Jamie was sweating profusely. Her room at this ramshackled, old motel inn wasnโt worth much, but the least you would expect was an air-conditioning system that functioned normally. But no! That was way too civilised for this run-down inn.
Getting out of her bed, she decided to go outside and have a ciggy on the veranda. Unlocking her door, she stepped out into the cool, dark air. It was so silent here, and the parking lot facing her room was completely empty.
Lighting up her cigarette, she realised that this was her last one, sheโd have to go downstairs and buy a packet from one of the cigarette dispensers she had seen earlier. Taking a long slow inhalation of nicotine-filled air, she allowed the air to enter her lungs. After what seemed like a minute, she exhaled it out. Wow! That felt so good, so much like home. Going in for the second round, she let her eyes wander around the scenery surrounding her.
Thick woods covered the outskirts of the property, full with trees, shrubs and green leaves. The sound of the rustling leaves, moving gently in coordination with the light breeze was so relaxing. It actually was much cooler here than inside that furnace like room of hers. It was a good decision on her part, coming outside to cool down!
Strangely her eyes settled on something white far ahead, in the bushes. It seemed like a statue of some sort, a little girl maybe, she could tell because it was the only thing that wasnโt swaying with the wind, in her line of sightโฆ.
Read the rest tomorrow on ‘chriselda.blog’ – Poetry & Prose
Laurence Koutny – Founder of ‘Art of Chocolate’ & Winner of 2013 Belgian Business Manager Trends Woman award
Hello Laurence, it is such a pleasure and honour to have you speak with me today! You have over 17 years in the chocolate industryโฆTruly amazing! Could you tell us some more about you, the woman behind all this knowledge and experience?
Hello, nice to meet you. Indeed, I am passionate about chocolate. As a kid, I was a fan of my Cote d’Or, as a student I started to discover the world of the candy-bar, when I finished my university, what a dreamโฆโฆMars employed me on the campus. I worked there for 3 years understanding the world of multinationals and chocolate.
I then moved to Leviโs and travelled a lot. After years, my passion for chocolate came back and I got the dream job @ Godiva Chocolates. I was in charge of Marketing, the Retail design and then the entire innovation internationally.
I realised how much the Belgian savoir-faire was highly respected and recognised around the world. I then thought about how important it was to continue to claim our savoir-faire.
Your experience is overwhelming considering the various fields you have worked in, to mention a few: Accessory, Fashion, Sport, Educationโฆ.Which one of these fields spoke to you the most and why?
I love fashion as itโs a continuous innovation process. You need to reinvent all the time and make people feel good in what they wear.
I love sport as itโs a must to live and to feel good and more importantly experience nature.
I love chocolate as itโs the best indulgence in life and then finally whatโs best to pass legacy and educate people on what you love.
Which project has been the most difficult for you in your entire career?
On the 30 years of my career, there have been several.
Probably, the most recent one was the celebration of the 90th anniversary of Godiva in February 2016, where I organised an event with 150 journalists from all around the world. This event happened between the terrorist attack in Paris in November 2015 and the one in March 2016 in Brussels.
The level of stress was very high at our event, with everybody thinking that an attack might occur while we organised a week of events for these very important journalists.
You also were the winner of the 2013 Belgian Business Manager Trends Woman Award! That is a prestigious title to have! What were your feelings when they announced you as the winner?
I felt so thrilled as I had no idea I would win. It was a tough process to get there but when they call you on stage, I felt so proudโฆโฆ..amazing experience!
You are the founder of โArt of Chocolateโ. Tell us about your journey in getting this huge project started?
It was a natural journeyโฆafter 17 years in chocolate, passionate about it, convinced that we have major talents in Belgium on the matter, I thought it was a must to share this savoir-faire worldwide.
I talked about my academy with highly respected people in the industry, to teach everything about chocolate from the bean to the consumer experience, to buying chocolate. They followed me on my thinking and supported me in the adventure.
Has โChocolateโ changed your life, because I know that the masterclasses you offer, do train and change other peopleโs lives?
Yes it did. I saw so many things in life but the most amazing thing is to see every smile on each face when people taste chocolate, not only chocolate but good chocolate. The nice thing is to keep contact with the participants after they pass by our masterclasses and see how they applied their learning.
One opened a chocolate shop in Ghana, another one launched a food truck ‘bean to bar’, and another one re-merchandised his entire storeโฆ.so many nice stories!
I am so curious together with all my readers, to know more about your masterclasses. Could you tell us some more on that?
