GREEN NUANCES III

Spiegel Editorial Staff House in Hamburg by Verner Panton.

 

 

THE SPIEGEL

In January 1969 the Spiegel Publishing Company and Spiegel Editorial Staff entered in a new Hamburg Company Headquarters (the 3rd in its history). Located in the old town of Hamburg Spiegel Publishing House  was one of Verner Panton’s most unique interior creations and one of the few that continue to exist today. Panton is considered one of Denmark’s most influential 20th-century furniture and interior designers. All the designs of this interior were his own; the colour scheme, lamps, textiles, wall claddings – only the furniture had to be imported from Knoll International. At that time Spiegel manager Hans Detlev Becker gave the order to fill the cold cover inside with warmth.

Unfortunately, the swimming pool for the employees in the basement (above) was completely destroyed in a fire and redesigned in the 1990’s. Swimming here would have been a psychedelic experience.

Exterior. The “decorative extravaganzas” as an amalgamation of geometry, color, murals, glass and glimmering light.

Above the hallway. The specially designed mirror lighting used on walls and ceilings was of major importance.

Above the work area.

Above the conference room – chairs by Eero Saarinen.

Above the waiting room.

Above and below the Spiegel canteen – wire chairs by Harry Bertoia.

The space resembled more like an avant-garde restaurant than a company canteen.

Before their renovation in summer, 1998 canteen and snack bar were put under conservation of monuments and historic buildings.

Above and below the snack bar.

Verner Panton (13 Feb 1926 – 5 Sept 1998) was a modest man who was crazy about design and has influenced many of today’s designers. Panton himself once said: “The main purpose of my work is to provoke people into using their imagination and make their surroundings more exciting.” He  spent little time in Denmark and many most of his celebrated works were realised abroad. He broke from the craft-based traditions of Scandinavian furniture-making and experimented with new materials and concept.

http://www.verner-panton.com/spaces/archive/phase/309/

RECYCLED BICYCLE CHANDELIERS

CONNECT is a series of chandeliers inspired by DIY and Bike punk culture combined with aesthetics rooted in the Victorian era created by LA based artist Carolina Fontoura Alzaga. Her handmade bespoke pieces evoke a strong industrial look and invite the viewer to examine them up-close in order to come to grips with their fine details and the technical precision needed to put them together. Carolina managed to master the challenges faced by resilient materials such as bicycle chains and cassettes and created a stunning collection which also addresses universal themes around sustainability and the environment. She admits to having a strong connection with  urban bicycle culture and hopes to inspire audiences to question their ideas on what is beautiful and functional.

Above and below: Connect 14a Model.

Carolina: “The idea for ‘The CONNECT Series’ began from seeing pots and pans hung from a makeshift pot rack which had been created from a used bicycle rim during a time that I was completely immersed in DIY and bike punk culture. In turn, it inspired me to make a mobile made from a bike rim, bike tube and bike gears”.

Above and below: Connect 8 Model.

Carolina: “Visual art has the unique quality of being able to relay information on a level that language alone cannot access. There’s an immediacy to this sensorial reaction that is very special. 

What I find pleasing about these bicycle chandeliers, especially when seen in person, is that they command attention. They trick the eye – most people usually confuse them with regular chandeliers but have a moment of surprise once they get closer. Most of us go about the world accepting ideas as immutable fact when in reality, things are much more dynamic and malleable”.

Above: Connect 4a Model.

Carolina:”The most challenging aspect is making each chandelier an approximate perfection despite the imperfect nature of the material. I’ve had to surrender to the rhythm of creation and accept regressing in order to progress”.

“I didn’t start out being interested in lighting but now I absolutely love it! The CONNECT Series is bound to bikes as a material so as to maintain the integrity of the concept. It can’t have motorcycle parts or anything else because then it’s not TCS, it is something else”.

Carolina: ” I’m sure that in the future I will be making other sculptures with lights in them as well as other proper lighting fixtures”.

 

 

http://www.yatzer.com/Recycled-Bicycle-Chandeliers-by-Carolina-Fontoura-Alzaga

 

THE VOLKSHAUS BASEL

Above: Bentwood stools arrayed in front of the bar.

Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron recently finished work restoring a classic 1925 building in the heart of the city. Volkshaus Basel, a onetime concert hall now bar, brasserie, and concert space, with a hotel coming soon. The world-renowned architects went to great lengths to restore the former grandeur of the space, which had been aesthetically compromised during a 1970s renovation. The architect’s stripped the building back to its original frame (the ceilings had been lowered during the renovation), and restored the original height of the rooms while preserving as much of the original detailing as possible. Using a black and white palette, the decidedly modern decor successfully restores an air of Swiss Old World glamor.

Above: Thick hand blown LED pendants are a modern take on chandeliers.

Above: Metal-topped dining tables. The architects chose materials such as metal, leather, and wood, which will gain a weathered patina over time.

Above: A table setting with embossed leather cover.

Above: The design of the chairs are based on the original Volkshaus chair model.

Above: Wallpaper with seventeenth-century etchings are used in the antechambers of the restrooms and hark back to the early days of Basel, when this area was once a medieval manor.

Above: On the wall, a mural provides a guide to all the Volkshaus ventures.

 

http://volkshaus-basel.ch/

http://www.architecturaldigest.com/blogs/daily/2012/06/volkshaus-basel-restaurant-switzerland

http://www.swissmade-architecture.com/?seite=Home

 

 

 

PERFECT ARCHITECTURES

Weaver birds nest – Namibia.

Weaver birds get their name because of their elaborately woven nests (the most elaborate of any birds). The nests vary in size, shape, material used, and construction techniques from species to species. Materials used for building nests include fine leaf-fibers, grass, and twigs. Many species weave very fine nests using thin strands of leaf fiber, though some, like the buffalo-weavers, form massive untidy stick nests in their colonies, which may have spherical woven nests within. The sparrow weavers of Africa build apartment-house nests, in which 100 to 300 pairs have separate flask-shaped chambers entered by tubes at the bottom. Most species weave nests that have narrow entrances, facing downward.

Sociable weaver (Philetairus socius) nest in a quiver tree (Aloe dichotoma), Fish River Canyon, Namibia.

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SOUTH AFRICAN DESIGNERS WEAVE A TREE HOUSE FOR ADULTS

Maybe we’re crazy, but we’ve always wondered what life as a little baby bird would be like, all safe and cozy in your handmade nest. Which makes this new “Organic Lounger” designed by Animal Farm, a Cape Town design firm, so fantastic.

Inspired by a weaver-bird’s nest, the cubby has a steel frame, and walls made of woven branches. It can hold two adults and a small child, and you access it through the bottom, via a rope ladder.

The chief designer, who really does insist on being called Porky Hefer, says he’s currently working on a larger nest that’ll seat four lucky adults.

 

http://inhabitat.com/animal-farms-cozy-human-nests-hang-from-the-treetops/

BLUE MAJORELLE

In 1919 the French painter Jacques Majorelle (1886-1962) took up residence in the Medina in Marrakech (then a French protectorate) with which he fell in love. Majorelle was the son of the Art Nouveau ébéniste of Nancy, Louis Majorelle. Though Majorelle’s gentlemanly orientalist watercolors are largely forgotten today (many are preserved in the villa’s collection), the gardens he created is his creative masterpiece.

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In 1922 he purchased a palm grove just outside Marrakech and in 1931 he commissioned architect Paul Sinoir to build him an Art-deco style workshop of astonishing modernity. He set out his primary living space on the first floor and made a vast artist’s studio on the ground floor to paint his huge decorative works.

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Fond of botany, he created a botanical garden around his villa structured around a long central pool, with a variety of over 1800 types of cacti, 400 species of palms and other rare varieties of the time. Different environments, planted with lush vegetation in which hundreds of birds nested.

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The garden is a living and evolving work of art made up of exotic plants and rare species that he brought back from his travels around the world: cactus, yuccas, water lilies, white water lilies, jasmines, bougainvilleas, palms, coconut trees, banana trees, bamboos…

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Embellished with fountains, ponds, water features, ceramic jars, avenues, and pergolas… This bold action revolutionized the way in which gardens were to be viewed.

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In 1937 the artist created an ultramarine blue that was both bright and intense: known as blue Majorelle, he used it to paint the walls of his workshop, and then the entire garden transforming it into a living tableau which he opened to the public in 1947.

