Adair Imrie

Berlin

2012-01-29T02:42:00.000-08:00

Last night it began to snow.

and this is what my street looked like this morning

Sun and snow! mmmm

It was beautiful. I took the M85 bus through the center of the city; its a Double-Decker, I sat on top at the very front and watched the luminous crystals whirling through the dark city. Familiar landmarks, like the Brandenburger Tor, and the Jewish Memorial look so different covered in ice. I highly recommend anyone wanting a cheap tour of the city to just jump on this bus at Hauptbahnhof, it runs all night and a ticket is 2.50.

Must see's

2012-01-25T11:37:00.000-08:00

Goulburn River Stone Cottages - It's the place I grew up, forever etched into my memory as a place of relaxation, safety, and hedonism. The cottages are situated 4hrs N/W of Sydney on a family property. Hand built by the business owners Colin and Julia in the early 80s the cottages themselves are as interesting as the thick bush land meters from the front door.

The perfect place for a romantic get away, or murder.

The property is large, with 2000acres at your walking disposal, riddled with animals of all shapes and sizes just waiting to steal your picnic lunch. The cottages attract many accomplished wildlife photographers because of the rich tapestry they are able to capture in their lenses, and sometime under their beds (if you're lucky).

small birds, your cat will enjoy these

Large birds

Things you would be excused for thinking were teddy bears, although if you ever hear their little 'noises' at night any dreams of a quick snuggle become visions from a Quentin Tarantino film.

The property itself is well worth a walk through, you'll find a shallow river filled with fish, frogs and turtles, deep water holes to escape the summer heat, all the while surrounded by the heady scent of Eucalyptus and an orchestra of insects. If you tire of endless summer and bountiful planes, the Hunter Valley wine region is just a short drive away. Nominate some poor sap as the designated driver and go on a wine and cheese tasting jaunt in the surrounding area, who could refuse? maybe the driver.

pretty nice I guess

yeah you can climb it

Sun is good too

Basically, its the bomb.com and you should check it out. Take a towel, a sun hat, and some reading material as there are no TV's, and limited solar power (you can use a laptop). I can guarantee you'll see a Kangaroo, maybe two.

What is Australia Day?

2012-01-25T04:20:00.000-08:00

this is what Australia means to me.

As the official national day of Australia looms on the horizon, I get an uncomfortable itch; Invasion Day. It seems such an inappropriate date to set for Australia's birthday. The date that the first Anglo-Celtic community was established here, is supposedly the date Australia became a valuable country. I disagree with this vehemently and sympathise immensely with the pain these celebrations cause the traditional owners of our land. The ongoing refusal to accept Australia's past and the atrocities that have been committed against the Aboriginal people is something that is still poisoning our country today. Ironically, with so much emphasis on integration in modern politics, there was so little attempt by White Australia to understand Aboriginal Australia in the founding of the nation. To add salt to the wound, a vocal percentage of the celebrators today will be sporting 'fuck off we're full' t-shirts, draped in the Australia flag as a weapon of hate, and snarling at any other Australians who don't conform to their idea of pink, sun-burnt anglo-aussie pride (I will resist the urge to point out the vastness of our continent, and the smallness of our population). These are the same cretins who managed to globally humiliate 'the lucky country' through their deeply disturbing antics in the Cronulla Riots. It seems that 'the invaders have become the invaded'.

No one owns this, apart from maybe the sharks who will fuck you up.

I was born in Australia a descendant of Irish and Scottish migrants. I love Australia, its flora and fauna, the way it smells and feels in the almost eternal summers. It's a great country, a lucky country, but many of it's inhabitants don't seem to feel that luck anymore, they seem to feel entitled - almost as if we've done something to deserve this great fortune handed to us by simply being born here, white and heterosexual. Australia, at the moment, seems to be being swallowed up by a very vocal, viscous and evil minority of people hell bent on conforming everyone to an Anglo, Christian way of life. Holding captive this countries wealth and resources from anyone else who might hope for as comfortable a life as most of us lead. A life free from oppression and violence perhaps? how dare they think so far above their station.

can wait.

With our politicians incessantly blowing the racist dog-whistle, holding up asylum seekers as a problem in need of fixing, demonising ethnic groups, and spreading propaganda for illegal wars, a bizarre sense of patriotism is filling our increasingly less educated youth. Where is our lucky country headed?

Feel free to harass this classy guy on Facebook anytime

Despite the enormous amount of diversity in Australia - cultural, sexual, racial, political - we still like to perpetuate a very limited construction of our nation's identity. Instead of waving a photoshopped union jack today, wave the Aboriginal flag, say 'h'utaf' when knocking glasses, eat a stir-fry instead of a BBQ, and think about the real meaning of the day for the traditional owners this land. A minutes silence perhaps?

a flag change perhaps?

