Her Royal Highness the Princess of Hanover in her capacity as President of the World Association of Children’s Friends (AMADE), along with her daughter-in-law Beatrice Casiraghi and members of AMADE’s Board of Directors, visited Campo Roya, a migrant reception camp in Ventimiglia, the Italian border town, on Thursday, April 12.
Photo: Facebook Palais Princier de Monaco
There they met the unaccompanied minor migrants and families supported by the association.
Princess Caroline saw for herself the mother-child space in the Ventimiglia Prefectural Camp, which was opened at the beginning of the year thanks to AMADE, as part of its initiatives to help unaccompanied minors, an undertaking performed in partnership with the Monaco Red Cross.
Various institutions of the Principality met on the Rock on Thursday, April 19, in the presence of Prince Albert to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the birth of François-Joseph Bosio, the exceptionally talented Monegasque sculptor and painter.
The commemoration started at 18 rue Comte Félix Gastaldi – formerly called “Carrugiu d’u mita” – where Bosio was born in 1768. Thomas Fouilleron, Director of Archives and Library of the Prince’s Palace, briefly provided a history of the artist before the procession continued to “Piaçeta Bosio”.
Photo: Facebook Gouvernement Monaco
Mayor Georges Marsan, accompanied by two students from the Lycée Albert I, warmly welcomed the Sovereign and the representatives of the high Monegasque institutions to pay homage to this immense artist whose notoriety extends far beyond the borders of the Principality.
Mayor Georges Marsan recalled how much of Bosio’s work had been appreciated by the different French monarchs of his time – Napoleon, Kings Louis XVIII, Charles X and Louis Philippe – who all commissioned work from the artist. In Paris in particular, including the statue of Louis XIV on Place des Victoires, his works are today an integral part of the architectural landscape of the French capital.
Photo: Facebook Gouvernement Monaco
The Mayor also reminded those present that in 1969 the Principality attached the name of Bosio to its school of art. The School of Visual Arts, which trains young artists of the future every year, is also known as “Pavillon Bosio”.
The younger generation joined in on the tribute to the great artist through an exhibition, “FJB on the Rocks”. Thursday’s commemoration continued with a visit to this exhibition, which consists of twelve photographs, the result of the work of the second-year students of Pavillon Bosio, printed on large format, highlighted along the promenade of the Jardins Saint Martin. In each photograph, the students took to the stage alongside a sculpture by FJ Bosio with the pictorial works of his brother, Jean-François Bosio, himself a painter.
Photo: Facebook Gouvernement Monaco
Finally, the procession went to the School of Fine Arts, admiring the sculpture by Bosio, the Nymph, outside the Ministry of State. Another nymph, the Nymph Salmacis, belonging to the collections of the New National Museum of Monaco, was then previewed by all the guests gathered at Pavillon Bosio: this work, specially commissioned to the Austrian artist Oliver Laric to mark the anniversary, will join Villa Paloma.
The visuals made by the students of Pavillon Bosio will remain all summer along the Jardins Saint-Martin, between the Oceanographic Museum and the Cathedral.
Heidi Saman, Princess Grace Awards Foundation-USA, was named one of Filmmaker Magazine’s 25 New Faces to Watch. Photo: Facebook IEFTA
The Monaco-based International Emerging Film Talent Association (IEFTA) returns for this year’s 71st Cannes Film Festival, which runs from May 8-19, with new initiatives.
With its mission to discover, nurture and empower budding filmmakers from emerging economies, IEFTA once again, in partnership with the Marché du Film and its Producers Network and Industry Workshops programmes, will bring filmmakers to the South of France for a career-developing trip to Cannes.
This is the first year of IEFTA’s new partnership with the Princess Grace Foundation-USA to sponsor one of their Award-winning filmmakers in Cannes. Prince Albert, Vice-Chairman of the Foundation, said: “The Princess Grace Foundation-USA has identified and supported some of the most talented, ground-breaking filmmakers in America.
“This year, the Foundation partners with IEFTA to afford Princess Grace Award-winning filmmaker, Heidi Saman, the opportunity to participate in Cannes’ Marché du Film Producers Network. Offering Heidi this chance to promote her film, The Armenian Club, aligns with IEFTA’s mission to advocate for diverse filmmakers from around the world. We look forward to this being the first of many collaborations to come.”
While it’s the eighth year that the association’s Global Film Expression (GFE) program, which provides opportunity and education to those with little to no access to resources for cinematic expression, will be presented in Cannes, this year marks the first time that GFE filmmakers from Egypt and Palestine will attend through IEFTA’s support of the El Gouna Film Festival programme focusing on emerging talent from the Middle East.
Also during the Cannes Film Festival, IEFTA will present a documentary work-in-progress. Beyond The Raging Sea follows the harrowing tale of two Egyptian world-class athletes and adventurers, Omar Samra and Omar Nour – affectionately known as O2 – as they take on the world’s toughest row, an unsupported, perilous 3,000 nautical mile journey from the Canary Islands to Antigua. The extreme journey is part of an annual ocean-rowing race called the Atlantic Challenge. They didn’t make it.
