CAROL BEAN: MALTESE CREATIVITY IN DRAWINGS

Carol Bean visiting The Playmobil FunPark

Carolina Bean, Illustrator, Malta.

I'm Carolina Bean. I'm a member of The Beans family. I'm an illustrator. I was born in Ħal Tarxien, Malta, a beautiful island in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, witness of the European history. I studied Illustration and Arts in La Valetta and I went to Rome to continue my formation. My family is my best inspiration because every one of them is different and this offers to me the possibility of creating different characters and idiosyncrasies. My dream is to publish an illustrated novel about The Beans.
 

-Good morning, Carolina Bean, and thanks to attend us.

- Good morning. It's a pleasure.

-Well, to start this interview I would like to know how you define yourself.

-I'm an illustrator, a person who draws pictures, especially comics and tales. I create art.

-Some people don't believe in these activities like art ones. How can you explain them to them?

-Well, I think that the first and most important thing is how we can define art. For me, art is any kind of human expression and it also must have a critical component to remove consciences, but it's my point of view. Comic is art and every time is more appreciated by the consumers, who are more exigent and critic and discover how we can create opinion thanks to our drawings and stories.

-Which is your source of inspiration?

-I think it's impossible to have only one. An artist is the result of lots of influences and in my case is not an exception but if I had to choose one, something that is very difficult, I would like to talk about Mafalda, the cleverest Argentinian child.

-How do you feel being a member of The Bean's family?

-Well, they are a great family full of creativity and imagination. For me, they're great artists and masters in their professions. They're like a Pantone template: all are different, even some of them share ideas and feelings, they have different tones and the totality of them creates a wonderful and unforgettable composition. All of them are important for the rest and the final creation is not complete if all of them aren't there.

-How is a normal day with The Beans?

-We haven't got a normal day although we have a little habit: we try to learn and review some English meanwhile we travel around the world.

-How long have you been studying English?

-Since I was in the school. I'm from Malta and my mother tongue is Maltese but Malta was a British colony and English is still very important for Maltese people. For other hand, our country is formed by three islands and being an islander creates in you a special character because, sometimes, you can feel yourself a little isolated from the rest of the world and you must open your mind and your space far away to be connected with other communities and, nowadays, English is the best tool to be communicated.

-Then, you speak two languages? 

-Well, in fact, I speak three: Maltese, English and Italian. The Italian community is very important in Malta, perhaps, because we are closer neighbours and knowing Italian is the most common for a great part of Maltese people. I also studied in Rome and then, this fact helped me to learn the language.

-Malta is one of the smallest countries around the world and you have a rich cultural past. What can you explain about it?

-Islands are very important in the European history. We have been very important to protect and conserve cultures and people who escaped and exiled from prosecutions and wars. As an island, you're exposed to be occupied by the dominant empire and we're the result of lots of dominant empires. Our culture and character is a mix of all of them and we are very proud of it. The most ancient prehistoric European ruins are in Malta: Ħaġar Qim, Menajdra and the Ħal-Saflieni Hypogeum. We are the land of the Order of the Knights of Saint John and our capital, La Valetta, is considered a Human Heritage by the UNESCO as the prehistorical ruins. For other hand, our connection with the Catalan-Aragonese Crown offered to us the possibility of being one of the most important and commercial places across the Mediterranean sea and this fact helped to grow as a rich and powerful country. And...don't forget that Malta is the headquarters of Playmobil.

-How can a Maltese illustrator arrive to success?

-You must work very hard and never give up.

-Which was your best experience with The Beans?

-Well, staying with them is a great experience. The family is a group of people very qualified who have offered their best to the common success but if I had to choose one, perhaps, when we stayed in New York and they gave me enough time to work alone in Central Park. It's very important that people know when you need your own space and time to find yourself, especially for an artist. All of us need our space and our time to achieve our personal dreams and goals and this doesn't mean that you don't need other people's help, no. This means that, sometimes, it's good to have enough time to be alone, take enough forces and start again in the searching of your dreams and objectives.