Homemade flash filters

2012-01-22T05:39:00.000-08:00

I don't know about you, but I hate flash, it makes everything ugly and bleaches out any ambiance or atmosphere in a place. I have come up with a few home made flash remedies for your nights out.

Take some paper, highlighters and scissors

cut out two rectangles roughly the size of your camera's flash

colour in with highlighters

hold in front of flash, being careful not to cover the lense

try different colours

or, if you forgot your filters, try with any amber coloured liquid at hand, like beer or club mate. Again, hold the base in-front of the flash, being careful not to cover the lense

and here are some examples of what you can expect:

with a Mate bottle

Green highlighter

Pink highlighter

Eating

2012-01-22T05:00:00.000-08:00

I love the little Italian place on my block, its not fine dining but its cheap, decent and the waiters are lovely. My favourite dish is the Gnocchi Napoli, and a carafe of Rose is a good addition to any meal. It's called Mediterraneo and its at Lehrter Strasse 27-30, here's some picies of our last date there, its our favourite date spot.

Blogs

2012-01-17T07:56:00.000-08:00

Favourite blog this week:

Brown Cardigan, a humour blog out of Sydney

Articles

2012-01-17T07:37:00.000-08:00

must reads on the internet:

How to piss off a German

'Most Germans (of a certain age) speak very good English, which makes them slightly smug, especially when only three non-natives in the history of the world have ever been able to master German. This is mainly because many German words, as Mark Twain once noted, are “so long that they have a perspective.” One of the shortest words in the German dictionary is Rindfleischetikettierungsüberwachungsaufgabenübertragungsgesetz, for example, which loosely means “No”. The longest word in English, Antidisestablishmentarianism, is pathetic in comparison, so a long-word battle isn’t going to work. Instead, take advantage of English’s arcane vocabulary, sprinkling long-forgotten words like “circumbilivagination” and “epalpebrate” throughout the conversation as if they were commonplace. This method is guaranteed to replace the smugness on your companion’s face with something way more anxious.'

The lucky country myth

'We're in denial of the overwhelming privilege that comes from simply being born white and heterosexual in a peaceful democracy like Australia. And we're in a state of utter and absolute denial about the fact that most of us actually don't feel lucky at all, but entitled'

Favourite thing

2012-01-17T07:06:00.000-08:00

New favourite thing: paper cranes and tea candles

Films

2012-01-17T06:25:00.000-08:00

Moonrise Kingdom, a new film by Wes Anderson, is a sweet vintage love story. There is no official release date yet, but this film looks brill so keep your eye's pealed for playing times in a cinema near you.

Summer frocks

2012-01-17T06:17:00.000-08:00

Fifties Frocks is a new label by a Sydney Designer, Claire Westwood. They're not cheap, but its worth it as each frock is custom made and fitted to your size. They are absolutely gorgeous, must have's this summer.

Discounted shipping on Adair Imrie tee's and apparel

2011-10-13T11:24:00.000-07:00

Photoshoot Adair Imrie clothing, 'Frida's Fawn' womens tee. Photos by Jana Schwerdferger.

Save shipping costs at spreadshit.de in October
On 29—30 October 2011 customers will save the costs for shipping on any orders in spreadshirt shop! For this, you need to use voucher code WITCHINGHOUR when checking out. Promote this campaign on your Facebook page and tell all of your friends about this sweet opportunity! http://adair.spreadshirt.de/

Television appearance:

2011-10-11T02:42:00.001-07:00

Thilo Sarrazin should attend one of these workshops:

2011-08-10T10:19:00.001-07:00

How racist are you?

2011-08-10T07:04:00.000-07:00

Frida's Fawn, a tribute to a great woman.

PressTV interview

2011-08-10T06:55:00.001-07:00

Just did an interview for PressTV, keep your eyes peeled for it on your TVboxes

Instead, you get Bruce Bawer, in his self-serving WSJ piece saying how shocked he is to discover his extremist anti-Islam writings are quoted in the extremist anti-Islam writings of a killer. Ignore him and stick with Tove Jansson.

2011-08-02T14:45:00.000-07:00

Married Lesbian Couple Rescued 40 Teens from Norway Massacre

Want an awesome fine art t-shirt?

