Carsten Hoeller – SOMA @Hamburger Bahnhof, Berlin. I had the chance to visit Carsten Hoeller’s exhibition which basically deals about soma, a mystical healing drink from ancient times. “Soma helped to gain enlightenment and access to the
divine sphere, to bring fortune and victory.”

To be honest, I’ve never heard of soma before, so it was even more interesting to dive into this world. It still remains unknown what the main ingredients of soma are, but rumour has it that the core substance can be won from the fly Amanita mushroom and the best way to do it is through urin: Eat lots of fly Amanita mushrooms, piss in a cup and drink it. Or something like that.

So Hoeller set up a theoretical (!) experiment lab with 12 real reindeers,  24 canary birds, 8 mice and 4 flies, dividing divided into two halfs. In theory one side is fed with the fly Amanita mushrooms, the other side isn’t and the different behaviour of the involved animals could be examined by the visitors.

Here some more info:

“How do we achieve enlightenment? What role is science given in our society, and what role myth? Do we need to find alternative categories for experience and alternative approaches to awakening consciousness? These questions are all raised by the artist Carsten Höller (born 1961, in Brussels) in his show in the Hamburger Bahnhof – Museum für Gegenwart – Berlin.

Höller explores the myth of ’soma’ – a drink with healing properties known among Verdic nomads in North India in the 2nd millennium BCE that promised enlightenment and access to the divine sphere, which was commonly used in rituals. The drink’s main ingredient is no longer exactly known to us; ethnomycologists and philologists generally posit the fly Amanita mushroom as the substance responsible for its effects. Set against this backdrop, Höller has devised a fantastical scenario that stands at the crossroads between art and science, laboratory and dream, supposed objectivity and heightened subjectivity.

An oversized, three-dimensional tableau vivant unfolds before the viewers’ eyes as they look down from a tribune. In the middle of this set-up, a hotel room is perched on a mushroom-shaped platform, giving guests the opportunity to spend the night in the museum and to dive into the world of soma.”

Hamburger Bahnhof:

“Je ne comprends pas.”  hahaha….

The flies:

The canary birds:

You can spend one night in between the animals:

1.000,- EUR per night. All booked out.

The fly Amanita mushrooms:

For you. 

Did you know that they have hair on their horns?

This one was trippin…

And this one pee’ing…

Yup, yup…

Reindeer urine:

One of the other hundreds of rooms at Hamburger Bahnhof! Definitely worth seeing!

Luke Meier (Supreme) interview on Marcelo Burlon’s blog!

“You have two types of men in this world:

The ones who are out there and represent. They know everybody and everybody knows them. They love to talk about themselves and what they do. Self-promotion to the fullest.

And then you have the ones who rather seem unimpressive. The quite ones who basically run the world. The men that stay in the background and pull all the strings. The ones who are self-confident enough to be quiet.

Mr. Luke Meier definitely belongs to the second species and therefore probably isn’t known to the general hype kid, but has had a major impact and influence on ueber streetwear label Supreme as a head designer and has created numerous products for other heavyweights of the industry.

But who is this guy?

Well, let’s find out…:

Read the interview right HERE!

Thanks for the interview, Luke!

Frank Thiel – If you have spent some time in Berlin then you most likely have seen this guy at one point. He seems to be everywhere. Especially at night. When he’s not working.

When I saw Frank for the first few times I was always wondering who he is and what he’s doing. Not only because of his funny outfits and the impression that he knew the whole city, but also because he has this very friendly calmness that you don’t find a lot out there. Fortunately, I got to know him a bit and it was much later that I found out that he is an internationally acclaimed photographer represented by a handful of galleries throughout the world.

We thought it was time to let the world know who the man behind the famous Checkpoint Charlie portraits is and are proud to introduce you to Mr. Frank Thiel!

Alastair Wiper exhibition recap – Thanks everybody for coming out despite the rain!

Our new store front: “The air is getting slippery…” Shot in Cape Town.

Making prices… uhm. Not. Hahaha!

Frank Thiel:

Caught in the act:

David aka Tom Cruise in Cocktail:

One of our nice neighbours: David from Maison Mallon.

Gunnar from Styleclicker:

Luise & Kelle:

Aaaaawww:

The one and only Safia:

Welcome home, bro: Oli.

The girlfriend aka Helle Mardahl & Jon:

Pauline, Herbert & Rosann aka Mrs. Joga:

Franka & Alex:

She was funny:

Mrs. Absolut:

Samir from WW:

I guess, Alastair liked the opening very much. 

Big thanks to Pauline for pulling this off!

