In September, there was held a regular annual Art Fair in Copenhagen: “Art - Copenhagen".

In the exhibition, I met two Russian artists: Vladimir Chernyshev from Minsk and Vyacheslav Derevyanko from Moscow, which were exhibited at the Russian Cultural Centre in Copenhagen at that time and came to the fair to get acquainted with the modern Scandinavian art.

Their impressions of the fair are interesting in a way that they transfer a fresh view from artists of another culture and another art school in the modern Scandinavian art. A unaffected view by local traditions, fashion or competences.

Z: What is your impression about the “Art – Copenhagen”?

For the female artist Lajla Skafte Bang the creative universe became her rescue, after a car accident left her invalid. Cph- art met her in cafe Metrobar.

It all started one day while Lajla was out bycykling with her 3 yr old daughter and was knocked off her bike when a man accidently opened his car door. Lajla was thrown over the car and landed in the middle of the road on her back. Luckly her daughter was unhurt thanks being the childseat that she was still strapped to the bike. Lajla at that moment found that she was inable to walk and thus this being the start of a 3 year period of being bedridden.Although Lajla was bedridden  during this time and had almost no physical activity her mental state was not effected by this.

In 1997 Danish artist Lars Kræmmer got an idea that would turn out to be a thundering success – an idea that would develop into an international art project and a brand new currency on the world market. cph-art has put on the balaclava, loaded the revolver and kicked in the door to the Bank of International Artmoney. With one purpose only… to empty the till.

There are many versions of the story behind artmoney. One thing is certain. The creator of the concept has succeeded in producing a parallel currency in a world where the value of money is under strict and constant control. This in itself is an achievement. cph-art does not doubt it for one moment. We want to hear the story from the horse’s own mouth. So, ladies and gentlemen, we now present bank manager Lars Kræmmer and the fantastic story of artmoney. A payments arrangement that turns commercial business into an art:

Military conflict between Georgia and Russia around South Ossetia caused enormous amount of publications in the Internet as well as interviews from hot spots in newspapers and TV, but unfortunately, it is hard to find the truth in this flow of information: they contain so many confrontations, sometimes even obvious disinformation. This article is not an attempt to estimate the events, but to give a subjective opinion to them, based on the author’s personal visit to Georgia in July, 2008.

26 of July I came back from an international Russian-Georgian poetry festival in Georgia. It is hard to express with words the feelings overwhelming me:  beautiful nature, hospitality, generous and open-hearted people, tiny orthodox churches with ancient icons- I could only express my excitement in my poems, my overwhelming emotions turned into a poetic complex “Psalms for Georgia”.