Fans of Charles Leclerc will this year be able to cheer the Monegasque driver on from their own dedicated stand, after its inauguration was postponed last year with the cancellation of the Monaco Grand Prix.
READ ALSO: Leclerc: “We were the standout”
Photo of Charles Leclerc during the Spanish Grand Prix by @Scuderia Ferrari Press Office
Espinasse 31 Contemporary Art Gallery has brought the works of Tomoko Nagao and Robi Walters to the Principality for the first time with an exhibition at the Meridien Hotel.
The exhibition, titled High Chroma / High Vigour, features Milanese-based Japanese artist Tomoko Nagao and London born and bred artist Robi Walters.
The works have been curated by Antonio and Thomas Castiglioni, and bring together the two artists, highlighting their unique styles and expressive vitality.
“The exhibition is an exploration of fundamental properties of art—colour, material, dimensionality, symbolism—and how they make us feel. High Chroma / High Vigour creates a space in which Tomoko and Robi’s creations coexist and balance each other, focusing on their common expression of energy through colourful displays,” explains the gallery.
Art is meant to evoke emotion, say the organisers, and to this end the exhibition hopes that visitors view the works through their relationship with the artist rather than as objects to be simply looked at.
Tomoko Nagao is known as one of the leading figures in the international Micropop art movement. She started studies in her home country of Japan before moving on to London where she attended the Chelsea College of Art. This is where her personal style was developed, and her popularity has been on the rise ever since, boasting shows at the Victoria and Albert Museum as well as various events in Italy and Japan.
She takes aim at consumerism by referencing high-end luxury brands and corporations, reminding audiences of “the energetic brightness in symbols of capitalism, such as advertisements.”
Robi Walters is a contemporary artist based in Soho, London. His colourful collages have attracted the attention of celebrity collectors such as Thandie Newton, Usain Bolt and Jillionaire, to name a few.
In 2018, Michelin-Star Chef Tom Kerridge commissioned Walters to create bespoke works for his restaurant Kerridge’s Bar & Grill at London’s Corinthia Hotel. In 2020, he was invited by Aston Martin to become their artist in residence. Walters has been named by The Telegraph as one of the top creatives in the UK, going on to win the ‘Arts and Culture’ category in the newspaper’s ‘Amazing 15’.
Walters’ work has encapsulated the spirit of transformation. By constructing mixed-media pieces with unusual materials, such as packaging from household items and broken vinyl LPs, he focuses on the practice of taking discarded objects and making them beautiful to revivify their intrinsic worth—with a creative process and product that is reminiscent of both pop art and arte povera movements.
Both artists works are hopeful and vibrant, mirroring the new hope of a return to normalcy in daily life after more than a year of pandemic conditions.
The exhibit will be on display at the Meridien Hotel until 7th June.
Photo by Espinasse 31 Contemporary Art Gallery
Blockchain, DeFi and NFT startups looking to raise funds will be able to meet with a select group of qualified investors at this year’s annual Global Blockchain Congress in Dubai in June.
The 7th edition of the flagship Global Blockchain Congress by Agora Group is taking place on 21st and 22nd June 2021 in Dubai.
The theme this year is ‘Celebrating DeFi and NFTs’ and the event will boast an impressive line-up of speakers including keynote addresses by Executive Chairman and CEO of DMCC Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Managing Partner of the Blockchain Founders Fund Aly Madhavji, Managing Editor of Cointelegraph Kristina Lucrezia Cornèr, and many more.
The event is a closed door, exclusive congress between investors and hand-picked Blockchain projects looking to raise funds. It is the only event of its kind and will bring together qualified investors – VCs, private equity firms, family offices, crypto funds and High Net Worth Individuals – with Blockchain, DeFi and NFT start-ups looking to raise funds.
“Pitches are good and all, but have you ever sat on a table for eght hours with 30 minutes of one-on-one meetings with 50 rotating investors? Agora is next level,” says Nikita Sachdev, Co-Founder of LunaPR.io. “I went to this conference last year, and it was like speed dating with investors.”
According to Agora Group, the first six editions of the Global Blockchain Congress have hosted more than 450 investors, allowing over 90 blockchain start-ups to raise millions in funds for their projects.
