Netherlands

Louvre, hyperphoto by Jean-Francois Rauzier, Waterhouse & Dodd

Is it all about money or art? The answer is probably both but if you're in the Art 101 category, you can catapult up to PhD level at The European Fine Art Fair in Maastricht, the Netherlands.

TEFAF is the most sophisticated, highly vetted, and elegant art fair anywhere. All true, but it is also a place where the minute the doors swing open to VIP guests, there's a stampede to the jewelry booths where for the most part glitz not glamour dominates.

Collectors, museum curators often accompanied by their trustees, and general connoisseurs attend to browse, to see and be seen, and to bring home treasures. This year, some 73,000 visitors attended. Most are Dutch, followed by Germans and Belgians, English, French, Italians, Americans and an impressively growing numbers of Russians and Chinese. Among a handful of Arab sheiks, most prominent this year was Sheikh Saud al-Thani, the art-hungry collector who is a cousin of the ruling Emir of Qatar. He surely arrived on one of the 154 private jets that landed on the tarmac of the tiny Maastricht-Aachen airport.

Van Gelder Antique Indian Jewelry

At the blue chip opening one of the first pieces to be snapped up was by a Russian collector: a billowing tapestry made of beaten red and gold bottle tops by the Ganaian artist El Anatsui. The price was $965,532. You can see his aesthetically beautiful "Earth and Heaven" sculpture installed in the African art galleries at the Met. In another gallery in the modern section, a well-heeled collector bought Spanish artist Joan Miro's sculpture, "Oiseau Lunaire," or moon bird, a wooden surreal, bird-like figure for $5 million. A bronze version of a moon bird by Miro is in the Nasher Sculptural Center in Dallas. That same day, March 18, Russian TV didn't waste a minute filming at the booth of Van Gelder Indian Jewelry which showcased some fabulous South Sea pearls and antique jewelry.

Tickets to the private first day are distributed to dealers who then invite their most important clients. The next day, all are welcome at a tab of €50 or about $75.

Now if you don't fit into the curator or collector category, what would draw you to TEFAF? Without a doubt, it is a remarkable learning experience for anyone who loves art. As Michelin says, it's worth the voyage, merely to see some 5,000 years of impeccable art, exquisitely presented. It could be that some TEFAF director handed down guidelines to the presenting dealers insisting that they treat every inquiry with respect. You won't find any condescending brush offs here.

Portrait of a Man with Arms Akimbo, Rembrandt

One item that drew large crowds was a fragment of an Egyptian water clock depicting Alexander the Great from about 332 BC at Belgium's Harmakhis Galerie. Old Dutch masters, especially a portrait by Rembrandt, "Portrait of a Man with Arms Akimbo" from 1658 and Renoir's "Woman Picking Flowers," depicting Camille Monet in a field of flowers also gained a lot of attention. A major attraction was a Helmut Newton solo exhibition of 40 photos from London's Hamiltons Gallery. Other standouts were Joana Vasconselos sensual feminine crocheted canvases at Haunch of Venison, Secessionist furniture at Kolomon Moser, beautiful Chinese textiles from Jacqueline Simcox in London. Only a BMW art car designed by Jeff Koons looked as if it had driven in by mistake.

TEFAF, first organized in 1975, invites 260 dealers from 16 countries all of whom undergo tremendous scrutiny to assure the quality, condition, and authenticity of their objects. About 100 dealers apparently are on a waiting list hoping to make it another year. Think of it as an art melting pot presented in an aura of gentility. It's the most promising, sophisticated, and enjoyable fair for specialists and the general public.

The estate of a queen goes up for auction next month. On March 14-17, Sotheby's Amsterdam will offer 1540 lots from the property from the Estate of Queen Juliana of the Netherlands with all proceeds going to charity. The total amount will be divided into two parts. One part will be donated to The Red Cross because of Queen Juliana's involvement in its work. The other section will be divided into four equal parts chosen by her heirs: The Princess Beatrix Fund chosen by Queen Beatrix, the Natuurcollege chosen by Princess Irene, the Red Cross chosen by Princess Margriet and the Princess Christina Concours was chosen by Princess Christina.

Dutch shipyard Feadship builds some of the world's most coveted superyachts; in addition to Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich's Ecstesea, the likes of Malcolm Forbes, Paul Allen and King Khalid of Saudi Arabia all commissioned luxurious vessels from them. Now the shipyard has launched its newest, largest and most expensive superyacht ever, the 288-ft. Musashi (above) built for an unnamed billionaire, leading to speculation that one of the boldfaced names on its client roster decided it was time for an upgrade. Our money is on Paul Allen, who recently listed his 303-ft. superyacht Tatoosh for sale at $160 million meaning he's probably in the market for a replacement (he still has the Octopus).

