There is nothing like having a famous surname to make a name for yourself in the art world, become a leading artist, inaugurate an entire gallery in the heart of Palma, and attract the attention of dozens of media and almost a hundred friends and guests.
Noah Gabriel Becker did it last Friday night, one of the eldest sons of the German tennis player Boris Becker. The presentation of his work, titled “Pros & Cons of Being a Spoiled Brat,” brought together practically the entire Becker family at the Gerhardt Braun gallery, including some of the most important women in the life of what has been the best racket Germany ever had.
Years after his last visit to the island, to which he was a regular visitor, Boris Becker returned. The reason was to support the son he had with the designer Barbara Feltus, who was also present at the event.
And although it was impossible to pose father and son in front of one of the exhibited works, the media call was so well attended that it could be described as a success.
Rough and elusive with photographers, the former German tennis player did look somewhat less tense in the company of his current partner, Lilian de Carvalho Monteiro, with whom he is regularly seen in Ibiza enjoying the holidays.
Those present were surprised by the good relationship that Lilian maintains with Barbara, with whom she spoke for much of the evening.
The idyll, as we said, that Becker had with Mallorca was broken years ago as a result of a real estate problem. Until then, he could be found regularly at the island’s golf clubs.
In 1997, the tennis player acquired the property of Son Coll, valued at half a million euros, but a complaint forced him to stop the renovation and demolish the illegally constructed buildings.
After these problems, Becker tried to sell the house but could not find a buyer, so in 2006, as the local press recalls, he opened it to raise the sale price to about 15 million euros.
After delaying the foreclosure auctions several times due to the debts he owed, finally, in 2019, a creditor acquired the house that had also been occupied by the German hippie Bauchi. Boris Becker had not returned since.
So the family photo on Friday, even in bits and pieces, reunited Boris with Barbara and Lilian, and the siblings Noah and Elias. The latter was encouraged to reply to the media, saying, “I am very proud of my brother.”
It must be remembered that both Noah and Elias have not followed in their father’s footsteps, and while Noah has opted for art and design – with Lenny Kravitz among his clients – Elias has tried his luck as a model and has walked the runway for Dolce & Gabbana, although his great passion is cinema.
In addition to these two boys, the result of his marriage to Barbara, Boris is the father of two other children: Amadeus, born from his union with the former Dutch model Lilit Kerssenberg, and Anna Ermakova, born from a fleeting encounter with the Russian model Angela Ermakova in a room at the Nobu restaurant in London. None of them were at the exhibition.
RAFA NADAL’S AUNT, AMONG THE GUESTS
Although most of the guests were German-speaking, the VIPs of the night also included Fiona Ferrer and Maria Barcelo, the “wayward” aunt of Rafa Nadal.
“I say that I am different. I like art, fashion, and I don’t see why I can’t have my personality and talk about whatever I want,” she told ‘La Razón’.
Of course, when asked about her nephew, she is clear “that there are red lines that I am not going to cross.” So yes, when asked if she is waiting impatiently for the announcement of a pregnancy, Barcelo only replied, “Of course, Rafa and Mery will be parents, but they are still young and have time ahead of them.”
And she didn’t want to say anything else.