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Thursday, October 8, 2009
that when it comes to dieting, everyone boasts that they have a secret to tell on how they diet, exercise or shape the body they have today. Since celebrities are some of the most visible characters throughout the world, many individuals tend to listen to what they say and try to follow their every move. If a celebrity endorses a weight loss product or new diet, chances are that many will flock to purchase the product or begin the new ?fad? diet. Just take a look at what Anna Nicole Smith did for the weight-loss product, Trimspa.
Sometimes following celebrity diet advice is just like any other diet or exercise plan: some things work better for others, while other do not. Just because your favorite actress or singer claims to have lost weight by doing x,y,z; does not mean you will automatically do the same. Just keep in mind that when following the words of a celebrity; they are just like you, only they may have more money and recognition than you. They are not superheroes of weight loss.
If you are still curious as to what the celebrities are doing to lose weight, check out some of the information below:
Gwyneth Paltrow (Actress: A Perfect Murder and Shallow Hal) Before giving birth to her daughter, Paltrow followed a strict macrobiotic diet plan. This means she did not eat any meat, eggs, dairy and caffeine. Since the baby, she has discontinued her strict ways and tries to eat as organically as possible. She refrains from eating candy and stays away from any over-manufactured foods.
Alicia Silverstone (Actress: Clueless, Crush)
She follows a vegan diet.
Joan Lunden (News Personality)
Eats lots of fruit.
Jennifer Aniston (Actress: Friends, The Good Girl)
Follows the Zone diet.
Diane Sawyer (News Personality)
Sawyer follows the Cabbage Soup Diet.
Jennifer Lopez (Actress: Anaconda, Selena, The Wedding Planner)
She prefers to eat eight mini-meals per day.
Claudia Schiffer (Supermodel)
Schiffer follows a three-meals-a-day plan. She doesn?t believe in dieting because she says it negatively affects a person?s metabolism. She prefers eating lots of fruit for breakfast, saying they cleanse the body. She tries not to snack in-between meals and prefers organic foods. She also likes to sip green tea.
Patricia Heaton (Actress: Everybody Loves Raymond)
Patricia prefers to eat a lot of dairy.
Melanie Griffith (Actress: Working Girl)
Melanie Griffith like to drink smoothies.
Demi Moore (Actress: G.I. Jane, Ghost, Stripetease)
Demi Moore tends to eat tons of protein.
Nia Peeples (Actress, Singer: Walker, Texas Ranger)
She likes to stay away from proteins.
Kelly Preston (Actress)
She likes to eat a lot of oatmeal and bagels.
Portia de Rossi (Actress: Ally McBeal, Arrested Development)
Portia prefers cardiovascular activities, especially horseback riding and swimming.
Ali Landry (Actress: Eve)
Suggests the usage of the workout tape, The Firm. She boasts that it lifted her butt, tightened the backs of her legs and helped sculpt a longer, leaner look to them.
Drew Barrymore (Actress: 50 First Dates, E.T., The Wedding Singer)
Drew used to be a strict vegetarian, but now prefers to eat three sensible meals per day. She usually sticks to organic fruit and vegetables. When she wants something sweet, she drinks Diet Coke or has low-fat jelly.
Melinda Clarke (Actress, The O.C.)
Melinda recommends Pilates.
Eva Pigford (Model, America?s Next top Model)
Does crunches every day.
Lori Loughlin (Actress, Full House, Summerland)
Has found success by using The Zone diet. It helps her to avoid certain cravings for sweets.
I lost 40lbs following fad diets - Discover some tips.
Free Fad Diets offers advice on fad diets, and popular diets such as the Cabbage Soup Diet.
Looking for that perfect skin product? One that will keep your skin looking great, smells great, is appealing to apply, has actual 'therapeutic' effects, and doesn't break the bank? Look no further than aromatherapy. Creating a wonderful blend just for your skin type with the magic of potent natural botanicals is fun and rewarding in more ways than one. Essential oils are widely used in natural medicine, and some are well-known for their skin rejuvenating effects.
While some of the most highly regarded therapeutic grade oils may seem expensive at first, they are effective in such small concentrations as to really make them worthwhile. And their efficacy is well-known; that's why so many laboratory-made preparations use components of essential oils in their formulas. With a one or two ounce bottle to mix in, and an eye dropper, you can easily mix your own blend with the aroma and actions you desire most.
