On the Radar
rising star
martin de thurah
film-maker
words by Richard Clayton
In the work of Martin de Thurah, stuffed animals discuss a teenager’s sex life, classrooms fall apart, houses fly off into the sunset. And behind these images, an artist struggles to bring something pure to the competitive world of short films and music videos.
“I want [each film] to be entirely mine, and I have to find an emotional core within. But I also think that no matter how serenely you express yourself, you’ll always be up against the images of others,” says the Danish director whose work includes music videos for Kanye West, Mew, Röyksopp, Editors and Carpark North. De Thurah also recently won Denmark’s prestigious Robert Award for best long short film for Young Man Falling, which tracks a young man’s troubled love life. His upcoming short, with working title We Stayed Behind, takes us to a place where the blood of adults turns grey and parents leave their children.
Watching the 33-year-old Dane’s imagination at work, it becomes clear why he’s sought after. Singers float through ghostly spaces. Young boys and girls twitch in and out of awkward positions. Apples rot, boys cry, insects stumble, owls are not what they seem – and neither is the craft of the music video in the eye of De Thurah.
“I don’t want to decorate, I want to wrestle with something else,” he says. “A girl once asked me why I always make stuff featuring people who felt bad or were ugly – I think it was all about her vanity.”
Life’s certainly not airbrushed in De Thurah videos such as Special for Mew, Bullets for Editors or What Else Is There? for Röyksopp (all 2005). Instead it is scrutinised poetically to a degree where it reveals hidden rooms and cracks full of spiritual light.
Rap star Kanye West saw this rare quality and hired De Thurah at the end of 2007 for his new single Flashing Lights (an alternative video was made by Spike Jonze). The making of the video brought together “a crazy amount of cultural differences,” says De Thurah. “I’m Scandinavian arthouse, he’s big pop, and it was such an intense experience. I felt like I was standing naked on a huge stage with a gun held to my head and everybody shouting ‘Perform!’ ”
In the end, it’s worth the struggle. When De Thurah’s videos and movies emerge, they are packed with dark Lynchian images of something bleeding through from another realm.
“Many movies just feel so concrete, and I think my reality is so much wilder,” says De Thurah. “My teenage years were more brittle, wild and crazy than anything else. In Young Man Falling I tried to make sure you experience this inner life through the outer world.”
See Martin’s films on www.myspace.com/martindethurah
Music
critic’s pick
i know you’re married but i’ve got feelings too
by martha wainwright
Martha Wainwright is one of those singers who could wring emotion from a shopping list. Her big, slightly blowsy voice hits you like a heartache tremor. Three years after a stunningly raw debut album, the follow-up sets the next stage for her maturing vocal drama while keeping its excesses in check. The arrangements are subtly diverse, but the power of Wainwright’s songwriting is undimmed. The smoky swirl of “Tower” and the tremulous bravery of “Jimi” (before its stadium chug recalls her duet with Snow Patrol) show her facility for French chanson. On the rockier tracks, “Comin’ Tonight” and “You Cheated Me”, KT Tunstall producer Martin Terefe nudges things towards the mainstream, yet Wainwright is surely too torrid for pop audiences. And that’s a compliment. Feelings as real as these don’t fit into bland commercial boxes.
Released 12 May, on Drowned in Sound www.marthawainwright.com
trendspotting
cool cover albums
Cover versions used to be the preserve of naff cabaret singers. Lately, however, they’re having a credibility makeover. After Cat Power’s excellent Jukebox, a trio of covers albums are on their way. Takes, by the British nu-folk kingpin Adem, includes songs by PJ Harvey, Björk and Smashing Pumpkins; Jesse Malin’s On Your Sleeve (pictured), released 12 May, finds Ryan Adams’ good buddy delivering a shot of sonic adrenaline to Lou Reed’s “Walk on the Wild Side”, the Rolling Stones’ “Sway” and Sam Cooke’s “Wonderful World”, among others. Lastly, on 26 May, the hazily beautiful US band Vetiver bring out Thing of the Past, which unearths many hidden gems as well as, intriguingly, an old Hawkwind number. In all cases, the songs won’t remain the same, and that’s just as it should be.
the big gig
roskilde festival
Summer’s here and the time is right for dancing in the fields. The next few months are packed with pop festivals, but Roskilde is still one of Europe’s biggest and best. Just 35km outside Copenhagen, you can catch Radiohead, Neil Young, Kings of Leon, My Bloody Valentine (yes, at last, they’re back!), M.I.A and, er, Judas Priest. Acts to look out for on the smaller stages include math-rockers Battles, Denmark’s Efterklang, and Teitur, surely the first singer-songwriter from the Faroe Islands any of us has heard.
