The light in Lisbon...plus records & palaces

  

I flew to Lisbon and arrived at a 4-storey pink building that was one or two hundred years old. I walked up three flights of wooden stairs with my little suitcases and met my friend João. Right away he took me to a little Bossa Nova concert performed by young men with wavy hair. Afterwards, we met his friend for an astoundingly delicious Lebanese feast. We ate and drank pomegranate juice, while talking about our families, our fathers, and festivals. For dessert we shared an orange blossom crème brûlée before walking home in the moonlight.

The next morning we drove to a quiet beach and met two of João’s friends: Victor, a dapper French man who looks like a young Clark Gable and Mario, a witty Portuguese diplomat with curly hair and a dry sense of humor. Mario recalled meeting me in London years ago and we guessed where until we figured it out. The boys told me about scorpion fish and then we swam in the icy sea. Afterwards, we went to an outdoor café and ate green bean tempura, a Portuguese specialty, as well as fried eggs mixed with potatoes and a local sheep cheese. A tall woman rode past us on a horse, before disappearing into the trees, like a Magritte painting come to life.

On Saturday I woke up early and visited the flea market. I love looking through faded postcards, beloved junk, life-size ceramic dogs, unusual books, and other bizarre treasures. There was a variety of flippers, 90s pornography, and trinkets shining in the morning sunlight. What really caught my attention were the records. First I bought a weathered 1970s compilation for a few euros. Then I saw a hard-to-find record with some excellent breakdance songs on it. 

Suddenly, in the only box protected from the sun, appeared an original 1967 vinyl of my favorite Velvet Underground album. My heart beat faster, examining it carefully. The cover had a peel-off banana designed by Andy Warhol.  I felt like Indiana Jones discovering the grail. I put the record down, thought about it, then wove back through the people, and asked about the small coffee stain on the cover. The seller cleaned it with alcohol and told me he nearly took the record for himself. We chatted about Lou Reed and then I bought it. I floated through the streets, past the pastel houses, looking for an old ice cream parlor.

An accurate picture of me when I'm hungry

THINGS TO DO IN LISBON

-Walk around different neighborhoods in the center and admire the beautiful colorful houses. Remember to pack shoes that are good for cobblestones and steep hills.

-Visit the museums (e.g. Museo do Oriente, CAM).

-Buy presents (beautiful retro packaged Portuguese things) around Chiado at A vida Portuguesa (spices, old school toothpaste, tinned goods), Claus Porto (soaps, candles, and perfumes), and Benamôr 1925 (beautiful creams and bath products).

-Wake up early and wander around the flea market Fiera da Ladra on Saturday then buy a vintage paperback novel at the bookseller market on Ria Anchieta in Chiado (cash only).

-Take a day trip to Sintra and visit the Palacio da Pena or drive to a surfer beach.

-Nightlife: Go party at Lounge or at the nightclub Lux (opens late) or Damas (fun artsy/queer crowd, arrive early-ish to avoid a long line).

WHERE TO EAT

 

-My favorite meal in Lisbon was at Farès – it’s a cozy place with incredible Lebanese food. Order the stuffed sweet potatoes and the orange blossom crème brûlée. Rua de S. Paulo 200.

 

-Enjoy Portuguese food at Faz Frio. It’s open late too. They have private areas for larger tables.

 

-Rua Santos-O-Velho has two fantastic brunch places (Heim and Mila) as well as Yalla, a Middle Eastern restaurant. Mila is also good for people watching and the service is fast.

 

-Eat sorbet at Santini gelateria. I loved the melon flavor and the citrus Santini flavor.

-Try veggie versions of Portuguese classics at the vegan comfort food café Kong

 

-Drink Lisbon’s famous coffee at any classic bar

 

Local creams and a groovy toothpaste

P.S. Come visit but please don’t move here, my Portuguese friends say. Due to the recent explosion of TED-talk tote-carrying tech people and crypto traders moving to the city the rents have tripled, forcing many locals out of their neighborhoods.

P.P.S. I heard these places were fun but didn’t have time to visit them: cocktails at The Red Frog or Pavilhão Chinês, visiting the Palacio Foz. 

For more pictures check out my Instagram: @thefortunyverse .

