8.5.10

INAUGURAL SALE FROM THE KENO AUCTIONS ACHIEVED $5,818,460 IN SALES


THE INAUGURAL SALE FROM THE KENO AUCTIONS, WHICH TOOK PLACE 1-2.MAY AT THE MARRIOTT STAMFORD HOTEL IN CONNECTICUT, ACHIEVED $5,818,460 IN SALES, OVER ITS PRE-SALE HIGH ESTIMATE WITH 87.5%OF THE 741 LOTS FINDING BUYERS, AND ESTABLISHED THREE WORLD SALES RECORDS. KENO AUCTIONS' PRESIDENT LEIGH KENO ANNOUNCED ON 5.MAY THAT POST-SALE ACTIVITY BROUGHT THE TOTAL TO $6,014,000. THE TOP LOT OF THE SALE WAS THE JAMES BEEKMAN CHIPPENDALE CARVED MAHOGANY CHEST OF DRAWERS FROM THE SHOP OF THOMAS BROOKMAN WITH CARVING ATTRIBUTED TO HENRY HARDCASTLE, NEW YORK, CIRCA 1752. THE HISTORIC LOT INCITED A HEATED BIDDING WAR BETWEEN DEALER TODD PRICKET, ON THE PHONE, AND NOTED AMERICAN COLLECTOR JOHN MCGRAW, WHO WAS IN THE ROOM. MCGRAW PREVAILED, WINNING THE CHEST WITH A FINAL BID OF $1,428,000, MORE THAN TWICE THE HIGH END OF ITS $200/600,000 ESTIMATE, AND SETTING A WORLD RECORD FOR A PIECE OF NEW YORK FURNITURE SOLD AT AUCTION. ANOTHER RECORD-BREAKING PRICE WAS ALSO ACHIEVED FOR THE PORTRAIT OF ANNA BRODHEAD OLIVER, ATTRIBUTED TO GANSEVOORT LIMNER, KINGSTON, NEW YORK, CIRCA 1743 (est. $40/80,000). THE BIDDING STARTED AT $50,000 AND RAPIDLY SURPASSED EXPECTATIONS, FINALLY SELLING FOR $1,118,600, ESTABLISHING A RECORD FOR AN 18th CENTURY AMERICAN FOLK ART. A THIRD HISTORIC MILESTONE WAS ATTAINED WHEN A PAIR OF AMERICAN SILVER ROCOCO SAUCE-BOATS BY PAUL REVERE, JR, BOSTON, CIRCA 1783 (est. $50/100,000) SOLD FOR $190,400, SETTING THE RECORD FOR A PAIR OF AMERICAN SILVER. KENO AUCTIONS' NEXT SALE WILL BE A MAJOR AMERICANA AUCTION JANUARY 2011 IN NEW YORK.

HARRODS SOLD TO QATARI ROYAL FAMILY FOR £1.5 BILLION


LONDON'S ICONIC LUXURY DEPARTMENT STORE HARRODS HAS BEEN SOLD FOR £1.5 BILLION FOLLOWING MOHAMED AL FAYED'S DECISION TO RETIRE. JUST WEEKS AFTER INSISTING THE EXCLUSIVE KNIGHTSBRIDGE STORE WAS NOT UP FOR SALE, AL FAYED RECONSIDERED AND AGREED TO AN OFFER FROM THE QATARI ROYAL FAMILY. THE NEW OWNERS WERE CHOSEN BECAUSE THEY WOULD 'MAINTAIN THE TRADITIONS OF HARRODS'. KEN COSTA, CHAIRMAN OF LAZARD INTERNATIONAL WHICH ADVISED THE AL FAYED FAMILY ON THE HISTORIC DEAL, SAID: 'AFTER 25 YEARS AS CHAIRMAN OF HARRODS, MOHAMED AL FAYED HAS DECIDED TO RETIRE AND TO SPEND MORE TIME WITH HIS CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN', HE TOLD SKY NEWS. 'QATAR HOLDING (QH) WILL BECOME ONLY THE FIFTH OWNER OF HARRODS SINCE ITS CREATION IN 1840. QATAR HOLDING WAS SPECIFICALLY CHOSEN BY THE TRUST AS THEY HAD BOTH THE VISION AND THE FINANCIAL CAPACITY TO SUPPORT THE LONG TERM SUCCESSFUL GROWTH OF HARRODS. OF PARAMOUNT IMPORTANCE TO MOHAMED AL FAYED WAS TO ENSURE THAT THE HARRODS' STAFF WOULD FIND IN QH AN OWNER WHO WOULD BE SUPPORTIVE OF THEIR EFFORTS TO MAINTAIN THE TRADITIONS OF HARRODS', COSTA ADDED. QATARI PRIME MINISTER SHEIKH HAMD BIN JASSIM BIN JABR AL-THANI WAS GIVEN A SHORT TOUR OF THE STORE BY AL FAYED AND DECLARED THE STORE WOULD BE MADE 'EVEN GREATER AND BETTER.' HE SAID HE WAS 'VERY HAPPY WITH THE TRANSACTION', AND CONTINUED: 'IT'S A HISTORICAL PLACE. I KNOW IT'S IMPORTANT, NOT ONLY FOR THE BRITISH PEOPLE BUT IT IS IMPORTANT FOR TOURISM.' AL FAYED, WHO IS NOT NORMALLY PUBLICITY SHY, STOOD TO ONE SIDE AWAY FROM THE CAMERAS AS THE PRIME MINISTER ADDRESSED THE REPORTERS. THE SALE COULD EVENTUALLY LEAD TO A RAPPROCHEMENT WITH THE MONARCHY WHO HAVE REFUSED TO SHOP THERE EVER SINCE AL FAYED ACCUSED THE DUKE OF EDINBURGH OF MURDERING HIS SON DODI AND DIANA, PRINCESS OF WALES, BY STAGING A CAR CRASH IN PARIS. A SOURCE CLOSE TO QATARI HOLDING SAID: 'YOU COULD SPECULATE THEY WOULD BE KEEN TO RENEGOTIATE WITH THE ROYAL FAMILY.'