-Which is your dream?

-Life is a race. You must continue to reach the next objective but without forgetting who you are and where you come from. Everyone will continue her/his path but I hope being in touch with the rest of the family. My personal dream is to publish an illustrated novel about The Beans. They deserve it. They're great and unforgettable.

-What kind of thing would you like to draw in your future works?

-I don't think about personal and future projects. I prefer thinking about the present. For me future is present because you only can try to change your future if you do something in your present. If I think like a member of a community, I would like the end of all the wars, obviously. The possibility of living in a better world with no violence and with respect, a society full of work and opportunities to the people who want to reach them is something very important to me.

-Which is your favourite song?

-I haven't got a especial one but I'm a fan of Brazilian music.

-Brazilian?

-Yes. I believe that Brazilian culture offers an incredible point of view about how to live in a complicated world enjoying every minute of your life. One of the most especial moments for me with The Beans was when I could explain to them some things about Brazilian culture in general and Rio de Janeiro in particular.

-Do you like this message?

-Yes. It's my lifestyle. Enjoy whatever you do. Do it with passion as Brazilian people do. Live as passionately as you can and don't forget to help your friends and relatives when they need it.

-Thank you very much, Carol Bean.

-You're welcome.

Isn't it incredible all that a pencil can have inside?

Joaquín Salvador Lavado, Quino

KATRINA AND THE BEANS: BEING THE BEST CANDIDATES

The Beans receiving their prize in Lisbon

The Beans are still enjoying their victory in the last Eurovision Song Contest. The family did a great interpretation demonstrating a great teamwork and coordination, skills that you need if you want to success in the labour world.

Their amazing interpretation was TT immediately and fans around the world expressed their admiration about The Beans and their wonderful song. One of them was Katrina Leskanich, winner of this contest in 1997 representing the UK.

Katrina has offered The Beans the possibility of joining her in her next tour in Hong Kong. The family is astonished with the news and after some hours of deliberation, they have accepted. Then, it's official that The Beans are going to leave their lifestyle, their travels and their parties and they're going to join Katrina in this new adventure.

More information: ABA English

The Grandma is very happy with this decision because she has always trusted in her family and she knew they were the best candidates to do whatever they wanted because, yes, they can do it! She isn't going to stay with them in Asia because she prefers to return to Barcelona and start new business with new partners. She thinks that she has already done all her work with the family and now she's going to be in contact with them thanks to the 2.0 technology.

The secret of The Beans's success is easy to explain: sacrifice, effort, happiness, teamwork, partnership and commitment. 

All of them have got this common success thanks to their individual efforts which applicated to a common goal have been the best way to reach their objectives. If you want to be a good candidate, you must have an elaborated CV, a good resume and especial communicative skills that allow you to get an interview over. These are the most important clues in labour insertion and these are the keys that have helped The Beans to reach the victory in this contest.

More information: Citizens Information

Katrina Elizabeth Leskanich (born April 10, 1960) is an American musician, author and former lead singer of British pop rock band Katrina and the Waves whose song Walking on Sunshine was an international hit in 1985 and in 1997 won the Eurovision Song Contest for the United Kingdom with the song Shine a Light.

Katrina Leskanich

Leskanich was born in Topeka, Kansas. She is of Irish, German and Czech ancestry. Her father was a colonel in the United States Air Force, and Katrina and her five siblings (four sisters and one brother) moved frequently as children. After she was born, they moved from Kansas to New Mexico, and then California, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Massachusetts, Nebraska, Stuttgart, in (then) West Germany, and the Netherlands before arriving in the United Kingdom in 1976.

The band's earliest incarnation was as The Waves, a group that played in and around Cambridge, England, from 1975 to 1977 and featured guitarist Kimberley Rew and drummer Alex Cooper. For the first Capitol album, the band re-recorded, remixed, or overdubbed 10 songs from their earlier Canadian releases to create their self-titled international debut album in 1985.