A Favorite Painter

I put on my green and white striped suit and walked into Arco, the huge art fair in Madrid. It was right before the pandemic and the place was packed with gallerists, collectors, artists and their admirers. One painting stood out from all the other works: ‘Quiet Listening’ by Peter Uka. The painting depicted an elegant young man listening to records. It sang of another era and yet it is completely contemporary. It spoke of memory, music, and beauty. This summer (2021) I was delighted to interview Peter Uka for Metal magazine. We talked about art, music, 1970s culture, and identity. You can read the full article here. 

Visit Peter Uka’s solo exhibition, ‘Longing’, at Mariane Ibrahim gallery if you happen to be in Chicago. It’s on view until January 15th, 2022. 

Peter Uka, Quiet Listening, 2020. Courtesy the Artist and Mariane Ibrahim

Denge Pose II, 2018. Courtesy the Artist and Mariane Ibrahim

Peter Uka, Still Riding 2, 2021. Courtesy of Mariane Ibrahim

Meandering in Marrakesh

Recently I had the chance to go to Marrakesh to celebrate the birthday of my beloved friend, Patricia, a poet and alchemist. It’s only a couple of hours from where I live and I’ve always dreamt of going to Morocco so I packed my most demure 1970s garb (inspired by peak Yves Saint Laurent) and a sketchbook and headed down to Marrakesh. As we drove into the city, we saw stone walls, discontent donkeys with matted fur, and a couple of camels crouching beneath palm trees. We walked into the labyrinth of the old souk, down shadowy alleyways, until we arrived at an inconspicuous wooden door. 

Suddenly a French man and his dog opened the door and invited us inside a riad. We walked into this secret courtyard dripping with vines, bright foliage and blossoms. Hundreds of pomegranates lay at our feet. He led us past yellow-painted doors, to our colorful rooms, each decorated with different local embroideries, fresh flowers, and books in various languages. When we returned from our lunch of salads, falafel, spicy hummus, and kiwi juice, a fire was blazing in the hearth of every room.

Over the next few days, we explored the city on foot. We admired the sunken gardens of orange trees and palace ruins. Later, a cool café offered shade and bitter orange cake as Stevie Wonder played in the background. An old man threw a live monkey at our friend as we crossed the famous Djemaa el-Fna square. The creature clung to his arm before he handed it back. A meter away, a fellow wrapped a long cobra around a boy’s shoulders. A nearby table was heaped with fruit, being sliced and squeezed into fresh juice. There was so much to look at in every direction. Later, we drank the colors at the Yves Saint Laurent museum and gardens, overflowing with hot pink bougainvillea, blue architecture, and tall cactus plants. There was a beautiful little restaurant where we sampled orange blossom, pistachio, and date ice creams.

Another day we headed to a different market. My friend Marta and I bought harissa and loose tea made of dried verbena, flower petals, and curved leaves. We asked some local women for directions and they kindly walked us to the square we were looking for. On Patricia’s birthday we sat at a long candlelit table and feasted on crisp pastries stuffed with soft cheese, crunchy salads, hot pears sprinkled with cinnamon, massive artichokes, limpid green beans, clay pots of vegetable stew, and a date cake covered in white, creamy frosting and nuts.

HERE ARE A FEW PLACES I RECOMMEND VISITING:

The Badi Palace, a large ruin with pool, trees, and a view from upstairs.

Bahia Palace, an elaborately decorated palace.

The Saadian Tombs.

The Yves Saint Laurent Museum & Jardin Majorelle & the small Berber Museum. You can get all three on one ticket. If you love fashion, the bookstore at the YSL Museum is excellent – bring a tote bag! The restaurant in the garden is delicious. Try the desserts.

Musée des Confluences, archeology and there’s a famous coffee shop inside.

Djemaa El Fna- a lively (intense) square filled with tourists by day and locals on weekend nights. You can find snake charmers, sad monkeys, hunks of meat, and outdoor dining at communal tables.

Various markets: carry cash in the local currency, and bargain. Look for spices, unusual teas, necklaces, leather goods, cotton pajamas, and argan oil. Try the fresh pomegranate juice.

Leave the center, dressed appropriately (cover your limbs), and explore. There are lots of fascinating things to see. I felt more comfortable when walking with a two-meter-tall Dutchman…so go with a friend.

The Pleasures Come to London

Koenig Books, Frieze Art Fair 2021

After years away from my second home (in my heart, not in bricks) I finally flew to London. Aside from museum-hopping and eating Indian food, I visited the coolest bookshops in the city, discovered new authors, distributed my book, met up with friends, and had some wild times in East London. The highlight of the trip was seeing my art book, ‘The Pleasures of Hackney Road’, at Koenig Books in Frieze Art Fair. 

