obvious

Ryugyong Hotel - the world´s biggest ruin

2010-02-07T13:30:42Z

In North Korea's capital, Pyongyang, is located one of the most grotesque buildings in the world, the Ryugyong Hotel. Its pyramidal shape (in itself quite vulgar), along with its huge dimension (105 storeys and 330 meters high), makes it worthy of any retro-futuristic mega-metropolis. But its most bizarre aspect is the fact that it is a colossal ruin, since 1992, when its construction stopped. Since then, in the middle of the urban landscape of Pyongyang, it rises in the morning dew, like a scary ghost. Even the crane that was left on the side of the building seems to evoke a bird bringing bad omen...

Construction started in 1987. It is thought that this megalomaniac project was just another propaganda stunt from North Korea's regime, because, had it been finished in the expected time, it would have been the highest hotel in the world. Among other amazing characteristics, it would have 360 000 m2 of area, 3000 bedrooms, 7 restaurants located on the top (rotating) storeys.

But like in so many other situations, ambition was greater than financial means. At the time, it was estimated that about 750 million dollars would be needed to finish building the project, something along the lines of 2% of the country's GDP. The North Korean government initially promised to pay for the most part of the expenses. In the meantime, there were some issues with the raw materials, with the energy supply and with the financing. The construction techniques used themselves raised several doubts, especially about the structure's resistance. Construction ceased in 1992 and that's how it has remained for the following 16 years.

In 2008, however, construction was resumed. An Egyptian company started to refurbish the hotel's top floors and glass paneling the facades. However, the doubts about the structure’s resistance remain, especially after 16 years of exposure to weathering, which has left several cracks and corrosions marks. The government's idea is to have the building finished by 2012, year of the centennial of Kim Il Sung's (founder of the country) birthday. Maybe then the Ryugyong Hotel may look something like this, although we don't really know why...

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The Sagada cemetery

2010-02-04T12:30:59Z

Several kilometers north of Manila, in the Philippines, is located one of the most bizarre cemeteries in the world. Dozens of coffins precariously held to the steep hills hold the remains of the ancestors of the Sagada people, who prefer this kind of 'burial' to being actually buried.

Although only a few coffins are visible, those which are dangling from the hill, the entire rock holds hundreds of them, which have accumulated over generations in deep caves, a natural catacomb. The Sagada people have been performing this ritual for over 2000 years.

The entire wake, which may seem gruesome to our western eyes, is begun long before the burial itself. The elderly start building their small wood coffins when they feel their time is coming; if they are already too weak or incapacitated , the work is performed by their children or closest relative, so that it is finished in time to recieve the corpse.

The ritual demands that the dead be placed inside the coffin - even if that means breaking a few bones in order to fit in such a small space - and carried to the top of the hills, their final adress, to join their ancestors.

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Ashkan Sahihi - the humanist photographer

2010-02-01T13:30:42Z

Ashkan Sahihi is an Iranian photographer who has authored unique and shocking projects. Born in 1963 in Iran, he moved to New York in 1987, where he has displayed his work, in both individual and group exhibits. Among his works we can find extremely controversial essays connected with the intimacy of kissing, drugs, screaming, orgasms or even parts of the human body, such as armpits. A group of strong and blunt works that are as impressive as they are disturbing.

I became aware of this photographer through the outstanding magazine Ideafixa, which I strongly reccomend.

Ashkan Sahihi's webpage.

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ERGON - versatile door

2010-01-29T13:30:59Z

Space is a serious problem in modern office buildings or apartments, where rooms are getting smaller and smaller. The doors, for instance, are hard to place in tiny compartments, such as bathrooms and storage spaces. Architects and designers do their best to assure the aesthetic part of their projects without compromising functionality. Often, when the space is small, instead of the traditional doors, sliding doors are used, with their inherent inconveniences. None of these solutions is ideal. With this in mind, the Italian company Celegon has created a “rototranslating" ERGON door.

Rototranslating means the door, when it is being used, describes a movement that is simultaneously rotating (like conventional doors) and sliding. Technically, the concept is simple yet brilliant. The doors equipped with this system take up half the space used by conventional doors and can be opened from left or from right, alike. These are important advantages when you consider they are being used by children and people with reduced mobility, in wheelchairs, for instance.

