The Portman Magazine Spring 2014

SPRING 2014

THE PORTMAN

THE PORTMAN

Photographers in focus – iconic images at the Atlas Gallery

Spring 2014

Living on and around The Portman Estate

9 contents

11

As told to Victoria Harmer Broadcasting breast cancer awareness

12

Happenings Brooklyn boost Chef’s southern roots suit Lockhart

20 COVER: THE PHOTOJOURNALIST, 1951, BY ANDREAS FEININGER, ON DISPLAY AT THE ATLAS GALLERY, DORSET STREET SEE PAGE 34

Art

Music and memory Oleg Prokofiev’s unexpected tones

22

Food & drink Mixing it up Diego Jacquet’s quirky way with Argentine food

The Portman is a regular journal about life on and around The Portman Estate Editor Kate White Writer Lorna Davies Sub-editor Clare Cronin Designer Andy Lowe Publisher The Portman Estate

Advertising Sam Bradshaw 020 7259 1051 sam@pubbiz.com Send information to The Portman Publishing Business 3 Princes Street London W1B 2LD 020 7259 1050 www.pubbiz.com Printed in the UK © Publishing Business Limited 2014

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Jewellery Bijou boutique Behind the scenes at Cox + Power

32

Photography Mapping progress Two decades of key images at Atlas

38 Hotels

Quality lift Openings enhance accommodation options

Publishing Business is a member of the Professional Publishers Association and observes the PPA Code of Publishing Practice Printed on ECF (Chlorine free) paper using fibre sourced from well-managed forests.

All inks vegetable based. Our printers are certified to ISO 14001 Environmental Management.

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Baker Street Spick and span Extra cleaning service keeps Quarter in order

11 as told to

PRINCE CHARLES WITH HARMER AT THE ANNIVERSARY PARTY OF THE ARCHERS

Victoria Harmer loves living in the Marylebone area and works hard as a breast cancer nursing team leader – but her calling also brings her some surprising links with radio and television, she tells Lorna Davies

Star of the ward and script

“

I AM TEAM LEADER for the nurse specialists in breast care at St Mary’s Hospital at Imperial College Healthcare on Praed Street and at Charing Cross Hospital in Hammersmith. I’ve worked there for 15 years and I live in Marylebone; I love the area.

I lead a team of eight fantastic nurses who apply their specialist expertise and leadership to manage, help and support people diagnosed and treated for breast cancer – either through the NHS breast screening programme or via a referral from a GP. Sometimes people hear the word cancer and panic, so we assist them adjusting psychologically, making sure they understand everything they have been told, and provide skills and information partnered with a patient-focused approach for them and their families throughout their treatment.

That’s my main job, and I was delighted to have just won the award Cancer Nurse of the Year by the Nursing Times. I’ve completed an MBA, written books and articles on breast cancer and this year I’m hoping to finish my doctorate.

Promoting breast awareness is a big part of what I do. I manned a stand in Paddington Station where we used a false breast with some lumps in it

and asked passersby to see if they could feel anything. We encountered a lot of men who didn’t realise they can develop breast cancer too. Just under than one per cent of breast cancer is found in the male breast, but there is still the risk.

In 2000, Breakthrough Breast Cancer recommended me to help BBC Radio 4 on The Archers. The character Ruth had breast cancer and I helped make sure the script was medically accurate. Prince Charles hosted the 50th anniversary party at St James’s Palace and I went along. Similarly, I have also helped with ITV’s Coronation Street and BBC1’s East Enders scripts.

One in eight women develop breast cancer and there are essentially two risk factors – being a woman and getting older. Other smaller risk factors are not having children, having your first child after the age of 30, high alcohol intake, obesity, and additional female hormone exposure.Only about four or five per cent is hereditary breast cancer.

There are some challenging moments in my job. But it’s a privilege to sit down and spend time with people and go through what’s important to them when they are vulnerable and in crisis.

”

12 happenings

Back to his roots

Pet project

THE LOCKHART has welcomed a slice of American style in the shape of Brooklyn chef Brad McDonald.

The Seymour Place eatery, owned by Texan couples Gwen and Chris Wren and Shelby and Dunny Wanstrath, has a new menu of regional Deep South dishes from southern states such as Georgia, Alabama and McDonald’s native Mississippi.

The lunch menu includes fried chicken and waffles, smoked brisket hash and shrimp and grits. The waffles are made with creole-style rice batter and the grits (ground-corn) imported from South Carolina. Oh, and there’s bottomless filter coffee, naturally.

McDonald’s previous culinary ventures include New York favourite Colonie and Gran Electrica in Brooklyn.

HIP HANDBAG LABEL Wilbur & Gussie is set to open its first boutique on New Quebec Street.

The fashion company was founded by schoolfriends Brett Tyne and Lucy Lyons when they spotted a gap in the market for elegant, yet affordable, evening bags and clasps.

After using animal prints and motifs in the designs for the first collection, the duo named their company after their pet dogs, Wilbur and Gussie.

The label has since become a favourite of media presenter Fearne Cotton and Pippa Middleton, sister of the Duchess of Cambridge.

Wilbur & Gussie is committed to British manufacturing, and its leather-and-frame bags are sampled and made in London by individual craftspeople.

The brand also works with a family factory in the East End dating from the 1960s that is one of the last remaining frame-makers in the country, while another family factory in Spain makes its silk bags.

The Lockhart is at 22-24 Seymour Place.