Here’s where you can find my art book in London:

The Broadway Bookshop. Burley Fisher Books. Pages of Hackney. Gosh!. Housmans Books. Koenig Books at Frieze.

It’s also available in 12 other bookstores and art museums. Write me on Instagram @thefortunyverse if you would like to find a copy at your nearest bookseller.

The second draft...

My book at Gosh! in Soho

Summertime Words

 

My discreet summer look.

Have you read all the articles and juicy interviews in my portfolio? Check out my conversations with Jeremy Scott, Kaws, Futura 2000, Massive Attack, KR, Nan Golden, Alec Soth, Alan Aldridge, and many more at margofortuny.com .

Have a great summer!

Come Into The Fortunyverse

Exciting news: I have a new artist website! You can see my drawings, performance art (yes, I love rubbing paint on naked skin, dancing at bus stops,  and lifting shamans into the air), photography, and paintings at thefortunyverse.com. Check out www.thefortunyverse.com and let me know what you think.

Use Your Illusions: My First Exhibition in Madrid

This year has been hell at times and yet there came a point where I woke up and started acting with urgency. Between the global pandemic, two members of my family in life-or-death situations (unrelated to Covid), and the intense loneliness of spending so much time alone, I thought 2020 might break me. But at the end of summer, suddenly I took action. I wanted something good to happen! I created an artist book and distributed it to numerous bookstores and art museums, where it was received well. I started drawing and painting like my life depended on it. I was invited to participate in two important exhibitions (details are in the previous two posts.) And in December 2020, I had my first dual exhibition in Madrid. 

'Use Your Illusions' examined the purpose of illusions and memories, nostalgia and desire, questioning whether these trips into imagination are positive or detrimental to one's present reality. The exhibition featured both my figurative paintings and the surreal analog collages of the Spanish artist Ella Jazz. We both lived in California at the same time, before meeting in Madrid, and this experience greatly influenced our artwork and worldview.

'Use Your Illusions,' Exhibition View, 2020

'Walking Up To Your Street', Margo Fortuny

Acrylic on canvas,  26 x 18 cm

'The Fighter', Margo Fortuny, 2020

Acrylic on canvas, 80 x 60 cm

Beto looking at 'Love Me When I'm Gone' by M. Fortuny. 

Photo: Larry Balboa

'The Trip', Margo Fortuny, 2020

Acrylic on canvas, 50 x 65 cm

'The Lover', Margo Fortuny, 2020

Acrylic on canvas, 70 x140 cm

'Use Your Illusions' Madrid 2020. Photo: Larry Balboa

Here I am outside 'Use Your Illusions', at Pavilion. 

December 2020. Photo: Diego & The Blue Sea

For more images of my artwork check out my Instagram @margofortuny .

Dear Jack Kerouac: Reading in Gala Knorr's 'Tumbleweeds'

A few weeks ago, I read Gala Knörr's letters to Jack Kerouac, along with four other artists, for her exhibition 'Tumbleweeds' in Bilbao. We read lively letters in a seance-like performance on Zoom (due to the pandemic), in between jazz played by a live saxophonist. The reading premiered on December 14th on Youtube. (Mine is in English at 36:10 if you're curious.)

"Tumbleweeds' is a project based on the fictitious epistolary relationship that artist Gala Knörr established with her "silent mentor" Jack Kerouac. A mentor whose answers could only be found within his oeuvre. Modelling her writing after Satori in Paris, a cognac infused short novel based on Jack Kerouac's search for his family origins on a ten day trip to Paris and Brest, in which the author alludes to a spiritual awakening, yet finds said 'kick in the eye' in a series of Parisian pilgrimage-like extravagant encounters. Knörr narrates similar anecdotical rendez-vous over a four month period at a residency at Cité Internationale des Arts. Utilizing the figure as the one of a confidant, she invokes Jack's spirit, in a seance like performative activation reading of her letters as if we were in a 'Shakespeare&Co' tea party."  -Nicolas de Ribou/ Gala Knörr

The exhibition is on until January 8, 2021 at Torre de Arriz. Go see it if you're in Bilbao. 

