LONDON

This is the view from Sebastian's office. While we were there we were lucky enough to watch the changing of the "The King's Troop - Royal Horse Artillery" from Wellington's office. The daily parade takes place in what is known as the Tilt Yard; on the site of Henry VIII's tournament ground or 'tiltyard'. The Tilt Yard is the nearest bit to the Horse Guards building, designed by William Kent, of the bigger space known as Horse Guards Parade - see above - on which the annual Queen's Birthday Parade (colloquially known as Trooping the Colour) takes place. The whole building is known as Horse Guards, because the original function was, and remains - the barracks for the The Household Cavalry guarding the monarch and the principal palace. It used to guard the mediaeval royal Palace of Whitehall, originally next to the even older royal Palace of Westminster, which became the palace of the Houses of Parliament in the early Middle Ages - - it still is today. After watching this grand parade it is time to dash to the airport!

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LONDON

Just before catching our plane home we went to Horse Guards to have coffee with our friend Sebastian and see his famous loft size office. Surrounded by the marble busts of his predecessors, the Dukes of Albemarle, Malborough, York and Wellington and the life-size portraits of King George II and Queen Caroline - Major General Sebastian Roberts, sits behind Wellington's desk. He has two jobs and two titles both commanded from the same Headquarters: General Officer Commanding London District - all Army units within Greater London and Major General Commanding the Household Division, all Guards regiments including the 2 Regiments of Household Cavalry, and the 5 Regiments of Foot Guards. The office used to be that of the Commander in Chief of the whole army and the Duke of Wellington was definitely the most famous occupier, he held the post twice, once briefly in 1820, and subsequently from 1842 - 1852. If you are wondering why Sebastian is not in uniform it is because it is an old habit that Army officers serving in London wear plain clothes to work - uniform being for the field or parades. In recent years it has also rendered them less obvious as targets for terrorists. This amazing, gigantic pale green and white stucco paneled office has also a terrific infinite view from it's windows first of Horse Guards Parade and further on of St James's Park! This really was a special treat - grazie mille!

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LONDON

What better way than to end the day than to see this glamorous and dazzling exhibition called DIAMONDS at the National History Museum - till 26th February, 2006 - Wow!!! After a very tight security check the exhibition started on a red carpet with photographs and clips of films starring movie stars and their rocks and then moved on to show lots and lots of the worlds most famous diamonds mounted in fabulous jewels. I especially enjoyed seeing all the coloured diamonds like the "Steinmetz Pink" (my favorite color) - 59.60 carats. "The Moussaieff Red" - 5.11 carats, the most expensive red diamond at over $900,000 per carat, the highest price ever paid per carat for any diamond. "The Incomparable Diamond" (golden brown) - 407.48 carats, the third largest cut diamond ever recorded. This exhibition tells a story of power, wealth and desire. I was day dreaming on my way out and as consolation I went a bought myself a giant size paperweight solitaire - as big as the Ritz - and the catalogue!

www.nhm.ac.uk

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LONDON

After a rather delicious lunch in Marco Pierre White's Belvedere Restaurant situated right in the middle of Holland Park in what used to be the summer ballroom to Holland House - it's back to the museums. I have decided that I'm going to have a favorite museum for each town and the National Portrait Gallery is going to be the one for London. It was so exciting to walk in and just about enjoy everything I saw. As a "Paparazzi" and, as I love to photograph real people I was in heaven here looking at all the portraits and photographs. I could have stayed in all day! The reason I went there was to see the exhibition The World's Most Photographed - till October 23rd - about one hundred photographs exploring the lives and legends of ten well-known figures from history - from Queen Victoria to Muhammad Ali and Adolf Hitler to Marilyn Monroe and more - the show consists of photographs which have previously been lost, suppressed or hidden, together with more familiar images going beyond the often carefully constructed public image of the VIPs to reveal much more about their personalities and their lives. It was such a good show that booking is a must and even so, it was rather difficult to really see the exhibition properly, but I'm not complaining!

http://www.belvedererestaurant.co.uk

www.npg.org.uk

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LONDON
As you get off the Millennium Bridge and walk towards Saint Paul's, you come across these wonderful steps, I like the way they "inter-play" with the sliding sections, it's so clever, but unfortunately I don't know who designed them - does anybody know? If so, please contact me.

This is urban architecture at it's best, it solves quite brilliantly the wheelchair access for the disabled which is a major issue today.

