The Holiday: Bazaar

Tue, 09 Oct 2007 08:35:22 -0400

Two women troubled with guy-problems (Diaz, Winslet) swap homes in each other’s countries, where they each meet a local guy and fall in love. Opens everywhere on December 8th.

'Iron Mike' opens up to Oprah

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 18:29:42 -0400

Ex-boxer Mike Tyson opens up to Oprah Winfrey about Evander Holyfield and Robin Givens. Watch the full interview Monday.

Levi Johnston Opens Up On "The Early Show"

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:21:20 -0400

Levi Johnston, the father of Sarah Palin’s grandson, sits down and opens up about his would-be mother-in-law and life as a teen father. He'll take us along as he pumps up and preps up for his big shoot for the upcoming issue of Playgirl magazine.

MJ memorabilia exhibit opens

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 07:10:09 -0400

Michael Jackson memorabilia exhibition opens at the O2 Arena in London. CNN’s Ayesha Durgahee reports.

Kate Gosselin: I’ve Been 'Targeted and Torn Apart'

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 14:58:12 -0400

On Wednesday’s "Ellen DeGeneres Show," Kate Gosselin opens up about feeling under fire, fretting the prospect of dating, and explaining her and Jon's pending divorce to their eight children. Asked why she thinks the public is fascinated with her family, Kate says: “Well, I think certain events take place that make us sitting ducks. That makes us easy targets. Certain ones of us speak a lot; others of us prefer to keep our mouths shut.” "So you think that doesn't help if someone is talking about it?" Ellen asks.

