This weekend check out a new store in Zürich, reflect on self-portraits from modern masters in Humlebæk, and catch Swedish singer Jen Lekman playing live.
1. RETAIL: ZÜRICH
—Townhouse
Design label and store Townhouse has just opened its second retail space in the up-and-coming Zürich-West. Launched in 2009 by Mia Zeltner and Sebastiaan Vadasz, Townhouse offers locally-made design and fashion accessories as well as a beautiful range of quality stationary. Set in the recently-built Frau Gerolds Garten, the new venue is shared with Swiss retailer Edition Populaire. Both offer stylish accessories, cosmetics and must-have everyday tools sourced from Switzerland and abroad.
Geroldstrasse 23. Open Monday to Friday 11.00-19.00, Saturday 11.00-18.00
ilovetownhouse.com
2. BALLET: STOCKHOLM
—Mozart: Great Mass in C minor
It is said Mozart’s Great Mass in C minor was primarily a declaration of love to his young wife Constanze in 1783. Yet its intriguing backstory doesn’t convey why the large-scale work remained unfinished. To bring the mass into the 21st century (and to Stockholm), Belgian choreographer Stijn Celis has created a powerful and enchanting work for the Royal Swedish Ballet: 17 dancers, four soloists, The Royal Opera Chorus and The Royal Opera Orchestra are all participating in this unmissable production.
Royal Swedish Opera, Gustav Adolfs Torg. Until 5 October
operan.se
3. FOOD: LONDON
—Apero restaurant
Situated in the original 19th-century vaults of the Ampersand Hotel in South Kensington, Apero serves a Mediterranean mix of fresh fish and Italian-influenced meals cooked up by head chef Chris Golding. The interior features a marble bar, an intricate aluminium chandelier and alludes to the area’s Victorian past as a cultural centre. Dishes include gnocchi with rainbow chard and smoked Scamorza and stone bass, sumac and beetroot risotto.
2 Harrington Road. Open daily 6.30-22.30. Serving brunch on Saturday and Sunday 12.00-16.00
aperorestaurantandbar.com
4. EXHIBITION: HUMLEBÆK
—Self-Portrait
Can an artist ever accurately capture their own identity? This is one of the questions Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, in the outskirts of Copenhagen is raising with its new Self-Portraits exhibition. On display are 150 rare works by 64 renowned international artists ranging from early modernists to present-day masters, including portraits by Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí, Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Edvard Munch.
Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Gl, Strandvej 13. Open Monday to Friday 11.00-20.00 and Saturday to Sunday 11.00-18.00. Until 13 January
louisiana.dk
5. MUSIC: EUROPE
—Jens Lekman
Swedish musician Jens Lekman – an introspective soul with a penchant for mildly outrageous displays of talent – is on tour in Europe. Recent album I Know What Love Isn’t, pushed his smooth brand of awkwardness further into the mainstream with playful flourishes of Jonathan Richman-esque acoustic drama. Catch Lekman on Saturday in Brighton, UK at the The Haunt, before he hops the channel to Paris’s Gaité Lyrique and Strasbourg’s La Laiterie. Dates in the Netherlands and Germany follow next week.
Jens Lekman is on tour until 26 September. Check website for full list of dates
jenslekman.com