There are a few essential oils and carriers that are highly regarded in natural beauty and skin care. With these, and perhaps one or two extra ingredients, you can make effective (and very pleasant smelling) recipes for a wide variety of skin conditions.
The short list of essential oils for skin care ? Helichrysum (also known as Everlasting) is one of the strongest anti-inflammatory oils known in aromatherapy. It is also very high in regenerative ketones; compounds which stimulate the regeneration of skin cells. Rosemary Verbenone serves a similar function, being thought to enhance metabolic functioning in the dermis layer, increasing circulation and the elimination of waste products. Lavender has properties similar to Helichrysum, with a wonderful, relaxing aroma; it can bring synergy to a combination of oils and is thought to keep the skin in a balanced, healthy condition. Carrot Seed essential oil is also regenerating, bringing life to tired, pallid skin. Palmarosa essential oil can be included for it's pleasing aroma and anti-septic effects; Niaouli is also recommended for the same reasons, along with it's skin-firming properties.
This is only a few of the many essential oils included in skin formulas, though these are considered among the most important for their broad range of effects. Almost any essential oil can be added to a blend in balanced quantities. In many cases, oils are added as much for their lovely aroma as their direct therapeutic benefits to skin tissue. Many aromatherapists, and natural health professionals for that matter, consider the overall mental and emotional condition to be of primary importance in creating an appearance of fitness and beauty. Many citrus and floral oils are used for this reason ? Neroli, distilled from the flowers of the bitter orange tree, is an often used example. Others are Jasmine, Sandalwood (very popular in Men's skin care), Geranium and Ylang Ylang.
Essential oils, be they for direct effects on skin metabolism, or for the overall state of wellness of the user, will be diluted in a carrier oil, sometimes known as a base oil. It is important to note that diluting the oils will often actually enhance their effects; essential oils are often too strong to be used directly, and many studies have shown increased efficacy in dilutions down to 1% or less of the total formula. The carrier oils serve several other functions as well; they carry the essential oils into the skin, increasing their total absorption. They also nourish the middle and lower layers of the skin with essential fatty acids or EFA's ? compounds now considered critical to the health of all living tissues. Further, some carrier oils have vitamin analogs which assist in skin regeneration and repair.
A few of the most important carrier oils include the following: Rosehip Seed Oil is highly regarded for it's regenerating effects for skin which has been over-exposed to the sun or has other damage. It includes a variety of Vitamin A which acts to increase cellular turnover, similar to Retin-A without the over-drying side effects. Numerous scientific studies have validated this oil's positive effects on damaged or prematurely aged skin. Next is Evening Primrose Oil, which has a significant quantities of gamma-linolenic acid, an important essential fatty acid. Evening Primrose oil has been used to support skin conditions such as psoriasis and eczema, and may help premature skin aging. Finally, Hazelnut oil is possibly the most commonly used base oil for skin care; it is gentle, has little aroma, and is suitable for all skin types. Often, small amounts of Rosehip seed and/or Evening Primrose oil will be included in a blend, with Hazelnut oil comprising the majority of the carrier mixture.
Here are several blends categorized by skin type to get you started. For normal skin, used at any time: In each ounce of Hazelnut Oil, add 15 drops Thyme Linalool, 15 drops Rosemary Verbenone, 15 drops Neroli, and 15 drops Spike Lavender; this blend can work well for acne with it's antiseptic properties, but is an excellent tonic for all skin types.
If your skin has been chemically damaged, is overly-sensitive, or otherwise 'weakened' with broken capillaries, try this mixture, applying frequently: For each ounce of base oil, use three parts Hazelnut, one part Rosehip Seed, and one part Evening Primrose. Add the following essential oils: fifteen drops Moroccan Chamomile, fifteen drops Helichrysum, fifteen drops true Lavender, and fifteen drops Roman Chamomile. The Helichrysum, Lavender and Rosehip seed will enhance the skin's own natural metabolism, and the addition of the Chamomiles will greatly reduce inflammation that is found with almost all damage and/or aging.
