...the neon hub blog... http://www.theneonhub.com/blog Culture, Lifestyle & Digital Media posts from Neon Tue, 17 Aug 2010 16:50:52 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 Ha Ha Ha http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/08/ha-ha-ha/ http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/08/ha-ha-ha/#comments Tue, 17 Aug 2010 16:31:57 +0000 kristabooker http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/?p=1197 Wildchild Weatherman strikes again! ]]> Neon have just seen this and love it.

A simple error in timing + classic cover-up action = hilarious look on weatherman Tomasz Schafernaker’s face.

Apparently this is not the first time he has been in trouble with BBC News, wildchild activity has included:

1. Referring to the Western Isles as “Nowheresville” during a weather forecast

2. Referring to Glastonbury as a “muddy shite” rather than a “muddy site”

3. Calling Devon “Devil”

4. Being seen on air tearing out his earpiece and saying “Well I don’t know if I’m on air on not so Gary over to you”

5. Raising eyebrows among BBC executives by showing off his impressive physique, shirtless, on the cover of the gay magazine Attitude Active

]]> http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/08/ha-ha-ha/feed/ 0 Daisy Lowe in Spitalfields http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/08/daisylowe/ http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/08/daisylowe/#comments Thu, 12 Aug 2010 12:40:59 +0000 kristabooker http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/?p=1185 Daisy Lowe speaks frankly about why she became a model, who her influences are and what she likes to wear; an honest insight into one of today's trendsetters. ]]> This video is presented by Palladium who have been making original footwear over 60 years. It features Daisy Lowe who shares the importance of authenticity and being original, characteristics reflected in the way she dresses and her personal style.

Neon likes this video for two reasons.

The first is that it is filmed in an old house in Princelet Street, we are guessing it is number 19, a Huguenot master silk weaver’s home with a synagogue in the garden. Neon are lucky to work in this area, there is a fascinating amount of local history thanks to Spitalfields being a home to immigrants from refugee French Protestants in the 1600s to today’s Bangladeshi community – each new nation leaving its mark on the place. Dennis Severs House famously brings the area to life in his physical recreation over 4 floors and historical guided tours of the area walk through streets with frontage that still bear strong resemblance to their past.

The second reason we like this video is that Daisy Lowe appears honest and is interesting to listen to, removed from her perceived media persona. She speaks frankly about why she became a model, who her influences are and what she likes to wear; an honest insight into one of today’s trendsetters.

Palladium Authenticity – Daisy Lowe from Palladium on Vimeo.

]]> http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/08/daisylowe/feed/ 0 The Complete History of Food http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/07/history-food-bompas-parr/ http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/07/history-food-bompas-parr/#comments Thu, 15 Jul 2010 14:19:47 +0000 kristabooker http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/?p=1157 A teaser video from Courvoisier's Complete History of Food ]]> Last night Neon went to the Complete History of Food presented by Courvoisier and the brilliant Bompass and Parr. Each story chronologically details different beliefs and food fashions from the Middle Ages to the present day. The journey through the building takes the form of a meal allowing insight into the past using London’s best food today.

Each section is curated by an award-winning line up from the Courvoisier The Future 500, an exclusive network of innovators from across the UK and all industries.

We won’t spoil it by going into details but we can say Neon’s highlight was the Contemporary floor with food from Alexis Gauthier of Gauthier Soho and accompanying drink from Lounge Bohemia, reminding us we really really need to go Lounge Bohemia being almost neighbours.

Here is a teaser video which may mean a lot more once you actually go to the event and if we can give one tip to the ladies, try and avoid wearing a short skirt.

]]> http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/07/history-food-bompas-parr/feed/ 0 Free Booze – July 8th http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/07/free-booze/ http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/07/free-booze/#comments Thu, 08 Jul 2010 12:48:33 +0000 kristabooker http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/?p=1148 Free booze in WC1 ]]>

If you are anywhere near John Street WC1, fancy a drink and like bourbon you are in luck. From 11am to 6pm the public can select and sample chilled Maker’s Mark cocktails. The ‘vending machine’ hides a bartender making the following three drinks to order:

1. Maker’s on the Rocks
2. Maker’s & Ginger (one part Maker’s Mark with two parts ginger ale)
3. Kentucky Champagne (one part Maker’s Mark with two parts Appletiser, served in a Champagne flute).

