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EFFEN Vodka Exclusive Launch

Beam Inc played host to an intimate night for distinguished guests at 7 Adam Park last week. The evening was to introduce the launch of EFFEN Vodka in Singapore, adding yet another line to their already impressive range of premium spirits brands that comes to us as no stranger. Black and white was the theme for the evening, with guests conforming to the dress code. Donned in my best LBD and a pair of black sky-high heels (not the best idea), I was just about to be a part of what will eventually be the glamorous event of the year… thus far.




Organizers did a stellar job of bringing “posh” and “elegance” to the party, for we were not short of entertainment either. Guests were treated to an eyeful of local art by Safrie Effendi’s live onsite illustration on EFFEN Vodka bottle miniatures, which we were even able to snag a couple home.

 



The main highlight of the evening, however, was a friendly face-off among four EFFEN Vodka cocktails made by some of Singapore’s most gifted mixologists. Attendees voted for their favourite one, and by the end of the night, Barkode’s Karen Heng emerged as the winner.

(left)
Cocktail: Double Dutch
Mixologist: 28 Hong Kong, Vanessa Chan
Concoction: EFFEN Original Vodka, Basil Hayden's Bourbon, Basil & French Earl Grey Gomme, with Fresh Lemon.

(right)
My personal favourite…
Cocktail: Desire
Mixologist: 7 Adam, Herman
Concoction: EFFEN Original Vodka. Bols Lychee, Elderflower, Grilled Pineapple & Chocolate Bitters.

(left)
Cocktail: EFFEN Lime Pie (Winning Creation of the Night!)
Mixologist: Barkode, Karen Heng
Concoction: EFFEN Black Cherry Vodka, Homemade Vanilla Syrup, Lemon juice and Kaffir lime leaves, garnished with bruleed marshmallows.
 
(right)
Cocktail: Black Cherry Shrub
Mixologist: Nektar, Raveen Misra
Concoction: EFFEN Black Cherry Vodka, Bols Cherry Brandy, Sugar and a touch of white wine vinegar.

EFFEN Vodka is served at premium bars and restaurants including The Prime Society, Artery and 1-Altitude. It is also available at The Beam Cellar, 229 Mountbatten Road, #01-03 to 07 / #01-17 to 19, Mountbatten Square.

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Tim Burton: The Exhibition



One of the many perks of working for a magazine like Kluster is the freebies that comes with every review I write. So when I flew to Melbourne over the weekend last September, I was given 2 complimentary tickets to Tim Burton: The Exhibition. I was pretty stoked! With my "media pass" (hypothetically), I avoided the 45 minutes queue and jumped straight to the front of the ticket booth. Oh yeah... that feeling was pretty exciting. Anyhow, here's my review:

Over 15 weeks, The Australian Centre for the Moving Image hosted a major retrospective of Tim Burton’s career. It marks the celebration of Burton's eccentric style and his love for dark absurdity that spawned the likes of Edward Scissorhands, Sleepy Hollow and The Nightmare Before Christmas. And thanks to the good graces of ACMI, we recently had the opportunity to glimpse into the whimsical world of the famed Hollywood director.

For the past 14 weeks, the Australian Centre for the Moving Image hosted a retrospective of one of Hollywood’s most influential cinematic visionary, Tim Burton. He who has spawned critically acclaimed films such as Edward Scissorhands, Sleepy Hollow and The Nightmare Before Christmas, Burton comes to us as no stranger. Needless to say, when we received an exclusive invite to Tim Burton: The Exhibition in Melbourne, we were there faster than you can say “Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice”.

Direct from New York’s Museum of Modern Art, Tim Burton: The Exhibition charts and explores the many phases of Burton’s career as a director, concept artist, illustrator and photographer. This unique exhibition spans his life’s work, from Burton’s formative years as an introverted loner in Burbank, California to the multi-award winning luminary he is today. It is made up of over 700 rarely seen-before artworks from Burton’s own private and professional collection including drawings, paintings, photographs, puppets, costumes, films and storyboards.





Highlights include the Burtonarium, a gothic carnival style tent that exemplifies the director’s dark and imaginative twisted world. Die-hard Burton fans will fall weak in the knees as they journey through an eerie illusionary terrain of warped floors, bright fluorescent painted creatures, and a suspended glow-in-the-dark miniature carousel. There’s more: viewers are also treated to a once-in-a-lifetime display of props and costumes derived from the studio’s archives. To name a few, it exhibits the iconic hedge sculpture from Edward Scissorhands, a box of antique razors from Sweeney Todd, life-sized costumes from Alice in Wonderland, and who would have thought – a decapitated head of Sarah Jessica Parker from Mars Attacks!.

That was definitely an experience I'll remember for the rest of my journalistic career. ;)

Photos courtesy of the good folks from ACMI.

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the finders keepers designers say...



Being a part of Kluster Magazine has really been a real joy. Recently, we joined hands with Finders Keepers for their Spring/Summer Markets held at Sydney's CarriageWorks this December. Finders Keepers is a design and art market organisation that highly supports Australia's homegrown emerging designers, artists and musicians. So with this partnership comes an opportunity for me to interview several awe-inspiring designers who will be involved in this event. Have a read and you might just be inspired to do something for a change!