PAINTING IN STORAGE FOR DECADES MAY BE A RAPHAEL


A FINELY PAINTED PORTRAIT OF A DEMURELY LOOKING WOMAN NESTLED IN AN EXCEPTIONALLY ORNATE FRAME THAT WAS KEPT IN AN ITALIAN DUCAL PALACE STOREROOM APPEARS TO BE A RAPHAEL ORIGINAL AND NOT A COPY AS LONG THOUGHT, AN ART OFFICIAL IN CENTRAL ITALY SAID FRIDAY. HOWEVER, EXPERTS ON THE RENAISSANCE GIANT QUICKLY CAUTIONED THAT ART HISTORIANS WOULD HAVE TO CLOSELY STUDY IT BEFORE ANY CONCLUSIONS CAN BE MADE. MARIO SCALINI, STATE SUPERINTENDENT FOR ART IN MODENA AND NEARBY TOWNS, SAID HE WAS DOING INVENTORY OF ABOUT 20,000 PAINTINGS IN STOREROOMS AFTER HE WAS NAMED TO THE POST A FEW YEARS AGO HE WAS STRUCK BY THE UNUSUALLY FANCY, GILDED 17th CENTURY FRAME IN THE PALACE IN SASSUOLO, NEAR MODENA. IT SURROUNDED A PORTRAIT OF A LADY, HAIR BRAIDED, HEAD TILTED TO ONE SIDE AND EYES DEMURLEY LOOKING DOWNWARD, AS IF THE PORTRAIT-SITTER WANTED TO AVOID THE GAZE OF THE ARTIST. THE WORK WAS LONG CONSIDERED TO BE A COPY OF THE HEAD OF ONE OF THE SUBJECTS IN THE MUCH LARGER 'MADONNA DELLA PERLA' IN MADRID'S PRADO MUSEUM, SCALINI SAID. THE PRADO WORK IS CONSIDERED TO HAVE BEEN PAINTED BY GIULIO ROMANO FROM THE DESIGN OF RAPHAEL NOT LONG BEFORE HE DIED IN 1520. BUT SCALINI SAID IN A RECENT INTERVIEW THAT HE WONDERED WHY A COPY WOULD BE GIVEN SUCH AN ELABORATE FRAME. HE SAID A HUNCH THAT IT MIGHT BE A RAPHAEL WAS HEIGHTENED WHEN HE FOUND CENTURIES-OLD INVENTORY NOTATIONS INDICATING THE COLLECTION CONTAINED A WOMAN'S PORTRAIT BY RAPHAEL. THE DOCUMENTATION CONTAINED NO INDICATION THE RAPHAEL WORK MIGHT HAVE BEEN LATER SOLD OR OTHERWISE TRANSFERRED, HE SAID. 'IT HAD OBVIOUSLY BEEN FORGOTTEN' AND SAT IN THE STOREROOM FOR DECADES, HE ADDED. THE ART OFFICIAL SENT THE 12 BY 16 INCH WORK TO A LABORATORY IN FLORENCE, WHERE ONE OF THE EXPERTS WHO RAN SCIENTIFIC TESTS ON THE PAINTING, ANNA PELAGOTTI, SAID INFRARED TESTING REVEALED THREE LAYERS UNDERNEATH, INCLUDING A PREPARATORY DESIGN. 'IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL SENSATION, OUR MOUTHS DROPPED OPEN', SAID PELAGOTTI, DESCRIBING THE REACTION SHE AND HER FELLOW EXPERTS HAD WHEN THEY SAW THE SKETCH. 'IT LOOKED MORE RAPHAEL' THAN ONE COULD IMAGINE, PELAGOTTI MARVELED, ADDING, 'YOU COULD SEE HIS HAND' IN THE FINELY DETAILED SKETCH. SCALINI SAID HE HOPES DURING A VISIT TO MADRID THAT HE CAN PERSUADE THE PRADO TO LEND 'MADONNA DELLA PERLA', SO ART HISTORIANS CAN STUDY THE TWO WORKS SIDE BY SIDE TO HELP CONCLUDE IF THE LONG LANGUISHING PAINTING IS REALLY A RAPHAEL.

'COPY' OF A PAINTING DISCOVERED TO BE WORTH £250,000.



WHEN A 'COPY' OF A PAINTING BY WARTIME ARTIST SIR WILLIAM ORPEN WAS FIRST TAKEN TO THE ANTIQUES ROADSHOW FOR EVALUATION IT WAS JUDGED TO BE NOTHING SPECIAL. AFTER EXPERTS FROM THE LONG-RUNNING BBC PROGRAM DID FURTHER RESEARCH, HOWEVER, THEY WERE ASTONISHED TO FIND IT WAS AN ORIGINAL, AND IT WAS VALUED AT AN INCREDIBLE £250,000. THIS NOT ONLY MADE IT WORTH MORE THAN THE OWNER'S HOUSE, BUT ALSO THE MOST VALUABLE ARTWORK EVER TO APPEAR ON THE SHOW. THE OWNER, WHO AFTER LEARNING THE VALUE OF THE PAINTING NOW WISHES TO REMAIN ANONYMOUS, WAS LEFT 'COMPLETELY GOBSMACKED' AFTER DISCOVERING THE TRUTH ABOUT HIS TREASURE. ANTIQUES ROADSHOW'S RUPERT MAAS SAID: 'HIS UNCLE BOUGHT THE PAINTING BECAUSE HE LOVED IT AND THE OWNER KEPT IT AND HUNG IT IN HIS HOME ALL THESE YEARS BECAUSE HE LOVED IT. BOTH MEN HAD NO IDEA IT WAS BY ORPEN HIMSELF AND THE CURRENT OWNER WAS STAGGERED THAT IT WAS WORTH SO MUCH MONEY. HE IS A MODEST MAN OF MODEST MEANS.' THE MAN INHERITED THE PAINTING OF YVONNE AUBICQUE, ORPEN'S BEAUTIFUL YOUNG MISTRESS, AND HUNG IT IN HIS LIVING ROOM BEFORE TAKING IT TO A RECORDING OF THE PROGRAM IN GREENWICH. THE STUNNING AND EMOTIONAL STORY BEHIND THE PAINTING WILL BE TOLD ON THE UPCOMING EPISODE OF ANTIQUES ROADSHOW.

