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Day: 29 April 2017

Second edition of artmonte-carlo returns to Grimaldi Forum

by: Cassandra Tanti
29/04/2017
Photo: artemonte-carlo
Photo: artemonte-carlo

After a highly successful first edition in 2016, artmonte-carlo is back this weekend with 37 galleries of contemporary and modern art, fourteen invited exhibitions and four curated shows at the Grimaldi Forum.

Organised by Palexpo, and under the High Patronage of Prince Albert and the direction of Thomas Hug, the salon “aims to create a dialogue between a selection of renowned international galleries and a programme of institutional and curated exhibitions with a strong regional identity”.

New this year, contemporary art on a private boat is a special section of artmonte-carlo, and New York- and Berlin-based curator Mohammad Salemy will show “This is the Sea”, a group show with fifteen international artists on a private yacht at Port Hercule.

The Prix Off artmontecarlo–F.P.Journe will be awarded for the best presentation by a jury made up of key figures of the European art scene, including Marie-Claude Beaud (Nouveau Musée National de Monaco) and Olivier Gabet (Musée des Arts Décoratifs de Paris).

Artmonte-carlo, which counts amongst its partners, F.P.Journe, Ruinart, sabrina monte-carlo, Monaco Boat Service – Riva and the Société Monégasque de Transports, will also be hosting a concert celebrating Philip Glass’ 80th birthday, on Saturday at 7 pm.

Artmonte-carlo runs from Saturday, April 29, to Sunday, April 30, noon to 8 pm. Tickets: adults €20 and €10 for students, seniors and 6-16s (under-6 are free). For more see the website or a full list of participating galleries and non-commercial programme can be found below.

Exhibiting galleries: Air de Paris (Paris), Almine Rech Gallery (Paris, Brussels, London), Art: Concept (Paris), Baró (Sao Paulo), Cortesi Gallery (Lugano, London), Esh Gallery (Milano), Gagosian Gallery (New York, Beverly Hills, San Francisco, London, Paris, Le Bourget, Roma, Athens, Geneva, Hong Kong), Galeria Filomena Soares (Lisbon), Galerie Barbara Thumm (Berlin), Galerie Catherine Issert (Saint-Paul-de-Vence), Galerie Chantal Crousel (Paris), Galerie Eva Meyer (Paris), galerie lange + pult (Zurich, Auvernier), Galerie Mitterrand (Paris), Galerie Natalie Seroussi (Paris), Galerie Sébastien Bertrand (Geneva), Galerie Xippas(Paris, Geneva, Montevideo, Punta del Este), Galleria Continua (San Gimignano, Beijing, Les Moulins, Havana), Galleria Franco Noero (Turin), Gallery ABC-Arte (Genova), GNYP (Berlin), Grob Gallery (Geneva), Horrach Moya (Palma de Mallorca), In Situ – Fabienne Leclerc (Paris), Jousse Entreprise (Paris), Marian Goodman Gallery (New York, Paris, London), MLF | Marie-Laure Fleisch (Roma, Brussels), Pablo’s Birthday (New York), Pace (New York, London, Beijing, Hong Kong, Paris, Palo Alto, Seoul), Photo & Contemporary (Turin), Robilant+Voena
(London, Milan, St Moritz), Setareh Gallery (Düsseldorf), Suzanne Syz Art Jewels (Geneva), Taste Contemporary (Geneva), The Breeder (Athens), Tornabuoni Art (Florence, Milan, Forte dei Marmi, Paris, London, Crans Montana), and Victoria Miro (London).

Objects, My Friends will feature an exceptional design exhibition curated by Martine Bedin, an original and innovating way of presenting design at the salon. The exhibition will include works from prestigious galleries and designers among which ammann//gallery, Antonia Jannone – Disegni di Architettura, David Gill Gallery, Dilmos Milano, Duilio Forte, Franco Raggi, Galerie Catherine Issert, Galerie Maria Lund, Galerie Natalie Seroussi, Galerie Patrick Seguin/Gagosian Gallery, Galleria Clio Calvi Rudy Volpi, Galleria Luisa delle Piane, Galleria Paola Colombari, Galleria Rossana Orlandi, Gate 5 Gallery, Irene Grazioli, Jean Nouvel Design, Laffanour – Galerie Downtown, Marco Ferreri, Michele De Lucchi, Piotr Sierakowski, Post Design Milano, Riva Venise, Sèvres – Cité de la céramique, and Taste Contemporary.

As part of its non-commercial programme, artmonte-carlo has invited institutions and non-profit art spaces: BeART (London), Delfina Foundation (Kiev), Espace de l’Art Concret
(Mouans-Sartoux), Fiorucci Art Trust (London, Monaco), Fondazione Volume (Roma), Fondazione Bonotto (Molvena), Fondazione SoutHeritage per l’arte contemporanea (Matera), Francis Bacon MB Art Foundation (Monaco), IZOLYATSIA. Platform for Cultural Initiatives (London), Les Rencontres Philosophiques de Monaco(Monaco), Lumière (Marseille), Nouveau Musée National de Monaco (Monaco),
Oracular / Vernacular (Marseille), SAM Art Projects (Paris), and Svetlana (New York).