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The power of the blue Majorelle is long lived and permeates the essence of what it means to live and see color in Marrakech.

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Following a car accident, Majorelle was repatriated to Paris where he died in 1962. The garden then fell into neglect. In 1980, Pierre Bergé and Yves Saint Laurent acquired the garden to save it from property developers and to bring it back to life.

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Following the death of Yves Saint Laurent in 2008, Pierre Bergé decided to donate the Jardin Majorelle to the Fondation Pierre Bergé – Yves Saint Laurent.

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The Garden welcomes over 600,000 visitors each year, tourists and locals alike.

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Mr. Frédéric Mitterrand, in the presence of Mr. Pierre Bergé, placed a plaque engraved, “Maison des Illustres” (‘House of Honor’), at the gate of the Villa Oasis, where Mr. Yves Saint Laurent came and worked throughout his life.

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Yves Saint Laurent said “A visit to Marrakech was a great shock to me. This city taught me color”.

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http://www.tuttartpitturasculturapoesiamusica.com/2011/12/jacques-majorelle-1886-1962-france.html

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http://www.travel-exploration.com/

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http://gardentoursmorocco.wordpress.com/majestic-gardens-of-morocco-tour/

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OLD SHOPS

It took James and Karla Murray over eight years to make a photo series about little shops in New York. By now one third of these shops are closed. Their book is filled with photos of these bankrupt stores that represent nothing more than a vague memory. (Above VESUVIO BAKERY – Soho, 2004).

KATY’S CANDY STORE – In business from 1969 to 2007  – Brooklyn, 2004.         “I speak three languages: English, Spanish, and Motherfucker.” Katy Keyzer, the owner.

RALPH’S DISCOUNT CITY – In business from 1963 to 2007 – Manhattan, 2004.

ZIG ZAG RECORDS – Brooklyn, 2004.

M&G SOUL FOOD DINER – Harlem, 2006.

CLAREMONT LIQUORS  – The Bronx, 2004.

LENOX LOUNGE – Manhattan, 2004.

FILM CENTER CAFE – Manhattan 2001.

EMEY’S BICYCLES – Manhattan, 2003.

SMITH’S BAR – In business since 1954 – Manhattan, 2004.

IDEAL DINETTES – In business from 1953 to 2008 – Brooklyn, 2004.

IDEAL HOSIERY – Manhattan, 2004.

BRITE LITE BARBER SHOP – Harlem, 2004.

R & R SELF SERVICE – Brooklyn, 2006.

CLOVER DELICATESSEN – In business since 1948 – Manhattan, 2004.

STAR DECORATORS – Brooklyn, 2005.

OTTOMANELLI & SONS – In business since 1935 – Manhattan, 2005.

CHEYENNE DINER – In business from 1940 to 2008 – Manhattan, 2004.

THE LOLLY POP CANDY STORE – Queens, 2003.

YONAH SHIMMEL KNISH BAKERY – In business since 1910 – Manhattan, 2004.

http://www.jamesandkarlamurray.com/JamesandKarlaMurrayPortfolio0213Update.html

LONDON INSPIRATION

Walk together into this impressive London home with high ceilings and beautiful windows. I think that we can’t find a better example for classic English coziness of this 19th-century house. Here lives the interior designer Rose Uniacke. Above a Sigmar Polke painting and 17th-century Mughal rug in the study exemplify Uniacke’s passion for well-chosen pieces. Belove a portrait of Roy Orbison by the Polish artist Wilhelm Sasnal in the entry.

Rose has an impressive style, built through her long work as an antiques dealer and interior designer, lived in England and France. She cleverly mixes and combines elegance, comfort, visual interesting and incredibly beautiful furniture.

The entrance hall features a cantilevered staircase carved from Portland stone and a George IV giltwood mirror.

Uniacke’s kitchen.

Uniacke’s bedroom with 17th-century northern European mirrors and a 19th-century French chandelier.

The large marble tub, a George III armchair and a painted Regency chair in the master bath.

The indoor pool made from lava stone.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/02/17/t-magazine/17well-rose.html

http://www.roseuniacke.com/

31 RUE CAMBON

Behind the façade of the art – deco – influenced exterior, lies a perfectly preserved and ultra – luxurious piece of Chanel history. The apartment, situated above the flagship boutique on Rue Cambon, remains exactly as Chanel left it. Today, just a restricted number of  VIP with a badge are permitted into the building.

