2007 August archive at eternallycool.net

Archive for August, 2007

Aug

Don’t Play With Your Food

By idcrome 0 Comments

Categories: Film & TV and Food & Wine

Oedipus performed by vegetables

Not really Roman, but it too eternally cool to be true. So, here we embrace the whole of our classical heritage:

In 2005, filmmaker Jason Wishnow released an eight and one-half minute film version of the Greek tragedy, Oedipus, in which the only actors are vegetables. Aeschylus rolled over in his grave as the ill-fated and potato-headed Oedipus won the hearts of film festival organizers around the world.

Oedipus played by vegetables

What would induce such an undertaking? In talking to Ish Magazine, Wishnow explained his motivations:

I figured the Oedipus story was always kind of funny, you know…incest, patricide, eye-gouging…I always thought vegetables offered another one of those ways that [the story of] Oedipus had not been told, but [had] been begging to be done for thousands of years (*grins*)

But really I have not been able to come up with a legitimately funny answer to this question after two years, and I still do not have the right sound bite quality answer to this question. The embarrassing thing is I guess I just thought it would be a funny way to tell the story.

Oedipus played by vegetables

In the same interview, Wishnow also explained the casting of the film:

…since Oedipus has to poke out his eyes…He needed to be a potato. The mum is supposed to be a real tomato - that goes without saying…and then, when the potato and the tomato have sex, obviously their offspring is a cherry tomato.

I was generally trying to go with vegetables you might find more commonly in European cuisine, so it would be appropriate to have potatoes and that kind of stuff. Even though halfway through the production we had this total catastrophe where I walked into the studio one morning after looking at vegetables on the internet until 3am, and I read that the potato and the tomato are both new world vegetables, so they come from the Americas. And I had one of those directing panic attacks. I thought, “Oh my God, I am going to have to recast the entire movie!” But everyone was like, “We are halfway through the film. We are going to keep going.” So, yup. I got over it.

Oedipus played by vegetables

We love, love, love the cauliflower sheep and the tomato queen!

Aug

This is Some Kind of Erector Set

By idcrome 0 Comments

Categories: Historic Sites and Architecture

These stunning illustrations were done by Natale Bonifacio for Domenico Fontana’s 1590 manuscript Della Trasportatione dell’Obelisco Vaticano.

Raising the Vatican Obelisk

In the first century AD, the Roman Emperor Nero often entertained himself at his suburban retreat in Rome’s Ager Vaticanus. There, he had a luxury villa that included a circus, or athletic stadium, with an obelisk at its center. The obelisk had been carved in Egypt during the reign of Nebkaure Amenemhet II (1992-1985 BCE), and had originally stood in the Temple of the Sun at Heliopolis. It was brought to Rome by the emperor Caligula in 37 AD and erected as a symbol of the Roman conquest of Egypt.

It in Nero’s obelisk-embellished circus in the Ager Vaticanus that Saint Peter is said to have been martyred in the 60s AD. His body was then claimed by Rome’s growing Christian community and was buried in a nearby cemetery. Centuries later, when Christianity was legalized by the Roman Emperor Constantine (AD 313), a church that came to be known as Saint Peter’s Basilica was built over the grave of Peter and quite near the Circus of Nero.

The legalization of Christianity in Rome coincided with a turn of fortune in the Roman Empire. As Christianity grew in popularity, the power of the Roman Empire waned, but at the same time, Rome became depopulated and economically troubled. Ancient monuments fell into disrepair and some, like the obelisk in the Circus of Nero, simply fell to the ground.

Raising of the Vatican Obelisk

In the sixteenth century, another reversal of fortune saw Rome reborn. Renaissance Popes and nobles envisioned a Christian Rome that would rival the splendor and grandeur that had been the hallmark of ancient the ancient city and so they began to commission works of art and architecture that would embellish and enhance the Eternal City. One of the most important protagonists in this revival of Rome was Pope Julius II, who in 1506 commissioned the construction of a new Saint Peter’s Basilica, tearing down the fourth century church to begin building today’s splendid building - the project would take about 120 years to complete.

At the end of the sixteenth century, as construction on New Saint Peter’s was underway, Pope Sixtus V decided that the obelisk from Nero’s Circus (then laying on the ground near the construction site) should be displayed in front of the new basilica. In 1585, he gave the commission for moving and erecting the the 330-ton Aswan granite obelisk to architect Domenico Fontana. Though the monument only had to be moved about a quarter of a mile or so, the task was a colossal one, for no one had raised an obelisk since antiquity. The operation was carried out using hemp ropes and iron bars weighing 40,000 pounds, as well as 900 men and 72 horses, and the entire procedure took about 5 months to complete.

