Every so often, we have the privilege of catching up with collaborators, friends, and those who inspire our work at Veark. Founder of Psyche Organic, Theophilos Constantinou recently stopped by our office in Copenhagen to chat cooking, tools, the art of giving, and life.

Read on to discover what his inspirations are and the things that fascinate him these days.

Where's home?

I've actually considered this my whole life. Where home is. I never really came up with a concrete answer. I was born in Akron, Ohio, and being in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park definitely feels like a place that resonates with whatever the word home means. But I've lived and traveled all over the world, and I really believe that home is wherever you are, right? And obviously there's deeper levels to that statement, but I think it's a it's a feeling of like anachronistic, like something you remember from the past. I think home is a loaded word, and I think you can make a home anywhere, right? And it's the things that I think you feel comfortable in and or around. But it's tied to typically physical objects or some form of nature or something like that. So for me, home is a place I feel comfortable, …typically, outside.

The Cuyahoga River through the National Park

Theo fly-fishing at the Big Laxa River. Photo credit.

What did you served last time you had guests.

Last time I had guests, I served la hot pot chicken curry made in a Le Creuset. It's basically... putting chicken thighs and chicken legs and breasts into an into a Le Creuset pot with rice, coconut milk, cardamom, all kinds of spices and things. It's really, really delicious. I can share the link with you.

What are you working on now?

We've been working on a glass bottle to decant the oil into. We're also working on a glass bottle for people who want that experience with Psyche and don’t use plastic.

What's a tool that you can't live without?

The classic Stainless Steel Tongs, they're just amazing. Having a pair of tongs in the kitchen is just my go to. And then there's these Japanese garden pruners. They're called ARS. Once you have a pair of these pruners, you never need another pair of pruners. It's the one with cool red handles.

What does cooking mean to you?

Yeah, pretty essential. I mean, cooking is life, and for me, cooking is a way to bring people together, right, from all backgrounds, from all walks. I say it a lot like to break bread with people, right? And, I mean, we can go out and break bread, but, you know, if someone comes into my home, it's intimate, right? It's a way to, I mean, cooking is just a way to kind of engage with yourself, with other people, you know, it's a way to commune with with other groups, and then also just yourself.

 

 

What is the most overrated or under appreciated thing you've come across?

Breathing. I think, I don't think people talk about breathing enough, right? I mean, you don't even really think about it. It's a dial in for everybody, and most people do it wrong. And yeah, when I unlocked breathing in my life, it helped a lot. So that's something that's definitely under appreciated. It's a deep one, right? And learning how to do it the right way, or dedicating time to thoughtful breathing every day as a meditation, or just as a as an exercise of getting into the body and understanding how oxygen works in your body is super important, and I think it's under appreciated.

Remember a specific gift you ever received or gave?

Good one... I don't know. I'll be honest, I give a lot of gifts, but it's just more like, kind of in a moment where I don't know if I have something, then you come over to my house and just be like, Yo, take that. That's yours, bro. I mean, I've given so many things away that, you know, like, I still believe in giving is one of the greatest things that we can do as human beings. It's really rewarding just to kind of, like, instinctually, give.

Any song, movie, art, show, book, your particular mood or inspired by these days?

I'm actually going to see “One battle after another”. So to my future answer, I'm going to recommend that film just because it is Paul Thomas Anderson. He never misses. I love all of his films, and I know this one's going to hit just because of the cast and the storyline. You know, I'm sure that I will be recommending it after I see it, so I'm pre recommending it right now.

A book that inspired me...

I got a lot of books that inspired me. I'll say one that I haven't talked about in a long time. It's called The Long Way, by Moitessier, Bernard. He was a sailor from Indochina - what became Vietnam. And he circumvented the planet non stop. He was the first person to to do this. And there was this race that was created around it. He was anti corporations, anti all this fame and celebrity and stuff like that. And then I guess he found out somehow that he was going to win this race, and then he turned his ship around and went halfway back around the world. He's a fascinating human.

And a song...

Radiohead is my favorite band. I'm actually coming back to Copenhagen to see them in December. “Reckoner” live from the basement, just watch them in that moment. Yeah, really blown away by how much flow there is in that band, right? And to think about a group that's never broken, staying relevant and progressing as musicians through that space and constantly building.

 

Finally, any other recommendations? 

I mean, I always recommend, if you're in New York, go to Cafe Himalaya. It's my favorite Nepalese Tibetan restaurant. I eat there two three times a week. Yeah, one of my favorite spots in New York City.