May, From the Congo to Tokyo, A Cultural Calendar, 2016

hello may

Culture is on the guard and May is here. From The Congo to the stations of Tokyo, coffee and its influencers take culture seekers to new spaces, riveting historic war reads, to lakes of resurgence and the celebration of music including jazz, America’s art form. Away, lets go!

1 | London x DRC

Lets Congo. A curated art project inspired by the Congo has began its initial roasting. The passion project founded by Christina Hardy employs Square Mile roaster. Bag 01, Muungano is the project’s first effort in anticipation of visiting the Congo for Hardy’s first time during Saveur Du Kivu [ 19-21 ] which will celebrate the re-awakening of specialty coffee in a land of historic hardship. Find it in Odells, London or buy it here. www.kivu.coffee.

5-8 |New York

Fr(e)eze! For an island of cultural goodness Frieze Art Fair invites art fair lovers from around the world to Randalls Island for its annual curation of painting, sculpture and photography including over 200 galleries from 31 countries. Plan to spend time not just viewing hung works but having a seat for the talks where critical dialogue is surely to be the kind of in-real-life stimulation an appreciator of art will welcome. See you on the East River. Frieze New York 

5-8 | Austin, Texas

Touch down Texas! Defined as “a short-term shop for long term goods’ the mobile Pop Up flea makes its first residency in Austin. Its vendor include a melange of life-style goods, curated for lasting enjoyment from hand woven leather slides, mens goods, artisan made furniture and even that of coffee, which while a momentary imbibing, can leave a memory of a lifetime, here’s looking at ‘Our Country of Friends’  Seventh Flag Coffee. View event details and day times here.

13-22 | Ka’u, Hawai’i

Mahalo! In the South of Hawai’i, Ka’u takes on its own coffee festival over a ten day span with the Ka’u Coffee Festival. The festival, in the tradition of Mahalo will welcome locals and visitors into an intimate look of its culture and coffee with free music, coffee talks, roastery tours, star gazing – because with all that beautiful origin farm land how could one not. A special highlight will include the one-time annual hike up to tour Ka’u Mountain’s Water Systems. Kau Coffee Festival

16 – Aug, 23rd | NY

The Stage is Ours Before every summer officially starts, its often kicked-off often with a musical stage,  where players from around the world grace it as audiences fill its grounds. One of the biggest stages returns with its annual programming across all the boroughs of New York, its SummerStage.  This year, Jazz, an American art form receives the honor of being the genre of musical distinction. Celebrating its centennial through some of its greatest pioneers hear everyone from Ron Carter, Kamasi Washington, Diane Reeves to a performance of Chicago.  For a full calendar list that includes musical recitals, screenings and acts like Chairlift, Public Enemy and Rudimental visit here.

18 | Australia

The Coffee Man Doc. Once upon a time, one year ago, the coffee world roared. It roared for a man from Australia, named Sasa Sestic of Ona Coffee – roaster, barista and cafe owner – who became the World Barista Champion, championing the coffee, greenhouse methods and coffee born from a washed carbonic macerated method, he won with a presentation based upon a symbiotic relationship. Grab a coffee for this coffee man premiere in his home country. Trailer here.

Americans in Tokyo

Three American coffee shops have taken a liking to the city of Tokyo: Blue Bottle Coffee, [Aoyama, Kiyosumi], Gorilla Coffee Shibuya and Verve Coffee Roasters Shinjuki, While these coffee fronts are navigating the language of specialty coffee in another land, eyes on Bear Pond Espresso should not be averted. Yes, the local roasters and coffee shop owners in Tokyo have given the culture something to talk about as well, ones eyes should not be averted from Bear Pond Espresso.  Creating within his own homeland, there’s Coffee Dust Poke, a method for great coffee, well from anywhere. See video here.

Coffee Table Read, LA/Vietnam

Find your coffee, grab a table and lift this book off one. The 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction is The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen (Grove Press).  A red jacket, with a title in yellow hand writing, is written by the Vietnamese American professor whose 2015 release coincided  with the 40th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War.  Beginning in 1975 a synopsis details, “follows a nameless spy who has infiltrated the South Vietnamese army and flees with its remnants to America. His mission: report on their efforts to continue their lost war. As the aide to a general who refuses to admit defeat, he observes the struggles of the Vietnamese refugees to survive in a melancholic Los Angeles. Among them, the general believes, are communist agents. So our spy’s double life continues, hunting communists while helping the general organize a covert army. Their mission: to invade Vietnam and take it back.” VietNguyen.Books