Sponsored by DHL, Team O2 dedicated their row to raising awareness of the global refugee crises. In an ironic twist, Nour and Samra faced the same dangers, terrors and decisions of those they meant to recognise and relieve. In this film, an elite adventure introduces us to extraordinary people in exceptional circumstance, navigating existential threats and gruelling ordeals, fighting for survival and what comes after.
The screening and a panel will be Saturday, May 12, from noon to 1:50 pm in Palais K in the Palais des Festivals.
On Friday, April 20, nearly twenty third-grade students from Fontvieille were received by President Stéphane Valeri and Marc Mourou, President of the Commission for Education and Youth, at the National Council building on the Rock.
The children took their places in the seats of the elected representatives from which they followed a tailored presentation of the role and the functioning of the Assembly.
Photo: Facebook Conseil National de MonacoPhoto: Facebook Conseil National de Monaco
This followed a very lively exchange between elected officials and the children on how to vote, on the role of the National Councillors, on the operation of the building itself, on the laws passed by the assembly, as well as on the work of the professionals who assist the elected representatives on a daily basis.
The pupils asked many questions and wanted to find out how to become a member of the National Council and even President of the Assembly. Several children announced their intention to want to become National Councillors when they are older.
A newly-published comic book, from the Explora Collection, devotes 54 pages to the exceptional life of Prince Albert I, the pioneer of modern oceanography and great-great-grandfather of the current Prince of Monaco.
This is a story of a committed life, involving science and adventure, and traces a 30-year epic career, from the Mediterranean to the Arctic regions, led by the man who came to be called “Prince of the Sea”.
By entrusting the production of the book to Editions Glénat, with the assistance of the Archives of the Prince’s Palace, the Oceanographic Institute pursues the mission of its founder: to unite Art and Science and to better publicise, love and protect the oceans.
The comic strip combines story telling with images by the illustrator Sandro, and is a form of artistic expression in its own right, serving the marine world and the history of the Principality.
The album was presented for the first time at the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco, on Wednesday, April 18, in the presence of Prince Albert. A round table on the meaning of exploration in the 21st century completed the launch, with speakers Robert Calcagno, Director of the Oceanographic Museum, Christian Clot, explorer and director of the Explora collection, and Olivier Archambeau, from the Société des Explorateurs Français.
ML: As co-owner of INLINE Technologies Group, one of Russia’s largest IT companies, you were contacted by a friend about the idea for the world’s first sustainable caviar. What made you decide to switch from IT in Russia to producing caviar in Switzerland?
KS: I like challenges and new projects and I enjoy doing business in different countries. Yet for some reason, until Kasperskian, all my involvement has been within the IT industry, probably because I was comfortable in a field where I had 27 years of experience.
When my Swiss friend, Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, called me six years ago with a proposal, my first reaction was: “Why are you calling me about caviar?”
He replied that I am Russian and caviar should be in my heart. On top of that he offered to participate in a unique project which had not yet been done anywhere in the world – the production of the first truly sustainable, cruelty-free, fresh caviar – and without have to kill any fish. It was a new endeavour, and I accepted it.
Moreover my partner Peter is the former chairman and CEO of the Nestlé Group – and former chairman of Formula One – and an environmental enthusiast who knows probably better than anybody else in the world how to produce and market high-end organic food. So it would have been silly on my part to walk away from such an opportunity.
ML: How is sustainable caviar and its taste different from regular caviar? KS: The taste is a little bit different because if you kill fish you extract eggs two weeks before natural spawning. In our case, we do it at the time of natural spawning and so over these two weeks the eggs become bigger, the skin thinner and the texture more creamy.
In general the size of our sturgeon caviar is almost the same size as beluga caviar but the taste is much more gentle. That is why, for example, we add just a hint of salt to our caviar – to emphasise the caviar’s unique taste, not that of the taste. Caviar connoisseurs truly love it.
ML: Traditionally, there have been 4 types of processing methods for caviar – Malossol, Salted Caviar, Pressed Caviar and Pasteurized Caviar. How does Kasperskian caviar differ? KS: This is a bit of a mix up of different types of caviar classification. Essentially, caviar can be pressed or granule. Pressed caviar was popular a couple hundreds of years ago when cooling systems had not yet been invented and logistics were not developed. The production was tsimply: fresh caviar was pressed and squeezed out and then mixed with a lot of salt and pressed again. As a result you had very salty cubes of pressed caviar, which could be kept without refrigeration for years. Now it is less than 2% of caviar production and it’s very hard to find.
Granular is the caviar that we usually see in the shop windows. All other caviar classification is tied into granular.
Malossol and Salted is the same granular caviar but Malossol has less salt content than Salted: 5% compared to 8 percent.
Then caviar can be fresh or pasteurized. Pasteurized caviar is usually quite cheap caviar with a shelf life of up to two years. Actually it’s boiled caviar, not live.
