Mirko Mielke – abräume

Today sees the opening of the first solo exhibition of Berlin based photographer Mirko Mielke at gallery kvant. The exhibition shows two projects from his “documentation of disappearance” collection.

Since 2004 Mirko has pursued the disappearance of buildings and in his photography and installations, architecture becomes the picture carrier.  His work on the Berliner GDR Ministry for Health in Grunerstraße and the Plattenbauten in Marzahn Hellersdorf tells the story of the presence and absence of a building and its material remains.

A few more details can be found at the gallery kvant website.

Bar Tomate, Madrid

This ‘bar with kitchen’, from the owners of Hotel Omm in Barcelona, opened in the Chamberí neighbourhood of Madrid last week.  Situated very close to Plaza Colón, Bar Tómate takes its informal, dynamic and natural character from the original collage of materials and textures of its interior spaces.

One of the main ideas of the new project, carried out by Sandra Tarruella, was to connect the kitchen with the restaurant. This has been achieved by using a pantry shelf, cast from concrete, to create an industrial-looking storeroom. This element energizes the space and involves the guest in the process of food preparation. This also helps give the bar a more relaxed and vibrant aspect.

Tómate – meaning ‘take’ – bases its menu on Mediterranean dishes, using fresh quality products, and grouped into distinct categories: Tómate any time, suggestions to ‘pick at’ any time of the day, such as fried artichokes, Bhutan potatoes or asparagus tempura with Romesco sauce; Tómate from the Wood-fired Oven, dishes as suggestive as whole and semi-sweet tomatoes, veal carpaccio baked with wild herbs, or fontina, rocket and black truffle pizza; Tómate Green light, a light combination consisting of pickled tomato, tuna and seawater with a watercress, chatka, apple and ginger salad; Tómate of the Week, amongst the dishes of the day a country soup on Wednesday and truffled cannelloni au gratin; and for those who want more traditional home cooking, a classic Tómate Grupo Tragaluz, such as roast beef with mushroom sauce.

Rosa María Esteva and Tomás Tarruella founded the first Grupo Tragaluz restaurant, Mordisco, in 1987. With this latest opening in Madrid, and together with their new business partner Perico Cortés, they have created a new concept with Bar Tómate. The group, that has always been guided by intuition, looks to create new atmospheres and different ways of eating in each opening.

You will be able to check out more details on the restaurant at the Grupo Tragaluz website soon.  Check out their stunning Hotel Omm in Barcelona, home to their Michelin stared Moo Restaurant.

National Gallery Young Art Prize

Keren Cytter, Annette Helm, Omer-Fast and Danh Vo

In 2000 the Verein der Freunde der Nationalgalerie inaugurated the Preis der Nationalgalerie für Junge Kunst. With a financial grant of 50,000 Euros, the Prize is one of the most highly valued awards for contemporary art in Germany.

This year’s nominees, Keren Cytter, Annette Kelm, Omer Fast and Danh Vo are artists whose respective works are characterised by deep reflection about our perception and our relationship to art and society. However, the subjects and the approaches chosen by each of the artists could hardly be more different. As a result, the presentation of their works in the Hamburger Bahnhof museum (running until 03 January 2010) displays a large degree of diversity. Rarely used side rooms were purposefully included in the staging of the works.

Omer Fast, Nostalgia III

Omer Fast – this year’s prize winner, produced a film trilogy entitled “Nostalgia”, which in content and spatial dimension shows a sophisticated dramaturgy of its own. All three films are based on the real story of a West African refugee who is asking for asylum in London.

Keren Cyttter

Keren Cytter produced three new films for the exhibition; all of them are based on the idea of using some extreme news found on the internet. According to this news, three equally hair-raising stories happened at the beginning of the year 2009: A woman who gets up after being shot in the head and continues to live; a man who jumps twice from the fifth floor of a high-rise building and also survives; and finally, a man who is killed openly in the street by supposedly “eleven stabs with a knife in five seconds”.

Danh Vo

Danh Vo has planted a garden on the roof of the historical passageway using plants which former French missionaries introduced to Europe on their return from Vietnam. The artist ordered these plants from a special horticultural nursery in North Rhine-Westphalia; they may be regarded as descendants of the varieties that were originally introduced, among them predominantly different species of rhododendron.

Annette Kelm, "Michela Coffee Break 4"

Annette Kelm shows a selection of completely new works in a very clearly structured open presentation. The pictures themselves are full of riddles. What at a first glance may appear simple or even easily comprehensible is beginning to look weird and profound when taking a closer look. It always seems as if something inappropriate or absurd has crept into the pictures.

The exhibition runs until 03 January 2010 at Berlin’s beautiful Hamburger Bahnhof museum.  Full details of the Preis 2009 can be found by visiting their website.  The Lux 11 provides a great base from which to explore Berlin’s museum culture.

Hotel Skeppsholmen now open

Hotel Skeppsholmen

Following an epic launch weekend party, which we were privaledged to be able to attend, the Hotel Skeppsholmen in Stockholm is now alive and kicking.

Here is a short photo montage from our arrival.  More pictures can be found at the hotel’s official website (where you can also find 40% off all rooms until January 2010).

The Entrance

The Restaurant

This way, or that way?

Not you're average floor light

245

It's a bed

Byredo on tap

CI

If you want to get a feeling for the party, check out our friend over at Bon Voy-Go There, who was much better equipped than your iPhone toting writer.

Shirin Neshat. Women Without Men

Shirin Neshat – Women Without Men

One of the most prominent names in contemporary art, Shirin Neshat has since the beginning of the 1990s received much attention for her politically charged video works and photographs. Her art is characterised by powerful visual symbolism, centred on female identity and sexuality, oppression, power and despair – topical issues in light of recent events in Iran.

The exhibition at Kulturhuset in Stockholm opens 25th October, and presents the four-part video work Women without Men (2004–2008). Shirin Neshat’s film installation is based on the novel Women without Men by the Iranian author Shahrnush Parsipur, written in 1974 but not published until 1989. Parsipur’s provocative allegory of life in contemporary Iran was banned by the Islamic government and she was sent to prison.

More details can be found over at Kulturhuset.

If you need a hotel in Stockholm then check out the Hotel Skeppsholmen, or it’s sister the Hotel J on the waters edge in Nacka Strand.