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LONDON

When Sir Christopher Wren 1710 meets Sir Norman Foster 2001 it's spectacular!! From the Tate Modern we walked across the Millennium Bridge on our way to Saint Paul's Cathedral. As we crossed the Thames the view of the cupola of the cathedral as well as the City is so stunning that we took millions of photos. The steel structure was designed by Foster & Partners with sculptor Sir Anthony Caro and engineers Ove Arup, the shallow suspension bridge is the first completely new pedestrian bridge to be constructed over the Thames for a hundred years. The innovative structure is formed by a single sweeping arc designed to appear as a thin ribbon of steel by day and, illuminated at night, as a shining blade of light across the river. In 2001 a few days after its inauguration, it developed an 'unexpected wobble', and the structure was closed to the public until a 'passive dampening solution' was installed to cure the problem. It re-opened to the public in 2002.

You can also get to the Tate Modern by boat (see above) which runs every forty minutes along the Thames between Tate Britain, the London Eye and Tate Modern.

http://www.londonvisions.com/am_milleniumbridge.htm

www.tate.org.uk

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LONDON

A short taxi ride takes us to Bankside and the Tate Modern which is the national gallery of international modern art. Created in the year 2000 from a disused power station designed in 1933 by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott - who was also responsible for the famous red British telephone box, we so associate with London - the building has been converted by the leading Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron, whose plans have respected the integrity of the original design. The most noticeable change to the exterior of the building is a new two-storey glass structure spanning the length of the roof which not only provides natural light into the galleries on the top floors, but also houses a stunning café offering outstanding views across London. A remarkable combination of the old and the new. The vast space is very impressive and in the short time we had we particularly wanted to see the Open Systems: Rethinking Art c.1970 (till 18th September), this remarkable exhibition brings together the works of international artists who radically rethought the object of art in the late 1960s and 1970s. They sought to connect with the increasingly urgent political developments of the decade and make their work more responsive to the world around them. There is Andy Warhol's portrait of Mao-Tse-Tung that dates from 1972, to commemorate President Nixon's historic visit to Beijing! This is very interesting exhibition though rather "highbrow" for me, and a little difficult to understand without the aid of the catalogue! We have to dash now as time is running out......quick quick let's cross THE BRIDGE.

www.tate.org.uk

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LONDON

Tuesday was my sight seeing and museum day. I wanted to catch up with the latest shows and see all the new buildings that have "sprouted" up in the East End of London these past ten years. I just had to see the London headquarters of the reinsurers, The Swiss Re Building, locally called the Gerkin or nicknamed the "suppository" by my husband!!! Isn't it wonderful the way it blends in with the old buildings of the city? I love it! This forty storey landmark building was designed by Sir Norman Foster and Partners and opened in 2004. The tower has a circular plan that widens as it rises from the ground and then tapers towards its apex. The windows open too and whenever possible, recycled and recyclable materials have been used as well as innovative ways of reducing energy consumption. Brilliant!

http://www.swissre.com/

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LONDON

Yes, we are at it again, more bubbly, this time to celebrate the birth of my old school friend Gabrielle and her husband Oliver Leigh Wood's first grand daughter and third grandchild! Alice Elisabeth Marie Gould was born while we were having dinner with the happy grandparents on the 8th of August (8th month) at 8.06 p.m. and she weighted 8 pounds 8 ounces - should we play the lottery? And within an hour they had received photographs of the new born, through the internet and on their mobile phones - isn't it amazing? Oliver buys and repairs old buildings and is also chairman of The Spitalfields Trust which over the last twenty seven years has repaired in excess of sixty buildings in the East End of London and has just completed an outstanding medieval building in Monmouthshire which will be featured in Country Life magazine - www.countrylife.co.uk or email him at Oliverleighwood@hotmail.com - Gabrielle, who was the top of our class of seven at school and one of the only pupils to take Latin, specializes in taking tourist round unknown London and she is also a certified Blue Badge Guide. http://www.blue-badge-guides.com.somewhere/ or email her at mausilw@hotmail.com.

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LONDON

Today is the first working day we are in London and as I pass the newsagent on Knightsbridge Green, on my way to a business appointment, I notice that only the rack on the left has English newspapers - a true sign of how multi-ethnic it has become since I lived there. Are there any true Brits left? I heard all sorts of languages on public transport, mostly Italian and a little Spanish and some of the other lanuages I just couldn't distinguish. There is a radio station in London broadcasting programmes, for the last 13 years, to 25 ethnic and special-interest groups: Arabic, Chinese, Russian, Tamil, Jewish, Islamic, Irish, Italian, Australian and (North) American - this is how multi-ethnic London has become and.... there's no going back!

www.spectrumradio.net

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LONDON
I love this photo and think it is so chic to have the old fashioned laundry box blend in with the turquoise walls while it is sitting on an antique chair in the hall waiting to be picked up. After lunch in the garden we are back in London for a light supper with Meredith and Jeremy. We saw Christie's Magazine, editor in chief, Meredith Etherington Smith in Venice for the Biennale but it was "yonks" since we saw her husband Jeremy Pilcher and had never met Bingo, the Norwich Terrier before. Everybody was in a lazy and relaxed Sunday p.m. mood and it was nice and cozy just to sit and sip champagne and reminiscence about people, place and the past before a delicious chicken salad in the kitchen.