I Danced with a Flautist: Performing in William Mackrell's Exhibition at The Ryder Gallery

Last month I had the pleasure of performing in 'Hold Up', William Mackrell's opening piece of his exhibition 'Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night' at The Ryder Gallery. The live performance (with all safety measures in effect) featured the British artist, Alicia Cano, Manuel León, and I acting as a band. I danced around with maracas and gripped the microphone like a lead singer, trying not to channel Axl Rose more than necessary. We interpreted various songs Mackrell had recorded from phone hotlines as a "monument to waiting." How relevant for 2020!

The exhibition at The Ryder, runs until January 29th, 2021. Go see it if you're in Madrid, then wander around Lavapies and go out to lunch. Tia Carlota and Los Chuchis are fun spots to have a bite to eat. 

William Mackrell, Hold Up, 2020
Live performance at The RYDER, Madrid. 19th November 2020
15 min. Air Europa 3.57′ / NHS England Switchboard 3.28′ / Direct Auto 2.10′ / TeamKnowHow 3.02′
Performers: William Mackrell, Alicia Cano, Margo Fortuny and Manuel León.

William Mackrell, Hold Up, 2016-2020 (detail)
Record player, Hi-Fi System (110 x 60 cm), steel hole, speakers & cable
6 Vinyl discs Sound loop, variable Display cabinet (120 x 90 cm)

William Mackrell, Do not go gentle into that good night.

Installation view at The RYDER, Madrid, November 2020

Phone footage of the performance, 2020

Photographs courtesy of The Ryder, Madrid. 

 

The Pleasures of Hackney Road

This year I wrote and illustrated my first artist book! The Pleasures of Hackney Road: Five Tales of Wildness features drawings and stories about my adventures in London. You can find it at two major contemporary art institutions (The CCCB and La Casa Encendida) and at numerous bookstores. There's also a Spanish edition, Los Placeres de Hackney Road, which is now in its second printing. 

You can write me on Instagram @margofortuny if you would like to order a copy internationally or stock it. 

It's the first in a series of books about different cities I've lived in. What cities do you dream of moving to, if you just move spontaneously?

Holding my book in Madrid

The inside of 'The Pleasures of Hackney Road' by Margo Fortuny

A drawing from 'The Pleasures of Hackney Road' by Margo Fortuny

At El Imparcial in Madrid

At the CCCB bookshop in Barcelona

I Love London

I returned to London last week, just for a few days. It felt like coming home, walking the familiar streets, seeing friends, and eating delicacies that are hard to find in Spain, like spicy Indian food or very soft chocolate chip cookies. I love listening to friends speaking numerous languages on the tube and watching the stylish people rush around the city. On Thursday night, my friend Sarah took me to a Halloween-themed magazine launch party in a members club. The host handed us red cocktails in mock blood-transfusion bags with a long straw, before introducing us to a flirtatious couple. Afterwards we went to Ridley Road for a dance in a bar with wood-paneled walls. I think a Klaxon was playing disco records that night.

Stephanie, a vegan chef, shows me her chains in Dalston

We cruised by a few more pubs before ending up at my favourite one, The Gun, in Hackney. As soon as we arrived, a petite blond in a zip-up patent leather moto suit smiled, and put her arms around me. She complimented my long blue 70s dress and the yellow flowers in my hair. I told her she reminded me of Marianne Faithfull in 'The Girl on a Motorcycle'. I ordered a Paloma and the bartender recognized me from ten years ago, when we used to go to the same parties. I bumped into a friend who invited us to an Italodisco warehouse party in Hackney Wick. A tall, slim, androgynous girl with short dark hair caught my eye. She wore a sheer black blouse, a minimal black bra, a scrap of black underwear...and fringed ass-less chaps. Her boyish looks and clean face added a casual touch to the outfit. It felt like Prince was in the room. She was enchanting. She was from Georgia. We all danced and mingled until the bar closed.

The Dove pub

The rest of my days in London were filled with museum exhibitions and fascinating conversations with beloved friends. I reunited with a friend who had been living in jungles in Thailand and Peru for years. We met as teenagers at a rave in Vauxhall, lived together (she kindly let me stay on her sofa when I first moved to London), worked together (she opened a burlesque supper club and asked me to DJ there), met up on an island in Thailand six years ago...and rode a moped on rocky roads, while a bird flew through my hair, almost causing us to fly off a cliff. I told her to write a book about all the things she learned in the jungle. We drank tea, ate cookies, and told sexy stories.