Link

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Flatshare Fridge

2010-01-26T13:30:00Z

The Flatshare Fridge is a creative and funtional fridge. Instead of consisting of a single compartment with a single door, it consists of a base in which you can fit up to four compartments. These flats are independent and can be costumized, in its outside design as well as its interior. The advantage is that opening only a small door, the temperature inside the fridge is better conserved, while each person enjoys his own refrigerated space.

The idea came to a design student at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna, Stefan Buchberger, and is, as of today, still a prototype. The puzzle or LEGO look of the appliance is interesting, but it is its functionality that makes this proposal worthy. We hope it comes to fruition.

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Technological tattoos - fashion or whim?

2010-01-22T12:27:45Z

A new fashion seems to have arisen from the search for new and creative tattoos. Some people have begun to use the space in their bodies to portray their obsession or unconditional love for a brand or technology-related theme. From logos and programming language to keyboard symbols, there is a little bit of everything.

I have never truly understood the motivations for getting a tattoo. Something that will be engraved on your body forever, with no apparent practical purpose. Perhaps I should be looking at tattoos from a purely aesthetic point of view... Could that be it?

Images by: powerbooktrance, kmcculler, boogah

Trains for children

2010-01-19T12:28:08Z

The Kishigawa train line in Japan has about 14.3km and two trains that are different from any other train: the Omoden and the Ichigo Ec, the 'Train of toys' and the 'Strawberry Train', repectively. The idea was to promote the use of this comfortable and safe means of transportation among children. And, as it seems, results have been surprising...

The concept for these two trains was in the hands of Eiji Mitooka, who made them attractive enough in the eyes of children and filled them with hundreds of toys, TV screens with cartoons and other artefacts for the young travellers. As was to be expected, the carriages are immaculately clean. Interesting detail: the station master is called Tama and is famous for being... A cat. Only in Japan!

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The beauty of a look

2010-01-16T13:27:33Z

What is the beauty in a look? Through a set of macro photographs, we can admire the true beauty and complexity of the human eye. An apparently simple pattern, when seen up close, transforms itself and reveals us a complex amount of shapes and colours that are simply extraordinary.

What is the look that seduces you the most?

Source: rankin portfolio

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Night garden powered by solar energy

2010-01-13T13:30:08Z

At night, this garden, plain during the day, comes alive. Huge flowers light up, changing colors and varying in intensity. At the same time, music is played from somewhere unknown. The atmosphere created is of beauty and tranquility and you could even say we were in a heavenly place. However, we are in one the most troubled places in the world: the Night Garden is located in Israel, in the middle of Jerusalem, and was recently opened for the "Light in Jerusalem" festival.

Aside from the grass, nothing in this garden is natural. Everything is cutting edge technology. The flowers are made out of steel structures, through metallic networks, and the petals are made from glass cut by laser. The light is produced by multi-colored LEDs, powered by a system of solar panels. The project, created by O*GE together with the Israel Electric Corporation, tries to show the importance of the use of green alternative energy. At night, the entire building does not use more than 1300 watts per hour.

Link

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Like cats and dogs

2010-01-10T12:29:11Z

Amanda Jones lives in Williamstown, Massachusetts, USA. She has been a photographer since 1992, when she graduated from Ithaca College, in New York with a degree in Cinema ans Photography, her specialty took two years to be discovered. It all happened when her best friend brought her Ruby, a Labrador Retriever pup. The little puppy was her first model and it was love at first click. From then on, Amanda has not stopped, travelling around the country taking incredible photographs of cats and dogs, much to their owners delight.

Amanda's job, even today, with digital cameras, is definately not for everyone. Photos of animals, especially pets, that are naturally restless, playful and don't like to wander out of their routine, demand a lot of patience and, of course, talent. Capturing unique moments with these loveable creatures forever is an art for few. It's not a coincidence that Amanda's work can be seen in countles postcards, books, posters, calendars, among other materials.

The angles, the lighting and the perfect timing allow her to capture the 'personality', the look, the best expressions, the movements and each little detail of the small kittens and puppies. A wonderful exercise in photography and a priceless memento for those who love their pets.

Modern architecture in service stations

2010-01-07T12:28:58Z

Repsol service station - Norman Foster

Modern architecture is everywhere in our cities and landscapes, from simple houses to huge blocks of apartments, from public to commercial buildings. But, perhaps, one of the reasons why modern lines and concepts are so widespread and rooted in our minds is because they are present in even the most ordinary object. Even the great masters of modern architecture, such as Frank Lloyd Wright or Norman Foster, seperated by almost a century, didn't disdain projecting little things like... Service stations.