Info: 020 3011 5400, www.lockhartlondon.com

BRAD MCDONALD

Co-founder Brett Tyne said: “We are thrilled to be opening our first UK store in Portman Village.

It’s a must-visit destination for stylish fashion, and the perfect place for us to be.”

Wilbur & Gussie is at 20 New Quebec Street.

Info: www.wilburandgussie.com

The school will eventually accept pupils up to the age of 18.

The open days will take place on March 26, April 9, May 7 and May 28 from 10am-12pm.

At the events, there will be guided tours conducted by students, followed by light refreshments and an introduction to Halcyon and to the IB curriculum.

There will also be a demonstration of Halcyon’s IT curriculum followed by a questionand-answer session.

GRABBING A QUICK bite should be just as flavoursome as sitting down to a formal, three-course dinner, believes Hella Souli, founder of a sandwich shop that has opened on George Street.

So at her new shop, Souli offers gourmet cuisine on the go, delivering food that is fresh, fabulous and fast.

Souli’s sophisticated sandwiches and salads vary depending on the availability of produce. Fillings range from home-made porchetta, wild rocket and fig chutney to roast grass-fed beef striploin with watercress and fresh horseradish cream.

The shop’s chic décor includes lots of wood and copper, patchwork Spanish tiles and a huge exposed counter, where all the mouth-watering produce is displayed.

Souli also serves Sant’Eustachio coffee, which is supplied from a company in Rome that has been roasting Fairtrade coffee beans since 1938.

Halcyon school is at 33 Seymour Place.

Info: 020 7258 1169, www.halcyonschool.com

Souli is at 17 George Street.

Info: 020 7228 8488, www.soulifood.com

Fresh take on the sandwich

Brush up on the IB curriculum A NEW SCHOOL on Seymour Place is holding a series of open days this spring – and all are welcome to attend.

Halcyon London International School, which teaches the International Baccalaureate (IB) curriculum, was founded by four families whose children have attended IB schools.

The private, co-educational school is “guided by a belief that an exceptional education will draw out, nourish and awaken the unique potential of each student”, according to its website.

Halcyon, which opened in September last year, is accepting applications for admission from students aged from 11 to 16.

14 happenings

Kitted out for the beach

Green space

UPMARKET SWIMWEAR LABEL Prism is set to open a flagship store on Chiltern Street.

The boutique will showcase the brand’s luxury swimwear, sunglasses and bag collections, as well as its espadrilles and new cover-up pieces.

Prism was founded by former style editor Anna Laub in 2009. The new shop will allow the brand to “engage directly with customers and bring sunshine and a sense of travel to the heart of London”, she said.

OFFICES IN A STUNNING development, that is also environmentally friendly, are available to rent on the Portman Estate.

Marble Arch House on Seymour Street features 60,000 square feet of high-specification office space spread over seven floors, together with 15,000 square feet of retail space on the ground and lower ground floors.

Developer British Land has a policy of sustainable development. Accordingly, the building offers environmentally friendly features, including a biodiverse green roof with wild grasses, and low carbon dioxide emissions.

The scheme’s green aspects have won it an ‘excellent’ rating from BREEAM, an assessment system for sustainable buildings.

Prism is at 54 Chiltern Street. Info: www.prismlondon.com

Info: James Danby, director of London leasing at British Land. 020 7467 2818, james.danby@britishland.com

First venture revisited

Talking allowed ALL ARE INVITED to join a free monthly reading group at Marylebone Library.

The group meets on the second Tuesday of every month, from 6.15 to 7.30pm.

The books discussed range from beach reads to detective stories, and from classic novels to the latest prizewinners.

The meetings are designed to “provide a forum for the sheer pleasure of talking about books”.

Refreshments are provided at the meetings.

Marylebone Library is at 54 Beaumont Street. Info: Georgina Levassor-Collins, 020 7641 6200, www.westminster.gov.uk/ services/libraries

INDIAN RESTAURANT Trishna has relaunched after a month-long refurbishment.

The Blandford Street restaurant is the first venture of chef Karam Sethi, whose second restaurant Gymkhana has attracted rave reviews since it opened in Mayfair in September last year.

Michelin-starred restaurant Trishna now has a refurbished interior, new dishes on the menu and an updated wine list compiled by sommelier Sunaina Sethi, Karam’s sister.

The redesigned décor includes solid oak tables lit by antique brass lights suspended from the ceiling. Other features include an antique mirror and a marble-topped bar.

The menu, which Karam devised with head chef Rohit Ghai, still focuses on the coastal cuisine of southwest India but also draws inspiration from seasonal British ingredients.

Starters include nandu varuval – soft-shell crab with green chilli, garlic, white crab and chutney.

Main courses include moplah seafood biryani and tandoori John Dory as a seasonal special.

Karam said: “When I opened Trishna, I wanted to demonstrate the variety of India’s regional cuisines.I look forward to welcoming loyal regulars and new faces to my first restaurant.”

Trishna is at 15-17 Blandford Street.

Info: 020 7935 5624, www.trishnalondon.com

NANDU VARUVAL AT TRISHNA. TOP: THE REDESIGN FEATURES ANTIQUE BRASS LIGHTS AND OAK TABLES

16 happenings

LA inspires health kick

Blue plaques, shops and more

BEYONCÉ AND JAY Z are fans, and now Hyatt Regency London – the Churchill hotel has embraced Tinseltown’s latest trend: veganism.

Los Angeles chef, health guru and martial arts expert Ali Parvinjah has created a vegetarian and vegan menu for the the Churchill hotel’s Montagu restaurant.

