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Month: May 2023

Prince Albert celebrates Roca Team’s Euroleague qualification as “One of the most historic matches”

by: Luke Entwistle
11/05/2023
AS Monaco Basket following their qualification for the Euroleague Final Four

The handshake between Oded Kattash and Sasa Obradovic, the coaches of Maccabi Tel Aviv and AS Monaco Basketball respectively brought to an end a gripping and historic series, which sees the Roca Team progress to the Euroleague Final Four for the first time in the club’s history, and all in front of Prince Albert II, who reacted to the historic feat post-match. 

The atmosphere throughout the evening was electric, albeit tinged with nervousness at moments, with the Roca Team not having things all their own way on their home court. The final buzzer was a cathartic and deafening moment in the Salle Gaston Médecin, with scenes of joy in the stands spilling onto the court in a beautiful communion between fans, players, and staff.

“One of the most historic matches”

Amongst them was Prince Albert II, who joined the players on the court post-match to celebrate the club’s historic achievement. However, it wasn’t just club history that was achieved on Wednesday night, but French basketball history, as Monaco became the first French side to progress to the Euroleague Final Four since 1997.

“It’s one of the most historic matches. It’s extraordinary,” began Prince Albert II in an interview with Skweek. “It was a difficult match for the nerves, but it had great intensity. The two teams were great, and we expected that it would be closely contested. We were able to manage our strong periods well and not fall into a trap.”

The final moments were particularly nail-biting for the Prince, who witnessed the accumulation of a decade’s work come down to just five minutes of basketball. “I was worried when we started committing fouls five minutes from the end, but the result is extraordinary. It’s good for French basketball and magnificent for Monaco. It showcases us brilliantly. The club was in the third division three years ago. No one believed or could even believe such a trajectory – me first and foremost,” he said.

Prince Albert II at AS Monaco Basket v Maccabi Tel Aviv
Prince Albert II at AS Monaco Basket v Maccabi Tel Aviv. Photo by Luke Entwistle, Monaco Life

Monégasque basketball rising from the shadows

Basketball has always lurked in the shadow of football within the borders of the Principality, but the sport has been fully embraced as part of Monaco’s packed and complex sporting matrix thanks to the club’s European exploits in recent years, which began with the EuroCup in 2021.

“A lot has been invested into this club, not just financially,” said Prince Albert, who was reflecting on the Roca Team’s meteoric rise. There is also a great dynamic with excellent players, a good group, and great staff. You see the passion that the team has aroused, even in a modestly-sized hall. You feel the fervent support from the loyal supporters. Personally, my passion for basketball has grown over the years. In Monaco, there was football, and now there is also basketball.”

“You have to believe until the end”

Prince Albert II is already looking ahead to the Final Four in Kaunas, where Monaco will face their old rival Olympiacos on 19th May, and the Sovereign is allowing himself to dream. “I’ll do everything possible to be at the Final Four in Lithuania. We are allowed to dream [of the title], but it will be very tough. There are some really brilliant teams and like any final(s), it will be a high-intensity match with huge stakes at the heart of it. You have to believe until the end,” he said.

Obradovic joked that he wasn’t thinking about the Final Four, “let me have this moment”, he joked to Skweek, but attention will soon turn to pulling off the ultimate feat, the pinnacle of European basketball  – winning the Euroleague.

 

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Photo credit: Michael Alesi / Palais Princier

John Chamberlain The Poetics of Scale in Monaco at Hauser and Wirth

by: Cassandra Tanti
11/05/2023

Hauser and Wirth has unveiled its summer exhibition: one that pairs John Chamberlain’s early poetry with his sculptural series Gondolas and Tonks, works that epitomise the artists poetic approach to materials and scale.

It is the first time that Hauser and Wirth has shown a John Chamberlain solo exhibition here in Monaco.

Titled The Poetics of Scale, the premise is to focus on a body of work that the American artist made when he moved to his studio in Florida in the early 1980s.

John Chamberlain, born in Indiana in 1927, became known in the 1950s for using automobile parts for his sculptures; for welding and crushing them together. He is one of the most prominent post-war American sculptors, but he is associated with a variety of different movements. Many people interpret his sculptural technique as being allied to abstract Expressionism.

They also say his use of car parts and paint is allied to Action Painting: it’s very gestural and it has an emphasis on colour. He stayed for a time with Pop Artist Larry Rivers in New York, so pop artists saw him as a peer. At the same time, he was also being seen as a peer by the Minimalists because he was using industrial materials.

