bye & bye (disappear #2)

Realizing that something is over, can take some time. I think, it is coming now. 

But: an ending always means many new beginnings. (To all those beginnings 

and endings of the past and the future and their glorious sister, the present.) 

slippers (full of life)

This is really happening, I am doing it were my thoughts when I sat in the 
train to London on September, 16, 2012. Now I ask myself again: Is it really 
happening? Do I have to leave tomorrow? Yes, it is happening, I will leave
tomorrow, 23th of February 2013. And I am full of life. And so do my slippers.
(compare them to the new ones: here). 

I go. Goodbye London, goodbye Peckham.

Offenbach (from above)

1

When I was in Offenbach during the Christmas holidays, I tried 

to catch some moments of the city with my distant view. It is nice 

to see the pictures now as a  preparation of being back soon.

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5

6

7

8

1  Welcome to Offenbach Marktplatz station.
2  The city hall.
3  The other tower, the logo and a couch.
4  Graphics in Offenbach Marktplatz station.
5  A nice shop window decoration.
6  A summer offer in December with a very narrow beer.
7  Sausages!
8  Christmas decoration.

nice books #1

Last weekend, Sophia and I travelled to Glasgow and Edinburgh. We planned nothing
but we always seemed to find the right places at the right time. One of them
was a vintage bookshop in Edinburgh called Southside Books. I discovered this amazing cover series called Penguin Plays from the 1960s–70s (and had to buy the
apricot-green one). There also was a nice book about birds and this beautiful simple cover of a Cézanne catalogue. We talked with the owner about the limitations of language (e.g. why don't we have more definitions for the different kinds of prose or how different cities are although we call all of them cities. I like the way he labelled the different sections in his shop. The whole atmosphere felt like you are entering a specific magic space.

be idealistic.

 A sunday evening (night) with upcoming goodbye-feelings is a good

time to be idealistic (although I think that it's always and in general

good to be idealistic and optimistic as well). So, designers and everybody

else: Lets take part in the wish to create a better world. 

 

(1) www.youtube.com/watch?v=3xYi2rd1QCg

(2) http://backspace.com/notes/2009/09/the-social-role-of-the-graphic-designer.php

(3) http://www.manifestoproject.it/milton-glaser/

trees, embracing

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In Offenbach, there is a painting on a garage door that I pass from time to time. 

It shows two trees standing next to each other, overlapping a bit. Since I saw

this picture I always think that that's the way trees are embracing each other, they

just grow into each other. Once they decide to do it, there is no going back. 

I was thinking of this, when I saw these two trees in Hamstead Heath last autumn. 

For now, it's not more than a hand shake. But there is no going back.

ask questions!

Yesterday, we went to the Natural History Museum. (By the way, a lot of other people did this). I really liked some of the exhibition design styles and the way, you are trained to ask questions. Although you expect from a museum visit like this to get answers, I always go out with more questions in my head. I think, we should ask more questions in general. It is a valuable culture we have to keep and to train.

 For a toddler, a single toy may become a close companion.

the new

GOODBYE 2012

After saying goodbye to London in December, there where incredibly many 

Hellos back in Germany, unavoidable followed by the same high amount of Goodbyes.

Back to London, we had a proper New Years Eve Dinner in our flat and then a 

proper New Years Eve Party in our Flat, too. I think, dancing is the best 

way to welcome a new year. (Now some left over decoration still reminds to 

this ritual and to the very new year, that has just started.)

HELLO 2013

everyday life

Every morning when I go to College, I walk the same way from Peckham to Camberwell. 
I like these repetitions, it is like a meditation. The first part of the way is a 
small park. The second part is Peckham High Street. During this part I pass many interesting things. I always think: One day, I have to make pictures of all of 
this. On saturday I made some. It felt strange getting out of my daily routine which
is being a passenger outside the windows. But on the other hand I got a closer imagination of all these other daily routines which take part behind the windows. 

mono.klub #40 / Robert Montgomery

Last week, mono.kultur newsletter said:

Dear Friends, 
since Robert Montgomery came all the way from London to join us for the release
of our shared publication Echoes of Voices in the High Towers a few weeks ago, 
it seemed only fair to return the favour and make our way over to the grand isles
to present our book in person to our English friends. So if you happen to be 
in London next week, please join us for an evening of conversation with Robert Montgomery and publisher Kai von Rabenau, on the lovely premises of Ti Pi Tin bookstore. We promise to be on our best behaviour and Robert might even be 
persuaded to sign copies in the most unexpected ways.

 

We look forward to seeing you there,
 mono.kultur

I said: YES. I am in London. And I went there and it was good to be there. 
It was a familiar talk between publisher and artist and many nice people around them. 
What I keep in mind: Robert Montgomery said, that poetry is the genre of literature
of our times. It is short. You can even read a few poems during sitting on the toilet
or standing in the bus. Sometimes people criticize him to be too romantic, his work 
to be close to kitsch. He says: I like romantic and I think that we desire it. This is
my language. And a woman in the audience said: Maybe people criticize it because they are afraid of it. Or because they desire it even more. Furthermore, he said that his work speaks the language of life in the big cities: this similar feeling that you 
can find in London, New York, Berlin, Madrid, Paris and so on. For me, this life is defined both in being very poetic and having a big lack of poetry as well. So, let's read poems. A good place to start, here in London, is the Poetry Library. A library at lovely Southbank Centre. For poetry only.

"ROBERT MONTGOMERY WORKS IN A POETIC AND MELANCHOLIC POST-SITUATIONIST TRADITION"

offenbach house

If Offenbach is a house, how does it look like?

Something incredible happend to me. Yesterday I started watching flats again,
cause in January I maybe need a new home. My plan is, to move to the east
to get another impression of living in a different part of London. The flat
was in Roman Road, Bethnal Green. When I arrived there, I felt like: Okay,
this area is a bit strange, but in general I like strange things. Honestly:
I thought of Offenbach, the city where I lived in Germany before I came here.
Offenbach is known as the bad suburb of Frankfurt/Main (although its not bad
at all) and it has a genuine style. When I came closer to that area, which
is dominated by council blocks (social housing), I saw a sign: Offenbach House.
I could hardly believe what I saw. It is one of the really big houses
(the one in the middle of the picture).

Later, when I left the flat, which was in another block, I passed this wall,
where they put all the emblems of the cities and I got the proof:
IT IS OUR OFFENBACH!

Additional information: The girl, who was showing me the flat, is french.
When she visited this flat the first time, she was a bit shocked of the area
and the name of one of the other buildings, which is Puteaux House.
Puteaux is one of Paris' rough suburbs. Offenbach, they found the right
neighborhood for you.

weather forecast

There is a lot of poetry in english weather forecasts
(and the chance to read them like a horoscope).
quotes taken from METRO newspaper, Friday, November 23, 2012

circle studies

Nazareno Crea used a nice analogy to explain how to develop creative ideas. We move in circles. Up and down, back and forth, including failure and mistakes. Having this returned to my mind, I am obsessed by circles. I remember these coloured spiral plastic toys. It seems to be a symbol for my life at the moment. Or maybe, for life in general. I also remember an exhibition in Berlin, titled 

"Every circle makes sense". Yes. Circles, everywhere.