NOBLE SAVAGE
Tbilisi | Georgia | 2019 –

A naturally innocent person, Noble Savage is a character who embodies the concept of the indigene, outsider, spontaneous spirit, uninhibited psyche, and the Other who has not been "corrupted" by civilization. Therefore, it symbolizes the innate goodness of humanity. Above all, we noble savages obey the will of nature, our kindly mother. This is why we are happy.

Besides being a club, Noble Savage is conceived as a media platform designed to shed light on all sorts of cultural phenomena, local and international, both directly relevant to our mission in Tbilisi, related to it in some roundabout way or completely unrelated, yet still interesting and noteworthy.

Savage Voice is a cross between a notepad and a journal – the natural voice of the project featuring interviews with the artists, thinkers, and activists that we encounter both in the club and around the city; coverage of side events, references to and comments on the films, books, and music we live by; our area discoveries and destination tips, links to other projects we dig in the neighborhood, our confused ruminations on the meaning of life... After all, Noble Savage is cumulatively a real person, diverse in experiences and perspectives, with many different interests, and often holding widely divergent views. You may want to know this combo character in all its wonderful and paradoxical fullness.

BA&SC
Lisbon | Portugal | 2017

Billing itself as a potential space, a space of interactive possibilities and playful experimentation, activated for the purpose of fermenting genuine personal and cultural exchanges across all sorts of boundaries, the Beato Arts & Social Club Project originates in a series of events taking place in the dim-lighted backyard of Web Summit, the largest tech conference on the planet, "Davos for geeks" and "Glastonbury for techie dorks". In November 2017, Source & Fluence was commissioned by Samsung to render this grand occasion 8-bit less formal and nerdy, lending it a casual, sporadic, "underground" dimension.

For one thing, the underground motif meshes well with the theme of invention. The apple rarely drops from the tree in strict accordance with the official schedule. Eureka moments and real breakthroughs most often happen all of a sudden – not with our noses to the grindstone in the office. It is oftentimes in the basements and garages that a light bulb in our heads turns on unexpectedly. For another, Lisbon is picking up where Berlin left off a decade ago when it was thriving on free spirit and raw energies. With affordable rents and plenty of vacant post-industrial space, the city is emerging as an intuitive answer to Berlin being gradually swallowed by gentrification.

Could it be that Lisbon will become the next cosmopolitan harbor for unboxed, free-flowing creativity? Delving deep into memories of Berlin as it used to be, the Beato Art & Social Club created and hosted a program supporting this view as the most likely scenario. By engaging local and international talent in all its expressive multiplicity, the project was also a way of advancing this prospect as a true opportunity for the world at large. Considering the feedback, the BA&SC message was well received. (see: A Postcard from Lisbon).

JACKIE O BERLIN
Berlin | Germany | 2015 – 2017

Jackie O Berlin is a modest and deliberately slow part of an ambitious real-estate development that keeps pace with the evolution of the entire district southeast of Mitte in the German capital. Gradually, over the next few years, this 25,000m2 patch of reclaimed waterfront in Lichtenberg will be transformed into an upscale complex hosting artist studios, design ateliers, shops, showrooms, offices, collaboratories, a restaurant, marina, and wellness facilities.

Given the construction going on all around, the area today feels more like a road trip. In the context of this analogy, Jackie O stands as a stopover on the path of gentrification, favorably nestled on a scenic peninsula jutting out into the Spree River. It boasts a kiosk bar, open grill kitchen, two tented hangouts, burn barrels here and there, wood pallets repurposed for seating, and some handmade tables. Of the ornamentation, one finds a few objet trouvé installations, not especially congruous, stuck into the bushes around the perimeter; a disco ball hanging from a tree. All there is to enchant guests inside and to draw attention from outside. Sometimes from afar: "This weekend, east of Berlin's city center on the banks of the River Spree, and despite the August heat, an invite-only crowd of local and international creative types arrived just before sunset, by land and by water, to enjoy the latest in a series of Jackie O outdoor parties..." — New York Times Magazine.