If your skin is prone to acne, or has over-active sebaceous glands, the following blend can be of great assistance. It contains regenerative, antiseptic, and cleansing oils. Simply use Hazelnut as the base, and to each ounce include fifteen drops of Green Myrtle or Inula graveolens, fifteen drops Eucalyptus dives (because of the ketones in this oil, it should not be used if pregnant ? or under 10 years of age ? but is otherwise considered safe), fifteen drops Spike Lavender, and fifteen drops Rosemary verbenone.
If your skin has no particular 'condition', but appears tired, lifeless, pallid, or 'worn out', try mixing one-fifth ounce of Rosehip Seed and four-fifths ounce Hazelnut oil. Then add 15 drops each of Carrot Seed essential oil (also known as Queen Anne's Lace or Wild Carrot), Lemon verbena (which helps the skin detoxify), Niaouli (gently tightening the skin), and Rosemary verbenone ? this creates an excellent restorative blend. For aging skin needing firming that can be used around the eyes ? try this more gentle variety: Mix in five ounces of Hazelnut oil and one ounce of Rosehip seed oil, add fifteen drops of each of Myrtle essential oil (green), Cistus or Rock Rose and Rosemary.
So there are a few tried-and-true aromatherapy skin care blends to use in your natural beauty regime. You can easily mix and match the oils described to create your own blend, and add any oils you really like the aroma of (be aware that a FEW essential oils are VERY strong, and should not be used on the skin ? the more common of these include Cinnamon, Clove, Oregano, and Red Thyme ? consult with a knowledgeable practitioner if you are unsure about the safety of any oil). A word about purchasing oils for your blends ? do NOT use anything labeled as a 'fragrance oil' ? these are synthetic reproductions of essential oils that will likely cause an allergic reaction.
DO seek out a reputable source. And oils, like wine, do vary greatly from maker to maker. A higher price can mean a significantly nicer oil (though not always) ? one that is sweeter, or more well-rounded ? only a few oils should smell 'medicinal' ? Spike Lavender is a little 'camphorus' in general ? but a good Rosemary verbenone should have a very appealing scent . Despite the initial outlay, you are more likely to continue to use a blend that you really like the aroma of, and that has therapeutic effects. Though once you find the oils you adore, you're more than likely to continue the practice of making your own blends for some time to come.
This article has been written by Misty Cech, ND, a degreed naturopath with a professional practice developing natural wellness for individuals around the country. She strongly supports the use of natural botanicals whenever possible when making health and beauty choices. She is the owner of the Ananada Apothecary - providing vibrational medicine infomation and supplies such as organic essential oils and Bach flower essences and remedies.
TOP TEN TIPS FOR BEAUTIFUL SKIN
Is Beauty Skin Deep?
The answer is yes and no. It?s a paradox, isn?t it? True beauty begins from the inside out. Don?t you wish there was some way to ?wriggle your nose? and regain that soft skin you had as a child? Well, until someone comes up with the true ?Fountain of Youth? we are stuck with what we have.
The best route to healthy skin is to take care of what you have. Sounds simple, doesn?t it? The truth is that your skin takes a beating from the environment every single day. Here are some of our favorite tips for keeping your skin fresh and healthy:
1. Stay hydrated and do it with plenty of water! That doesn?t mean soda, caffeine or any other type of liquid even if it is low cal. Soda (even diet soda) has a high concentration of sodium. Sodium retains fluids. You need fluid that will hydrate and flush your body free of toxins. Make sure you are drinking at least 8 glasses a day!
2. Protect your skin from harmful ultra violet (UV) rays. We all love the sun. We love being in it and we love having a beautiful tan. The truth is you can poison yourself with too much sunshine. UV rays cause skin cancer and if that isn?t bad enough it causes your skin to age faster than it should contributing to unsightly wrinkles. If you must play in the sun, make certain you are using an adequate sun screen. Don?t leave home without it!
3. Apply your sun screen even if you only make a quick trip to the grocery store. Yes, you can get harmful UV rays even while driving your car!
4. Keep your skin clean. Use a soft warm cloth. Skin does not require scrubbing. You will do more harm than good if you do.