More information: Quizlet (I)

The Katrina and the Waves album was a substantial critical and commercial success, and the group had a worldwide hit with the song Walking on Sunshine. A Grammy award nomination for Best New Artist followed, as did constant touring, both of which helped to spur sales of new releases.

The Beans during their winner performance

In 1997, after having somewhat faded into obscurity, the band won the Eurovision Song Contest 1997 for the United Kingdom with Shine a Light, the same song that Katrina has chosen, this time, to sing with The Beans. 

The first video of this song is now avalaible and we can offer the exclusive of its premiere. Under the direction of Antonio Bean and The Grandma's production, Katrina sings with Paqui, Elisabet and Cristina Bean with a chorus formed by Ana, Nereyda and Natalia Bean, a choreography created by Carol Bean and a fantastic melody performanced by Tania Bean with the drums, Anton Bean with the keyboards, Óscar, Edgar and Estefanía Bean with the guitars and Manuel Bean with the bells. The result is a beautiful and unforgettable version of the 1997's hit Shine a light.

More information: Quizlet (II)

The new version is stronger than the older because every Bean offers his/her colour to it and as a result, you can enjoy a powerful song with deep lyrics full of commitment, energy, happiness, effort, teamwork and coordination, an amazing song mixed of gospel, folk and pop rythms which is going to steal your heart and you mind. 

C'mon, the version is also now avalaible in ITunes and Amazon Music. Download it now and enjoy with us!

Teamwork requires some sacrifice up front; 

people who work as a team have to put the collective 

needs of the group ahead of their individual interests. 

Patrick Lencioni

CHRIST THE REDEEMER: THE BEANS TOUCH HEAVEN

Nereyda Bean, Fantasia in the Sambódromo

Last night, The Beans enjoyed Brazilian carnival in the Sambódromo of Rio. Nereyda Bean was chosen as a new Fantasia Girl by the crowd and she could participate in the parade dancing over a carriage. 

After a great party, this morning, the family has visited Christ The Redeemer, perhaps, the most important symbol of Rio de Janeiro and one of the most popular monuments around the world because it is one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.

More information: New Seven Wonders of the World

It has been a special visit for Antonio Bean, because he's a deep religious man; for Manuel Bean, who is a professional climber and has had the opportunity of climbing up to the top of the statue; and for Nereyda Bean, who is fear to heights and has suffered a little. 

Manuel Bean on the top of Christ the Redeemer

The rest of the family has preferred to stay on the ground, taking photos and listening how The Grandma explained her personal memories about Rio in the past and how Carol Bean explained her ones in the present. It has been a wonderful experience.

Christ the Redeemer is an Art Deco statue of Jesus Christ in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, created by French sculptor Paul Landowski and built by the Brazilian engineer Heitor da Silva Costa, in collaboration with the French engineer Albert Caquot. Romanian sculptor Gheorghe Leonida fashioned the face. Constructed between 1922 and 1931, the statue is 30 metres tall, excluding its 8-metre pedestal. The arms stretch 28 metres wide.

More information: Mental Floss

The statue weighs 635 metric tons, and is located at the peak of the 700-metre Corcovado mountain in the Tijuca Forest National Park overlooking the city of Rio de Janeiro. A symbol of Christianity across the world, the statue has also become a cultural icon of both Rio de Janeiro and Brazil, and is listed as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. It is made of reinforced concrete and soapstone.

Antonio Bean's selfie with Christ the Redeemer

Vincentian priest, Pedro Maria Boss, first suggested placing a Christian monument on Mount Corcovado in the mid 1850s to honor Princess Isabel, princess regent of Brazil and the daughter of Emperor Pedro II, however the project died due to lack of support. 

In 1889 the country became a republic, and due to the separation of church and state, the idea of the statue was dismissed. The Catholic Circle of Rio made a second proposal for a landmark statue on the mountain in 1920. The group organized an event called Semana do Monumento to attract donations and collect signatures to support the building of the statue. 