Humble gas stations took on bold dimensions and shapes, especially the roofs, for which the special ability of modern architects came in handy, when it came to working with materials such as reinforced concrete and iron. During the golden years of the car, these beautiful buildings of dynamic lines proliferated along roads and highways, as a toast to speed. Most of them have already been torn down and the lanscape is probably poorer for it.

Some remain, for convinience or for the fact that they were projected by masters of modern architecture, which turned them into cult objects and true gems. Who knows if, in the future, when there is no more oil, these buildings won't become actual museum pieces.

Service station in Cloquet, Minnesota - Frank Lloyd Wright

Service station in Hilversum, Netherlands (1935) - Willem Dudok

Service station in Sacramento

Service station in San Jose (1960)

Service station in Copenhagen (1935) - Arne Jacobsen

Service station in Nuns Island (1969) - Mies van der Rohe

Service station - Jean Prouvé

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caricature - heidi klum

2010-01-04T13:25:51Z

Drawing by Henrique Monteiro, text by Priscilla Santos

Every myth of birth renders tribute to fate. The year was 1977, when university student Roy Raymond stepped inside a department store in California, looking to buy a present for his wife: lingerie. After a few trips through the hangers, he was frustrated by the good intentions of his erotic; embarrassed by the environment he headed home empty-handed. They had oppressed the wrong guy, because Roy Raymond, a student at Stanford Graduate School of Business, only a few months later, openned his own intimate clothing shop, much different from other shops of the same kind at the time, and a welcoming place, able to make its customers feel free to choose, refuse or buy fresh-spirited items. In 2006, the Victoria's Secret empire boasted profits of up to 3.222 billion dollars.

In 1991, two teenage friends were casually strolling through a department store when, out of the blue, one of them spotted an ad for “Model 92”, a national competition that was broadcast during a late-night German talk-show. One of the girls convinced the other to fill in the application form; she was pretty, why not try for it? Heidi filled in the form and sent the photos that were requested, out of the fact that she had nothing better to do. She never really believed she had any chances as she was shy and spent most of the time open-mouthed and mute. Nevertheless, the untrusting girl got to the finals of the contest and, after it was over, headed home with the papers for a beautiful modelling contract for US$300,000: the first prize. Forbes magazine estimates that her annual profits, today, are of over 14 million dollars.

From a bland teenager to the second highest-paid model in the world - second only to Gisele Bündchen - the journey travelled through by Heidi Klum was reasonably fast. In no time, she had become one of the most sought-after models by such magazines as Vogue, Marie Claire and ELLE , also working as the artistic muse for most of Joanne Gair's body-paintings. There were also publicity campaings for brands like Volkswagen, Mc Donalds and Braun. But everything pales in comparison with what would become her main attribution.

In 1999, Victoria's Secret had already been sold and spread among other corporations, while maintaining, however, its initial selling concepts, in an expanded format: for instance, the traditional catalogue was virtually replaced by the Internet and, nowadays, they sell, not only undergarments, but also make-up, sleepwear and shoes. As a consequence of these flights of fancy, the project Victoria's Secret Angels was born, in 1999, meeting market expectations. It was absurdly offensive: Tyra Banks, Laetitia Casta, among othermodels, were in the first edition of VS Angels and stunned the planet with their deistic-fetishist runway shows, where those gorgeous, half-naked, winged women walked down the runway, while a show is taking place.

Heidi Klum was obviously there, as the captain of the team. At the time, she was married to stylist Ric Pippino, from whom she was divorced eight years after their union. Because her image, life and work had already become public property by 2002, every newspaper reported her romance with Anthony Kieds, from Red Hot Chili Peppers. Her flirt to the press didn't end there, because a few months later she would make the headlines again, after announcing she was pregnant with her then-boyfriend, Flavio Briatore's baby. That very same fall, that very same day, the tabloids printed photos of Briotore undeniably kissing a jeweller.

Helene was born in 2004, after Klum had already decided to marry singer Seal, in a cerimony by the sea in Mexico. With the singer, still her husband, she has since had two more children, to whom they gave lengthy names. They create what Americans would call “a patchwork family”: I’m not white, I’m a shade of brown, she metaphorically remarks, to soften prejudice. We’re all different shades and we came together and we all love each other.

Aside from the philosophical quotes, Heidi Klum also has other talents: she is a sculptress, a jewellery designer, an actress in her spare time and, at the moment, a host and producer of two television shows: Project Runway and Germany's Next Top Model. In the latter two she couldn't be having more success, and Project Runway, a competition among fashion designers for a million-dollar contract, has already won a Peabody Award and several Emmy nominations.