Fresh caviar has the most flavour and is most expensive in production, has a shorter shelf live and its real taste is not obscured by a lot of salt. And this is exactly what we produce.
Co-Founders of Kasperskian Caviar Peter Brabeck-Letmathe and Konstantin Sidorov
The fish live in different pools. Baby fish pools, for young fish up to 2 years old, and then major pools for mature fish.
Kasperskian Caviar HQ in Switzerland
ML: The International Union for Conservation of Nature placed 18 species of sturgeon on its Red List of Threatened Species, making the sturgeon “the most endangered group of species on Earth”. Tell us about Kasperskian’s sturgeons and their dwelling in Leuk, Switzerland. KS: We have two types of sturgeon: Siberian Oscietra and Russian Oscietra. On average, they live 20 years. It’s possible to get the first caviar from 5- to 6-year-old Siberian Oscietra and from Russian Oscietra when it is 6 to 7 years old.
We believe that we treat them in the best possible way, which reflects in different certificates from the Swiss Veterinary Services (probably the strictest regulations for endangered species in the world), as well as from WWF.
The fish live in different pools. Baby fish pools, what we call the kindergarten area, for young fish up to 2 years old, and then major pools for mature fish.
Also, we have dedicated “spa pools” with special jet currents and bubbles where female fish can recover after caviar milking. When my wife saw this facility, she told me that the fish get better care than she did after giving birth to our children!
ML: Is it true that caviar sells for $35,000 a kilo? How does your caviar compare in price? KS: Yes some types of albino caviar from beluga may cost $35,000 a kilo but it’s a quite rare caviar even though the flavour is almost the same as regular caviar. Therefore it’s for people who are prepared to pay for something one-of-a-kind and not for taste.
Our caviar is much more affordable and cost about $3,000 per kilo retail.
ML: Who are the biggest consumers of caviar? KS: The biggest consumers of caviar are probably Russians and Russia is probably the largest producer of caviar, although they consume almost everything they produces making it a very closed market.
Unfortunately the quality of Russian caviar nowadays has dropped as consumers tend to buy a cheaper product. Today, when sales of caviar from wild fish is prohibited and 97% of caviar on the market is from farmed fish the traditional idea that the best caviar in the world is from Russia or Iran is totally wrong.
I believe that the best caviar is produced in countries with the strictest regulations for animal care. For example, our philosophy is “happier fish – better caviar”.
And this in not only our position: Regulatory and veterinary authorities control each step of our production: how we treat the fish, how they live, how we milk them during caviar extraction, how we feed them, etc. It would be impossible to imagine this type of regulation in, say, China. And, of course, many producers who do not have such standards, tend to cut costs by making compromises on the food they feed to the fish, the fish density in pools or lakes, and the general treatment of fish.
ML: Where can people buy Kasperskian caviar? KS: Nearly everywhere in Switzerland, including Globus and Migros food retailers and several renowned hotels – including among others the Mandarin Oriental, Ritz, Badrutt’s Palace, Fairmont Le Montreux Palace. We can also be found in Michelin-star restaurants in Paris, Zurich, Geneva and Munich.
In London, we work with private clubs like RAC, 67 Pall Mall and Café Royal.
In Monaco we are looking for a partner who would be able to import our products into the country and help us in developing our sales here.
ML: What is the biggest mistake people make when buying or eating caviar? KS: I have four suggestions. One: Before you open a tin carefully look at the label and check to see if there are any additives or preservatives in the caviar. If you find such additives as borax, E-285 or E-286 do not buy this caviar. Borax is dangerous and banned in food in the US and Japan. Some producers add it to increase the caviar’s shelf life and decrease its costs accordingly. To be safe, buy only caviar that consists of fish roe and salt.
Two: When you open the tin make a visual check. Mixed colour is usually better then monocolour and fish are not machines so the eggs should be a little different. Then the eggs should have round form and are not squashed. If you see notice some eggs look like blown little balls there is high probability that the caviar is not fresh and was frozen before. There should be no slime between eggs or on the tin’s lid – this is characteristic of poor quality caviar.
Three: Check if the caviar smells, especially fishy smell or seaweed odour. Good caviar should not have any smell.
Four: Try it. The caviar should taste like caviar, not like fish or seaweed, or too salty. Some producers cover up the lack of quality with salt.
ML: What is you favourite way to eat caviar? KS: If, like Kasperskian, the caviar is good, you can enjoy eating it on its own, with maybe a couple of small neutral-flavour crackers, toast with unsalted butter or boiled quail eggs.
However, our Instagram page has many mouth-watering, adventurous ideas on how to serve it.
Personally, I prefer to accompany Kasperskian caviar with either Champagne or a white wine like Meursault or Montrachet.
For more see www.kasperskian.com. All photos Instagram @kasperskian_cavia. Article first published March 20, 2018.
[/ihc-hide-content]
All the headlines and highlights from Monaco, direct to you every morning
