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Flash Art International # 256, October Issue, FOCUS GREECE

The October issue of Flash Art International offers a new opportunity to discover another region in the world of contemporary art. Focus Greece seeks to question who exactly are the protagonists of a complex scene, which has finally taken the main stage.

In her introductory text to Focus Greece, Katerina Gregos provides an overview of the contemporary art system in Greece. Interviewed by Christopher Marinos, artist Vangelis Vlahos presents his work. Among all the people and events that have brought contemporary art to Greece, one outstanding collection has been most notable: in a text on Dakis Joannou, Marinos reflects on the activity of a great collector. Also in Focus Greece, Marina Fokidis collects the opinions of the key players on the local contemporary art scene: curators, critics, artists and collectors give their view on the state of contemporary art in the country. The Artists Dictionary completes this survey and presents a new, emerging generation of 45 young artists.

For Flash Art International, Maurizio Cattelan interviews Peter Coffin. In an ‘informed’ conversation, the New York-based artist offers offbeat answers to challenging questions. Also in this issue, Martijn van Nieuwenhuyzen meets Mario Garcia Torres. Addressing the legacy of historical conceptualism and the question of a new “generation of neo-conceptual artists,” Garcia Torres introduces his most recent works.

In his text on Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s Berlin Alexanderplatz, Klaus Biesenbach describes the influence of Fassbinder’s films such as Gφtter der Pest (1969), Martha (1974) and Berlin Alexanderplatz (1980) on visual arts in the work of Jonathan Meese, Christoph Schlingensief, Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster, Ugo Rondinone, Johannes Kahrs, Marijke van Warmerdam, Paul Pfeiffer, Douglas Gordon, Doug Aitken, Marina Abramovic and Matthew Barney among others.

Eva Wittocx’s review of Skulptur Projekte 07 explores the city of Mόnster, focusing on highlights of this major public art exhibition. A series of interviews with three major collectors in the UK also offers a special Collecting Overview on Anita Zabludowicz, Vanessa Branson and Frank Cohen. Ouverture is dedicated to the work of Cyprien Gaillard; Global Art investigates Revisiting Solaris by Deimantas Narkevicius; for this issue’s Spotlight, Flash Art has visited Damien Hirst’s show in London.

Group show reviews include: “1, 2, 3… Avant-Gardes” at Kunstlerhaus in Stuttgart, “Mystic Truths” at the Auckland City Gallery, “Killing Time” at Exit Art in New York and “Forged Realities” at Beijing’s Universal Studios.

Solo show reviews include: Matthew Brannon, Yuri Masnyj, Dan Torop, Jesper Just, Dan Flavin, Martin Creed, Jeff Koons, Rachel Feinstein, Matthew Stone, Peter Pommerer, Joe Coleman, Vincent Lamouroux, Delphine Coindet, Anthony McCall, Simon Dybbroe Mψller, Luc Tuymans, Stefan Constantinescu, Oleg Kulik, Kristan Horton, Zhu Ming, Spandau Parks and Bruce Nauman. For Fresh Start, Gea Politi interviews the writer and multimedia artist Paul Roundhill.

The COVER ARTIST of this issue is Peter Coffin. Get your hands on a copy of the October issue of the world’s leading art magazine while supplies last. For information and subscriptions >
Flash Art International, 68 Via Carlo Farini, 20159 Milan, Italy, tel 39 02 668 6150
info@flashartonline.com, http://www.flashartonline.com

Alexia and Carlos, who married in a London ceremony in 1999, introduced their new daughter to the world on Wednesday with the help of their three other children.

Four-day-old Amelia made an angelic impression as she slept peacefully in her mum’s arms. Her architect and champion yachtsman dad meanwhile looked after the new arrival’s two-year-old brother Carlos.

Sleeping peacefully in her mother’s arms, the newest member of the Greek Royal Family made her debut on Wednesday. Little Amelia left the Spanish clinic where she was born on October 26 with her parents, Princess Alexia of Greece and Spaniard Carlos Morales Quintana, and three young siblings by her side.

Arrietta, five, Ana Maria, four, and two-year-old Carlos, who had also made their entrance into the world at Barcelona’s Teknon Clinic, will no doubt be looking forward to welcoming their new sister back at the family home in Lanzarote.

Amelia won’t realise it yet, but she belongs to one of the best-connected families in Europe. Her maternal grandparents are former-King Constantine and Queen Anna-Maria of Greece, who’s also a member of the Danish Royal Family. Princess Alexia, 42, recently became godmother to Denmark’s newest princess, Isabella, daughter of Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary.

Those who scoff at organic foods, eat your words. If researchers are to be believed, organic food is more nutritious than ordinary produce and helps to lengthen our lives.

Yes, according to a study in Britain, organic fruits and vegetables contain 40 per cent more antioxidants which can cut the risk of cancer and heart disease, and they also have higher levels of beneficial minerals such as iron and zinc.

