Your Original is Having a Complete Human Change Meltdown Makeover

''I belonged to no one- who belonged to everyone, who had nothing- who wanted everything with a fire for every experience and an obssesion for freedom that terrified me to the point that I couldn’t even talk about- and pushed me to a nomadic point of madness that both dazzlez and dizzied me''. (Lana Del Rey - Ride)
 
Last Friday I visited a small exhibition in Breda, composed by Aynouk Tan, an extravagant looking fashion journalist/fashion icon. I'd never heard of her, but the subject of the exhibition really appealled to me.  It was about the phenomenon Tumblr and the way youngster represent themselves via this medium.

I was the first visitor that day (and it was already 3 o'clock!) but I think that's due to the fact that it's an exhibition for a small target group in a relatively small city. It would've been better if they would show it in Amsterdam, since that is far more a city for youngsters that are attracted to something like this.

Anyway, the exhibition was quite overwhelming. Interesting and also a bit confronting. There was this big room filled with gigantic television screens, which were all showing something different. So you could hear sounds from everywhere. Insecure girls talking in the webcam, photos of typical Tumblr things and of desperate American celebrities dying for attention - like Britney Spears, Kim Kardashian and Paris Hilton. The thing I really liked about this exhibition, was that it was quite simple yet it really gave the feeling Tumblr also gives me. It's all very overpowering. All those different photos, celebrities, songs. One screen kept playing Lana Del Rey's song 'Ride', which includes a monologue in which she tells how much she loves the road, how lonely she was, how she kept striving for freedom and living fast. Fascinating monologue.

Aynouk Tan wanted to show how young girls (and boys as well) strive to show their unique selves, while that only leads to everyone being the same. Everyone wants to look different and unique, but the result is that everyone looks rather the same. I find this really interesting and I'm actually working on an article that has a lot to do with this.

I think Aynouk Tan did a good job by showing what she wanted to show: the loneliness, the fakeness and the insecurities of a lot of young people using Tumblr. It was a shame that the Tumblr she made herself was very disappointing. It only had a few photos on it and I don't think you can call that: getting under the skin of a blogger. There's more to that than finding a few photos, which also appeared in your exhibition. But that's just my opinion!

Big Ass Beanies at Giles F/W 2013

Beanies are running the risk of becoming overhyped soon, if you ask me. I think it looks wonderful though, both on guys and girls.

 

The oversized beanies at Giles F/W 2013 show were absolutely fabulous. Giles Deacon has taken them to the next level by making them huge, knitted and colourful. Definitely inspiring.

'Promised Land': dull story at first turns out to be a great film with an amazing plot

Last Tuesday I went to the movies with my dad for old time's sake. 'Promised Land' by Gus van Sant (who also made Milk and Good Will Hunting), starring Matt Damon, John Krasinski and Frances McDormand. At first the story didn't appeal to me very much. It was about two salespeople working for Global, an energy company specialized in fracking. Fracking is a process of obtaining natural gass underground. They go to a small village to persuade land owners to sign leases, by telling them that it can make them millionaires.






















As you might understand, the idea of a film about gass, a small village and business isn't really my thing. I did really like Gus van Sant's previous films, so it wasn't such a bad idea to just go. And 'Promised Land' actually turned out to be a really interesting and fascinating movie with an amazing plot.

Let me tell you a bit more about the content. As I said, it is about two salespeople, Steve and Sue (Matt Damon and Frances McDormand). Steve has just been promoted and is very good at his job, just like Sue. They arrive in a farm village in Pennsylvania, which has a long history of farming families. Steve came from a small town himself and his family owned a farm as well, so he uses his story to persuade people to sign a contract with Global. He promises it's gonna make them millionaires, because the estimated worth of the gass in the ground is about 30 million (though it's actually 150 million), which he doesn't say, because it will lead to less profit for Global.



























