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  • Sao Paulo Fashion Week Protestors Call For 20 Percent Quota Of Black Models

    Protestors at this season's Sao Paulo Fashion Week called for a 20 percent quota of indigenous and black models to be used on the event's runways, the Guardian reports.

    Back in 2008, the BBC wrote that only 28 out of 1,128 models booked for Sao Paulo Fashion Week that year were black. As one modeling agent said, "The black models can't get jobs and have no access, don't have a good distribution of money or earnings and live in a sub-world, because there are no job opportunities."

    And the New York Times reported on the issue last summer, writing, "70 percent of the country's models come from three southern states that hardly reflect the multiethnic melting pot that is Brazil, where more than half the population is nonwhite." Erika Palomino, a fashion consultant in Sao Paulo, told the newspaper, "I was always perplexed that Brazil was never able to export a Naomi Campbell, and it is definitely not because of a lack of pretty women. It is embarrassing."

    Organizers previously agreed to a 10 percent quota of black models. But the plan apparently unraveled this time around, with designers ignoring the modish minorities altogether.

    Activist Frei Davi Santos explained to the Guardian:

    "Sao Paulo fashion week sells the image of a Swiss Brazil where everyone is white and blue-eyed. The organizers...forget that more than half of Brazil's population is black....According to the latest census we blacks represent 50.8% of the Brazilian population. This means an event which presents a majority of people with typically European characteristics does not represent the beauty and wealth of Brazilian ethnicity. Brazil is a country that still insists on emphasizing its European side and discriminating against its beautiful indigenous and Afro-Brazilian populations. We do not want catwalks that look like catwalks in Switzerland or England."

    BeautifulPeople.com Invaded By 30,000 Uglies

    Today in fact or fiction: BeautifulPeople.com, a dating website so vain it probably thinks this article's about it (and it is!), was briefly invaded by 30,000 "ugly" people who were granted membership thanks to a Shrek virus, likely planted by a reject.
    Typically, BeautifulPeople.com hopefuls submit photographs to the site, which are then voted on by its 700,000 existing members. However, Greg Hodge, managing director of BeautifulPeople.com, said in a press release, "We got suspicious when tens of thousands of new members were accepted over a six-week period, many of whom were no oil painting." The unattractive additions (including 11,924 Americans) were cast off the "island," as Hodge calls it, and a hotline was set up to handle any hurt feelings.
    Hodge explained to The Huffington Post, "Communities need to be exclusive to serve the purpose of the community. Exclusion is prevalent all through society. Look at Mensa and the national football team; all go through a selection process, some are accepted some are not. BeautifulPeople is no different aside from the fact that our process is democratic. There are some sites out there where you have to be a certain religion or color. BeautifulPeople is open to every race, color, creed and religion and represents every ethnicity, the proviso being our members find you beautiful."
    He added, "If Mensa's database was mistakenly flooded with 30,000 dummies, they would not start putting out easier IQ tests!"
    So what makes for a perfect BeautifulPeople.com member? Hodge told us, "Men will vote on women based solely on how they look...surprise, surprise. Women look at the bigger overall picture; yes, the men have to be attractive but they also have to write a reasonably articulate profile description, show a little character or sense of humor. A high income also helps as does a picture showing a good lifestyle."
    We were pretty wary of this too-good-to-be-true scoop, so BeautifulPeople put us in touch with Asia, 39, who remarked to HuffPost, "Because looks are important to me in a partner, I want to belong to a website where every profile I search through is attractive.


"
    When asked what message she had for those who were rejected, she said, "
Bye bye! No, seriously, I would say don't take it too hard. I'm a make-up artist working in the beauty business in L.A! I see rejection all the time. Everyone has their strengths. You have to pick yourself up and get on with real life."
    Read More....http://www.huffingtonpost.com

    Charlene Wittstock In Vogue: Finding My Fashion Feet Has Certainly Been A Challenge

    Vogue caught up with Charlene Wittstock, set to marry Prince Albert II at the beginning of July. The future princess discussed first meeting Albert at the 2000 Olympics (she's a swimmer), adjusting to life in Monaco and her plans to inaugurate a fashion week there.