In contrast to Coco’s personal space, the staircase had a heavy art- deco influence. It is still covered with cream carpet, while the walls are lined with panels of mirrors. During the fashion shows, which took place downstairs, Gabrielle Chanel would sit on the staircase. Thanks to the mirrors she could see everything taking place, but no one could see her. She wanted to know the immediate reaction, if the journalists and clients were pleased with the collection.

She had this chandelier custom made. Can you see the iconic 5’s?

The clear table in the picture below was the first piece of merchandising furniture for Chanel. Coco asked the designer to do something very clean and very simple to have all the costume jewelry, make-up, skincare, and perfume merchandised. It was to enhance the beauty of the product. At the time, it was very clever as she was one of the first to do this.

“An Interior is the natural projection of the soul and Balzac was right to give as much importance to it, as to the way people dress…”, she once confided to biographer Paul Morland.

The entrance to Coco’s apartment where an original work-chair is still where she left it. Lower chairs were used for fittings as it was easier to sew and work with the fabric closer  to the ground.

The octagonal shape of the mirror on the wall was the inspiration for the cap of CHANEL No.5. It is also the same shape of the iconic Place Vendome, which Coco could see out of her window of her residence at the Ritz Hotel.

The gold boxes on the coffee table were a gift from the Duke of Westminster.

A small herd of carved wood deer silently occupy the space...

The scale of the chandeliers, the coromandel screens, the mirrors: all reflected her intrepid personality. Coco had an eclectic mix of decor. French classic furniture, antiquities, Italian influences and Japanese deers. At the time, it was really exceptional to mix Orient and Occident- when East meets West.

Above and below: a Greek statue over the fireplace’s mantle.

The desk where Coco sketched her creations on paper.

All of Coco’s books have deep red tones. Just like the iconic lipstick and the inside lining of the bags she created.

Coco was very superstitious. Elements of this can be seen all over her apartment with sculptures of different animals and religious artifacts. She wanted to feel protected at all times. Chanel was a Leo and she incorporated its symbol, the Lion, into her personal space.

The pig keeper of silver and gems may have been found by Chanel at a flea market.

Chanel considered wheat to be her lucky charm…..here it glints in gold on the book bindings of the Old Testament.

This tiny birdcage was a present from a retiring employee and was the inspiration  for the 1992 Coco perfume campaign, starring Vanessa Paradis, that was set in the Chanel apartment on Rue Cambon.

The ornate Chinese screens and wall panels feature coromandel birds and camelia flowers, which came to be a signature for the Chanel fashion house that continues to be used to this day. It symbolized purity and longevity in Asia and was very prevalent in her designs.

The Salon where Chanel entertained her guests including Elizabeth Taylor, Pablo Picasso, Igor Stravinsky and Salvador Dali. She is said to have hated doors and obscured them with Chinese screens.

Chanel herself designed this long, sensuous sofa in the salon at 31 Rue Cambon. It was important to her that it was comfortable, and she took the unusual decision to have it made in suede, rather than silk or velvet. It was very cutting edge. An entire wall of leather bound books. Beige, brown and fawn colors are accented with black and crystal.

The open mouth of a frog brings love, luck, money and health. If you look closely you can see a crystal placed in its mouth. Once, while Givenchy sat in the drawing room, a piece of crystal fell from the chandelier. He placed it in the mouth of the frog and it was never removed.

Coco was photographed many times in this iconic white chair.

A French trumeau over the fireplace, flanked on either side by Spanish vestry mirrors, crystal laden table lamps, and large rock crystal chandelier bejewel the main salon…

Mirrors were designed to be octagonal in shape. The top of the two tables below are black lacquer but were originally marble. Gabrielle Chanel wanted to take off the marble and have the black lacquer. It may remind you of CHANEL’s make-up-black lacquer with the logo on top.

This hand sculpture was made for Chanel by the Italian artist Alberto Giacometti.

