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contemporary art
The James Chicago
The James Chicago has revived its look and feel with all sorts of updated furnishings and new environmentally-thoughtful services while continuing to offer an engaging alternative for the contemporary business or leisure traveler.
The James is ideally situated right in the heart of downtown Chicago within easy walking distance of luxury shopping. In addition to its proximity to the world famous Magnificent Mile, the hotel is minutes away from The Millennium Park, The Museum of Contemporary Art and just steps from Michigan Avenue.
Highlights include a partnership with Intelligent Nutrients, complimentary triple-filtered water – refreshed twice daily – in each guest room along with custom-crafted furniture and additions to the hotel’s existing art collection.
The signature restaurant, David Burke’s Primehouse, promises to surprise as it continues to redefine the modern American steakhouse. The restaurant consistently showcases creative offerings marked by whimsical and innovative dishes. Its rotating menu focuses on seasonal, local and organic ingredients. On the menu, guests can find entrees such as the award-winning 55-Day Aged Rib Eye, Bone-In 20 oz. South Side Filet Mignon and Butter Poached Lobster.
David Burke’s Primehouse works with the finest ingredients in dishes like the “Slice of Prime,” a S’mores Chocolate Cake with Graham Cracker and Marshmallow or Burke’s famous Lollipop Tree featuring Cheesecake Lollipops with Raspberry Cream. Burke’s culinary achievements include France’s Meilleurs Ouvriers de France Diplome d’Honneur, Japan’s Nippon Award of Excellence, the Robert Mondavi Award of Excellence and the CIA’s August Escoffier Award.
Sophie Matisse $16000 chess set
Sophie Matisse has carried on her great-grandfather’s legacy of being an excellent painter and like her step-grandfather Marcel Duchamp she embraces a certain practicality. She has recently painted five separate and very unique chess sets for an upcoming exhibit, The Art of the Game for the Beyond the Border International Contemporary Art Fair at San Diego.
The exhibition is scheduled for September 2-4, 2009 at The Grand Del Mar. Five sets have been created each with its own design. Each chess set comes for $16,000.
BMW Unveils Jeff Koons Art Car
Jeff Koons used to make life-sized sculptures of himself having sex with his porn star wife. Now the megabucks contemporary art king has designed the new BMW Art Car, continuing in the footsteps of Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Frank Stella and 14 others in the program launched by the marque back in 1975. For the latest addition, Koons decked out a BMW M3 GTS that’s set to compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans on June 12 in a psychedelic explosion of colour. To prep for the job Koons collected and studied pictures of race cars and, um, explosions and even joined the BMW Rahal Letterman Racing team for a few laps at Sebring.
Lacking the time to actually paint the design on the car prior to the race, Koons’ designs were printed onto a a vinyl wrap, applied to the vehicle and then covered with two layers of clear coat. “These race cars are lifelike, they are powerful and there is a lot of energy,” Koons said in a statement. “You can participate with it, add to it and let yourself transcend with its energy. There is a lot of power under that hood and I want to let my ideas transcend with the car “” it’s really to connect with that power.”
Damien Hirst Guitar Auction
For years the artist Damian Hirst amazed us with his dissected sharks and pickled sheep, with his painted skateboards and with his blinged baby skull. This year the artist comes with another luxurious creation. He hand painted a Fender Stratocaster guitar that belonged to the “70′s band Squeeze. Squeeze is a British band from the New Wave period, but they also recorded in the “80′s and the “90′s.
This guitar is fabricated in 1954 and before the members of Squeeze, the one who played on it in 1958 was Buddy Holly. The guitar is on sale for humanitarian purposes for the amount of $ 25,000. The money will go to the cancer charity organisation Love Hope Strength Foundation and Teenage Cancer Trust.
Damian Hirst is considered the richest artist in Britain and last year one of his painted guitars was sold for $146,730.
In this case the collectors have more reasons to auction for this object. The first reason is the artistic character, the guitar being painted by one of the most famous contemporary artists. The second reason is the fact that some great and notorious guitarists played on this guitar. And the last, but not the least, is the charity motivation.
Steuben Glass Factory to Close over 100 years
The factory located in Corning in western New York employs 60 people making everything from wine glasses to art objects. The company has scheduled the date for closure in November 29. Frederick Carder, the designer had established the factory way back in 1903.
Louis Comfort Tiffany and Rene Lalique were the main players in glass arts scene at the time but Frederick Carder’s richly hued creations turned him into a big player along with the others. The Steuben Glass store in New York City will remain open until its inventory lasts though the shop at the Corning Museum of Glass will close in November. The business had ceased to be profitable for the last decade.
It had staged dazzling exhibitions of works in crystal by leading contemporary artists such as Henri Matisse, Georgia O’Keeffe and Salvador Dali. Some of its creations like a trout jumping to catch a fly and an arctic fisherman poised on the ice, preparing to spear his catch had so caught the public imagination that it is still vividly etched in the minds of the people. For the centenary celebrations about 200 rare and iconic Steuben pieces collected from private collections were displayed at the Museum of the City of New York.
The Uncle Phone: A Contemporary Rendition of a Vintage Communication Device
Indian artists Soren Pors and Aparna Rao’s sculpture “The Uncle Phone’ has garnered a lot of attention from aficionados from around the world. It was seen in London and would be auctioned off at South Asian Modern and Contemporary Art sale in London on June 10.
The phone is a working model and is expected to fetch US$8,800 to 11,700. It resembles those old dialler phones which were seen many decades ago. Ever since the modern gadgets have arrived, the old p0hones became obsolete just like those distant uncles whose memories remain etched in our mind, long gone but not forgotten. It would be interesting to see who would buy this work of art.