Raising the Vatican Obelisk

For more illustrations and information see this CD Rom: Della Trasportatione dell’Obelisco Vaticano

Aug

Produit en Italie

By idcrome 0 Comments

Categories: Sports and Advertising

Nike Italy Ads based on Vintage Italian Graphic Design

via IHT:

These utterly awesome Nike print ads (yes they were released in 2006, but we’re still in love with them so we’re covering them today) are plays on classic Italian graphic design of the 1940s, 50s, and 60s. The ads feature the stars of the 2006 World Cup winning team, like Fabio Cannavaro, Andrea Pirlo and Materazzi and have witty quips alluding to Italian dominance in soccer - and taking a few subtle stabs at the French team defeated by the Italians in the final match.

For example, the poster bearing the likeness of Cannavaro hoisting an ice cream cup (below, right) promotes the “Coppa Cannavaro,” a would-be gelato brand that, according to the poster, is “the envy of the world.” Cannavaro, the Italian team captain, was the first player to hoist the World Cup trophy when Italy won the match.

Nike Italy Ads based on Vintage Italian Graphic Design

What has this to do with the French? The posters all feature a “produit en Italie” tagline (that’s French for “made in Italy,”) - a slight touch likely to entertain Italian viewers.

The Materazzi poster (above, left) makes a more pointed reference to the most- discussed event of the World Cup championship game, depicting the player in the shape of an armoire, as a stylized representation of a fictional furniture brand called “Armadi Materazzi.” Its cheeky slogan: “Solidità mondiale testata a prova di testate” - that is, “Proven, world-class strength, headbutt-proof.”

Carlo Cavallone, a copywriter at Wieden + Kennedy in Amsterdam, the agency that created the campaign for Nike, said the ads were intended to “rub it in a bit, but without being chauvinistic.”

“It’s meant to be a celebration, to show a bit of national pride,” he said.

Nike Italy Ads based on Vintage Italian Graphic Design

Many thanks to a reader who left a comment letting us know that there’s also an animated version of the Cannavaro Nike ad on YouTube.

Agency: Wieden+Kennedy, Amsterdam
Creative Directors: Mark Hunter, Alvaro Sotomayor
Art Director: Anders Stake
Copywriter: Carlo Cavallone
Accounts: Lorenza Montorfano, Jasmina Peri
Art Buyer: Andrew Koningen, Caroline Svensson
Project Manager: Katie Miller
Executive Creative Directors: Al Moseley, John Norman
Design Collective: Happycentro, Sintetik

Aug

Murder in the Etruscan Cemetery

By idcrome 0 Comments

Categories: Film & TV and Past & Present

Etruscan Mask: a film Today we reveal our true geekiness when we let our readers know that we simply can’t wait for the release of The Etruscan Mask, a horror film haunted by an Etruscan demon who just won’t die. Sometimes, it seems, that the Etruscan fix provided by Rome’s spectacular Villa Giulia museum is just not enough!

Filmed in Siena and Turin, the flick is set to be released later this year. It’s directed by Ted Nicolaou and the plot goes something like this:

In Siena, Italy, five foreign university students stumble across an ancient Etruscan mask in an old house as they are delivering newspapers by night. It soon becomes apparent that with possession of the mask comes an inescapable evil. With the help of a knowledgeable professor, they begin to uncover the dark secrets that surround it and are shocked to hear of its terrifying powers. After a series of unexplainable events, it becomes clear that the mask must be destroyed. However, one of the students has already succumbed to its powers and in doing so has released an ancient demon which has no intention of being destroyed.

Those Etruscans were a nasty lot. It’s no wonder that the ancient Romans were so intent on getting rid of them. Given the evil disposition of this pre-Roman group of people, we shouldn’t be surprised to discover that there are other horror films in which they’ve starred. For example, in 1972 the Etruscans decidedly upped their image when director Armando Crispino released The Etruscan Kills Again (it was less compellingly named in the USA: The Dead Are Alive), in which a photographer on an archaeological expedition to dig up Etruscan an Etruscan cemetery in Italy begins to suspect that not all the Etruscans buried there are actually dead. Oh my!

Ten years later, the mysterious Etruscans got another wide-screen release in Murder in the Etruscan Cemetery (called The Scorpion With Two Tails across the Atlantic) in which the young widow of an archaeologist, murdered while working on an Etruscan dig, dreams of her husband’s death and then travels from New York for Italy to investigate. Before long, she is attacked by bats and is involved in several other murders. In the meantime, the widow’s father is smuggling heroin in crates of Etruscan artifacts, but he is killed in a tragic cave-in. Other victims have their heads twisted around backwards by an unknown assassin as the widow’s premonitions continue and people tell her that she may be an Etruscan immortal. The secrets lie in a hidden tomb, and are revealed in a bizarre climax involving undercover narcotics agents, Etruscan zombies, magic stones and a huge anti-gravity crystal.

