Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 27.04.2005

On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the end of World War Two, the Pushkin Museum in Moscow has put on an exhibition "Archaeology of War. Return from Nothingness". The collection of 350 vases, statues and frescoes, on display for the first time, is drawn from the museum's holdings of German art looted during World War Two. A slap in the face for the German art and museum scene and, for the three German curators interviewed by Regina Mönch and Heinrich Wefing, evidence that the German policy on looted art has failed. One of those interviewed, Dieter Lehmann, President of the Stiftung für Preussischer Kulturbesitz, laments the lack of modesty in German politics: "One sees clearly that the question of looted art in Russia has been dealt with in a very propagandistic way in the last ten years. It has become a domestic issue of the first order. And on the other hand, for the Chancellor, the economic partnership with Russia is a foremost concern. In the context of this discussion, the looted art becomes a footnote. We have no practically no objective level on which to make decisions."


Neue Zürcher Zeitung, 27.04.2005

Franz Haas comments on Italian excitement during the national holiday on April 25, which marked the 60th anniversary of the Allied liberation. "The Right does not want to celebrate the liberation from fascism, and the Left is polishing up the resistance myth." It is not enough that once again, Berlusconi has ducked out of participating in the celebrations. In addition, a book by historian Alberto Cavaglion, seeking to "demystify the 'embalmed myth' of the Resistenza", has poured more oil on the fire. "In many points, Cavaglion's observations are correct. The myth that the good partisans founded a new, decent Italy all on their own, has been in disrepute for a long time now. But many find it disturbing that the book bolsters those who have been resisting the myth of the Resistenza for many years, even while in public office. The right wing of Berlusconi's government, and its powerful media apparatus, are working away feverishly at levelling the differences between former enemies. They seek to honour those who fought for the fascist Repubblica di Salo (the last headquarters of Mussolini's government during World War II – ed.) the way anti-fascist partisans are honoured."


Süddeutsche Zeitung, 27.04.2005

Jürgen Otten reports on Estonian conductor Anu Tali. Together with her sister Kadri, Anu Tali founded the Nordic Symphony Orchestra, based in Tallinn. "Anu Tali started her career as a pianist, and is well versed in the classical repertoire. She says herself that she would rather create sounds with an orchestra than with a piano. Trained in her home town Tallinn, she soon felt the need for more and travelled to Petersburg. The Russian school is famous, notorious even, for its stringency and rigidity. Anu Tali, today an shining example of discipline, thrived in this environment. Hardness helps if you are not a genius. She is no genius, but she is an extremely good learner. She is agile, intelligent and passionate. All of this was reflected in her first concerts. The Russians came to love her musical style, her emphases, her boldness, her way of blasting piano versions of symphonies by Brahms, Mahler or Tchaikowsky into the recital hall, evoking the sounds of an entire orchestra." These talents are still admired in her conducting today. "Anu Tali seems rather fragile when not on stage. But this impression disappears the moment she takes up the baton. Then she changes into the unchallenged, authoritarian boss, conducting with an almost Prussian attitude."


Die Welt, 27.04.2005

Holder Kreitling and Berthold Seewald ask British wine critic Stuart Pigott why the most influential wine critics like Hugh Johnson, Janice Robinson and himself come from England, a country known better for its puritanism than its vineyards. Pigott explains that critics from France, Italy and Spain "have views that are nationally limited and not exportable. A Brit doesn't have to push his own country's wine producers." Pigott does not believe that German wine is condemned to notoriety in the long run. Not only is its quality steadily improving, trendiness also plays a role: "What's mega-out today is likely to be cool tomorrow. The underdog rises." Pigott's evidence: "I do an annual event for the German AIDS foundation. This year, three young vintners calling themselves 'Pfalz' came. They acted pretty cool. They've created a new wine: 'Sexmachine'. There were girls there. I asked them what they were doing. Their answer: I'm a wine groupie." While not surprised that German consumers are willing to spend a fair amount on wine, Pigott is perplexed by other forms of German frugality. "It's astounding that one of the wealthiest and successful countries in the world spends so tremendously little on groceries. As if one was still living in post-war times. What's the problem? It seems to me that the desire for status objects, like two holidays a year or cars, play a major role."


Frankfurter Rundschau, 27.04.2005

Elke Buhr has visited "Coolhunters", a current exhibition at the Städtische Galerie in Karlsruhe. "Even in times where commercialism is all-powerful, curators Birgit Richard, Klaus Neumann-Braun, Sabine Himmelsbach and Peter Weibel hold to ideas that were prevalent in cultural studies in the 1980s. For them, youth culture is both conformity and resistance, mainstream and avantgarde, and young people appropriate mass commodities in their own, original way. The youths then modify them, combining cheap stereotypes to create their own distinct look. The exhibition presents young people as coolhunters on the lookout for the new: they are fashion hunters, trendscouts, continually redefining coolness on the basis of what the media or their group offers them. They are eclectic, unpredictable and always one step ahead of marketing strategies."