The special menu will launch on May 12, just ahead of National Vegetarian Week (May 19-25).

Parvinjah will work with the hotel’s executive chef and fellow Southern Californian Jef Foster to offer culinary creations such as heirloom tomato salads, and quinoa polpette with butterbean and baby artichokes. Desserts on the new menu will include raw chocolate ice-cream with coconut whipped cream.

“Vegan dishes guarantee serious healthboosting benefits – think glowing skin and higher energy levels,” said Parvinjah.

“Eating even a semi-vegan diet for 60 to 70 per cent of the day can benefit overall health and weight loss, as well as allowing the body to absorb more goodness from non-vegan foods when eaten at other times,” he added.

THE PORTMAN ESTATE has a new website that is packed with handy information for residents, workers and visitors.

The website is brimming with details of the area’s stylish and quirky shopping streets, from Portman Village to Chiltern Street.

There’s a map of the Estate and details of residential and commercial property that is available to rent.

Other features include a fascinating timeline that charts the history of the Portman family and the Estate itself, from 1300 to the present day. There’s also a map of the blue plaques in the area.

The website can be viewed at www.portmanestate.co.uk.

LA CHEF ALI PARVINJAH (LEFT) CREATED THE MENU, WHICH INCLUDES QUINOA TOWER WITH MEDJOOL DATE, AVOCADO MINT MOUSSE AND RED BEET WITH AGED BALSAMIC MICRO AMARANTH (TOP) AND HEIRLOOM TOMATO WITH CASHEW CHEESE (ABOVE)

The Churchill hotel is at 30 Portman Square. Info: 0845 888 1234, www.london.churchill.hyatt.com

Al fresco venue welcomes bookings

Time for tea

WITH SPRING arriving, local residents and businesses are reminded that Portman Square garden is available for private hire.

Karen Wilson, clerk of the garden, said the space is there to be enjoyed by all, including children at local nurseries who like to play on the swings, companies hosting events and sporty types who use the tennis and netball court.

The garden is a popular venue for wedding receptions and photos, and also hosts an annual summer party (pictured) organised by Hyatt Regency London – the Churchill hotel. This year’s event takes place on Thursday June 5.

If you live or work on the Estate, you may be entitled to subscribe to annual key membership for the garden.

To enquire about subscription or hiring Portman Square garden, please contact Lisa Burke or Karen Wilson at the Portman Estate on 020 7563 1400 or email portmansquaregarden@portmanestate.co.uk.

A SERIES OF afternoon tea parties at the Mandeville hotel are promising to put the swing into spring.

The tea parties, which will have a vintage, nostalgic feel, take place on the first Sunday of every month from 12 to 5.30pm at the hotel’s restaurant Reform on Mandeville Place.

Food is accompanied by live music from the Marjorie Belles, a female retro singing trio who will perform songs ranging from the golden eras of swing and jazz to the birth of rock and roll.

The menu includes mini portions of fish fingers and mushy peas, steak and snail sandwiches, lemon pound cake and treacle tart, served with tea or champagne.

Tea costs £26.50, or £32.50 with freeflowing champagne, and is available in April, May and June.

Tickets for this year’s Portman Square garden party are available from May 1. If you would like to buy tickets, contact Emily King at Hyatt Regency London – the Churchill on 020 7299 2398.

Info: 020 7935 5599, www.mandeville.co.uk

For more information on Portman Village and Chiltern Street, visit www.portmanvillage.com and www.chilternstreetw1.co.uk

20 art

Lighting up the lobby HYATT REGENCY LONDON – THE CHURCHILL hotel and the Saatchi Gallery have paired up to display a range of stunning paintings and sculptures in the hotel’s lobby, reception and restaurant areas.

The artworks, by various artists from the Saatchi Online collection, celebrate the refurbished Saatchi Suite at the hotel, now home to a four-piece collection of furniture by Danish designer Poul Kjaerholm – the PK 4 x 20. The iconic furnishings, from furniture store the Republic of Fritz Hansen, will be complemented in the suite by artwork from London-based artist Hormazd Narielwalla.

Launching on March 26 at Hyatt Regency London – The Churchill, 30 Portman Square.

Info: 020 7486 5800, www.london.churchill.hyatt.co.uk

His father’s son

Pop art and beyond

OLEG PROKOFIEV, son of the legendary composer Sergey Prokofiev, wrote that his father’s music inspired in him “a wave of some wonderful energy… a poetic or artistic impulse”.

Taking the musical form of free expression within set patterns, Oleg chose unexpected tones – especially in his later work – exactly as his father had used ‘wrong notes’ as a chromatic twist to his compositions.

This show of 60 works brings together two major stages of Oleg’s life: before and after exile from Russia – ranging from the 1960s USSR period, via the popular ‘white-on-white’ canvases of the 1970s, to his revolutionary sculptures and last paintings before his death in 1998.

Oleg Prokofiev: From East to West is at the Hay Hill Gallery, 35 Baker Street, from March 31 to April 26. Info: 020 7486 6006, www.hayhillgallery.com OLEG PROKOFIEV, THE DUET

Out of UK and Africa DAVID HEATHCOTE’S vivid, abstracted landscapes explore themes of construction, colour, space and form, drawing from both his home in Kent and the 20 years he spent in Zimbabwe and Nigeria.

A BUSY FEW WEEKS are coming up at A&D Gallery, kicking off with Eduardo Paolozzi and the Birth of British Pop Art. The vibrant show includes some wonderful, rare original works by both Paolozzi and Richard Hamilton, on until April 5.