 The sales are going very well and Steve and Sue are highly succesfull in the village. Until the town meeting, where a very old high school teacher raises the question of the safety of fracking. He's specialized in the subject and this leads to the decision of a community vote. Steve and Sue haven't taken such a threat in consideration, and when Dustin Noble arrives in the town the challenge is even bigger. Dustin Noble is an environmental advocate and wants to do everything to destroy Global. He manages to do this very well because the village people are all very charmed by him and can relate to his story.
Meanwhile there's also a little love going on. Steve meets Alice, a lovely lady who's also a teacher, in a bar. They get along really well, but as Dustin Noble gets more support and Global is more and more jeered at, it looks like Alice chooses Dustin's side as well.

When the going gets tougher and tougher and Global seems to have lost, a package arrives in Steve and Sue's motel, which shines a completely different light on the entire business. That's all I'm going to tell you, since the plot is brilliant and it would be a big shame if you'd already know it.

What I really like about 'Promised Land' is the fact that it keeps holding your attention. There was only time when I thought, let's bring something positive now, when the situation was looking a bit too hopeless. But besides that, and even though it was about gass and farming, the film was interesting the whole time. 

It also has a few very humorous yet subtle situations and comments. Especially the friendly relationship between Steve and Sue. Furthermore, I found it a plus point that it was all really credible. Unlike many movies, the characters weren't all that goodlooking. Sue, for example, is a wrinkled and make-upless middle aged woman, and all the village people were very boorish. Matt Damon was perfect for the leading role, typically American and capable of playing a serious yet charming guy.

If you want to see a fascinating story, which relates to our time perfectly well, you should definitely see 'Promised Land'. Typically arthouse, simple and humorous.

''Every bad situation is a blues song waiting to happen''.

Vulnerability is the fountain of all fears

Love is said to be the most powerful thing in the world

It can lift you up and take you to a higher ground

Imagine sitting in a carousel that leaves you feeling twirled

It can brighten up any day and fill it with a sweet sound

But what happens when love is changing its face

Turns into something that makes you feel unsure

It feels like there’s still something you have to chase

Until the love will become firm and I will feel mature

I don’t think I will ever reach that state of mind

I’d rather stay like this and come off cold as ice

Than risking feeling alone and being left behind

Therefore I will always pay a pitiful and high prize

Vulnerability is the fountain of all fears

It holds your feelings all together in one place

Until it bursts into a million heartbreaking tears

And there’s no time for the necessary embrace

Like the carousel the fountain goes on and on forever

And like love you will never be able to stop it

It will happen anyway, so blocking it isn’t very clever

But that’s easier said than done, I have to admit

Written by me.

Happy Valentine's Day: an ode to the golden days of Johnny & Kate

CTRL+C CTRL+V

 

Collection: Elke van Zuylen
Photography: Kiet Duong
Mua/hair: Thoke Delorge

Heath Ledger as Bob Dylan: now that´s perfection

This 'I want you' clip from the biopic ´I´m not there´ shows the relationship between Bob Dylan and Suze Rotolo, whom he dated between 1961 and 1964. Suze Rotolo is the woman walking with him on the cover of 'The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan' through the streets of Greenwich Village. One of my favourite album covers ever by the way. In the film Charlotte Gainsbourg plays her. Their relationship is passionate but troubled. This clip only features the beginning of it, which is exactly the way it should be, if you ask me. Golden match: Heath and Charlotte Gainsbourg. Such a loss...

Waiting for another summer day, to bring you back my way

Barcelona in January

As I said before, Yeji (one of my friends) and I spontaneously booked a trip to Barcelona last week. We had no resits, so we had a week off and why not celebrate this in beautiful Barcelona? Since tickets were only 50 euros and we found a hostel (which was called 'The Hipstel', awesome right?) for only 9 euros a night with breakfast included, the choice was easily made.


Last Tuesday we flew from Eindhoven (a city in the south of the Netherlands) to Girona, Barcelona. We only booked hand luggage, so it was quite a disaster to get everything we wanted to bring with us in those small suitcases. Eventually, we managed to do this and we began our short trip. We arrived at the hostel around dinner time. Fortunately, everything went well. I'm emphasizing this, since we both are awfully chaotic. We lost our key, phones and passports several times and I'm not even talking about the amount of times our sense of direction left us in the lurge.