Roskilde runs from 3-9 July, with warm-up gigs starting from 29 June. A ticket for the full period costs from DKK 1650 (around €221).
Film
must see
indiana jones and the
kingdom of the crystal skull
Wherever he lays his hat, there’ll be rip-roaring, box-office action, but let’s hope the latest Indiana Jones saga lives up to the hype. Can a wrinklier Harrison Ford recapture the old Indy magic? The trailers don’t tell us much, though he does seem in great shape for a 65-year-old. Expect as many quips about his age as cracks of the whip, but he’s sure to show young pup Shia LaBeouf a thing or two. Karen Allen reprises her Raiders of the Lost Ark role as Marion, while Cate Blanchett plays the fantastically named Irina Spalko in a Louise Brooks-style bob. Just hearing the theme tune – TA-TA-RUP-TA! TA-TA-TA! – gives us goosebumps.
Directed by Steven Spielberg In cinemas from May 22
also out now
Sex and the City: the Movie – Carrie and the gang (plus Chris Noth’s ever elusive Big) hit the silver screen, four years after the TV series. Girls, you know the score; boys, meet them afterwards. Stylist Patricia Field’s dresses will, of course, be absolutely fabulous.
The Incredible Hulk – Eric Bana’s attempt at anger management in Ang Lee’s film of the comic-book antihero failed to win many friends, so now Edward Norton is to turn green with rage. Support comes from Liv Tyler, Tim Roth and William Hurt.
who’s hot
marion cotillard
Before sweeping gracefully to glory as Edith Piaf in La Vie en Rose, Marion Cotillard’s only experience of Hollywood was as Russell Crowe’s love interest in A Good Year, Ridley Scott’s version of Peter Mayle’s book A Year in Provence. But it’s amazing what having a friend called Oscar can do. Now the French star, one of a handful to win an Academy Award for a foreign-language role, is filming alongside Johnny Depp in Chicago. Directed by Michael Mann (Heat, Collateral, The Insider), her next movie will be Public Enemies, a crime caper set in the 1930s when gangsters John Dillinger, Baby-Faced Nelson and Pretty-Boy Floyd ruled the roost. With a name like Billie Frechette, her character should allow her to bring a little je ne sais quoi to the Windy City. After that, Cotillard hops back to Europe to play the old Anouk Aimée part in Rob Marshall’s remake of Fellini’s classic 8½. Her husband in Nine is another Oscar-winner, Javier Bardem, while Penelope Cruz (Bardem’s real-life squeeze) plays his mistress. With all that Latin passion, sparks will fly!
Have you been watching Sterling’s inflight movies? Test your knowledge here!
1. In Juno, when Juno MacGuff tells her parents the big news, what compliment does she pay Bleeker?
a. He has “fabulous hair”
b. He is “good in chair”
c. He “has real flair”
2. In The Bucket List, what is Carter’s favourite TV programme?
a. Jeopardy
b. Jay Leno
c. Jerry Springer
Answers
1. b – He is “good in chair” – as opposed to “good in bed” 2. a – Jeopardy – because he knows all the answers
Art
words by Richard Clayton & Alex Jackson
nordic moods / copenhagen
Saekke by Per Bak Jensethe landscape in contemporary nordic photography
30 may – 14 september
In the digital age, we don’t trust the faithfulness of photography as much as we once did. Images can be manipulated, scenes changed and details added. Artists such as Jeff Wall were ahead of the curve in that respect. This show, however, at the recently reopened and extended Arken gallery (there’s now an extra 1,600m2 of exhibition space) sounds like it has more old-fashioned aims. It asks what contemporary Nordic photographers make of the landscapes they see through their lenses, and what that tells us about Scandinavia today.
The Iceland Series by Olafur
Eliasson
Among those participating are Per Bak Jensen, whose work teases out “the being of places”, Lars Tunbjörk, best known for recording the banalities of modern offices (much of a muchness everywhere, it seems) and Elina Brotherus, whose Suite Française project mapped her alien impressions of relocating to France. The biggest draw, though, is Olafur Eliasson, whose installation of a huge “sun” transformed Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall in 2004.