Video: Artist Robel Tesfai's Impressive Exhibition

Sun, 21 Sep 2008 05:22:53 -0400

A Shelf in The Woods: A Case for Natural CreativityTsigye Hailemichael, Sep 9, 2008Asmara, Eritrea: Hundreds of people came to see Robel Tesfay’s exhibiton, which was titled “Asmarino’s Ingenuity.” In fact, between July 25th and August 2nd 2008, The Gallery in Asmara, a showcase for contemporary artists in Eritrea, was transformed into a gigantic tree house. The success of this exhibition is to have combined functionality and art thus bringing a great number of the public to contemplate the sculptural effects of wild branches and logs taking the form of chairs, shelves, wine racks and bedroom sets, revealing at once the art that is, and had always been, part of our lives even if it was not named Art.This exhibition opens the doors to great potentials for artists in Eritrea. First, because of the material used, the wood itself. Most pieces are made with sliced tree trunks and branches that are kept in their natural forms while using mainly wood from Pepper, Olive, and Qolqual trees. This may be one of the most attractive trait in the artist’s work, namely to have used material that was readily available in the country, material that was simply waiting to be touched and transformed by imagination and creativity. The type of wood used, as many in the public have commented during the show, is what our mothers and grandmothers used to burn for practical purposes. Notwithstanding the fact that the cutting of trees is now carefully monitored, its use in sculptural art making creates a new kind of usefulness that turns simple pieces of wood into something permanent that appeals to the imagination. In and of itself, the simple gesture of making furniture that uses raw material as it is found directly in nature brings the public closer not only to nature itself but also to the nature of creativity. In the midst of enquiring visitors bestowing enthusiastic comments, Robel accepted to answer a few questions regarding his work:Q: When did you first learn furniture making and where?R.T: I learned metal and woodwork from my grandfather who had a warehouse. When I was a kid I used to play there. The warehouse was then closed for many years and was reopened only recently. In my family, we love nature and natural things and we feel no attraction at all for MDF (medium density fiberboard) or the usual concepts of symmetry and geometry in furniture making. The most interesting for me is to find a balance between art and functionality. Q: How did you start this particular line of work with pieces that seem more like sculptures than furniture? R.T: We began with a couple of items, a table and a shelf. We used leftover wood. We looked into the natural shapes and let our imagination inspire us. The work itself needs patience; it takes time to work the wood and with a lot of patience something interesting can come up. Q: Do you have any training in art?R.T: I love art but I have no formal training. When I was a kid, I tried to learn drawing, particularly cartoons, but I did not pursue it for very long. I love gardening. I do some landscaping now and then. I love art but I find it more interesting to work on items that are going to be functional. Applied art is an obvious choice for me. I like the idea of something being artistic but also functional. People can get to learn and understand more about the arts through functional art. I think most people are interested in things that have dual purposes. This you can do by bringing something new in familiar elements like wood furnishing for example. Q: If we look at your work, we can see that most of it required considerable amount of craftsmanship. Is that all that is required to produce original pieces?R.T: Yes and no. Of course you need skills but you also need imagination to create objects that are unique and original. The furniture we make is the opposite of line item objects. Nature is endlessly interesting to look at, and I can say that it is my starting point. My interest, at the beginning, was simply to assemble several pieces and make it all functional.Q: When did you come up with the idea of an exhibition?R.T: The idea of an exhibition was not the starting point. It is only when the number of items became substantial that we thought in terms of an exhibition, and then we worked towards perfecting certain items and adding pieces that seemed to be lacking. Q: Were you surprised by the interest created in the public?R.T: Yes it was quite a surprise. But this work is not mine alone. I work with a team and this is why we titled the exhibition “Asmarino’s Ingenuity.” Because everyone involved played a part in the final outcome, starting with the whole team, my family and friends, but also the people visiting us at the warehouse. So the title refers not to my ingenuity but to that of Asmarinos in general.Q: If we were to talk about specific pieces, which ones would you like to comment on?R.T: Certain pieces created more interest than I had expected. The piece titled Mok’lo, which is a coffee or side table, is such an example.Q: Can you tell us how you came up with the idea?R.T: It serves as a coffee or side table and it has an ambiance light. We started from the bottom up just playing with the idea of piling up a few branches, just as if we were burning wood. On top is the Mok’lo itself (that is a large metal pan, round and flat, used to roast or grill food in traditional settings.) Q: So on top of the Mok’lo itself you have placed a few elements making it more than a piece of furniture and bringing it closer to art. Can you tell us what they are?R.T: There are a few chickpeas, which one would normally roast on a Mok’lo, and a brush, which is used to move the chickpeas around, and there is even an old piece of cloth soaked with the oil that is used to clean the Mok’lo. Q: So those are things you almost automatically would associate with Mok’lo and how it is used, isn’t it?R.T: Yes and finally there is a glass top to make it an actual little table. The idea of the light bulb within the branches and underneath the Mok’lo came in the end when the whole idea of Mok’lo came together.Q: When working on your pieces, do you find that you begin with a specific idea and then execute it or does it happen differently?R.T: Time is a very important element. There is a maturation process. For some pieces we began by working on it then we let it aside for a while and long time afterwards an idea would come to us that made the piece what it is in the end.Q: There is also the piece titled Grandfather’s Souvenir, which is a very traditional looking chair except it seems to have exaggerated forms. Is that piece about art in tradition or about tradition in art?R.T: Well, this chair, the way we had conceived it, was really to be included in a set. We wanted to recreate the old styles of habitation in which you could find this kind of chair. So for the exhibition, we have placed a leather pouch containing a bible, and near it, a shelf in wood and raffia, a few ears of corn, a gourd, a tchera (to chase away flies), and on the floor a sheepskin (agoza). All this was to recreate the atmosphere of a traditional home. The chair itself, with its irregular shapes and what seems like exaggerated forms is what you would have found in the countryside in old times and thus it is closer to the originals than the ones that are neatly done and symmetrical. Q: On the other hand, there are many items like CD or wine racks, bookshelves picture frames, lampshades like the “Ballerina” that show no relations to Eritrean culture?R.T: Well not everything in art needs to be related to tradition. When you look around in our daily life, there are many things that people use or need, which are part of modernity and not part of tradition.Q: What about the piece titled “Arebia” (wheelbarrow)?R.T: It is a mini-bar. It started as a coffee table then we added shelves on top. As a furniture maker, one must keep the commercial perspectives in mind. Q: Do you consider yourself an artist or a furniture maker?R.T: I don’t pretend to be an artist. There is the work of nature and that’s what leads me to work the way I do. Art is how I live. It is what is around me. Q: If you were to furnish your house anew, how would you furnish it?R.T: Just like this (pointing to the exhibition hall with all the objects he had created.) Thank you very much Robel for this interview.

Judith Hill Reveals Michael Jackson’s 'This Is It' Secrets

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 19:19:15 -0400

Michael Jackson’s 'This Is It' concert film opens worldwide in IMAX and conventional theaters in just five days, and one woman who was there for every moment of the movie is revealing new secrets to our own Kevin Frazier. Watch the video as singer/musician Judith Hill deconstructs certain moments from the movie and what was happening behind the scenes with Michael. "All of us were just focused on him, we're just ready because at any time he could cue us to do something that he wants us to do," explains Judith. "Constantly he was creating and constantly he was giving us direction."

The Good Shepherd NY premiere

Sat, 16 Dec 2006 06:50:55 -0500

Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon and Robert DeNiro attend the world premiere of 'The Good Shpeherd' in New York. Spies, secrets, and Angelina Jolie. That was the scene at New York's Ziegfeld Theater on Monday (December 11) for the world premiere of "The Good Shepherd." "The Good Shepherd" follows the spy career of character Edward Wilson, played by Damon, and the establishment of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. Damon may be the star of the film, but the red carpet turned into a frenzy of flashbulbs when Jolie, who plays his wife in the movie, arrived at the theater. After posing for a few pictures, Jolie commented that her travels around the globe have made her more interested in political films. However, she said, there's always room for classic entertainment. "The Good Shepherd" opens in U.S. theaters on December 22. Soundbites: Angelina Jolie Brad Pitt Matt Damon Robert DeNiro

Hanover theatre opens with bernadette peters : AOL Video feed