"GENDER TROUBLE"

Americka grupa s pompeznim (i parodickim) imenom Les Ballets de Trockadero de Monte Carlo, nastala je u sedamdesetim godinama proslog stoljeca u New Yorku, sasvim "off-off Broadway". Ova iskljucivo muska grupa parodirala je klasicni balet. Danas je znana po imenu Trocks i ima mlade plesace i najbolje ruske uciteljice baleta koje dolari mogu kupiti. Program je i dalje parodija, ali i nesto vise. Zele dokazati da i musko tijelo moze izvoditi ono sto je strogi klasicni balet zamislio i ostvario s iskljucivo zenskim tijelom.(Maro)click TROCKS Video

500 Years of Female Portraits

The Island of Lopud: Art Pavilion (June 20 to October 31, 2007)

As a part of the symposium "Patronage of Space", the critically acclaimed light installation /click/ "Your Black Horizon Art Pavillon"(the 51st Venise Biennale) by Danish-Icelandic artist /click/Olafur Eliasson, made in collaboration with London-based architect David Adjaye, has arrived to the Island of Lopud, Dubrovnik. "This distinctive location allows the artist and architect to test the conceptual nature of the project: to develop art and the spaces for art with respect for the site they inhabit. Embedded in an historic context, Lopud’s rich Renaissance heritage and lively tourist development, the pavilion is a model for art destination travel and contemporary interventions. The challenge is to make a portable and temporary museum, which sits comfortably in its surrounding natural site." And in which the color of the light changes spectrum according to the time of day, from sunrise to sunset.
Lopud is a precious little island of Mediterannean and subtropic vegetation, cypress and pine parks and citrus gardens. Lopud has always been an island of sea. Many highly reputed seamen were born there among which the illustrious captain Miho Pracat (known as the only person to whom the Republic of Dubrovnik built a statue, since the cult of a person was not popular in the Republic).

VENEZUELA: The Mangroves of Isla de Margarita

Just 25 miles off the cost of Venezuela or just a 40 minute flight from Caracas there is a beautiful island of Margarita.

"Columbus landed here on his third voyage in 1498, and every self-respecting pirate marauded here at least once in his career, giving rise to numerous forts around the island(Castillo de San Carlos de Borromeo (1664), Fortin Santiago de la Caranta (1596) and Castillo de Santa Rosa La Asunción)."
Apart from the amazing sandy beaches, one of the most precious beauty of Margarita are the mangroves of /click/LAGUNA DE LA RESTRINGA NATIONAL PARK. The "Park" consists of 25,000 acres of wetlands on the isthmus that connects Macanao Peninsula and east Margarita Island. The park is home to a variety of flora and fauna including Margarita's cottontail rabbit, white-tailed deer, ocelots, sea turtles and 107 bird species.
Often called the "rainforests of the sea," mangroves once dominated the coasts of tropical countries. However, in the past several decades people have destroyed thousands of mangrove forests purposely or indirectly, through the impacts of pollution, so ecologists are now trying to recreate these essential but endangered ecosystems. The latest restoration effort is underway on the island of Margarita where a conservation group hopes to re-establish 50 acres (20 hectares). Click Margarita mangroves VIDEO

MY SLIDESHOW: Chiqui Teo

CORAL REEFS

Corals are made of a colony of small creatures: Polyps. These marine animals with tentacles are fixed on a solid axis. This axis is in fact made of the skeletons of dead polyps. The skeletons are made of calcium carbonate (calcareous). The skeleton can be white, pink or blue. The pink coral is very appreciated in jewellery. The polyps live in symbiosis with an alga that lives inside them. The polyps nourish the phosphorus alga. In exchange the alga helps them build their skeleton. The coral reef shelters are very rich in fauna and flora. They can be found in the tropical or sub-tropical waters. They usually grow at rate of 0,5 cm to 1,8 cm per year, mostly along the coasts or by a lagoon, on an atoll. The Coral reefs of the western Pacific are much more diverse than those of the Atlantic and Caribbean. Today, the Coral reefs are under threat, suffering from decline and degradation due to a combination of natural and anthropogenic factors.In several reefs the polyps have been losing their symbiotic alga and ended up dying because their skeleton could not be built any more. Some of the man-made damage is related to pollution and tourism. "Impacts from tourism can often be reduced by raising awareness and changing behaviour among both tourists and local tourism industry workers."The largest coral reef is on the Northern coast of Australia. Click Great Barrier Reef VIDEO

EKV or CATHERINE THE GREAT

CLICK EKATERINA VELIKA
Click EKV REVISITED

SARAJEVO MON AMOUR

MARO'S FILM REVIEW: Ulysses Gaze (1995)

U filmu Ulysses Gaze (1995) Teodora Angelopulosa, glavni junak (igra ga Harvey Keitel) putuje po Balkanu proslosti i sadasnjosti, u potrazi za prvim balkanskim filmom. Citav film je konstruiran kao potraga za sjecanjem. Dok junak traga za fiksiranim antropoloskim sjecanjem koje je zabiljezio prvi balkanski filmski stvaralac Milton Manaki, posvuda susrece jednu zenu, istog lica, ali svaki put govori drugim balkanskim jezikom... Balkanka gine u Sarajevu. Click ULYSSES GAZE

LA LINEA: My Childhood Hero

LA LINEA was created in 1969 by Italian agency ODG for a series of advertising films for the Lagostino kitchenware. The advertising slogan said “We announce a happy event to you. Agostino Lagostina is born (...)." Who is Agostino? A small sharp man made of a line and a pencil - with a really expressive nose - who is very concerned about modern life.

