Eight years ago, I was interviewed for the magazine BaliSavvy, “the official American Express® guide to the island”. I found a copy of that 2010 interview recently in an archive of the adversities I have endured since March 2010. I decided to post it here, in several installments, as … Continue reading
The moment we’ve all been waiting for with bated breath has come at last. Made Wijaya’s Majapahit Style has been released (the party vid is here), and what a book it is. More than a book. Like Made’s earlier masterwork, The Architecture of Bali, it’s encyclopaedic and opens many doors … Continue reading
On the subject of Spies, history remained almost silent for quite some time following his untimely death in 1942. He was only 46 years old then, an artist at the height of his significant talent, when he was lost at sea during the war in a tragic case of “collateral … Continue reading
Yes!! Bali Creative Economy. Gaya ceramics studio is brilliant, and has been seminal in transferring skills, techniques, and launching the ceramic arts careers of local young people. The Wall Street Journal is writing about it.
Wow. What a find. Material for a Master’s Thesis, for sure. A book by an Indonesian writer that exposes Indonesian perceptions of foreigners as they are known. It reflects direct observation, extrapolation from popular media, and a spectrum of preconceptions arising from indigenous ways of being in and seeing the … Continue reading
Do not be alarmed. Do not touch that dial. This is a test. This is only a test. This is a test of the emergency Sleeping Tiger broadcast system. The Sleeping Tiger has been granted amnesty for a lapse in blog-posting on the grounds of terminal illness in the immediate … Continue reading
As a suitable tribute to a marvelous material, here’s a chair by Colombian bamboo builder and designer Marcelo Villegas. While too much of newly-designed bamboo furniture looks like you have to give up something to use it (like comfort, stability and style, for example), Villegas’ works are artistic masterpieces and … Continue reading
Brand spanking new, and smack up against Biku Tea Room, here’s CARGA. It’s a retail emporium taking traditional Indonesian ideas and materials and throwing them sideways. In delightful ways. Tradition with a twist.
I was contacted a few months ago by a niche events organiser asking if I would provide a cultural morning in Ubud for a celebrity wedding in August. I always welcome the opportunity to infect influential people with my incurable passion for all things Balinese, and this particular party was … Continue reading
You may remember Emerald Starr and Ken Ballard’s Sacred Mountain Sanctuary in the Sidemen Valley. It was a pioneering eco-resort with an earnest emphasis on eco. Now it is being “reloaded” at last, by the Karma Resorts’ developer, Selected Estates of Asia.
August and September (and now even October) are the high season in Bali and it is always hectic. Parties. Gatherings. Visitors. Vernissages. Launches. Lunches. Dinners. And all manner of special events and festivals. The huge number of visitors, both those we know and those we don’t know, makes it impossible … Continue reading
The Yak Awards is a grand orgy of self-congratulatory silliness (see acrobats at the party spelling out YAK in bodies, above), and if you understand that from the get-go, you’ll be a fan of the Yak Awards, just like we are. It’s a small-island phenomenon that’s basically a barrel of … Continue reading
The Living Room balanced the effect of KuDeTa’s annual I’m an Angel party this year by hosting a I’m a Devil party on the same night, July 31st, the last day before Bali’s official party season begins. We chose to go to the devil, since KuDeTa parties these past five … Continue reading
They call August the silly season in Bali. Well, I’ll drink to that. I did drink to that come to think of it, starting at the end of July. I toasted silliness in general on July 25th at the birthday beach party for Ian Macaulay of Elite Havens and a … Continue reading
ICON Asian Arts (Bali) and Editions Didier Millet (Singapore) are collaborating to raise Javanese antiques to the level of fine art. The Bali gallery will host on 3 December 2009 two simultaneous events: the opening of the world premier exhibition of the Smith-Tirtoprodjo Collection of Javanese antiques; and the launch of … Continue reading
The Alila Soori project near Tanah Lot temple in Bali has had its challenges during development. Issues over land use (an opaque and intentionally obfuscating area of local law), and permitting (more opaque and more obfuscatory), had become a thorn in the side of the Alila development team. Well, breathe … Continue reading
It was a full moon, with a partial eclipse, and it was also my birthday. July 7. Auspicious, indeed. A well-chosen day for the grand opening of Oazia Spa Villas, a most unusual newcomer on the Bali spa and rental villas scene. The party was themed “white,” although it felt … Continue reading
The seasonal winds in Bali have finally shifted and the fresh, dry season has come. It happened suddenly, as if commanded by the hand of Pascal Morabito especially for the occasion of his latest wedding to his lovely wife, Marie Ève. They are so well-matched that they simply can’t resist … Continue reading
This is a residential and resort property with nine villas for sale. The other units are hotel suites. Alila is a great hotel brand, with a commitment to quality, value and good design. They already have two properties in Bali, the Alila Ubud, and Alila Manggis. So naturally I was … Continue reading