5. Exfoliate dead skin cells every night.
6. Create your own facial masks. Here are a couple of excellent masks that you can create with ingredients right from your kitchen: Oatmeal mask: Mix oatmeal with skim milk and apply. Eggs: A raw egg yolk makes an excellent face mask. Try adding a little honey to the egg yolk for a change of pace. Mayonnaise makes another terrific face mask and will leave your skin feeling very soft
7. Use an antioxidant cream. You are bombarded every day with environmental toxins that attack the surface of your skin. In fact most damage to the skin can be attributed to free radicals. When you expose yourself to toxins like air pollution free radical production increases. Apply an antioxidant cream to your skin before applying your sun screen.
8. The best cure for wrinkles is to never have them in the first place! If you are like most of us, you didn?t listen to your Mum when she tried to tell you to stay in the shade, stand up straight and stop squinting!
9. Stop shaving your legs and use hot wax. Much gentler on your skin.
10. Mix up a tablespoon of brandy along with a smashed up peach and apply to your face for twenty minutes then rinse. Makes for a great summer facial.
How much time and money do you spend on your beauty routine?
Over the years you will have spent a small fortune on all the creams, lotions and maybe even some beauty treatments.
But what is it costing the earth?
It?s never too late to redeem yourself. You can become an eco-beauty with very little effort.
Follow the 10 tips below to make sure you still look superb but don?t harm the earth at the same time.
1. Go natural. No we don?t mean no make up at all. You will naturally look better by getting a good nights sleep and you wont need as much make up as a consequence.
2. Recycle. Bottles, jars and tubes can all be recycled. No change to your beauty routine but the benefits to mother earth are there for all to see. A really simple one.
3. Spring Clean. Think of all the half used bottles and jars of cream you have. Instead of buying new creams ask yourself where you could reuse these creams. Face cream for example could easily be used on the ankles and feet. If you don?t intend using it, then give it away.
4. Be Minimal. Just use what you need. This saves on product and usually makes you look even better. Give it a try.
5. Drink lots of water. The right amount of water is different for everyone but one thing is for sure?. We don?t normally drink enough. Not only does it cleanse our insides but also the boost to our complexion is quite magnificent. Drink more, drink more, drink more? let that be your motto.
6. Half measures. Less is more. When your hairdresser tells you that you only need a small spoonful of shampoo they are telling the truth. Just use what you need. It will be less expensive for you as well.
7. Food for thought. Don?t throw out cucumbers just because they are too limp for the salad. Use them to soothe tired eyes. Look for beauty tips using natural products. You will be amazed at what you find.
8. Swap shop. Seek out those brands that are actively trying to make a difference and change to them. Look for proof that they really mean what they say.
9. Save time? Save the earth instead. Ready-made facial wipes are great for tired beauty fans ? one wipe does the trick. But the cost to the environment is substantial. Why not just buy a face cloth instead? Does the same thing and only takes a few minutes more.
10. Chemical brothers. Check the labels. If your favourite beauty products use parabens and sodium laureth sulphate then ditch them.
Both of these ?nasties? have been identified as carcinogens with harmful effect on the planet. They can be bad for you as well causing skin irritation.
The above 10 tips are by no means complete, But if you use beauty products then you might as well keep the earth looking beautiful as well.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
You are probably wondering how celebrities like Britney Spears, Paris Hilton & Reese Witherspoon look so gorgeous all the time?
How does their hairstyles always look so perfect and such dazzling colors?
Well, one of the big celebrity secrets is hair color. Just look at the hair colour of Angelina Jolie , Jennifer Aniston and Debra Messing to see what I mean.
Dazzling Color
A really effective way to change your hair is the colour. The richer and deeper the colour, the healthier you will look and the more attractive you will appear, it?s a well acknowledged fact.
So if you haven?t already booked an appointment at your local salon to have a colour analysis, or follow these steps to the perfect celebrity look-a-like hair colour:
Firstly look at your natural hair colour; does it seem lifeless and dull? Take a long look at your hair in the mirror and look at your friends and work colleagues- also don?t forget to ask your hair stylist for advice.
The next step is to determine your own hair colour if you don?t already know this. A good tip to remember is that men can often be the best judge of hair colour, because they can sometimes be more objective.
Once you have worked out what your hair colour is, try thinking of shades that are really rich in your mind but sticking to your own colour palette.
For example, if your hair is a dark blonde colour, but also has some dark brown and red strands in there, colours that would work for you would be reds and browns.
