented by a whole Haveli.

The village complex comprises 15 structures representing village dwellings, courtyards and shrines from Arunal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Orissa and the Andman Et Nicholas Islands.

What’s impressive is that through your walk in the different facsimile regions built with regional material, you have the feeling you are voyaging through the whole country meeting with local masons, artisans, thatchers and carpenters.

In every hut or courtyard, day-to-day items are displayed a bit like in the industrial design floor at the MOma in New York.

By an informal estimate, there are more than 30 million weavers, craftspeople and folk artists living in India who posses inherited skills by which they earn their livelihood. In this program, the Museum invites about 50 craftspeople from all over the country to demonstrate their crafts and find new market opportunities.

The program apparently has proved to be extremely popular with school children, artists, designers, the craft trade and the art-loving public like myself and many of my colleagues from all over the world.

The puppet performance was divine.  I got all sorts of gift for my nephews, family and friends.  What a great place to spend a few hours in Delhi, touring India as a whole.  Certainly a must!

Joelle’s Picks:

Bhairon Road,
New Delhi 110001.
Open 1000-1730hrs; Closed: Monday

On the radio, the news confirmed the following event, 40 minutes after the one announced by my friend.  I immediately called my sister, whose husband worked just in front of one of those buildings.  No answer.  I called my ex husband who had landed in Tel Aviv, Israel a few hours before.  There was no answer.  I then attempted to make a quick call to my parents’ cell, as they were at the Brussels airport boarding a flight to New York.  I needed to warn them.  No answer.

For a few hours, the despair of being far out of reach of everyone I depended on emotionally was overwhelming.  Not knowing what to do or what happened was even worse for me.

Since I was young, I have had the habit of leaving someone behind due to my extensive travel and life paths: My parents in Europe, a new family in South America, my sister and her family in North America.  I grew up knowing that every time I had to take a plane, someone in one way or another would be missed and someone else would be encountered.  This threw me, against my will, into situations of great joy and at the same time great sadness as I soon realized the difficult task of being a simple human, so limited by uncontrollable variants such as time, place, and distance.

Those connections were lost for many hours.  Finally, I received a broken call from my sister whose shattered and agitated voice mentioned from afar that she was leaving the kids home and trying to rush to somehow find her husband in loco.  There would be no way to have telephone contact for a while.  My parents left the airport security zone after several hours to return to their home.  My ex husband did not manage to place a call until the following day due to intense traffic on the phone lines.

For years, at dinners and social events, everyone had a personal story to tell regarding that dark day in history when more than 2,800 people lost their lives in an unprecedented attack.  I noticed that although not all were physically significant, the emotional impact from those individual stories – wherever in the world I would hear them – always struck me.   They left inside me that same repetitive pattern translated into a visceral void, as if something was missing between what happened and what was going to be done about it.  The variant?  How long?  The question?  What exactly have we learned since?

These were apparently the same thoughts Lee Ielpi, a retired FDNY member who lost a firefighter son, Jonathan Ielpi, on 9/11 had when confronted with thousands of ‘pilgrims’ who came individually and in tour groups from the four corners of the world.  They came to get acquainted in the shattered site with a sense of permanent loss and void.  Geographical distance had prevented them from reaching closer and ‘killing’ at once that internal state of mind, while families and survivors sought to share it as a healing tool.  Everyone needed to pay respect in loco to something or someone that was physically less tangible than air.

The completion of a permanent memorial, with a museum and Freedom Tower spiraling 1,776 feet high, was at least two years away if not more. The tree-lined plaza, featuring waterfall-filled pools where the towers once stood, would not open until 2010 and the visitor’s center and museum would only be unveiled in 2011.  ” The time line reflected a more realistic schedule that became clear after construction began,” said Steve Coleman, spokesman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which owns the site.

An idea came up in 2004.  The Sept.11th Families’ Association created the Tribute WTC Visitor Center with the help of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation , the Port Authority of New York and a generous donation from Deutsche Bank.  Designed by BKSK Architects in collaboration with a team of graphic designers and the September 11th Families’ Association, the center was formerly the Liberty Deli – where many tenants of the World Trade Center went for lunch.  The building was constructed in the 1800s, serving as a commercial store front for a variety of businesses and over twelve stories of residents.

