International & Western Art Highlights Christie’s Forthcoming Dubai Auction

Christie’s fourth sale of International Modern & Contemporary Art, to be staged in Dubai on 30 April 2008, includes a carefully curated section of 30 works by some of the most exciting international and Western artists including Andy Warhol, Robert Indiana and Anish Kapoor, which span several important periods. With estimates ranging from $10,000 to $1 million, the international and Western art pieces are collectively expected to fetch in excess of $3 million. This auction follows Christie’s third sale of Contemporary Jewels and Watches in Dubai, to be held at the on 29 April 2008.

Christie’s

Gregory Colbert’s “Ashes and Snow” Exhibit in Mexico City Visited By Eight Million People

 

A temporary museum housing more than 50 large-scale photographic artworks and 3 accompanying 35mm artistic films by Gregory Colbert transformed Mexico City’s Zócalo into a timeless realm in which the boundaries between humans and animals disappear. The exhibition, Ashes and Snow, was on display from January 19 through April 27, 2008. It was presented in the Nomadic Museum, the permanent traveling home of the project. This collection is joined by photographic artworks and films from recent expeditions to comprise the work on display, so that the show itself, along with the architecture, evolves as it travels.

Guggenheim Bilbao Shows Selections Of Installations

One of the major developments of recent art history, installation art came to prominence in the early 1990s as a mode of art production centered on the creation of an immersive physical experience. Looking back to the pioneering Happenings of the 1950s, as well as Minimalist and Post-Minimalist artists like Richard Serra, who highlighted bodily awareness through sculptural interventions, artists in the 1990s expanded the work of art into a multimedia environment of installations.

Guggenheim Bilbao

Linda McCartney Photos exhibited At James Hyman Gallery

This is the first major exhibition of platinum prints by Linda McCartney to be presented in the UK. With the full support of Paul McCartney and his family, this exhibition is the result of a three-year collaboration with gallerist and art historian James Hyman. On view at James Hyman Gallery through 19 July, 2008.

Belfast Exposed Photography Hosts 2MOVE: Ireland

 

2MOVE: Ireland presents an exciting range of video work by international artists exploring the connections between video, mobility, migratory culture and our contemporary world. 2MOVE: Ireland is part of a wider international touring project 2MOVE curated by internationally renowned cultural theorist and critic Mieke Bal and art historian Miguel Hernández-Navarro. On exhibition 3 May – 2 June, 2008.

DoubleMovement

“Terry Richardson vs Jackass” Solo Exhibition At Laforet Museum Harajuku

Terry Richardson has been a hot topic of discussion for many years now and is argubly one of the most influential photographers we have seen in the past decade, having done photoshoots for many big labels such as Gucci and Sisley. Just late last year he held an exhibition in Hong Kong with renown Vinyl artist Michael Lau which received many appraisals from the auidence, and a notable recent creation will have to be the collaboration between himself and Supreme to create the Kermit Bearbrick. This week Terry Richardson is hosting an exhibition at Laforet Museum in Harajuku, with the exhibition titled “Terry Richardson vs Jackass” sponsored by AmericanApparel, The exhibition started last Friday on the 24th, and is currently still running until the 8th of May. In the exhibition there is be a few limited edition items available for purchase at the exhbition, such as a milited release of 200 X Terry Richardson limited edition Photo print T-shits, 100 X Terry Richardson work collection (Photobook), And 100 pieces of a very special Terry Richardson Boxset that consists of an instant camera and the notorious sunglasses, both of which Terry Richardson uses very frequently. These limited items will surely very valuable to collect for the true Terry Richardson fans out there. The exhibition is of free admission. So if you are in the area, be sure to pop by and check it out. Thanks to info from SecretBase and images from PingMag @ Flickr Laforet Museum Harajuku 6F, 1-11-6 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-0001

Optibike’s 2008 range of electric-powered bicycles will be spearheaded by the limited edition OB1, the signature bike of Optibike Inventor Jim Turner. The key component of the Optibike system – the patented Motorized Bottom Bracket (MBB) which drives through the derauiller gear system to optimize acceleration and range at all pedaling speeds – is now oil cooled and delivers 850 continuous watts of power. Add to this carbon fiber handlebars, brakes, derailleur, chainring and cable ferrules, a customized paint job, GPS satellite navigation, plus a wireless PDA interface that provides real-time feedback on remaining range, battery charge and motor temperatures, and you have yourself one high-performance urban commuter. Given the lightweight aluminum monocoque frame and sleek design, it’s unlikely that the casual observer will even realize you’re on an electric machine as you zoom past at at 30+ mph – unless of course you forego the pedals in favor of the thumb operated throttle.

Additional key specs of the OB1 include a 9 speed grip shift, two power modes – Fast and Economy – a 20ah Li-Ion, UltraBright Twin 10w Halogen lights, Fox 36 Talas RC2 Fork on the front and Fox Float RP23 Shock at the rear, a deluxe toolkit including Fox Shock Pump, quick charger and TAG Wheels made from a DuPont resin which require no truing. The custom paintwork is provided by Gunslinger Custom Paint and the entire bike is also covered by a 2 year full warranty with the wheels, frame and Chris King Headset guaranteed for life and the Lithium Ion Battery guaranteed for 3 years or 30,000 miles. An extended range touring battery is also optional.

Only 24 of the exclusive OB1’s will be built in 2008, and the price isn’t designed to appeal to the mass market either at around US$12995.

Three additional models will complete the 2008 range – the 800Li, the 50 mile range 600Li and Optibike 400 – all with “bulid-your-own” bike customization options. Prices start at USD$4995 for the 400 watt model and the bikes can be compared here.