Article first published April 29, 2017.

 

 

Monaco cyclists ride 140km from St-Tropez Sunday to support Princess’ Foundation

by: Cassandra Tanti
29/04/2017
Photo: Ed Wright Images
COCC St-Tropez to Monaco 2016. Photo: Ed Wright Images

It’s no secret that I’m an avid swimrunner and absolutely passionate about open water swimming. I am in the Mediterranean year-round, a minimum of three times a week and for at least 5 km a session, unless there’s a jellyfish infestation and I get grossed out, which happens once or twice a year. I’m not fast, by any means, but I am strong.

I swapped the 50-metre chlorine pool for the natural salty sea about three years ago, and have no regrets. It’s not a simple transition; you have to get used to all things living in the Med, some divine – a school of fish on a crystal-clear morning – and others, not so – like jellyfish, and the water can be face-burning cold and choppy. But it’s a glorious (and free) opportunity to connect with nature and I share my enthusiasm about swimming with anyone who’s willing to listen (and even those who aren’t).

Drowning: third leading cause of unintentional death globally
When I first heard about the Princess Charlene Foundation, which was set up five years ago with the goal to educate children in water safety and provide swimming lessons, I was all for supporting the cause. However, at first glance I presumed it was related to France, which has the highest rate in the world of infant death by drowning in swimming pools – “between 15 and 20 children aged up to five are killed every year in pool accidents”.

Even France’s former Prime Minister, Jean Pierre Raffarin, lost a relative to drowning, a precursor to the Raffarin Law, obliging all in-ground private pools on every French property to install from January 1, 2006, one of four types of pool safety features, with a penalty of €45,000 for those failing to do so.

But the Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation isn’t about swimming safety along the Mediterranean coast. She promotes her global project in 30 countries, including South Africa, which is far away from France with its highest number of swimming pools in the European market.

I’ve heard heartbreaking stories about how African children drown on the way to school, when a flash flood arrives and they don’t know how to swim. Or when mothers are washing their clothes along the river, when suddenly the water rises and their children are swept away, without the basic knowledge of how to stay afloat and swim. There are no community pools to sign up young children for lessons. Think about that.

This “health problem”, as defined by the World Health Organisation (WHO), is not limited to the African continent. In fact, WHO reports that “drowning is the third leading cause of unintentional injury death worldwide, accounting for 7% of all injury-related deaths”, which results in an estimated 372,000 annual drowning deaths globally.

According to WHO, “Drowning death rates are highest in the WHO African Region, and are 10-13 times higher than those seen in the United Kingdom or Germany respectively.”

Princess Charlene and her Foundation have their work cut out for them.

COCC St-Tropez to Monaco 2015
COCC St-Tropez to Monaco 2015

The early years of Champagne and Oysters Cycling Club
Naturally, when I learned about the 140 km St-Tropez to Monaco charity bike ride, which takes place this year on Sunday, April 30, organised by the Champagne and Oyster Cycling Club (COCC), in aid of the Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation, I knew I had to dust off my bike and pedal for a cause I firmly believe in.

I met with Damian Crean, McLaren Property Services in Monaco, to get a little background about the COCC ride, now in its sixth edition, and to see what non-riders can do to contribute.

I was surprised to learn that the idea for the ride actually stems from Movember, the annual campaign in November that encourages men to grow out their moustache to raise awareness about “men’s health issues, such as prostate cancer, testicular cancer and men’s suicide”. One of the now regular COCC St-Tropez-Monaco riders put forward the idea of doing something more active than growing facial hair, and so the first ride in 2011 came to be, and supported a cancer charity.

After the inaugural year with its seven riders, other friends wanted to join, as did Prince Albert, and so the group decided to support a local charity, the Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation.

On the first training ride, which was about 30 km, 20 cyclists including the Prince “set out on a sensible ride” and on the way back, they stopped at their regular café at Place d’Armes, when a new hut was spotted serving Champagne and Oysters. This seemed more tempting than coffee. One of the riders decided this would be a fitting name – The Champagne and Oyster Cycling Club – or COCC for short. Since then, over 500 riders, from ages 15 to 60, have participated in the COCC St-Tropez to Monaco ride. In previous years celebrities such as Eddie Jordan, Jenson Button, Daniel Ricciardo, Mika Hakkinen, Paul di Resta, David Coulthard, Baden Cook, Matt Goss, Tiffany Cromwell, Thor Hushovd, Mario Cipollini, Lizzie Armitstead, Veronica Larsson, Modesta Vžesniauskaitė Byron Kellerer, and Caroline Coor have all taken part and given their support to the Foundation.