The Tribute Center architects expanded the space to accommodate visitors by finishing the lower level to allow a continuous flow.  Several small rooms were found during demolition that had been sealed off for years, including a cast iron spiral staircase.  Beautifully patterned stained glass was also found, bordering the ceiling in two foot high sections.

The center is the sole space near Ground Zero where a visitor can hear anxious radio transmissions of a firefighter inside the South Tower, see a twisted steel beam from the Trade Center’s core, and study the ID card of a husband who never got home.  It has become a destination in its own right.  We Ben Urizar, the Center’s Press Attache, proudly told me that they have had over 900,000 visitors to date since the Center opened in September of 2006, an average of about 350,000 a year. Of these about 40 % are foreign visitors and 60% are US nationals.

The $3.4 million Center, opened in September 2006, was to be an interim space for remembrance and education.  It’s open seven days a week.  Its 200 guides include those who were directly touched by the attacks or their aftermath.  “They are all people who come from the 9/11 community,” says Ielpi, co-founder of the center.  “You’ll go on a tour with someone who lost a loved one or…people who were in the buildings and got out.  Who better to tell the story?”

The Tribute Center uses videos, panels and artifacts to help visitors experience the vibrancy of the World Trade Center before it was attacked – and the terror of that day. There’s Jonathan Ielpi’s coat and helmet and the shredded shoes of an aide accompanying then-mayor Giuliani. Visitors gaze upon a wall covered with more than 1,300 photographs of those who were killed, and can don earphones to hear testimony of survivors, rescue workers and family members.

The center also unveiled an origami crane donated by the family of Sadako Sasaki, a girl who lived through the atomic bombing of Hiroshima but died of leukemia in 1955 at the age of 12.  Her story has been embraced by peace activists worldwide.

A 4 1/2 hour video scrolls the names of the dead, including those killed in the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center and the victims of the 9/11 attacks at the Pentagon and in Shanksville, PA,  where hijacked United Airlines Flight 93 crashed into a field.  The center also offers a school program for students in grades 5-12, community programs, changing exhibits, and 9/11 community support.

In a downstairs gallery, visitors can leave cards inscribed with their feelings and thoughts.  I got one and asked kindly if I could do it at home in front of my photographic shoots.   I peeked through the 8,000 cards written in all languages, fonts, and countries, while in the same room a ceremony with some of the family members was taking place.

Among the cards, one particularly caught my attention: It’s a poem from an 8th grader in Washington Heights, a little girl named Shannel Del Rosario.  It’s called “Our Gift.”  Check it out…

Remember when your parents came here?
The Statue of Liberty was there.
She stood there to represent that America cared.
This country was called the new world
for a new you and my parents and yours knew
they wanted to live that American Dream!

Years later…….
2001
on 9.11.2001,
something happened.
It was a perfect day
in New York City
clear blue sky, it looked like May.
It Struck!
It just struck!

On that day
those powerful numbers
9-1-1
What did I think?
I was 7 at that time
confused, scared, and shocked.
Those Towers fell
a fall from grace and
those American faces
never fade.

Soon it seemed

that “American Dream”
wasn’t to grow
anymore

Two years later………
2003
It’s been 2 years right?
Still I and America stood in fear.
I was 9 and kind of knew
but wasn’t clear
about the world
to the east and
something about war.
It had been declared and
all those soldier’s stood and stared.
America was proud and
justice was made.
Everybody voted, everybody cared.
Even I knew and thought it was right
to fight for our mother
America.

But soon we forgot
why she was fighting
and the lives that were lost.
That’s what has changed.
Our unity and
humility.

2 years later……
2005
Is this World War III?
Who’s Al Quaida?
Iraq?
Bin laden?
Whatever it was
America was shocked.
I was 11
Not 7 any more and
I understood just a little
bit more.

I was proud to be an American.
Our country will be protected.
Our morality has never been any clearer.
We have lost 2,000 lives
but for a reason.
No death in vain as
Homeland Security became a
household name.

