|From the Editor| What do we owe the past? It’s a question that is eternally relevant, whether we’re thinking about our families, our communities or ourselves. Which traditions still matter? Which ideas should survive? To which of our past selves should we remain true? These sorts of weighty philosophical questions are increasingly rare today. We want to know what will help us most right now and, perhaps, what might be good for us a few years down the line. But even in our fast-paced digital era, we are all philosophers to some degree – just as we are all artists – and sometimes pausing for reflection can be not just a pleasant pastime, but a productive one, too. It’s in this spirit that we have curated the issue of Centurion that you are holding in your hands. Across the magazine, we delve into a range of topics and projects that both honour and question the past. Take our celebration of Seville’s artisans on page 68, in which our correspondent Nicola Chilton meets a handful of makers from across the Andalusian capital to understand why Dior, among other global brands, is incorporating the city’s centuries-old traditional crafts into its contemporary collections. Elsewhere in this issue, we look at South Korean artists putting a novel spin on traditional materials; the new waves of hospitality in Bangkok, Sri Lanka and Zambia; the ways in which Italian carmaker Ferrari is reinterpreting its own history – and much more. I wish you happy reading and encourage you to find a bit of time for your own reflections on your journeys this year. — Christian Schwalbach On the Cover THIS ISSUE’S COVER offers photographer Irene Kung’s unique perspective on pyrus ussuriensis – the Manchurian pear tree, which is native to Korea, Japan and fareastern Russia. “I remove everything unessential in order to show the tree as it is, as I feel it,” says the Swiss-born talent known for her ethereal depictions of architecture and plants suspended against a curtain of black. “It is intuition, it is irrational; rationality can be misleading, sentiment cannot.” Kung’s pieces have been featured at revered institutions around the world. Her work has been included in the exhibition Civilization: The Way We Live Now, on view at London’s Saatchi Gallery through 17 September. 18 CENTURION-MAGAZINE.COM