But in his mind, Chamberlain saw himself in Duchamp and the Readymade.

“John Chamberlain was allied to all of these movements, and yet none; he moved between them, and all of them were admirers of him. He built friendships and peer relationships with figures within all of the important post war mid-century art movements in the United States,” explains the exhibition’s Curator   Tanya Barson during a press tour.

Curator Tanya Barson, photo by Monaco Life

The Poetics of Scale is on show at the contemporary Hauser and Wirth gallery  in One Monte-Carlo all summer.

It picks up the story in 1980 when Chamberlain moved to the coast of Sarasota, Florida, when he arrived on his boat. He found a studio on the marina and began working on a commission using truck parts.

“He looks around his studio and sees the remnants of the trucks, which are actually the chassis’. They remind him of Venetian gondolas. You can see why he’s thinking about boats. He’s thinking about the really long horizontal form of a gondola and the form that these truck chassis gave him. But he’s combining that with more coloured, crushed parts of trucks to build up the forms here,” says Barson.

The Gondolas are each given a subtitle, named after a poet: one is called ‘Gondola Hart Crane’, the other ‘Gondola Marianne Moore’. “It’s The recurrence of that early influence of poets in these works.”

There is another reference to that influence in this exhibition, a series of early poems written by Chamberlain whilst he was at Black Mountain College, often addressed to his first wife Elaine; the subtle, romantic words are a stark contrast to the masculine, solid sculptures that dominate this exhibition space.

“There’s a lot of really interesting imagery here to do with women, to do with his relationships with women, but also to do with his relationship with other artists,” says our guide.

But the show is called The Poetics of Scale because at the same time as he was making these large works, he started another series, which he called the Tonks. They are small sculptures, a reference to the famous miniature Tonka trucks, which Chamberlain created using different car and truck parts.

A third sculpture, floor based, is called the Dhuha Ditty, another piece from his work in the early 80s.

John Chamberlain (1927 – 2011) Dhuha Ditty, 1983. Photo by Monaco Life

The international art house Hauser & Wirth opened a gallery in depths of One Monte-Carlo in the summer of 2021. It has since hosted contemporary exhibitions including Paul McCarthy’s Pirate Stew Pot, Amy Sherald’s ‘The World We Make’ , and Roni Horn’s ‘Sweet is the swamp with its secrets’.

“It’s an extraordinary pleasure to curate here. It’s an incredibly beautiful space,” says Tanya Barson. “It is a very large-scale gallery, but it is a context where you can show work of a different scale. We can show really large-scale works, and Gondolas being a case in point, these are really monumental sculptures, amongst the largest that Chamberlain made. You need to give them space and this is absolutely a beautiful gallery to show them in.”

John Chamberlain. The Poetics of Scale is on view until Saturday 2nd September 2023. The exhibition is free to attend and no advance booking is necessary.

See more in our Instagram video below…

 

 

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Do you have an event in Monaco or the French Riviera that you would like us to include in our What’s On section and events calendar? Please email editor@monacolife.net.  

 

Photo above of Gondolas by Monaco Life

 

SEE ALSO:

Monaco Art Week announces dates and participants for 5th edition

 

Curator of upcoming Monet exhibit focus of Metropole’s next Cultural Rendez-Vous

by: Stephanie Horsman
11/05/2023

Marianne Mathieu, the curator of the Grimaldi Forum’s summer exhibition ‘Monet in Full Light’, will be holding a talk on the artist’s life and work in the South of France at the Hotel Metropole in June.

The ‘Monet in Full Light’ exhibition, being held at the Grimaldi Forum from 8th July to 3rd September, is one of the season’s most anticipated events.

With almost 100 pieces coming from sources all over the world, one of which that has never been publicly exhibited, the public will have a chance to appreciate the effect the Riviera had on the impressionists work as well as to see what gave Monet inspiration.

EXPLORATION OF HIS WORK

For those who can’t wait for the big event, the Metropole Hotel has invited the show’s curator, Monet specialist Marianne Mathieu, to speak at a Cultural Rendez-Vous on 15th June from 4pm to 6pm on the topic of Monet’s Quest for Light.

She will explore the artist’s work “through an extraordinary scenography in which works rarely presented together are displayed and put into perspective…in terms of his quest to capture light”.