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LONDON

The weather was so sunny and warm and so was the mood because England beat Australia by just two runs in the cricket match at Lord's and we were also able to have Sunday lunch outside in the well kept and beautiful English garden at Rudy and Mary's - my brother and sister in law. She is such a wonderful cook and is famous for her abundant and delicious meals which always end with three puddings, yes THREE PUDDINGS, as you can see: white chocolate mousse with berries, strawberries and ice cream and then the yummy chocolate eclairs or profiteroles as we call them in Italy. What a treat!!!

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Photograph by Manfredi Bellati
LONDON

Here is handsome Puma our "host" in Notting Hill, he kept us company while we had breakfast and had we let him he would have enjoyed having some cereal too - he was also happy to sit on the edge of the bath tub or play with my beauty creams on the shelf over the sink. And, another place he loved to sit was on the stairs and soak up the sun that filtered through the big window.

MOMENTS
FLYING

FASTER THAN

THOUGHT -

SIT

AND CATCH

NOW

is the poem that Betsy wrote on the stairs going up to the first floor to induce friends and family (and Puma) to stop, sit on the comfortable kilim covered sofa and contemplate..........

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LONDON - Totally Lond0n

I hadn't been to London in about ten years and it was nice to go back though it felt like a deja vu film that you couldn't quite remember the script. It was very "empty", maybe I should use the word - not crowded - probably because most people were on holiday and the tourist stayed away because of the terrorist attacks of July. However, I found that it was business as usual, with no fuss and lots of policemen all over the place which was comforting and best of all hardly any traffic.

Totally London is a very interesting marketing initiative which promotes the numerous free festivals taking place in London during the autumn.

www.visitlondon.com

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HOSTESS GIFT!

I am proud to show you my latest "hostess gift"... I have started taking to lunches and dinner parties products from my own garden be they flowers, vegetables or herbs! Though I say so myself, they are most appreciated and good as well. Pin It

photograph by Manfredi Bellati
BOLOGNA - Il Museo Internazionale e Biblioteca della Musica
We couldn't leave Bologna without going to visit The International Museum and Library of Music, this beautiful jewel of a museum is the legacy that Marina Deserti left behind after she was deputy mayor for culture. Situated in the prestigious sixteenth-century Palazzo Aldrini Sanguinetti restored not only to state of the arts technology but also to it's former splendor. The displays interweave elements of five centuries of European musical history and each room is painted in the color of the period, i.e. Framboise for Rossini (1800) or turquoise for Farinelli (1700). Besides the many portraits, like Thomas Gainsborough's of Johann Christian Bach there are more than seventy musical instruments like the fascinating, absolutely unique polyphonic flute "armonia di flauti" or the grand piano that belonged to Gioachino Rossini, as well as, a wide selection of historical documents of tremendous value, like treaties, librettos, letters and autographed scores. In a room on the ground floor a violin maker's workshop has been restructured, a tribute to Otello Bignami - in Bolgona the art or violin making has been active since the fifteenth century. This museum is really worth a visit not only for it's fascinating contents but also for the modern yet classical restoration and for the palazzo itself with it's frescoes painted at the turn of the 19th century during the Napoleonic and Neoclassical period. Bravissima Marina!

www.museomusicabologna.it

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BOLOGNA - Basilica di Santo Stefano

Sunday morning we went for a walk and just happened on this beautiful Basilica di Santo Stefano, which isn't one church but, originally it was seven interlinked churches built right next to each other. Today only four of the original seven are still around, and situated around them are a few courtyards, a cloister, and a crypt and it's quite fascinating to move from one into the other. They are quite spectacular in their understated beauty and you won't find great works of art, instead an aura of silence and tranquility. What struck me most, and had never seen before, was the elevated altar which set the sacred part of the church higher than the secular one. The site dates back to pre-Christ times, when it was used as a pagan site of worship and the churches you see today were constructed between the 5th and 12th centuries. . . On display are the bones of San Petronio, Bologna's patron saint. When we walked out again into the bright sunlight, we felt so good, refreshed of body and soul, that we were ready for more sight-seeing.