Coco’s trademark black-and-white allover aesthetic.

http://pilarrossiblog.wordpress.com/2012/01/15/a-fascinating-glimpse-inside-coco-chanels-paris-home/

LES TROIS GARCONS

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Les Trois Garcons is situated in a converted Victorian pub from 1880 in Shoreditch. Hassan, Michel and Stefan acquired the building in 1996 as their home, coming from Malaysia, France and Sweden they find living in a Victorian pub the epitome of Englishness. In 2000 the garcons decided to open the ground floor as a restaurant with the kitchen, chef’s table (a room for up to 10 persons with a one way window overlooking the kitchen) and the wine cellar in the basement and they continue to live on the other 2 floors above.

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“It’s been nearly a decade since Les Trois Garcons first opened its doors. And during this time, nearly every restaurant in town has paid homage to its exaggerated chic style – some taxidermy here, a bejewelled gee gaw there. But no one has done it with as much verve as the triumvirate behind this ultra-deluxe bistro” – SQUARE MEAL.

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1 Club Row – London E1 6JX

Tel: 020 7613 1924

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http://www.loungelover.co.uk/

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THE HUMAN STONE

Angel of 57, rue de Turbigo. The rue de Turbigo is part of the St Martin district, not an aristocratic area like its neighbor le Marais. The smiling, colossal stone angel seems to stand guard over the human comedy unfolding at its feet. Wings unfurled with a span rivaling that of the Louvre’s Winged Victory,  its feathers  brush against the fourth floor apartments’ windows of this building designed by architect Eugene Demangeat in 1860. Demangeat was a key player in the building boom of Paris, orchestrated by Baron Haussmann under the aegis of Napoleon III.  The goal was to aerate, beautify and unify the capital city, until then a medieval maze of dark, insalubrious, winding streets. Next year,  the angel of the rue Turbigo  celebrates its 154th year, a serenely vigilant guardian angel radiating happiness throughout the neighborhood.

From Promenade Plantee.

Paris apartments.

Paris apartments.

La France Journal du Soir.

Atlantes above the entrance of the 116, rue de Réaumur, 2nd arr. This building was built in 1898 by Albert Walwein . The statues of Atlantes are said “sheathed” (their lower part is melted in a pillar). Above the door, a relief with Diana and two Amours.

Along Rue Réaumur there are many interesting building façades. In 1897, a new planning regulation was put in place. This meant that roofs could be extended and bay windows could be added to the stone façades. Quite a few architects won a prize for these additions.

Caryatids around a window at the corner of the 101, rue de Réaumur and rue de Cléry, 2nd arr.

The enormous heads of the goddess Hathor in Rue du Caire. Back in 1798 the future emperor Napoleon Bonaparte was about to pop off on his Egyptian Campaign, so things middle eastern were somewhat in the air. The Passage du Caire was supposed to be like a nod to the great souk of Cairo, but in the end was criticised for not being souklike one little bit. The architect of the building in these pictures, constructed around 1828.

One of the many reasons that I love Paris is that I feel that there is something wonderful, and often unexpected, to discover around every corner. There are several whimsical examples of Parisian Art Nouveau architecture tucked away in quiet spots in the 7^th arrondissement. Like the first time I turned a corner and stood face to face with Jules Lavirotte’s outrageous Art Nouveau masterpiece on 29, Avenue Rapp. Look carefully to discover the many whimsical details on this building –  from the windows above the door that look like Martian’s eyes, to the bison heads which holding up balconies, lizard door handles, fox-headed fur collars, fantastical fish, wonderful curves and shapes, young women and men.

Lavirotte designed this wildly decorated facade in 1901 for his friend Alexandre Bigot. A frequent collaborator, Bigot was a talented ceramist and he gave Lavirotte complete freedom with the design for this building. Bigot created the ceramic details himself, working closely with Lavirotte to execute his outrageous and lavish designs, along with the sculptor Jean-Baptiste Larrivé. Read more about the buildings Lavirotte designed in the 7th arrondissement of Paris on Wikipedia.

39, rue Saint Sabin. The mansion, three levels plus attic above the cornice, was built in 1909 by company A. Chérioux according to plans by architect L. Delpoix and ornamented with statues and friezes made ​​by the sculptor E. Chenevière.
The three central windows of the first and second stage are connected together by a balcony railing wrought iron. Windows are surmounted first by a triangular pediment carved. They are framed by a square column supporting grooved on each side at the second floor, a sculpture of a woman who carried the garland of flowers located above windows.