2011-08-02T03:29:00.000-07:00

I recommend Elise the Owl or Zebra Love (featured)
Adair Imrie Tees Europe
Adair Imrie Tees Australia

Just found an awesome site for leggings and tights

2011-08-02T03:23:00.000-07:00

zomg, I want the galaxy ones
Black Milk Clothing

And just in case the whole thing is getting you down

2011-08-02T03:20:00.001-07:00

Tips for getting the Artist Visa in Germany

2011-08-02T03:19:00.000-07:00

Every experience is different, I had a friend who was nearly denied for not having her documents translated, yet I had nothing translated and wasn't even asked about it.
Don't believe the Ausländerbehörde. Ask every question to at least three people. The Ausländerbehörde and an insurance adviser told me I couldn't get health insurance with an excess under 1000e and be approved for a VISA, which meant I was looking at insurance at over 200e a month. I asked some of my friends who already had visas and they told me they had HanseMerkur 600e excess (which I had previously been offered) and that Ausländerbehörde had not even raised an eyebrow. I got a friend to email the Ausländerbehörde in German and ask about this, they wrote back saying yes, the excess had to be over 1000e a month. We asked again and used my friend as an example, they wrote back saying yes, the excess had to be over 1000e but there were exceptions and my friend was one of them, but they couldn't explain what the exceptions involved.I decided to risk it, and it was fine, again, no one raised an eyebrow. One insurance adviser even tried to tell me HanseMerkur did not insure people on limited visas, which is utter bull, if anyone tries to tell you that its just because they want you to get more expensive insurance.
Every Ausländerbehörde officer is different, some people will challenge you about trivial things, some people will pass you without any questions. Communication, it seems, isn't Ausländerbehörde's strong point. Many employees do not know of new changes to the approval system. I've even heard of people being approved on tourist insurance, but I wouldn't recommend trying it. Basically, make sure you have everything you can think of to convince them you are an artist, you have money, and you have adequate health insurance; and take a German speaker with you to talk around anyone who is uncertain. When I was there the only thing she wanted extra was my degree, Wiebke (my German friend) asked her if I could email a copy later, which she agreed to.

OMG OMG OMG OMG IN HER MOUTH IN HER MOUTH IN HER MOUTH OMG OMG OMG

2011-08-02T03:05:00.000-07:00

leeches 'catch on' in Georgia

Dylan Moran

2011-08-02T03:04:00.000-07:00

This guy is a hoot:

VISA success

2011-08-02T03:02:00.000-07:00

After month of fucking around with COMMdirect bank they told me they didn't give accounts to foreigners without previous bank accounts registered in Germany, thanks guys, could have told me that in the beginning when I SAID I was Australian. So, don't go with them, the day after I was told I wasn't getting an account, I walked into Deutsche Bank on Friedrichstrasse, and very lovely girl with fluent English took me into a room and set up my bank account then and there, I could use it immediately and it is linked with Westpac bank in Australia, so I can even withdraw money when I go home without fees.

A bank account is a vital step in getting a VISA, you can't register for anything without a German account, I recommend going to Deutsche Bank as soon as you get to Germany, or even in your home city if you know where the offices are (there is one in Sydney CBD).

So, now I finally had an account, I registered with HanseMerkur (http://www.hansemerkur.de/) for health insurance, I got a doctors check up paid for by them, this confirmed I didn't have diabetes and didn't smoke, which enabled me to get a discounted rate, its about 167e a month, its high but its what Ausländerbehörde want. I typed up a brief budget for the coming year, obtained two referrals (one German, one Australian), got a bank statement (helpfully filled briefly by my parents), and a letter of financial support signed by my mum and dad. I now had everything ready:

Filled out Application form (photocopied)
Proof of Insurance
2 passport photos
Bank Statements
Artist Resume (photocopied)
Announcement (photocopied
Passport (photocopied picture page and any relevant visa stamps)
2 referrals
letter of financial support
50 euros (visa fee)
A friend who speaks German

We got to the Ausländerbehörde at our appointment time and waited for an hour before our number came up, we went into the room to see a nice middle aged woman sitting comfortably at her desk, a Greek flag adorned the wall and the desk was covered in piles of paper. The woman smiled at us and asked in German for the documents, which I gave her. She went through them and divided everything into two piles: photocopies one side, originals the other, anything that wasn't photocopied she asked to keep, and I said yes as they were just print outs. She told us to go back outside and wait until our number came up again. We went back outside and watched the mania of Ausländerbehörde unfold infront of us to kill the time, after about 20minutes our number came up and we went back inside. She was sticking a new VISA into my passport and pleasantly told us to go pay the visa fee and come back with a receipt. Euphoric, we skipped and jumped all the way across the building to the payments booths and back again. It was all approved, all over. Only one thing though... they misspelled my name AGAIN. So, welcome Adir Imrie, to Garmeny.