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BOLOGNA - Alfred and Alice's Pre-Nuptial Party

Strawberries were de rigueur as centre pieces and decoration at Alfred and Alice's party. It was a clever idea of bringing the garden under the tent, instead of the usual and "expected" flower arrangements. Here are a few ideas of what you can do with strawberries - SWEET: strawberry sorbet, strawberry ice cream, strawberry granita, strawberries and cream, strawberry Pavlova, strawberry and rhubarb pie, strawberry and rhubarb crumble, strawberry pie, strawberry jelly, strawberry rice pudding, strawberry shortcakes, strawberry pizza, strawberry baked Alaska, Eton Mess, strawberry trifle, strawberry mousse, chocolate dipped strawberries, strawberry strudel, strawberry snow, strawberry fool, summer pudding, strawberry omelette, strawberry sundae, strawberry shortcakes, strawberry cheesecake, strawberry tart, strawberry kebabs, strawberry jam, strawberry compote, strawberry champagne soup, strawberry panna cotta, strawberry souffle, strawberry and mascarpone quesadillas, strawberries warmed in Grand Marnier with black pepper. SAVORY: strawberry and tomato salad, strawberry salsa, strawberry salad with olives and balsamic vinegar, strawberry, tomato and fennel gazpacho, avocados with strawberry salsa and crispy tortilla strips, strawberry dressing, spinach and strawberry salad, strawberry chutney, strawberry relish, creamy strawberry soup, strawberry summer salad, strawberry chicken salad, strawberry turkey salad, strawberry sourdough bread. DRINKS: strawberry smoothie, strawberry milkshake, strawberry Kir royale, sparkling strawberry Mimosa, strawberry iced tea, strawberry fizz, strawberry Pimms cocktail, strawberries and Prosecco. AND, strawberry fruit mask!!!! Can you think of any other uses for STRAWBERRIES???

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BOLOGNA - Alfred and Alice's Pre-nuptial Party

In her neoclassical villa, built after Napoleon's stay in Bologna, the mother of the bride, Marina Deserti Stori gave a spectacular pre-nuptial party for 500 international guests for the wedding of her daughter Alice to Alfred, Prince v.u.z. Liechtenstein. The party was mostly for friends of the parents. And, for that reason many had not met the bride or the groom, therefore they both amusingly wore the the insignia "I am the Groom" for Alfred on the back of his black tie - and - for Alice "I am the Bride", embroidered with multicolored silks, in the main European languages, on the skirt of her halter-neck ballerina-inspired beautiful white dress. Everything was perfect to the last detail; the food, the garden with it's gigantic tent, the tables and the chairs, especially monogrammed with double AA, the band and all the guests had a really great time, some dancing till breakfast at dawn.

As so many people came from out of town and from other European countries a whole weekend of parties was organized by friends of Marina: a Pre-pre-nuptial dinner in Palazzo Angelelli by Patrizia Medail Occioni Bonaffons - a Formal lunch by Nicoletta Maresca di Serracapriola - a Garden Party by the tennis court in Villa Impero by Maria Cristina Faccioli - a Picnic by Luca and Pupi Visconti di Modrone. It was such a great way to see and appreciate Bologna.

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BOLOGNA - Palazzo Angelelli

The Water Tray: It was so hot that all I wanted to do was drink liters of water. I find the water tray very chic and particularly liked the simple hand written ink label, tied with raffia, that says frizzante (sparkling)! Patrizia is very good at creating an atmosphere, this is seen not only in the details of the interior decoration of the palazzo but also in her sculpture-paintings enchanting us to a land of fantasy and dreams.

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photograph by Manfredi Bellati
BOLOGNA - Palazzo Angelelli

Dinner in artist Patrizia Medail's workshop/home, in palazzo Angelelli, is a feast not only for the food, but most of all for the eye. Her studio, which is also the ballroom, has lots of gilt, mirrors and stuccoes, it also doubles-up as the dining-room, where tables covered in grey satin and topped with old carpets are ardorned with luscious and dramatic center pieces. To reach the ballroom/dining room one has to go through a series of palatal rooms where her plush art blends in beautifully with the frescos, marble, silver and antique furniture of the palazzo itself. Patrizia Medail's art or "collages" depict exotic animals like polar bears, tigers, lions, royal eagles or elegant vases of flowers which are made from old braids, antique damasks, fringes, velvets and lace, they are as rich and stunning as their surrounding.

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BOLOGNA - I Portici

When you visit Bologna one of the things that strikes you most are the twenty-four miles of arcades - the longest in the world. You can enjoy strolling in town during all seasons and are protected from the sun and sheltered from the rain....it is also quite magical to saunter in the early evening, when the sun begins to set, on the way to a dinner party in one of the many beautiful palazzi in the center of town. It was in Bologna that in 1088 the first university in Europe was born and the portici (as they are known) were built to house the growing number of students by extending the upper storeys of the buildings, leaving a covered space for pedestrians and for trading at street level.

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photograph by Manfredi Bellati

POOR JAY PEG!

Punta Sabbioni - Venezia: J.peg is still feeling sorry for herself as she says goodbye to the seaside after being home sick in 'bed" for four day with a really strong coup de soleil! She missed out on all the fun, but don't worry "ciccia" we'll come back with a beach umbrella next time......!

