The master of illusion
“Is Lee Miller a man or a woman?” Lee chuckled whenever she heard that question. Born Elizabeth Miller, ‘Lee’ wasn’t just a nickname; it was the name she had choses with care when she established herself as a professional photographer, hoping to confuse prospective (sexist) clients about her gender. No stranger to masquerading, Lee once said about her days as a Vogue model: “I looked like an angel, but I was a fiend inside’.
Yes, her beauty was a blessing, and she definitely used her stunning looks to get what she wanted: sex, money, knowledge, the chance to travel. But those looks could also get in the way, dazzling people to the point where they couldn’t see the serious artist behind those luscious lips and perfect cheekbones. At times, it made Lee feel like an involuntary illusionist. Luckily, she could take charge through her work as a Surrealist photographer. Using mesmerizing optical illusions, Lee blurred the distinction between the real and the imagined, between her inner and outer world. Among my personal favorites are her ‘solarization’ images, created by exposing prints prematurely to light (a process discovered through a ‘happy accident’: panicking when a mouse ran over Lee’s foot in the darkroom, she turned on the light in the middle of printing). The otherworldly glow radiating from the bodies in those pictures makes them seem to float in the air, proving that when Lee worked her magic on her own terms, she was a master of illusion.
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Building bridges
From the Erasmus Bridge and the Mercedes-Benz Museum to Qatar’s metro network; Ben van Berkel’s iconic landmarks bring people together in rapturous beauty, again and again. I talked with the Dutch architect and educator about sensuality, ‘healthy’ buildings and the remarkable parallels between our designs.
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More than a feeling
Don’t ignore your emotions; they are much more powerful than you can imagine. By linking the magical world of emotions with hard science, Dutch scientist Pierre Capel, professor emeritus in experimental immunology, shows us the consequences of our feelings and the power of our minds. The message: we can do much more than we think. “Meditate. It’s the single best thing you can do for your health.”
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Marlies Says
Keto curious?
The fact that I feel bikini-confident all year round is, of course, a nice bonus. But for me, the biggest payoff of following the keto diet is the way it optimizes my health and gives me tons of energy.
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Marlies Says
Super (skin) food
‘If you can’t eat it, why put it on your skin?’. I pretty much live by this beauty adage. After all, with your skin being one of your body’s largest organs, anything – and I mean anything! – you put onto your skin will end up in your bloodstream.
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