Picasso looks at Degas

The Museu Picasso of Barcelona has a unique and very special exhibit going on until January 16. The idea of Picasso davant Degas is this. Paintings of the two great icons are hung side by side. So we can see similar themes and obsessions as well as similarities and differences in style.
Picasso used to say: "When there is anything to steal, I steal". Throughout his work he adapted and commented on many of his great predecessors's works. (Check out for example his cubist "remakes" of Velaquez's Las Meninas at the museum's permanent exhibit.) And Degas was no exception. When Picasso moved to Paris in 1904 he lived in the same neighborhood as Degas.
Although they apparently never met the two revolutionary icons shared many of the same obsessions and were always experimenting with new forms and media which this exhibit explores.
A couple of us from the hotel checked it out yesterday, and we really enjoyed it. Degas of course had his fixation with ballerinas; Picasso picked up theme even before his relationship with Olga Khokhlova, the ballet dancer. Side by side are two glassy-eyed bar scenes and paintings featuring women's hair being brushed. They are eerily similar in some ways, but reveal key differences in style. In fact Picasso based many of his later pieces on works for Degas from his own collection. Interestingly enough Picasso was convinced that Degas resembled his own father and he often painted Degas/father into some of his paintings, especially the voyeuristic ones concerning women. A little strange, maybe. But very interesting.
In any case this is the "first full-scale exploration of Picasso's lifelong fascination with Degas's art and personality" and was organized by Francine Art Museum of Williamstown, Massachusetts and the Picasso Museum of Barcelona. It's definitely worth the visit and is in within easy walking distance from the Hotel Principal.

The greatest show on two wheels in Barcelona

The greatest show on two wheels will be coming to Barcelona at El Palau San Jordi. On Sunday November the 14th at the Freestyle MX Masters 2010 the greatest motorcycle riders on the planet will make impossible jumps and twists and perform amazing pirouettes all to direct music and an original light show. The Palau will vibrate with the excitement of motor-cross freestyle.
With the Gold Pass you can be a legitimate VIP with the best seats in the house and reserved parking. You will have the chance to meet take photos and have a chat with the riders and enjoy exclusive catering.
Among the stars will be Nate Adams “the destructor” and Kyle Loza who is known as the “purist” of innovators. Charley Pages will be doing his spectacular frontflip and so on and so on…
The greatest riders on earth will risk everything to win the title in the second annual Freestyle Masters of Barcelona. And you can be there to take in all the fun.

¡Flamenco!

When I get invited to a tablao (a flamenco show) I go with a little fear and trepidation. You very well might be in for a little melodramatic tap dancing; a few bloodcurdling shouts; and a heavy dose of trite Spanish folklore, a noisy parody of Carmen´s Andalusia. This is definitely not what you get at El Cordobés, Barcelona´s best and one of the three best-known and serious tablaos in all of Spain.

El Cordobés is a five-minute walk down the Ramblas from the Hotel Principal. Last night we sat down with Maria Rosa Adame, the current owner and director, for an informal interview. Flamenco is in her blood; El Cordobés was opened in 1970 by her guitarist father, Luis; and her dancer mother, Irene Alba. In the dining room Maria Rosa explained that the locale is decorated with original tiles, floors, and ceilings which are copies of Arabic elements in Granada´s Alhambra. The actual stage (the tablao) recreates the intimacy, improvization, interraction, and charm of the traditional tablaos.


The artists are from among the best in Spain: legendary artists such as Camaron de la Isla have performed there; the current lead singer is a winner of the most prestigious flamenco awards; many of the dancers are from El Baile Nacional de España (the National Dance Troupe of Spain). The show is a nice mix of the classical cante jondo and dance styles with some modern innovations.

You don´t usually think of Catalonia when you think of flamenco music and dancing. But actually, as Maria Rosa explains, the flamenco/gypsy tradition in Barcelona dates back to the 19th century. The immortal dancer Carmen Amaya is among the many famous artists from Barcelona.

And flamenco is definitely alive and well in Barcelona. We at the Hotel Principal went to see Diego el Cigala kick off the de Cajon Festival Flamenco de Barcelona at the Gran Teatro del Liceu. This ornate belle-epoque opera house seems an odd venue for flamenco´s new numero uno and worthy succesor to Camaron de la Isla. But the strange incongruence works real well and the music was great. The festival will go on through April 3 and will feature the likes of Niña Pastori and Jose el Francés at various locals around Barcelona including the masterpiece of Catalan modernism, el Palau de la Musica.