More information: Aleteia

What motivated the organization was what they perceived as 'Godlessness' in the society at the time. The donations came mostly from Brazilian Catholics. The designs considered for the Statue of the Christ included a representation of the Christian cross, a statue of Jesus with a globe in his hands, and a pedestal symbolizing the world. The statue of Christ the Redeemer with open arms, a symbol of peace, was chosen.

Old memories of Rio de Janeiro (1920's & 1930's)

Local engineer Heitor da Silva Costa designed the statue. French sculptor Paul Landowski created the work.

In 1922, Landowski commissioned fellow Parisian Romanian sculptor Gheorghe Leonida, who studied sculpture at the Fine Arts Conservatory in Bucharest and in Italy. Leonida's portrayal of Christ's face made him famous.

A group of engineers and technicians studied Landowski's submissions and felt building the structure of reinforced concrete, designed by Albert Caquot, instead of steel was more suitable for the cross-shaped statue. 

The outer layers are soapstone, chosen for its enduring qualities and ease of use. Construction took nine years, from 1922 to 1931 and cost the equivalent to $3,400,000 in 2018 and the monument opened on October 12, 1931. During the opening ceremony, the statue was to be lit by a battery of floodlights turned on remotely by Italian shortwave radio inventor Guglielmo Marconi, stationed 9,200 km away in Rome but because of bad weather, the lights were activated on-site.

More information: Daily Mail

Corcovado is a mountain in central Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The 710-metre granite peak is located in the Tijuca Forest, a national park. 

Aerial view of The Beans and Christ the Redeemer

The peak and statue can be accessed via a narrow road, by the 3.8 kilometre Corcovado Rack Railway, which was opened in 1884 and refurbished in 1980, or by the walking trail on the south side of the mountain that starts from Parque Lage. 

The railway uses three electrically powered trains, with a passenger capacity of 540 passengers per hour. The rail trip takes approximately 20 minutes and departs every 20 minutes. Due to its limited passenger capacity, the wait to board at the entry station can take several hours.

From the train terminus and road, the observation deck at the foot of the statue is reached by 223 steps, or by elevators and escalators. Among the most popular year-round tourist attractions in Rio, the Corcovado railway, access roads, and statue platform are commonly crowded. 

More information: Visit Rio

It is good to be tired and wearied by the futile search after the true good, that we may stretch out our arms to the Redeemer. 

Blaise Pascal

CAROL BEAN: OUR GIRL FROM IPANEMA TALKS ABOUT RIO

Quem nasce lá na Vila

nem sequer vacila

Ao abraçar o samba

que faz dançar os galhos

do arvoredo e faz a lua

nascer mais cedo

Lá, em Vila Isabel

quem é bacharel

Não tem medo de bamba

São Paulo dá café

Minas dá leite

e a Vila Isabel dá samba

Hi, I'm Carol Bean!

Today, I’m going to talk about Brazil, specifically, Rio de Janeiro, la cidade maravilhosa.

First, we are going to do a route across the more important touristic sites. 

-Copacabana: The most famous beach. It is fantastic! People of the all the world, samba on live, açai -more in the typical foods-, white sand and cool water over 40 degrees.

-Escadaria do Selaron: This staircase is well known because it is made with a mosaic of bright colors such as red, yellow, green...  This staircase connects two districts, at the beginning this La Lapa and when you go up there is the Santa Teresa district. 

La Lapa is a bohemian district of the center with more typical pubs to dance all the typical dances of Rio. Forro is danced in the pubs like Estudiantina Musical, Os Democraticos,  or Leviano.
 

Another dance is samba gafieira...

   

There are two types of funk: funk and funky de favela.

Funk...

Now, it is fashionable among young people to do passinho competitions:

Funky de favela...

Santa Teresa is the oldest district of colonial Brazilian times. There are two ways to go up to the district: Walking or in the Bondinho to enjoy and travel to past.
 
