As September arrives, so does an abundance of excellent exhibitions, films and new restaurants; here, we highlight our favourites
New York Stories at the Waldorf Astoria, Berlin: September 1–7, 2016
Trailblazers from Jean-Michel Basquiat and superstar Debbie Harry to the inimitable Mick Jagger star in New York Stories at Berlin's Waldorf Astoria this September, a collection of photographs by image-makers Christopher Makos and Paul Solberg, exhibited under their collective moniker The Hilton Brothers. The exhibition paints a bewitching portrait of New York’s buzzing nightlife scene of old, inciting awe and envy in equal measure: just see if you can resist the urge to go out merry-making upon leaving it.
Paper Journal at Webber Gallery Space, London: 9-23 September, 2016
Prolific online magazine Paper Journal turns three years old this September, and to celebrate, the team has collaborated with photography agency Webber Represents to showcase some of their most esteemed contributors in an exhibition. Curated by the Paper team, the show promises an eclectic amalgamation of visual artistry, spanning fashion, art, portraiture and landscape photography – a veritable who's who of both emerging and established creative talents.
David Seidner at the Galleria Carla Sozzani, Milan: September 4 to November 1, 2016
David Seidner was one of the preeminent fashion photographers of the 1980s and 90s, and this month his expansive portfolio, which merges fashion, art and history, will be on display at Milan's Galleria Carla Sozzani. Comprising 50 fantastical prints, the exhibition features Seidner’s work for an impressive roster of fashion’s finest: Azzedine Alaïa, Chanel, Valentino and Yves Saint Laurent, to name but a few.
The Best of Food and Drink
Food and artwork collide to fantastic effect at Osteria at London's Barbican, from now until December 31, in the form of an exhibition of works from Campari’s rich history accompanied by a tasting menu created by Michelin star chef Anthony Demetre. Expect a delicious emphasis on Italian seasonal produce, in full view of the brand’s best-loved adverts from over the years. And plenty of cocktails, of course.
If all you know of Turkish cuisine is shish kebabs and baklava, you have a lot to learn. Fortunately, a new contemporary Turkish restaurant situated in Marylebone, called Yosma, is set to open on September 9, and its chefs are ready and willing to display their culinary talents. Raki cocktails and Turkish beers accompany food straight from the mangal grill and clay ovens – an enticing new venture that's sure to delight food critics and lovers equally.
The Infinite Mix: Contemporary Sound and Video at Hayward Gallery, London: September 9 – December 4, 2016
If you've yet to enthusiastically embrace the onset of a new season and all the excitement that that brings with it, The Vinyl Factory and Hayward Gallery's new collaboration, which brings together the audio and the visual in The Infinite Mix, is a fine way to kick-start September. Challenging the way we interact with sound and image, the 12 featured artists promise to push visitors' conceptual boundaries with a complex layering of the two integral elements. This immersive experience includes 3D video, projections and multi-screen installations, exploring video created with emotional and corporeal reactions in mind.
Claude Parent: Dessiner la Mode at Galerie Azzedine Alaïa, Paris: from September 2–25, 2016
As many of the world’s greatest creative minds have long demonstrated, the most impressive talents cannot be confined to only one medium – and in the case of French architect Claude Parent, this manifested in a lifelong love of fashion illustration. A selection of pieces inspired by the work of fashion design icon Azzedine Alaïa, created at the end of Parent’s illustrious career between summer 2015 and February 2016, forms the body of a new exhibition at Paris’ Galerie Azzedine Alaïa. The show will be accompanied by an elegant new publication.
The Art of Floral Dyeing with Floom and Cara Marie Piazza, at the London Edition: September 25, 2016
When learning a new skill, you’d be well advised to take instruction from an expert – and in the realm of floral dyeing, there are few better informed than artist and artisanal dyer Cara Marie Piazza. This September, Sunspel and Floom are offering the opportunity to hand-dye one of their premium cotton T-shirts in the company of the Piazza in the luxurious settings of London Edition using a selection of floral pigment: an ideal gift for budding crafts-lovers and experienced textile-types alike.