OBSESSIVE HOARDER'S SIX TON COLLECTION OF JUNK TO BE AUCTIONED


AN OBSESSIVE HOARDER WHO FILLED EVERY ROOM OF HIS HOME WITH A LIFETIME'S WORTH OF JUNK AND TRASH HAS LUMBERED AUCTIONEERS WITH THE MAMMOTH TASK OF FINDING HOMES FOR IT ALL AFTER INSISTING IN HIS WILL THAT EVERY LAST PIECE MUST BE SOLD. ECCENTRIC COLLECTOR STEWART CLARK REFUSED TO THROW OUT ANYTHING HE ACQUIRED DURING HIS LIFE, FROM NEWSPAPERS AND MAGAZINES TO TINY STICKY LABELS FOUND ON APPLES AND PEARS. HE AMASSED A HUGE COLLECTION OF MATERIAL IN HIS THREE-BEDROOM HOUSE INCLUDING RUSTY LAWNMOWERS, A WATER FOUNTAIN, OLD BIKES, TYPEWRITERS, A TRUMPET AND BOARD GAMES. HIS HOARD WAS SO OVERWHELMING THAT THE STUNNED EXECUTOR OF HIS ESTATE COULD NOT GET INTO HIS HOME IN POOLE, DORSET, TO VALUE THE ITEMS THAT HAD BEEN CRAMMED IN EVERY ROOM. THE SIX-TON COLLECTION TOOK FOUR MEN THREE DAYS TO PLACE INTO TWO SHIPPING CONTAINERS AND IS SO LARGE IT HAS TO BE SOLD IN A WAREHOUSE. CLARK, A LIFELONG BACHELOR, DIED IN DECEMBER AGED 64 AND HAD NO FAMILY TO PASS HIS ESTATE ON TO. SURVEYOR BARRY HUTCHINSON DID NOT KNOW HE WAS THE EXECUTOR OF CLARK'S WILL UNTIL AFTER THE DEATH OF THE ONE WHO NAMED HIM WITHOUT TELLING HIM. HUTCHINSON SAID: 'THE AMOUNT OF STUFF ASTONISHED US. WE ACTUALLY COULDN'T GET INTO THE HOUSE AT FIRST. IT SEEMS HE AND HIS PARENTS WHO LIVED IN THE HOUSE BEFORE HIM, NEVER THREW ANYTHING OUT FOR DECADES, PERHAPS LONGER, INCLUDING EVERY SINGLE LOCAL NEWSPAPER AND STACKS OF THE RAILWAY MODELER MAGAZINE. HE CERTAINLY HAD A PASSION FOR COLLECTING. MR CLARK EVEN SAVED THE LABELS OFF APPLES AND PEARS AND STUCK THEM ON A BOARD IN HIS KITCHEN. QUITE BIZARRE REALLY. EVERYTHING WAS PILED UP IN THE ROOMS FOUR AND FIVE FEET DEEP AND THERE WERE LITTLE PATHWAYS RUNNING THROUGHOUT THE HOUSE.' OTHER POSSESSIONS INCLUDED A CAR TRAILER, A HUGE LIBRARY OF BOOKS, SCORES OF PAINTINGS, SOME VALUABLE, CERAMICS, GLASSWARE, FURNITURE, SEWING MACHINES, FUR COATS, BRIEF CASES AND ASSORTED BRIC-A-BRAC. THERE WAS ALSO COLLECTIONS OF RARE HORNBY AND TRIANG MODEL TRAINS AND COUNTLESS BOXES OF DINKY AND CORGI TOYS. JONATHON ROOKE, OF THE CHIPPENHAM AUCTION ROOMS IN WILTSHIRE, WHICH IS SELLING THE HOARD, SAID SIX TONS OF MEMORABILIA FROM THE HOUSE IS BEING AUCTIONED IN THE 'SALE OF A LIFETIME'. IT IS BEING SOLD IN 665 LOTS BUT MANY OF THE LOTS INVOLVE NUMEROUS ITEMS. THE OVERALL ESTIMATE FOR THE ITEMS IS ABOUT £50,000. ROOKE SAID: 'THERE IS A HUGE COLLECTION OF LEAD FIGURES THAT WILL SEE COUNTLESS COLLECTORS GATHER FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY FOR THE SALE.' THE COLLECTION WILL GO UNDER THE HAMMER ON 15.MAY.

7.5.10

ANISH KAPOOR DESIGNS NEW BULGARI RING


THE ARTIST ANISH KAPOOR HAS REFERRED TO THE TOWERING, GLEAMING STEEL SCULPTURES HE CREATES AS 'VOIDS', AND THE SAME COULD DESCRIBE HIS LATEST, MUCH SMALLER SCALED PROJECT, A RING FOR THE LUXURY ITALIAN JEWELER BULGARI ON THE OCCASION OF ITS COVETED B.ZERO1 COLLECTION'S 10th ANNIVERSARY. TO RIFF ON THE ICONIC JEWELRY SERIES, WHICH IS DEFINED BY CYLINDRICAL BANDS SANDWICHED BETWEEN TWO LOGO ENGRAVED RINGS, KAPOOR HAS DESIGNED A SMALL BAND OF REFLECTIVE STEEL SET BETWEEN TWO PINK-GOLD RIMS. IN THE LONDON-BASED ARTIST'S MASSIVE PUBLIC COMMISSIONS, THE SPACE SURROUNDING THE ARTWORK'S PHYSICAL STRUCTURE IS EMPHATICALLY BROUGHT TO THE FORE, NOT MERELY AS NEGATIVE SPACE, BUT AS SENSORY EXPERIENCE. THOUGH THE RING MAY NOT PROVIDE THE SAME HEADY SENSATION, ITS SPACE WILL SERVE AS THE BASIS FOR AN ADDITIONAL INSPIRING PROJECT: KAPOOR, WHO IS CURRENTLY THE SUBJECT OF A RETROSPECTIVE AT THE GUGGENHEIM BILBOA, WILL CREATE A SCULPTURE RELATED TO THE BULGARI COLLABORATION THAT WILL BE AUCTIONED OFF THIS SPRING, WITH THE PROCEEDS BENEFITING SAVE THE CHILDREN'S 'REWRITE THE FUTURE' CAMPAIGN.

CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN BARBIE ANEMONE


BARBIE AND LUXURY SHOE DESIGNER CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN CONTINUE THEIR AMAZING COLLABORATION BY RELEASING THEIR NEWEST CREATION, THE THIRD IN A SERIES OF COLLECTIBLE LIMITED EDITION DOLLS, ANEMONE BARBIE, FRESH FROM WALKING THE RED CARPET A FILM PREMIERE AT THE CANNES FILM FESTIVAL. DRESSED IN A STUNNING GREEN AND PURPLE SATIN GOWN WITH LILAC ANEMONE LOUBOUTIN'S. SHE ALSO COMES WITH THREE OTHER PAIRS OF SHOES: MADELEINE MULES, LADY CLAUDE PUMPS AND SPARTENVOL SANDALS, ALL IN THEIR OWN MINIATURE DUST BAGS AND BOXES. BARBIE REVEALED HER FIRST OUTFIT IN THE CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN COLLECTION LAST NOVEMBER, THE CAT BURGLAR. HER SECOND LOOK, FOREVER DOLLY, WAS REVEALED IN FEBRUARY, A SAFARI CHIC ENSEMBLE WITH FUCHSIA OVER THE KNEE FRINGED BOOTS. HER LATEST, GLAMOROUS LOOK REPRESENTS THE TIMELESS BEAUTY OF BARBIE, THE CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN WOMAN, AND THE DESIGNER'S STYLE AESTHETIC. ANEMONE BARBIE IN NOW AVAILABLE FOR $150 ON NET-A-PORTER AND BARBIECOLLECTOR.