Re: Bürgeramt

2011-05-25T02:39:00.000-07:00

Double check they have spelt your name correctly. I have just, belatedly, realised they have named me 'Adir Barbara Avon Imrie'. You'd think everyone would realise this was a simple typing error, but no, no I have to go back to the Bürgeramt and get a new registration confirmation. This time, lady at computer I have waited two hours to see, remember to read the passport correctly, hit the correct keys, and not be illiterate,

Ausländerbehörde

2011-05-16T00:02:00.000-07:00

Make sure you get there early, I went twice trying to be seen to get basic forms and make an appointment, only on the third time, when I got there at 6:55am, did I get in to see anyone. They are very rude, very unhelpful, and hurry you along. Stand your ground, make sure you understand everything and ask all the questions you need to, they will be huffy and cross and claim to be repeating themselves, but it is very important information and you need it to be clear. One thing that could have helped to know earlier is this website e-appointment Auslaenderbehoede. You can make an appointment online to hand in your forms, it's in German so get someone to translate. It also gives you an up to date list of all the things you need to apply. When you make your appointment date and time, you will receive a seven digit number, the last three numbers of this will be your number that will be called/displayed when you are able to enter the room. It's about three quaters down the pdf page confirming your appointment, in bold; for example 'und Ihre Vorgangsnummer: 114609 erledigen.' 609 is the number they will call you on. They will also email you with this number in bold.

Some updates to the list of things you need to apply:

Proof of Insurance

2 passport photos

Bank Statements

Artist Resume

2 offers of work (exhibitions, residencies)

Announcement

Passport

Photocopy of passport with any relevant visas or entry stamps also photocopied

60 euros (visa fee)

Photocopy of application form and announcement

List of documents you have for the application

A friend who speaks German

Progress

2011-05-14T08:04:00.000-07:00

My announcement and bank account have been no trouble. The Bürgeramt was easy to navigate with Wiebke as my German speaking guide. We had to wait 2hrs to be seen, but we were warned of this before and used the time to apply for a bank account and grab a cup of coffee in a nearby park, which meant the time passed easily. The woman looked at my passport and filled out form, got Wiebke to sign as my flatmate, and stamped my documents, all taking around 5 minutes.

The bank account I applied for was .comdirect (www.comdirect.de). It's an online branch, you can apply online, ID yourself at any post office, and they send you your account details and card. Simple. To ID yourself you need the forms they send you, signed and filled out, your passport, and your announcement from Bürgeramt, again, a German speaker is good as well. I am now waiting on the card in the mail.

Once I receive my bank details I can apply for a phone plan, I have just bought a temporary German prepaid number at the corner store, when I get a bank I can apply for a no-contract deal with one of the online providers such as congstar, bild or base. These are cheaper and a better deal, but you need a German bank to apply.

So far all this has been relatively easy, that is, until I got to the Ausländerbehörde. The easiest way to describe this is with a short cartoon: The Twelve Tasks of Asterix : Find Permit A 38 in "The Place That Sends You Mad". Advice: Firstly: Take a German speaker, NO ONE speaks English at the Ausländerbehörde. I know, this is ironic for the Foreign Persons Migration Office, but what can you do? Secondly: Go early, it opens at 7am, get there at 6:55, get your forms, and organise an appointment for later. I tried to turn up at 10am thinking I could take a number and organise this relatively quickly, I was wrong. No one would see me and there were signs over the number machine telling new-comers they weren't giving out numbers to be seen anymore. Go figure, the system designed to process large amounts of people had been abandoned in order to process large amounts of people... I'm trying again on Monday- this will be attempt no. 3. If you want a more concise list of getting the Self Employed Visa as an Artist, see this blog: http://4dayvisa.tumblr.com/

Other than visa issues everything else is going swimmingly. Further updates still to come on my progress, and upcoming exhibitions.

