Videos

History, Landmarks, Reviews, Travel, Videos, Views

Africa Travel: The ‘Ksars’ Of Djado, Northern Niger

Video Leave a comment

FRANCE 24 (June 5, 2023) – A long trek across the desert of northeastern Niger brings visitors to one of the most astonishing and rewarding sights in the Sahel: fortified villages of salt and clay built on rocks, besieged by the Sahara sands.

Generations of travelers have stood before the “ksars” of Djado,  wandering their crenellated walls, watchtowers, secretive passages and wells, all of them testifying to a skilled but unknown hand.

The now ruined city Djado is located on the southern end of the Djado Pleateau in the Sahara in northern Niger. It is not clear who built the complex of fortified mud buildings (ksars). The city was a part Trans-Saharan trading network of the Kanuri people whose Kanem-Bornu Empire was founded before 1000 CE and at its greater extent covered what is now Cameroon, Chad, Nigeria, southern Lybia and Eastern Niger.

It is not clear what caused the abandonment of the city after the 1860s: increased desertification, conflict or even a mosquito infestation have been proposed as possible causes. Since then it has been used by Toubou nomads for the cultivation of dates. The site also contains rock drawings and carvings from 12,000 to 6,000 BCE, depicting the fauna that roved the prehistoric Sahara. The Djado Plateau was added to the UNESCO Tenative List in 2006.

Niger or the Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state bordered by Libya to the northeast, Chad to the east, Nigeria to the south, Benin and Burkina Faso to the southwest, Mali to the west, and Algeria to the northwest.

#Niger #lostcity #Sahara

Art, Arts & Literature, Design, Furniture, Profiles, Videos

Design: Sculpted Bronze Art Of Diego Giacometti

Video Leave a comment

Sotheby’s (June 5, 2023) – Trained in the school of Art Deco decorators and sculptors, Diego Giacometti was equally attached to the discipline of pre-WWII production standards as to the classical artistic vocabulary deriving from ancient Greece, Egypt and Etruscan decorative arts .

The eminent history and personal connection of these tables and lamps to the artist and one of his dearest friends echo the oeuvre of Diego Giacometti itself— a sumptuous and timeless universe in bronze filled with the unique character and artistic prolificity of a true poet.

The featured ”Racine” Guéridon in particular figures as one of Diego’s most rare and original creations in bronze. The piece shows the sculptor’s prowess at skillfully adapting an organic motif into a strikingly abstract and perfectly balanced composition, which is simultaneously sculptural in its intent and highly functional.

Adventure, Tourism, Tours, Travel, Videos, Views

Hiking Trails: ‘Shetland Way’ To Open In Scotland

Video Leave a comment

The Times and The Sunday Times (June 5, 2023) – Seabird colonies, Viking ruins and untamed wilderness await walkers on the new Shetland Way — via a new direct flight from London Heathrow. Simon Parker explores the new hiking route.

The route covers approximately 80 miles and run through up the ‘spine’ of the islands linking Shetland’s natural, cultural and community assets, opening them up to walkers and potentially cyclists too.

Videos, Views

Profiles: : “The Book Of Charlie” – A 109-Year-Old Man’s ‘Well-Lived’ Life

Video Leave a comment

CBS Sunday Morning (June 4, 2023) – When Washington Post editor David Von Drehle moved into a new home, he found his neighbor, Charlie White, was not your typical 102-year-old. Striking up a friendship, Von Drehle discovered the colorful White, who’d already lived a couple of lifetimes, had a lot to teach others about making the most of our time alive.

Correspondent Luke Burbank talks with Von Drehle about a remarkable character, the subject of “The Book of Charlie.”

#biography #wisdom

Cities, Travel, Videos, Views

Walking Tour: Sausalito In Northern California (4K)

Video Leave a comment

Traveling with Andrew Films (June 3, 2023) – Sausalito is a city in Marin County, California, across the Golden Gate Strait from San Francisco. It’s known for its Richardson Bay houseboat enclaves, built by artist squatters after WWII.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Bay Model Visitor Center has a functioning 3D hydraulic model of the Bay Area, plus exhibits about the area’s waterways. The Marin Headlands offers Golden Gate Bridge views.

Recording Date: May 2023

Analysis, Interviews, Military, Reviews, Videos

Views: Ukraine’s Zelensky On The Counteroffensive

Video Leave a comment

Wall Street Journal (June 3, 2023) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke with Wall Street Journal editor in chief Emma Tucker in Odesa ahead of his meeting with European leaders to press for membership in NATO and as the world waits for Ukraine’s counteroffensive against Russia.