GAGOSIAN GALLERY PRESENTS 'ROY LICHTENSTEIN: STILL LIFE'


GAGOSIAN GALLERY, NEW YORK, PRESENTS 'ROY LICHTENSTEIN: STILL LIFE', THE FIRST EXHIBITION DEVOTED SOLELY TO LICHTHESTEIN'S STILL LIFE PAINTINGS, SCULPTURES AND DRAWINGS, WHICH SPAN FROM 1972 THROUGH THE EARLY 1980s. ALTHOUGH LICHTENSTEIN WILL ALWAYS BE SYNONYMOUS WITH POP ART, HE CONTINUED TO MAKE INVENTIVE NEW WORK FOR ALMOST THREE DECADES BEYOND THE 1960s, DURING WHICH HE HAD BECOME FAMOUS FOR HIS DISTINCTIVE USE OF POPULAR CARTOON IMAGES AND COMMERCIAL PAINTING STYLE. BEGINNING IN 1972, HE BEGAN TO WORK ON STILL LIFES, MAKING HIS OWN UPDATED CONTRIBUTION TO THE VENERATED HISTORICAL GENRE, USING HARD, VIVID COLOUR AND SIMULATED BEN-DAY DOTS, LABORIOUSLY PAINTED BY HAND. LICHTENSTEIN RENDERED HIS STILL LIFES IN FLAT, OUTLINED SHAPES THAT WERE INSPIRED BY NEWSPAPER AND PRINT ADVERTISEMENTS AND PAINTED TO LOOK LIKE THE ORIGINALS. LICHTENSTEIN'S STILL LIFES COVER A VARIETY OF MOTIFS AND THEMES, INCLUDING THE MOST TRADITIONAL SUCH AS FRUIT, FLOWERS AND VASES. HE ALSO CREATED STILL LIFES FROM CONTEMPORARY VERNACULAR SUBJECTS, INCLUDING THE INTENTIONALLY BANAL OFFICE STILL LIFES, AS WELL AS FROM THE CONTENTS OF HIS OWN STUDIO. THE EXHIBITION BRINGS TOGETHER MORE THAN FIFTY STILL LIFE PAINTING AND SCULPTURES FROM PROMINENT PRIVATE COLLECTIONS AND MUSEUMS WORLDWIDE, AND IT INCLUDES A SELECTION OF RARELY SEEN STILL LIFE DRAWINGS, MANY OF WHICH ARE PRECISE SKETCHES FOR THE PAINTINGS AND SCULPTURES.

6.5.10

THE MET PRESENTS 'AMERICAN WOMAN: FASHIONING A NATIONAL IDENTITY'


THE SPRING 2010 EXHIBITION ORGANIZED BY THE COSTUME INSTITUTE OF THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART IS 'AMERICAN WOMAN: FASHIONING A NATIONAL IDENTITY', THE FIRST DRAWN FROM THE NEWLY ESTABLISHED BROOKLYN MUSEUM COSTUME COLLECTION AT THE MET. THE EXHIBITION, ON VIEW FROM 5.MAY THROUGH 15.AUGUST, EXPLORES DEVELOPING PERCEPTIONS OF THE MODERN AMERICAN WOMAN FROM THE 1890s TO TO THE 1940s, AND HOW THEY HAVE AFFECTED THE WAY AMERICAN WOMAN ARE SEEN TODAY. FOCUSING ON ARCHETYPES OF AMERICAN FEMININITY THROUGH DRESS, THE EXHIBITION REVEALS HOW THE AMERICAN WOMAN INITIATED STYLE REVOLUTIONS THAT MIRRORED HER SOCIAL, POLITICAL AND SARTORIAL EMANCIPATION. EARLY MASS-MEDIA REPRESENTATIONS OF AMERICAN WOMEN ESTABLISHED THE FUNDAMENTAL CHARACTERISTICS OF AMERICAN STYLE, A THEME EXPLORED VIA A MULTIMEDIA INSTALLATION IN THE FINAL GALLERY OF THE EXHIBITION. THE EXHIBITION WILL FEATURE OVER 80 EXAMPLES OF HAUTE COUTURE AND HIGH FASHION PRIMARILY FROM THE BROOKLYN MUSEUM COSTUME COLLECTION AT THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART, WHICH WAS TRANSFERRED TO THE MET IN JANUARY 2009. MANY OF THE PIECES HAVE NOT BEEN SEEN BY THE PUBLIC IN MORE THAN 30 YEARS.
FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT www.metmuseum.org

RETOUCHED PHOTOS OF SPAIN'S CROWN PRINCE CREATE OUTCRY


OFFICIAL PHOTOGRAPHS OF SPAIN'S CROWN PRINCE FELIPE AND HIS WIFE LETIZIA HAVE CAUSED A STIR AMID ACCUSATIONS THE THEY HAVE BEEN DIGITALLY ALTERED. THE NEW PORTRAITS WERE RELEASED BY THE ROYAL HOUSEHOLD TOP MARK THE OCCASION OF THE HEIR TO THE THRONE'S RISING TO THE RANKS OF LIEUTENANT COLONEL IN THE ARMY AND AIR FORCE AND FRIGATE CAPTAIN IN THE NAVY. BUT THREE OF THE SIX PHOTOGRAPHS APPEAR TO USE THE SAME SHOT OF THE 42 YEAR OLD PRINCE FELIPE'S FACE JUXTAPOSED ABOVE DIFFERENT UNIFORMS OF THE THREE BRANCHES OF THE ARMED FORCES. HIS FACIAL EXPRESSION AND TILT OF THE HEAD APPEARS TO BE EXACTLY THE SAME IN EACH OF THE PORTRAITS PROMPTING COMMENTATORS TO ACCUSE THE ROYAL PALACE OF ISSUING MANIPULATED IMAGES. SUCH PICTURES 'DEVALUED' THE MONARCHY, COMPLAINED THE SPANISH DAILY NEWSPAPER EL MUNDO, MAKING THE ROYAL FAMILY APPEAR 'UNSERIOUS AND VIRTUAL' AND UNDERMINING ITS AUTHENTICITY. THE POLEMIC HAS CAUSED EMBARRASSMENT FOR ZARZUELA PALACE WHICH HAS BEEN FORCED TO DENY THAT THE OFFICIAL PHOTOGRAPHS, TAKEN BY CATALAN PHOTOGRAPHER DANY VIRGLI, WERE ANYTHING OTHER THAN AUTHENTIC. 'IT IS SIMPLY NOT TRUE', SAID A SPOKESMAN AT THE PALACE. 'THE PHOTOGRAPHER TOOK HUNDREDS OF PHOTOS AND CHOSE THOSE OF SIMILAR POSES.' THE PHOTOGRAPHER INSISTED THERE WERE SUBTLE DIFFERENCES IN EACH OF THE PORTRAITS, 'COMPARED TO THE NAVY PORTRAIT, THE HEAD IS TURNED MORE TO THE LEFT IN THE AIR FORCE SHOT AND IN THE ARMY THE CHIN IS SLIGHTLY HIGHER.' THE OFFICIAL SET ALSO INCLUDED TWO IMAGES OF PRINCESS LETIZIA, ONE BESIDE HER HUSBAND AND ANOTHER ALONE. THEY ARE THE FIRST OFFICIAL PHOTOGRAPHS TO BE RELEASED OF THE PRINCESS OF ASTURIAS SINCE SHE HAD SURGERY ON HER NOSE IN AUGUST 2008 AND THEY TOO APPEARED TO BE AIRBRUSHED TO GIVE THE PRINCESS A 'VERY CLASSICAL AND DISTANT LOOK' ACCORDING TO DAILY NEWSPAPER EL PERIODICO. IT IS NOT THE FIRST TIME SPAIN'S ROYAL FAMILY HAVE BEEN EMBROILED IN A PHOTOGRAPHIC DEBACLE. A CHRISTMAS CARD THEY SENT OUT IN 2005 WAS REVEALED TO BE A PHOTO MONTAGE WITH IMAGES OF THE GRANDCHILDREN SUPERIMPOSED ON TO A PHOTOGRAPH OF KING JUAN CARLOS AND QUEEN SOFIA. THE EXCUSE GIVEN WAS THAT IT HAD BEEN IMPOSSIBLE TO COLLECT THE ENTIRE FAMILY TOGETHER BECAUSE OF 'SCHEDULING DIFFERENCES'.