But, now is Carnival! We are going to enjoy the parties in the streets with Os Blocos, the future samba schools that want to be able to parade in the Sambódromo but now they belong to the school category. They have to be known in order to have more partners and they do it doing parties in the streets during all the carnival.

On the other hand, those that are already samba schools like the Portela, Uniao da Ilha, Mocidade already parade in the Sambódromo. The parade of the samba schools lasts about 2 hours each with approximately 2000 components.

Watching parade with the music at full volume and the skin bristles is an unforgettable experience and how we dance so much, walk and have fun, we're very hungry.  Let's taste typical and delicious meals of Rio!

Carol Bean with Portela in Venetian style in 2015

-Feijoada: Black beans and various types of meat -legs, pork, rib, sausage...-. This dish was created by the slaves, when they only had the feijao that are the black beans and their owners gave them the leftovers of the meat they ate, then, they all gathered and put together the pieces of meat that each one had received from its owner.

When you have eaten the plate the custom is to eat a slice of orange, since it lowers all the fat from the mouth and throat and to drink a caipirinha. All this, we will eat in one of the samba schools while we are listening to samba on live and the carnival is celebrated.

-Angu: Corn flour and various meats -liver, sausage, rib...- with beer in the angu does Gomes, the most typical bar where all the sambistas go to recover their strength to continue with the party, but if we want to eat something fast, at every step on the street we will find a good barbecue with meat skewers.

Well, time to enjoy has come!

 Brazil has its own fashion identity. Many very talented Brazilian designers show every season at Sao Paulo and Rio fashion weeks. 

Gisele Bundchen

FROM VENICE TO RIO DE JANEIRO, SHADOWS & LIGHTS

The Grandma with Ana Bean's Venetian Mask

Shadows...

Today, The Beans have left Venice. They have been in the city during few days enjoying the Carnevale and the most important, enjoying the kindness of Venetian people. Once you have visited Venice it's impossible to forget it for the rest of your life.

It has been a special visit, especially for Ana Bean, who is a great lover of the city, and for The Grandma who lost her lover in this city some decades ago and she has never found him. The search continues and she won't give up but time is running against her and because of this, she's sad and a little depressed and she has bought tones of Super Glue and Bitumen of Judea -nobody knows why, things of old people...-

More information: Corto in Venice (Italian Version)

Hopes...

By the way, The Grandma has received a great surprise from Ana Bean that she will never forget. She has recovered her lost faith and her interest in continuing her particular search of Corto Maltese.

How sad Venice can be.
It's too lonely to bare,

when you have lost the love

that you discovered there.

Charles Aznavour

Lights...

The family is happy because they have spent some unforgettable days in the capital of the Veneto and they're going to visit Rio de Janeiro, another must, if you're talking about spectacular carnivals.

They have been practising some English to try to full their time. It's a long flight again and they must fight the jet lag with their better guns: reading, cinema and expositions. They have revised Past Simple (To Be and To Have) and some Social English before Carol Bean had explained her experiences in Rio de Janeiro some years ago.

More information: Past Simple (To Be) & Past Simple (To Have) 

Carmen Miranda

It has been an incredible exposition accompanied by some typical Brazilian music and food. The Beans have received their first classes of samba thanks to Carol Bean, who is an excellent instructor, and have tasted some chocolate delicatessen thanks to Natalia Bean.

Finally, the family has chosen The Queen of The Beans and Carol Bean has won this recognition meanwhile, The Grandma has started to remember again and full of nostalgia has remember one of her favourite actresses of her childhood, Carmen Miranda, the Brazilian star, singer and dancer whose sister, Aurora Miranda, participated in Walt Disney's film The Three Caballeros. 

The Beans have been talking about their favourites films and the list is long: Pinocchio, Fantasia, The Aristocats, Lady and the Tramp, Dinosaur, The Beauty and The Beast, Mulan, Brave, Peter Pan, Aladdin, Bambi, The Lion King, Balto, The Princess and the Frog... everyone has a favourite film joined to special memories of it.