The author of LA LINEA/click/ Osvaldo Cavandoli(1920-2007) begins his professional career in 1936 as a technical draftsman for the Alfa Romeo before looking further into his passion and his talents of draftsman for animation.In 1943 he starts to work with Nino Pagot, the creator of Calimero. "From 1972 on, LA LINEA was shown on numerous TV stations in Europe as well as in cinema, mostly as interstitial between commercials. Further on LA LINEA was shown in more than 40 countries over the world. The series won prizes 1972 in Annecy, France and 1973 in Zagreb, Croatia." The dubbing of Signor LINEA was made by Carlo Bonomi. An Italian could understand some words of the dialect spoken in Milan, the city where Carlo Bonomi was born. Click LA LINEA.

MARO'S FILM REVIEW: "The Bathing Beauty" (1944)

Film "The Bathing Beauty" (1944) bio je kulturni simbol jugoslavenskog otvaranja prema Zapadu nakon raskida sa Staljinom, prva sarena americka slika svijeta u izgladnjeloj i izmrcvarenoj zemlji, prvi masovni san o kulturi bezbriznosti i lagodnosti...
Malo revijske glazbe, mlak ljubavni zaplet, plivanje i ples, zgodni kostimi i dekor uz bazene, komicni dodatak, i to bi bilo sve.
Kada su jednom nasmijane sirene proplivale a orkestri uz bazen zasvirali, vise se nije moglo natrag, i jugoslavenska formula partijske represije i istovremenog omogucavanja relativnog konzumeristickog opustanja postala je moguca. Jaka i elegantna, misicava i koketna Esther Williams bila je idealan primjer sklapanja socijalistickih i kapitalistickih mjerila za zenu u onaj model koji je od zena zahtijevao bivsi jugoslavenski slucaj.
Danas, uspomena na vrijeme kad je plivanje bilo neraskidivo povezano sa izrazitom zenstvenoscu.Click ESTHER

ADRIATIC SEA: Jabuka Islet

The JABUKA Islet (Apple Islet) lies about 70 km NW of the island of Vis, off the coast of Dalmatia in Croatia - the land of 1185 islands. JABUKA is of volcanic structure with a curious conical shape. Because of its shape and steep coast, JABUKA is almost inaccessible and navigation is very difficult there. Due to magnetite that can be found in the dark volcanic rocks on the islet, compasses become completely useless in the vicinity of JABUKA. "The JABUKA Islet is both a remarkable and frightening sight during nice weather in summer but in winter, when the winds blow causing large waves, it turns into a life-threatening adventure."

MARO'S FILM REVIEW:"The Man Who Knew Too Much" (1956)

U Hitchcockovom filmu "The Man Who Knew Too Much" (1956) Doris Day igra izbezumljenu majku otetog djecaka ciji se otac sasvim slucajno upleo u kompliciranu medjunarodnu spijunsku igru. Da bi dala sinu znak da se nalazi u kuci gdje je on skriven, zapjevala je "Que sera, sera", glupavu pjesmicu za koju je potom dobila i Oscara! Click Doris Day

MAFALDA (1964 -1973) - The Nonconformist

In 1969, the Italian semiologist Umberto Eco presented Mafalda to Europe with these words: "Since our children are soon to become through our choice a multitude of Mafaldas, it would be rash not to treat Mafalda with the respect a real person deserves." (I don't think my parents ever read his words :-)).

MAFALDA is the famous creation of the great Argentine cartoonist Quino (Joaquin Salvador Lavado). /Click/ Quino is one of the few cartoonist who combines a rich sense of humor with sharp social commentary "in face of stupid authorities, decrepit institutions, confining dogmas, and the narrow-mindedness of fellow humans". The strip features a little girl with a deep concern about humanity and world peace who rebels against the world as it is. The strip ran from 1964 to 1973, enjoying high popularity in both Latin America and Europe. After 1973, Quino still drew Mafalda a few times, mostly to promote human rights. In 1976 he produced a poster for the UNICEF illustrating the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Click MAFALDA (Thanks Terry for reminding me of Mafalda).