Yes, Heidi is far from being just another boring model and is actually a rare combination of beauty and brains, which allows her to be, with all professional seriousness in a Gucci outdoor, in funny campaigns with Will Ferrell biting her butt-cheek or even showing the usefulness of padded bras in stopping the nipples from just being there unsolicited. Heidi Klum is her own subverted myth.

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Trade your wife for camels

2010-01-01T13:26:26Z

Morocco is in the heart of some of my closest friends, but I must confess I still haven't been convinced by adventure reports and promises of fantastic, natural landscapes. Either way, should you ever feel tempted to embark upon such a trip, there is nothing like going prepared for the hard bargaining the people in this land drive.

In Morocco, camels are extremely useful and valuable animals. Strong, resistent and extremely docile and excentric, as such, they are often used as currency for buying, among other things, a wife. As this might very well be the best deal of your life, don't forget to previously evaluate how much your wife is worth, using this price calculator. Quickly you'll know how many camels, goats and sheep your wife is worth.

In case you don't know, a camel is approximately worth 2000 euros and lives for about 23 years. :)

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Crazy new year´s parties

2009-12-29T13:26:45Z

There are times in our life when we indulge in excesses: birthdays, bachelor(ette) parties, Carnival, new year's and parties in general. At these times, driven by the group's dynamic, we let go of all shyness (if ever we had any) and are capable of the wildest insanities. It's good to know our great friends and buddies stand by and incite us in(to) these acts of bravery...

Yes, who needs enemies when they have the support of a solid friendship? Whatever happens, friends are there for you, keeping your glass full, making sure the drink doesn't go anywhere else but your gut. And if it so happens that we lose our composure and fall asleep, or even if they make us lose it in our sleep, there is always a kind soul with a camera at hand, ready to capture our abuse and post the photos on the Internet,

So, our advice this new year's is: if you're with friends, DON'T DRINK!

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iain crawford - a colour bath

2009-12-26T13:27:14Z

A fashion photography expert, you can usually find his photographs associated with brands such as L'Oreal, Givenchy, Harpers Bazaar and Vogue. Iain Crawford's work is simple but produces an un-mistakable aesthetic. Always through the use of simple backgrounds, his pictures stand-out for their colour and patterns surrounding the model. In this essay, Crawford captures the moment a woman comes into contact with a substance - paint, powder or water - thrown across the sky.

Source: Iain Crawford

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An original Christmas Present

2009-12-23T12:29:53Z

The expression "vibrating to the sound of music" has become real. All you need is an electric guitar, an adaptor and two vibrating objects with a long configuration. Isn't it a creative Christmas present?

The company OhMiBod took the expression to heart and created a series of erotic devices for music lovers. Each of them vibrates to to the sound of music from an iPod, a cell-phone ringtone, a computer game or a PlayStation, through a crafty system. The boldest product, however, is the connection to a musical instrument, such as the guitar. Electrifying.

This product is also sold by SoftParis.

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John Buscema – the last Marvel master

2009-12-20T12:26:28Z

When I was little, I had a passion for drawings with impacient, quick lines. The artists never called my attention in particular, but rather the drawing situations. My first praise to art was over a logo for a cement factory of a muscular figure in an Herculean pose where its simple and precise lines stood out.

It was from that point on that my attention was focused on inspiring figures, such as Spiderman, Hulk and other super heroes born from American artists' pens. In the gateway to adolescence, my focus was only to be found in football and the amazing Marvel comics.

I remember that once, on a school afternoon of absolute boredom, a coleague and great friend of mine remembered to bring, between study books, a comics magazine, with a cover that was only comparable to the famous covers of the Anita books, by the peerless Marcel Marlier (although the styles and contents of the books were completely different). I was struck by that acrylic painting on the cover - by Earl Norem - of a war situation from which a tanned character - Conan the Cimmerian - stood out.

The best, however, was yet to happen. While getting myself comfortable to open the story, a boiling wave of pure mastery in the shape of Indian ink cut me the glottis and blocked my pulmonary gear. I tried to compose myself from the initial shock and follow the ritual of the comics reader, coordinating, in my mind, the drawings with the story. Nevertheless, the task seemed complicated; the lines cleared paths that I didn't even imagine at the time. I read, in the footnotes, the names of the artists: the drawer was John Buscema and Alfredo Alcala worked on the finishing touches.