British artist John Erskine will present his drawings, mono-prints and watercolours on April 7-12, followed by two of Cornwall’s best known contemporary artists, Michael Praed and John Piper, at the gallery on April 22-26.

At the end of the month, look out for a collection of lithographs created and published in 1967 to illustrate poetry by the late Frank O’Hara, Museum of Modern Art curator, poet and art critic. Artists involved in the project include Roy Lichtenstein, Robert Rauschenberg and Willem de Kooning (April 29-May 30).

A&D Gallery, 51 Chiltern Street.

Info: 020 7486 0534, www.aanddgallery.com EDWARDO PAOLOZZI, I WAS A RICH MANS PLAYTHING © THE ESTATE OF EDUARDO PAOLOZZI

David Heathcote: Numberless Islands is at GV Art Gallery, 49 Chiltern Street, from April 25 until May 31. Tel: 020 8408 9800. www.gvart.co.uk DAVID HEATHCOTE, FESTIVAL, 2009 IMAGE COURTESY OF GV ART GALLERY

22 restaurants

Argentine adventure

ZOILO EXPERIMENTS WITH CLASSICS SUCH AS EMPANADAS

Diego Jacquet wants to show that Argentine food is more than just huge steaks – and the message is getting across, with diners flocking to his restaurant Zoilo to enjoy his deconstructed small plates BACKGROUND IMAGE: DIEGO JACQUET’

MENTION ARGENTINE CUISINE at a dinner party and talk usually turns to mouthwatering steaks.

But, as renowned South American chef Diego Jacquet knows, it is about much more than a good rump. His restaurant Zoilo has been a resounding success on Duke Street, embracing the mix of cultures and vibrant history of his country since it opened in 2012.

For Jacquet, Argentinian cooking represents, “my origin, my roots and especially a long journey discovering our history, shaping our present and defining our future”.

Born in Buenos Aires, Jacquet has worked at acclaimed restaurants including Ferran Adrià’s El Bulli in Spain and Marcus Samuelsson’s New York restaurant Aquavit, before arriving in London in 2003 to head the teams at the Trafalgar Hotel and subsequently the Zetter Hotel.

“Time at the best restaurants helps you get ready for the future,” Jacquet says. “At El Bulli I learnt about working as a team and working long hours. At Aquavit, among other things, it was about fine dining at a furious pace.”

Jacquet established the Zoilo – “a classic male Argentinian name, usually given to famous gauchos” – catering business in 2007, with the aim of showcasing the best of Argentine food and wine in the UK. The company took off, catering for the Queen’s Cup, Veuve Clicquot Gold Cup and Cartier International polo events.

In 2010, Jacquet teamed up with restaurateur Alberto Abbate – the brains behind seven London restaurants including Garufin in Holborn and Moo Grill in Liverpool Street – to open Casa Malevo on Connaught Street, followed by Zoilo Restaurant and Bar two years later.

Casa Malevo is “classic Argentine cuisine and the basis of everything we do” whereas Zoilo is “the future of Argentine cuisine, with no limits – researching, discovering and learning constantly”, says Jacquet.

On the Zoilo menu, this approach translates into deconstructed, small-plate Argentine cooking. The classics remain, with braised beef skirt empanadas and prime Argentine steaks, but the experimental side pushes them further.

The result is sumptuous dishes including braised pig head croquettes and quince jam; scallops, sweet potato, caramelised pork belly and chorizo; and grilled quail, lentil ragu, cauliflower and sherry sauce.

The buzz around the venture has been unstoppable since the opening at the end of

24 restaurants

2012, with empty tables at the cosy, woodentabled restaurant a rare sight.

“I love the area,” says Jacquet. “It is right for our restaurant and has a perfect balance of destination and neighbourhood feeling.

Marylebone has changed since we arrived. More and more top restaurants are choosing to settle here, which is fantastic.”

In the past few years, the capital has become the new foodie destination, with restaurant openings, pop-ups, markets and experimental food events rivalling even New York’s gastronomical exploits.

More recently, there’s been a focus on South America, with restaurants such as Lima on Rathbone Place and Ceviche on Frith Street showing Londoners it’s not only Gaucho serving up the good stuff. Jacquet agrees. “London has a great appreciation for international cuisine, and people have become more supportive of South American cuisine in the past few years.”

JACQUET’S FAVOURITE DISH IS PROVOLETA, WHICH TRANSPORTS HIM BACK TO BUENOS AIRES

Jacquet’s own favourite dish is provoleta – Argentine pulled-curd provolone cheese. “It’s aromas transport me to Buenos Aires. It is magical,” he says.

“I also love a slow-cooked whole lamb. It reminds me of Patagonia,” he adds. As a smaller version of the latter dish, “you can just slow-roast a shoulder of lamb, cook it at a low temperature and serve it with a simple, fresh mint vinaigrette and roasted squash – delicious”.

Meanwhile, in August 2013, Jacquet spread his net even wider and opened an Argentinian concept restaurant in Singapore. His focus now is on opening an Argentine butcher, wine and grocer shop in Connaught Village with a development kitchen, while keeping a steady eye on Zoilo. “It’s my dream come true,” he says of his growing empire.

Zoilo is at 9 Duke Street.

Info: 020 7486 9699 www.zoilo.co.uk

26 jewellery

A CENTRAL FEATURE of contemporary jeweller Cox + Power’s new boutique on Chiltern Street is the workshop.