Taking its name from a boat moored at the dock that tells the story of its famous owner in the past, the spot has gained renown for its Berlin Summer Air sessions featuring live music acts and original downbeat low-volume electronica – genres that blend so harmoniously with the easy garden vibes, sunset colors, soft moonlight, whispering of the wind, and nocturnal chill.

As a club and medium that promotes its activities in social networks, Jackie O case exemplifies the cultural marketing approach to urban area development – a strategy and methodology that Source & Fluence exports and applies on demand elsewhere. (See: Beato Arts & Social Club in Lisbon).

KIND OF STUE
Das Stue | Berlin | Germany | 2017

Das Stue is Berlin's first and number one luxury boutique hotel. Situated in the diplomatic district, this uber-stylish complex is a smart and masterful conversion of the former Royal Danish embassy, a landmarked piece of monumental architecture telling its own story. Das Stue's historic status and situation to an extent determine the ambiance, character, and quality of nightlife on its premises featuring – among other general facilities – a bar boasting its fancy adaptations of forgotten 1920-30s cocktails, craft spirits, and rare wines. There and so fittingly every other Thursday night, Source & Fluence hosts some of the best live music programs in Berlin.

Kind of Stue – Fine Jazz Jams is a series of close encounters with the living jazz legends and blossoming virtuosos playing in the intimate settings to the most discerning ears. It is with earnestly and thoroughly curated music programming communicated through social media and conveyed viva voce to the regulars that the entire venue receives much of its renown and publicity.

Cultural content is a variable – the only one in some circumstances – that breaks the monotony of representation and makes extra waves for a brand to outsurf the competition of repetitive just-as-fine imagery and stock self-appraisement.

LA GRANJA
Ibiza | Spain | 2017

A farmstead set among Ibiza's pastoral in-lands, La Granja is a members-only and select public-access retreat devoted to the cultivation of the arts, crops, and lifestyle predicated on the idea of holistic inner development.

It stands out in antithesis to the hospitality concepts targeted to or affected by mass tourism. The vitality of the farmhouse club paradigm has been confirmed and boosted by the major travel and lifestyle publications.

As far as the involvement of Source & Fluence is concerned, the project's instant success can be attributed to the following factors: proper basic conceptualization and consistent branding; micro-targeting and dynamic communication; a visual language of form and substance; apt organization and management of events; genuine community relations; mutually beneficial partnerships with local businesses, producers, artists, and interest groups; precise and evocative formulation of cultural agenda and its realization through weekly programs, to name Lucid Sundays, Other Thursdays, Starlight Cinema, Farm Convivium, Sound Rituals, Inner Gardens, Fireside Soirees...

SCORPIOS
Mykonos | Greece | 2015 – 2017

With the global communication gadgetry nearly hardwired into our brains, we find ourselves all technically interconnected. Yet, paradoxically, each of us feels more isolated than ever before. In the world of collective solitude and atomized togetherness, what a friend is worth? This is the kind of problematics that has been predominant in conceptualizing this new spot on the map of Mykonos, the famed party island in Greece where, traditionally, the idea of collectivity based on friendship means a lot, more than anything else – from Plato to breakfast.

Scorpios opened in May 2015 with communal aspirations as its guiding light. Source & Fluence has been from start involved in various aspects of foundational thinking for the new entity – branding, cultural programming, multimedia, and all aspects of communication. Scorpios bills itself as an agora, not just another beach club. It literally means "gathering place" with its function set to galvanize the artistic, philosophical, spiritual life of the community, to ingrain it with meaning, tighten it from within and expand to the benefit of civilization. It is in this optics that our Scorpios mission shows most clearly: to help establish and maintain the global perception of the project in the communal and cultural terms of high Hellenism.

PROJECT RIO
Rio de Janeiro | Brazil | 2014

Source & Fluence supported DesignHotels in launching a popup platform for various social and cultural events in conjunction with the FIFA World Cup 2014. The project was a series of happenings taking place in and around the clubhouse, a temporary space converted from a residential estate on the hill of bohemian Santa Teresa.