2 years later….
2007
What’s the toll?
Oh yeah 3,000 dead.
But America
our nation
has become divided.
Yes War! No War!
Economy, oil, equality, freedom,
frustration, disparity, our rights.
All these changes
America has had
our country has begun to
hate each other yet
we are already hated by others.

One year later……
2008
It felt like yesterday.
Yes it did happen 7 years ago.
Yet nobody wants more…
war, that is.
We all throw a fit; we all throw in the towel.
We were all so patriotic
so proud, so sure
but now our nation has
broken.

Like the Civil War.
Yes War, No War!
Wasn’t America a gift?
The one Robert Frost described.
She was given to us and
we broke it. Twice.
Do I seek frustration and hate or
possibilities amongst disparity?

I seek a new face
with elections 08′
An African American,
A woman,
A new hope.

It seems
September 11, 2001 brought the
“United” in the states,
but only for a short time so
let’s return to that dream
our parents dreamt, and
our children will dream…
to be united
as we stand.
Man,
that day
has brought change and
we will honor
those who
kept that gift wrap from
breaking.

Not in vain and
not in shame.
United we stand.
America we can!

This Country was a gift.
This Country is a gift.
This Country will always be
Our Gift!

Connections lost, connections found.  After so many years, having the privilege to be invited to Tribute Center to be part of a small ceremony with families and survivors, I clearly understood what I should have done since the beginning.  I needed to connect and be open at heart with those who were around me in my present, transcending the gap created by those who were temporarily absent or gone.  Only in this way, I realized, could I connect in a stronger and more productive way, so that my presence could be the gift the universe provided to those in need, and finally reach the slow but certain power of my own healing.

Joelle’s Tips:

The Center:
Tribute WTC Visitor Center : 120 Liberty Street
NY, NY 10006 (between Greenwich and Church Streets, on the south side of Ground Zero, next to FDNY Firehouse Engine 10 Ladder 10 – visitorservices@tributewtc.org- Tel+  1.866.737.1184 – Offices:+ 1 212. 422.3520  / +1 212.393.9160 ext. 138

Check the photography website of my new friend Luis E. Chimbo who I met at the small ceremony at the center. He is a young man from Cuenca, Ecuador, but has lived in New York City since he was 5 and a member of the September 11th Family’s  Association. He’s currently attending  Syracuse University and doing a major in Art Photography. Next week we are going for a photography ride around town and who knows if I am lucky I’ll get some of his teacher’s inside tips!

Volunteer work : Download  Volunteer Application form. contact volunteer@tributewtc.org or
Tel+1 212 422 3520 ext. 118.

Donations on line

The shop

The Source:

“Families created Tribute Center out of Love”  – Olivia Barker- USA today- Sept ,2006

Photo Credits: FEMA photograph by Michael Rieger of the recovery site at the WTC after 9/11

Foho is one of the naffest terms possible, but hats off to the Daily Telegraph for coining it. The term represents the origins and influence of the trend; it’s origins in the Boho look, and the heavy influence of folk culture.

Foho is about a more understated, eclectic mix, fusing classic Boho elements – Seventies silhouettes, crochet trims and trippy hippie prints – with more subtle folk pieces, such as washed-out denim and traditional embroideries.

Crucially, it also throws in something modern like a great big shiny It-bag or über-cool trainers. It’s cooler and far more authentic than Boho and owes more to the original folk look of the Seventies.

Foho is also the style of up-and-coming “freak folk” stars (a fusion of folk, pop and psychedelic 60s sounds) such as Joanna Newsom, who performs in pretty bib-front dresses and CocoRosie, a sister duo whose style (hippie scarves and gipsy skirts with more street-inspired pieces) is a reflection of their eclectic hip-hop folk music.

Like Medea in her fury, Daily Telegraph mentions, last summer Sienna Miller destroyed Boho, the bohemian look she had created and made her own: “I feel less hippy,” she lamented to American Vogue. “I just don’t want to wear anything floaty or coin-belty ever again. No more gilets, or cowboy boots. There are 12-year-olds wearing exact replicas of my mother’s Moroccan belt.”