PARIS, MON AMOUR

Eiffel Tower.

Orsey Museum – 62 Rue de Lille.

Saint Louis des Invalides Church.

Louvre.

Louvre interior.

Arc de Triomphe interior, “La Marseillaise”.

Arc de Triomphe stairs.

Le Sacre Coeur.

Grand Palais colonnade.

Grand Palais dom.

INNTEL HOTEL

Delft Studio WAM Architechten have completed a hotel that looks like a pile of houses in Zaandam, the Netherlands.

Called Inntel Hotel, the building features overlapping green wooden facades typical of traditional houses in the region.

The 11- story building is forty meters tall and includes 160 rooms.

The new hotel is an important building block, the first structure to be completed within the Inverdan plan. Providing 160 guest rooms, the hotel also offers a bar-restaurant, a swimming pool, and a wellness centre with a Finnish sauna and a Turkish bath.

Rooms details.

The hotel tower, with a footprint that is well-nigh square, is almost forty metros tell and has eleven floors. Constructed of timber and Eternit fibre cement cladding, the edifice is expressive, with varied fenestration, wide protruding sections, and elegant white eaves and barge-boards.

The Restaurant.

The Bar.

The Wellness Centre.

www.dezeen.com/

THE VATICAN

Pope Benedict XVI holds up a candle at the window of his private apartment to celebrate the unveiling of the nativity in Saint Peter’s Square at the Vatican.

Vatican City at night.

The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican (Latin: Basilica Sancti Petri), officially known in Italian as Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano and commonly known as Saint Peter’s Basilica, is a Late Renaissance church located within Vatican City. Designed principally by Donato Bramante, Michelangelo, Carlo Maderno and Gian Lorenzo Bernini, St Peter’s is the most renowned work of Renaissance architecture and remains one of the largest churches in the world. While it is neither the mother church of the Roman Catholic Church nor the cathedral of the Bishop of Rome, Saint Peter’s is regarded as one of the holiest Catholic sites. It has been described as “holding a unique position in the Christian world” and as “the greatest of all churches of Christendom”.

In Roman Catholic tradition, the basilica is the burial site of its namesake Saint Peter, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus and, also according to tradition, the first Bishop of Rome and therefore first in the line of the papal succession. Tradition and some historical evidence hold that Saint Peter’s tomb is directly below the altar of the basilica. For this reason, many Popes have been interred at St Peter’s since the Early Christian period. There has been a church on this site since the 4th century. Construction of the present basilica, over the old Constantinian basilica, began on 18 April 1506 and was completed on 18 November 1626.

Saint Peter’s Basilica, the apse, showing the Catedra of St. Peter supported by four Doctors of the Church, and the Glory, designed by Bernini.

Wide angle View of the altar inside St. Peter’s Basilica.

Michelangelo’s Pietà.

Details of St. Peter’s Basilica.

The altar.

Vaulted ceiling of the Vatican Museum.

Vatican Museum.

Staircase in the Vatican Museum.

Interior of the Sistina Chappel – Vatican.

Detail of the wall decoration. Fresco of Sistina Chapel.

The ceiling of the Sistina Chapel.

Vatican Black & White Tile.

Pope Benedictus XVI –  His native house in Marktl on the Inn river – Baviera.

The young Ratzinger. Goodbye Pope!!!

Source from the web.

 

THE FRAMED STORY

My journey to  Amsterdam was exciting. This old lady is very intriguing with its impressive architecture, lovely canals crossing the city, great shopping, and friendly people. I spent a week going around as much as possible. There is something for every traveller’s taste here, whether you prefer culture and history, serious partying, or just the relaxing charm of a classic European city. In the South district you find the Museum Quarter and the Vondelpark, the most popular park here. I was walking around the park, when I found this fantastic frame (here below) . How can people throw away such lovely things! Without hesitation, I picked it up and it was a real challenge to go through custom to bring it to Italy. Once at the Eindhoven Airport, it was like smuggling hot stuff.

This kind of ornate antique frames are not usually made of carved wood. Instead, the frames have a wooden base with an ornate plaster veneer added to the top of the wood. The finish is then added to the entire frame so it appears to be a single carved piece.

