Innholdsfortegnelse for July-August 2016 i frankie Magazine

It doesn’t just rain in Mumbai. It absolutely pours, with such abrupt ferocity that India’s most populous city is instantly brought to a standstill. During the four monsoonal months each year, Mumbai’s almost 12 million residents are forced into this inconvenient and chaotic rendezvous with nature. Yet it’s beautiful, too, says designer Chithkala Ramesh: “People from many different cultures live in Mumbai, but when it rains, everybody comes under one umbrella.” Chithkala moved to Mumbai for her first job out of design school and pretty quickly heard about a guy named Sanket Avlani doing a very cool thing – connecting cabbies with young designers who turned taxi interiors into vibrant works of travelling art. He imposed only one rule: each had to reference Mumbai life in some way. After signing…

Tell us a bit about yourself. I was born on the edge of the Tanami Desert. My parents are both teachers from Europe, so teaching in the outback was their ticket into the country. We moved to northwest Tasmania when I was two. My first memory is looking out the aeroplane window and it was ocean as far as the eye could see. I now live in Sydney. When and how did you get into installation art? I didn’t see contemporary art until I was 18. Then I had a gap year in the UK and travelled around Europe for three months. I went to galleries every day, and my brain just exploded. One day I stumbled across the Venice Biennale and saw a work by Ann Veronica Janssens, who…

LAPINE Just as you might expect from a language spoken solely by a race of fictional rabbits, Lapine is a little fluffy around the edges, using onomatopoeia to amp up its cutesy feel. The dialect was created by author Richard Adams for Watership Down on a piecemeal basis – basically, when the plot required a specific word, he dipped into his brain for a suitable solution. As such, we’re left with terms like ‘hrududu’ (motor vehicle), ‘pfeffa’ (cat) and ‘ni-frith’ (noon), which sound a little like the noises your baby sister would make, but are said to be inspired by the author’s time in North Africa during World War II. In a sentence: Os e layth Frithyeer hyaones, on layth zany yayn dahloil. (If it’s sunny today, we’ll go and…

My hair is magnificent. And, yes, I know this is a risky boast to make. First, it is unladylike to take delight in one’s own physical assets. Second, it is very ill-mannered to brag in a public forum and risk injury to those with poor ponytail self-image. Third, like many reporters, I am very bad with adjectives. Normally, you couldn’t really trust that a term like ‘magnificent’ was properly deployed in print. However, I offer you not only the assurance that I do not wish at allto diminish your own hair feelings, but that my hair actually is magnificent. Or, at least, it’s quite long. Long and the colour of corn husks at autumn’s late harvest. Or, less luridly, blonde. But its distinguishing magnificence is its extent, which is –…

As a ‘typical ’90s kid’, I grew up on a solid diet of Friday night fish and chips and lightly comedic TV. Friends and Full House were an evening indulgence – Mum and I would watch the shows together in her bedroom and I’d giggle at a string of jokes I didn’t quite understand. Later, our tastes evolved. Gilmore Girls was a household staple, supplemented by inoffensive half-hour classics like Scrubs and Will & Grace. Recently, I faked a return to my adolescence by bingeing on the shows I thought I knew and loved, only to discover that – bad news alert – they’re actually pretty homophobic. The biggest shock was Gilmore Girls – a show that triggered my first intense lady crush on a totally fictional character. I’m not…

Tell us a bit about the story of your new album, The Bride. It’s a kind of metaphor or fable inspired by a very old Iranian folk song. A younger woman falls in love with the most beautiful man in town. She’s really excited because she thinks they’re going to get married, and she’s found the answer to her happiness. Everybody disapproves of him, though, and it’s got a bit of a Rebel Without a Cause feeling to it. Sadly, he’s killed on the way to the church, so she takes an ill-fated honeymoon on her own where she meets all these different characters and soothsayers and strange people. Ending up at a place called Red Mountain, the resolution of the story is discovering why she’s made this journey, and…