Schermata+2016-04-25+a+16.19.23

A day you’ll want to be a part of
The ride on April 30 starts in St-Tropez around 8 am, and finishes at Stars’n’Bars in Monaco, give or take, 9 hours later. The entry fee is €1,000, of which €700 goes to the Foundation directly, while the rest covers the annual kit, insurance, and a one-year membership with Monaco Cycling Club. It also includes mechanical backup plus water and energy supplies along the route. Brunch at the half-way point, which this year will be at a spectacular penthouse apartment at a John Caudwell development, is also part of the deal. As is the post-cycle street party at Slammers Pub (6 Rue Suffren Reymond) with a barbeque and live music that will go on for most of the night (Monday is a bank holiday!).

For those not racing, you can buy tickets from Terry at Slammers for €75 – which covers the party and a donation to the Foundation. Anyone interested in becoming a sponsor or securing a place on next year’s COCC’s iconic cycling shirts, should see the sponsors’ page.

A Monaco charity that makes a difference worldwide
Monies raised from this year’s COCC charity cycle will go towards a first aid and CPR training complex in Loumbila, Burkina Faso, a joint project with the Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation, the Monaco Red Cross and the Burkinabe Red Cross. The facility will include an Aquatic Rescue Center, as financed by the Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation, to allow the training of “rescuers and lifeguards from Burkina Faso and other countries in the region”. Director of Aquatic Rescue Center of Monaco, Pierre Frolla, an ambassador to the Foundation, as well as four-time freediving world record holder, will oversee the development.

The mission will include a water-safety programme and swimming lessons available to the thousand local high school students, many of whom have never had an opportunity to be in a pool, but are often at risk of drowning during floods.

This is the first time I’m trying to raise money for a cause through a sport event, and I’m a little nervous. I’ve always been in awe of people like Monaco-based Ben Rolfe, who, since learning of his young daughter’s diabetes diagnosis a few years ago, has been tackling endurance races to raise money for Diabetes UK. He sets up his own Justgiving page and gets the word out about what he’s doing (which at the moment, is racing the Marathon des Sables with his 17-year-old daughter). I’m not that organised, so for my first fundraising go it’s easier to piggyback off COCC’s donation’s page.

I’ve set a goal of €1,000, which will go towards the Burkinabe Red Cross and the Aquatic Rescue Center, and donations can be made online.

For those who think that Monaco is only full of rich people, in addition to the 38,000 residents, there are 55,000 people who work in the Principality. We are not all rich with deep pockets. We are a regular community, united by sport for a good cause. It just happens to be in Monaco, with its “champagne wishes and caviar dreams” lifestyle.

Article first published March 9, 2017. Feature image: Ed Wright Images.

 

 

 

 

Design exhibit at Karl Lagerfeld’s former villa ends Sunday

by: Cassandra Tanti
29/04/2017
Villa La Vigie
Villa La Vigie

La Vigie, one of Monaco’s historic villas, will be hosting a travelling design showcase from April 27-30. The target audience will be collectors, interior designers, architects, and art and design professionals, according to the organisers.

La Vigie was built in 1902 for the British publishing magnate Sir William Ingram and was a meeting place for French Riviera high society at the turn of the century. Other noted residents include Karl Lagerfeld, who lived here in the 1990s.

A grouping of international galleries have joined together to show contemporary design from the Middle East, Russian porcelain and Brazilian Modernism, to name a few of the themes. A Special Projects section will feature Serpentine Galleries and an installation of jewellery and sculpture by Christophe Graber; a talks and events programme will be held in the gardens.

NOMAD was founded by Giorgio Pace, a publishing, art and luxury brand specialist, who has staged projects and events with partners from Garage Museum of Contemporary Art to Rick Owens to Pierre Huyghe, and Nicolas Bellavance-Lecompte, co-founder and art director of Carwan Gallery in Beirut. As the name suggests, NOMAD will travel to a number of destinations of architectural significance that will further explore design and context.

Article first published February 26, 2017.

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The Women of Monaco Life, A Series: Johanna Rossi

by: Cassandra Tanti
29/04/2017

johanna rossi

Johanna Rossi, Founder of Raising Women

ML: How did you end up in Monaco?
JR: I am British, born and raised in West Sussex, and went on to study Art and Design and then Interior Architecture at the University of Brighton. There I met my husband, who was born in Monaco, and so I came here for love.

ML: You came to Monaco with your boyfriend-now-husband. What were your first impressions and was it easy to integrate into the community?
JR: When I first visited Monaco I was taken aback by its beauty and the magnificence of the surrounding area. I moved here 16 years ago and was very much surrounded by my husband’s friends, colleagues and family. I didn’t start to make my own “real” friends until I had children.