So if flamenco is your thing or you just want to find out what it´s all about Barcelona is a just the place.

Better than Halloween

La castañada is celebrated throughout Catalunya on October 31 All Souls Day eve. The essential menu at this feast are the humble castaña (chestnut), sweet white Moscatel wine, panallets (a sweet made of almond/ potato paste covered with pine nuts), and roast boniatos (a kind of sweet potato).

Just like Anglo-Saxon Halloween la castañada has evolved from an ancient funeral rite. The menu is said to derive from an old village custom. On All-Souls Night the church and convent bells tolled all night long to honor the dead and remind the living to pray. Ringing the bells was long hard work and chestnuts, a great source of energy, were abundant. The bell tollers ate them in great quantities to avoid passing out and roasted them to keep from freezing. And they washed them down with the local white wine.

Family and friends started coming to give physical or moral support and ended up joining in. Since churches and convents were everywhere, almost everyone was at one or other of them eating and drinking.

By the 18th century the custom went urban and the iconic castañera first appeared selling her kind of “chestsnuts roasting on an open fire”. This folkloric street vender with her ragged dress and old scarf has been joined by tidy sweetshops where panallets and wine are sold. Come join the fun. It’s a great time of year for everyone.

The race "of the year"

The New Year Eve parties in Barcelolna are ok, but if you want to usher out the old year in and original way, the Nassos-San Silvestre race is for you.
Once again, at 5.30 pm on 31 December, thousands of runners, male and female, will be taking to the streets to overcome the winter cold and run the required 10 kilometres. Although they say the most important thing is playing the game, winning this one isn't all that bad since the grand prize is 1,000 Euros and the second place is 600 Euros.
There are still some months to go before it takes place, but the registration period has now opened. Those who don't want to miss the opportunity to take part should bear in mind that this year there are only 9,500 places available.
ou can sign up online until midnight on 26 December but you will not be able to sign up in person until 9 December. The entry fee is €13.

The MNAC takes the street

The Museum of National Art of Catalunya (MNAC) has turned the streets of Barcelona into a giant outdoor art gallery. From now until the 30th of November you can see exact digital replicas of 33 of great works from the great museum´s permanent collection.
Strolling down the Avenida Diagonal, the Rambla de Catalunya, the Paseo de Gracia, or right across the Ramblas in the Gothic Quarter you can search the walls and nooks and crannies of Barcelona for reproductions of iconic works of Toulouse-Lautrec, Dali, Velazquez, and Picasso and the list goes on and on. It all gives you the feeling of strolling through a large open-air museum.
Our personal favorites here at the hotel are “The tandem bicycle” and “the car”, two emblematic paintings by the great Catalan modernist painter, Ramon Casas. They used to adorn the walls of Els Quatre Gats, one of Picasso's old haunts, and are found near the historic bar-restaurant and very close to the hotel.
The MNAC is in the mood for celebrating; its 75th birthday is the perfect excuse for something really big, like entering into an artistic “dialog with the city.” Providing the technology is HP Latex which developed the cutting-edge printing innovations in nearby San Cugat. Their high-resolution graphics for outdoor display puts them in the vanguard of green technology. It is one of their innovations to reduce our carbon footprint. They've done similar shows in New York and London and now it´s Barcelona's turn.
So come to Barcelona, download the map and check out this innovative exhibit which takes great art right to the streets.
For more info check out here.

This week: Pau Gasol & the L.A Lakers in Barcelona

Barcelona, the Europe´s basketball champions, will play the Los Angeles Lakers on October 7th. The big attraction (and I mean real big) will be Pau Gasol, the Lakers all-star center who was the star of his hometown Barcelona team for many years before going to the NBA.
The American press has called Pau the Lakers player in the post season, even better than Kobe Bryant!
Gone are the days when he was called "too soft"! The legendary Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Pau's personal trainer and guru, is in Barcelona these days and says: "The game will be spectacular. Barcelona is the champion of Europe and the Lakers who I hope will be the champions of the NBA".
Another attraction for NBA fans is Ricky Rubio, Barcelona's super young point guard, who was drafted in the first round but chose to stay in Barcelona to improve his skills. The Palau San Jordi will be rocking.
If you are interested in seeing America's best versus Europe's best you can buy your tickets here.

By Michael Oudyn