George Nelson is one of the most important American designers of the 20th Century. Not only was he one of the founders of American Modernism and designer of much of the 20th century's most iconic modernist furniture, but also designed product launches, trade fairs and themed exhibitions around the world for the US government – essentially packaging and selling the American dream. A new book about him entitled George Nelson - Ein Designer im Kalten Krieg (A designer in the Cold War) is being launched today at Sphères, where they’ll also be showing a documentary by D A Pennebaker called Opening in Moscow, detailing the preparations for a 1959 exhibition in Moscow and it’s impact on Cold War relations with the Soviets.
Thursday 7 pm, Sphères

So it’s a Friday night at the start of a grey and dreary February, and I bet you’re thinking to yourself, ‘How the hell am I going to get my mind blown under these circumstances’? Well, Amboss Rampe have offered a solution. Volume 3 of their Weder Fisch No Vogel (Neither fish nor fowl) night is happening this Friday, where they’ll not only have a selection of djs playing the finest electronica but also a project by art students called Atmo-spheres that will mix reality and fiction into a blurred illusion. They claim it’ll be reminiscent of an LSD trip, but having never been on a trip to LSD myself, I can neither confirm nor deny this claim.
Friday 11pm, Amboss Rampe

You might normally expect to see huge sea monsters, dancing trees and marching robots either in the latest blockbuster at your local cineplex or after a particularly wild night out, but at Gessnerallee you’ll get all these and more, live on stage. The Last Adventures is a collaboration between British writer/director Tim Etchells, performance collective Forced Entertainment and Lebanese sound artist Tarek Atoui that explores our collective memories via the shadowlands of fairy tales, children’s picture books, science fiction and myth.
Saturday 8 pm and Sunday 6 pm, Gessnerallee

Since singer/songwriter Adam Green left his lo-fi beginnings with The Moldy Peaches and became a solo act, he has drifted around the musical landscape like a teenage runaway looking for a place to call home. Whether his musical style has been alt-folk, country crooner or 60’s chamber-pop he has always brought melancholy, naiveté and a strange sense of humour to his lyrics. He’ll be playing a (kind of) greatest-hits acoustic set at Papiersaal on Sunday.
Sunday 8 pm, Papiersaal

I mentioned this to you a couple of weeks ago, when I also had some tickets to give away, but it doesn’t hurt to remind you – Russell Brand will be at the Kongresshaus this Tuesday as his new stand-up show, Messiah Complex, comes to town. He’ll be talking about Jesus, Ghandi, Malcolm X and Che Guevara, and if I know anything about Russell Brand’s comedy, he’ll be suggesting why he’s a little bit like each of them.
Tuesday 8 pm, Kongresshaus

FIFA Executive Commitee, Zurich
Whole exhibition to be seen here virtually after a quick download of the recommended plugin.

Corner College is a great collaboration of people that I’ve mentioned a few times when one of their events caught my eye. On their Theory Tuesday evenings they have different people lead discussions about a specific text or film and on their Practical Friday nights have someone lead an instructional workshop. Past evenings have included subjects as wide ranging as ‘A Viking Way of Knitting’, ‘Vocal Training’ and, ‘How to Land a Plane’. They have their planning session for the year ahead on Tuesday and are looking for people who would like to hold a session on a subject of their own choosing. Courses are mostly, but not exclusively, held in English.
Tuesday 8 pm, Corner College, Kochstrasse, 8004

At Escher-Wyss-Platz, Moritz isn't joined by Max but by Wurst instead. Wurst & Moritz is a fancy take-away that specialises in wurst served either with bread or chips (fries for the Americans amongst you). It's a great space to come alone, sit at the window for a little people watching or studying the great cartoons on the walls illustrating how Moritz found his Wurst and his home at Escher-Wyss-Platz.
Wurst & Moritz, Hardstrasse 318, 8005

The Zurich glasses label Viu seems to have a good thing going on with their Swiss-designed, Italian-made glasses, and have pretty good prices that won’t make you think your eyesight really is getting bad. This Thursday they launch their 2014 sunglasses collection at their new partner store in Kreis 4, Making Things. Not only will you be able to pretend it’s a glorious summer’s day but also see if the drinks they’ll be serving affect your eyesight in any way.
Thursday 6 pm, Making Things

Although the shop may not be new, it’s still a relative secret, given how damn good I think the food is. I’m talking about Patrizia Fontana's Italian specialty shop. Her ravioli is so good that they are sold to restaurants who then, shhh…write "homemade " and claim they are the best in town. If you’ve ever tried her orange ravioli, you’ll know why.
Patrizia Fontana, Italian specialties, Scheuchzerstrasse 20 Opening times : Tuesday-Friday 09:00 to 18:30 , Saturday 8:30 to 16:00

If you’ve ever wanted to find someone to help you with a creative project, learn how to be a beekeeper, give career advice or show you how to cook, you can always check out the ads that other Ron Orp readers have placed in this newsletter or on my website. Alternatively, you could look at a new Zurich-centred site called dodiz.com that allows professional and amateur experts to offer their services and knowledge to you. The site is relatively new but already has a good range of services and seems to be growing.