Each day, Polish artist Ania Walus spends hours painstakingly creating paintings in Vincent van Gogh’s broad brushstroke style and then, immediately after perfecting each masterpiece, she destroys them. Just wipes the colours off or paints right over the top. Yet Ania reckons she’s never felt more creatively satisfied. Because her oil paintings – and thousands more created by another 68 artists working alongside her – are being preserved as digital photographs and then gradually stitched together into the world’s first fully painted animation feature film, Loving Vincent. It’s a project of frighteningly huge proportions, dreamed up in 2011 by Polish director Dorota Kobiela. She studied classical painting then worked in animation, and was keen to combine the two. While re-reading letters written by van Gogh before his death in 1890,…

Dear frankie, I wanted to let you know how disturbingly reassured I was by the article “Careless Whisker”. I am not a wog, but of South American ethnicity. I too suffer from inappropriate hair growth and from what my friends kindly call a “Latin passion” temperament. Post-recently dissolved relationship, I felt the cherry on the cake was my inappropriate chin whiskers and nipple hair. Thank you, Mia, for standing up for all the temperamental and hairy women out there (those two traits seem to go hand in hand). You give women like me the confidence to embrace the people we are: hair, temper and all. Love, Suz Dear frankie, Mia Timpano’s “Careless Whisker” really struck a chord with me. I too have a hairy nonna and my own personal set…

When you hit your 30s, your body starts to change in a myriad of tiny but cumulatively significant ways, like a second – more boring – puberty. The hangovers get worse, you get tired more quickly, and your metabolism basically buggers off. I’ve taken to welcoming most of these changes with a resigned shrug; truth be told, I’ve always felt a little old, and I’ve been waiting for my body to catch up. There is one thing, however, that I wasn’t expecting to change as I said goodbye to my 20s: my feelings about sport. For as long as I can remember I’ve treated physical activity with the kind of suspicion normally reserved for Ponzi schemes and Scientology. Wasn’t it a bit of a scam, I’d ask my PE teachers,…

I cry everywhere. Biking, walking, in shops, at work, over coffee, over pho. Think of a public place and I have cried there. Middle of nowhere in Thailand – yup. In an aeroplane over the Atlantic – sure. I even cried in the caravan park at Uluru. I cried in a lift the other day between floors 1 and 13, at which point I wiped my eyes and stepped out with little thought for the stranger who was left to ride alone in a mist of confusion. In my teens it was schoolwork, bullies and parental disapproval that had me crying in the schoolyard, or the depressing food court where I worked. Nowadays it’s jobs, bills and parental death that have me crying in the boardroom or on the other…

“Cut the comedy festival crap!” So said the Ballarat uni drama teacher whose job it was to “ruin” the egos of then-students Broden Kelly, Mark Bonanno and Zach Ruane. Since those days, the Melbourne boys have ditched their theatre blacks and formed Aunty Donna, a sketch comedy troupe boasting over 100,000 YouTube subscribers, and a live comedy festival show – that just sold out. “So take that, Sergio!” Broden quips. Still, none of Aunty Donna’s members, including their behind-the-scenes crew, anticipated a career in sketch comedy. “I was vehemently against it,” Broden proclaims. “Whenever I’d seen sketch, particularly in Australia, post-Full Frontal, I always found it daggy or boring. But then we started doing it, and I found a lot of enjoyment in finding ways to make this old form…

Three cheers for puberty! It’s not often we celebrate the stint of greasy pores and smelly pits, but when it comes to White Lung frontwoman Mish Way, that gawky time deserves a bit of credit. After all, if it weren’t for some extra lumps and bumps and a growth spurt, she might never have discovered music. Starting out as a competitive figure skater in her hometown of Vancouver, the Canadian lass was on an icy path until her hormones kicked in. “I got an arse and some tits and my partner couldn’t lift me,” she laughs. “Puberty is the time when a lot of girls quit, because you lose all your jumps and have to learn the repertoire again.” Realising she was “never going to be an Olympian”, Mish ditched…