Video timeline: 0:00 Ukraine’s counteroffensive 0:50 Ukraine’s long-term security and Western allies 2:23 U.S. election’s effect on Ukraine 4:03 Ukrainian weapons 5:44 NATO and Ukraine 7:05 Zelensky’s thoughts on China 7:38 How Zelensky is personally dealing with the war

#Ukraine#Zelensky#WSJ

Green Design, Reviews, Sustainability, Technology, Videos

World Economic Forum: Top Stories- June 3, 2023

Video Leave a comment

World Economic Forum (June 3, 2023) – This week’s top stories of the week include:


0:15 Spain just powered itself entirely from renewables – Mainland Spain’s electricity needs were met solely by wind, solar and hydropower between 10am and 7pm on Tuesday, 16 May. Impressively, this happened on a weekday when demand is highest. Last year, 42% of Spain’s electricity was generated renewably. This could rise above 50% this year, experts say

1:31 This school teaches students in the Metaverse – Donning VR headsets, pupils can visit the planets in our solar system, get up close and personal with a woolly mammoth or walk through the chambers of a human heart. They can practice their pronunciation in a simulated French restaurant or travel back in time to World War II. The cutting-edge lessons are on offer at Reddam House School in the UK.

3:06 New York City is sinking under the weight of its skyscrapers – Scientists calculated the mass of all the buildings in New York City. Including the Central Park Tower and the Empire State. In total, there are 1.1 million buildings, weighing a total of 762 million tonnes. The same as 64 million city buses. While most of the city is built on solid bedrock, softer parts of the earth are compressing under the enormous weight. Sending the Big Apple downwards at 1-2mm a year on average and up to 4mm a year in some areas.

4:28 Scientists have developed Eco-Friendly Ammonia – Used in many cleaning products and agricultural fertilizer. Their method uses water, nitrogen, a catalyst and a sprayer. If successfully scaled up, researchers say it could make a big dent in CO2 emissions, while helping to feed the world’s growing population sustainably.

_____________________________________________

The World Economic Forum is the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation. The Forum engages the foremost political, business, cultural and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas. We believe that progress happens by bringing together people from all walks of life who have the drive and the influence to make positive change.

Travel, Videos, Views

Swiss Views: Matterhorn Glacier Cableway Ride (8K)

Video Leave a comment

AKSense – Zurich Films (June 3, 2023) – The Matterhorn Glacier Ride l, the world’s highest 3S cableway, connects Trockener Steg with Matterhorn Glacier Paradise at 3883 metres. With the existing Matterhorn-Express cable car and the new 3S (three-cable system) cableway passengers reach Europe’s highest mountain station from Zermatt (1608 metres) quickly and in great comfort.

The cableway connection between the Matterhorn Glacier Paradise and Testa Grigia sees the realization of a once-in-a-generation dream: to be able to travel the entire way from the Matterhorn village of Zermatt (Switzerland) to Breuil-Cervinia (Italy) without having to get your boots wet! It’s a visionary cableway project that will further enhance the status of Zermatt-Matterhorn as a premium high-alpine destination. The panoramic journey, lasting around one hour from Switzerland to Italy or vice versa, will cover an altitude difference of over 4’000 metres – the greatest by any cableway in Europe.

Art, Arts & Literature, Exhibitions, Museums, Reviews, Tours, Videos

Exhibits: “Keith Haring- Art Is For Everybody”, Broad Museum In Los Angeles

Video Leave a comment

KCET (June 2, 2023) – Keith Haring’s first museum exhibition in Los Angeles debuts at the Broad, featuring over 120 artworks that showcase the artist’s legacy of blending fun street art with activism.

“Keith Haring: Art is for Everybody”

May 27 – Oct 08, 2023

The exhibition features works that span the artist’s career, tackling pertinent social issues of the time like anti-Apartheid movements and the HIV/AIDS crisis of the 80s as well as works that address relevant issues that persist today — from capitalism and environmentalism to race, sexuality and religion. “” at the Broad is on view from May 27 through October 8, 2023.

In his short but prolific career, Keith Haring was known for his fluid, uniform lines, intricate compositions, and repeating imagery such as the barking dog and radiant baby. Since the 1980s, Haring’s art has garnered worldwide recognition, breaking down barriers and spreading joy while shining a bright light on complex issues from capitalism and the proliferation of new technologies to sexuality and race.   

Born in 1958, Keith Haring grew up in Kutztown, Pennsylvania, where his father, Allen, taught him to draw cartoons from Walt Disney and Dr. Seuss. He moved to New York City in 1978 to enroll in the School of Visual Arts (SVA). In New York, he embraced his homosexuality, which informed his worldview and art practice. The city was pulsing with energy with the emergence of hip-hop, graffiti art, and an active nightclub scene. In alternative spaces such as Club 57 and Paradise Garage, Haring developed his visual style alongside artists Kenny Scharf and Jean-Michel Basquiat, performers Grace Jones and Madonna, and many others.