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SAND TOWEL

Punta sabbioni - Venezia: It was the second time Pixel and J.peg went to the seaside and while the more adventuress J.peg - who loves to go into the water to retrieve sticks and balls - was home getting over sun-stroke!!!! Shy Pixel got over her fear of the waves and was soon coming and going into the sea with nonchalance!!! AND THEN, she would roll all over into the sand to dry herself. The perfect sand towel!!! And, after a few shakes of her skinny body she would then be perfectly dry and "sandless". Brava Pixel.

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He's Done it again:

CONGRATULATIONS

LANCE

on your

7TH CONSECUTIVE VICTORY

of

TOUR de FRANCE

and

GOOD LUCK

For

THE FUTURE!

"VIVE LE TOUR. FOREVER."

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WHEN PROSECCO COUNTRY MEETS THE HIGHLANDS

Drinks - A good-bye drinks for our very distinguished miltary English (and Scottish) friends before their departure back home. Inspired by a Gordon tartan throw blanket on the back of an armchair, Lieutenant Colonel The Rt Hon Ian Chant Sempill, with the help of a belt improvised a kilt and treated us to superb highland dancing - a Strathspey Reel to the tune of The Gay Gordons. Ian was the last commanding officer of the Gordon Highlanders and marched them to the amalgamation with the Queen's own Highlanders. They are now known as just The Highlanders. It was a very entertaining evening, hopefully to be repeated next year. Grazie mille.

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ASOLO

Lunch - Hidden, down and up a dirt road on the hillsides of Monfumo just behind Asolo is La Sconta the Italian country farmhouse of Suomi and Nadia La Valle. Though both Italian they have made London their home for over a quarter of a century and are also often seen in Paris, Tangiers and most recently in Bombay where Nadia has a design studio. Nadia is a very talented fashion and embroidery designer not only for the Paris haute couture but also for her own company, Spaghetti (a reminder of "home"), established in 1976 with a mythical fashion show launch in Elio Fiorucci's restaurant in Milan where top model Donna Jordan modeled the exquisite and unusual embroidered couture creations that over the years have found a following with the jet set, royalty and an international in-crowd. Let's get back to lunch, which isn't really just lunch at the La Valle's but a whole leisurely day party which starts with lots of Prosecco and ends with a trip to the cellar for a taste of Suomi's home-made grappa. And, in between there is also lots of music, dancing, good food, great and interesting friends from all over the world and as one would expect every detail is beautifully planned and arranged by the hostess herself - like the fresh flowers from the garden as center piece for the table setting.

Spaghetti - 32 Beauchamp Place - London S.W.3 - spaghettiforever@aol.com

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VENICE - DISMANTLING THE REDENTORE BRIDGE

Get out your Blackberry and "Save the Date" - July 15th, 2006 - is the next Festa del Redentore - Christ the Redemeer. This is Venice at it's best and spectacular in a popular way....

Once upon a time, centuries ago in 1576, to thank God for the city's deliverance from the Plague the Venetian Republic built the Church of Il Rendentore on the Guidecca Island, it was designed by Andrea Palladio and Antonio Da Ponte. They also promised to make a yearly procession to the church on the third Sunday of July and since then a "boat-bridge" was built from gondolas strung together across the Lagoon from the Zattere to the Giudecca. Sadly, the bridge is now built by the military with metal beams. And, from three or four o'clock on the Saturday before any type of vessel that can float gathers in the basin of Saint Mark's to grab the best place to watch the spectacular firework display. There is not one square inch of water left, boats are 'back to back' people are feasting, drinking and partying waiting for the gran finale when the sky explodes illuminating the entire city from above. When the fireworks end at midnight the party proceeds to await dawn on the beaches of the Lido with more eating, drinking and partying. It is such an amazing experience, so..... don't forget to save the date.

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FOR SALE

VILLA VENETA IN PROSECCO COUNTRY

COL ZANIN is the name of the hill from which this VILLA VENETA takes it's name. It is situated in the Colli Trevigiani in the province of Treviso (Italy).

A nobleman's residence and property it is located on top of the hill Col Zanin and was built in the in 1600's by the order of the Camaldolesi monks.

The property consists of:

BUILDINGS
- well proportioned main building (see photo)
- private chapel
- stables
- rustic annex
all buildings need to be renovated

LAND
38.000 sq. Meters
of which
6.000 Sq. Meters Prosecco Vineyards
22.000 Sq. Meters sunny meadows on which vines can be planted
9.000 Sq. Meters of woodland
2 centuries old Mulberry trees

Col Zanin is situated northwest of Treviso - roughly an hour from Treviso and Venice airports and 20 minutes from Conegliano train station.

Price available on request.

For more information: please click on comments below and send us a message with your email address.