Anyway, the first night we had planned to go out, despite the fact we didn't sleep good at all the night before our departure. I only slept 3 hours that night, which wasn't the best way to start a trip filled with shopping, wandering through Barcelona and going out. But a friend of Yeji had worked in a very exclusive club at the beach last year, and she'd arranged to put us on the guest list, so we had no choice. That night was a special R&B/Hiphop night as well, so it turned out to be pretty nice. Though the drinks had outrageous prizes, we had a good time, since the music was very good. It was funny to see all those Spanish party people, everyone was looking shiny: high heels, short dresses and lots of hair. Quite different from Amsterdam.

































The second day was dedicated entirely to shopping. One of the reasons we came to Barcelona! Topshop was very disappointing. The store was tiny, especially compared to those in London and NY and the collection wasn't special either. Thank god Zara was heaven on earth. Everything is cheaper in Spain anyhow (since Zara is spanish) and there was still sale, so the prizes were amazing. I bought a few wonderful things, all about 10 euros a piece. Mango was good as well. After a long day, we had dinner in a cosy bar, called Bar Lobo. We ate a lot of hummus, which we had also bought for breakfast and lunch, since it is de-li-ci-ous.

That night we wanted to go to some place a bit more underground. We wanted to see some cute guys and since pushy and smooth Spaniards are definitely not our type, we figured we had to look for them in a place other than exclusive clubs. So we approached some alternatively looking girls that afternoon and asked them where we had to go. They gave us the name of a club and so that's where we want that night. Unfortunately, it wasn't a big success (music was lousy and there was very few people over there) and so we asked for a place where they played techno.

Thursday we got up early again, since we didn't want to miss the free breakfast. The few hours of sleep every night began to take its toll. And my entire body was hurting but that didn't keep us from walking to the Sagrada Familia, which is still worked on but the process is a bit further than the last time I was in Barcelona. Did I already mention the sun was shining and it felt like summer that day? All days we were in Barcelona actually. You could already smell spring in the air, I love that feeling. I could wear my summer jacket the entire time, I didn't even bring my fur coat!

After a short rest in the hostel, we went to El Born, a student and vintage area. We went to Parc Ciutadella and visited Musée Picasso. I only knew him from the work he's famous for, with the absurd forms and faces. It turned out he made some very realistic and impressionistic work as well, when he was only fifteen years old! Unfortunately, they were working on the museum, so we could only see the beginning and the end of his work.


































That night was the most amazing night of all. Yeji's friend had arranged we could visit a Burlesque Dinner Show in the same club we were Tuesday night. We were eating with the owner of the club and a friend of his. I didn't know what to expect, but they turned out to be very nice and funny. The food was a-ma-zing. We had sushi first, then the best salmon I have ever tasted and some caramel dessert. The show was even better. The girls wore great outfits, not trashy at all, very sexy. They performed songs like 'Fever', 'Candy Man', etc. The lead singer sang 'And I'm telling you...' from Dreamgirls and she almost did this as good as Jennifer Hudson and that means a lot! They were pole dancing as well, including a guy. We were completely blown away, he had so much power in his body, he was almost floating through the air. We stayed a while to dance that night until our feet couldn't keep up, cause we wore our high heels ;)
 
Friday was our last day and we had a check-out at 10 o'clock, which was pretty tough. That day we didn't do that much. We went to the beach in the morning, which was fabulous. It was 24 degrees, we played music and really enjoyed this, since it was raining in our home town! We strolled through El Born the rest of the day and had a lovely meal that night. We concluded our trips with drinks at a cocktail bar and went to our hostel to wait till we could take the bus back to the airport.

 

A tradition definitely is born. For not a lot of money, a few days in sunny Barcelona, it's the best idea we had in a long time. Barcelona, we'll be back.