Following in the painter’s footsteps through the streets of Antibes, Roquebrune, Bordighera, and Monaco, the exhibit offers insight and a better understanding of Monet’s works.

She will also describe her personal journey and tell the behind-the-scenes stories of how ‘Monet in Full Light’ was made into a reality.

The discussion is in French, and seats are limited. For reservations, call +377 93 15 15 75 or email c.russo@metropole.com

 

Do you have an event in Monaco or the French Riviera that you would like us to include in our What’s On section and events calendar? Please email editor@monacolife.net.

 

Photo: Roman road at Bordighera by Claude Monet

 

SEE ALSO:

Monet in Full Light: Grimaldi Forum exhibit to feature a never-before-seen piece

 

 

Football: AS Monaco’s pros strengthen academy ties with La Diagonale visit

by: Luke Entwistle
11/05/2023
AS Monaco U17s with Youssouf Fofana, Axel Disasi and Maghnes Akliouche

There are no longer any barriers between AS Monaco’s first team and the club’s prestigious La Diagonale Academy. Eliesse Ben Seghir’s rapid integration into the professional setup is a testament to that, as was Axel Disasi’s, Youssouf Fofana’s and Maghnes Akliouche’s visit to speak with the U17s on Wednesday. 

Behind Fofana, Disasi and Akliouche stands the pristine Coupe Gambardella trophy, won on the grass of the Parc des Princes by the players sitting in front of them, seeking wisdom and advice from their more experienced peers.

Eat well, sleep well

Such interactions aren’t uncommon at the La Diagonale centre, which from its perched location in Cap d’Ail, overlooks the Stade Louis II, where all of Monaco’s youth players dream of making their professional debuts. Some of those who look on, and who still reside within the walls already have.

However, on this occasion, Monaco Life were invited to witness the frank, honest, enriching and sometimes humourous interactions between the youth and professional players.

Photo of Monaco U17s player Lorenzo Carvalho by AS Monaco – Stéphane Senaux

Kylian Mbappé, a graduate of Monaco’s prestigious academy, the current France captain, and arguably the best player in the world, recently called on his teammates to “eat well, sleep well” in order to extract maximum performance. It is clear to see where the maxim came from.

Disasi, Fofana and academy graduate Akliouche spouted similar advice to the U17s, with whom they shared a kind of “big brother” relationship. The U17s were keen to understand a variety of facets of professional life, from matchday routines, nutrition, handling holidays, and even how to handle the media and societal pressures that are part and parcel of a football player’s daily life.

“There is no longer a notion of disassociation between the academy and the professional world.”

Monaco’s three professionals were all too happy to respond, often sharing interesting and humourous anecdotes from their own professional lives. The exchange felt like a deconstruction of the barriers between the professional and academy players, but that wasn’t quite the case, as Sébastien Muet, the AS Monaco Academy Director told Monaco Life.

“The relation is natural and sincere. There are lots of professional players that come down without us even asking them to do so. The pros aren’t playing a role,” he said.

Photo of Axel Disasi, Maghnes Akliouche and Youssouf Fofana by AS Monaco – Stéphane Senaux

He continued, “Even if today they’re speaking to the U17s, nowadays at the Academy you have members of the Groupe Élite that encounter the professionals like Axel, Youssouf and Maghnes on a daily basis. There is no longer a notion of disassociation between the academy and the professional world. I’ve been at Monaco for a year. At other clubs, there is a marked disassociation, but not here. You really feel an integration of the two entities.”

Whilst the barriers are non-existent, it doesn’t mean that these young players don’t idolise players like Disasi and Fofana. Muet reveals that many of the academy products have posters of the players in their bedrooms, which are within the walls of the red and white Diagonale building.

“There is a feeling of belonging”

The proximity ideologically is a huge strength of the club, despite the geographically disparate nature of AS Monaco’s facilities, which are split between the Principality, Cap d’Ail and La Turbie.

“The more time passes, the more I think that the success of the global project resides in the proximity of all of the entities and the feeling of a common goal. Everywhere you go, you feel that everyone is involved in the same project and that everyone is moving in the same direction. This dynamic has been created, and now the hard thing is to keep it,” Muet told Monaco Life. 

Such proximity, and such interactions, like those witnessed by Monaco Life, foster a sense of belonging, which isn’t a given at every club. “There is a feeling of belonging. This feeling, all 30 of them here today, dream of playing their first professional match at the Louis II. It’s not the same everywhere,” says Muet.