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MAKE HISTORY

BY

MAKING POVERTY HISTORY

bono

www.makepovertyhistory.org

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LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005

San Trovaso - Dinner in a Garden - I felt exactly like Otello after walking around and looking at art for four day, dinners, parties and not enough sleep - therefore - dinner with a few friends in one of the most beautiful gardens of Venice was perfect. Naif artist Liselotte Hohs Manera gives the most elegant though casual and understated dinners in her garden: where centuries ago it was the first stops for plants for climatization, from far away continents, before being moved to other parts of Italy. We also celebrated art critic, Barbara's birthday with La Biennale's Renato - beautiful Mimmi - artist, Yoki - photographer, Manfredi - 2007 Biennale curator, Rob and, not forgetting Ombra and Othello!

THE END

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Photograph courtesy of T-B A21 Collection

LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005
Isola di San Lazzaro - Always a Little Further - On one of the remotest Islands of Venice within the grounds of Armenian monastery is Olafur Eliasson's light installation ***** Your Black Horizon 2005 - A thin horizontal line directed through a narrow gap at eye level serves as the primary light source in this beautifully design windowless pavilion. The light is constantly changing colors and is calibrated to the specific light conditions of Venice. This is the first realization of T-B A21 new presentation concept, the Thyssen-Bornemisza Limited edition Art Pavilions. These pavilions will be placed in selected venues around the world, that have one very important common denominator: " A stunningly beautiful location with an astonishing View" Francesca von Habsburg. This is such a wonderful experience and if you take the 3.10 pm boat from San Marco, you can include a guided tour of the Armenian monastery as well!

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LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005

Fondazione Querini Stampalia - Homespun Tales - In this beautiful Palazzo, still viewable as a private home of two hundred years ago German born sculptor Kiki Smith presents *****Homespun Tales a tale of domestic occupation that mirrors the collection Querini Stampalia while weaving a fractured tale of household yearning. Referencing some characteristic elements of the noble Venetian family home - including their paintings (Pietro Longhi, Antonio Canova, Giovanni Bellini etc.), furniture and mirrors - she creates a new narrative highlighting the resourcefulness of home makers. She does this so cleverly that in some case - like the biscuit objects on the table setting are nearly indistinguishable from her own work. It's a charming fairy tale exhibition that blends in so cleverly with the Venetian dwelling.

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photograph courtesy Manfredi Bellati
LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005

Museo Correr - *****Lucian Freud - This is the best show in Venice - it was so refreshing to see real paint on canvas AT LAST, if I remember rightly there isn't even one painting, in the traditional sense in the Arsenale show! Curated by William Feaver, this retrospective exhibition shows eighty-five pieces, some specifically created for the occasion. Since Lucian Freud won the Purchase Prize in 1951 he has built up a formidable reputation as one of the most powerful contemporary figurative painters. Portraits and nudes are his specialties, often observed in arresting close-up as well as dogs and you all know how much I love dogs! Not to be missed.

www.britishcouncil.org/italy-arts-lucianfreud.htm

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LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005

Isola di San Giorgio - Missoni Dinner # 2 -What did they like best at the Biennale? For Michael Chow - of the Mr Chow restaurants, art collector, painter, designer or renaissance man as he like to describe himself it was the Ed Ruscha exhibition in the United States Pavilion..... Tai Missoni, founding father of the fashion house, would rather watch sports and for Angela Missoni the ladies clothes designer it was the Candice Breitz video's Mother and Father. Good Choices!

www.missoni.it

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LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005

Isola di San Giorgio - Missoni dinner - aboard their house boat Timoteo was the place to be - forget Peter Allen's 413 foot yacht party - the Missonis do it better, it's understated chic where all the food is brought from home and picked in the garden and cooked by the crew themselves on board. Even the eggs came from Missoni hens, but I hate to disappoint you, they are regular not rainbow striped!!!! Quiz: whose shoes are whose? Try and pair them together - hosts, Angela, Tai and Rosita Missoni - artist, Anish Kapoor - restaurateur and collector, Michael and Eva Chow - journalist, Princess Marina Pignatelli - China Pavilion curator, Cai Guo-Qiang - Art Basel curator, Samuel Keller - NYT's editor, Stefano Tonchi - N.Y. gallery owner, Nanette Kettner - Daily Telegraph arts editor, Sarah Crompton - photographer, Manfredi Bellati - Venetian architect, Matteo Corvino...........

www.missoni.it

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photograph courtesy Manfredi Bellati
LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005
Arsenale and Vergini Garden - China Pavilion - The inaugural China Pavilion, curated by Cai Guo-Qiang entitled Virgin Garden: Emersion conists of two spaces - inside and outside. The interior a former naval oil storage facility features a video installation - Shout 2005 by Xu Zhen - video footage of forty sites in Shangai that depict a sudden scream by an unknown party halting strangers on the street as they turn towards a hidden camera - it explores the instintive and universal human response to the unexpected - hey it's Candid Camera! All Kidding aside this is such a strong and beautiful pavilion, it merits a visit.