“There is enough evidence now that the level of good things is higher in organics,” ‘The Sunday Times’ reported, quoting lead researcher Prof Carlo Leifert as saying. In fact, the researchers came to the conclusion after collecting evidence over a period of four years.

They grew fruit and vegetables and reared cattle on adjacent organic and non-organic sites on a 725-acre farm attached to Newcastle University in Britain, and at other sites in Europe. The researchers found that the levels of antioxidants in milk from organic herds were up to 90 per cent higher than in milk from conventional herds.

As well as finding up to 40 per cent more antioxidants in organic vegetables, the study found that organic tomatoes from Greece had significantly higher levels of antioxidants, including flavo-noids which reduce coronary heart disease.

“The differences were so marked that organic produce would help to increase the nutrient intake of people not eating the recommended five portions a day of fruit and vegetables. If you have just 20 per cent more antioxidants and you can’t get your kids to do five a day, then you might just be okay with four a day,” said Professor Leifert.

The 12-million-pounds study has been funded by the European Union.

Starbucks Coffee Company and its European joint venture partner, Greek company Marinopoulos Holding SARL, opened the first Starbucks store in Romania in April.

The coffee shop is located in Plaza Romania one of Bucharest’s premiere shopping malls, on Timisoara Boulevard.

“Bucharest is an ideal location for Starbucks entry into Central and Eastern Europe,” said Martin Coles, President of Starbucks Coffee International.

Starbucks has extended its relationship with its Greek joint venture partner, Marinopoulos Holding, to create Marinopoulos Coffee Company III SRL, which will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of the business in Romania.

Since 2002 Marinopoulos has partnered with Starbucks in several other markets. It operates 52 retail locations in Greece, 26 in Switzerland, 11 in Austria and 7 in Cyprus, with intensive expansion plans for the region.

Starbucks is the leading retailer, roaster and brand of specialty coffee in the world, with more than 9.260 retail locations in North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East and the Pacific Rim.

The Marinopoulos Group operates world-class brands like Carrefour, Marks & Spencer, The Beauty Shop/Sephora, FNAC and Dia in Greece and recently refurbished all the Chris Cash and Carry stores it purchased two years ago. Two new Carrefour stores are being planned for Nicosia.

The old town of Corfu in Greece also made the Unesco list.

Unesco aims to work with national governments to preserve sites of world cultural significance. The Sydney Opera House in Australia and the Red Fort in India have been added to a list of the world’s most valuable cultural treasures.

A silver mine in Japan and an ancient fortress in Turkmenistan are also now on the Unesco World Heritage list. Archaeological remains in Iraqi city of Samarra were inscribed and immediately registered as being in danger. The organisation also agreed to change the official name of the Auschwitz Concentration Camp in Poland. It will now be referred to as Auschwitz-Birkenau, German Nazi Concentration and Extermination Camp (1940-1945). Poland sought the change to make clear it had no role in establishing or running the camp.

The Sydney Opera House, built in 1973, was named as a “great artistic monument accessible to society at large”, Unesco said. It was recognised as a great architectural work and urban structure that has had an “enduring influence on architecture”.

SITES ADDED TO LIST
Sydney Opera House, Australia
Old town of Corfu, Greece
Red Fort Complex, India
Bordeaux, France
Volcanic island of Jeju, South Korea
Iwami Ginzan silver mine, Japan
Parthian fortresses of Nisa, Turkmenistan
Samarra archaeological city, Iraq
Rideau Canal, Canada
Mehmed Pasa Sokolovic Bridge, Bosnia-Herzegovina
Teide National Park, Spain
Primeval beech forests of the Carpathian, Ukraine
Lope-Okanda, Gabon
Richtersveld Cultural and Botanical Landscape, South Africa
Twyfelfontein, Namibia
Diaolou villages in Kaiping, China

India’s Red Fort Complex, built as the palace fort of Shahjahanabad and completed in 1648, was honoured for reflecting “all phases of Indian history from the Mughal period to independence”, Unesco said.

The Iwami Ginzan silver mine on Honshu Island in Japan dates back to the 16th Century. The Parthian Fortresses of Nisa in Turkmenistan contain the remains of two cities from the 3rd Century BC to the 3rd Century AD. Samarra, considered a holy city by Shia Muslims, is home to majestic ruins along the Tigris river and a 9th Century mosque. Holy sites in the city have been the target of insurgent attacks.

Other sites added to the list include Gabon’s Lope-Okanda landscape, the Richtersveld mountainous desert region of South Africa, Namibia’s Twyfelfontein and 1,800 fortified tower houses in China’s Guangdong province.

The UN cultural organisation has been considering bids from 39 different countries in its week-long meeting in Christchurch, New Zealand. Around 45 sites are in competition to be added to the World Heritage list. There are currently more than 830 sites on the World Heritage list, from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe, which has been updated regularly since 1972.

In pictures: New World Heritage sites > BBC

Related Links > http://www.unesco.org