In the heart of Brussels, ‘Art of Chocolate’ delivers dynamic masterclasses aimed at chocolatiers, chocolate entrepreneurs, chocolate professionals in any field or anyone with a passion for chocolate from anywhere in the world, and interested in learning from the best to take their chocolate skills to a new level.
The philosophy is to
cover all the steps from the bean to the consumer experience and cover the
entire chain.
Our interactive masterclasses are centred around the following themes:
The chocolate making process for starting chocolatiers
Advanced chocolate making – Bean to bar
Sensory – Creating innovative, premium products
Building a successful chocolate business through developing rich customer experience
Please share with us some of your expertise in building a strong, coherent team and its impact on oneโs business!
People are the base of everything if you want to succeed in business! It is crucial to have people with the same passion, respect and vision. With โArt of Chocolateโ, I only met fully passioned, talented people who are ready to share their knowledge with others.
Everybody respects each other for
their competency and the way they complement each other towards one same goal
to train about the Belgian chocolate savoir-faire.
I replicated a recipe that I used during the last 30 years with the large numbers of teams I have had to manage.
Have there been other role-models that you have looked up to, or that have influenced you in some way?
There have been many people who had a real impact on my life. From a famous side, it goes from Mandela to Madonna to MรจreThรฉrรฉsa (Mother Teresa) to Arรฉtha Franklin to Simone Veil to Jorge Donn to Stromae to finally some amazing chocolatiers such as Laurent Gerbaud, Pierre Marcolini, Jean-Christophe Hubert from Milenisme, Patrick Roger, Stephane Leroux and many others for their beliefs and passion!
Then on my career side, with 23 different bosses, you have some who really show you the paths and those who you really donโt want to be like, and you learn a lot from that too.
What is your advice to young entrepreneurs?
I wouldnโt say enough, have the passion for what you do, believe in what you do with concrete facts to validate your idea and be honest to admit the skills you miss and surround yourself with others who have those skills, to allow you to shine in your best qualities.
You must have a very busy schedule. What does a normal workday look like to you?
After a good breakfastโฆ.. it goes from managing the social network to recruiting participants; having to contact them to understand their real motivation. To develop new courses with teachers and to meet people for consultancy jobs, to organise sessions and prepare all the material.
Days go fastโฆ..I constantly meet new fascinating people with the same passion for food and more especially for Chocolate.
The other day, I met an incredibly passionate ‘perfume’ guy, who was developing the best perfumes you would have never smelled before, in his garage in Brussels .
What do you do in your free time, and how do you manage to make time for it?
After having been in corporation for 30 years moving to Independent is a challenge! I want to be outside all the time but so much to do โฆโฆ..I spend time with my 2 kids (or they do with me as they become older๐) and party with my friends.
I walk a lot, bike a lot , play golf and travel when I can to discover new things.
What is next for youโฆyour next big project?
I have seven sessions to organise from now till end October. 3 very exciting confidential consulting missions in the chocolate business and I am preparing the whole schedule for 2020 with new, exciting modules.
How can my readers contact you, find your work?
The best way is to visit our website: www.artofchocolate.be or contact me at laurence@artofchocolate.be
Murielle Xhrouet is Belgian living near Liรจge, claiming ownership to that spontaneous, warm city. She turns 52 this year and has been a stewardess for over 30 years. Murielle thinks that she was really made for the job as she prefers meeting new people from all over the world. She is passionate about otherโs lives, she learns and grows through them. She has two children; a boy and a girl aged19 and 22. She started painting about 3 years ago and it has changed her life.
Her grandfather and her father painted. As one of her two brothers is blessed with the talent of drawing, she never dared to express herself and considered ‘the place’ to be already taken!
Until she got depressed a few years ago and needed something to get out of it.ย Murielle started to paint at night (so no one could look at her), on the freshly repainted white wall of her living room. She cut, ripped, glued, painted and at first, it surprised her kids in a bad way! But when it was finished, they loved it including her partner, who immediately bought her some canvas. Her brother saw the wall and said : “Murielle, You are the artist of the family.โ Those very simple and innocent words gave her the boost she needed. She finally gave herself the permission to become an artist!
Hi Murielle, welcome to ART-IS-IN! Could you tell our readers a little bit about who you are?
Hi Chriselda! My high sensitivity has made me suffer a lot but I am working in the acceptance of it. I know it gives me my creativity. I am very extravert but getting older has given me a quieter personality and I can sometimes be very discreet to give place to others. Humour is one of the most important thing to me, I am always looking for fun or even wacky people. I have no patience and everything has to be entertaining at a certain point with the risk of losing my attention. To get bored is the worst for me. If no one makes jokes, I will take the place. I have no confidence in myself and even suffer from the syndrome of the impostor because I am a self-taught artist. But I love to laugh about myself, it de-dramatises everything. I need emotions and art is the best place for them.