Arrival

2011-05-05T06:32:00.000-07:00

I arrived safely in Germany after a very long flight via Seoul in Korea. I was very pleased to be met at Tegel airport by my friends Nino and Wiebke, who were very excited to see me again. We got a cab to the apartment I would be sharing with Wiebke in Moabit, which we had pre-arranged. It's not the most ideal location, being about 30mins S-Bahn ride from hot spots like Friedrichshain, Kreuzberg and Mitte, but the apartment is cosy, you are a bike or short bus ride from hauptbahnhof (the biggest rail station in Berlin) and a few of our friends just moved nearby in Wedding. Many tourist guides advise against staying in areas around Wedding as they are not so well located for the famous Berlin night life, but Berlin public transport is very good, and so far it has been no problem at all living here.
Once home, we settled into the comfy kitchen and drank Astra beer and some rice wine I bought while in transit in Seoul. The rice wine was harsh, but we later discovered it mixes very well with peach iced tea. Over the next few days I began getting organised, moving into my room (furniture conveniently provided by Wiebke and her out going flatmate), buying groceries and deciphering the German labels;.and, of course, a trip to Ikea. With the help of my German translators and friends Basti and Nino I purchased the warmest doona available in my price range (category 5 of 6). Australian's be warned, this is not our ideal habitat, bring warm clothes and turn up the heating (I did this much to much objection 'heating in Summer!' they declared). The others bought a bed and various other impulse items as Basti and Nino also have just moved into a new apartment (see friends in Wedding above). As a result, the car was very full, and we had to illegaly cram in around the wooden bedframe like sardines. If you ever find yourself in this situation, try NOT to take a wrong turn and spend 30minutes going around in circles.
After we arrived home, safe but a little stiff, Nino helped me to find a phone plan and bank account. Most important is the bank account, alot of places don't accept my Australian visa card (such as Ikea!) and you need to provide bank details to get a phone plan. While some of the best deals can be accessed online, it's difficult on the internet to apply as a foreigner, the website would not accept my previous address (in Sydney) or, more strangely, my name. My advice is to just go into a branch, the teller can help you with everything you need and get around any stumbling blocks (such as foreign names? haha). I'd also recommend taking a German friend with you, while Berliners speak good english, with issues involving contracts its best to make sure you understand everything.
One thing you can do on the internet however, is get a phone plan. It's cheaper, and you have the ability to compare alot of companies at once. Again I recommend getting a German speaker to help you, as alot of the sites do not have an English option, and again you are dealing with legal contracts. I didn't want a binding 2year contract (as is the most common) as I am not sure how long I will be here. I wanted data for my smartphone, as well as cheap calling and texting. The best offer I found was with Congstar, although similar plans can be found with Base or O2. Congstar was 9cents a minute to call, 9cents a SMS, and 7.90euro flatrate for data, no contracts, drop out anytime. If you don't have a handset (or handy) you can get one inculded for only 1euro extra. This may change over time, so make sure to check yourself.
Finding a job has probably been the hardest part so far, not speaking German is a big hindrance, but I am well qualified, and the next best thing to fluent German is being a native English speaker. I've been sticking to the expat sites such as exberliner.com, craigslist.de and toytowngermany.com/berlin, and also just googling what I am looking for. So far I have made contact with alot of Galleries and other artists.
On friday I will be applying for my VISA, and after that I will be more secure in my situation here, and have time to do some German courses and get thoroughly into the culture.
Until next time,
Tschüs

About Me

2011-04-07T22:26:00.000-07:00

Hi,

My name is Adair Imrie and I'm an emerging Australian Artist. In two weeks I am moving to Berlin to follow my dream of becoming a professional Visual Artist. I have set up this blog so people can follow my experiences of the German capital, get advice if they decide to do a similar thing, or just keep up to date with my work and activities.

My aim is to get an Artist visa or Self-employed visa. To do this I first have to enter Germany on a tourist visa, which is only for three months. As a precaution, I have bought tickets both out of Germany within the three months, and returning to Australia in a years time. This is to reassure border security I am not going to become an illegal immigrant, and that if it all fails I have a way of getting home.

First step of obtaining my visa is to register myself at the bürgeramt (http://www.buergeramt.info/berlin.htm). This should be easy enough, I will be living with a German friend who will sign papers declaring my address.

Next I will have to make a trip to the Ausländerbehörde where I will get the forms for self-employment visa, make an appointment for an interview, and get regulation passport photos.

While I wait for my interview I have to get health insurance, I've been recommended “HanseMerkur” (http://www.hansemerkur.de/), but will have to investigate it futher once I am in Germany. I will also have to make a convincing resume, showing all the exhibitions and experience I've had, my work, and an Artist bio. This all goes towards proving I am a legitimate artist.

Next step is bank statements, I'll have to show about $600 a month, so for a year around $13,000. My parents are helping me out with this by lending me money while I get a bank statement, as well as writing a letter of financial support. This shows I am financially sound and wont use the visa to abuse the social welfare system. Its the most important part of the application.

Finally I will have my interview. The Ausländerbehörde is open on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. Mon/Tues start at 7 and on Thursdays they open at 10 (http://www.berlin.de/labo/auslaender/dienstleistungen/). By now I should have all the necessary papers:

Filled out Application form
Proof of Insurance
2 passport photos
Bank Statements
Artist Resume
Announcement
Passport
50 euros (visa fee)
A friend who speaks German

This blog will describe my experience with this process, and what success I have with my career while in Berlin. Click follow for updates.