    On cultivating her personal style:

    "Finding my fashion feet has certainly been the biggest challenge," she says, remembering her "trial by fire" at Monaco's 2007 Red Cross Ball. "'I was literally a fish out of water. I thought it was all fun, fun, fun, and didn't give my outfit any thought. I had been playing beach volleyball all day, painted my nails red, and threw on a green dress. I thought I looked great at the time, but looking back, I realize that my debut into Monaco society should have been better executed!"

    On listening to other people about how she should dress:

    "I was insecure. I felt pressure to err on the side of caution -- I was terrified of meeting a head of state in an over-the-top outfit....I've reached the point where I know what I like and what works. I'm starting to play with fresher, bolder, and more daring looks." She was helped by Giorgio Armani, who will dress her for the religious part of her wedding and who notes that her casual elegance and slender figure look equally good in suits and evening gowns with necklines "that emphasize the beautiful structure of her shoulders."

    On her relationship with Karl Lagerfeld:

    "Karl took me to his workshop in Paris. He said, 'You are going to be a style icon. You bring a breath of fresh air and modern glamour to Monaco.' Then he asked me if there was one item of clothing that I had always wanted to experiment with, and I replied, 'A smoking jacket.' He went back to his apartment and presented me with his own white shirt and smoking jacket from his closet."

    Latin American Drug Traffickers May Use Submarines To Move Drugs Across The Atlantic

    Latin American cocaine traffickers may be using submarines to move the Europe-bound drugs across the Atlantic Ocean, a top official said Monday during a conference aimed at stemming the flow of the drugs through Africa.
    Alexandre Schmidt, the head of the West African branch of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, said drug cartels are known to have already used submarines off the South American and Caribbean coast. Even though no submarines have been seized in West African waters, there is anecdotal evidence to suggest they are in use there as well, he said.
    "We are not talking about military vessels here, but rather smaller ones which can be bought freely on the international market by anybody who has a couple of million dollars to spare," said Schmidt, who spoke during the inaugural session of a policy committee, dubbed the West Africa Coast Initiative.
    The initiative was launched in 2009, after a United Nations report showed that the illicit flow of cocaine through the region boomed, surpassing even the GDP of some of the countries through which the drugs were trafficked.
    West Africa became a stopover point for drug cartels after demand began to wane in North America at the same time prices soared in Europe, prompting the traffickers to shift their operation.
    Due to tightened airport and maritime controls in Europe, the traffickers needed to find a halfway point. Experts say that the drugs were first brought to West Africa in small boats, then twin-engine planes. They landed on deserted islands and abandoned runways, before being parceled out to be carried north.
    The cartels took advantage of corrupt institutions and lax law-enforcement, and in some countries they operated with the complicity of ruling families.
    The trade evolved with the use of cargo planes, first discovered in November 2009 when a Boeing 727 landed in the Malian desert, miles from the nearest town or commercial airport. When authorities arrived, the aircraft had already been set alight, prompting authorities to speculate that it was being used to carry cocaine.

    'Glee' Original Cast Graduating, Ryan Murphy Says

    Here's the one drawback with TV series about kids: they grow up.
    Unless a showrunner can suspend the laws of time and begin writing seasons that address just days or weeks, they eventually face a decision as to how they'll adapt their shows to older stars. Will they follow them from high school to new stages in life? Or bring in new characters? Perhaps both?
    According to "Glee" showrunner Ryan Murphy, he's leaning toward doing the latter.
    He confirmed to Ryan Seacrest that he's looking to move the current cast on from high school, with them graduating at the end of the third season, and bringing in fresh talent to the show -- which is the entire function of the new Oxygen Network show, "The Glee Project."
    "That is true. I don't think of it in terms of eliminating or replacing. Because I think the thing about this cast is people love them and they are incredibly talented. They've left sort of an indelible mark," Murphy told Seacrest on his radio show. "The thing that I wanted to do and the cast wanted to do, we didn't want to have a show where they were in high school for 8 years. We really wanted it to be true to that experience. We thought it would be really cool if we were true to the timeline."
    That would mean seeing Lea Michele's Rachel Berry, the show's leading character, graduate, amongst many others. Murphy said that, with two adults to rely on, he's confident of being able to make new stars.
    "We've got Matt Morrison and Jane Lynch who will stay and be the male and female lynchpins of the series, but I think the fun thing about the show is it's a celebration of youth and talent and I think that just like with the original cast, I think finding those young unknown people and giving them an opportunity to break into the business and become stars is a really fun and exciting thing and is the spirit of the series."

