Kompromat It's not hard to be nice »

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  3 – 2 – 1 – Ignition! -

  Very appropriate for a first gig in a new venue: fireworks

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  Secret agent Sokolova on her first assignment. -

  Smart Project Space has a slightly morbid history, but in fact, who is afraid of it? Culture nowadays is like a contagious disease taking over places and infecting everybody. Even the dead coudn't escape.

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  Andre Avelas with his merchandise in the entrance hall -

  DJ Andre is one of the coolest DJs of Amsterdam when he is actually performing. His talents as a shopkeeper are less obvious.

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  Mike Ottink is one of the musicians performing tonight. -

  Mike looks much younger than he is, especially when he is drinking water. I wonder if he was the one who introduced the fashion of wearing caps collectively.

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  Or was it DNK founder and director Koen Nutters who started the cap fashion? -

  Well, rumor has it that the first cap was actually purchased by Seamus Cater from DNK programming committee. But it didn't suit him so he passed it on.

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  In the meantime visitors start arriving. -

  Artist and curator Irina Birger is coming straight from De Appel where she spent the previous night with Serge Onnen. The night was a prize to Irina and Serge as a perfect couple of the Gastarbeider Dating project. To our surprise, Irina looks quite sleepy. Was it indeed a romantic night?

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  Artist Serge Onnen looks extremely happy. -

  -Was it so special, de Appel last night?
  -Well... We didn't really get wild. I guess, the gallery space is too clinical for that. However, the bed was fantastic, it slept very well. We also enjoyed the champagne and the breakfast. And of course, the private view of the show was quite special.

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  Artist Brian McKenna is behaving suspicious. -

  Is it because he also did something special last night?
  Or just because he's hiding a bottle of Canadian Club under his coat?

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  Tamuna Chabashvili from Public Space with a Roof is talking Maxim Chapochnikov aka DJ Goldfinger -

  Tamuna and Maxim are discussing the difficulties of finding right venues for their projects. Tamuna's gallery has recently moved out of O301, and Maxim is constantly in search of hot new locations for his concerts and Russian parties.

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  The Smart's director Thomas Peutz (right) has ambitious plans for his building. -

  Spacious exhibition rooms, artists' studios, 2 cinema halls...
  Well, Thomas, almost 3 years have passed after the opening, and there is still a lot to be done.

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  Also Esma Moukhtar and Peter van der Hoop have to get used to the unusually posh surroundings. -

  As a DNK board member, Peter van der Hoop keeps an eye on things and takes care of funding. They say, Peter is a money wizard. Hopefully, he will bring DNK some more dough.

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  Mike, do you know how it works? -

  The concert is about to start, and Mike Ottink is helping Raed Yassin to plug in. Raed is a young talent from Lebanon, who has just started his residency in De Ateliers. We enjoyed his performance at Montevideo a week ago. Kompromat wishes Raed good luck with his artistic carriere in Amsterdam!

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  Bas van Koolwijk is also performing tonight. -

  He plays "solo beamer" .

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  Artist Sue Tomesen is obviously a big fan of Bas van Koolwijk. -

  However, it's hard to say, if she's wearing her golden pumps tonight specially for Bas or just because spring is in the air...

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  At the end of the evening, we bumped into artist Zhana Ivanova leaving the concert hall. -

  The editing of her long-awaited masterpiece "Room Temperature" - a film remake shot in 4 days with non-professional Bulgarian actors - is almost finished, so now Zhana can relax a bit.

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  First mission accomplished. -

  The secret agent can relax too. Thank God it's Monday!
  But first she needs to make appointments for the next week's Kompromat.