It’s here that every piece of the company’s jewellery is meticulously crafted out of gold, silver, platinum and precious gemstones – and seeing it being made on-site is something that clients find appealing, says co-owner Rachel Sweeney.

“People like the fact that, when they buy a ring or a necklace, they can meet the person who made it and experience the environment where it was made,” she says. “It gives another dimension to the whole experience of buying a piece of jewellery.”

Cox + Power was founded in 1987 by Vicci Cox, who was involved in a marketing project for platinum, and Tony Power, a graduate from the Glasgow School of Art who was working in London for jewellers including Asprey and Elizabeth Gage.

The pair created pieces of contemporary jewellery in gold and platinum, opening their first

boutique on Walton Street seven years later, when Sweeney joined the business. In 2004 they moved to Marylebone High Street and earlier this year they relocated to Chiltern Street.

The location was a natural fit for the company, says Sweeney. “Chiltern Street is full of specialist, individual businesses that are owned by people who are passionate about what they do and who are intensely involved in their shops. There’s an ethos of craftsmanship and quality on the street, and a sense of seeking out the unusual.”

Cox + Power’s style has evolved over the years, but some pieces still closely reflect the company’s first collection, she says.“Today a customer might say, ‘I like this piece but it’s a bit contemporary – will I still like it in 25 years’ time?’ And we can confidently say, ‘Well, when we first designed a piece like this 25 years ago, people said the same thing.’ It’s lovely to have that continuity.”

Making jewellery that is wearable is important to the company, says Sweeney. “We hope to ‡

The modern jewellery of Cox + Power is now available in Chiltern Street where you can watch the striking, yet very wearable, pieces being handcrafted in the boutique’s workshop

Crafted with care

ABOVE: ARENA RING RIGHT: COGNAC SEASCAPE DROP EARRINGS LEFT: DIAMONDBERRY AND APPLEBERRY RING

28 jewellery

make jewellery that people can wear whenever they feel like it. Nowadays, people are happy to mix costume jewellery with precious pieces, to reflect their own style. For us that’s great, because we want to make pieces that people can enjoy wearing all the time.”

Inspiration for the designs comes from many places, she says. “Sometimes it will be the materials, so we might see a beautiful stone and we’ll then design a piece around it. For our Seascape collection, we were fortunate enough to have the first Fairtrade platinum at our disposal to work with, which was a big inspiration for the design.”

Other times, it’s the process involved that provides the inspiration, she says. “With our London Forged collection, we started off with hammered pieces and then added colour and texture with mother of pearl and gemstone beads.

The inspiration was derived from the process you go through to physically make the pieces.”

Clients can buy jewellery from Cox + Power’s collections, but the company also does special commissions and one-off designs. Often customers come in with a stone that they have inherited that has sentimental value to them, and they want a piece of jewellery crafted to incorporate it, says Sweeney.

“Sometimes people have a specific idea of what they want, while other times someone might come in and say, ‘I really like this eucalyptus leaf and I’d love a necklace that is inspired by it’,” she says. “It’s a lovely process, because each client is different and we get to create something meaningful for them.”

Sweeney wanted to work in the jewellery business from a young age. “I always liked the idea of making something that you could hold in your hand, and also the heritage and history of the goldsmith’s craft,” she says. “It’s one of the oldest crafts, and people were making jewellery even before they had proper clothing and shelter.

“Also, whether it’s gold or platinum or something with precious stones, jewellery is invariably made from something that has been ‡

ABOVE: LONDON FORGED SILVER BANGLE LEFT: COGNAC SEASCAPE PENDANT

30 jewellery

around for thousands of years. There’s something elemental about it.”

As with many other people, Sweeney has certain pieces of jewellery she wears all the time.

“Some pieces just become a part of you, and if you don’t have them on you feel a bit naked,” she says. “I love the fact that most people have something they feel that way about. Jewellery is intimate in that respect.

“I also like how you can just wear a piece of jewellery because you want to, rather than only for

a special occasion. We’ve had a couple of people who have bought pieces that we considered to be more dressy, evening pieces to wear all the time, and they look perfect.”

Cox + Power jewellery is designed to be worn, loved and treasured, says Sweeney.

“Although our style is, perhaps, quite pareddown at times, it’s always carefuly considered.

There is probably an element of restraint about the design of our pieces, and an element of the tactile and feminine.

“Jewellery is worn on the body so it has to be physically comfortable, as well as looking good. If it’s an earring it shouldn’t be too heavy, or if it’s a pair of cufflinks it can’t be too clunky. The idea that a real person will be wearing the pieces informs our design, and even our bigger pieces are still very wearable.”

The Chiltern Street shop, which was designed by local company Works Architecture, is flooded with natural light and has a stripped-back feel.

Layers of plaster, wallpaper and paint were removed from the walls to expose the bare bricks beneath, and the building’s original parquet flooring and fireplace have also been revealed.

“There’s something domestic about the space,” says Sweeney. “Both our existing clients and new people who have come in have all felt very comfortable here. It really is the perfect showcase for our designs.”

Cox + Power is at 10-12 Chiltern Street.

Info: 020 7935 3530, www.coxandpower.com

ABOVE: PEONY RING LEFT: AMETHYST PEBBLE BEADS

32 photography

Atlas is celebrating its anniversary with an exhibition of iconic photographs from its 20 years in the business. Gallery owner Ben Burdett gives Lorna Davies a preview

Milestones in modern photography

WINTER STORIES 48, 2007, BY PAOLO VENTURA

BEN BURDETT is one of the country’s foremost photography dealers, with superstars such as Paul Strand, Sebastiao Salgado and Nick Brandt on his books. He began dealing in antiquarian books in the 1980s before setting up his own business in 1994.

