On July 12, 2012, His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco attended the opening of the exhibition, Extra Large: Oeuvres Monumentales de la collection du Centre Pompidou, held at the Grimaldi Forum in Monte-Carlo, Monaco.

According to the official website for the Grimaldi Forum this unique exhibition is:

… conceived as a voyage through the modern and contemporary collections of the Pompidou Center, focusing on fifty of its most monumental works, some of which are recent acquisitions or have never yet been exhibited in Europe. Goal: to lead the visitor into a head-swimming empathy with the work and enable him or her to discover the great names of 20th century art.

This spectacular journey, sometimes ‘dizzying’, punctuated by the great names of 20th and 21st century art, sheds a light on the concept of monumentality. It presents the very large format works of Joan Miró, Jean Dubuffet, Matta, Pierre Soulages, Frank Stella, Sam Francis, amd Yan Pei-Ming, but also presents sculptures, installations and environments by Joseph Beuys, Christian Boltanski, Daniel Buren and including Sol LeWitt, Anish Kapoor and Bill Viola: masterpieces of modern and contemporary creation brought together in a deliberately ‘non-standard’ presentation.

This project is the result of close cooperation between the Pompidou Center and the Grimaldi Forum Monaco and is the dreamed of occasion for the Grimaldi Forum Monaco to show to best advantage its Espace Ravel jewel box and its 4000 square meters. And to cap it all, the evocation of this monumental approach to art is taking place in a country labeled as ‘the second smallest country in the world!’ And this is far from being the last of the surprises for the public.

The exhibition ends on September 9, 2012.  For more information please click here.

Begins at the :58 mark.  In French.

Source: Grimaldi Forum

On Thursday, July 12, 2012, Their Serene Highnesses Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene of Monaco were in Monte-Carlo to attend the presentation of Team Monégasque for the upcoming summer Olympic Games in London.

The sovereign prince and princess, seen here with swimmer Ms. Angélique Trinquier,  posed for photos and mingled with members of Team Monégasque during today’s event.

Click here to view photos.

In other news, Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene will host a private garden party, at the Palais Princier on July 17, 2012, in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the International Association of Athletics Federations.

According to the official website for the International Association of Athletics Federations, Prince Albert II is “… Honorary President of the International Athletic Foundation  and President of the Fédération Monégasque d’Athlétisme…”

Source and photo courtesy of the Palais Princier de Monaco and International Association of Athletics Federations

On July 10, 2012, Their Serene Highnesses Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene of Monaco visited Stuttgart as part of their two-day official visit to Germany.

Upon their arrival at Stuttgart Airport, the princely couple were greeted by the Finance and Economics Minister for the State of Baden-Württemberg,  Dr. Nils Schmid and his wife.  Soon, Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene made a mad dash to the Mercedes-Benz Museum.  Whilst there they were given a private tour of an exhibition featuring 125 classic cars and the history of Mercedes-Benz. Dr. Joachim Schmidt, Member of the Executive Board of Mercedes-Benz, was thrilled to have the prince and princess visit the exhibition, “We are very honored to have them here and that they specially requested to visit us [the museum] and our research center.”

The princely couple also visited the Bosch Company (it’s an electronics and engineering company) whereupon the sovereign prince signed, “… a memorandum of understanding for a feasibility study on the subject of ‘Network-centric City.'” Apparently, the government in Monaco wishes to “…implement solutions for mobility, energy, health and communication…” according to Bosch Chairman, Mr. Franz Fehenbach.

Huh.  Okay.  Moving on.

Afterward, Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene arrived at the beautiful Villa Reitzenstein where they were greeted by the Minister-President of the State of Baden-Württemberg, Mr. Winfried Kretschmann, and his wife, Gerlinde.  After a quick photo-op, Minster-President Kretschmann ushered the princely couple into the villa where they signed the guest-book and attended a lovely reception held in their honor.

During the event, attended by dozens of government officials and VIPs, Minster-President Kretschmann “praised” the sovereign prince for his commitment to environmental protection stating:

I am pleased that the prince is committed to environmental issues and above all to his commitment in the field of renewable energy.

Fabulous.   🙂

Click the links below to watch a video as well as to view photos.

• VIDEO (Prince Albert speaking German; scroll down to watch)
• Gallery One
• Gallery Two
• Gallery Three
• Gallery Four

Sources and photo courtesy of: Palais Princier de Monaco, Welt, MB Press Release and STM Baden-Württemberg

On July 9, 2012, Their Serene Highness Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene of Monaco began their official two-day visit to Germany.

The day began with an official welcoming ceremony at Schloss Bellevue where the princely couple were greeted by German President, Mr. Joachim Gauck, and his partner, Ms. Daniela Schadt.

Afterward, the sovereign prince and President Gauck participated in “an hour-long meeting” with German Finance Minister, Mr. Wolfgang Schäuble, as well as other government officials from Germany and Monaco.

In the afternoon, Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene took a boat tour aboard the Sanssouci along the River Spree.  Guests included German Foreign Minister, Mr. Guido Westerwelle and his life partner, Mr. Michael Mronz, German fashion designer, Mr. Wolfgang Joop (if you remember, Mr. Joop designed Princess Sophie von Preußen’s,  née Isenburg, wedding dress in 2011) and other prominent government officials as well as members of German high society.

Any way, after the lovely boat tour Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene met the Mayor of Berlin, Mr. Klaus Wowereit, who gave them a tour of the famous Brandenburg Gate and more.

In the evening, the princely couple attended a gala dinner held in their honor and hosted by President Gauck at Schloss Bellevue.  According to the German newspaper, Berliner Morgenpost, during his speech President Gauck “praised” the prince’s commitment to the protection of the environment stating (rough translation):

We need more leaders like you, Serene Highness, who wear this type of motivation in the public… people like you who appeal to responsibility, stimulate change and more…

Click the links below to watch videos as well as to view photos.

• VIDEO
• VIDEO 2
• VIDEO 3 (Boat ride)
• VIDEO 4 (Boat ride. Again)
• VIDEO 5 (Visiting the Brandenburg Gate)
• VIDEO 6 (Leaving their hotel. Fans wait and cheer. A fan screams, “Welcome to Germany!! We Love You!”  How Sweet.)   🙂
• VIDEO 7 (Photo-op)
• VIDEO 8 (Welcoming ceremony; military review or what ever it’s called.)
• VIDEOS (Gala dinner)
• VIDEOS (Click where it says ‘Ist Furstin Charlene von Monaco Schwanger?’)
• Gallery One
• Gallery Two
• Gallery Three
• Gallery Four
• Gallery Five  (gala dinner)

Sources: Palais Princier de Monaco, Berliner Morgenpost and Stern

Photo courtesy of Morgenpost

On July 8, 2012, Their Serene Highnesses Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene of Monaco arrived in lovely Berlin, Germany.

Tomorrow, the princely couple will begin their two-day official where they will meet with the President of Germany, Mr. Joachim Gauck and his partner, Ms. Daniela Schadt, at Schloss Bellevue. Afterward, the sovereign prince will meet the Finance Minister, Mr. Wolfgang Schaüble, before participating in a working lunch with the Foreign Minister, Guido Westerwelle. He will also meet with Klaus Wowereit, Mayor of Berlin. The prince and princess are also expected to visit the famous Brandenburg Gate and attend a gala dinner held in their honor at Schloss Bellevue.

On Tuesday, July 10, 2012, Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene will travel to Stuttgart where they will meet with Mr. Winfried Kretschmann, Minister-President of the State of Baden-Württemberg.

Click here to watch a video.

Source: Palais Princier de Monaco