Another good example is Keira Knightley, she looks at her best with chestnut-coloured hair because this is closest to her natural colour.
Consider trying colours that are slightly darker than your normal shade, and always try colours that are redder than your normal shade.
Red hair is really popular at the moment, with stars like Nicole Kidman and Julia Roberts endorsing it.
If you want to dye your hair yourself, try some wash-in wash-out formulas before you commit to a permanent colour. This way you can be sure of the colour and whether it suits you. The usual recommendation is just to go one shade darker each time.
Also, if you just want to look good for one special evening you can then use one of these formulas and not permanently change your colour, but still look astounding.
Perfect Nutrition = Perfect Hair
You may have heard this many times before, but a healthy diet is really important if you want to have great hair.
The stars that look the best are the ones that eat the right foods and focus on a good diet. Gwyneth Paltrow and Heidi Klum are great examples and look great without starving themselves or resorting to strange diets.
There are a few key things that you need to make sure you get enough of that will help your hair look at its best.
The first is to drink plenty of water, this gives the hair its shine and without enough it can leave your hair lank and frizzy. The usual recommendation is eight glasses a day, but don?t stick rigidly to this, just drink as much as you can.
Secondly, protein is really important to your hair as this is what it?s made of, so be sure to eat enough dairy and meat products.
Minerals like iron, zinc and copper are also really important.
The iron helps deliver oxygen to your hair to keep it alive and fresh looking, so eat plenty of red meat and dark green veggies.
Zinc is effective in keeping the hair strong, and prevents the hair falling out; it can be found in seafood and meat.
Copper is really important in maintaining the colour of your hair, and enough of this will really give your hair colour a boost, so make sure you eat enough shellfish, seeds and fresh vegetables.
Vitamins are also effective in maintaining a good scalp and a great overall condition of your hair, especially vitamins A, B and C. These can be found in fruits and vegetables.
A great celebrity secret is the sweet potato, which is full of vitamins A and B and other great nutrients which will give your hair great life and body.
It's Simple!
Look after your health and people will actually comment on the fact that you are glowing with health. Get your hair color right and you can change the look of your hair overnight - and look stunning into the bargain!
You don't have to spend a fortune to understand the beauty & hair regimes of the celebrities - these simple tips can help you copy the hairstyle of your favorite celebrity!
For further tips and ideas for how to get great looking hairstyles, just like your favorite celebrity, visit Celebrity Sedu Hairstyles - Britney, Paris & Reese
This article was submitted by Alissa Carter, for great fashion tips and to find dresses for that special occasion
While bald can be beautiful, hair makes us beautiful.
There are few conditions that evoke anxiety in my patients (men and
women) more than hair loss. Hair is an important part of our
appearance. We are biologically programmed to view it as a marker for a
person’s suitability as a mate; this is probably because it’s an
obvious indicator of a person’s youth and health.
Good hair suggests you are well nourished and healthy. As we age
hair thins naturally, so a full head of hair also indicates the owner
is young (and likely fertile).
It is no wonder that billions of dollars are spent every year to darken it, lighten it, grow more of it, and style it.
Like other physical characteristics such as body shape and skin
complexion, the hair you have is the hair you are genetically
programmed to grow. For some it is dense and thick. For others it is
thin and sparse.
Patients often ask me what they can do to grow thick, luxurious hair. Here are five tips to have hair that says: “Yes, I’m dreamy.”
1. Eat well. Your hair reflects your overall health.
If you eat healthfully, your hair will be healthy. Consume a diet based
on whole foods such as fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean
protein, nuts, and low-fat dairy.
2. Take your biotin. There are countless vitamins
touted to make your hair grow faster, stronger, and longer, including
prenatal vitamins. Don’t believe it. If you eat a good diet (as above),
then you don’t need vitamins. The only one I recommend supplementing is
biotin at 1,500 mcg each day. Otherwise, leave the prenatal vitamins
for pregnant women.
3. Moisturize. Shampoos are often potent soaps and
can strip your hair’s natural oils, leaving it dry, dull, and brittle.
Use the shampoo at the scalp only, not at the ends which can be months
to years old and have endured countless washes. Use a conditioner
everyday (or at least 3-4 times a week if your hairstyle can’t tolerate
daily conditioning) to help lock in moisture. This will help your hair
be thicker, shinier, and healthier.