Homemade cookies by the multi-talented Andreas

Another afternoon I went to the V&A Museum to revisit the excellent Mary Quant show and have tea with my friend Toby. (Quant probably invented the modern miniskirt, thus she is my hero.) I met Toby at a Turkish pool hall in Dalston back when Mark Ronson drank there, surrounded by girls dancing until their shoes broke. (I was one of those girls... I lifted up my friend Karen in an attempt to replicate the final scene in 'Dirty Dancing' and though she is light, on the way down one heel broke off.) The pool hall days are over. Now we meet in art museums. He told me about contextualizing my art with theory, and recommended analysing what I love and hate to arrive at a deeper meaning when creating artworks...

The Ed Ruscha rooms at the Tate Modern

Below is a list of my favourite spots in London, and I'll post some pictures tonight on Instagram @thefortunyverse

FOOD:

Indian food: Dishoom in Shoreditch (they have a mocktail that tastes like snow, it's amazing.)
Tayaabs: a popular, inexpensive, chaotic, classic place behind the mosque in Whitechapel. Order the Saag Aloo and the Peshwari naan. Both places have long lines so try to go off-peak or early.
Sweets: Gelupo has dreamy gelato and the best hot chocolate outside of Torino. Get a small gianduja hot chocolate with whipped cream and go back for the ice cream another day so you don't have a diabetic arrest.
Hummingbird Bakery has the best cupcakes. I like Black Bottom or the gingerbread one.
Ben's Cookies. There are numerous branches. These cookies are great to bring to friends. They're soft, chewy, and very chocolately.
Brunch/ Hangover Food: Stone Cave in Dalston has a wonderful shakshuka (eggs poached in a delicious tomato stew, spiced with paprika, nutmeg, and chili peppers.)
The Diner (Dalston, Shoreditch, Soho) has In &Out-style 'hangar fries', a great vegan breakfast burger and thick milkshakes, with or without booze.

ART:

Usually the Barbican and the V & A have the most unforgettable exhibitions, though you should also see what's on at the Hayward Gallery, the Photographers Gallery in Soho, the Tate Modern and the Tate Britain. If you're going to London soon, check out the Blake show at the Tate Britain and the Lisa Bruce exhibition. Skip the Olafur E at the Tate Modern. (He's usually fantastic but this show is claustrophobic and jammed with people taking selfies. Go upstairs to the free Ed Ruscha rooms instead.) The Tate Modern gift shop is very good too. Peckham has lots of cool little galleries. Sprueth Magers is usually fun and has hip openings.

SHOPPING/ PRESENTS:

Portobello Road: On Friday morning there is a large vintage clothes and antiques market. There's usually nowhere to change so wear a leotard or tights. Next to the vintage stalls, Ladbroke Grove side, there's a little store called What Katie Did that sells a variety of seamed stockings and 50s-style lingerie. I found a beautiful 1970s Biba-style jacket for 40 pounds (after bargaining) and a blue leather Prada belt for 10 pounds. The Biba dresses were 380 pounds, so I only glanced at them longingly.

Broadway Market on Saturday, around lunchtime/ early afternoon. There are 2 excellent art bookstores here and in the market itself, there's a cool French girl who sells wool kilts and retro pieces. Borough Olives sells tasty pestos, harissa, and delicious green olives. This is a fun market for people-watching, pesto sampling, and it's not crowded or touristy like Borough Market. The Dove pub, on the same street,  has a large variety of international beers as well as board games.

Liberty London: A cool but classic, expensive store in a Tudor-style building, made partially of old ships. Upstairs, there are bolts of the famous Liberty-print fabrics. The perfume and stationary sections are interesting too. Amongst the notebooks and pastel pens, they sell gift wrap that looks like old maps.

Paks: They sell all kinds of cheap but intriguing make up in hard-to-find colours, as well as wigs and beauty products. There's one on Ridley Road in Dalston.

The High Street: Holland & Barrett has every kind of vitamin you can imagine, usually on sale, as well as honey soap and health-food store snacks and beauty products. Topshop in Oxford Circus - yes, it's intense, but they still have fun clothes. Right now the Fiorucci x Adidas collection is worth checking out. Boots has all kinds of make up, bandaids, and general pharmacy items. I like the Avène moisturizer and the Kalms One-a-night natural chill pills.

The Girl on a Motorcycle