Resignation
Tell us about your art style or process.
I like to say about my paintings that they have a high filling rate and it is your turn to decide if it is chaotic, tiring, tormented, troubled or on the opposite colorful, peaceful, telling stories, joyful.ย One sure thing is that one painting has two sides : one from far and one from close.ย Being far from it gives you an expression of an emotion and being close reveals a lot of details sometimes shocking, sometimes fun, sometimes serious. I usually use collages and acrylic together.
My photos are different, they are more simple and I take pictures of things you would never make a picture of.ย I am not interested in nature or large views.ย I love to add a nano-fiction that I write myself, it is a little text, like I took it out of a novel. I really would like to make a book out of it. The combination of a photo and a short text gives a higher emotion, at least in my work.ย
I have many projects and I
have decided to stop exhibitions for a while to concentrate on the phase of
creation. I am busy at the moment with
some new collages that I will put under a plexi in a smaller size of what I
usually do.
Novocaine
Where does your inspiration come from?
I paint the moment, I paint my feelings and my emotions.ย I donโt calculate anything.ย If I donโt like what I have done, it is simply that it is not finished.ย I express myself spontaneously.
I am very much of a feminist in the sense of women should have the same respect and consideration as men, as simply as that.ย I find religions not helping women.ย But as a paradox, I love religious art and I love to mix my anger and my love of its art. I have never understood how people can truly believe that their religion is the right one, that the god they pray to is the right one.ย Isnโt it arrogant to be sure that the other millions of people are wrong when you have chosen your side?ย I am an atheist but I am not sure if I am right.ย
Skin
I also like putting sex in
my paintings because it is too much a taboo.
I also have a problem with Mickey Mouse and I love to mock him and
Disney in general as a symbol of the right-thinking people and as a symbol of the
easy solution to make your kids good little soldiers in the capitalist world.
It is also a way for me to mock us, parents giving too much to our kids without
being able to say no. Saying โFuck Mickeyโ is refusing things that are too
smooth, too conventional.
Have there been other artists/role-models or books that played a key role on your artistic journey?
Abstract expressionism is
my first influence.
With my job, I have been walking everywhere where I could find art.ย Museums, exhibits, galleries, streets, shopsโฆ It is impossible to say who I love, there are too many but Egon Schiele comes first with Gustav Klimt.
ย If I had to choose two contempory artists it would be the Japonese Chiharu Shiota for her delicacy and patience and the Brazilian Henrique Oliveira for the strength of his art and the complicated task he has.
ALX
How has art impacted your life?
Otherโs art have always had an impact on me. I cried in front of some paintings, art is one of my reason to live.ย When I enter a museum, I get excited like when I was a kid just before going on vacation.ย
My art has a good impact of course but it is still too new for me. It gives me joy but donโt imagine it makes me happy. It gives me pain too when I am falling asleep with my doubts and my questions. If I have one hundred people saying what I do is beautiful and one saying the opposite, I will keep in my mind on that one.ย Even if I know that not everybody can like my work it is still painful when I have a bad critic. Sometimes, I wish I wouldnโt see the people looking at my paintings.
Pieces-of-me
My biggest dream would be to be able to live ( at least a little bit) with my art but to get known is a very very long way and exceptional.ย You need talent (and talent is not even enough), originality, chance, opportunities and a good contact network. To be in a good gallery, you need to be famous. To get famous you need to be in a good gallery.ย Do you see the difficulty of it?ย I will probably never be famous at all, it is not the objective. All I want is to share my emotions โฆ and sell a little bit so that I donโt have dozens of paintings in my little house!
Tell us about your last work.
My last painting is
completely abstract. I really enjoyed making it because it gave me the pleasure
of being completely spontaneous and of feeling free. I didnโt have to think, I just grabbed the
coulours and let it out. I want to start
again, thatโs for sure.
One of the pictures I published on Instagram was taken at an exhibition and I took a photo of a photo (a naked woman laying on a bed base, photo taken by Nathalia Edenmont) with the reflection of my partner and me in it.ย It gives a strange feeling like we are watching her…like peepers, like voyeurs. Thatโs our world now. And the text I added is quiet cruel.
What is your current WIP?