    Rosie Huntington-Whiteley Talks Shia LaBeouf's 'Transformers' Warning In Women's Health

    It has become quite obvious, now, that one must watch his or her words when starring in a "Transformers" movies, especially when the desire to draw vile dictators into conversation grows strong. See: Fox, Megan, and her Steven Spielberg-mandated firing.

    But as her "Transformers: Dark of the Moon," replacement, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, soon learned, there's more than just verbal traps to be avoided while filming one of Michael Bay's blow-em-up blockbusters. The warning came from her on-screen love interest, series star, Shia LaBeouf.

    “Shia made it clear this wasn’t just about becoming a movie star. The shooting schedule was going to be grueling," Huntington-Whiteley told Women's Health Magazine, which she covers this month. And she confirmed that her co-star was right; their shoot in Chicago was anything but easy. “You’re in the sun all day long—dirty and smelly. It was like boot camp.”

    While moviegoers may note the differences between Fox and Huntington-Whiteley, such as their looks and accents, she promises that the issue that got Fox canned from the series is not at all a problem for her. Even if people think it might be.

    “People always tell me, ‘Gosh, you’re so nice!' Like they expect me to be a huge b*tch," she muses. Well, maybe after the last "Transformers" leading lady...

    She also talks about her love for organic food, something she's shared in the past.

    “Thinking about the things that go into processed foods—chemicals, additives," she said. "Sometimes you go into a supermarket and the apples are all the same size and color, but that’s not what apples are supposed to look like. Go to an orchard or an organic farm, and the apples are sometimes knobby, but they taste better.”

    TAKASHI MURAKAMI at Gagosian Gallery Britannia Street

    TAKASHI MURAKAMI 3-Meter Girl, 2011 © Takashi Murakami/Kaikai Kiki Co., Ltd. All Rights Reserved. Prototype of work to be exhibited: modeling by BOME, original rendering by Seiji Matsuyama.
    June 27th – August 5th, 2011
    I think the Japanese male sexual complex originated in the two-dimensional world –animation, games and so on – which then transferred to small three-dimensional sculptures. But before my sculptures Miss Ko (1997) and My Lonesome Cowboy (1998), it had never been represented life-size.
    –Takashi Murakami
    Gagosian Gallery will be presenting recent paintings and sculptures by Takashi Murakami.
    Murakami’s latest group of paintings explores his complex ambivalence to the legacy of cosmopolitan painter Kuroda Seiki, who brought yōga or Western-style painting to Meiji- period Japan. Kuroda broadly promoted the genre of history painting, as well as the validity of the nude figure as a subject for art.
    Taking Kuroda’s famous triptych, Wisdom, Impression, Sentiment (c.1900), Murakami consciously reclaims it in a new iteration by applying traditional nihonga techniques like gold- and silver-leafing, as well as recasting the realistically rendered nude figures in contemporary manga style.
    When it was first shown, Kuroda’s work caused great controversy because of its content, however, as Murakami reminds in paintings such as Shunga: Gibbons
    (2010) and Shunga: Bow Wow (2010), Japan had embraced explicit erotic content in art as early as the twelfth century.
    By the Edo period, the long-established genre of shunga sought to express a varied world of contemporary sexual possibilities, often referred to as the creation of a “pornotopia,” an idealised, eroticised and fantastical world parallel to contemporary urban life. In Murakami’s contemporary shunga, graphic depictions of exaggerated and engorged male and female genitals are set against delirious backgrounds of image and pattern.
    This theme continues into sculptures, which feature collaborations with key artists working in Japan’s popular otaku culture including Seiji Matsuyama — creator of the controversial manga “My Wife is an Elementary School Student” – and BOME, a figure sculptor who previously collaborated on Murakami’s first life-size sculpture, Miss Ko2 (1997), an ebullient Playboy fantasy translated into manga cuteness and proportions. Whereas Nurse Ko2 (2011) relates closely to the earlier sculpture, with its leggy, busty verticality and sexy uniform (right down to a suggestively loaded syringe), 3-Meter Girl (2011) is an absurdist composition that pushes form and content to new extremes. She stands with feet spread wide, her abundant hair roiling around her like an elaborate rococo frame as if to steady her petite body against the whopping pendular breasts whose size and weight threaten to topple her.
    A monumental cast and highly polished metal penis of towering proportions, Mr Big Mushroom (2011), is a realist, manmade take on the traditional stone lingam. Together with Miss Clam (2011), an inviting metal vagina, it provides an exclamation mark to the enduring obsession with sexuality in contemporary human society.
    www.gagosian.com/