Anika Cook
Fold Studio
Jen Allison
Materialistic
Parliament for Two
The Mup

For my readers residing in Sydney, the 2010 Spring/Summer Finders Keepers Markets takes place on December 3, from 6-10pm, and December 4, from 10am - 5pm. Keep a lookout for your favourite designers!

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tough titties: more than just a pretty face



Talk about girl power. Brand new blog Tough Titties is aimed at sharing ideas and sparking innovation among emerging and established female creatives. It is a unique space designed specifically for women to show off their knack for creative expression. The blog features a mound of awe-inspiring content, including top-notch interviews with like-minded individuals, as well as your regular fix of all things art, design, illustration, photography and more.

Tough Titties is sounding the call to you ladies for submissions or suggestions of original works of pretty much anything you’d like to have featured, really. Pop over to their website to find out more.

View original post at Kluster Magazine.

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jowell tan: creative writing class



I'm always on a lookout for art and literary greatness, so when my friend Jowell Tan gave me a little insight about his blog, I got a little excited. The budding writer and photographer runs the Creative Writing Class blog, where he writes short fiction stories and pens his creative thoughts on music and photos. Boy, can he write! Jowell is also keen on critiquing any photos or music you may throw at him, so toss him a little challenge and start sending in your stuffs. Have a gander at his blog or pop in to say hello, you might just get inspired to do something on a whim.

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jess cook says... oh alfred!



In celebration of its reopening, Prince Alfred Park is getting a little makeover, initiated by the folks behind Token Imagination. As part of this year’s Art & About Sydney festival, Oh Alfred! is transforming the boring ol’ boundary that surrounds Alfred Park Park into a “fence-ciful” work of art. Each Saturday in September, Sydneysiders can take part in this collaborative project, alongside school children and 10 local artists, to help give that fence the sprucing up it needs. We got founder of Token Imagination and curator of Oh Alfred!, Jess Cook, to show and tell.

Audrey Lee: We understand that during the last month, Oh Alfred! has been calling out for participants to get involved in the final phase of a collaborative project as part of Art & About Sydney 2010. For the sake of our readers who haven’t yet caught wind of the project, can you tell us a little more about Oh Alfred!?

Jess Cook: Oh Alfred! is a massive outdoor art extravaganza. We are using the construction fence around Prince Alfred Park as our ‘canvas’ to transform area and herald the reopening of the park.

Prince Alfred Park has been under construction for quite some time. It’s a park that local workers, resident and school kids enjoy as well as being very much in the eye of many commuters. As a local I would walk past the construction site and think, “Oh Alfred! how can we make you look pretty?”

So the brainstorming began on what, who, who and when?

We really needed a great team to make this all happen! We knew we wanted to work with the local community and have open working bees. We knew wanted local artists to bring their own interpretations of the site.

Art & About seemed like the perfect match and so we began carving a project plan to present an application for this years festival.  It was very exciting to hear that we had been selected and that Oh Alfred! would be this years village project.

AL: The project will transform the current unsightly fence around Prince Alfred Park in Surry Hills. Besides the obvious aesthetic changes what kind of impacts do you anticipate Oh Alfred! having on the Surry Hills community and, more specifically, the local arts community?

JC: On Saturday, 4 September, we moved down to the actual fence and began weaving pretty much everyday. The best thing about this has been the response from the public. We have had people yelling “YEAH … NICE ONE!” and “Oh its wonderful” etc. We made this artwork for people to enjoy without buying a ticket or being invited. It’s for everyone who drives past, walks their dog, has their lunch break etc. I love art making to be open and collaborative, fun and accessible.

We have a creative crew of around 30 people – its great to be able to offer work to local art workers.

AL: You started work erecting the artwork last weekend. How is it progressing so far?

JC: We have a really big install period on three weeks so we are being careful to slowly roll things out. It also makes it fun for the public as they see each part of the fence slowly morph! Its so much fun painting colour and shapes with fabric. Garth Knight is the first artist to install. His rope weaving is just magic and is inspired by the Yellow Orb Spiders web.

AL: I believe you are looking for some assistance in mounting the work created by artists. Why should people take part in the project and what opportunities are still open to them?

JC: Every Saturday up until the 25 September, we will be down on the fence weaving and attaching the sculptural elements made in the community working bees. Email us at info@tokenimagination.com if you would like further information on how to get involved. Also check out our blog www.ohalfred.wordpress.com for details about the artists, community groups and schools we have worked with to make this all happen.

OR just come down to the fence and get happy making with us!

AL: We see that Sydney’s Lord Mayor, Clover Moore has thrown her support hat into the ring. Having the backing of the City of Sydney must have made things a little easier but it wouldn’t have all been smooth sailing, can you tell us about some of the challenges you faced setting up this project?

JC: Sydney is my favourite city and it is so fantastic to have a Mayor and City Council who understand the importance of the having a healthy Creative Industry. Sydney is a very creative city full of amazing art workers and Art & About really celebrates this.

We have never worked on a construction site before! WOWSA things keep changing all the time and so we have had to be very flexible with our install. We have been very lucky to have a wonderful team who are able to work with changes and rearranges.

View original post at Kluster Magazine.

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