Hunting down the Facehunter

Today was a pretty exciting day.

However, it began with a rather slow start, due to intense partying activities of the previous night. A night in town, out and about, that involved heavy dancing and stiletto performance – which wasn't so easy for all of us. But we looked fabulous, and that's all that matters, no?

I woke up with a dry mouth and painfully sensitive eyes that could barely endure the sunlight that was fiercely shining its way in through little peeks in my curtains.

Sometimes 'the morning after' can be so much worse when you go to bed too late, even though you didn't go totally out of your mind with the alcoholic beverages. Beverages you so desperately craved for only several hours earlier, but that now – only by the thought of another – make your stomach turn upside down and inside out. Boy, they turned me.

But then I quickly remembered what day today was. Not my birthday, nor my last day before summer holiday finally kicked in. No, none of the above. Something FAR more exciting. Today was the day I would meet Mr. Yvan Rodic. Or, perhaps better known as The Facehunter.

A couple months ago, I finally bought his book, as a present to myself. And when on his blog I read that he was opting to go to Amsterdam, I quickly send a reaction to this post, asking him to 'please, please, pretty-please' come and pay our lovely city a visit. And he did! From 15.00 – 17.00 hrs he would be present in the American Book Center (ABC) at the Spui on the 29^th of May, where he would be signing his books. I asked my friends to come along, but some were too busy with sleeping and dealing with their hangover, others were simply doing something else. Therefore, with a pounding heart I went alone. I must admit, I am not one of those persons that loves spending a day in town on her own. I like talking to someone about what I see outside, and discussing why polkadots are so 2009 and stripes very 2010 (though I'm actually already so over this stripey nautical look; it's been covered everywhere now).

Anyway, today I had no other choice than to go alone. I entered the ABC and saw a line that didn't scare me too much to run off. (God, I do sound like some sort of paranoid freak that cannot undertake any activities by herself, this is not the case, but I was just a bit shy and felt very aware of myself; probably nerves too). After what seemed like an hour, (which I later found out was an actual hour) it was my turn to talk with Yvan. I had noticed that he seemed very interested in every fashion victim that came to see him, and he definitely took his time to chat with every single fan. He asked a lot of questions, he seemed genuinely interested and he really wanted to write something personal in his book.

Yvan Rodic [source: yvanrodic.blogspot.com]

[Confession]This was the first time ever I went to a book signing, thus I am not completely familiar with how these things normally go, but I can imagine writers to just be in a rush, scribbling down their name, whilst impatiently looking at the next 'victim'. To be honest, that's what I expected from today too, but – as said before - none of this happened today. When it was my turn I started off mumbling and stumbling, and blattered a bit about what I study and what I love to do. He was very kind and we talked about his visit to Amsterdam, his travels, and the cities he finds most inspiring. He told me that New York is a bit too polished for his like. “It's a great city, but there's not much room for new ideas. It's full of galleries, but the actual scene where interesting art or fashion is created can be found in LA. People might not say that easily, as LA is best known for their blonde bombshells and the beach, but it is an extremely inspiring place. It lacks a city center, so people just rent cheap studios somewhere in LA, and create new and interesting ideas.” He also liked the Scandinavian countries a lot, and insisted on their personal style and their freshness. He claimed Berlin wasn't so fresh, just a mere copy of the Scandinavians. By telling him that I was just there and that I liked the pure and rawness of the city, he answered:”Yes, that might be so, and it's definitely a nice place to go to for a couple days, but how many interesting people have actually come from Berlin? People with new ideas and concepts? Amsterdam, on the other hand, has lots of designers, architects, illustrators and photographers that are very successful internationally.” I nodded, and wished only for the sixth time that I had something more clever to say then: “Ah, that's so interesting, I never looked at it that way.”

He also asked me if I'd liked being a Dutchie. I told him I'd rather be something more exotic, but then he told me Holland might not be a warm country, it's considered special to meet someone Dutch as there are only so many, compared to other countries. After a while we had to stop talking since people behind me started getting restless. I wished him a happy stay in Amsterdam, gave him my blog address (you never know!) and walked off with the smile of an insane person.