100% Norway at London Design Fair, London: September 22–25, 2016
The London Design Fair will once again show off the wares of 17 Norwegian designers and studios this September, via 100% Norway, exhibiting the crème de la crème of contemporary interior and product design through a wide range of disciplines including ceramics, textiles, furniture, lighting and homewares. The offshoot is set to champion classic Nordic design, bringing the past into the present with a mix of cherished heritage and sleek innovation. As the Trude Ugelstad, director of the fair's parent organisation, cheekily urges: "Norway has much more to offer than fjords and mountains." Judging from this lot, we're inclined to agree.
The Best of Film
September is a typically notable month in the cinematic calendar – and fortunately for us, the trend continues. There’s Things to Come from acclaimed French director Mia Hansen-Løve, a poignant drama which follows a middle-aged philosophy professor (a spellbinding Isabelle Huppert) as she comes to terms with the breakup of her marriage. Café Society, the latest offering from Woody Allen, is a wonderfully witty drama that sees Jesse Eisenberg as Bobby Dorfman, a young New Yorker who heads to 1930s Hollywood in search of a more exciting life in the employment of his movie mogul uncle (Steve Carell). For the thrill-seekers, there’s Argentine crime film The Clan, a fictional exploration of the seemingly innocuous Puccio family, who kidnapped wealthy men and women in 1980s Argentina and held them for ransom. American director Ira Sachs returns with Little Men, the story of two teenage boys living in Brooklyn whose friendship blossoms as a feud between their parents' rages; a thought-provoking study of gentrification and the effects of adults’ actions upon their offspring.
There are two brilliant re-releases to look out for: a welcome excuse to revisit David Bowie in alien mode, courtesy of Nicolas Roeg’s 1978 cult classic The Man Who Fell to Earth and Víctor Erice’s stunning drama El Sur, the coming-of-age tale of a young girl in 1950s rural Spain and her fascination with her mysterious father. In terms of documentaries, there’s something for everyone this month, from Ron Howard's highly anticipated Beatles documentary, The Beatles: Eight Days a Week to De Palma, Jake Paltrow and Noah Baumbach’s study of their filmmaker friend and mentor Brian De Palma, centred around an enlightening conversation with the Scarface director.
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Last year’s edition of the Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, held to celebrate the opening of China: Through the Looking Glass, was the most attended event in the institution’s history – and to the delight of spectators the world over, director Andrew Rossi and his film crew had unprecedented behind-the-scenes access to it. The result of such a coup? The First Monday in May, a new film which charts every step of the process behind such a party, from planning through to execution. The film launched on the opening night of this year’s Tribeca Film Festival, and will be opening in cinema’s countrywide throughout September, providing party-planning inspiration and scandalous tidbits galore.
Eva & Adele: You Are My Biggest Inspiration at Museum Of Modern Art of the City of Paris, Paris: September 30, 2016 – 26 February 2017
The ambiguous appeal of Eve & Adele, the ultra-feminine hermaphrodite duo who, for 30 years now, have made a practice of demonstrating to the art industry that sexual and gender identity are no simple matter, returns to Paris this September. Their eccentricity is a performance in itself, but there's plenty to see: an audacious collection of 25 years of work has been collated for this exhibition, including a hot pink camper van and eye-catching red vinyl matching uniforms.
Great Performances
We can’t wait for Dinner at The Twits in The Vaults, London, this month – an gastronomy-focused evening which sees theatre company Les Enfants Terribles and architectural foodsmiths Bompas and Parr whipping up an immersive theatrical dining experience where the hosts and chefs are none other than Roald Dahl’s most revolting duo. Then there’s the award-winning Our Ladies of Perpetual Succour at The National Theatre, a musical take on Alan Warner's moving novel about “six girls on the cusp of change”, adapted by Billy Elliot author Lee Hall and directed by Vicky Featherstone.