    Katie Holmes In A Bikini With Suri photo

    Katie Holmes and Suri Cruise enjoyed some beach time in Miami over the weekend, and Bauer Griffin has the photos. On Sunday they were snapped with Tom celebrating Father's Day on a boat.
    The family is in Miami while Tom films 'Rock of Ages.'
    Here's one pic of Katie and Suri in the ocean, see the rest here

    Heidi Montag In A Bikini After 27-Pound Weight Loss

    Eyes up here, boys! Heidi Montag has never been shy about showing off her assets and partied in Las Vegas this weekend in a skimpy two-piece pink bikini.
    Read the whole story: Celebuzz

    Mitch Winehouse Reignites Music Career, Remembers Daughter Amy as a Child

    Like countless other musicians, Mitch Winehouse gave up his dream in favor of getting a steady job to support his family. He was a professional singer in the '70s, but left the circuit to work as a cab driver and raise his children.

    "I put it on the back burner," he tells Spinner. "When Amy started to perform she'd get me up on stage and we'd do a couple of songs."

    Amy, of course, is his daughter Amy Winehouse, who captivated the world with her sultry voice and littered tabloids with her personal foibles. Now the family is forging ahead and Mitch is singing his own tune.

    "The whole idea with the album was I would stand up and be judged by my own work," Mitch says. "The songs would be standards, but not standards that everybody immediately recognizes."

    'Rush of Love' includes covers of tunes of jazz and lounge tunes like 'How Insensitive' by Antonio Carlos Jobim. There are also four new songs penned by veteran British songwriter Tony Hiller.

    As for Amy, an album is in the works. And, according to dad, she is doing just fine.

    "She doing better now," Mitch says. "She has been clean for two and a half years, about that. I'm not saying her problems have gone away, because they haven't. She's dealing with it."

    Mitch doesn't take credit for teaching his daughter how to sing, but the family certainly provided her with a musical upbringing.

    "In my house there was always music, there was dancing, and singing," Mitch says. "And it was natural for my kids to sing as soon as they could talk. I remember Amy standing on the table and I would leave a word out of a song and she would fill the word in."

    But if Mitch Winehouse is using the spotlight to pursue his own ventures, it's not only for the singing. The 61-year-old year old cab driver also appeared in a documentary that explored the government's role in the dealing with drug addiction, and even testified before a Parliamentary committee to discuss the discrepancies.

    "If somebody is a drug user in London, and they voluntarily want to come off drugs but they can't afford to put themselves in a private clinic, it's almost impossible for them to get into a residential program," Mitch says. "What we found was that there are some people that are so desperate that want to get off drugs but can't get the help. We found a lot of people are actually turning to crime."

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