Whilst not all of them will ultimately make their debuts under the iconic arches of the Stade Louis II, the actions of the club, and the inspiring and wise words of their more experienced peers, only maximise their chances of doing so in the future.

 

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Photo by AS Monaco – Stéphane Senaux

Basketball: Roca Team pull off historic feat to reach Euroleague Final Four

by: Luke Entwistle
10/05/2023
Jordan Loyd: AS Monaco Basket v Maccabi Tel Aviv

On a night of high tension and high drama, AS Monaco Basketball beat Maccabi Tel Aviv (97-86) to become the first French side to reach the Euroleague Final Four since 1997.

Just like the entire five-match series, which came down to a final battle at the Salle Gaston Médecin on Wednesday night, this was an emotional rollercoaster. The series started with a demoralising defeat in Monaco but ended in the Principality on a very different note, on the highest of highs in what was undoubtedly the biggest night in the club’s history (3-2 series victory).

Photo of the Salle Gaston Médecin at full-time by Luke Entwistle, Monaco Life

Both sides failed to stop the opposition’s free-flowing attacks in the first five minutes with 35 points scored, but when the defences did make their appearance, it was Maccabi who held the upper hand.

15-point streak turns game on its head

John DiBartolomeo scored just one of Maccabi’s 14 three-pointers on the night to fire the Israeli side into a seven-point lead (26-33) at the end of the first quarter, but the Roca Team roared back spectacularly.

Mike James (21 points) scored five consecutive points to level the scores (33-33), but Monaco weren’t finished there. A James two-pointer plus a foul, followed by a Jordan Loyd (21 points) three-pointer turned the game on its head, but the 15-point streak hadn’t knocked the stuffing out of Maccabi, who showed fight to stay in the tie, especially in the third quarter, their efficiency outside the paint (14/29 three-pointers) proving a crucial arm in a fierce battle.

The Maccabi fans didn’t come in the same numbers for this fifth and final match, but they were certainly still audible inside the Salle Gaston Médecin. Photo by Luke Entwistle, Monaco Life

Monaco were constantly under the cosh, and Maccabi’s defensive grip tightened early in the fourth quarter to overturn the deficit with Donatas Motiejunas (six points) and Chima Moneke (10 points) particularly culpable of sloppy build-up play.

“Mike James is not Monaco.”

Against Olympiacos in last year’s Euroleague decider, when the pressure was on, the Roca Team crumbled, but this isn’t the team of last year, and over the course of the campaign, they have grown in stature, in confidence and in experience.

They had to lean on all of that experience in the final stages, as well as the roaring support of the sell-out crowd, who were joined by Prince Albert II and Aleksej Fedoricsev for the historic occasion.  (74-77).

Photo of Prince Albert II, Oleksiy Yefimov and Aleksej Fedoricsev by Luke Entwistle, Monaco Life

James was seemingly struggling in the dying stages, but as Sasa Obradovic said post-match, “Monaco is not Mike James. Someone always steps in.” Instead, it was Loyd who stepped up, procuring fouls and registering eight consecutive points to change the direction of the match for the final time in what was another night of plot twists.

“This was a historical night for me, for Monaco.”

Wade Baldwin (27 points) was once against decisive 0utside the key to bring Maccabi within five (90-85), but it wasn’t enough. John Brown III, Okobo and Alpha Diallo put the final nails in the Maccabi coffin to send the Salle into raptures. History was made. Monaco are in the Final Four.

Beyond the collective and historic exploit pulled off by this Roca Team, it was also the accumulation of 18 years of individual effort as an emotional Obradovic revealed.

“I can’t explain how happy I am today,” began the Serbian coach. “It was emotionally demanding. This was a historical night for me, for Monaco, and for most of the guys. French basketball has been waiting for this time. We deserve this kind of appreciation, this kind of reward. We played the whole year with ups and downs and with a great level of basketball, which people have enjoyed. Tonight was a special night, the fans were close and you could feel it and it was leading us towards this big success. There are two games to play [to win the Euroleague]. Let’s keep dreaming.”

Rendez-vous with an old rival

“18 years I have waited for this. Each day I mentioned this. I have a great team, great management, and a great president to put me in a situation to do something with my life,” added Obradovic.

Wednesday’s victory offers a tantalising clash on 19th May, against the inflictors of Monégasque misery in last year’s Euroleague play-off series, Olympiacos.

