Espresso: The Romance Factor
While no one was looking, under the cover of darkness, the magnificent Italian hand built La Marzocco machines were replaced one by one with fully automatic computerized press-a-button versions. (This took place in thousands of Starbucks across the land.) This is the day when the romance and theater of Starbucks died.
This disturbing trend is taking place on many levels of society. Many argue that removing the human (error) factor makes for a more consist product and increased customer satisfaction. But really, truth be told, it is because of training costs, speed of service and efficiency. Not bad things in themselves from a overly worked Barristas point of view. (The solution for a busy store is to have two to four machines and double the staff, like they do in Buenos Aries. Really, they do.) However they are ignoring the romantic factor. Where is the romance and theater of pushing a button? Where is the skill and passion of the Barrista?
For a quick lesson in romance, look to the humble Volturno. One of the things that the Italians brought with them to Argentina was this little stove stop espresso maker. (Made internationally famous by Bialleti.) While not true espresso and I am not comparing it to espresso, it deserves a place in every coffee lovers arsenal. We brought ours back from Buenos Aires, a national brand called Volturno. Although it mostly gets it use when we travel, there are still many a days when we when we opt for the intense room filling aroma and the seductive whisper it makes to tell you when its ready.
Where Bialetti has compromised to appease the North-American hordes by making a stainless version, the humble Volturno still uses the time honored and tested traditional aluminum which gets better with age. Simply follow a few simple rules handed down from the old Italian bubbas.
First, you need to condition the pot before use by brewing a pot with just water, then a second time with coffee that you leave sit overnight.
The second rule is to never wash the inside with soap, just rinse with hot water and air dry. This way you do not want to disturb the coating left by the oils in the coffee.
The third rule is to pile the slightly coarser than espresso grind coffee in a mound with the peak passing the top of the filter basket. This way the coffee will be compressed to just the right amount for optimum extraction.
While these basic rules seem to defy normal coffee logic, in the Volturno they unexplainable work. Enter the romance factor. While producing good coffee is based on scientific principals, fully automatic press a button espresso machines can never compute nor replicate the romance (human) factor.
Those old Italian bubbas know best. Please leave button pushing to accountants and Starbuck Barristas. Stay original… it’s only human.
You Are What You Buy
If you are what you eat, then is it such a stretch to say that you are what you buy. You can be sure I am not the first to make this connection. As you read this article, the marketing gurus are busily working, analyzing your purchases, movements, clicks and downloads. Armed with highly advanced computer algorithms they are trying to compute what you will buy next. The next time you look at your credit card statement, you should consider the question before others do: what do your purchases say about you?
Please let me share with you a defining moment in our purchasing history. In the wonderfully original Soho district of Buenos Aires, we stumbled on a small independently owned store that makes and sells porcelain dishes. We fell in love with a set of espresso cups and plates that we have never seen anywhere else. Simple, functional and artistic, yet also handcrafted and reasonable in price. The owner herself helped us in our decision. To this day, we have a sense of pride drinking from our beautiful handcrafted cups.
We now think twice about every purchase we make. It must be original and if possible, handcrafted. We strive to think global but buy local. Choosing local craftsmen and artisans. However, be forewarned, the marketing experts are getting more clever (or more devious) and will not give up their empire so easily. We consumers (yes, an awful term which shows how big merchants view us, big mouths wide open, ready to gobble up their mass produced knock-offs) are bombarded with original-looking, not so cheap, imitation, products. But, when you look at where it is made - or better yet, how it is made - it is just more expensive junk. (Most greeting cards are made in China.)
Don’t we all have enough cheap (actually we don’t anymore, can you say: minimalist), artificial, and only skin deep good-looking stuff? Just say no. No one will say it for you. Enough is enough. Buy original. Choose craftsmanship, quality and style. True its costs a little more, takes a little more effort and time (time is only money for the people who are taking your money), but in the end, it tells something about who we are. Every purchase shapes and defines us. It contributes or takes away from the quality of our life. Remain a mystery to the marketing gurus. confuse their complex computer algorithms and throw a wrench (preferably one made in China) in their multi-billion dollar alliances. Stay original… be you.
Wonder Bread Art: The Absence Of Substance In Pop Culture
Substance. There is a serious lack of it in modern day popular culture. The commercial powers that be, have almost banished artistic integrity from our vocabulary. Wonder bread art rules. It feeds the mouths of the majority but sadly it lacks substance.
The over commercialization of mainstream media, music, film and literature is ruining the artistic appetites of each new generation with fluffy white bread, that has little if any real artistic value. When Mark Eitzel faced the accusation that many people find the songs of American Music Club depressing, he responded by saying that he finds the likes of (we are too nice to say who it is, but just insert the current talent-less propaganda poster girl or boy here) depressing. We agree.
That is why the role that original art plays is more and more valuable in modern society. Artistic integrity IS still alive. It is just that we need to look a little harder and a little deeper to find it. But when we do find it, whether in the form of an inspiring independent film, some brilliant and virtually unknown musical group, or in some obscure author, it is so worth it.
Take for example espresso. (You did not see that one coming, did you?) If you have a decent espresso machine, please don’t settle for the convenience of mass marketed espresso. Rather seek out a good artisan espresso that has substance. We are very passionate about Intelligentsia Black Cat Espresso Blend which fuels our studio. If you live in Canada you can have it shipped direct to your door from Caffe Tech based in Edmonton. Better yet, if you are in Edmonton drop by and visit their Italian inspired Cafe.
When we make little choices based on substance instead of advertising, we find nourishment and preserve artistic creativity and integrity. Stay original… choose substance.