Taxi!

]]> http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/07/free-booze/feed/ 0 A Taste of Spain http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/06/a-taste-of-spain/ http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/06/a-taste-of-spain/#comments Mon, 28 Jun 2010 20:51:04 +0000 kristabooker http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/?p=1123 Chomp your way through the land of Ibérico Ham, take a private visit to a bodega, lend a hand in the harvest of saffron in La Mancha ..... ]]> Thanks to the Tapas Fantasticas event last weekend Neon found A Taste of Spain, a Spanish company that organises culinary tours and a great resource for any trip planning.

The website is split into the 5 areas of breaks; Tours, Cooking Classes, Tapas Sessions, Gourmet Tastings and Customised Services. Here are Neon’s favourites:

A guided tour of Barcelona’s Santa Caterina food market followed by a tutored olive oil tasting where an olive oil expert will take you through different varieties of extra virgin olive oils. The tasting is followed by a full lunch illustrating different varietals and uses of olive oil.

A weekend tour of La Mancha to lend a hand in the harvest of saffron with the local women learning the peeling, toasting, drying and packaging of the saffron flowers, all accompanied by various meals of local saffron recipes.

For more hands-on try vegan cooking classes in a private kitchen in Madrid, learn to cook an authentic Paella in Valencia, test your skills with Nueva Cocina in San Sebastian, chomp your way through the land of Ibérico Ham or take a private visit to a bodega followed by a boozy lunch.

Santa Caterina Maket, Barcelona

]]> http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/06/a-taste-of-spain/feed/ 0 Who Will You Thank? http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/06/saythanks/ http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/06/saythanks/#comments Tue, 08 Jun 2010 17:49:34 +0000 kristabooker http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/?p=1092 Recognise and reward others who have made a positive impact on your life]]> When was the last time you said thank you? A real Thank You? Not the kind you say to your colleague for holding the lift or the man who gave you his seat on the tube or to the woman in Pret who served your lunch, a proper heartfelt tear-inducing thank you for changing your life in some way.

Tell Us Your Story is giving people the opportunity to recognise and reward others who have made a positive impact on their lives or in their community over the past year. Entries are submitted online here.

For every entry Aviva (who launched the campaign) will donate £1 to the Street to School Programme – a global initiative helping get kids off the streets and back into education.

With a weekly prize of £1000 be awarded to the local hero that captures the hearts of visitors to the site and receives the most votes and an overall winner will be chosen by a celebrity judging panel for a prize worth £10,000 – they may be saying Thank You right back.

]]> http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/06/saythanks/feed/ 0 James Holden @ Village Underground http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/06/djkicks/ http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/06/djkicks/#comments Wed, 02 Jun 2010 15:09:44 +0000 kristabooker http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/?p=1075 “It is loose and free, maybe more so than if you were playing in a club. But to me this is dance music" says Holden on his new DJ-Kicks release ]]> At the end of May !K7 released James Holden’s mix for the long-running DJ-Kicks series.

Holden has not released anything since 2006′s At The Controls so this is a hugely anticipated album from the fans of Border Community.

An overdue return from shiny colabs with solvent celebs Holden’s track selection is firmly leftfield, away from typical club music. “It is loose and free, maybe more so than if you were playing in a club. But to me this is dance music” says Holden.

After the recent closure of Matter and a For Sale sign goes up at Fabric perhaps this is a welcome direction in club music that will make us all start dancing again, Holden style.

Find out on June 11th.