Dance fans, if you missed Natalia Osipova’s sell-out world premiere of three new pieces at Sadler’s Wells earlier in the year, don’t fear: the revered Russian ballerina is back by popular demand, joined again by Sergei Poluninree to perform the extraordinary works by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Russell Maliphant and Arthur Pita respectively.
You Say You Want A Revolution? Records And Rebels 1966 - 1970 at the V&A, London: September 10, 2016 – February 27, 2017
The decade that gave birth to the subtitle "swinging" is showcased in glorious technicolour this winter, in the Victoria and Albert Museum's comprehensive round-up of the tail-end of the 1960s. Travelling the globe as this monumental phenomenon took over, the V&A track the records and riots that changed everything. Needless to say, culture comes alive in this mix of era-defining music, fashion, film, design and activism.
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Antony Gormley at White Cube, London: September 30 – November 6, 2016
British artist and sculptor Antony Gormley’s interactive exhibition presents a series of subjective states to journey through time and space at the White Cube this season, transforming that malleable venue into a labyrinth of passages and darkened paths, to explore the relationship between architecture and the body. Awkward geometry and immense physical forms made from iron and sheet steel are only one element of the experience; this is one not to be missed.
Francis Bacon: From Picasso to Velázquez at Guggenheim Bilbao, Spain: September 30, 2016 – January 8, 2017
The world's pre-eminent art institutions have long spotted parallels between the great masters of modern art which might otherwise have remained invisible to the rest of us, and the Guggenheim Bilbao's new exhibition, placing nearly 90 examples of Francis Bacon's work alongside those of his greatest influences, promises to be gratifyingly comprehensive in its approach. The show aims to chart Bacon’s emphatic passion for Spanish and French culture, examining the influence of artists "from Picasso to Velázquez" on the work of the infamous Anglo-Irish painter.
START Art Fair at the Saatchi Gallery, London: From September 15–18 2016
Too excited for the onset of Frieze London in early October to wait for it to begin? We recommend heading down to START Art Fair, the Prudential-supported presentation at London's Saatchi Gallery, dedicated to celebrating the work of emerging artists and new art scenes, to whet your appetite. Featured among the wealth of galleries and artists on display, London-born and bred artist Conrad Armstrong (pictured above) is presenting a selection of his installations, paintings and artworks; his multidisciplinary presentation will investigate society by way of dismantling social structures, with the aim of encouraging feelings of optimism through the healing appeal of art.
The Legacy of Andy Warhol, at Artipelag, Stockholm: Until September 25, 2016
Stockholm's Artipelag's impressive exhibition documenting the lasting influence of legendary artist Andy Warhol comes to an end this month, making September your final opportunity to view some of the pop art founder's seminal works in the flesh in the city. As previous visitors to the show will assure you, a look at Warhol’s key sources of inspiration, whether they be daily newspapers and magazines or his infatuation with glamour, creates a fascinating insight into his practice. What's more, they might spark some ideas of your own.
The Festival Edit
The festival season is nearly over, but September’s offerings pay testament to the age-old adage that the best should be left till last. For the sunniest form of last-minute escapism, Outlook kicks off September opening the party 31 August and closing with a Boat Party on 4 September. The settings are elysian: overlooking the Adriatic sea and based around an ancient Roman fort in Stinjaon, the Croatian coastal festival offers vibrant, cutting edge bass music with the dance heroes including but not limited to the likes of Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley, Andy C, Stormzy, Joey Bada$$, Noisia and Kano. End of the Road festival returns from September 1-4 in the idyllic Larmer Tree Gardens in Wiltshire with a dream line-up, spearheaded by Joanna Newsom, Animal Collective, Bat For Lashes, Cat Power, Savages and more. More southerly, Bestival encourages visitors to elude the Autumn that tiny bit longer for September 8-11, serving up the most restorative cures for post-summer blues in the form of areas Ambient Forest, Magic Meadow and the Bollywood Field. A roster of the some of the biggest names in music will brighten up the potentially gloomy British weather weekender, with headliners Wiz Khalifa, The Cure, and Major Lazer.