Topics to be covered this year include ‘What do regulators think of NFT’s?’, ‘The DeFi insurance sub-sector’, and ‘Covid’s impact on the future of Blockchain’.
Only 15 Blockchain and DeFi start-ups will be introduced to around 60 investors with a budget of over $5 billion.
To participate, apply here: http://bit.ly/The7thGBC
Monaco Life with Agora press release
The Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation has welcomed a move by the United Nations to adopt a new resolution on drowning prevention with Monaco as co-sponsor.
Called the UN Resolution on Global Drowning Prevention, the initiative will provide a framework for action for all member countries. This topic has been near and dear to the heart of the Princess Charlene Foundation since 2012, which has publicly applauded the plan on social media.
In order to heighten awareness and as a call to action, the UN has named 25th July as World Drowning Prevention Day.
The resolution was introduced at the UN General Assembly in New York by the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the UN, Rabab Fatima, who said “Drowning is a major cause of global mortality, accounting for a greater loss of life annually than to maternal mortality or malnutrition. The imperative to act on drowning is not simply moral or political. The economic cost is equally untenable.”
Several voluntary proposals to member states have been given and include developing national drowning prevention plans, implementing recommended interventions including barriers, supervision, swim skills, rescue and resuscitation training, and boating regulation as well as introducing water safety, swimming and first aid lessons as part of school curricula.
Additionally, the resolution aims to address large data gaps by asking member states to include drowning in their vital statistics and civil registries in order to get a clearer picture of drowning-related mortality rates.
There have been 2.5 million recorded deaths caused by drowning worldwide since 1990. The vast majority, 90%, have occurred in low and middle income nations and many could have been avoided if programmes existed to teach people, especially children and adolescents, swimming basics.
Drowning impacts children and teens in rural areas, especially in Oceania and Asia, and is one of the primary causes of childhood deaths for one to nine-year-olds in these regions.
Photo source: Pixabay
The Monaco Grand Prix will open its grandstands to 7,500 spectators a day, regardless of their origin. However, there will be restrictions.
The government made the highly anticipated announcement on Tuesday, revealing that the Formula One Grand Prix would be open to the general public, however grandstand capacity will be limited to 40%.
Mandatory PCR tests for racing fans
People entering Monaco from the Alpes-Maritimes and the Var, including cross border workers, will not need to produce a PCR test until they enter the F1 circuit. Anyone from outside of this department will need to present a negative test upon entering the Principality and the racing circuit.
Grandstands will be open but capacity will be limited to 7,500 spectators per day, with normal seat pricing. On Friday 21st May, only the K and T stands will be open to accommodate a maximum of 3,000 people. Tickets for Friday’s races will be free.
Monaco residents and students will not need to produce a negative PCR test to access the F1 grandstands or circuit throughout the GP weekend.
No decision has been made yet regarding parties on terraces and yachts, or the opening of restaurants and bars, however an announcement on this is expected with the next change in health measures on 16th May.
Standing zones and the fan zone are not authorised this year.
Monaco E-Prix
In making the announcement on Tuesday, Minister of State Pierre Dartout said his government was happy with the running of the recent Historic Grand Prix and the same conditions will be applied to this weekend’s E-Prix, in particular a capacity limit of 6,500 people in the stands reserved for residents, employees, students and people staying in a hotel in Monaco. Access is also limited for guests on terraces to one person per square metre, and a maximum of 12 people on yachts. The sale and consumption of alcohol in public is banned.
Prepare to be stopped
The government warns that there will be strict controls by authorities and members of the Automobile Club of Monaco checking for PCR tests.
Monaco’s unprecedented move
Monaco’s decision follows an announcement by the organisers of this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix to allow up to 1,000 circuit members to attend the race on Sunday.
There were no spectators allowed at either of the first two European events of the F1 season, in Portugal last weekend and Imola in Italy two weeks before.
Bahrain allowed 4,500 spectators to attend the season-opening race at the end of March, but it was open only to those who had been vaccinated against or recovered from Covid-19.
Photo by Reuben Rohard on Unsplash
May
Photo by Matthew Smith on Unsplash
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