by jnoelbell 

Valentine's Day is a few days away - did you forget to make dinner reservations at the hottest restaurant? It's a little too late for that now, but that doesn't mean you can't still score some points in the romance department by being a little creative.

From Masquerade Balls to exotic hothouses, champagne skylines to sultry jazz - here are some last minute ideas to save you from the dog house! As of publication tickets were still available for all of the below events...

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by sara bertoni

ELLE STYLE AWARDS 2007 at Energetica

The most talked about party of the Amsterdam Fashion Week was the ELLE STYLE AWARDS. And that wasn't because of their cocktails (more about them later).

The Elle Style Awards started in 2004 and are growing bigger and bigger every year. This year, they were held at the museum Energetica in Amsterdam on the second day of the Amsterdam fashion week. Sponsored by H&M, Nokia, Frieda and Nissan, the Elle Style Awards aim is to choose the best up coming styling talent of the year.

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by sara bertoni 

 
FASHION WEEK AMSTERDAM 20-28 JANUARY 2007

A fashion week in Amsterdam? All my international friends who work in fashion in Paris, London and Milan couldn’t believe when in 2004 Amsterdam presented the first AMSTERDAM INTERNATIONAL FASHION WEEK.

But as Renate Peters (manager at House of Orange Models) said: AIFW is getting bigger, better and more every season! Even the street fashion is picking up – soooo… welcome back AIFW!

Fast forwarding to the present, many prestigious brands, designers and companies have joined. The objective of AIFW is to run talent into business, which makes the number of recent successes very encouraging.

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by eye prefer paris 

I strolled over the Ile St. Louis to the Arab Institute to see the Venise et l’Orient exhibit. I’ve been intrigued by the exotic and inviting poster that’s been on the metro and the streets of Paris in the last few months. I thought a Tuesday in January would be a good off day to go with no crowds. I was wrong - it was busy!

I charged past the huddled masses to view the exhibit in peace.

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by sara bertoni

The Millionaire Fair is THE event in Amsterdam. The organizers shocked the Netherlands in 2002 by organizing an event unparalleled in luxury and size. 'A fairytale for the affluent, a cornucopia for culinary fans and a feast of superlatives', said the press.

Initiator Gijrath Media Groep, publisher of Miljonair Magazine, launched the idea for the Millionaire Fair on the basic theme of their magazine: 'The Luxury Lifestyle’ – and in 2003 the fair quadrupled in terms of size and numbers of visitors, this year over 40.000 with 210 exhibitors/participants.

For Dutch high-society members, the VIP night of the Millionaire Fair Amsterdam has become the most important event of the year, tickets over 300 euros, if you want to be with the stars.

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by jnoelbell

One of the fabulous things about London is their commitment to publicly accessible arts. What this means for the average person is that all major museums are free for all (donations suggested). In a city where a cappucino is nearly £3, a single tube ride as much as £4, and a curry takeway a fiver... well, having beauty and wonder available for free is simply priceless. If you're skint this time of year (and who isn't?) here are a few seasonal offerings to lift your spirits.

Here are a few artsy ideas, guaranteed to take the bah out of your humbug...

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by eye prefer paris

Here's my Top 5, Eye Need To Do’s this month:
 
1. Doisneau: Paris en Liberté
Robert Doisneau’s “The Kiss at Hotel De Ville” is one of the most iconic and popular photos of Paris ever taken. A new exhibition of 280 of his black and white photos of Paris cityscapes is now on at the Hôtel De Ville.

To February 17, 2007
Hôtel de Ville, 5, rue Lobau, 75004
Open daily except Sundays, from 10am until 7pm
Free
Metro: Hotel de Ville
Note: Be prepared to stand in line for at least 30 minutes

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by moscerina

"All he does is stand there!"
"Yeah, but it's the way he stands..."
-- Paul McCartney arguing with John Lennon about Stu Sutcliffe, in Backbeat

Every so often, I hear how ugly Richard Meier's home to the Ara Pacis (the Altar of Peace) is – what a mistake, it ruins the cityscape of Rome, it's too white. Blah blah blah…

First of all, the cityscape isn't ruined, it's a flat bed roof, low and hidden beneath Rome's domes. Second, it’s practically open. Sitting in lungotevere traffic, zipping by on motorino, chilling on the bus or just strolling, no matter what you get a direct peak at the Ara Pacis*, direct interaction with Augustus and Ancient Rome, just as it was originally planned 2000 years ago. Third, it's a contemporary building smack in the center of Rome which always sparks a beautiful, enriching and heated discussion of the confrontation between classical and contemporary architecture. Even if you think it sucks, you will still talk about it.

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by eye prefer paris 

As a Paris insider, I have an embarrassing admission to make: I’ve never been to The Panthéon. Quelle Horreur! Sunday afternoon I finally went, and the Brazilian artist Ernesto Neto’s astounding installation was worth the wait.