4. Try carnitine. A recent study showed that at least in the laboratory, L-carnitine (found
in red meat) stimulated hair growth. Maybe that’s where the expression,
“Eat this. It’ll put hair on your chest” comes from….
5. Cut it. Because your hair can be years old, it
reflects all your body has been through in that time. For instance, if
you were sick a few months ago, then the hair that grew during that
period can be thin and brittle and will remain that way until it is
sheared. If your hair is damaged or frayed, then there is little you
can do to repair it. Sometimes the best thing to do is to cut off all
the damaged areas and focus on taking better care of the hair that is
still healthy.
The eyes are the part of the face we notice first. This is why it's important
to make sure that your eyes look their best when attending to your
makeup and care routine. Following are some great beauty tips
for your eyes, no matter who you are.
1. Healthy eyes are beautiful eyes:
If your eyes are swollen, red, or otherwise unhealthy, no amount of makeup is going to disguise this fact. If you wear contact lenses, make sure that you attend to all the care instructions for them. Also, protect your eyes by using cosmetics with sunscreen included.
2. When putting on eye makeup:
make sure it goes with the rest of your look. Too many women forget that while the eyes are important, they must be in harmony with the rest of the face. Choose eye makeup that goes with what you're wearing, and with the look you choose on the rest of your face.
Don't let your features go to war with each other to be the most prominent – you'll have to choose whether you want the focus to be on your lips or eyes, for instance. Overdoing it can just look garish.
3. Lay a good base:
A layer of foundation on your eyelids will help smooth out imperfections and help your eye shadow and liner look their best.
4. Choose a color theme.
This doesn't meant that you have to use a monochrome scheme for your eye makeup, but it does mean that it's a good idea to keep an idea of color harmony in mind as you apply your makeup. The colors that will work best for you depend on your skin tone.
5. Pay attention to your eye shape:
What works on one person won't necessarily look good on another. Figuring out what shape and set your eyes are can go a long way to helping you get the right look.
6. Select quality cosmetics:
It really matters whether or not your makeup is high quality. Don't let your tools work against you just because you can get a cheaper brand. You'll never achieve the same looks you can with a better brand.
7. Use specialized cleansers to remove your makeup:
Soap and water are harsh and can irritate the eyes.
Specially formulated eye cleansers are gentle, but made to remove old cosmetics.
8. Use darker, more heavily made up looks at night:
Daytime requires a more natural look. Apply mascara on the tips of the lashes only, and save the liquid liner for evenings. Harsh makeup in daylight can look overdone or silly.
9. Soften over-prominent eyes:
Just because the eyes are the first thing we pay attention to doesn't meant that they must be the focus of every look. If you feel that your eyes are too prominent, apply medium shadow and don't use highlights. This will make them appear deeper-set.
10. Keep up to date on the latest looks:
If you've been doing your eyes the same way for years, you can look dated without knowing it. Pay attention to what other people are wearing as well as the latest makeup styles, and form a look that's your own.
On November 6, 2009 at the University of Toronto, InfraNet Lab, in collaboration with Alphabet City, will oversee a daylong symposium and launch an accompanying exhibition that will travel throughout North America. Called Hydrocity, they will be “devoted to studying the relationship between urban forms and the hydrological systems in which they are embedded.”
If the twentieth century has been marked by our global thirst for fuel, the twenty-first century, will be defined by our collectively growing need for water. Impending water shortages are changing patterns of urbanization and requiring increasingly elaborate infrastructures by which to source, collect, divert and transport water to the urban centres that hold a growing majority of the world’s population. These population centres will in turn need to be redesigned and retrofitted to conserve, collect, repurify, and recirculate increasingly precious water resources while at the same time rethinking and rebuilding their cities’ relationships with the complex watersheds on which they are built and upon which they depend. The resulting liquid infrastructure is poised to redefine our notion of natural and artificial landscapes, as disparate ecological environments are networked and conflated. What forms of urbanism and landscape systems will emerge, and what design potentials exist, in this expanding liquid infrastructure?
Participants in the symposium include such top-notch hydrospatialists as Alan Berger, of P-REX; Katherine Rinne, of Aquae Urbis Romae; and Aziza Chaouni and Liat Margolis, who have also organized a traveling exhibition with a similar theme, The Out of Water Project.