She was right on target. We had all had enough of low-slung belts, tiered gipsy skirts and straw cowboy hats – and out they went, along with a look equally beloved of Kate Moss, and style-mongers from Elle Macpherson to the Olsen twins. Few of us were sorry to kiss goodbye to what had turned into an identikit head-to-toe look.

Foho, is a luxury take on a bohemian look. Part peasant, part Cossack, part sex-goddess rock chic. And it’s here for the colder months of 2008/2009 – largely thanks to an outstanding collection by Frida Giannini for Gucci’s Fall (Autumn) / Winter 2008/2009 women’s collection and men’s collection. Looks from Gucci, Naeem Khan, and Anna Sui

The Foho folk aesthetic wouldn’t be complete without flares. The faded, flared jean has rapidly usurped the skinny jean and has been spotted on Kylie Minogue, Penelope Cruz and Billie Piper.

The Key Elements:

• Billowy white peasant shirts
• Fringed boots
• Folk-inspired tooled leather pieces
• Embroidery and paisley prints
• Charm / coin belts and jewelry
• Luxurious fur or fur-trimmed pieces
• Fringed long skinny scarves
• Bed hair and smudged smoky eye-makeup

My life, has always been a traveling caravan of cultural mix though my friends know, I am often called the gypsy. Whether I lived in New York City, Milan or São Paulo, I never forgot my Mediterranean and Oriental ancestry. India and Turkey and Spain have always been in my unconscious manifesting the way I  dress and wear jewelry. Tibetan nomads, Thai dancers and Burma monks have been my life’s inspiration when it came to organize the space I worked on my returns.

Today, we are becoming so global that it is not so difficult to feel each other cultures through the way we dress, and express ourselves. We want to feel we touch each other, going to eat a sushi in New York City, wearing the last Retro Russian look pants from Gucci and our grandfather’s vintage floral print shirt. Many models and stars not only adopted the trend but created their personal  look through  the inspired collection.

Among them Danish supermodel Helena Cristensen who  just launched her own folk-inspired fashion label with her friend Lief Sigersen. The Christensen & Sigersen range, sold in the UK for the first time this season at Net-a-porter.com, includes white cotton (organic, of course) puff-sleeved peasant blouses and pretty sun-dresses with crochet trims and velvet ribbon belts

Milla Jovovich, another hippie at heart, has packed her first own label collection for Mango with retro, folky pieces such as floor-length tiered dresses with crochet or lace trims, dreamy washed out floral prints and denim flares. Topshop has produced a version styled on vintage Chloé, while the revival was led by the aptly named Woodstock jean by 18th Amendment.

Admittedly, some designers, such as arch-bohemians Consuelo Castiglione, of Marni, and Dries Van Noten, have ditched the folksy aesthetic for a more urban sportiness.

Beyond her micro-mini party dresses there are wide studded belts, twinkling coin-covered waistcoats, Ibiza-style hippie-embroidered bikinis and kaftans, floor-length bias-cut jersey skirts and, of course, the model’s signature suede moccasin boots. Elsewhere there are floral-print patchwork tops and dresses by Kimchi + Blue at Urban Outfitters and more upscale versions from Chloé, based on Gloria Vanderbilt‘s handicrafts from the Seventies.

It’s rare that Paris Hilton is a style role model but even she has recently paired a crochet-trimmed dress with sexier high heels and glossy sunglasses to good effect.
Chic gladiator sandals are a far more feminine alternative to the now highly naff cowboy boot. If you must invest in one of Prada‘s fringed suede or leather shoulder bags, try not to go overboard. Miu Miu‘s more subtly boho tie-dye bags are far cooler in any case.
Keep hair groomed and avoid Jessica Simpson-style tumbling curls or Heidi-esque plaits at all costs.

Joelle’s Picks

Shop Foho fashion on line:

• Topshop
  
• Mango
• Net-a-Porter
• Urban Outfitters
• The Gladiator sandals

The Designers:

• Gucci
• Naeem Khan
• Anna Sui
• Marni
• Dries Van Noten

The photography was taken by me on my visit, to give you a better sense of what this is really like… But if you wish, once in a lifetime, to take a trip and go back in time, this surely is the place to be.

