Extreme Ventures

It isn't news to us that exercise has been to proven to increase the ‘happy hormone’ in our brains, Dopamine, but I was sure there must be something more to the elusive advice, do something that scares you everyday. The answer is in extreme sports.

Image via www.time.com (read the article)

Dopamine is responsible for the high after risk taking and becomes addictive. It aids in the reward and pleasure centres of our brains, making us feel happy and motivating us to go back for more. 

I thoroughly believe in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. I notice the difference in my moods and levels of motivation after a day of healthy eating and a little exercise, but there is only so much excitement that can be gained from a visit to the gym.

A little low on cash for a session of skydiving, I tried my hand at snowboarding. Snozone in Milton Keynes is one of the very few real snow ski slopes in the UK, so living only 20 minutes away, I felt it wrong to not take advantage.

In such an academia orientated age, an extreme release could be what we need to find that sense of primitive and childish freedom once again. 

Alexander Binder: Allerseelen

Born on the night of Halloween in the Black Forest, Alexander Binder is one spooky self-taught photographer.

Allerseelen, a German phrase for 'all souls' which refers to the state of purgatory before redemption, is one of Binder's most beautifully sinister photographic series. He merges the boundaries between horrific uncertainty and purity, creating a warped sense of spiritual acceptance.

Image via www.alexanderbinder.de

Image via www.alexanderbinder.de

Binder’s make-shift lenses produce raw and psychedelic images with intense lens flare. He portrays mythical creatures seemingly trapped in a state of limbo, questioning mortality and afterlife.

In an interview with Dazed Digital, the artist revealed that any props or masks were also self-made and that his models are friends or family. Alexander Binder is clearly an artist with an important personal connection with his work, his imagination exuding from his prints.

Print is not dead: Delayed Gratification

For all the wily charms of the digital world with its tweets, feeds, blogs and apps there is still nothing like the pleasure created by ink on paper.

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Delayed Gratification is a news quarterly, proud to be the last to report breaking news. The team re-visit events from the previous three months, which were eagerly forgotten about after one day of brief coverage. They distance their stance and thoughtfully approach a story, accompanied by hindsight, removing the hysteria of the continually churning 24 hour news cycle.

The art of print is preserved in every page, each issue curated to a stunning finish. Infographics replace exposing images of riot crowds and celebrity cellulite and headlines intrigue, not distress. These are pages not to be found grease sodden and wrapped around chips!

Delayed Gratification is dedicated to quality writing and thorough reportage and is a visually beautiful way of revitalising your view of the news.

The Discreet Charm...

Watch the trailer

Luis Buñel confronts the supremacy of the Bourgeoisie attitude with his surreal, bizarre and outrageous 1972 Discreet Charm.

The almost non-sequential film consists of the disjointed dreams of six middle-class sophisticates, attempting to attend a dinner party. However, each time the occasion falters with the absence of a host or peculiar interruption.

Buñel takes the familiarity of a meal time setting in which unspoken rules are adhered to and warps the conventions. We realise our dependancy on these conventions for maintaining stability in social situations, when the group sits down to eat and the fourth wall is removed. Revealed on a stage with an unimpressed audience looking on, Sénéchal utters, "I don't know my lines." 

Little distinction is made between the dream world and reality when the group is pictured ambiguously ambling along an apparent road to nowhere to conclude (or maybe not) the film.

Word of the day: Phantasmagoria

phan·tas·ma·go·ria {fan-ˌtaz-mə-ˈgȯr-ē-ə} noun;

Image via Wikipedia

A sequence of real or imaginary disjointed images, like that seen in a dream. 

Adjective; phan·tas·ma·gor·i·cal 

Origin (via oxforddictionaries.com): Early nineteenth century, originally the name of an 1802 style of London theatre of optical illusions, produced chiefly by an early form of image projector, 'magic lantern' used to project disturbing images of skeletons, ghosts and demons. Probably from French fantasmagorie.

Calling all Scrubs fans... The Blanks!

One might be familiar with the American TV series, Scrubs. In which case, one would certainly be familiar with Teddy Buckland, the Sacred Heart's resident attorney, and his a cappella band, The Worthless Peons...

In real life however, the quartet calls themselves The Blanks, and they have put on shows all over the country. The guys responsible are Sam Lloyd (Ted), Paul F. Perry, George Miserlis and Philip McNiven. Their most recent appearance was at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival last year. Their next show is well over due so keep an eye out for an opportunity to arise and be sure to take advantage. Not only is their music utterly intelligent and technical, The Blanks will not fail to disappoint when it comes to sheer comedy.

In the mean time, visit The Blanks' website to preview some of their covers, mash-ups and own work.