Twenty years on, Atlas Gallery is celebrating with an anniversary exhibition of diverse works, showcasing key photographers and acquisitions from two decades in the business.

Marylebone is where it all began for Burdett, with his first premises in a mews just off Marylebone High Street. But when the art world began migrating east in the 1990s, Burdett joined them, opening a gallery near Finsbury Square.

Later, however, rising rents in east London, and a burgeoning creative scene in Chiltern Street and Dorset Street, pulled Burdett back to Marylebone, when he opened Atlas on the corner between these two roads in 2001.

I meet Burdett among stacks of iconic pictures on the bottom floor of the gallery, as he and his colleagues prepare for the long-awaited

BEN BURDETT AT HIS ATLAS GALLERY

exhibition, entitled Collected Works. The gallery is a light and airy two-floor space, worlds away from how it was when Burdett first moved in, he tells me. “It belonged to the fashion designer Elizabeth Emmanuel, so the outside was painted black, with silk wallpaper in the interior. It was a real mess.

But I loved the location.”

Atlas encourages work by young artists and photographers. It also has a close relationship with Magnum, the photographic agency founded

by Robert Capa, David Seymour and Henri Cartier-Bresson, among others. Atlas became the official UK gallery agent for the company in 2005.

On until April 26, Collected Works includes a few pieces Burdett has been after for while. His current favourite work in the show – although he says his favourites “change all the time” – is The Photojournalist (1951) by Andreas Feininger.

“I got it recently and I’ve been trying to find a good print of it for a long time,” he says. “It works on a multitude of levels. It’s a stylish, glamorous photograph, but of Dennis Stock, who was a documentary photographer who worked with ‡

34 photography

James Dean, so it’s making a movie star out of the photographer. I love it.”

Looking around the gallery, I spot the instantly recognisable Fallen Soldier by Capa. This impactful piece is of a Republican soldier during the Spanish Civil War, taken moments before his death. Burdett agrees it’s a stand-out piece.

“He is my favourite photographer,” he says, “but he’s difficult to collect, because he had no later career like Cartier-Bresson, as he died so young [Capa was killed by a landmine in Japan, aged 40]. He also never signed a print. He signed books, but there’s hardly a single signed print “He was a great personality and was witness to major events of the 20th century [including World War II and the 1948 Arab-Israli War], so it’s his story as well as his pictures that I love.”

The exhibition includes nods to the first years of the gallery. Paul Strand’s Young Boy (1951) was in the first catalogue, and attracted the attention of the singer Elton John. “We sent him the catalogue and he rang up the next day and bought a few things. I couldn’t believe he rang himself,” says Burdett.

But he adds that he’s usually quite private about who he sells to. “It’s a privileged position and a private relationship,” he says. “The interesting stories for me are how diverse the buyers are. I’ve sold things to people such as Elton John and to my window cleaner.”

In the case of some of the photographers represented in the exhibition, Burdett has been following their work since he started in the field.

With Salgado, the process began when he went to see a show of the Brazilian social documentary photographer and photojournalist’s work at the Royal Festival Hall in London.

“All the prints were on sale – it was mostly the Gold Mine series (1986). They were all around £200-300, and I couldn’t afford them. That was one of the things that made me want to start collecting,” says Burdett.

Then, 20 years later, a client contacted the gallery to say that in 1990 someone had bought an entire exhibition – 33 works – by Salgado but that now the buyer’s widow was selling it all. “We just sold it last month, so it’s a nice close to the story,” Burdett smiles.

Collected Works is at Atlas Gallery, 49 Dorset Street, until April 26.

Info: 020 722 4192, www.atlasgallery.com

“The interesting stories for me are how diverse the buyers are. I’ve sold things to people such as Elton John and to my window cleaner” GOLD MINE, SERRA PELADA, BRAZIL, 1986, BY SEBASTIAO SALGADO

BIG CITY SPY, 2013, BY DAVID DREBIN

38 hotels

IT’S ONE OF the most hotly anticipated London hotel openings in recent memory.

Since American hotelier André Balazs acquired the former fire station on Chiltern Street in 2011, work has quietly been taking place to transform the grade-II-listed building into an uber-luxury, five-star hotel that is set to open its doors in March.

Meanwhile, the restaurant at the Chiltern Firehouse began taking bookings in February, and its modern American food, which is described as “contemporary, ingredient-focused cooking, with an underlying American accent”, has already scored rave reviews.

Several hotels are opening on the Portman Estate, with the diverse styles of accommodation offered bringing a welcome addition to the quality of rooms available in the area

Head chef at the restaurant Nuno Mendes, who founded east London restaurant Viajante, spent 16 years cooking in the US, and has worked alongside worldrenowned chefs including Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Wolfgang Puck.

Mendes’ new venture at the Chiltern Firehouse has received a coveted four-star rating from Evening Standard restaurant critic Fay Maschler, who wrote that its dishes “buzz with unexpected flourishes”.

Balazs’s other hotels include Chateau Marmont on LA’s Sunset Boulevard, which is a favourite of A-list celebrities including Katy Perry, Jason Statham and Robert Pattinson. ‡

Check out the quality

NUNO MENDES’ COOKING AT THE CHILTERN FIREHOUSE IS ATTRACTING RAVE REVIEWS

40 hotels

He owns the Mercer in New York and further venues in Los Angeles and Miami.