Surely someone, somewhere, must be organizing an Etruscan film festival?

Aug

An Isle of Your Own

By idcrome 0 Comments

Categories: The Rest of Italy and Everything Else

The Island of Capri

via Zoomata:

Oh to be in Capri! Everyone who’s anyone has wiled away hours on the isle, for it’s been home to Roman emperors as well as more modern celebrities like John Singer Sargent, Norman Douglas, Axel Munthe, Claude Debussy, Graham Greene, and even Mariah Carey.

But, if a jet-setting trip to Capri isn’t in your plans this summer, there’s no need to fret. You can pay a virtual visit and have some online fun at the same time when you play the about-to-be-released video game, AnaCapri: The Dream, the brainchild of Got Game Entertainment.

The Island of Capri

You’ll assume the role of Dr. Nico N, an expert in ancient civilizations who is summoned to the town of AnaCapri in order to find an ancient artifact believed to have been lost ages ago. As you search the island, from the depths of the beautiful Blue Groto to the panoramic gardens of Villa San Michele, you’ll be aided by some of the islands most famous and colorful residents.

Will it be fun? We have no idea (and, frankly, it doesn’t seem that promising). But the trailer promises that it will be beautiful. Too bad it doesn’t come with cocktails and a private boat.

Aug

Stuck On You

By idcrome 0 Comments

Categories: On the Street and Art & Design

Sticker Art at Rome's Anangina Metro Station

We spotted these visually interesting works by Lucamaleonto, Sten, and Lex - Rome’s super-hot proponents of post-graffiti works and poster art - in the Anangina metro station at the south end of A line. We’re living for their upcoming exhibit at the Temporary Love Gallery on Saturday 8 September during Rome’s Notte Bianca.

Poster Art in Rome's Anangina Metro Station

Aug

Well-Heeled Wine

By idcrome 0 Comments

Categories: Food & Wine

Bootleg Wines

Amidst the fanfare and excitement of New York’s 2005 Fashion Week (yep, this is dated news but we LOVE the clever name and sexy label), Click Wine Group announced the debut of an Italian wine collection under the sexy and hip label, Bootleg, at a high energy “Runway of Wine” fashion show. The stylish new brand, created in partnership with Italian wine importer Small Vineyards, marked the first time that five estates from five different regions of Italy have been united under a single wine brand, and each contributed a single wine that best represented their climate, terroir and winemaking expertise. The wines are:

Pinot Grigio by Tenuta Setten Estate (Veneto)
Sauvignon Blanc by Trevisiol Estate (Friuli-Venezia Giulia)
Chianti by Castello Sonnino Estate (Tuscany)
Southern Red (a blend of 4 varietals) by Terre del Grico Estate (Puglia)
Grand Tuscan (a blend of 3 varietals) by Villa Trasqua Estate (Tuscany)

The packaging of Bootleg wines provides an ultra-clever update on the image of Italy as a boot-shaped peninsula. Each bottle is sleekly shrink-wrapped to look as though it’s clad in thigh-high leather, while a sexy zipper that running the length of the bottle further suggests that the wine is utterly well-heeled.

Where to buy such stylish nectar? Surely you’ll want to bring this to the next dress-to-impress dinner party. Wine.com carries some of the varietals, as does Wineweb.com.

Aug

Our First Photo Friday

By idcrome 0 Comments

Categories: Photo Friday, Photography and On the Street

Photo Shoot At Rome's Pantheon

We’re absolutely thrilled to announce the birth of a new e-Cool tradition! Co-blogger and photographer, Susan Sanders (the maker of the wonderful Rome photo blog, Rome With A View), has agreed to let us feature one of her photographs on e-Cool each Friday. So, from now on, we’ll be starting out the weekend with one of her amazing views of the Eternal City.

While Susan sometimes photographs Rome’s classic views, she has an eye for the unusual and the ironic, which often casts the city’s well-known monuments in a new light. That talent is visible in today’s photo of a fashion shoot going on in Piazza della Rotunda, with the Pantheon as its backdrop.

You can see more of Susan’s photos on her blog, Rome With A View, and if you’re interested in purchasing photos you can contact her at susan at idcrome.org.