Step 1

Press plastic clay into an undamaged section of the frame that matches the damaged section. Carefully peel the clay off the frame and roll the edges so that it will hold liquid plaster. The purpose of this step is to make a mold.

Step 2

Mix the plaster and pour it into the mold carefully trying to avoid air bubbles. Let it dry and then remove it from the mold. You now have a duplicate of the detail that was damaged.

Step 3

Sand the rough edges and the excess of the casting until the pieces fits into the spot that was damaged.

Step 4

Paint the entire piece of plaster with gesso. This will seal it and prepare it for the final finish.

Step 5

Glue your plaster segment into place.

Step 6

Paint or gild your final finish so that the new segment matches the original color and finish. Now the frame is finished and ready to be rehung!!!!

FOREST HOUSE

This amazing house is named after his designer. Hundertwasser House is a residential building located in Vienna designed by Friedensreich Hundertwasser with original co-author Josef Krawina (architect). Built in the years 1983–1985, designed in harmony with nature.

Friedensreich Hundertwasser started out as a painter, but early 1950s he became more focused on architecture. In 1972 he visualized his ideas about forested roofs, tree tenants and window rights. What’s the window rights? Below you can read Hundertwasser’s manifesto clearing the subject. Check if he was right…

Photo by Szilveszter Farkas

Photo by Jens Jeppe 

Photo by Barnyz

Photo by Allesok

Photo by Ulf Liljankoski

Photo by Movaxdx

Photo by Miroslav Pietrasko

Photo by Charlott

Photo by Richardzinho

Photo by Jens Jeppe

“Window Dictatorship and Window Right”

Some people say houses consist of walls. I say houses consist of windows.

When different houses stand next to each other in a street, all having different window types, i.e., window races, for example an Art Nouveau house with Art Nouveau windows next to a modern house with unadorned square windows, followed in turn by a Baroque house with Baroque windows, nobody minds.

But should the three window types of the three houses belong to one house, it is seen as a violation of the racial segregation of windows. Why? Each individual window has its own right to life.

According to the prevailing code, however, if window races are mixed, window apartheid is infringed.

Everything is there: racial prejudice, racial discrimination, racial policy, racial ideology, racial barriers, with fateful impact of window apartheid on man. The apartheid of window races must cease.

For the repetition of identical windows next to each other and above each other as in a grid system is a characteristic of concentration camps.

Windows in rank and file are sad, windows should be able to dance.

In the new architecture of satellite towns and in new administration buildings, banks, hospitals and schools, the levelling of windows is unbearable.

Individuals are never identical and defend themselves against these standardising dictates either passively or actively, depending on their constitution. Thus either with alcohol and drug addiction, exodus from the city, cleaning mania, television dependency, inexplicable physical complaints, allergies, depressions and even suicide, or alternatively with aggression, vandalism and crime.

A person in a rented apartment must be able to lean out of his window and scrape off the masonry within arm’s reach. And he must be allowed to take a long brush and paint everything outside within arm’s reach.

So that it will be visible from afar to everyone in the street that someone lives there who is different from the imprisoned, enslaved, standardised man who lives next door.

Author: Hundertwasser, January 1990Manifesto was originally published on Hundertwasser official werbsite

http://www.hundertwasser.com/arch/view-81

http://ewainthegarden.blogspot.it/

FLEA MARKET IN AMSTERDAM

Noordermarkt, the historical Jordaan district

Open: Monday mornings (9 a.m. to 1 p.m.) and Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. (near the Farmers Market)

On Mondays and Saturdays, the charming Noordermarkt square hosts a flea market, which is rather reminiscent of a car boot sale at first sight. But in fact, there is more to it on closer inspection. While there are some antique stalls, also expect to find interesting furniture in particular 20th Century chairs, second-hand clothes (sometimes a matter of picking through a bundle on the ground), a specialist button stall, toys, bric-a-brac, silverware, books, the odd painting and war memorabilia fabrics, records, second-hand clothing etc. The neighboring Westerstraat market, also on Monday mornings, ensures a lively and bustling atmosphere.

 

Wicker chairs.

Provencal pottery originally used to conserve duck fat.

Majolica asparagus plates and tray.

Globes de mariage.

Ice skates.

Vintage oil paintings.

Here below, what I finally decided to buy at the flea market.

A silver toothpicks dispenser.