As for the exhibition, some projects have already been selected, but InfraNet Lab is very keen to include other visionary projects — “built, unbuilt, dreamed, etched, scripted, carpet-bombed, etc.” — that address the same issues, preferably recent and unpublished.
To be considered, send a PDF (3 pages or less and under 6MB) of any project by October 15 to editors[at]infranetlab[dot]org. Space is limited, so earlier submission is preferred.
Send tips if you haven't a project of your own. We've suggested Watery Voids by MMBB Arquitectos and SpongeCity, which was designed by former students at Harvard Graduate School of Design.
Monday, October 5, 2009
So Chicago lost its bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympic Games. Rather than brood about what might have been or haggle over alternatives to the massive dose of money the city would have been given to stimulate its limping finances, it should immediately develop a bid for the 2018 Winter Olympics. Since the deadline is less than two weeks away and the bid committee may still be suffering from their Copenhagen hangovers, we'll help them out.
Almost everything is going for Chicago. Its infrastructure is less than perfect for the huge Summer Olympics crowds, but would be more than able to handle the modest attendance at a Winter Olympics and would definitely be unmatched by the usual winter bid cities and their smaller scale public transportation systems. Its gargantuan hotel industry would easily surpass capacity requirements.
There will also be no need to build a hulking, temporary 80,000-seat stadium, as Soldier Field will be more than able to seat the smaller crowd at the Opening and Closing Ceremonies. And perhaps it can even host another event. At the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway, the venue for the ceremonies was also the same arena for ski jumping events. As the following photograph shows, this combination is possible at Soldier Field.
And as we re-imagined it a few months ago for a new century, this new prosthetic mountain analogue would be hinged, meaning it can be flipped up and down. Those traveling along Lake Shore Drive or boating on Lake Michigan would see the wavy profile of a half Eiffel Tower.
It's the technolicious descendant of the first Ferris wheel, built in 1893 for the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago.
It's easy to re-render venues in the failed summer bid into venues for a winter bid. For instance, next door to Soldier Field is the cluster of convention halls where various sports such as gymnastics would have been held; its sprawling spaces would be converted to house figure skating, speed skating and curling competitions. The United Center — formerly proposed for basketball — would host ice hockey competitions; it already serves as the home of the city's professional hockey and basketball teams anyway.
Some of the large urban parks in the old bid will again be drafted into the new bid. At Millennium Park, medal ceremonies will take place against the backdrop of the greatest skyline in the world. One or two will be re-landscaped for freestyle skiing, snowboarding and sliding competitions. As for the serpentine race track used in bobsleigh, luge and skeleton, one is tempted to hire Frank Gehry to replicate his BP Pedestrian Bridge.
Since all the venues will be wholly situated inside a major global metropolis and not in some sequestered, exclusive mountain spa resorts hundreds of gas-guzzling miles away from the supposed host city, chances are that they will be heavily used after the games; maybe a subculture of urban snowboarders will clique together. Perhaps one of the better legacies of the games would be the popular adaptation of winter sports (some or all of which are seen as the domain of the privileged) by new socioeconomic and racial classes.
In any case, during the summer, these same installations will add interesting landforms to the parks. The slopping concave hollow of the half-pipe could be re-landscaped as the seating lawn for an outdoor theater. The sliding track, meanwhile, becomes a monumental piece of public sculpture-cum-skating park.
Of course, there is one major thing that's going against Chicago. It's not the availability of snow, since this is also a concern in many alpine areas. Climate change is evaporating glaciers everywhere, and natural snow cover grows increasingly tenuous.
Chicago's gritty landscape shouldn't be much of a handicap as well. It may seem that way at first, as it definitely doesn't embody a certain sort of nature — rustic mountains, pastoral evergreen forests, a lonely goatherd, etc. — which is presumably a prerequisite for certain venues. But have the more traditional Winter Olympic sites not been over the years transformed into high-tech event landscapes, carefully managed and augmented with artificial snow and heavy plows that sculpt the slopes to a pre-programmed set of topographical parameters?
The one glaring negative is the city's glacial-flattened topography. Where does one hold the alpine events?