The Chiltern Firehouse, which has 26 luxurious suites, is Balazs’s first venture outside the US and one of several hotels that are set to open on the Portman Estate in the next two years.

The Estate has 33 hotels, ranging from boutique establishments such as Ten Manchester Street, which has 44 rooms, to the four-star Cumberland Hotel just behind Marble Arch, which has more than 1,000 suites. There’s also five-star hotel Hyatt Regency London – the Churchill on Portman Square, which has 434 rooms, the Thistle Marble Arch with 692 rooms and Durrants, a Georgian townhouse just off Marylebone High Street that has 92 rooms.

The next hotel to open on the Estate will be the Zetter Townhouse in Marylebone, which will be located at 28-30 Seymour Street. Owner the Zetter Group operates several hotels and restaurants in London including the Zetter, which was named one of the world’s 50 coolest hotels by Condé Nast Traveller.

The company also owns the Zetter Townhouse in Clerkenwell, which is entered through a discreet doorway on St John’s Square. Inside, there’s a sumptuous lounge with an open fire and a bartender on hand to fix guests their favourite drink. It’s designed to make visitors feel as though they are staying at the home of a beloved, indulgent and slightly eccentric great aunt.

Zetter Group co-founder Michael Benyan says the Zetter Townhouse in Marylebone will have a similar feel to its sister venue in Clerkenwell. “The Clerkenwell townhouse is subtle – there’s no big sign on it screaming ‘hotel’,” he says. “It’s designed to feel like a private home, and the new hotel will have the same ethos, spirit and quirkiness.”

The acclaimed interior at the Clerkenwell townhouse was designed by Russell Sage, who will also be designing the Marylebone hotel – with inspiration from a museum.

“The inspiration behind the design for the Marylebone hotel is Sir John Soane’s Museum,” says Benyan. “Soane was a cultivated man who went on the Grand Tour and brought back collections from all over ‡

“We design places that we’d want to go to ourselves. We love hanging out at the places we do” Michael Benyan, Zetter Group co-founder

TONY CONIGLIARO HAS DESIGNED THE ZETTER COCKTAIL MENU

42 hotels

the world. It’s going to be quirky, eccentric and a bit bonkers.”

The hotel will have 24 rooms of “all different shapes and sizes,” says Benyan.

There will be a lounge and a cocktail bar with a menu designed by Tony Conigliaro, who created the renowned drinks offering for the bar at the Clerkenwell townhouse.

The Zetter Group’s success is partly down to not following a set formula, says Benyan. “All our projects are unique. We think outside the box and we don’t follow a

Z HOTELS WILL RUN THE GLOUCESTER PLACE SCHEME

formula. We design places that we’d want to go to ourselves, which I know is a cliché but it is true. We love hanging out at the places we do.”

Elsewhere on the Estate, planning permission has been granted to refurbish six existing hotels on Gloucester Place. The Estate is working with Sturgis Carbon Profiling to explore a range of environmentally-friendly materials and construction practices.

“Sturgis have assessed the whole life carbon of the hotel refurbishments, and identified potential to reduce embodied carbon by around 1,000 tonnes,” says Michael Jones, Director of Project Management for The Portman Estate.

“We’re looking at options such as carpet underlay made from recycled tyres, cement replacement to halve the carbon footprint of the concrete, and using Britishmanufactured, 98 per cent recycled steel to reinforce existing timber joists.”

The refurbished hotels will open in September 2015 and will be operated by Z Hotels, which offers boutique accommodation in central locations at affordable prices, with rooms starting at just £85 per night. It has other hotels in Belgravia, Soho, Liverpool and Prague, and is set to open two more venues in Haymarket and Glasgow in May. Z Hotels owner Bev King has worked in the industry for many years. He was general manager at the Cumberland Hotel and area manager at Thistle Marble Arch, which are both located on the Portman Estate. He then worked as chief operating officer for Thistle Hotels before setting up Z Hotels.

“Rather than trying to build big, luxury hotels, which London already has a lot of, we wanted something slightly different that could offer amazing locations and goodquality component parts,” he says.

“Because we use small rooms, it means we can make our rates much more affordable.

“What we offer is sleep. Our beds come with mattresses that are handmade in Devon from 100 per cent natural fibres, and luxury duvets made with Devon sheep’s wool. To give you an idea, we pay £75 per duvet, while a regular hotel hollow-fibre duvet would cost you between £5 and £10.” ‡

44 hotels

All rooms come equipped with a highquality, 40-inch Samsung LED televisions and Sky TV, so every guest can watch Sky sports and films for no extra cost. WiFi is also free, and the bathrooms feature highpower showers and Thierry Mugler toiletries.

While Z Hotels don’t provide room service, each hotel has a café that is open to guests 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

They offer guests a free cheese and wine tasting every evening, with cheeses accompanied by bread, hummus, olives, sundried tomatoes and wine.

Z at Gloucester Place will comprise numbers 23, 33, 51, 53 and 55 with 91 rooms and a central reception desk. There will also be a 24-hour café. Number 87 will have 23 rooms and is set to be a more upmarket, luxury concept, with rooms designed to a slightly higher specification.

The catering at number 87 also differs from the usual Z Hotels offering. “Instead of a café we’ll have a kitchen table,” says King.

“It’ll be like staying at someone’s house in that guests will just wander in and staff will make you whatever they want – there won’t be a menu. Everything will be included in the price of the room.