Twin- set of an English Chinese cookie tins.

Old lithography.

ABC CARPET “COLOR REFORM” AD CAMPAIGN

more information at www.abccarpet.com

ABC Carpet & Home has launched its latest rug collection, COLOR REFORM SPECTRUM EDITION with this beautiful campaign captured by Jason Madara. The campaign was shot in upstate New York in an abandoned early 20th century house, the perfect setting for the vibrant rugs with its gorgeous weathered and brightly colored interiors. The Color Reform concept reflects the over-dyed trends we have been seeing for some time in rug and textile production. Each one-of-a-kind rug was individually and intricately handmade and over-dyed by Pakistani artisans.

A SECRET PLACE FOR RENT

In Paris, between Place Vendôme and Place du Marché Saint-Honoré, not far from “Chez Colette” we can find  in a silent court this superb and exclusive haussmannien apartment of 300 sm for rent for any private occasions. (www.loftconnexion.com) They have fantastic lofts, townhouses with private gardens, secluded factories, off the beaten path apartments with breathtaking views, terrace and rooftop, and private clubs. This antique French house stole my heart!!

http://www.loftconnexion.com/2009/11/atelier-dartiste-paris-7e-cherche-midi.html

ROOM TEMPERATURE

Above: one painting by Italian artist Carlo Cola. The Gallerist’s Room

My dear, I knew Carlo Cola time ago and I was vey impressed by his art. I literally fell in love with his paintings. That’s why I want to share with you this post reblogged from Extraordinart. Enjoy it!!!!!

Casanova’s Studio

CARLO COLA

When we first met Carlo Cola In Forlimpopoli, a small town in the heartland of Italy, he welcomed us into his house, a very old osteria (wine shop) he personally restored from scratch and then furnished and painted it with contrasting, bright colors. All of a sudden our heart was warmed by a sort of Barragan’s atmosphere mixed with Indian furniture and carpets from Morocco, with their loud patterns quietly absorbed by the wisdom of antique, crumbling walls. The house – scattered on three floors with a garden, a pond, a terrace overlooking the town’s roofs, and a secret room hidden behind a rotating wall – was just an anticipation because Carlo Cola’s space is not limited to the physical world but continues into a Borgesian ‘Biblioteca de Babel’, with endless rooms painted on large canvas. His technique is vigorous, as if to represent a room Cola required the same energy to actually build it. Once he starts, nothing stops him. The painting imposes absolute compliance and discipline on him. At the end the artist is exhausted and doesn’t touch a brush for weeks, even months.

“It’s not a matter of waiting for the right idea or something like that,”  he says. “If I don’t feel to paint, I simply don’t. I haven’t an agent who pushes me to produce a certain ‘amount’ of paintings. I want to be free. To paint is a natural process for me. I always did it, as far as I remember. My learning curve has not been an easy one, and I’m convinced an artist has to face frustration and overcome many difficulties before reaching its plateau. It’s not a matter of inspiration. It’s hard work, mainly, that gives you full control over what you are doing; this is what, ultimately, leads you to master your own technique.”

Standing in front of one of his “rooms” can be hazardous, at times: the risk is to be sucked into the gravitational field of the painting like Alice in Wonderland without ever being able to come out. Under such spell you start moving around this new medium, breathing the oily fragrance of  its colors, respectfully tiptoeing for the fear of breaking some depicted objects. May be you are simply afraid to wake up, blinded by the yellow light of an infinite afternoon. You search for hints, but find none because every room is inhabited (apart from you). Yet, you know that notable people once lived and worked right here, and your journey through space turns into one through time. Carlo Cola, each time, pays a tribute to these people’s lives, stepping aside with such grace you almost forget about him. Cola’s heart is spacious as much as the rooms and the absence he’s painting. He lets you stay on your own, so that you are finally able to get in touch with somebody who’s not here anymore, but somewhere else for sure. That’s extraordinary, in terms of generosity. It has something to do – if you excuse demodé idealism – with the Immortality of Art.

Marguerite Yourcenar’s Studio

The Indian Doctor’s Room

The Archeological Museum’s Patio in palermo (Sicily)

Giacomo Puccini’s Studio

The English Writer’s Room

The Soul of the Room

Devonshire

Virginia’s Bedroom