There are few things in life more comforting than a bowl of slowly simmered rice porridge. Congee, or jook, is the Asian nannas’ version of chicken soup: it cures all manner of ailments, whether mental or physical, and is particularly good if you’re recovering from a winter lurgy or too-much-of-a-good-time. All you need to make it is rice, time and patience – and a selection of condiments from your local Asian grocer. There’s a basic recipe here, and a few ways to fancy it up, too. The liquid-to-rice ratio makes for a medium-thick congee – add more water at the start if you want it to be thinner. You can use good quality chicken or vegetable stock instead of water, but it’s a good idea to leave out the salt…

I grew up in Shepparton, country Victoria. I was totally spoiled as a kid – my mum and dad had good jobs and we always had more than enough to eat. I was aware that people around us were doing it tough, though, and I made a promise to myself that if I ever got the opportunity to help them, I would. One morning in 2013 I saw a newspaper story about kids at two local primary schools who were going without lunch every day, and it resonated with me. I was making my breakfast at the time, and I thought: “Lunch”. Then I thought: “Sandwich”. I thought I could make a few sandwiches and take them to the schools and maybe that would help. What struck me most was…

ECOLOSOPHY Two garden variety eco-nerds with a love of beautiful things and a passion to make a difference, we sell home-, garden- and giftware for fellow planet-minded folk. Our products are natural, vintage or fair-trade, with no nasties allowed! ecolosophy.com.au PATAGONIA A global leader in socially progressive business, we make high quality, responsibly sourced gear for a variety of outdoor pursuits. Our 100% traceable down provides the highest assurance of animal welfare in the apparel industry. patagonia.com.au SHAPES IN THE SAND Drawing inspiration from different environments and the diversity within them, we make eco-conscious swimwear in sizes 6 to 14. Each piece is handmade from regenerated fabrics derived from nylon fishing nets and other nylon waste. shapesinthesand.com.au ECO PARTY BOX Sparked by a belief in zero-waste parties, we’re a South…

ERSTWILDER IN A SENTENCE: A Melbourne-based label with a love for all things vintage, retro, rockabilly and pin-up, plus an affinity for all creatures great and small // WHAT WE SELL: Brooches, necklaces and earrings with character that brings joy to people’s days // PRICE POINT: From $24.95 to $44.95 // WHAT MAKES THE SHOP SPECIAL: Each Erstwilding (as we call them) comes with a unique name and a short story inspired by pop culture and classic tales. We poll our fans regularly online to ask what they want us to make next // FIND US: Online at erstwilder.com or at one of our many global stockists POL CLOTHING IN A SENTENCE: An Australian fashion label specialising in knitwear, but dabbling in homewares, too // WHAT WE SELL: Beautiful and…

BORDBORD Behold the wonder of Bordbord. The latest offering from this small Stockholm design studio is the oddly named Side Table B-11: made from steel wire and startlingly pink lacquer, it’s designed to cast awesome shadows and make you smile whenever you walk in the room. It has already made us quite happy just looking at it, and if you care for a closer inspection, pop to bordbord.se SUNSHINE, BABY DittoHouse designer Molly Fitzpatrick was inspired by her own cute little boy, Malachi, when creating this Sunshine Baby pillow cover. So we have him to thank for the round happy face, rosy cheeks and lovely big eyes on show. Cuddly and decidedly kid-friendly, this pillow cover is knitted from a recycled cotton blend that uses fibres which otherwise would end…

THE SMOOTH CRIMINAL You might not recognise a Smooth Criminal at first: they’re clever and kind and funny and smart. But then, one day, you end up paying their half of a bill because they’re a bit short. They promise to pay you back and you believe them, because they are clever and kind and funny and smart. Time goes on. You start noticing you’re going through food faster than usual – and you still haven’t been paid back. You knock on the SC’s door. You want to ask a few questions. The SC opens the door, wearing your hat, drinking your tea and holding your laptop. You don’t say a word. The answers are right in front of you. THE CRIMINAL The biggest difference between Smooth Criminals and regular…