With an emphasis on culture and community, Project RIO sought and succeeded in connecting the movers and shakers of various fields and social classes: local and international artists, architects, designers, and cultural entrepreneurs mingled, exchanged ideas, and formed new creative alliances. Its signature Berlin de Janeiro series of gigs attracted thousands failing if only in one dimension – legally unable to accommodate all those visitors lining up at the gates eager to get in.

The project was extensively covered in the international media, gaining widespread recognition. It was reported by well over a hundred publications including Elle, GQ, Harper's Bazaar, The Guardian, Vogue...

PAPAYA PLAYA PROJECT
Tulum | Mexico | 2011 – 2015

An oceanfront private property nestled in the jungle along a pristine stretch of the Caribbean coastline in Tulum. In 2010, it was discovered by DesignHotels in complete disrepair as a result of chronic neglect and mismanagement. The next year the property was structurally revamped; imbued with the spirit of ecological sustainability and the ethos of post-materialism. The Papaya Playa Project was launched in winter 2011, defined and communicated in terms of barefoot luxury – the kind of luxury that connects people with themselves, nature, and the universe. As a beach club associated with the legendary Bar25, a key partner in the project, Papaya Playa soon became one of the most prestigious and sought-after venues for music and other cultural activities, as confirmed by the major travel, culture, and lifestyle outlets – from Vogue to New York Times and on to academic publications. Since then, it has hosted numerous festivals, such as the Burning Man winter series.

Some observers point out that the development of Tulum as one of the world's top destinations is due primarily to the success of the project. Source & Fluence gets credits for its role in original concept deliberation, decision making, program administration, and brand communication.

BAR TAUSEND
Berlin | Germany | 2008 – 2012

An underground boutique club built into the old railway bridge foundation boasting no sign on the door. An instant success story to rank among the top 20 of all the major attractions in Berlin, Bar Tausend is one of the earliest creations by Till Harter of Source & Fluence, opened in 2008. Skip to 2020 to see it still running, although under different management.

The skyrocketing popularity of this operation was due to its outstanding concept which capitalized on the cool, chic, class, mystery, impeccable service, and cultural offerings that especially resonated with music connoisseurs, high-rolling socialites, local and international glitterati, bons vivants, dandies, bobos, celebs, lifestyle travelers as well as with other urbane types (snobs included) – whoever managed to get in through the most impervious doorway in the nightlife capital. Its lively social atmosphere and atypical location aside, the bar was recognized for its award-winning design, superb cocktail menu, 15 points Gault Milleau restaurant and its daring combination of quality live and pre-recorded sounds.

Bar Tausend was a unique entity also in the sense that it was building its reputation and evolving as an operation not through publicity and inclusion, but through secrecy and exclusion.

BEESENSTEDT 31
Beesenstedt | Germany | 2017 – Ongoing

Heritage belongs to all. Our calling is to recover, preserve, invigorate, and pass it on.

In our largely formulaic (if not entirely artificial) world, the scenes that retain their original identity and radiance create a unique sense of place and belonging. Natives venerate and worship their historical scenarios as a formative part of their distinctive cultural character. To others – those who seek to expand their horizons beyond the familiar – these scenes offer a glimpse into the mystery of distant customs, conventions, beliefs, practices, and experiences. Unlike each other, often strange (anything but ordinary), sometimes discordant, but always fascinating and enlightening, these authentic locations constitute a genuine treasure of the world's heritage.

Schloss Beesenstedt is certainly one of such places. Conceived and completed in 1895 as a private residence and clubhouse, all that transpires today bearing its name is a modern emanation of its historical purpose. The B31 project is a gesture of allegiance to the conceptual legacy of its founders and a vibrant reincarnation of the original spirit that once permeated the castle's inner universe.

It is an elegant early XIXcentury manor house towering over the immensely wide and slightly undulating flat fields, looking down and bestowing onto the squat, graystone medieval town below all the flamboyance one finds in and around Beesenstedt.