LOUIS VUITTON TO CREATE TRAVEL CASE FOR WORLD CUP TROPHY


LOUIS VUITTON HAS RECENTLY BEEN COMMISSIONED TO CREATE A NEW TRAVEL CASE FOR THE ICONIC 18 CARAT WORLD CUP TROPHY BEFORE IT IS PRESENTED TO THE WINNING TEAM IN SOUTH AFRICA IN JULY. THE 32cm HIGH, 6,175g TROPHY IS CURRENTLY HOUSED IN AN AGE WORN AND BATTERED ALUMINUM CASE, BUT AFTER FIFA ASKED LOUIS VUITTON IF IT COULD COME UP WITH SOMETHING MORE SUITABLE, THE FRENCH LUXURY HOUSE WAS HAPPY TO OBLIGE. 'WHEN YOU HAVE THE MOST BEAUTIFUL GIRL IN THE WORLD YOU HOPE SHE WILL WEAR THE MOST BEAUTIFUL DRESS', SAYS JEROME VALCKE, SECRETARY GENERAL OF FIFA. 'THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT WE'VE DONE.' THE SPECIAL CASE IS BEING HAND-MADE BY ONE OF LOUIS VUITTON'S SKILLED CRAFTSMAN FROM ITS ASNIERES WORKSHOP NEAR PARIS, ITS PRICE IS A CLOSELY GUARDED SECRET. EACH YEAR, THE WORKSHOP PRODUCES OVER 400 UNIQUE CUSTOM PIECES FOR CLIENTS. THE LUXURY BRAND WILL NOT BE SPONSORING ANY WORLD CUP TEAM, AND WHY SHOULD IT WHEN IT'S GOT THE ULTIMATE TROPHY. IN IT'S NEW ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN LOUIS VUITTON FEATURES FOOTBALL LEGENDS ZIDANE, MARADONA AND PELE PLAYING TABLE FOOTBALL TOGETHER. ACCORDING TO FIFA, THE CUP WILL BE BROUGHT INTO THE STADIUM INSIDE ITS TRUNK AND LIFTED OUT BY A LOUIS VUITTON AMBASSADOR IN FRONT OF ONE BILLION TELEVISION VIEWERS.

NATIONAL GALLERY OF CANADA ACQUIRES MONET MASTERPIECE


THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF CANADA (NGC), OTTAWA, HAS RECENTLY ACQUIRED A SPECTACULAR MONET MASTERPIECE THANKS TO THE GENEROSITY OF MONTREAL FINE ARTS' CONNOISSEUR, PHILANTHROPIST AND NATIONAL GALLERY OF CANADA FOUNDATION PATRON MARJORIE BRONFMAN. CLAUDE MONET'S, 'ROCK NEEDLE SEEN THROUGH THE PORTE D'SVAL', IS CONSIDERED AN INNOVATIVE, DARING AND PROVOCATIVE PAINTING CREATED IN THE REMOTE RESORT TOWN OF ETRETAT TOWARDS THE END OF A PRODIGIOUS CAMPAIGN ON THE NORMANDY COAST. IT IS NOW ON VIEW IN THE NGC PERMANENT COLLECTION GALLERIES THAT ARE DEVOTED TO THE REALISTS, IMPRESSIONISTS AND POST-IMPRESSIONISTS. 'THIS PAINTING REFLECTS MARJORIE BRONFMAN'S PASSION FOR ART AND HER EYE FOR EXCELLENCE', SAID NGC DIRECTOR, MARC MAYER. 'WE ARE MOST GRATEFUL TO HER FOR THIS MAGNIFICENT COMPLEMENT TO THE GALLERY'S INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED COLLECTION OF IMPRESSIONIST ART.' CLAUDE MONET IS ONE OF THE MOST CELEBRATED FRENCH IMPRESSIONISTS. THE PAINTING REPRESENTS A TURING POINT IN THE ARTIST'S CAREER AS HE SOUGHT TO REINTERPRET THROUGH IMPRESSIONIST EYES THE ICONIC FORMS OF THE FRENCH LANDSCAPE. INSPIRED BY THE RUGGED NORMANDY COASTLINE, AND DRIVEN BY THE DESIRE TO SET HIS WORKS APART FROM OTHER GREAT ARTISTS SUCH AS DELACROIX, COROT AND COURBET WHO HAD CAPTURED THE ETRETAT LANDSCAPE BEFORE HIM, MONET TOOK UNPARALLELED RISKS TO CREATE ORIGINAL PERSPECTIVES. PRECIPITOUS CLIFF DESCENTS, SLIPPERY SEAWEED-STREWN ROCKS AND SWIFTLY TURNING TIDES PRESENTED NUMEROUS AND UNPREDICTABLE CHALLENGES FOR THE ARTIST. IN ORDER TO PAINT ROCK NEEDLE SEEN THROUGH THE PORTE D'AVAL, MONET ADOPTED AN EXTREMELY AUDACIOUS VANTAGE POINT LOOKING TO THE NORTHWEST FROM THE ROCKS BEYOND THE BEACH WHICH WAS ACCESSIBLE ONLY AT LOW TIDE. IT WAS THUS THAT THE ARTIST WAS ABLE TO ALIGN THE TWO DRAMATIC GEOLOGICAL ROCK FORMATIONS. WHEN EXHIBITED IN PARIS IN 1908 AT THE DURAND-RUEL GALLERIES, ROCK NEEDLE SEEN THROUGH THE PORTE D'AVAL DREW THE ATTENTION OF NUMEROUS ART CRITICS WHO REMARKED UPON ITS COLOUR AND DISTINCTIVE CONTREJOUR.

