45 days ago
As a perma bear of whisky curator and provider Artisanal Spirits (ART) today’s sales and lack of profits warning comes as no great surprise. It was just 12 weeks ago that the company reiterated its was comfortable with calendar 2023 consensus forecasts. Boy have things changed quickly.
758 days ago
Okay this is not on a par with musicMagpie (MMAG) or Parsley Box (MEAL) which are both heading for an encounter with the Fat Lady already but, still, Nomad Singer should be holding its head in shame, as reader A flags up Artisanal Spirits (ART).., Hat tip to him. Here’s why.
2351 days ago
Malcolm outlines a strategy today for playing AIM Casino stocks which I regard as folly. I explain why it could go disastrously wrong in two ways. Then I look at the wider asset bubble in relation to art, soccer players, real estate and new media and how that impacts on the stockmarket and will, in due course, implode.
2856 days ago
As I mentioned earlier, the Despotate of the Morea based at Mistras is noted not just for its military power but also as an early flowering of the renaissance in terms of art.
Having clambered up to the top of the fortress alone, I wandered down to where the Mrs was resting and we walked to see the Byzantine churches at the base. I hope that the photos below convey the glory of what we discovered inside, murals which on their own make Mistras a place to visit.
3495 days ago
Stanley Gibbons (SGI) has announced a recommended £8.6 million (60p per share) cash offer for Mallett plc (MAE) - one of the oldest established antique dealers in the world, specialising in furniture and works of art and with interests also in restoration. Gibbons sees the move as “furthering its ambition to become a global auction house for collectibles” and considers it “a logical and affordable next step for us to acquire a valuable brand and relevant assets. The Mallett business will expand Stanley Gibbons's expertise into an adjacent collectibles area, drive significant cross-selling opportunities across the combined businesses and build a stronger auction platform in the collectibles marketplace”.
3966 days ago
Friend of colourful James, fan of the Real Man and artist – what more could be said about Pauline Amos. My initial article about her performance art at the opening of her show attracted a few comments. The video of that art (showing her taking her clothes off and inviting folk to paint her body) attracted rather more views. In case you missed it, the video is below.
But as promised I went along to Pauline’s exhibition which is in the basement art gallery at the Tramshed on Rivington Street Shoreditch and runs for another week or so. The gallery details can be found at www.cocknbullgallery.com
The Tramshed itself has become a Mark Hicks restaurant which is pleasant enough, if far from cheap. The new world of Shoreditch. But the bird was paying and so after seeing Pauline’s show I had a pleasant enough glass of wine and a few – overpriced – nibbles. As to the show…
Its theme is how man has killed man through the ages. There are prints and some contemporary art paintings hung in an unusual way. The colours and layout are meant to shock and they do. It took the bird and I about 15 minutes to wander around the cold basement checking out the 20 or so smaller pieces on the wall and the ten or so large main features (including the canvas which Pauline was painted on).
As I think most folks know I am not a great art expert so cannot offer up 500 words on the inner meaning of it all. If it was meant to appear violent, angry and shocking (as I think it was) then Pauline has succeeded. The bird and I both took that message from the show and if you are in the area you could find a lot worse ways to kill a quarter of an hour before heading off to The Grill, or The Diner or even, if it is still going, that Moroccan Place on Old Street ( but not the Tramshed) for something to eat.
3977 days ago
One of the joys of being involved with a good, if quirky, restaurant is the customers. And so last in on a busy Thursday at Real Man Pizza Company was colourful James, the local spaghetti vongole loving art entrepreneur.Time for a quick pizza? Of course. And a pint of Curious beer? Of course. James being James it was not one pint. His guest was an artist called Pauline Amos who has an exhibition running at the Tramshed in Shoreditch just down the road from Clerkenwell. I used to live in the 'Ditch and know the Tramshed well.
The exhibition is about how man has killed man over time. And so naturally at the opening Pauline had to take all her clothes off and allow visitors to paint her naked body. 'Natch. You don't believe me? The video is below. Given my interest in contemporary art, I shall be popping along at the weekend to see more.
3992 days ago
Can’t speak Italian? Aha. Well that would be spaghetti and clams in English. It is a traditional Italian recipe with the fresh clams cooked gently in their shells in a white wine, garlic and parsley sauce until they open and then mixed in with the sauce included in the spaghetti.
It is not on our menu yet but it is available as today’s special at Real Man Pizza in Clerkenwell and can be ordered every day as of now once you are addicted.
Why add it to the menu? James asked us to. He’s a local resident and a hugely entertaining man. For you James…your wish is our command.