Photo of Sasa Obradovic by Luke Entwistle, Monaco Life

“We’ve beaten them in two games, so we can beat them again. I think they’re a better team than last year, but we are too,” Obradovic told Monaco Life. Naturally, therefore, Obradovic, the Roca Team and Prince Albert II are dreaming big.

“It’s a great night for sport in the Principality.”

“At the start of the season, I didn’t have in my mind being Euroleague champion, but over the season, expectations grow, and you see the teams you play against, you see that you can have a chance. I’m sure that we’re going to be a difficult opponent and you never know,” said Obradovic.

“It’s a historic night. It’s a great night for sport in the Principality and I’m so proud of all the team, and all of the staff. We can dream, but it will be very difficult,” added Prince Albert II in an interview with Skweek. 

Through the hard work of the players, the coach, and the staff, this year, but also over the course of many years, during which this project has gone from humble beginnings to a European powerhouse, the Roca Team have earned the right to dream. There is enough evidence to prove that those dreams can become a reality in Kaunas, Lithuania later this month.

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Photo by Luke Entwistle, Monaco Life

Monaco parents get support network in new ‘Entreparents’ app

by: Stephanie Horsman
10/05/2023

A new government-backed app called Entreparents, from the creators of Carlo app, is giving Monaco’s mums and dads a chance to learn, listen and talk about the challenges and triumphs of raising families.

Parenthood isn’t always easy. No one provides a how-to manual on raising a child, and though books and websites are great, they can’t always answer specific questions or address individual needs.

Now, there is a way to connect directly with other parents and experts to find a way through the minefield that parenting can be.  The Principality’s new free Entreparents app, being launched on 1st June, is a way for local parents to be part of a community and find support, as well as offering events geared toward families.

Developed by Carlo Technologies, founders of Carlo app, and with the financial support and trust of the government, the Cuomo Foundation and Monaco Telecom, the app was built using advice from both experts and parents, making it a unique option. It is available for download in French and English.

“We are well placed to know that a parent needs support and to be heard at any time of the day and night, simple and intuitive guidance that facilitates their daily life,” the app’s creators say. “In response to the problems identified by parents of feeling isolated and ill-informed, we created the mobile application, an all-in-one digital tool to be at the heart of the Entreparents Network.”

A place to ask questions, share and be heard

The app’s main features include a chat room designed to let parents ask questions, share tips and find support on all parenting topics, a step-by-step guide giving newer parents and parents-to-be pertinent information for kids up to three, and an events calendar to connect families and parents at in-person events, giving them personal experiences outside of the virtual world.

The goal of “connecting parents to each other and their local parenthood service” in the Principality and neighbouring villages is part of an overall interest by the public authorities to put family life back on centre stage using the “it takes a village to raise a child” mentality.

“We want the Entreparents mobile application to become the daily reference for parents in our community, that they download it as soon as they plan for their baby and use it when they need, day and night,” say its creators.

Events already planned include a press conference on 1st June to formally announce the app at One Monte Carlo, followed by a screening of Eve Simonet’s documentary series Big Bang Baby, addressing the topics of ‘Becoming a parent: the identity crisis’ and ‘What place is there for parenthood in society?’. This will be followed by a talk between parents, the director, children’s rights advocate Marion Cuerq and local professionals. The event is free and child-friendly, but reservations are required to ensure a space.

On 4th of June from 9:30am to 12pm at Neptune on Larvotto is a ‘Let’s Meet: Mother’s Day’ event giving mums a chance to meet and relax with yoga classes, music and breakfast.

There will also be the launch of the #TheMumRibbonMovement in Monaco, where Entreparents ribbons will be given to mothers to hang on their bags and strollers. The ribbon is a symbol of a close-knit community of parents showing support for each other. By having the ribbon mums are saying: “If you need to talk, I’m here to listen to you. If you need anything, I’m here to try to help you. I may also need some support, so don’t hesitate to come and talk to me.” It is a movement that is part of the mission of the Entreparents Network: to reduce the occurrence of parents feeling isolated by connecting them to each other and promoting exchange and sharing. Reservation is a must and places are limited.

Then on 17th June, it’s the dads’ turn with a ‘Let’s Meet: Father’s Day’ event at the Club Bouliste on the Rock from 4:30pm to 6:30pm where the guys can meet for an apéro, a game of boules and friendly chats.

For more info and to learn about events, follow them on social media at Facebook or Instagram.

 

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Image from Entreparents association, Carlo Technologies