www.venicechinapavilion.org

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LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005
Arsenale - Always a Little Further - In the same room as the Vasconcelos hang the povocative posters by the New York based Guerrilla Girls, a bunch of anonymous females who take the names of dead women artists as pseudonyms and appear in public wearing gorilla masks! They use humor to convey information, provoke discussion, and show that feminists can be funny. The mystery surrounding their identities has attracted attention - they could be anyone and be anywhere!
http://www.guerillagirls.com

My favorite installation was Louise Bourgeois's sound installation - ***** The Murmuring of the Singing Water 2001 - her feeble nonagenarian voice recites nursery rhymes and other children songs like " Sur le Pont d'Avignon" with such simplicity and joie de vivre - it's so charming and mesmerizing, I couldn't come get away!



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LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005
Arsenale - Always a little Further - the title of this exhibition of 49 international artists - curated by Rosa Martinez - is taken from one of the Corto Maltese books, a fictional character created by the Venetian writer and comic-designer, Hugo Pratt. Corto personifies the myth of the romantic traveler: always independent, always open to chance and risk, and always crossing all kinds of frontiers in pursuit of his own destiny. Taking a fictional character as inspiration is a way of affirming that art is an imaginary construct and that fantasy helps us towards a better understanding of reality. The exhibition Always a Little Further is not only an essay presenting artists and aesthetic trends relevant at the beginning of the third millennium but, also an ode to feminism. This is apparent when you walk in and are confronted by a big neo-classical chandelier made out of tampons by Joana Vasconcelos called A Noiva 2003! Pin It

LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005

Peggy Guggenheim Collection - dinner on the roof terrace: at the European inauguration of the Louise T Blouin Foundation - the new philanthropic agency working internationally in the field of cultural development, the dinner was also in honor of the first ever China Pavilion at the Venice Biennale - a milestone which marks a turning point in political, economic and cultural growth within Chinese contemporary art. The LTB Foundation international advisory council boast such names as: Francesco Clemente, Renee Fleming, Antony Gormley, Michael Govan, Alexis Gregory, Damien Hirst, Jeremy Irons, Bianca Jagger, Jeff Koons, Peter Marino, Richard Meier, Thomas Sachs, David Salle, Mario Testino, Robert Wilson and many more......

www.ltbholding.com

www.venicechinapavilion.org

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LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005
Giardini - United States Pavilion - I wasn't very excited by this exhibition at first, but it grew on me especially after seeing all the other pavilions - and - I had time to stop and think.

Ed Ruscha's - *****Course of the Empire 2005 is a combination of ten paintings based on his 1992 Blue Collar group. On the Left hand side there are the five original black and white canvases depicting urban landscapes. In the right hand galleries there are the five new colour pictures depicting in Ruscha's words " an accelerated, aged version of the same urban lanscapes, possibly to the point of deterioration." Well before the Biennale dealer, Larry Gagosian had already sold all the new works to museums. His party for Mr. Ruscha on the Grand Canal was so coveted that the blue entrance bracelets that read "Ed Ruscha Venice 2005" sold on the black market for $200 each!

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LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005
Giardini - British Pavilion - No we are not in London at Madame Tussauds but still in Venice. Photographed during the photo call after the press conference Gilbert and George - *****Ginkgo Pictures 2005 are exactly what I expected and more, they do not delude the visitor - these are pure works of great art. On returning to their hotel in NYC after a successful big show Gilbert explains "We picked up these strange leaves off the pavement." They were gingko leaves and in the far East the tree is an object of veneration, associated with longevity and reputed to have miraculous powers and these properties act as a metaphor for the vital life-force that runs throughout the twenty-five pictures. The double imagery of the Ginko leaf and the symmetry of the pictorial compositions are in turn mirrored in the works. By featuring themselves in their own work they have ".... enshrined in a degree of sheer celebrity which renders them simultaneously iconic and institutional. Like both Warhol and Beuys before them, Gilbert and George make art which appeals to the vast audiences more usually claimed by rock stars." rightly writes Michael Bracewell. In fact during their whole stay in the giardini they were followed by fans, TV cameras and journalists - it was a scene!!!

http://www.britishcouncil.org/arts-art-venice-biennale.htm

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LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005

Giardini - lunch break - with between 7,000 and 10,000 visitors for the three press days it was pretty difficult to get a chair and eat a dry sandwich sitting down - thank God for Illy coffee - one of the sponsors - who had the great idea to provide 1,500 Illychairs, folding chairs complete with shoulder straps which anyone could pick up and cart around. (Inside gossip: 70 chair were stolen on the second day and taken away by boat......)!!! Famous architect Matteo Thun said that these chairs "....were his favorite work of art"!