I looked closer at the work of art. The drawings were imperial: free from complexes, loose, to the point and rebellious; defying every method, feinting every concept, naturally elevating itself. The sequences were as harmonious as appearances of Marilyn Monroe - watched frame by frame, the actress appears sublime in every frame. Square by square, the drawings are subline in every line.

By the middle of the story, I still had no idea what the plot was all about. My retinas jumped from light to contrast, from shadow to movement, devouring every detail, blinding from so much information. Furthermore, Alcala lent the drawings finishing touches with a lot of dedication and study, complementing the work of art with touching faithfulness to the original drawing.

From then on and for many years to come, all of my savings and improvised resources were spent on John Buscema's work. I, who had been, until then, indifferent to names, who captured art detachedly, began to focus all my thirst for learning about art in this man of formal and bulky figure, with an impeccably trimmed beard and concentrated look.

Born in Brooklyn, New York in the mid-1920s, Buscema showed an early interest in the great classical figures, like Michelangelo, Rubens and Davinci. He became a penciller, not only as a cartoonist, but also in the less desirable advertising industry (where I presume he understood the need for perfection). It was at Marvel, however, that he spread all his talent and proved that art can also be found in illustration and comic strips, which he helped develop and enlarge.

The post-Buscema Marvel is what it is. Nowadays, its comic strips display an array of colours inlayed in characters of misshapen musculature and distorted faces, that appear from the darkest and most claustrophobic atmospheres, all of if sprayed with the most sinister photoshop resources. The drawings have stopped breathing, the stories have lost their inspiration and the filling is full of cholesterol: they have printed a sort of fast-draw and packed it up for sale. The pencillers do what they can and then some. But it's also fair to say that teams like Buscema – Alcala only come around ever so often. Those are tough shoes to fill in.

For what concerns me, the art and work of John Buscema remains ingenious, defying youngsters and naive pencillers like me to ride out adverse winds. He helped us realize that from a simple line, a primary draft, we can seep our way into a world of sensations far beyond that which we intended to be part of the day we decided to be scribble-creators for the rest of our lives.

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peter gibson - roadsworth and street art

2009-12-17T12:25:02Z

It all started in the fall of 2001. Peter Gibson, or Roadsworth, wanted less cars and more bicycles in the streets of Montreal, so he started playing around with the traffic and road signs painted in the asphalt, using a basic technique called the stencil. With his masks and paints, he started creating fun urban 'works of art' that, obviously, didn't please everyone. Three years later, he was finally arrested for this activity and charged with 53 counts of mischief.

But, if there were people who found what Roadsworth did wrong, there were others who loved it, so his sentence was fairly lenient. Nowadays he is still painting, but in places where he won't have any trouble with the law. This includes anything from drawings in parking lots promoting the Cirque du Soleil to drawings for the Tour de France. Whether you like his creations or not, one this is for sure: he knows how to grab people's attention.

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Caricature - Sarah Palin

2009-12-14T13:28:14Z

Drawing by Henrique Monteiro, text by Priscilla Santos

Timothy Treadwell was a surfer kind of guy, an enthusiast environmentalist, he used to lecture on nature in secondary schools, raising awareness on the importance of animals and ecosystems. He was not afraid of danger. For thirteen years, he tried to spend his summer with the grizzly bears of Alaska, which he treated as his friends, named, talked to and fed with his own hands. His story was turned into a movie, even, Gizzly Bear. Timothy Treadwell was killed in October 2003, along with his girlfriend, parcially devoured by two bears. It was nothing personal: it had been a summer of few fish.

The choice of Sarah Palin for vice-presidential nominee in the Republican ticket had the obvious intention of causing stirr amongst global audiences and that's exactly what it did. Governor of the state of Alaska for the past twenty months, Palin instantaneously jumped into history right before our eyes: whereas before she was a totally unknown character, she bears today a name that surpasses that of local celebrities such as the grizzly bear, salmon and fearless Timothy.

Born in Idaho, Sarah Palin, 44, is a mother, a doting wife, local basketball coach and registered republican. This choice for the Republican ticket had, among other things, the goal of setting John McCain's image apart from the Bush administration, acting as a surprise, and controversial, element, able to give a new breath to her party's campaign, that had been looking a lot more like a Bloomberg programme, quickly blown away by Barack Obama's Messiah-like-MTV appearances. Thus, she has seductively looked towards democrats who were upset about the defeat of senator Clinton and those who were undecided about the democratic candidate - all of this while, at the same time, waving reformist proposals. In order to achieve this, she uses her most powerful weapon: the fact that she has a vagina. She has been able to rekindle heated feminine discussions that we tought had gone out with the break-up of the Spice Girls.