GRIFFITH FRANK -- UNUSUAL WAY

DUCHESS OF CORNWALL VISITS RETURNING TROOPS



THE DUCHESS OF CORNWALL WAS DETERMINED NOT TO LET HER TROOPS DOWN, NO MATTER WHAT OT TOOK TO HONOR OUR HEROES RETURNING FROM AFGHANISTAN. SO WHEN SHE WAS ASKED RECENTLY TO PRESENT CAMPAIGN MEDALS TO HOMECOMING SOLDIERS SHE TOOK MATTERS INTO HER OWN HANDS, AND HIRED A EYE-CATCHING RED MOBILITY SCOOTER FOR THE OCCASION. IN FACT CAMILLA, WHO IS STILL ON THE MEND AFTER SUFFERING A FRACTURE TO HER LEG, TOOK EVERY MODE OF TRANSPORT AVAILABLE TO HER. SHE ARRIVED AT BULFORD CAMP IN SALISBURY, WILTSHIRE, BY OFFICIAL CAR BEFORE HOPPING INTO A WHEELCHAIR PUSHED BY A ROYAL AIDE WHO NEGOTIATED HER UP A TRICKY RAMP AND ONTO A STAND IN ORDER TO ADDRESS THE PACKED PARADE GROUND. SHE THEN USED A PAIR OF CRUTCHES TO HELP GET TO HER FEET FOR THE PLAYING OF THE NATIONAL ANTHEM BEFORE TRANSFERRING TO HER 'SCOOTER' TO TRAVERSE THE ROWS OF BRAVE SOLDIERS FROM A COMPANY 4th BATTALION THE RIFLES. ACCORDING TO AN AIDE, CAMILLA IS RECUPERATING WELL FROM HER ACCIDENT BUT DECIDED TO PRIVATELY HIRE THE SCOOTER IN ORDER TO HELP HER GET AROUND MORE EASILY AND HAS BEEN PRACTICING ON IT AT RAYMILL, HER PRIVATE RESIDENCE IN WILTSHIRE. 'SHE FELT THE SCOOTER WOULD ENABLE HER TO GET AROUND AND MEET SOLDIERS AND ALSO HELP HER TO TALK TO THEM AS IT POSITIONS HER A LOT HIGHER THAN HER WHEELCHAIR DOES', THEY SAID. THE DUCHESS IS ROYAL COLONIAL OF 4th RIFLES AND TAKES HER DUTIES EXTREMELY SERIOUSLY. THE REGIMENT HAS BEEN IN AFGHANISTAN SINCE MAY LAST YEAR AND ONLY RETURNED TO BRITAIN LAST WEEKEND WITH A LOSS OF SIX SOLDIERS, THE AVERAGE AGE OF WHICH WAS JUST 20. AS SHE MANEUVERED HER WAY AROUND THE TROOPS, CAMILLA WAS MOVED TO TEARS BY SOME OF THE STORIES THAT SHE HEARD. IN HER ADDRESS TO THE TROOPS AND THEIR FAMILIES, CAMILLA SPOKE OF HER 'PRIDE AND ADMIRATION' AT THE REGIMENT'S 'BRAVERY, LOYALTY AND DEDICATION TO DUTY' AND PAID TRIBUTE TO THOSE WHO HAD 'PAID THE ULTIMATE PRICE'. 'IT IS WITH A GREAT DEAL OF PRIDE, ADMIRATION AND A REAL SENSE OF RELIEF THAT I ADDRESS YOU TODAY. WE OWE ALL OF YOU, AND YOUR FAMILIES, A DEBT OF GRATITUDE', SHE SAID.

5.5.10

MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS, BOSTON, TO PRESENT VAN GOGH PAINTING


IMITATION MAY BE THE SINCEREST FORM OF FLATTERY, BUT FOR VINCENT VAN GOGH, IT WAS A MEANS OF SELF EDUCATION FOR THE ARTIST IN THE 1880s, WHO COPIED NUMEROUS WORKS BY JEAN-FRANCOIS MILLET TO TEACH HIMSELF HOW TO DRAW AND PAINT. THE VISUAL DIALOGUE THAT ENSUED BETWEEN MASTER AND STUDENT IN THE FOCUS OF VISITING MASTERPIECES, AN ONGOING SERIES AT THE MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS BOSTON (MFA), WHICH SHOWCASES GREAT ART FROM MUSEUMS AND PRIVATE COLLECTIONS AROUND THE WORLD WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF THE MFA'S ENCYCLOPEDIC COLLECTION. TO INAUGURATE THE SERIES, THE MUSEUM WELCOMES VAN GOGH'S 'THE SOWER', ON LOAN FROM THE VAN GOGH MUSEUM IN AMSTERDAM, TO BOSTON FOR JUXTAPOSITION WITH THE WORK THAT INSPIRED IT, MILLET'S 'THE SOWER, ONE OF THE MFA'S CELEBRATED MASTERPIECES. THE PAINTINGS, WHICH HAVE NEVER BEEN SEEN TOGETHER IN BOSTON, WILL BE ON VIEW FROM 11.MAY TO 8.AUGUST IN THE IMPRESSIONIST GALLERY. THE SPECIAL INSTALLATION PRESENTS TWO DIFFERENT INTERPRETATIONS OF A FARMER SOWING SEEDS IN THE FIELDS OF FRANCE PAINTED BY MILLET AND VAN GOGH. IT ALSO FEATURES THREE MASTERPIECES BY VAN GOGH FROM THE MFA'S COLLECTION, CREATED DURING THE ARTIST'S SOJOURN TO PROVENCE IN SOUTHERN FRANCE FROM SPRING 1888 UNTIL LATE SPRING 1890. THESE INCLUDE 'POSTMAN JOSEPH ROULIN', 'LULLABY: MADAME AUGUSTINE ROULIN ROCKING A CRADLE (LA BERCEUSE), PAINTINGS OF VAN GOGH'S CLOSE FRIENDS IN THE RURAL TOWN OF ARLES, AS WELL AS 'RAVINE', A LANDSCAPE HE PAINTED SHORTLY AFTER HIS ARRIVAL IN THE ENVIRONS OF THE ASYLUM IN THE TOWN OF SAINT-REMY, WHERE HE SPENT MOST OF THE LAST YEAR OF HIS LIFE.
FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT www.mfa.org