Wilma McKnight, 91 Wilma was born in the small Victorian town of Wonthaggi; she was one of five siblings in a close-knit household. The family packed up and moved to West Footscray, Melbourne, during World War II – and she’s lived there ever since. On household chores: We kids all had our jobs to do. In Wonthaggi our toilet used to be right down the back of the yard, outside, and my job was to tip in the chamberpots. Every so often a chappy would come and empty it out from the laneway that our yard backed onto. One day I was sitting on the toilet and he took the toilet bowl away while I was sitting over it! I got a real shock. On neighbours: Wonthaggi was a small…

Hello! Tell us a bit about yourself, please. I have a background in drawing and illustration, and taking photos is something that I’ve been doing since I was a teen. But now I’m concentrating on photography and I’ve left other types of art on the back burner for a while. I’ve had a lot of great teachers, but once you have a camera in your hand and you know how to use it, the best teacher is practice, and I try to take photos almost every day. We have to know – where did the idea for Secret Friends come from? As with most of my ideas for projects, it came during another photo session. I was experimenting with different body positions with one of my favourite models, and we…

Canadian lady Sarah Di Domenico is a minimalist at heart – not the sort to hoard old letters or mementoes. But a lucky purchase in a Montreal antique store has seen her become caretaker to a very special hoard of vintage love letters and ephemera. And forge a connection with one elderly (and charming) pack rat. Sarah, a copywriter and experience designer, had just moved to Montreal from Toronto in 2014 when she came across a battered tin trunk in a closing down sale. “I needed some stuff for my new apartment and I thought it might make a good coffee table,” she remembers. “The owner said, ‘It’s got a whole lot of stuff in it, but I haven‘t looked through it. Take it now for $40, but if you…

“in intensive care, i hallucinated that my donor’s name was haha and he was a mad keen surfer” My brother, who was 16 years older than me, had cystic fibrosis, too. I was nine when he had his transplant. A month later, he passed away. I have a letter from him that says something about a gene having been found for CF; he thought by the time I was his age, there would be a cure. I guess I just believed it. In that letter, he also had a recipe for his favourite sandwich, which was frozen fish fingers and honey – he was a bit eccentric. CF was part of life when I was a kid. I knew I had to take pills at mealtimes and spend the day…

If there’s one incontrovertible fact of human history, it’s this: people stink. Bacteria eating our sweat makes our armpits, feet and private bits pong. And before modern toothpaste and dentistry, our mouths were pretty rank, too. Over the years, we’ve copped stinks from human and animal poo, dead things, unwashed bodies, industrial waste, rotten food, fire, disease and other generalised grossness. Wherever we’ve gathered together – in villages and cities, civilisations great and small – we’ve shared our stench. We’ve yearned to smell sweeter, too. And so (longer ago than you’d think), we invented perfume. Back in the fug of ancient times, Egyptians combated the reek with concoctions made of ostrich eggs, tortoise shell and gallnuts – as well as more understandable ingredients like cinnamon, lemongrass, lily and rose. These…

I wouldn’t say I’ve ‘stolen’ things from my boyfriends, as much as I have elected not to give certain items back. Which, yes, I know, is the same as stealing, by the letter of the law – but I doubt the boys and girls in blue are going to nail my arse for holding onto a scratched copy of Leonard Cohen’s Songs of Love and Hate. Especially if I can explain to them why. You see, it’s never anything of material value that I steal, e.g. motor vehicles, prescription spectacles, or a Warhammer collection that I was assured cost upwards of $70,000. No, it’s the incidental bibs and bobs – sometimes actual garbage – that I feel the need to hold onto. CDs are a big one. Notably the ones…