She doesn't leave her essence behind though. Palin is conservative to the bone; she wishes to portray herself as a normal citizen, an ordinary housewife, who loves ordinary designer shoes and works as an ordinary governor. That's why she tells us she met her husband Todd while in high school (he, a former champion snowmobile racer and an American oil field production operator for BP Oil) and that they had five children. Patriotically, she informs us that the oldest has been serving, since last year, in the American Army in Iraq and christianly, that the youngest suffers from Down Syndrome. She quickly acclaims, in one fell swoop, her three main beliefs: family, the American occupation of Iraq and her anti-abortion stand. Yes, this is all political opportunism, but she uses it and it works.

Behold, newspapers have announced this week the pregnancy of her senventeen-year-old daughter Bristol: the perfect family tarnished... A scandal. However, as there is no such thing as bad publicity, Sarah Palin took to the press, once again, standing up for the american family and raising new fans; her daughter would never have an abortion, her parents stand by her unconditionally and she is to get married to the father of the child immediately. Tough luck is only the lawsuit against her for dismissing her brother-in-law from a public post after he divorced her sister.

Palin's family is a fun one and out of it a good, old-fashioned, popular use, typical of Republicans, has been made, they spot everything and of nothing are they ashamed. Palin's choice has had favourable, unimaginable effects, as you can hear in the speeches at the Republican Convention, with a record-breaking attendance, even more watched than the Beijing Olympics. However, her rivals continue to emphasize the beauty of her lack of political experience. Rumour has it that if she can't even control her own daughter, how will she be able to run a country? And what's so conservative about being Juno's mother anyway? Sarah Palin strikes back: the only difference between herself, as mother, and a pit-bull is the lipstick. Because of all this (and more), until November, all eyes, lenses, microphones and YouTube links are set upon the McCain-Palin trail, in order to find out more about the outcome of the race to the White House. An unlikely duo. Still, Republicans are not naive and they know that even friends can turn into enemies. You can't rule out extreme situations. Or predict to which extent will Obama's good intentions and optimism be able to contain the fear culture that has been set in America since that day in September.

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Old drugs and home medicines

2009-12-11T12:28:54Z

If you think some of the today's medicines, such as Prozac or Vicodin, are too strong and you are afraid to take them, perhaps you are right. Only a specialist can prescribe them, under very specific conditions, as each pacient is a different case. However, our ancestors took other kinds of medicine that were more aggressive, without a care in the world, trustingly. The times were certainly different, but they survived and took care of our parents and, in some cases, us. Makes you think. Many of these medicines were not even sold in pharmacies and were made from substances that are now illegal, that is, drugs. Opium, heroine, cocaine were some of the most common. Hard to believe it? Then take a look.

Heroine, for instance, was used to treat pain, about a hundred years ago. It was used as a substitute for morphine, because it was thought not to be addictive. Aside from its use as a painkiller, it had other properties that were used to fight off asthma, cough and pneumonia. The pharmaceutical company Bayer sold it as cough medicine for children. It was often mixed with glycerine, sugar and other flavours, in order to mask its bitter taste, as you can see in this label from the American company Martin H. Smith Company, New York.

Opium didn't always have a bad reputation. Know for hundreds of years in the East for its relaxing and sedative properties, it was adopted by western medicine for a long time as an anaesthetic. It could also be used for asthma or even to calm down newborn babies. With 45% alcohol, it was probably very effective.

And speaking of childrem, one of the best remedies for childhood teeth pains were cocaine drops. Not only did they ease the pain, they only uplifted the humour of those who took them. For singers, teachers and public speakers, cocaine and mint drops were 'indispenable', as they soothed sore throats and gave their vocal cords 'softness and elasticity'. They were also good at cheering these professionals up, helping them reach their maximum performance.

One of the most common ways of taking cocaine with therapeutic purposes was to mix it with wine. These wines had medicinal as well as recreational powers, acting as a sort of antidepressant. Special focus on the Vin Mariani, famous in its day (1865), in part because of Pope Leo XIII. It is said that Pope Leo carried it with him wherever he went and even awarded it a Vatican gold medal!