Photographed above, the Rai Sat TV crew stop for lunch: Missoni's VIP P.R. Gerlinde Guelfenbein was styling host Michela Moro's outfit while her co-host Daniel Berger looks on as do the camera crew and make-up, as well as art P.R. freelancer Cristina Pariset. The whole crew is in Venice for one week to prepare a two hour special on the Biennale, scheduled for June 19th. With a work load of conducting about fifteen interviews a day Michela Moro told me that the Biennale this year "Is different from all the previous ones because it has all the emotional intelligence of women".

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Photograph courtesy La Biennale Press Office
LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005

Giardini - Italian Pavilion: The Experience of Art - Video # 2 -At the Biennale this year there were a lot of videos and installations and very little art intended as paint on canvas. As, I don't have much attention span to stand in the dark and watch videos... A video really has to grab me, for me to remain focused. In fact, I want to go back with the right mentality and time to just focus on all the videos. Candice Breitz's two glamorous and sophisticated videos *****Mother and ***** Father 2005 are exceptional. The South African - who lives in Berlin - has very cleverly clipped short dialogue of famous film stars from cult movies and pieced them together in a sort of very fast slide show to make a new story of her own - it's the father and the mother separately giving advice to their children - for me the text reminded me of a deja-vu situation.

Before I leave this pavilion - may I just mention how much I loved Jenny Holzer's Purple Cross 2004 installation - I am a fan of hers!

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photograph courtesy La Biennale Press Office - image has been censored
LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005
Giardini - Italian Pavilion: The Experience of Art: Video #1 - sorry but I don't have the guts to publish the the entire photo - I therefore cropped it - please forgive me Francesco Vezzoli I really enjoyed your slick four minute "Hollywood production" video an imaginary - *****Trailer for a remake of Hore Vidal's Caligula, 2005 - a tribute to Gore Vidals 1979 pornographicc film Caligula - full of stars like Courtney Love, Benicio del Toro, Milla Jovovich, Helen Mirren and it was narrated by Vidal himself. Pin It

LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005
Giardini - Italian Pavilion: The Experience of Art - though the Francis Bacon - triptych 1983 -room didn't represent his best work, I liked the colors of the paintings with the colors of the dresses of artists Eva and Adele who have been coming to the Venice Biennale since 1990 - "wherever we are is museum" - they told me also that they are "coming out of the future"..........

www.evaadele.com Pin It

LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005
Giardini - Italian Pavilion: The Experience of Art - Power - Money - and phrases like "You make history when you do business" are tattooed on the entrance to the Italian Pavilion. Golden Lion prize for Lifetime Achievement Barbara Kruger's -*****untitled (facade) 2005 - is a protest against western power. She is the only recipient of the 5 Golden Lion prizes I liked and agree with. Since the 1970's her slogans, which are easily regonizable like " I shop therefore I am" questions the viewer about feminism, classicism, consumerism, and individual autonomy and desire.

www.barbarakruger.com

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photograph by Manfredi Bellati
LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005
Giardini - Japanese Pavilion - with all the distractions outside - at last I'm inside the Biennale which this year has been dubbed "La Biennale delle Donne" because for the first time in the history of its 110 years of activity the direction has been entrusted to two women directors, Mari­a de Corral and Rosa Marti­nez - art historians, critics and independent curators from Spain. The two exhibition projects - The Experience of Art (in the Italian Pavilion) and Always a Little Further (at the Arsenale) are curated and conceived respectively by Mari­a de Corral and by Rosa Martinez.

Let's start in the Japanese Pavilion with a great lady photographer - Ishiuchi Miyako "Mother's 2000-2005 - traces of the future" this exhibition of photos and other images creates a portrait of various items left behind by the artist's mother, through these she is able to reflect quietly on the discordant relationship the two women had, while contemplating what she describes as "Sadness beyond imagination". The exhibition can also be seen as work that attempts to recapture the "mother" as a "woman".

www.jpf.go.jp/venezia-biennale/

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LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005

In the Basin of San Marco - Harush shlomo - floating installation 2005 - a specially built catamaran that created the illusion that the “boat" constructed in open weave aluminum would be expected to sink rather than float. The installation was made especially for Venice, it reflected and was conceptually inseparable from the surrounding movement and traffic of people and other boats in the canals and lagoon. Would this "boat" stay inflated for the three day exhibiton period?

www.harushshlomo.com

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LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA 2005
Outside the Giardini - young kids were distributing these flyer cards - the actual banner hangs on the Accademia Bridge - June July August 2005 - Curiously, I had already photographed and I am attracted to Patrick Mimran's New York "Billboard Project". Started in 2001 in Chelsea - home of the art galleries - the idea is simple - they are designed to get people talking about art in different ways. Very clever!

www.mimran.com

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