“It’s a little like what we currently do, but it’s just taking it that stage further. If you stayed there every week, the staff there would know you turn up at 6pm and they’d have your favourite glass of wine or a gin and tonic waiting for you.

“It’ll almost be like having your own personal butler.

The Portman Estate’s Jones adds: “The leases on the townhouses were all coming to an end within 12 months or so of each other, and we saw an opportunity to improve them. There’s a huge demand for quality hotels in the area.

“The Chiltern Firehouse, the Zetter Townhouse in Marylebone and Z at Gloucester Place will be a fantastic addition to the Estate.”

EACH Z HOTEL HAS A CAFE THAT STAYS OPEN ROUND THE CLOCK

46 baker street quarter

MARCH IS TRADITIONALLY the time of year when many people have a spring clean – and the Baker Street Quarter Partnership is no exception.

The team has recently launched the Smarter Quarter initiative, implementing an extra street-cleaning regime for the Baker Street area and the underpass beneath Marylebone Road.

Katie Lindsay, the Partnership’s operations manager, says cleaner streets were a priority for local businesses when they voted last year for the area to become a Business Improvement District (BID).

“People feel a lack of cleanliness can really let an area down,” she says. “In the BID we have lots of corporate businesses who are bringing clients here, and they want the area to look outstanding.”

While local councils are required to undertake a certain level of cleaning, the BID goes above and beyond this to provide businesses with a “Rolls Royce” level of service, says Lindsay.

“Every BID will have a baseline agreement with the council, and that agreement sets out exactly what the council is required to do,” she says.

“It will tell us that if there’s graffiti on a wall, the council has so many hours to remove it. Or if a traffic light has stopped working or a paving slab is broken, it’ll have only so many days to repair it. It also sets out the frequency for street sweeping and street flushing.”

The BID’s ambassadors monitor the baseline to make sure the council is maintaining its required level of cleaning. Lindsay has also contracted Veolia to provide the Partnership’s own, additional cleaning services that go above and beyond what the council provides, focusing on the areas in most need of attention.

“We have implemented a monthly pavement deep clean that is focused on the top section of Baker Street, where there are lots of food outlets,” says Lindsay. “They leave their waste collections on the street and it leads to pavement staining. The deep clean gets rid of all that and eliminates chewing gum too. It’s really effective.”

While the council does its own deep clean once or twice a year, the area has benefited from a more regular service, says Lindsay.

“There’s a huge amount of footfall, with all the commuters from Baker Street station and the tourists coming to visit various attractions. The monthly service allows us to keep on top of the cleaning, and to stop the gum and staining from building up.”

The Partnership has also tackled the underpass below Marylebone Road. “Previously the underpass was smelly and often used as a toilet,” says Lindsay. “Residents, workers and visitors to the area were faced with a miserable choice between crossing a very busy road or using the underpass, which was unpleasant.

“We’ve increased the flushing of the underpass from three days a week to a nightly clean. The Veolia team wear high-vis vests with the words ‘Smarter Quarter’ on them. They come in overnight and clean up so it’s fresh in the morning for everyone coming into work.

“We also deep clean the underpass every quarter, which includes the walls, ceilings, steps – everything. The first one was a big job, because it hadn’t been done in such a long time.

Apparently the guy who cleaned it was sticking to the floor afterwards, because his boots were covered in chewing gum.”

The Partnership is also working with Transport for London to see ‡ what other improvements can be implemented in the underpass.

Smartening up

Keeping the streets pristine can be a challenge in an area as busy as the Baker Street Quarter. So a scheme that provides a more frequent cleaning service is being welcomed by businesses, workers and residents

AREAS IN MOST NEED OF ATTENTION ARE TARGETED FOR EXTRA CLEANING

48 baker street quarter

“Not all the lights work, the steps are in need of renovating, and it’s dark and not attractive for people to venture into,” says Lindsay.

“We’re hoping to paint the entrances so they are white and reflective, and put in new mirrors so people can see behind them.”

Longer-term plans include addressing the underpass’s drainage problem, as pedestrians are often forced to sidestep pools of water.

The Partnership has also doubled bin cleaning in the Baker Street area from once to twice a month. The tops are taken off and replaced with clean ones, and the area around the base is also given a good scrub. It also provides a hot-spot cleaning service that can tackle problems on an ad hoc basis.

“Veolia tells us its busiest time is after payday, because of litter and other unsightly things left behind after people have been drinking,” says Lindsay. “Veolia also provides cleaning for Westminster City Council, so the team is local and can respond quickly if there’s something that needs doing straight away.

“The other day, someone had been sick on the street. One of our ambassadors spotted it and informed the council, and it was gone within an hour. The fact that we are constantly monitoring the area means that problems can be sorted out quickly.”

The Partnership has received a lot of positive feedback in emails and on Twitter from workers and residents, saying that the cleaning has made a visible difference. “I think having a cleaner area makes you happy, and gives you pride in the place where you live or work,” says Lindsay.

“The underpass is a gateway into the Baker Street Quarter,” she adds. “If that’s your route to work and it’s smelly and full of litter, it’s depressing and doesn’t create a good impression. We want to make it better, brighter and more pleasant for people to use.”

A LOGO IDENTIFIES THE CLEANERS WHO PROVIDE A SERVICE ABOVE THE BASELINE THAT THE BID AMBASSADORS (L AND R) MONITOR

Info: 020 3056 5910, www.bakerstreetquarter.co.uk