LONELY FRUIT – Alastair Wiper (the right hand of Henrik Vibskov) presents his first photo exhibition in Germany with the help and collaboration of our good friend Pauline!

OPENING: 18th November 2010 – 6pm til open end

SOTO presents a solo exhibition with British photographer Alastair Philip Wiper. The exhibition Lonely Fruit presents a collection of fascinating photographic works inspired by the artist’s love of the unusual, strange aspects of the world combined with a strong appreciation for the usual and the mundane.

Alastair Philip Wiper (1980) is a British, Copenhagen based photographer. His photographs tread a line between documentary and fine art, encouraged by an interest in travel, people and places – a burning need to see more things and experience new situations and at the same time a great appreciation of the quiet, lonely, isolated and almost meditative moments.
With all photographs shot using analogue films developed and printed in the darkroom – which is an essential part of his artistic process – Alastair presents unique moments that illuminate and delicately document parts of our contemporary lives, which we might forget to appreciate, and might actually fear.

Lonely Fruit zooms in on people, animals and objects isolated in their surroundings – sometimes lost and confused, sometimes tranquil and at peace.
Inspired by the artist’s love of the unusual, strange aspects of the world, combined with a strong appreciation of the usual and the mundane, the photographs explore the notion of loneliness as a state, and the idea that loneliness is not necessarily negative, but can also be both positive and reflective.
Aesthetically – with remarkable authenticity and realism – the images of the fruit in different environments point to a feeling of solitude, nostalgia and darkness – offset by a strange irony and lightheartedness. The Lonely Fruit invoke feelings of calm amidst commotion, contrasted by sparse, desolate vistas giving light to the loneliness, the completeness and the fruitiness of the world.

Make sure to drop by when you’re in town!

RED ROOM – People have been talking about this Red Room Party since months already. Guys were worried to be invited and girls did their extra share to be nice to certain Diesel people.  Organized by the Rosso brothers and no other than local womanizer Banoboy, last Friday was the 3rd edition of this annual party that took place in the basement of Stefano Rosso’s house, which more felt like the empire of Pablo Escobar when we walked up there.

So what’s the concept behind the Red Room party? That the entire basement (which looks more like a full-time club) is completely in red? That everybody is dressed in red? The music? Wrong. I guess the main success factor of the party was more the gender division: 78% girls!!

Yes, 78% women. Well, you think it’s funny. Actually it’s not. Just think about it:

It’s an overdose. You don’t know where to look to. You don’t know where to stand, because you constantly think you’re missing out on the other side of the room. You’re overwhelmed. You cannot focus. The dream of every male and when it’s actually happenign in real life, you desperately fail. Hahaha. It’s tough, man.

Besides this little “luxury problem”, it was a blast seeing some good friends from Bassano again and a whole lot of drunk Milanesas!

Check out the pics below and also some videos at the very bottom!

Andrea & Vicky:

Bano, Ben, Vicky, Rini, Ale & Mimi aka Misty Rabbit:

I think that’s Banos ass:

Girls, girls, girls, girls…

Ben, what are you doing? (lol)

The crew:

1 of 1. Specially made for Red Room: adidas J-Wing shoe by Jeremy Scott!

Me, Stefano & this unknown Paris/Milano girl (still wanna know who you are):

This is Federico in action. HAHAHA!

And Ilaria in action!

Love the BANO ring!

Rini, Simon & Lia (obviously pretty much at the end):

Federico (this guy was harassing the ladies all night long!! LOL!):

Everybody meet: THE GIACOMIZER!!! hahaha…

Dennis & Mimi behind the decks:

VIDEOOOOOSS:

The Italians do it better:

Thanks everybody for the good times! Bassano feels like home.

I want a daughter like this!

Last night the Voo store in Kreuzberg opened it doors! Stores popping up at every corner in Berlin is not a new thing, but the special thing about those guys is that they bring a new fashion destination to a rather fashion remote area: Kreuzberg.

Almost hidden in a backyard, Voo surprises with a huge very rough looking space refined with customized vintage furniture and interior highlights. Probably, the most impressive thing in the whole store is the 6 meter long (!) wooden table.

They bring back the best from Mitte to Kreuzberg carrying labels like Henrik Vibskov, Wood Wood, Pendleton, Soulland, Cheap Monday, Uniforms of the Dedicated and many more.

Make sure to drop by on your next trip to Kreuzberg: Voo, Oranienstr. 24. It’s worth it.

The happy owner: Yasin.

The good guys from Hypebeast produced a great video of MADE and our latest project “Typographic Ballet” featuring Ebon Heath.

Take 6 minutes and 12 seconds and enjoy.