Further info at the Optibike site.

Head-mounted camera for recording special moments

I firmly believe that recording one’s life is a coming trend and will eventually become pervasive – it’s a big statement but recording digital video is now child’s play and storage is getting cheaper all the time and a 24-7 hi-res recording from your Point-Of-View (POV) sure beats snapshots in a shoebox under the bed. Microsoft is working towards providing wearable camera technology, and a recent concept we saw looks quite viable. If you can’t wait for those advanced concepts, there’s now a reasonably priced, high-resolution head-worn camera.

A new UKP300 (US$455) tactical head camera worn by U.K. police for surveillance operations offers the perfect portable camera device for recording your every move. The 450 TVL resolution kit can be used to record leisure activities, such as skiing, paragliding, mountain biking, paint balling, motorcycling, rock climbing and even strolling down High Street, if you have a silly hat to disguise it or don’t mind looking like a cyborg.

The camera, which clips securely on to the ears, feeding the wires round the back of the head, also has a built-in microphone for audio recording, and a 4.3mm lens, giving an 80° viewing angle.

When connected to a portable recorder, it produces high quality recordings of events, as seen by the individual.

The camera comes with a complete set of power and cable accessories, meaning recordings can be played through a number of different devices. Extra connections also allow it to be used with any recorder that has video and audio phono inputs.

The separate battery box means the camera can be powered directly from a standard square battery, but in some cases, the recorder can power the camera directly, so that extra connections won’t be needed.

Activate Drinks

So many energy drinks, so little bladder control. For most health conscious people out there, the biggest problem with the plethora of Gator, Power, Sobe, and other prefixed aides and waters is that we all want to believe that they’re doing a bit of good to our addled bodies. If you’re going to reach for a bottle of vitamin infused H20, shouldn’t you be able to quantify the goodness? The team at Activate Drinks realized that for the average one-a-day pill consumer, you need to be able to see the proof in the neon colored liquid. As you turn the cap of the bottle, a packet of essential vitamins and minerals is released into the drink — the thought being that you store your vitamins in a cool, dry place, why shouldn’t the same logic be applied to your vitamin drink? The flavor options come in low-calorie concoctions such as: Vitamin, Antioxidant, and Immunity.

Nintendo’s Wii Fit Delivers An Irresistible Mix Of Fun Activities And Muscle-Straining Exercises

Once a guy could sit comfortably on the couch and, by mashing a few buttons, make onscreen characters do all the hard work in a videogame. Nintendo changed all that with the Wii. Suddenly, if you wanted to bowl or play tennis or help Mario save the galaxy, you had to stand up! and move major muscle groups in a coordinated manner!. All those years of disciplined training to develop Thumbs of Steel, and Nintendo changes the game.

On May 21, the company launches a further assault on flabby fun-seekers with Wii Fit, a hardware/software exercise combo. The gadget part of this $90 package is the Balance Board, a sturdy platform, roughly twice the width of a bathroom scale, that communicates wirelessly with the Wii console. Inside are four strain gauges that precisely monitor the way your weight shifts while standing on the board. I was impressed with the device’s sensitivity—it’s built like a serious piece of exercise equipment, not a toy.

 

The software includes 40 exercises, broken into four categories: balance, aerobics, strength training and yoga. Tying them together is a comprehensive monitoring program that stores your results and graphs them over time. Unless you’re in extraordinary condition, your first few minutes with Wii Fit will not leave you smiling. The software centers on body mass index (BMI), a ratio of weight to height that’s supposed to indicate how much body fat you’re carrying. If you’ve ever figured your BMI (with an online calculator like this one), you know it’s an unforgiving, unrealistic bastard of a measurement. After the program tells you you’re overweight or obese (trust me, it will), figure out how much you’d have to lose to hit “normal weight.” In my case, even if I were to get down to a weight I know looks reasonable on me, I’d have to grow six inches, and exercises for spinal lengthening are strangely missing from the program. Still, the stat does offer a way to monitor your progress.

The Wii Fit exercises can be very strenuous, lots of fun, or a combination of the two. The balance category has an addictive game where, by shifting your weight, you bob your head to hit incoming soccer balls (and dodge cleats that one of your “friends” is apparently hurling at you). There are also two clever skiing games. A slalom course challenges you to aim yourself between the flags by shifting your weight. The ski jump has you crouching to build up speed and then standing up quickly to leap at just the right moment.

 

Aerobic activities are also ingeniously designed. I especially like the virtual hula-hoop challenges, in which you try to keep multiple hoops aloft by twisting those hips for all you’re worth. Which brings up an interesting point: You are, periodically, going to look like an absolute moron while playing Wii Fit. I’m inclined to play in a darkened room with no mirrors.

I will try the Wii Fit yoga exercises, once I have a new room set up. The the strength-training exercises, which include arm and leg lifts, lunges, torso twists and such, will test the boundaries of even the physically fit, while letting the rest of us start off nice and slow.

 

The use of onscreen coaches (male or female, your choice) is a standout feature. The coaches do a fine job of explaining the required movements, demonstrating them clearly, and even suggesting what you’re doing wrong based on the board’s feedback. If I were designing the program, of course, there would be a cheat code to unlock a nasty drill-sergeant trainer. But then again, I’ve been playing in-your-face videogames for a long time and expect to be abused by my software.

Most of us lack the time to go to a gym regularly and the self-motivational fortitude to work out at home. Nintendo has created a system that combines reasonable physical demands with powerful psychological incentives, and it deserves the sales tsunami that’s about to hit when Wii Fit goes on sale May 19.

Pablo, you should get one of these for rhe family.