Perhaps this shows that there is a growing market for luxury art, and art that defines contemporary forms of expression. A couple of decades ago this piece of art would have evoked hardly any interest but in a vibrant period like today, such pieces of art would not only be appreciated, but also valued and sold off for thousands of dollars.
Carlson $ Co shuts down as Big Art becomes a victim of recession
The recession seems to have hit the artists as well. Its latest victim is art fabricator Carlson $ Co. famous for producing Jeff Koons stainless steel Balloon Dog. New York art adviser Allan Schwartzman says that ever since 1971, when the San Fernando, California based company was founded, Many artists trying to make work that involves high-tech and precise execution would go to Carlson and they could often figure things out that no one else could. The firm can boast of fabricating some of the most technically challenging artworks produced from 2002 onwards which saw contemporary art prices soar.
Company founder Peter Carlson said that they will be filing something akin to bankruptcy. The economic climate contributed very much to the condition we find ourselves in. We had expectations that we would be able to work a solution to this problem, and ultimately we weren’t able to, Carlson fired the entire workforce of 95 employees last week in anticipation of the closing.
The Latest Hotels, Croatia, the Caucasus & Koh Samui
Luxury hoteliers look to the east, for some of the most opulent new resort and business destinations. We present a round up of the latest lush properties
From up-and-coming resorts on the Adriatic to Miami’s infamous South Beach and the ubiquitous Gulf of Thailand, the latest round of hotel openings has been in some ways predictable, as illustrated by a slew of new entrants jostling for position with their competitors in tried and tested markets. But others are braver and bolder in hot-spots of a very different kind – like a seaside city in Georgia which is located less than 80 kilometres from the war-torn Abkhazia region and a Kempinski in the heart of Azerbaijan’s capital, Baku, where the government recently stoked fires over its own breakaway territory of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Conrad, Koh Samui
Consisting solely of private villas, each featuring their own infinity pool, nestled within 25 acres of hillside, Hilton’s latest Conrad hotel in Thailand boasts unobstructed ocean views overlooking the Gulf of Thailand. Decorated in contemporary Thai style, each of the 80 villas include LCD flat-screen satellite television, CD/DVD players, IPod docking stations, as well as wired and wireless high speed Internet connection.
Jumeirah, Frankfurt
Located in the centre of Frankfurt at the Thurn-und-Taxis Square, the first European Jumeirah hotel is spread over 25 floors overlooking the city. The 218 rooms and suites have a minimum size of 35sqm, each featuring an original artwork by German contemporary artist Hartwig Ebersbach. Guests will also enjoy complimentary Wi-Fi Internet access, remote controlled lighting and curtains, and a 42″ LCD television, BOSE surround system and iPod docking station in each room.
Kempinski Hotel Badamar, Baku
The latest Kempinski Hotel is located in the heart of Badamdar district in Baku, Azerbaijan. The property features 283 rooms and suites alongside four restaurants, five bars, conference and banqueting facilities and a 3,500-sqm wellness centre. The hotel is located within a complex comprising private residences, offices and over 5000 sqm of entertainment and retail spaces. (more…)
Custom Line 97, on board
Aboard my Custom Line 97 of the firm Ferretti Custom Line, I feel alive. The sea is sweet, life is extraordinary. Because every time I enter the control room, I let myself be impressed by the magic of the yacht and its maneuvers. I look at my friend guiding our cruise, our life, our time of freedom.
Through the black windows, I feel his eyes. He watches me and undresses me. So I amuse myself, settle down, and I even let myself have a sunbath in the meantime. It is on the commercial success of the brand that we take our happiness. Rethought, redesigned and equipped with special materials, I like to explore the spaces designed by Ferretti. Generous windows, a central opening and an extraordinary safety, Custom Line 97 along the shores and offers some comfort. I feel his pleasure while he directs this little ship and I see him test the engine of his new yacht. Taking advantage of a considerable reduction of fuel consummation through innovation introduced by the group, I imagine long walks and sublime moments of joy.
The yacht stops. I invited him to settle on the main deck. The wide open spaces invite us to relax and I pampered him in this spacious living room decorated in refined and luxurious in which I guided him. In his arms, I imagine our next stops. In the room, I always dream of living in this fantastic life as a non-stop cruising. Aboard this custom Line 97, I feel protected and the desire to run this boat makes me sure of myself. He grabs me and settles behind me while I take the commands. The service prepares our dinner. A moment of joy that we share between the upper deck and the principal. Our yacht start moving, I guide it through the Mediterranean waters and life is sweet.
No shortage of luxury on board. The materials are refined, and the staff is excellent. Five rooms dedicated to our friends and five cabins for the team complement this luxury. The contemporary art settled into the yacht and the style of the Custom Line seduces me every day. Dinner is ready. Under an extraordinary sunset, flavors swirl.
Pilane – contemporary art in an ancient cultural landscape
Contemporary art in an old cultural landscape – Sculpture in Pilane is a great experience for everyone, young and old alike. Pilane is one of the most beautifully located historic sites in Sweden with about 90 judgment circles, standing stones and stone circles dating from the Iron Age. The ancient remains are surrounded by a landscape that traces back to the Stone Age. In Pilane sheep graze freely as they have done for thousands of years and from mountain tops, you have a great view of the sea and the beautiful archipelago north. Sculpture in Pilane is an annual exhibition of contemporary sculpture by some of the world’s top artists. Participating artists are 2011 Erwin Wurm (Austria), Eva Rothschild (Ireland), Tony Cragg (UK), Keith Edmier (USA), Lori Hersberger (Switzerland) and from Sweden: Klara Krista Promise, Eric Langert, Kent Karlsson, Nils, Peter Tillbergand Leo Pettersson.
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