While you’re there, you could also take a wander through the Arken’s latest permanent addition: a collection of 10 Damien Hirst works, unveiled with the extension in January.
Adult admission DKK 85 (€10.50). Arken gallery, Ishøj, Skovvej 100, Copenhagen, +45 43 540 222 www.arken.dk
pick of the art shows around europe…
AMSTERDAM
Daniel & Geo Fuchs:
STASI – Secret Rooms
Until 4 June
Amsterdam Photography Museum
German photographer duo Daniel & Geo explore the secret rooms used by the STASI, starkly revealing the terrifying reality of the not-so-secret police force. +31 (0)20 551 6500, www.foam.nl
BERGEN
Wild Nature
21-31 June
Bergen Kunstmuseum
Romantic landscapes by Norwegian and Swiss painters such as JC Dahl, Thomas Fearnley and Peder Balke are among the works in this rarely seen private collection. +47 5556 8000, www.bergenartmuseum.no
PARIS
Louise Bourgeois
Until 2 June
Centre Pompidou
This extensive retrospective features around 200 sculptures, paintings, drawings and engravings produced by Louise Bourgeois since 1940. +33 (0)1 4478 1233, www.centrepompidou.fr
Design
words by Petra Sjouwerman
norwegian forest lights
by cathrine kullberg / norway
The delicately hand-cut forest motif in
birch veneer lets out a subtle glow.
Large pendant lamp
NOK 4,850 (approx. €593)
(55cm wide, 40cm high)
Small pendant lamp (pictured)
NOK 3,650 (approx. €445)
(32cm wide, 31cm high)
Table light
NOK 4,600 (approx. €568)
(32cm wide, 58cm high)
Available in design stores in Oslo, Bergen
and London or email the designer Cathrine
Kullberg at www.cathrinekullberg.com
air wear travel bag
by jason solarek
Wonderful CPH is surely one of the best designed
airports in Europe. If you love your hub, show it with
this bag by Solarek designs. The designer may hail
from New York, but he says, “I’ve always wanted to be from a city like Copenhagen or Oslo. Who doesn’t wish
he or she was a tall, good-looking Scandinavian?”
€23.50.
Order online at www.airweardesigns.com
the noming vase
by frank kerdil / denmark
Frank Kerdil’s foldable vase made from recycled
paper and chalk is perfect for all occasions
where flowers are welcome but containers in
short supply. Can be used multiple times. DKK 100 (approx. €14) for gift box with
four vases. For stockists and to order
online see www.noming.com
Style
Words by Caroline Cathcart
fabulous florals
As spring blossoms into summer, you’ll see the fashion world go to town with florals - from delicate designs on fragile fabrics to bold painterly prints. Now’s the time to brighten up your wardrobe with pretty poppies or romantic roses. Take your pick of these beauties…
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 |
| Floral blouse by Stella Nova, €149 www.stella-nova.dk |
High-waist graphic
print skirt by Urban Outfitters, €53 www.urbanoutfitters.co.uk |
 |
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| Pease Blossom cotton
printed handbag by Antoni & Alison, €101 www.antoniandalison.com |
Printed leather shoes by Irregular Choice, €69 www.irregularchoicestore.com |
 |
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| New Rose Bloom weekend bag by Cath Kidston, €76 www.cathkidston.co.uk |
Painted Lona silk dress by d’AHrling, €173 www.sally-b.com |
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| Floral high-waisted trousers by Paul & Joe, €520 www.paulandjoe.com |
beauty
words by Gemma Elwin Harris
small miracles
If flying leaves your skin dry and lacklustre, pack a few of these heavenly wonders…
[1] Ole Henriksen Express The Truth Wrinkle Resistance Creme rejuvenates with the antioxidant power of red tea (€80, 50g). Fans can buy Ole’s travel set on-board.
[2] ÜberSassy A-list Fix Cooling Eye Gel (£15, approx. €19, 15ml) helps reduce puffiness with soothing chamomile.
[3] Dr Bragi Age Management Marine Enzyme (€152, 50ml) boosts circulation to give an instant glow – the fashion pack swear by it.
