Who cares how much the Eames chairs cost? They’re Eames chairs, which is more than can be said for the party favourites on the government’s pay-roll.
Joseph Muscat launches the programme of events for celebrating national festivities this year, yesterday at his office.
Times of Malta yesterday carried a big story, clearly leaked by the Corto Farrugia ensemble, telling us how much the Bad Nationalist Government spent on Eames chairs for the new parliament building, at the advice of Renzo Piano’s office.
It also reported that the Labour government must press on with the deal because a contact was signed (errm, well, yes, obviously) and just in case readers don’t understand this, the government is the government is the government no matter which party forms it.
“There will be penalties to pay if we break the contract,” government sources said. So very reluctantly, they are going to have to receive and use those iconic chairs designed by Charles and Ray Eames. How cross they must be.
But whatever the cost of those chairs, it is still a whole lot less than the cost of all those party favourites and lackeys, those billboard people and Super One reporters, that they put on the state payroll. And unlike this ragbag of the undeserving, the Eames chairs are, to use the vernacular, il-vera wertit ghax dak siggu ta’ veru.
When I read the story, I wondered aloud why the government had chosen that particular day to leak it, given that it competed with Muscat’s ‘land of opportunity speech’ in the same edition. In fact, it knocked the prime minister off the front page and onto page four.
By the evening, of course, I knew. There was a big press conference at the prime minister’s office in which we were told of the “63 events”, including a performance by Brian May, all scheduled for the hyped-up national festivities this year. That story about the cost of the parliament chairs was intended to preempt any questions about the cost of all this self-serving frivolity. But as it turned out, nobody asked the prime minister how much he is going to spend on all those concerts and parties and ‘events’, perhaps because now even journalists have been brainwashed into fearing being thought ‘negative’.
Or maybe the Brian May performance is going to be a self-funding exercise in which, rather than being a national celebration, it is going to be a concert for those who can pay for tickets. This doesn’t bother me at all, because I’m a liberal not a socialist. But then for heaven’s sake don’t call it part of the national celebrations as any promoter might have done the same thing in any other year, and in fact, it has happened.
Now journalists should shed all fear of negativity and start asking questions about which promoter is taking care of the Brian May gig, and why. I suspect the answer is going to be quite Taghna Lkoll, though as in ‘lackey’ rather than Labour.
17 Comments Comment
Reply to M. Click here to cancel reply
Is this pompous unveiling of the Brian May concert in this ‘land of opportunity’ an invitation to thank the Great Leader Kim Yong Un, err sorry Joseph Muscat for this lovely gift? A North Korean attitude in this so-called democracy.
NnG
In the national interest, since the Prime Minister will be meeting some Very Important People like Brian May this year, let me give him some advice on the Triangle That Should Never Be Seen.
I refer, of course, to that wedge of shirt plus belt buckle plus a bit of tie that can be seen on the photo above.
Why, what were you thinking?
A suit jacket should fit so that the belt and the navel are hidden when the top button is closed. If they peep out, then the jacket is way too tight.
On a man of normal height, it looks bad.
On a short man like the Prime Minister, it looks ridiculous.
Short men should wear high-waisted trousers, and should make sure there is an unbroken line from feet to top jacket button. The white triangle of shirt breaks that line, and underlines how short and squat you are.
I wish some intrepid paparazzi would get a shot of the PM in something other than a suit jacket. Then I’d be able to see his real shape and give him some practical advice on the right fit for his jackets. Because right now he looks very pear-shaped.
Just like things in general.
I doubt if you want to see his real shape.Baxxter, he’s starting to resemble Mallia.
They can’t carry a judge’s impeachment forward but a contract for chairs is untouchable.
Does anybody believe anything they say?
In fact the fcn website, http://www.fcn.org.mt/event/event-six/
list a cost for the Brian may event. It does not specify the cost which still has to be confirmed.
I think you better explain that Charles and Ray Eames were a husband and wife team, who remain to this day the most prolific designer duo, defining, American then International mid-century modern, superseding the Bauhaus machine aesthetic.
So iconic are their designs that their chairs, even the ones built later under copyright, actually increase in value.
Suffice to say anyone who produced these under licence proudly put it on their portfolio, Edra, Cassina, et al.
But then, this is taste we’re talking about.
I am more worried about those poor Eames chairs being used by asses not appreciative of what they are sitting on. Are they (the chairs) going to be insured? Will they be taken care of?
If the chairs could speak they would be grumbling and protesting on the quality of ass they have been subjected to.
Shall we guess which company is going to be in charge of the lighting and light effects at the Brian May gig?
Baxxter, I think I should be worried. I have just found out that even my 13-year-old daughter has become a fan of yours (as is my septuagenarian mother).
Ooops! that was meant to be posted under Baxxter’s sartorial commentary about Muscat.
Well, if we split the bracket we’ll hit on the right age.
The median age is 42.
My god. The answer to life, the universe and everything.
So the thousands spent on classic design for the highest institution in the land are a shameful waste of money, but the millions Muscat will be paying Henley and Something are OK ghax dawk ha jgibulna biljun ewro x’nonfqu bil-haqq.
There you go:
http://ooii.com.mt/ticketing/Ticket.aspx?EventID=dd81e4fb-2874-4c79-8673-21e88eec2450
Thank God that Piano had the foresight to include some decent furniture to grace the new building that, in time, will become as much an icon of Valletta as the Carmelite Church dome now is.
Had he not, this government would probably have filled it with trashy chrome and faux leather made-in-China junk.
The concern of the PM should not be the fact that we have Eames chairs but whether these will be treated with the respect they deserve and to ensure that these renowned chairs will not become pearls before swine – biskuttini f’halq il-hmir.