CHRISTIE'S SELLS PICASSO'S 'NUDE, GREEN LEAVES AND BUST' FOR RECORD $106.5 MILLION


A 1932 PABLO PICASSO PAINTING OF HIS MISTRESS HAS SOLD FOR $106.5 MILLION, A WORLD RECORD PRICE FOR ANY WORK OF ART AT AUCTION. 'NUDE, GREEN LEAVES AND BUST', WHICH HAD A PRE-SALE ESTIMATE OF BETWEEN $70 MILLION AND $90 MILLION, WAS SOLD AT CHRISTIE'S AUCTION HOUSE, NEW YORK, ON TUESDAY EVENING TO AN UNIDENTIFIED TELEPHONE BIDDER. THERE WERE NINE MINUTES OF BIDDING INVOLVING EIGHT CLIENTS IN THE SALE ROOM AND ON THE PHONE, CHRISTIE'S SAID. AT $88 MILLION, TWO BIDDERS REMAINED. THE FINAL BID WAS $95 MILLION, BUT THE BUYER'S PREMIUM TOOK THE SALE PRICE TO $106.5 MILLION. CONOR JORDAN, HEAD OF IMPRESSIONIST AND MODERN ART FOR CHRISTIE'S NEW YORK, SAID HE WAS 'ECSTATIC WITH THE RESULTS'. 'TONIGHT'S SPECTACULAR RESULTS SHOWED THE GREAT CONFIDENCE IN THE MARKETPLACE AND THE ENTHUSIASM WITH WHICH IT WELCOMES TOP QUALITY WORKS', HE SAID. THE STRIKING WORK OF PICASSO'S MUSE AND MISTRESS MARIE-THERESE WALTER HAS BEEN EXHIBITED IN THE UNITED STATES ONLY ONCE, IN 1961 IN LOS ANGELES TO COMMEMORATE THE 80th ANNIVERSARY OF PICASSO'S BIRTH. THE PAINTING, WHICH MEASURES MORE THAN 5 FEET BY 4 FEET, SHOWS A RECLINING NUDE FIGURE WITH AN IMAGE OF PICASSO IN THE BACKGROUND LOOKING OVER HER. THE PAINTING BELONGED TO THE LATE CALIFORNIA ART PATRON FRANCES LASKER BRODY, WHO BOUGHT IT IN THE 1950s. IT HAD BEEN KEPT IN HER FAMILY SINCE THEN. PART OF THE SALE PROCEEDS WILL BENEFIT THE HUNTINGTON LIBRARY, ART COLLECTIONS AND BOTANICAL GARDENS IN SAN MARINO, CALIF., WHERE BRODY WAS ON THE BOARD. THE PREVIOUS RECORD FOR A WORK OF ART AT AUCTION WAS $104.3 MILLION FOR 'WALKING MAN I', A SCULPTURE BY ALBERTO GIACOMETTI SOLD ON 3.FEBRUARY AT SOTHEBY'S IN LONDON. THE PREVIOUS HIGH PRICE FOR A PICASSO WORK WAS $104.2 MILLION FOR 'BOY WITH A PIPE (THE YOUNG APPRENTICE), ATTAINED IN 2004 AT SOTHEBY'S NEW YORK. ON WEDNESDAY, ANOTHER RARELY SEEN PICASSO IS SLATED TO SELL AT SOTHEBY'S AUCTION HOUSE. 'WOMAN IN A HAT, BUST' IS A 1965 WORK INSPIRED BY JACQUELINE ROGUE, THE LAST LOVE OF PICASSO'S LIFE. IT IS ESTIMATED TO SELL FOR $8 MILLION TO $12 MILLION. THE HUNG FOR 50 YEARS IN THE MANHATTAN APARTMENT OF PATRICIA KENNEDY LAWFORD, A SISTER OF FORMER PRESIDENT JOHN F KENNEDY. IT'S BEING SOLD BY HER ESTATE.

COUPLE TRANSFORM SEASIDE PUBLIC LOO INTO A COZY HOME



FOR NEARLY A CENTURY THE UNASSUMING VICTORIAN PUBLIC TOILET WAS USED BY VISITORS TO THE BEACH AT SCARBOROUGH. NOW THE DISTINCTIVE BUILDING HAS BEEN TRANSFORMED BY TRACY WOODHOUSE AND GRAHAM PECK INTO A COZY HOUSE WITH MAGNIFICENT VIEWS OVERLOOKING THE NORTH SEA. THE GENTS WC IS NOW THE LOUNGE AND THE LADIES IS THE BEDROOM AND EN-SUITE BATHROOM. NOW NAMED LOOKOUT, THE CONVERTED SINGLE STORY BUILDING, BUILT INTO THE CLIFF OVERLOOKING THE RESORT'S FAMOUS NORTH BAY, IS WIDELY ADMIRED BY THE LOCAL RESIDENTS WHO HAVE WITNESSED ITS STUNNING RECREATION. WOODHOUSE SAID ABOUT THE PROJECT: 'SOME PEOPLE JOKE ABOUT IT. AT WORK THEY'LL SAY THINGS LIKE, 'OH YES, YOU'RE THE COUPLE WHO LIVE IN A LAVATORY.' BUT WE NOW HAVE A LOVELY LITTLE HOUSE WITH A SEA VIEW THAT USED TO BE A LOO. WE UNDERSTAND THE AMUSEMENT IT CAUSES. IT TICKLES US, TOO.' THE PUBLIC RESTROOM, WHICH BECAME AN AMMUNITION STORE DURING THE WAR, WAS CLOSED DOWN IN THE 1990s AND FOR A FEW YEARS BECAME A SEASONAL CAFE. WHEN THE LEASE BECAME AVAILABLE FIVE YEARS AGO, THE COUPLE, BOTH FACTORY WORKERS, DECIDED IT WOULD MAKE A PERFECT HOME. A LOCAL ARCHITECT PRODUCED PLANS WHICH MAINTAINED THE HISTORIC CHARACTER AND STYLE OF THE BUILDING AND THE COUNCIL BACKED THE SCHEME. 'THEY GAVE US PLANNING PERMISSION AND PRAISED THE IDEA', SHE SAID. 'THEY CALLED IT THE BUILDING'S RENAISSANCE.' THE COUPLE SPENT £15,000 ON THE REMAINING SEVEN YEARS OF THE EXISTING LEASE AND LATER NEGOTIATED A NEW LEASE WITH ANOTHER 21 YEARS TO RUN FOR £1,800 A YEAR. THEY ALSO SPENT AROUND £35,000 REFURBISHING AND REBUILDING THE PROPERTY THEMSELVES IN THEIR SPARE TIME. AFTER FILLING SIX SKIPS WITH THE RUBBLE AND OLD DRAINS OF THE TOILETS, THEY SET ABOUT REBUILDING FROM TOP TO BOTTOM. THEY HAD TO STRENGTHEN THE OAK-BEAMED CEILING WITH A STEEL GIRDER, MODERNIZE THE ANCIENT PLUMBING, ELECTRICS AND VENTILATION AND ADD DAMP-PROOFING AND INSULATION. THE COUPLE INSTALLED UNDERFLOOR GAS HEATING, PATIO DOORS AND WINDOWS AND CREATED A BATHROOM AND ONE DOUBLE BEDROOM WITH A BAY VIEW WHICH IS SHARED BY THE LOUNGE AND THE ADJOINING KITCHEN.