Like I mentioned earlier, I am busy making some collages that I put under a plexi.ย When I travel, I always come back with some old and dirty posters that I take off the walls.ย I never touch a new one, I only take ripped and damaged ones.ย I use tape too and even fabrics sometimes.ย What I love is giving something raw with no finishing touch.ย Women are usually my main subject, but only pieces of them.ย I love to rip papers and cut the real picture my way.ย I would love to use my own pictures but it is not possible.
Screens
What does the future look like for you and your art?
I need to work and work
more. I am a too young artist to have a
legitimate claim to a precise future. My dream is really to work with a real
gallery and to publish my photos-nano-fictions.
So-close
Any words of advice to aspiring artists?
How could I give any advice as I need some myself…except this : Let it all out!
So, are you a gadget lover like me ;)? I can never get enough of trying out new technology to see if it actually works! I must say that the items listed below are my “Quirkiest” gadgets, which you might want but not necessarily need… Having said that, they do look good on your counter-top or your kitchen-island and ‘yes‘ they do work! So have a look and see if any of these were ‘missing’ from your daily ife and just have fun with it!
So at the “Numรฉro un” spot, I have the ‘Play and Freeze Ice-Cream Ball‘. You might ask why? Well, here are some of the reasons why this cute ball adds some liveliness to a very dull kitchen:
It makes ice cream in approximately 30 minutes
Manual, no electricity required
Polycarbonate construction for durability
Makes 1 pint
Provides a hands-on experience to studying the properties of movement, freezing, and basic science principles
I love ‘Retro’ stuff and guess what…it’s IN right now! If you are a big “Hot-Dog” fan, then this one is all for you. It also comes in an “Aqua” shade which is just as adorable. A real ‘show-stealer‘! Some more reasons to indulge in this cute, nostalgic toaster:
Cooks two regular-size or extra-plump hot dogs at a time
Haven’t we all been through stuff spilling over, which we just hate! I am famous for letting milk spill, especially when I try my hand at making some “Indian Chai!” But, now that’s a thing of the past :), with this ‘Spill Stopper‘. I think this is really handy to have in the kitchen and it comes in an array of different colours! Some more reasons why you could consider this:
Another adorable little personalised item! Imagine decorating your cookies with your logo or you name, or whatsoever you see fit! This one will get your guests talking about it for sure, not to mention talking about how tasty those cookies you served them are! Some more details on this product:
Personalized embossing cookie stamp, embossing rolling pin alternative
For one stamp
Made from solid beech wood
The stamp measures 2” in diameter, 5” tall including the handle
The stamp is to be cleaned dry with a brush, then washed with cold water and dryed before the next using
Cookie stamps can be customized with an image of your choice, your name, logo etc.
Love this one! It turns your cheap cuts into succulent, mouth-watering steaks. 48 needles, crafted of stainless steel, plunge down into your cuts and tenderize every impact area all at the same time. Handy buy which lasts a lifetime. Go for this one! Some more details:
The Rollie is an electric egg cooker that basically makes tube-shaped omelettes. Just beat your eggs, drop them in the Rollie, turn it on, and you’ll have perfectly shaped eggs for your next breakfast burrito!
Revolutionary cooking system lets you enjoy egg treats like never before
Prepare eggs, omelets, frittatas and more in just 2 easy steps
Unique, patented design cooks healthy and delicious eggs without the use of pots or pans
Easy to use and clean with a durable non-stick cooking chamber
Each unit comes with a cleaning brush, 5 wooden skewers, food packaging accessory, and a user manual with 25 recipes
Hehe! A hilarious gift idea. Imagine surprising your guest with their face on the toast you are serving them… A selfie on a fresh piece of toast. An apt gadget for a selfie generation !
I have one of these and I love it! You can make sweet and savory pancakes/galettes/crepes, anything you fancy! You can really be creative with this one and the kids love it! A good investment!
PERFECT 12โ CREPES EVERY TIME
The non-stick aluminum surface provides easy perfectly cooked crepes every time.
PRECISE TEMPERATURE CONTROL
In addition to crepes ,blintzes, jianbing, and dosa, the G&M Kitchen Essentials Professional Crepe maker can also be used as a griddle
Cooks a variety of breakfast foods like pancakes, eggs, bacon, tortillas, injera, roti…
100 RECIPE COOKBOOK, BATTER SPREADER AND WOODEN SPATULA
The small design makes storage simple and travel friendly. Compact and lightweight, the crepe maker is a perfect holiday kitchen gift.
So there you have my “Quirkiest Kitchen Gadgets” for 2019. Follow my blog for updates on products and more of my ‘Top Lists’. See you around!
Chriselda Barretto 