The Musashi's massive steel hull was constructed by Feadship's dedicated hull-building facility in Papendrecht, Netherlands, and was delivered to Makkum for outfitting. Her quadruple MTU 16V 4000 M90 marine diesel engines kick out a combined 14,600 hp, though the shipyard has not released any performance specs. The Musashi's naval architecture and exterior design were created by Feadship's own De Voogt Naval Architects, while the luxe interiors including an enormous master suite were done by the Netherlands' Sinot Yacht Design.

If you had a Bugatti Veyron in your garage, would you let your 20-year-old son drive it? Then again, if your dad had a Veyron, would you be able to resist the temptation to play Ferris Bueller for the day? In either case, you might want to give it a second thought.

Reports coming in from Holland indicate that local police have impounded one such supercar when the 20-year-old of the owner took it out for a ride, flying by law enforcement at 50 miles per hour over the speed limit. No word on whether the car will ever be returned to its owner, but if it does, we'd suggest he keep those keys well hidden from now on.

The action in Maastricht is expected to be hot. Two hundred sixty-three dealers will descend upon the Dutch city, bringing art inventory worth $2.7 billion to the world's largest art and antiques fair, Tefaf. Fingers are crossed that billion-dollar collectors will come out to play. The market has turned the corner, but the community mains reluctant to get its collective hopes up.

For the art market, this is the first chance to see how high demand for art is outside the auction houses. Private deals don't offer the transparency of the gavel scene, but the transactions can be far more interesting. By the end of Tefaf, we'll know just how deep the art market recovery is running. VIP guests will be allowed to visit tomorrow, ahead of the great unwashed.

The largest group of dealers at Tefaf this year will be those representing pre-20th century pictures, with more than 70 exhibitors. Sandro Botticelli's "Madonna and Child with the Infant Sant John," reaching back to the late fifteenth century, will be available for $15 million by Dickinson of London. Dickinson is also showing Paul Gauguin's "Deux Femmes," with a price tag of $24.4 million. Both are being sold by private collectors.

After serving as a restaurant for the past 15 years a German airplane from the 1960s is getting a third life as a luxury hotel suite for two. Located at Teuge airport in the Netherlands, what used to hold 120 passengers is now grounded and provides amenities for two such as crisp white interiors, a jacuzzi, sauna, a Blue Ray player, 3 flat screen tvs, and a hostess that's available 24/7. The cockpit has been left untouched for a dash of excitement and history, and parachute jumps and stunt plane rides are also available (via a different plane, of course) for the even more daring. The cost is €350/night for a single couple, which includes a full breakfast.

Via Treehugger



This isn't the first time we've seen an airplane pressed into service as a hotel. In Stockholm, a 747 has been turned into the Jumbo Hostel and in Costa Rica, a 727 fuselage makes a unique luxury suite.

For more than a century, Beemster has been hand-making gourmet cheese on its sustainable farm in the Netherlands. The cheese is matured for a minimum of 18 months and carefully crafted by master cheese makers. Michael Blum, Beemster's resident cheese expert, has some tips for holiday entertaining ranging from presentation to accompaniments and wine pairings:

1. Consume at Room Temperature: Cheese is most flavorful to consume at room temperature. All cheeses are best stored below 7 degrees Celsius/45 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Make the Cut: allow cheese to sit at least one hour at room temperature before cutting. Remove the rind by cutting back into the cheese half an inch before grating. Cut small snack-sized squares for cheese-plates or salads and grate cheese into small slivers for pasta or pizza.
3. Go Nutty: Cheese pairs excellent with nuts. Spruce up your cheese plate by including pecans, walnuts, macadamias or cashews. If you or your guests have a nut allergy, other snacks that go well with cheese are apples, grapes, pears, figs, dates, olives and picles.
4. Old and Sweet: Older cheeses, such as Beemster X-O, pair well with sweeter wines like Rieslings and ports.
5. Get Fresh: Young and fresh cheeses taste best with lighter beers. A good rule of thumb is the more mild the cheese, the lighter the beer.

On my recent visit to Holland, sponsored by the Netherlands Board of Tourism, we ventured up to The Hague (Den Haag) for the Dutch Fashion Awards and some museums. Though it wasn't originally on the itinerary, everyone on the trip was dying to see the Escher Museum (Escher in het Paleis).

The museum is located in the royal Lange Voorhout Palace, and features well kept original fixtures as well as several rooms dedicated to showing what the winter palace of Queen Mother Emma used to look like. Since then, the legendary Dutch graphic artist who's still blowing our minds almost 40 years after his death has been moved in, and the juxtaposition of decadence and mind-bending art is surprisingly harmonious.

If you're taking a trip to Amsterdam, a 45-minute trek up to The Hague is worth it just to see the museum, which not only has a far more extensive Escher collection than any of us believed was possible, but which also features a stunning array of crystal chandeliers in almost every room.