The installation, inspired by a sea monster in the Book of Job, is a series of white fabric sculptures filled with tiny grains of white polystrene, where the shapes look like a combination of white tear drops, cow udders, and snow filled balloons. Words don’t do it justice and the pictures help, but it’s simply one of those things you have to experience in person. This installation jumps to the top of my Eye Need to Do List and absolutely don’t miss it.

Ernesto Neto’s Leviathan Thot at The Panthéon

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by jnoelbell

It's a well worn cliché, but there really is something magical which settles over London at the holidays. During the rest of the year, the urban qualities of a large city are characteristics you either love or hate: the throngs of cityfolk, the non-stop lifestyle, the concrete buildings, the public transportation, the touristy attractions. No matter how much you love city living, it's bound to drive you mad from time to time. So as the end of the year approaches, it becomes all too easy to spend your commute cocooned in your iPod, or walk to your destinations with head down and shoulders squared against the world.

As the daylight gets shorter and the damp fog of autumn descends over both city and dwellers, it can get downright dreary. But it doesn't have to be this way...

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by katie lips

The usual Amsterdam-at-night it is not. Mediamatic has opened an exhibition that's a crazy blend of nature, art, technology, and... sprouts!

It's not just a static exhibition, it's a hands-on affair. Enjoy Christa Sommerer & Laurent Mignonneau's classic Interactive Plant Growing, one of the most sensational interactive works of the last century.

Then build your own robot, be transformed into a cybernetic nocturnal animal, enjoy a paper flower garden or the bright colours of the Seattle Garden Carpet, and tempt your tastebuds at the Micro-Green restaurant. Debra Solomon's prototype Microgreen Sproutstaurant Grow yer own dang food boasts 3 types of mash and over 30 sorts of sprouted micro-greens (sprouts). Did you even know there were that many?

So if you're up for a quirky dinner and some visual stimulation over the holidays, grab your hat and a fork and hit the Night Garden instead.

Open Thurs-Sat (6-11pm) until 7 Jan 2007.

by eye prefer paris 

My first Paris play: Isabelle Huppert in “Quartett”, directed by Robert Wilson at the Odeon Theatre.

My friend Olivier generously invited me to the theater last night and what a stellar introduction it was with a performance by one of France’s greatest actresses at the most prestigious theater in Paris.

Officially titled the Odeon- Theatre of Europe, it was built in 1827 and was the first theater in France to present Shakespeare in English and introduced French audiences to Ibsen, Tolstoy, Turgenev, and Stindberg. Its mission is “to foster joint work and projects by stage directors, actors, and writers for the purpose of presenting new original works and bringing life to the artistic heritage of Europe “. The theater, recently reopened after extensive renovations, is a beautiful formidable structure with creamy white columns outside, gorgeous sculptures and chandeliers in the lobby, and the theater itself a marvel of gold gilt and velvet.

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by rhiannon davies

For 10 days Copenhagen is the hub of the international documentary film scene. From 10-19 November, 150 documentaries from some of the world’s best documentary makers will be shown at cinemas across the city.

CPH:DOX 2006 is the fourth edition of Scandinavia’s largest documentary film festival and there’s an impressive programme choose from. Click on the calendar on the left for the day’s showings.

There is something for everyone with subjects ranging from the first elected woman in Afghanistan, gangs in Port au Prince’s worst slums, impoverished musicians in Africa, love, integration & separation, to finding the perfect Hitchcock look-a-like, and taking a closer look at Zinedine Zidane or Maradona.

It is time to get excited because many of this year’s feature films are coming to Copenhagen fresh from major international film festivals in Cannes, Berlin, Toronto and Venice. Work by directors like Alan Berliner, Romuald Karmaker and David LaChapelle to 11 brand new, Danish success stories.

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by sam baron

As a part of the Fabrica exhibition at the Centre Pompidou in Paris, the Fabrica Design Department created a temporary  store that will only last for five months. The store is a project exploring the process of creating a retail space using materials and local resources. 

Where is all this taking place? Artés 135, rue Saint Martin, 75003 Paris. And when? 6 October - 13 November 2006

The concept behind the store is this: Five designers had five days to make the space and 50 products to display. Each designer was involved in sharing their personal and cultural views on the retail experience. Concept, resourcing, organization, and execution was a collective effort.

Inside the store you'll find a shelving sculpture made out of metro shelving in the gallery space, a stock room of yellow customised products, a colors magazine reading room, as well as many Fabrica Features objects made specifically for the store.

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by sara bertoni

From September 15 to December 14 2006, Foam Fotografiemuseum Amsterdam presents ‘The Kate Show’. An exhibition focusing on style icon, super-model and muse Kate Moss.

Why, after recent scandals, is Kate Moss still the leader of the supermodel pack? What is it about Kate Moss that makes her so compelling? Amsterdam’s Foam Gallery decided to find out, inviting artists and photographers from around the world to give their take on Kate’s appeal.

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