I´ve been awaaaaaay

Yes, I know. I´m sorry. But there has been so much going on!

Let me summarize the latest happenings then: Jack Johnson´s concert here in Amsterdam, a couple of friends visiting, then a trip to London where I was lucky enough to see The Ting Tings and Pink at the Wireless Festival! Then back to Amsterdam and two days later... surprise trip to Paris! Which was amazing, by the way. And it was really a surprise, I knew about the trip 2 hours before departing... So I´ve been running, that´s the truth. But hey, Here I am again and I have a lot to share about all these great concerts and trips, so don´t give up on me! (that´s actually me talking to myself, telling me not to give up on my blog)

See you soon :)

xx

Haute Couture + Kandinsky in Den Haag (2)

I promised to write more about the Gemeentemuseum in Den Haag and to post some pictures, so here I am.

So the museum has 3 floors: 

The basement had an exhibition called "Wonder Kamers", which means "Rooms of Wonders". There are several rooms and closed doors between them, and before opening the door you can only see the colour of the room on the other side - not its content. So you'll be surprised each time you go from one room to the other, not knowing whats awaiting you. It's a very cool exhibition, everything really interactive and experimental and covers all the themes showing on the other floors of the museum (fashion, design, art, music, etc). As the rooms were really dark I wasn't able to take pictures - because using flash was not permitted. It is a trendy and young environment, worth one visit if you like this kind of things. You'll find more information (with pictures) here. 

On the ground floor I found some interesting things:

Georges Vantongerloo: a Belgian Painter / Esculptor / Designer / Architect / Theorist that makes such simple yet perfect things. His history is fascinating and his work reflects that. I had never heard of him before seeing this exhibition, but then I started to look for more information and found out he was really relevant though art historists say he didn't get all the attention he deserved for his work. 

Besides Vantongerloo, there are others artists that work with colours and geometric shapes on the ground floor. Really interesting.

I happened to find an exhibition about Tupperware as well, which I loved! Totally related to what I'm  professionally interested in. It was about how Tupperware emerged, the context by then, the appeal fof this product to the 40's/50's/60's housewives, how they were sold and advertised, etc, etc. There was even a 50's kitchen there to give the idea of how things really worked for women at that time.

First floor - this is the must-see floor, in my opinion:

Kandinsky and Der Blaue Reiter: this exhibition is sooo beautiful! So colourful, full of life... from the time Kandinsky and other great artists formed a group (Der Blaue Reiter) to start doing something different with their painting. Their purpose was opposing to what was being done by others and start painting from sensations and feelings, and not from reality. Just BEAUTIFUL. Pictures here:

And last, the Voici Paris! exhibition, showing the history of haute couture and its role through the decades, starting in the mid-1860's. Their collection include great creations from all major Maisons (Dior, Givenchy, Chanel,...) and a great sample of the couture work that's being done here in The Netherlands. This exhibition is mesmerizing, you can spend one whole day just there, admiring all those amazing gowns - some of them having an average of 800 hours of handcraftmanship on. It's pure art.

Here are some pictures, not of my favourite gowns though. I had to choose the clearer ones, because most of the pictures are just too bad, as the place was too dark - shame.

Armani Privé

Dior by John Galliano

Chanel by Karl Lagerfeld

And voilà! Today I was reading the Couture Suplement of the Italian Vogue (March edition) and found an article about this exhibition! So I guess it's really unmissable :)

Gastronomie Parisienne

The best thing about Paris is how everything is amazingly integrated with the most classic style and how the most traditional places are still in the youth's agenda. I'm not the most classic person as I'm more inspired by new and trendy things, but classic always has its great value, and that's what Paris is all about. Talking about that, these were the most memorable experiences I had in Paris this weekend regarding gastronomy and its esthétique. Both classic, traditional, though not old. There are fantastic places anyone who goes to Paris should visit, regardless of their age.

Le Procope:

The first café in Paris, which welcomed habitués like Voltaire, Robespierre and other French intellectual characters and is amazingly in continuous operation since it opened in 1686. Le Procope was refurbished in 1988 in eighteenth-century style, receiving red walls, crystal chandeliers, oval portraits of famous people that have been patrons, and a tinkly piano. It's all decorated with ancient books that you can take and read as well. Fascinating.

The menu has a full set of typical French Culinaire. It was the first time I had the guts to try Oysters (when I was a child I believed one could drop dead while eating Oysters) and Escargot (that I used to find repelling). Surprisingly, I didn't drop dead eating Oysters and the Escargot was definitely not disgusting. 

Here are some pictures of the whole experience:

Ladurée:

They claim to be the maison who invented the double-decker macaron, by joining two macaron shells and giving them a creamy filling. The place is amazing, a classic tea room, very classy  decorated in pale tones. It looks like a doll house, you won't believe the tables they set. Everything was absolutely delicious, but when you get there how things taste is actually the least important thing. It's visual food by all means - wherever you look, you want to take things home.

As it was Easter holiday, the place was crowded and I couldn't take pictures inside, but I took some of the table I was at. Luckily there was a small Ladurée Boutique in my boarding wing at Charles de Gaulle Airport, so I was able to take a lot of pictures and buy a gift for myself - a tea called Marie Antoinette, that came in the most beautiful pale pink cilindric carton packaging. I love tea, but what I really wanted was to take home a piece of Ladurée. And when I finish the tea, of course I will keep the box - I wouldn't dare throwing it away.