They'll be held in an artificial mountain. Obviously.
But not that sort of tectonics, as this venue will have a more organic and geological veneer.
And its scale will need to be exponentially inflated. This is the Make No Little Plans for the 21st century.
If one is worried that no future host city will ever be able to architecturally outdo the Beijing Olympics (as if organizing and building the games once again in a free and democratic country with no ethnic cleansing being carried out along its periphery isn't enough to surpass it?), this Everest of the Prairie will surely top a fantasy list of the greatest Olympic venues.
How can the IOC mafia refuse this big, bold vision?
It's an Olmstedian park writ large, and it's going be sited in the heavy industrial Lake Calumet sector of the South Side. Unless the Lakefront is larger, this will be Chicago's largest public open space, something which this part of the city sorely needs. Moreover, it will provide the opportunity to finally clean up this Superfund site.
Embedded within this double twin of the Loop Skyline and Millennium Park are spaces for use by athletes, officials and spectators. One could also hallow out spaces for the media center and even a satellite Olympic Village. After the games, they'll be converted into community centers, offices and residences, even theaters and indoor rock climbing caverns, all sheathed by the largest green roof in the world. And the views will undoubtedly be spectacular. On the outside surface, meanwhile, parts of the mountain will be turned into a refuge for imported wildlife.
As for the cost, we'll get back to you.
Ski Delft
Friday, October 2, 2009
After a light posting week, some weekend reading:
-The Commission on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress, established by French President Nicolas Sarkozy and counting among its members Nobel Prize winners Joseph Stiglitz and Amartya Sen, has concluded that GDP is a misleading and incomplete metric, too much so to be the primary measurement of a country's economic health. You can find the report here, and speeches introducing the report here.
-Moody's says the US and UK 'could become vulnerable' to ratings cuts after 2012 if...I know what you're thinking: it seems pretty stupid for a ratings agency to speculate over a country's credit rating years in advance. I agree.
-The FT introduces the 'new Tory establishment.' If, of course, they win.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Another fascinating project from Paisajes Emergentes in collaboration with Lovisa Lindström, Sara Hellgren and Sebastian Monsalve. Called Clouds, it's a proposed installation to be located in every town that will be flooded by the Ituango Hydroelectric Dam megaproject in Colombia.
Having not yet read any project statement, we can't accurately describe the actual mechanics of this installation. Nevertheless, we like what we think is the intent of the design team. That is, we're imagining this as an act of protest for environmental and social justice — which, if true, would be a refreshing change from the typical Archigram and Buckminster Fuller-inspired apocalyptic and utopian buoyant scenarios.
While cities and villages await the start of dam construction and their inevitable drowning, these ominous clouds will be deployed up to the water level of a future reservoir, forming an archipelago of artificial islands in an absent artificial lake. Their shadows will cast upon forests and mountains to be asphyxiated. They will loom high above lives about to be wrenchingly disrupted.
Since the top is leveled, locals (and perhaps disaster tourists) will hop on and ride these aerial barges. Agents from the hydroelectric company will come to educate the benefits of the dam. Politicians will come to boast this public works project as civilizing and modernizing. And environmentalists will come to praise this new source of clean energy.
But other environmentalists who have actually done their homework will come to counter the engineers and bureaucrats with the dam's monumental destructiveness. Indigenous peoples will come to protest their displacement from their ancestral lands. Downstream localities already suffering from water scarcity will come to claim their water rights. And many more will come to seek redress of unfair compensations for their lost properties.
The views of the surrounding (contested) terrains will be absolutely picturesque, but the air will be highly charged. One false move from any of the factions and things will combust.
But what are they exactly? Sculptures? Follies? Floating parks? Pavilions?
Pavilloons™?
In the aftermath of the deluge, will they be used as diving platforms from which former residents will try to salvage what few they can of their possessions from their submerged cities? And unsurprisingly from where looters will carry out their moon fishing expeditions?
Perhaps while awaiting relocation, some of these hydro-refugees will use these platforms as temporary informal settlements, which then organize organically into permanent island cities.
Quito 1: Paisajes Emergentes
Rainwater Harvesting in Quito
A Proposal for an Aquatics Complex for the Chicago 2016 Summer Olympic Games Bid
Four Plazas and A Street
Balloon Park
