Category: The Hague

Happy Birthday John Cage

Happy Birthday John Cage from HappyHotelier on Vimeo.

This year the 100th Birthday of a famous American composer, John Cage, will be celebrated.

This Birthday cake installation for John Cage I found in an exhibition in the Museumsquartier of Vienna that I visited quite unexpectedly earlier this week. I made a small piece of video so that you get a feel of why all small loudspeakers were used to decorate the cake.

Featuring more than hundred different works, “MEMBRA DISJECTA FOR JOHN CAGE: Wanting to Say Something About John” is an homage to John Cage, whose hundred birthday is being celebrated around the world in 2012. The Latin term “membra disjecta” in the exhibition title indicates John Cage’s method of working with a scattering of elements from various sources. The subtitle refers to a multiple that John Cage created in Marcel Duchamp’s honor after his death: “Not Wanting to Say Anything About Marcel.”

If you happen to be in Vienna shortly a must visit exhibition!

Below is a trailer for an memorial of John Cage in The Hague on March 10, 2012:

The Pearl Earring by Dorothee Golz

The Pearl Earring by Dorothee Golz

As the original is here in The Hague:
The Pearl Earring by Dorothee Golz

Can you tell us a little bit about your interest in the portraits you decided to use in your work? Was there something specific about them that worked well with the message of your work, or did you choose them because of their iconic recognisability?

In the first instance I chose these paintings due to their photorealistic quality. The pictures almost look like arranged photos- take my image of Girl at the Window for example: the photo pretends to be the painting The Girl with the Pearl Earring by Vermeer, just as his painting pretends to be a photo. In relation to Girl at the Window, historical connections and quotes are left out except for the head piece; she comes across as a young woman from our time. Her contemporary posture suddenly mediates all her potential, the directness of the glance and the familiarity of the contemporary face made me wonder how different her life could be if she were alive today!

which was quoted from Don’t Panic Online

Fancy – The Pearl Earring by Dorothee Golz.

Dutch Queen Beatrix turns 74!

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Queen-Beatrix-ANP-17489798

Today Queen Beatrix of The Netherlands turned 74. Happy Birthday to our Majesty!

These two beautiful photos (from ANP) were taken a while ago when she visited a mosque in a Muslim country. Off course our peroxide blond parliamentarian asked the question why she made a political statement by covering her hat with a shawl. Luckily, according to certain polls, the guy lost 3 seats in Dutch Parliament after he’d posed the question on twitter.

Jaap van Zweden Musical America’s Conductor of the Year 2012


The Hague must be proud of its former Residentie Orchestra conductor Jaap van Zweden:

DALLAS, TX (Nov. 3, 2011) – The Dallas Symphony Orchestra (DSO) proudly announced today that the prestigious Musical America has named DSO Music Director Jaap van Zweden its Conductor of the Year Award 2012. He has been awarded this honor for his critically acclaimed work with the DSO and for the excellence of his music-making, both in Dallas and as guest conductor with some of the nation’s most prestigious orchestras.

…

Having joined the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra as concertmaster at age 19, van Zweden spent the next sixteen years inspired and mentored by Solti, Haitink, Giulini, Harnoncourt and Bernstein. With Berstein’s encouragement, the Juilliard-trained violinist began studying conducting in the Netherlands and performed as violinist and conductor with several orchestras between 1994 and 1997. In 1997, van Zweden made his decision to conduct full time, played his last concert as a violinist with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, and was named the chief conductor of the Netherlands Symphony Orchestra, where he remained until 2003. In 2000, he added the music directorship of the Residentie Orchestra of The Hague to his credits, a post he held until 2005.

Originally from the Netherlands, van Zweden entered The Juilliard School in New York at age 16, as a student of Dorothy DeLay. Van Zweden is very committed to bringing awareness and acceptance to the cause of autism.

Via a tweet from the US Embassy in The Netherlands and the blog of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra

The Hague’s Stork by Frans Schmit

The-Hague's-Stork-By-Frans-Schmit

It’s official now: The stork in The Hague’s coat of arms has its own book: The Hague’s Stork by Frans Schmit. The cover of the book has a photo of the official silver livery collar of the Mayor of The Hague which, of course, has a stork in it.

Today, on his birthday (hence on july 7, 2011 at 7.00 hr PM), Frans Schmit presented the first copy of his book officially in Paagman’s bookshop.

It features many photos of the stork and has a walking route through the Hague Center that highlights all the storks that you can find at various buildings. Frans has collected over 1.400 storks thusfar and discovers every day more photos. You can find a large part his collection on his Flickr set De Haagse Ooievaar