MY SLIDESHOW: Around Dubrovnik

TONY CROATTO - Una canción nómada

Tony Croatto was born in Udine, Italy and moved to Uruguay with family that immigrated there shortly after World War II. From Uruguay to Argentina. And again, after moving from Argentina to Venezuela,in his late twenties Tony Croatto moved to Puerto Rico and made it his adopted homeland ever since. He found a richness in musical traditions in Puerto Rico that, he claimed, was extremely rare elsewhere in Latin America. In the 70s he formed a group "Haciendo Punto En Otro Son" that besides playing native rhythms from Puerto Rico, would also play songs from the rest of South America to introduce Puertorrican audiences songs of strong social thematics. Thanks to them, the almost forgotten Puertorrican country music (in this case, "mountain music","musica jibara")became popularized amongsts youths bringing an alternative to those who did not like salsa.
Tony Croatto died in 2005, a few hours after a concert held in his honor had ended.
A state funeral was given in Puerto Rico attended by famous artists, actors, politicians and the public. CLICK CROATTO (I had an opportunity to meet Senor Tony Croatto)

CANCION NOMADA
by Roy Brown
" A Tony Croatto, ese primer día,
mirando el Atlántico desde la muralla
de la fortaleza de San Felipe del Morro,
San Juan Viejo, el día que llegaste.

Borracha de palabra
la canción se hace persona
la sonrisa cual la espuma
flota y danza sobre el mar (...)"

YMA SUMAC - Le rossignol des Andes

Zoila Augusta Emperatriz Chávarri del Castillo, click YMA SUMAC, with an amazing four or five-octave voice, was presented to the public as an Inca princess when she recorded Voice Of the Xtabay (1950). She was actually born in 1922 in Ichocán, Cajamarca, Perú. An urban legend says that Yma Sumac had been a housewife named Amy Camus (Yma Sumac backwards) from Brooklyn. Regardless of the stories about her background, there has been no one like her before or since in the annals of popular music or so called "pop-mannerism". In 2006 she visited her native Perú and received Perú's highest honor, El Orden Del Sol Award.

Click for a documentary ABOUT YMA SUMAC

Maro's Film Review : MEDEA (1969)

U doba kad jos nije bilo leca za oci, mucila se uceci sve uloge u svakoj operi, jer zbog svoje jake kratkovidnosti nije mogla vidjeti dirigenta. U privatnom zivotu, izbjegavala je da je slikaju s naocarima. Pasolini je obozavao njezinu kraljevsku staturu i drzanje glave s neizmjerno dubokim ocima. U njegovu filmu Medea (1969) ona ne pjeva, samo glumi, u snivanom reziserovom antickom Mediteranu, punom boja, divlje muzike i Sunca, nimalo nalik na stereotipske "klasicne" muzejske predstave.
Umrla je od srcanog udara u 54. godini zivota, u drustvu dvoje slugu. Prema njezinoj zelji, spaljena je, a pepeo je rasut po Egejskom moru, u olujnom danu.Click Medea - Maria Callas

SABA - The Highest Point of the Kingdom of the Netherlands

On November 13, 1493 Christopher Columbus was the first European who sighted SABA in the Carribean. After that the island was in hands of the French, English, Spanish, and Dutch. Finally in 1816 Holland took possession of SABA. Before the "discovery" of Columbus in 1493, Arawak Indians used to live on the island, some objects were found to prove this settlement. Artifacts of this period and other objects can be found in the State Museum of Ethnology in Leiden, The Netherlands. SABA ("The Unspoiled Queen") consists largely of the dormant volcano. The Mount Scenery (888 m) at SABA is considered to be the highest point of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. There are not any beach areas on the entire island since the entire shoreline is made up of cliffs that drop straight down into the ocean.The locals claim that SABA's runway is the /click/shortest commercial runway.In 2002 a committee had been established to formally request UNESCO to declare SABA a World Heritage Site.

BORINQUEN : LA ISLA DEL ENCANTO

A NIGHT IN DUBROVNIK

Maro's Film Review : BLONDE VENUS (1932)

Na kabaretskoj sceni, usred freneticne "egzoticne igre", pojavljuje se figura u kostimu gorile, dodajuci plesu element divljine i grubosti. "Gorila" sjeda i skida glavu, ispod koje se rastresaju Marleneini svijetli uvojci. S tijelom jos uvijek u ogromnom crnom zivotinjskom kostimu, ona pjeva "Hot Voodoo". Ne postoji filmsko svlacenje ovakva efekta! Click Blonde Venus (Marlene Dietrich)

LA LUPE - Pure Theatre

Guadalupe Victoria Yoli Raymond,click “LA LUPE”, revolutionized the Caribbean musical atmosphere. She brought an innovative spirit to her music, which captured the imagination regardless of the genre: guaracha, bomba, son, or bolero. She had achieved a certain unexpected fame in her native Cuba, where she was considered a revolutionary for her vocal style. Upon her arrival to the United States, she embarked on a new and equally consecrating stage of her career, one that would take on a new dimension alongside Maestro Tito Puente, with whom she would record four albums.She was considered to be one of Latin Music's Top Female Stars of all time and given the title, "Queen of Latin Soul. Her song "Puro Teatro" became an international hit after Spanish movie director, Pedro Almodovar used the song in his film "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown" which received international acclaim. In 2002, New York City renamed East 140th Street in The Bronx as La Lupe Way in her memory. On June 5th 2007 the PBS series Independent Lens will broadcast "La Lupe Queen of Latin Soul," a documentary/click Preview1 Preview2 /on the legendary singer. Click LA LUPE Click BIO