]]> http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/06/djkicks/feed/ 0 GHOSTPOET The Sound Of Strangers EP http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/05/ghostpoet-the-sound-of-strangers-ep/ http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/05/ghostpoet-the-sound-of-strangers-ep/#comments Thu, 27 May 2010 11:46:58 +0000 davidfarrer http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/?p=1019 Just a little heads up about a free download by one of our favourite emerging artists GHOSTPOET. You can download his new EP absolutely FREE]]>

Just a little heads up about a free download by one of our favourite emerging artists GHOSTPOET. You can download his new EP absolutely FREE here.

]]> http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/05/ghostpoet-the-sound-of-strangers-ep/feed/ 0 A Vodka Fairytale http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/05/a-vodka-fairytale/ http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/05/a-vodka-fairytale/#comments Thu, 27 May 2010 09:48:08 +0000 kristabooker http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/?p=1013 True story about a young Brit who discovers his ancestors owned vodka distillery. He travels to Ukraine to buy the factory, export the vodka and resurrect the town.]]> Boy told stories of rich Ukrainian grandmother wrapped in fur and pearls, waltzing across ballrooms
Boy grows up unsure how true the family myths of his grandmother really are
Boy becomes a man and decides to find out the truth
Man’s mother tells man there are some of his grandmother’s belongings in the attic
Man goes into attic
Man finds dusty suitcase
Man opens dusty suitcase
Man sees tattered diary in suitcase
Man reads diary and discovers all the stories he heard as a boy were true
Man find clues to where his grandmother lived in Ukraine
Man decides to go and find the town where his ancestors lived
Man finds town
Town is in ruins
Man is told his ancestors owned a vodka distillery
Man visits vodka distillery
Vodka distillery is still working but also in ruins
Man decides to buy the factory, export the vodka and resurrect the town

TRUE STORY!

Better still the clever boy/man made a film about it:

]]> http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/05/a-vodka-fairytale/feed/ 0 Basquiat @ Black Rat Gallery http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/05/basquia/ http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/2010/05/basquia/#comments Tue, 18 May 2010 14:52:05 +0000 kristabooker http://www.theneonhub.com/blog/?p=996 Jean-Michel Basquiat lived a short but extraordinary life]]> Born in Brooklyn in the 60’s to a Puerto Rican mother and Haitian father Jean-Michel Basquiat lived a short but extraordinary life.

He started painting at a young age and as a high-school student spray painted graffiti on buildings in lower Manhattan under the name of SAMO, defining his work using philosophical quotes such as “SAMO as an end to to mindwash religion, nowhere politics and bogus philosophy” “SAMO does not cause cancer in laboratory animals” and “SAMO as a neo art form”.

When Basquiat was 18 legendary free arts tabloid Village Voice published a selection of his work and quotes. From here his notoriety developed and he grew to become the first painter of African descent to become an international art star.

The fame and fortune overwhelmed Basquiat and he was unable to keep control of the commotion surrounding him. He was rarely sober and would behave erratically; painting barefoot in expensive suits and then wearing the paint splattered outfit for days. At the age of 25 Basquiat appeared on the cover of The New York Times Magazine in a feature entitled “New Art, New Money: The Marketing of an American Artist”, three years later he died of a heroin overdose.

Basquiat drew this untitled piece aged 21 using wax crayon on paper – an impressive and vibrant example of his work. The skull was a favourite motif and appears often in both paintings and drawings accompanied by words and combination of letters and numbers, the symbol of a heart with a cross also appears in several works. The crown drawn in red on the upper right is another motif used extensively from around 1982 onwards, used a legacy of his days as a graffiti artist and is commonly used today to represent his continual influence.

East London’s Black Rat exhibition also features works by artists Keith Haring, Shepard Fairey, Swoon, Banksy, Barry McGee, Faile and Os Gemeos.

Web: blackratgallery.com
Address: Walk through Cargo Garden, Arch 461, Kingsland Viaduct, 83 Rivington Street, London. EC2A 3AY.
Nearest tube – Liverpool St / Old St
Dates – 22nd April – 20th May 2010
Hours: Tuesday – Friday, 10am – 6pm. Saturday 11am – 4pm
Entry: Free
Information: 020 7613 7200

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