[4] Själ Balans Deep Pore Cleanser (€53, 180ml) is a thorough detox for face and neck, from the brand beloved of Sophie Dahl and Cameron Diaz. Use with Själ tonic and moisturiser.
[5] Elemis Cellular Recovery capsules (€91, for 60) contain oil from Tanzania’s ‘miracle tree’ Maringa Oleifera, and are said to have a higher number of antioxidants than any other cosmetic oil.
[6] Benefit Erase Paste (€25.50, 4.4g) is a quick cheat for times when only concealer will hide those dark circles around the eyes.
[7] Taer Icelandic Mist Toner (€31, 100ml) hydrates and tones – lemon and thyme scented, it’s great to spritz on the plane.
food+drink
everyone’s talking about
elena arzak / san sebastian, spain
Elena in her family’s
restaurant, Arzak
Who? Elena Arzak, co-chef at Arzak, the three Michelin star San Sebastian restaurant established by her culinary innovator dad, Juan Mari.
Why the fuss? Soft-spoken Elena has triumphed in a town renowned for its creative chefs and recently won the prestigious Chef de l’Avenir title, given to Europe’s most promising stars. Her stylish and intriguing creations have brought new pizzazz to a restaurant already famous for innovative cooking. With father and daughter working side-by-side at the stove, the restaurant’s convivial atmosphere and cutting edge cuisine has won the hearts – and palates – of some of the food world’s choosiest connoisseurs.
Lobster on a bed of
tapioca and flower
What’s she cooking? Enriched Basque cuisine, combining staples of the region with more exotic ingredients from further afield: local hake and beef might mix with mango, molasses, coconut and smoked chocolate.
On Sterling magazine’s visit, a dish of brilliant orange pumpkin ravioli came in squid ink. Poached egg seasoned with truffle oil was topped with spicy txistorra sausage made with paprika and dates. And memorable desserts included the smoked chocolate mousse and orange flan with cream.
Where’s she been all my life? Born into the Spanish haute cuisine aristocracy, Elena’s never been one to rest on her laurels. After stints with Ducasse in Monte Carlo and the Troisgros brothers in Roanne, she spent time with Catalan king of molecular gastronomy Ferran Adrià. Now Elena’s personal style has brought one of San Sebastian’s landmark eateries back into the spotlight.
Arzak is open for dinner Tuesday–Saturday, and for lunch Tuesday–Sunday. The four-course dinner costs €135 with wine. San Sebastian is a 30-minute drive (35 miles) from Sterling destination Biarritz. HEIDI FULLER-LOVE
Arzak, avenida Alcalde Jose Elosegui 273, Donostia, San Sebastian +34 943 278 465, www.arzak.info
eat my blog
blogger: anne skoogh, stockholm
“I’m a Swedish home cook who writes about the food I love. I post recipes and photos of just about everything I eat – anything from cookies to slow-cooked lamb or classic Swedish cuisine. “
What I love about Swedish food…
It’s generally made from scratch with fresh ingredients. We’re lucky to have so many locally produced vegetables and grains. And the balance between sweet, sour and salty is really important in classic Swedish cooking.
A great food stop in Stockholm is…
A store called Cajsa Warg (Renstiernas gata 20, www.cajsawarg.se), that has fresh local food, as well as hard-to-find imported ingredients. I also enjoy coffee and filled baguette at Albert & Jack’s (Engelbrektsgatan 3, www.albertjacks.se).
My tip for Sterling travellers to Spain is…
Darsena Restaurant in Torre de la Horadada (the main square), about an hour south of Alicante, for paella. My parents have a house there and I visit as often as I can to enjoy wonderful Spanish food.
My food bible is…
Nigella Lawson’s How to Be a Domestic Goddess, the book that first got me s excited about food. It’s mostly about baking, but was a great starting point. I have lots of recipe books, but this is the one I keep returning to.
My food heroes are…
Gordon Ramsay and Jamie Oliver – apart from Nigella of course. They might seem mainstream, but they’re inspiring a lot of people and getting them to eat better food.
I’m a big fan of…
Cheese! Any cheese. I love everything, from great salty Greek feta to sharp Swedish Västerbotten.
I believe that…
Life is too short to eat less-thangreat food. Many people have forgotten the joys of cooking, but I hope that my blog can remind some of them how fun it can be.