The Espresso Experience: Enjoy The Moment
Mature waiters in white tuxedos, gleaming brass machines and professional baristas pouring double espressos in handmade white porcelain cups. It is a time to reflect, take stock of the day and enjoy the moment. This is the daily ritual for the people of Buenos Aires.
No line-ups at the counter, no 16-year-old servers and no fully automatic espresso machines that produce the same mediocre espresso time after time. In this bustling city of 17 million you will find no giant 20oz cups to go filled with way too much milk for a grown person, to cover up the poorly chosen, poorly brewed bitter espresso.
When did what we refer to as a coffee break, cease to become a break? When did going for a coffee cease to become an experience? When did a waiter cease to become a dignified profession where one could support a family?
One of our favorite espresso experiences in Buenos Aires is at the Cafe Martinez. They roast their own coffee, and offer several varieties and degrees of roast. You choose the variety and the roast that you want your espresso to be pulled from. They have experienced well-trained baristas who take pride in their work. You receive a small glass of mineral water and a hand crafted chocolate with every espresso. Playing in the background is either classic tango or neo tango fusion such as the Gotan Project or the Bajo Fondo Tango Club.
Another great coffee experiences can be found in Quebec City, Canada. In a dark and romantic cafe in the heart of the old city, you have the option to choose the variety, then one of four methods of preparation: espresso, filtered drip, French press, or an Italian stove stop that brews right at your table over a small flame, the perfect choice for a romantic rendezvous. Over time you become intimately acquainted with all the subtleties of one variety through the different brewing processes. It is no longer just coffee, it is an experience, and each experience is unique and original. We invite you to think about your memorable coffee experiences, and more importantly WHEN will be your next. Stay original… enjoy the moment.
Art Fuels Art
The other day someone asked Eva (the greater half of the Underground Art Project) where she gets the inspiration to keep painting. My thoughts immediately turned to the often repeated remark attributed to Brian Eno, that while the Velvet Underground’s first album in 1967 sold only a few thousand copies, every person who bought it formed a band and made more music.
That is the great thing about art. It fuels itself. That is why art in all its forms continue to evolve. Take tango music for example. It all began in Buenos Aires with Carlos Gardel in the 30’s. Now more than 70 years later we see new artists still redefining tango. There is neo tango like the electronic beats of the Gotan Project and the Bajo Fondo Tango Club. Then there is the tango fusion of Tango Crash who fuse neo tango with experimental jazz and Otros Aires who mix tango with the milonga of Barcelona.
The question of course is, who inspired the likes of Carlos Gardel or the VU? I do not know, but of this we can be certain, it was art in some form. Art fuels art. Whether you listen to great music, read a captivating book, fall in love with a beautiful oil painting, savor a perfect shot of espresso (yes, it is art, why you even have latte art, but that is for a future blog), or get lost in the complex aromas and flavors of a hand-crafted, hand-pulled cask-conditioned India pale ale, you are fueling your artistic creativity. All forms of art converge into inspiration, motivating us, fueling us to produce more art.
The music we play in our studio affects the way we paint that particular day, what we write about or how much kerning I want to apply to my favorite font. Art inspires us all to be artists in some way. Artists will continue to redefine and reinvent their art and other people’s art. That is why art has, is, and will always stay original. Stay original… fuel up.
Everyone is a Minimalist: They Just Don’t Know It Yet
Wow, for minimalists we sure make a lot of noise. Search the web and you find all kind of minimalists spouting off about the virtues of “less is more” and how “form follows function.” Why even big corporations are putting out minimalist adds in the big glossy rags.
So why, do you ask, do we need another blog on the subject? Because, we minimalists have nothing left in our houses and have driven off all our friends, so we have nothing else to do but extol the virtues of minimalism. No really, the real reason is because of something profound that happened to us recently.
We were talking to some twenty-something year old friends about minimalist music, art and design. (Actually that’s not really true, we were talking about something completely different, but we always look for ways to change the theme of any conversation to minimalist design.) Then I mentioned something about Andy Warhol. Well, when we saw the blank look of confusion on their faces, we realized that these poor under privileged girls had no idea of whom we were talking about. It was even worse then we initially thought.
We mentioned other names to see if any brain synapses were connecting: The Velvet Underground… nothing, American Music Club… zip, The Feelies… nope, Mies Van Der Rohe, Jennifer Sterling… oh my, this is bad, the Latin Playboys… nada. What do they teach in schools these days? Ok, we could see that we had our work cut out for us. So, how do you go about helping a couple of young impressionable minds to appreciate the virtues of minimalist design?
Hand bags. Yes, you read correctly, handbags and other women’s accessories. You see, I recently stumbled upon the website of designer Marc Jacobs, which is a beautiful presentation of minimalist web design, OK granted, too much Flash (no, not the glittery kind, go ask a computer nerd then come back…) but oh so very clean. (Also, not very functional, but who cares, he’s rich and famous.) We just happened to be at a coffee house in Paraguay called Havanna who have Wi-fi and even a couple Apple Macs (Hmm… do we see a connection forming here..) for customer use. As soon as I brought up the Marc Jacobs website, I could see the blank looks disappear followed by instant recognition, and a lot of shouting: “I love Marc Jacobs, they make such cool hand bags.” Mission accomplished.
The moral of the story is the following: minimalism is best appreciated through the simple things in life. Are not the simplest words the most meaningful and powerful: love, home, family, friends, and iPod. (Just kidding.) The point is: everyone is minimalist at heart; they just don’t know it yet. Perhaps there is too much clutter in their lives for them to see it. You see, that’s why we minimalists have to make so much noise. Stay original… be minimal.
