Mona Lisa magic de-mystified?

        Washington: For centuries people have been trying to find the magic behind Mona Lisa's enigmatic smile. Now, a new study has suggested that it may be due to a technique as old as the ancient Romans. Jacques Franck, a consultant at the Armand Hammer Centre for Da Vinci Studies at the University of California, said that the great artist used a technique called 'sfumato', taken from the Italian word 'fumato' meaning smoke, that consists of countless of dot layers applied with a technique of micro-divided brushstrokes. "Examples of this micro-division of tones exist since the ancient Romans. Leonardo took an existing techniques, but used it to the extreme, like nobody else," Discovery News quoted him, as saying. According to Franck, the painting technique that is the result of the delicate brushwork that blends light, shadow, and contours, produces an almost three-dimensional effect. Franck said that Leonardo Da Vinci used the same technique in another of his works titled 'Drapery study for a seated figure' which hangs in the Louvre in Paris. "The technique is visible, as he used tempera. On the contrary, in oil painting traces would have been masked by a delicate velatura or glaze," he said. And, the process is so painstaking, that Franck thinks that it may have taken Da Vinci ten years to complete the Mona Lisa. "He may have made one square millimiter a day. This means it might have taken Leonardo about 10 years to complete the Mona Lisa," he added. However, not all art historians agree with Franck's theory, Martin Kemp, a Da Vinci scholar and U.K. professor of art history from the University of Oxford, said that though Da Vinci did use the sfumato technique, there are no dots visible in the Mona Lisa. "I find it absolutely untrue. Leonardo did use the sfumato, but his painting technique is also very firm. I have seen the Mona Lisa under a magnifying glass and really, I could not see any dot," he said.

Lloyd-Webber wants a new Julie Andrews (Go To Top)

     London: The search is on to find the female lead for Lord Andrew Lloyd-Webber's stage production of the classic movie 'The Sound of Music', and producers have decided that the best way to find the next Maria is through a reality Television show by BBC. Lord Lloyd-Webber said that the show, titled 'How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?', will provide a great opportunity for a young artist to become a star. "I have always had a passion for discovering and nurturing new talent and this will be a fantastic opportunity for a young artist to become a real star. Never before have young musical theatre performers had such an opportunity to show their talents on prime time television," the BBC quoted him, as saying. Graham Norton, the host of the show, promised viewers that it would have as many twists and turns as a rollercoaster ride. "It will be a real rollercoaster for everyone involved. I'm thrilled to be along for the ride," the BBC quoted him, as saying.

Deepa Mehta all set for 'Exclusion' (Go To Top)

      Washington: After giving the world hard hitting movies like 'Fire', 'Water' and 'Earth', Indian director Deepa Mehta is getting set to make a film about the lives of Indians refused entry into Canada nearly a century ago. According to Contactmusic, filming for the movie, which has tentatively been titled 'Exclusion', is scheduled to begin in 2007 in Canada and India. Deepa Mehta's controversial movie 'Water', which is based on the plight of widows in colonial India, won the best film at the Bankok Film festival in March this year.

Sharon Stone is on song (Go To Top)

      New York: Fans of Hollywood's leading lady Sharon Stone will soon get to see their favourite star as a singer as well as an actress, for she has been reportedly busy recording songs these days. According to the New York Post, after leaving the sets of US talk show 'The View' recently, Stone headed straight for a Manhattan recording studio. This is not the first time Stone has revealed her musical side. In November 2005, she co-wrote 'Come Together Now', all-star song for US hurricane relief.

Julia Roberts bosses over Broadway (Go To Top)

      Washington: 'America's Sweetheart' Julia Roberts is all set to rule the US theatre scene too as her Broadway debut Three Days Of Rain grossed a massive 988,298 dollars during its first full week of preview performances. The New York City show, which also features 'Virgin' star Paul Rudd, has won accolades from critics and looks set to smash box office records. The eight performances, which began 28 March (06), played to a jam packed Bernard B Jacobs Theatre, which also has a standing room. The Richard Greenberg play will officially open on 19 April, reports Contactmusic.

Baby, film, and then marriage for Cruise (Go To Top)

      Washington: Hollywood actor Tom Cruise is apparently waiting for the perfect time to marry fiancie Katie Holmes. Katie is due to give birth to Tom Cruise's baby "at any minute," and in an interview to a Germany TV show the handsome hunk has revealed that the couple plan to tie the knot this summer, after the birth of their child and the upcoming release of his new film, "Mission Impossible III." "First the baby, then the film," he says. "Then, in summer, we want to get married. I won't let this woman get away," Zap2it quoted the actor, as telling in a Saturday interview on German TV's "Wetten dass..?" while promoting his movie, set for worldwide release next month. Cruise also said he had two pilots ready to fly him home if Holmes goes into labour. "If Katie calls, I'm gone," said the expectant dad. The 43 year old star also revealed that the parents-to-be have picked out a name for their baby, though he wouldn't reveal it.

Sharon, Sylvester team up for Specialist 2 (Go To Top)

      Washington: Actress Sharon Stone is all set to reprise her character of May Munro in The Specialist, alongwith co-star Sylvester Stallone who played Ray Quick in the 1994 hit. According to Contactmusic quoting the reports of website canmag.com, Sharon has shown interest in the sequel to director Luis Llosa's film, which portrayed her as a woman obsessed with getting revenge on the people who murdered her parents when she was still a girl. In the same interview with canmag Sharon said she would love to do the Total Recall sequel, in which she co-starred opposite macho man Arnold Schwarzenegger, but unlike the original one, she wants her character to remain alive till the last reel of the movie.

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