The Meridian Room is spectacular. One of the most imposing roofed rooms in Europe, its construction was begun between 1612 and 1615 but was hindered by structural problems and was only completed in 1804. It’s also the place where the G7 dinner took place back in 1994.

Ancient Naples : The collection is arranged in chronological order, contains some of the most important finds from the cemetery of Parthenope, the first Rhodian or more probably Cuman settlement situated on the hill of Pizzofalcone – which was occupied from the mid-seventh century to the mid-sixth century BC and from Greek and Roman Naples.

Frescoes and Mosaics from Pompeii:The collection, one of the most famous in the Naples museum in terms of the wealth of evidence, comprises part of the paintings detached from the houses of Pompeii and the surrounding area between the mid-eighteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth, and it represents an exceptional insight into the development of Roman painting from the Late Republic to the Empire.

House of the Faun
The mosaics of the House of the Faun represent the most precious part of the Neapolitan collection in terms of quality and figurative variety and the fame which followed its discovery. The splendid works on display include the famous “mosaic of Alexander”, depicting the battle between Alexander the Great and Darius III.

Magna Grecia

The collection comprises a significant amount of materials discovered during the excavations carried out in the southernmost regions of the Bourbon Kingdom, ancient Magna Graecia, or which came to the Naples museum, especially in the nineteenth century, either through the acquisition or donation of antiquarian collections; of these, one of the most important and largest is the Santangelo Collection.

Farnese Collection -Sculptures , Bath of Caraca, Roman Busts -Stunning!!
This important collection of antiquities, begun by Alessandro Farnese, the future Pope Paul III, was formed in the sixteenth century, as a result of the purchase and confiscation of the collections of noble families, donations and, above all, by finds from excavations conducted on behalf of the Farnese family in Rome.

Finally… The Secret Cabinet
The collection, known historically as the “Gabinetto Segreto” (Secret Room), consists of a series of materials with an erotic theme assembled during the eighteenth century.

However, they were removed from public view for a long period because they were considered obscene and therefore became famous and an object of curiosity. One of the most famous pieces is the marble group with Pan and a goat, which was found in Villa dei Papiri in Herculaneum.

Ancient Roman culture had no sense of a shameful nature for all sexuality, and viewed sexually explicit material very differently to most present-day cultures. Ideas about obscenity developed from the 18th century to the present day into a modern concept of pornography. Although the excavation of Pompeii was initially an Enlightenment project, once artifacts were classified through a new method of taxonomy, those deemed obscene and unsuitable for the general public were termed pornography and in 1819 they were locked away in a Secret Museum.

These even included the un-explicit statue Venus Kallipygos, only erotic to 18th and 19th century eyes due to her partial nudity and the exposure of her eponymous “beautiful buttocks”. At Pompeii, locked metal cabinets were constructed over erotic frescos, which could be shown, for a modest additional fee, to gentlemen but not to ladies.

This peep show was still in operation at Pompeii in the 1960s . The cabinet was only accessible to “people of mature age and respected morals”, which in practice meant only educated males. The catalogue of the secret museum was also a form of censorship, where engravings and descriptive texts played down the content of the room.

The excavation of Pompeii was important to a range of powerful, and often conflicting, interests who saw the discovery of Pompeii as validating their own view of history, but at the same time excluded anything that did not fit the preferred model. Later Mussolini saw the excavation of Pompeii as validating the continuity of a Nova Roma. The presence of sexually explicit material, however, was problematic.

Re-opened, closed, re-opened again and then closed again for nearly a hundred years, the secret room was briefly made accessible again at the end of the 1960s before being finally re-opened in the year 2000. Since 2005, the collection is kept in the Museo Archeologico in this separate room. Enjoy the photo gallery!

Joelle’s Tips:

The Museum: Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli : Piazza Museo, 19 Napoli / hours : 9.00 – 20.00/ Closed on Tuesdays – Tel. + 39.081.440166 – Fax 039.081.440013- e-mail: sanc@interbusiness.it