ML: What is something people would be surprised to learn about Monaco?
JR: I think just how much Monaco has changed over the last ten years. I do feel rather sorry for tourists as they negotiate the endless building and road works.

ML: Favourite place to take your kids to eat?
JR: As a family we don’t hang out much in Monaco, we use it as our home base and at the weekends we head over the border to Italy or up to the Turbie or Peille.

ML: You launched Raising Women in September. What were your goals when starting out and what were you most afraid of about starting your own business?
JR: My life has been a series of choices, some good and some bad, that have led me on a journey to where I am today. I’ve learnt who I am and why I am here. I’m driven by a need to belong, and to have a sense of true purpose and fulfilment. One of the main goals behind Raising Women was to create a community in which to inspire and motivate other mums to understand what they’re truly passionate about and to work out how they could use this passion in a unique way.

I’ve worked out that my purpose is to “encourage” which was one of the driving factors in creating Raising Women. I believe that we should all be allowed to be ourselves and be able to express our beliefs to the world, in our own way.

The thing I was most afraid of when I started was “Am I making the right decision?” But deep down you know, and you have to try.

ML: Tell us about how Raising Women works.
JR: Raising Women is a connected and supportive community helping women balance motherhood and becoming who they were meant to be. I’m creating a community, launching podcasts and I continue to coach clients.

The community is going to be built on women sharing personal written stories of self-discovery through motherhood, which will be posted every fortnight on the website. I’ve also created a Facebook group where women in the community can connect.

On the podcast, I interview the women behind the stories and find out more about their businesses and how they balance motherhood with being a “mumpreneur”.

Through my coaching, I work with women who either want to start their journey of self-discovery and would like support, or with women who already have a business and need help finding balance.

I have many goals for my business, but my immediate goals are to build the community and connect and support as many like-minded mamas as possible.

ML: When you refer to coaching, what does this entail and who would benefit?
JR: Yes I coach women through the journey of self-discovery that is motherhood. I know how it feels to be a mother and I’m just a little further along than the women I coach. I do one-off sessions and one-on-one mentoring packages that are carried out over a two-month period. I’m also working on a Signature program that will be in the form of a downloadable eBook.

ML: Why do new mums need a network?
JR: I think new mums just look for someone to understand. As a new mum you are so confused, and you are trying to make sense of so many things. Everything has changed over night and that is so destabilising, I think as new mothers, we just look for some one who can relate to what we are going through and feeling.

johanna

ML : You’re a busy mom! You also launched an online store, The Shop, that is linked to Care International UK.
JR: Raising Women is also about giving back. I consider myself lucky to have had an education and thus the tools to go on to further educate myself and do what I do. I wanted to help give other women this opportunity, and that is why I chose Care International UK as a charity. I created a T-shirt collection for women in the community to wear as a sign of support and €5 from every women’s tee and €3 from every girl’s tee will be donated to Care International.

ML: What’s the hardest part of running your own business?
JR: The hardest part of running your own business for me is keeping focused. I have a very creative brain so I come up with lots of ideas that I want to execute. You have to learn timing and knowing what is right for your business in that moment.

ML: What is a typical day for you?
JR: My day starts just before 7. We have the before school routine, breakfast, getting kids ready and out the door. My days differ, I go to have acupuncture therapy at least twice a week at the start of the day and then I will either see clients, have a podcast to record or be at my desk working on client files, preparing features or dealing with orders. I try and wind my day up for the school pick up and then I go into “mama mode” for dinner, baths, play, stories and bed. I also have my evening rituals of making sure I’m very much prepared for the morning: workbag packed, kids snacks and sports bags ready, clothes laid out. It helps so much with the morning routine. Then I’ll try to be in bed between 10 to 11 pm.

ML: What is the best/hardest part of aging as a woman?
JR: Well until I read this question I didn’t really consider myself as ageing. I know I am, but at the same time I feel like life is just beginning for me in so many ways. I would love to think that as I age I just learn to feel more and more at ease with my journey.

ML: What is something you’ve always wanted to do?
JR: There are so many things I would love to do. But two things comes to mind: the first is write a book about what I have learnt, and the second is that I’ve always wanted to give lectures to young women in their late teens. I think when we leave college and set about our lives there is so much focus on grades and what we did well at, and not enough emphasis on what we actually enjoy and what comes most naturally to us. Then we head out into jobs that are demanding and are perhaps unsuitable and we start to lose our sense of self gradually in return for the steady pay cheque. However the thought of public speaking fills me with dread!

ML: Best piece of advice another woman gave you?
JR: To ask myself who did I want my children to see when they looked at me. That was a game changer for me.

ML: What has motherhood taught you about yourself?
JR: Motherhood has taught me how important sense of self is.

Article first published November 2, 2016.

READ ALSO: The Women of Monaco Life, A Series: Margaret Hepburn