The chandeliers, like the enormous "Rain Cloud" in the foyer (above), are all works by Hans van Bentem (1965), a ceramics and glass artist from Rotterdam who happens to have a penchant for designing elaborate and unusual chandeliers. How unusual are they? Check out the gallery for a crystallized firefly, shark, trophy, umbrella, seahorse and more. The Hans van Bentem chandeliers are an exhibit all their own, and have appeared in the museum's formerly royal rooms since 2003. This is the full collection:

This trip was paid for by the Netherlands Board of Tourism, but the ideas and opinions expressed in the article above are 100% my own.

We recently got a chance to sample Van Gogh, the super-premium vodka from Holland named in tribute to the famous artist which holds a Royal Warrant from Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands. While Van Gogh is known for some pretty out-there flavors - you may remember Luxist posts on the Double Espresso and Dutch Caramel - our tastes are more conventional and so we opted to try the Oranje and Citroen versions as well as the classic 80 proof. The Oranje's authentic flavor comes from using both the orange pulp and skins. The pulp gives a round, sweet flavor while the rinds offer good intensity and a light bitterness for a perfect balance. Lemons and limes are the basis of Citroen, which has a fresh and intense flavor with a touch of bitterness from the rinds, and a long, clean finish. Van Gogh s produced in the historic Royal Dirkzwager distillery in Schiedam, recently renovated under the supervision of the Holland Monument Society. Master Distiller Tim Vos hand-crafts all Van Gogh Vodkas in small batches through a double infusion method, using only natural ingredients and premium grain alcohol.

While some automakers are celebrating their centenaries, Fiat's performance division is marking a much smaller anniversary: one year since the sport marque returned to the Dutch market. And to celebrate, they're launching an exclusive special edition of their hot-selling premium retro hatchback. Called the Fiat 500 Abarth Competizione, only ten examples will be made with a $35,000 price tag. For the premium price, a handful of buyers in the Netherlands will get special wheels and trim and all the extra equipment – including satellite navigation, climate control, special racing bucket seats and more – plus of course that indefinable quality we know as exclusivity.

Armed robbers absconded with two paintings from the Scheringa Museum for Realist Art in Spanbroek last Friday. One of them was a piece by Spanish surrealist Salvador Dali. An exact number of thieves was not reported, but they were "several," and they wore masks. Walking into this museum with guns, they threatened the museum staff and dashed off wit the prize.

Driving off in a little black car, the art bandits left with "Adolescence," painted by Dali in 1941, and "La Musicienne," by Polish art deco painter Tamara de Lempicka (1929). Both paintings are were owned by the museum.

If you have a taste for Dali, look for the fence. Just don't get caught!

If you want a night in a lifeboat, a lighthouse or in a crane, you might want to head to the picturesque port of Harlingen in the Netherlands. Dutch businessman Gosse Beerda offers all three hotel options for a trio of some of the world's most unusual hotels.

Bloomberg reports that the Crane Hotel was a functioning harbor crane used to unload timber until 12 years ago when a bigger industrial harbor was built nearby. The machine room of the crane is now a cozy room for two 55 feet high. Guests in the room can also head up to the control room and swing the cabin around. A Dutch breakfast is delivered in a lift and there is a small patio.

The lighthouse is also a one-room hotel and an old English lifeboat can be rented. Because each venue only has one room there is a long waiting list, up to a year in the case of the lighthouse and eight months for the crane. A night in either the crane or the lighthouse costs 319 euros.

The world's fastest production sailboat, Le Breton Yachts' SIG45 (above), is for sale in the Netherlands via global online luxury marketplace JamesList for about $900,000. The SIG45 (SIG stands for "Speed Innovation Grace" is capable of sailing in excess of 25 knots, a speed normally restricted to powerboats. It was "designed to fill the gap between a high performance racing boat and a luxury cruising yacht, in the same way that today's super cars fill the gap between F1 and regular cars."

Built entirely of carbon fiber, the SIG45 was designed by the architects of the world's fastest offshore sailing yachts. Unlike a pure racing craft however, the yacht features stunning lines and a minimalist yet luxurious interior created by superyacht designer Bjorn Johansson. High quality fabrics and fittings were used throughout the three double cabins, two fully equipped heads, galley, saloon and separate navigation station.

This traditional cruising yacht is Float, a Mulder 73 Wheelhouse built by the Netherlands-based company for a Swiss owner. The yacht has an all-aluminum construction and twin Caterpillar C12 engines so that the boat can hit a top speed of 24 knots. The exterior features a champagne hull finished with metallic paint and and underwater lighting aft. A transom door hides a tender. The interior of the yacht is done in white-washed teak and wengé wood and there is an iPod docking station with a Denon sound system in each cabin.