Explore Views August 2006
The latest news, views and events from bmi
Belgium
SHORE THING
BELGIUM IS THE COAST WITH THE MOST THIS SUMMER, THANKS TO A UNIQUE ART EXHIBITION
BELGIUM MAY NOT spring immediately to mind when you think of coastal hotspots, but this summer the 42-mile stretch of beach from De Panne to Knokke-Heist (one hour by train from Brussels) boasts more than just your average smattering of parasols and sunbathers. Elephants plod into the sea at De Panne, three giant babies crawl along the foreshore at Middlekerke and a piece of sky lies fallen in the sand at Nieuwpoort. They are among the works created especially or adapted by 30 international artists for Beaufort 2006, an innovative outdoor art exhibition that takes place once every three years on the Flemish coast. “I want to involve the whole coast in the act of supporting art,” says curator Willy Van den Bussche, Director of the Museum of Modern Art (PMMK) at Ostend. “I hope that some of the pieces will remain after the exhibition has fi nished, creating a whole park of outdoor art on the coastline”. Until 1 October; www.2006beaufort.be
France, Netherlands, US
TRASH CAN COUTURE
GOING GREEN HAS never been so trendy – now you can do your bit for the planet without losing your fashion credentials. Amsterdam-based company Ragbag have just won a European Business Award for the Environment for their range of products made out of plastic bags collected in the streets of New Delhi. Working in partnership with Conserve, a non-profi t waste management organisation based in Delhi, the scheme provides work for deprived people from New Delhi’s slums. The plastic waste they collect is pressed into thick sheets and lined with cloth. Ragbag collaborates with young European designers to then turn the material into a stylish range of bags and wallets. Prices start at w20 for wallets and w46 for bags. See www.ragbag.nl for stockist information.
Elsewhere, Ecoist’s range of bags (pictured), made from recycled candy wrappers, soda labels and movie posters, have taken the US by storm, appearing in such style bibles as Elle, Vogue and Vanity Fair.
Available in various styles, they cost $28-58. Now we all know a girl can never have enough bags, but should you need to justify the purchase, remember that Ecoist plant a tree for every bag sold.
Available in Chicago (1849 W North Avenue), Las Vegas (3500 Las Vegas Blvd S Ofc), the UK (40-44 Salisbury Street, Dorset) and online from www.ecoist.com
Watch this
The critically-acclaimed high school fi lm noir drama, Brick, is released this month on DVD. But passengers travelling on bmi longhaul fl ights to the UK can watch it now on Channel 1. (For services to and from Saudi Arabia, please see separate in-fl ight entertainment guide.)
OUT OF YOUR TREE
WHO SAYS MONEY doesn’t grow on trees? Adopt a truffl e tree and you could be on your way to a fortune – in culinary terms at least – in just a few years.
For £149 (w219), plus an annual maintenance fee of £35 (w49) after the first year, you can have your very own truffl e oak in rural France. Your tree stands on a 20-square-metre plot in a truffi ère in Le Gers, Gascony (an hour’s drive from Toulouse). Any truffl es found on your plot are yours to keep. You can either have them delivered to you for your own consumption or ask for them to be sold and collect the cheque at the end of the season – tempting, considering demand for the rare delicacies pushes prices up to w1,000 per kilo. It’s not for nothing that the French also refer to truffl es as ‘the black diamond’. But it’s not all about the money. Adopters are encouraged to come and visit their tree, maybe to do a spot of pruning or have a picnic beneath the branches. You’ll certainly be in good company: double-Oscar winner, Paul Haggis, the writer of Million Dollar Baby and Crash, received a truffl e tree for his birthday this year. +33 (0) 562 641 523; www.truffle-tree.co.uk
London, Chicago, Palma
LOSING THEIR HEADS
PROOF THAT BEAUTY REALLY IS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER?
WHAT MAKES SOMETHING art? And who decides? It’s an age-old debate, but the Royal Academy, London, suffered an embarrassing incident recently that added fuel to the fi re. When sculptor David Hensel went to see his piece, One Day Closer to Paradise, on display at the Academy as part of the annual Summer Exhibition, he was bemused to fi nd just the empty plinth – and no sign of the sculpture itself, a large laughing head. It transpired that the two had become separated during judging and, while the Academy thought the plinth to have artistic merit, the sculpture was rejected.
No laughing matter, you may think, but Hensel remains philosophical. “They say art refl ects society and this episode has caused a worldwide response of laughter, which matches the image,” he observes. The Times is to auction the sculpture, renamed Another Day Closer to Paradise to refl ect its adventures. The Summer Exhibition is on until 20 August. +44 (0)20 7300 8000; www.royalacademy.org.uk
BERRY HELPFUL
ARE YOU SUFFERING from RSI in your fingers? Can’t remember a time before technology ruled your life? You may be suffering from BlackBerry addiction. Guests checking into the Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers can seek relief thanks to the hotel’s new BlackBerry rehabilitation programme. Hotel manager and former BlackBerry addict Rick Ueno (left) is challenging guests to go cold turkey and reconnect with the real world. “I’ve been free of my BlackBerry for two months and it’s enabled me to focus on the hotel’s true priorities,” he states. “I’m proof that there is life after a BlackBerry.” Do you dare follow suit? +1 (877) 242 2558; www.sheratonchicago.com
LITTLE BLACK BOOK:
CARRER DE SANT NICOLAU, PALMA
TRENDY BOUTIQUES ABOUND IN A PART OF THE CITY WHERE COMMERCIAL MEETS COOL
| THOMAS SABO | BYOMBO | BOMBONERIA LA PAJARITA |
| German jeweller specialising in charm bracelets. There’s a huge selection of fabulous sterling silver charms, from which you can pick and choose to make up your own bracelets.
Calle Pelaires 13; +34 (0) 971 72 54 72; www.thomassabo.com |
Indian fabrics made up into beautiful women’s kaftans, silk scarves etc. Prices are reasonable – w50 will buy you a high quality, thick cotton kaftan.
Jovellanos 2, 07001 Palma; +34 (0) 971 71 62 51 |
The most famous charcuteria in Palma, founded in 1872. A wonderful deli that also stocks great sweets and chocolates.
Carrer de Sant Nicolau 2 |