I find inspiration in…
Eating with friends and family. I love having other people cook for me, and much prefer a home-cooked meal to eating out in restaurants.
INTERVIEW BY HENRY WISMAYER
taste of a place / lombardy, italy
chef giorgio locatelli on polenta
“In Lombardia, our loose polenta – I prefer to call it ‘loose’ rather than slushy – is traditionally a staple of our diet. During the Second World War, polenta was what everyone lived on. You grew corn to feed the animals, and to grind for polenta. The way it would typically be eaten would be with cheese and sautéed porcini that had been gathered from the woods in the mountains.
“Sometimes we serve a small portion this way as a starter in the restaurant. The polenta is cooked and left to set, so that it can be cut into slices, topped with slices of Taleggio cheese, and grilled so that the cheese melts. It makes me smile to see people tucking into such a dish in London, when it is something born out of keeping yourself warm after a day on the mountains, when it is twelve below zero.”
London-based chef-restaurateur Giorgio Locatelli won the Glenfiddich Best Food Book award 2007 for Made in Italy, Food and Stories (published by Fourth Estate, £19.99, approx. €25) www.harpercollins.co.uk
naples a whistlestop tour for…
pizza fans
With an incredible 12,000 pizzerias in Naples the humble pizza is clearly closely allied to the Neapolitan soul. And the best are the simplest, eschewing fancy ingredients in favour of tangy-sweet sauce from fresh local tomatoes, topped with the sublime milky richness of mozzarella di bufala, with a whisker of basil or oregano and emerging perfectly cooked from a wood-fired oven in front of your eyes.
One of the most feted pizzerias in Naples is L’Antica Pizzeria da Michele, run by the Condurio family since 1870 (via Cesare Sersale 1-3). Here a no reservations policy usually means you have to queue to bag a place in what is little more than a glorified working men’s café. Inside, though, the smell alone gets the juices going and both the margherita and marinara pizzas at €4 a pop are faultless. No surprise – after almost a century and a half it’s still all that’s on the Condurios’ menu aside from bottled beer.
The Condurios’ pizzas are undeniably great, but for a more relaxed experience try Pizzeria Brandi off via Chiaia (Salita Sant’Anna di Palazzo 1). It’s said the margherita pizza was invented here in 1889 in honour of the visiting Queen of Savoy. Somehow we doubt Queen Margherita actually ate here but she might have been charmed by the candlelit tables outside in the alley. Once again the pizzas are faultless, cooked to a bubbling crispness, and here you can also quaff excellent local wines.
Finally, a no-name hole in the wall pizzeria near the church S. Paolo Maggiore on via Tribunali is an excellent place to sample Naples’ original street food. No frills, no tables, just a freshly cooked wood-fired margherita pizza, crusty and bubbling with tomato and mozzarella, scented with basil, and yours for €1.
Finally, if you’re in the market for the freshest mozzarella to take home, the best mozzarella di bufala comes from the countryside of Campania where grazing water buffalo lend the scrubby landscape a slightly surreal air. Look for the sign ‘caseificio’ indicating the sale of mozzarella freshly made on site. In Naples you can stock up at any of the dozen or more mouth-watering salumerie (delicatessens) lining the foodie heaven that is the via Tribunali between Piazza Miraglia and Castel Capuano. Here superb, glistening milky-white hand-shaped balls are sold by one and all. Or for an instant refreshing snack, head into one of the latterie (milk bars) such as Scaturchio on Piazza San Domenico where they’ll stuff mozzarella into a kind of brioche for you to eat on the go. ANDREW CATCHPOLE
drinking habits no.3
buttocks up!
Though many toasts are a version of ‘Good Health’ – such as the French ‘Santé’ and the Irish ‘Sláinte’ – some have other meanings. The Japanese cry of ‘Banzai’ (‘Long Life’) is matched by the Jewish ‘Le Chaim’ (‘To Life’). The English ‘Bottoms Up’ finds echoes round the world. In Greece ‘Aspro pato’ means ‘white bottom’ (of the glass); in Slovakia they say ‘Az do dna’, which loosely translates as ‘all the way to the bottom’; while in Hawaii ‘Okole maluna’ means a literal ‘buttocks up’.
Excerpt from Going Dutch in Beijing: The International Guide to Doing the Right Thing by Mark McCrum, published by Profile Books (€14.35), www.profilebooks.com
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