Aug

Rome With A View

By idcrome 0 Comments

Categories: Historic Sites, Architecture and Everything Else

Rome's Victor Emmanuel Monument

If the city of Rome has a center, it’s probably Piazza Venezia, today a large traffic circle that is surrounded by bits of history on every side. The piazza is the terminus for Via del Corso, a popular shopping street that was also the main road leading into Rome from the north in antiquity, but it is also flanked by a fifteenth-century palace, the Palazzo Venezia, built by a Venetian Cardinal and many centuries later occupied by Mussolini, as well as a church, San Marco, that was founded in the fourth century AD.

However, the most prominent monument that borders Piazza Venezia is a brand new one. Inaugurated in 1911 and completed in 1925, the Victor Emmanuel Monument -also called the Altar of the Fatherland and disparagingly known as the wedding cake and the typewriter for its shape and its colossal mass - was built to honor King Victor Emmanuel who ruled the newly united Italy from 1861-1878 and to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the new Italian state.

The monument is constructed of pure white marble and features majestic stairways, tall Corinthian columns, fountains, a huge equestrian sculpture of Victor Emmanuel, two statues of vicotry goddesses riding on quadrigas (four horse chariots), and a tomb to an unknown soldier. The structure is 490 feet wide and 230 feet high. If the quadrigae and winged victories are included, the height becomes 265 feet.

The View from Rome's Victor Emmanuel Monument

Though for several years it has been possible to climb up the stairs that form the front facade of the Victor Emmanuel monument in order to gain views across the city, on 2 June 2007, the terrace of the quadrigae atop the monument was opened to the public amid much political fanfare.

“We find ourselves in one of the most extraordinary places in the world,” said Italian President Giorgio Napolitano when he unveiled the newly restored terrace, while Minister of Culture Francesco Rutelli added his own comments, suggesting that the monument’s early-twentieth-century designers meant for the public to have access to the terrace of the quadrigae:

This panoramic terrace was always supposed to be open. Then, unfortunately, they forgot about it. People only got up here when the unknown soldier’s body was brought here in 1921 and for the inauguration of the chariots in 1927. Now all that has changed, thanks to the project launched by President (Carlo Azeglio) Ciampi in 2002. The view takes your breath away. It’s better than the Eiffel Tower.

Access is by means of a glass elevator that hangs on the back of the monument. And, though the Roman public has protested that the elevator is unsightly (and we’d have to agree), we decided to check out the new attraction in order to take in the 360 degree view across Rome. Most spectacular on the cool, clear evening that we visited was the view across the Forum, the Palatine, and the Colosseum, with vistas reaching off to the Castelli Romani (or Alban Hills) to the southeast of the city.

Lift tickets currently cost 7 euro each. The elevator runs from 9:30am to 7:30pm (though most likely those hours become shorter as it begins to get dark earlier.)

Aug

Buon Ferragosto!

By idcrome 0 Comments

Categories: Myth/Legend/Religion

The Goddess Diana and the Assumption of the Virgin Mary

While Roman Catholics recognize 15 August as a major religious holiday - the day on which the Virgin Mary was assumed into heaven to take up residence with her son, Jesus (see the painting by Poussin, above right) - for most Romans the day is also a high summer holiday.

The city of Rome begins to empty early in August, but by the 15th, the streets are vacant, shutters on the windows of apartments are tightly closed, and restaurants and shops have posted signs announcing that they’ll be out of business until the end of the month, as most Romans have left town to take up temporary residence at the sea or in the mountains. Those who remain in the Eterna either enjoy the peace and quiet that descends over the city or spend their time taking advantage of a myriad of free concerts and entertainments that celebrate the end of the summer.

Modern-day Romans aren’t the first to stage celebrations in mid-August, however. The tradition goes all the way back to the ancient Romans. In 18 BC, Rome’s first emperor Augustus declared that the month of August would be given over to the celebration of the Feriae Augusti (these two words give us the modern name for the holiday, Ferragosto), a series of festivals and celebrations, not least of which was that honoring Diana (see photo above, left), the goddess honored on Rome’s Aventine hill who presided over the woods, the moon, and motherhood.

Also honored in August were gods having to do with crops and fertility such as Vortumnus, god of the Seasons and the ripening of the crops; Consus, god of the Harvest; and Ops, the personification of the abundant harvest.

All these celebration of pagan gods dwindled away in the late antique period as Christianity took over the city of Rome, but the big ideas that informed the August celebrations remained intact. However, instead of honoring Diana, Consus, Vortumnus, and Ops, Christians directed their attention at another figure symbolic of maternity and fertility, the Virgin Mary, celebrating her miraculous Assumption into heaven in the middle of the month.

(The modern dogma that the Virgin Mary was transported to Heaven on Ferragosto arose in the 18th century and was formally proclaimed by Pope Pius XII only in 1950.)