More information: The Telegraph

Look at me and tell me if I don't have Brazil 

in every curve of my body. 

Carmen Miranda

NEREYDA BEAN & THE BEANS: ODE TO MY FAMILY

Jack Malone & Samantha Spade

After being identified by Carol Bean, the The Beans have left the hospital and have gone to the Bryant Hotel to relax and to follow the NYDP instructions. They have practised some English to try to return to their normal life. So, they have talked about Shall and about some relative pronouns -Who, That, Which-. They have also reviewed Present Continuous.

More information: Shall

Nereyda Bean is still missing. This is the main reason because the family is in the hotel waiting news. Theo Kojak and CSI Stella Bonasera have explained to the family that perhaps the flow has moved Nereyda to another state and then, they must demand help to the FBI. Jack Malone and his team are joining to the searching. They are expert in finding people who have disappeared without a trace.

Nereyda's Missing Alert

Meanwhile the NYPD and the FBI are working, The Beans have written some missing alerts to try to find Nereyda. 

The Police is investigating the last messages sent by The Beans from their IPhones before the ship sank. They want to be sure that any of The Beans aren't involved in this strange case.

CSI Team continues its work. They are trying to find the real cause of the sinking. 

Now, they are analysing the proofs and the digital prints that they found in the part of the boat that could be saved by the rescue team.

More information: Present Continuous

The Grandma is obsessed with the security of her family and she has decided to buy some digital identification with GPS to control of all them by satellite. In the age of the last technology and communications, we are alone.

Nereyda, please, resist because every member of the family is working to find you.

Unhappiness, where's when I was young,
and we didn't give a damn
'cause we were raised

to see life as a fun and take it if we can

Ode to my family, The Cranberries

CAROL BEAN: A HEART IN NY, BAREFOOT IN THE PARK

Barefoot in the park poster with Carol Bean

Carol Bean had a dream. She wanted to visit Central Park and today her dream has come true. Carol has visited this wonderful place accompanied by her family. All together have spent a nice day in the park visiting the real places where Robert Redford and Jane Fonda filmed Barefoot in the park in 1967 and have assisted to the Simon & Garfunkel Concert.

Central Park is an urban park in Manhattan, New York City. It comprises 341 ha between the Upper West Side and Upper East Side, roughly bounded by Fifth Avenue on the east, Central Park West (Eighth Avenue) on the west, Central Park South (59th Street) on the south, and Central Park North (110th Street) on the north. Central Park is the most visited urban park in the United States, with 40 million visitors in 2013, and one of the most filmed locations in the world.

More information: Central Park Conservancy

The park was established in 1857 on 315 ha of land acquired by the city. In 1858, landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted and architect/landscape designer Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they titled the Greensward Plan. 

The Beans in Central Park, New York City

Construction began the same year, and the park's first area was opened to the public in the winter of 1858. Construction north of the park continued during the American Civil War in the 1860s, and the park was expanded to its current size in 1873. 

After a period of decline in the early 20th century, Robert Moses started a program to clean up Central Park. Another decline in the late 20th century spurred the creation of the Central Park Conservancy in 1980, which refurbished many parts of the park during the 1980s and 1990s.

Central Park was designated a National Historic Landmark by the U.S. Department of the Interior in 1962, which in April 2017 placed it on the tentative list for UNESCO World Heritage Sites. 

More information: Central Park

The park, managed for decades by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, is currently managed by the Central Park Conservancy under contract with the municipal government in a public-private partnership. The Conservancy is a non-profit organization that contributes 75 percent of Central Park's $65 million annual budget and is responsible for all basic care of the 341 ha park.

New York, lookin' down on Central Park
Where they say you should not wander after dark.

New York, like a scene from all those movies

but you're real enough to me, but there's a heart,

a heart that lives in New York.

Simon & Garfunkel