ARTIST CREATES SKYLINE FROM STAPLES



BRIGHT GLEAMING SKYSCRAPERS DOMINATE THE SKYLINE OF THE CITY, BUT THE IMPRESSIVE METROPOLIS IS PAINSTAKINGLY MADE OF TINY STACKS OF STAPLES. ARTIST PETER ROOT CREATED HIS URBAN SPRAWL BY CAREFULLY PLACING TOGETHER OVER 100,000 PIECES OF THE TINY OFFICE ACCESSORY IN BUILDING-LIKE STACKS. CALLED EPHEMICROPOLIS, IT TOOK HIM 40 HOURS TO MAKE THE 20ft BY 10ft WORK ON THE FLOOR OF NORTHERN TRUST ATRIUM IN GUERNSEY. THE PART-TIME LECTURER BROKE THE STACKS INTO SIZES VARYING FROM FULL STACKS OF ABOUT FIVE INCHES HIGH DOWN TO SINGLE STAPLES. AND, UNSURPRISINGLY, HAVING A STEADY HAND WAS IMPORTANT. 'AS THE STACKS ARE FREE-STANDING AND VERY CLOSE TOGETHER, THE OBVIOUS CHALLENGE WAS NOT TO KNOCK THEM OVER', ROOT SAID. 'TO BUILD THE MORE DENSE SECTIONS OF THE WORK TOOK SEVERAL HOURS AND, ON A COUPLE OF OCCASIONS, GRAVITY DEMONSTRATED ITS SEVERE LACK OF SYMPATHY BY UNDOING THIS WORK IN MILLISECONDS.'

4.5.10

ELEPHANT PARADE 2010 TAKES OVER TRAFALGAR SQUARE



TOURISTS USUALLY FLOCK TO TRAFALGAR SQUARE IN LONDON TO STAND UNDERNEATH NELSON'S COLUMN AND POSE BY THE FAMOUS FOUR LIONS. BUT THERE WAS A DIFFERENT ATTRACTION RECENTLY AS A COLOURFUL PARADE OF HAND-PAINTED BABY ELEPHANTS TOOK CENTER STAGE. A COLLECTION OF 260 LIFE-SIZED MODELS DECORATED BY CELEBRITIES AND ARTISTS IS BEING PLACED ALL OVER THE CAPITAL THIS SUMMER FOR THE LONDON ELEPHANT PARADE 2010. TOMMY HILFIGER, DIANE VON FURSTENBURG, LULU GUINNESS, MARC QUIN AND JOHN ROCHA ARE AMONG THOSE WHO HAVE TAKEN PART IN THE INITIATIVE TO RAISE AWARENESS OF THE PLIGHT OF ASIAN ELEPHANTS. AMONG THE WORKS MARCHING ON TRAFALGAR SQUARE WAS MATTHEW WILLIAMSON'S ELEPHANT MADE UP OF A GLITTERY RAINBOW OF COLOURS, AND HILGIGER'S ARTWORK PAINTED BOLD RED AND SPORTING A MOHICAN OF FOLIAGE ACROSS ITS HEAD. AN ELEPHANT BY PAUL SMITH WAS FASHIONABLY ATTIRED IN PASTEL SHADES AND SIGNED BY THE DESIGNER ON ITS KNEE. THE HIGHLY COLLECTIBLE ARTWORKS WILL POP UP AT A HOST OF LONDON LANDMARKS INCLUDING BUCKINGHAM PALACE, PARLIAMENT SQUARE AND THE SOUTH BANK OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS, BEFORE BEING AUCTIONED OFF TO RAISE £2 FOR CHARITY. THE MONEY WILL HELP THE ELEPHANT FAMILY CHARITY AND MORE THAN 15 UK CONSERVATION CHARITIES WORKING IN ASIA. JEWELRY DESIGNER SABINE ROEMER DRESSED HER ELEPHANT WITH A 700 CARAT EMERALD ON ITS FOREHEAD. SHE SAID IT WAS 'AMAZING' TO SEE HER COMPLETED WORK IN TRAFALGAR SQUARE. 'WE STARTED TALKING ABOUT IT A YEAR AGO', SHE SAID. 'I WANTED TO HAVE A VERY TRADITIONAL INDIAN-LOOKING ELEPHANT AND TO MAKE A JEWELRY PIECE.' THE UNIQUE ARTWORKS INCLUDE THREE ANONYMOUSLY-DECORATED ELEPHANTS WITH BOXING GLOVES, REPRESENTING THE LIBERAL DEMOCRATS, LABOUR AND THE CONSERVATIVES. THE THREE 'POLITICAL' ELEPHANTS WILL MYSTERIOUSLY ACQUIRE VARIOUS BRUISES AND BLACK EYES AS THE PARTIES SLUG IT OUT IN THE FINAL DAYS BEFORE THE GENERAL ELECTION. TANAZ DIZADJI, ART PATRON OF ELEPHANT PARADE 2010, SAID THE IDEA HAD TAKEN AROUND 18 MONTHS TO PUT TOGETHER. 'IT'S REALLY EXCITING, WE NEED LONDON TO BE BRIGHT AND COLOURFUL', SHE SAID. ORGANIZERS SAID THAT WHILE ELEPHANTS HAVE PARADED IN HOLLAND AND SIMILAR ARTWORK COWS HAVE BEEN INSTALLED IN LONDON BEFORE, THIS IS THE FIRST PARADE OF ELEPHANTS FOR BRITAIN.

ROLLS ROYCE KRUG CHAMPAGNE DILIVERY VAN



ORIGINALLY A ROLLS ROYCE 1979 SILVER SHADOW II SEDAN, THE UNIQUE CAR WAS CONVERTED INTO THREE-DOOR PANELED COMMERCIAL VAN BY KRUG CHAMPAGNE, NOW PART OF THE LVMH WINE DIVISION, IN 1984. TWO SEATS ARE IN THE FRONT, FOR THE DRIVER AND A PASSENGER, WITH A HUGE SPACE BEHIND EQUIPPED WITH TWO REFRIGERATORS TO KEEP THE KRUG IMPERIAL CHILLED AT THE OPTIMUM TEMPERATURE. THE BODY OF THE CAR IS COVERED SPECIAL KRUG WHITE AND BURGUNDY COLOURS ALONG WITH THE ICONIC KRUG LOGO AND CREST. AS A REMINDER OF THE CAR'S PURPOSE, THE KEY FOB IS MADE FROM A KRUG CHAMPAGNE CORK. IT WAS SOLD BY THE VINEYARD A FEW YEARS BACK, BUT HAS RECENTLY BEEN REACQUIRED BY THE FIRM, RETURNING IT TO THE HOUSE OF KRUG IN REIMS, FRANCE, TO SERVE AS A MUSEUM PIECE.

CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW'S £20 MILLION JEWEL GARDEN


DAVID DOMONEY RECENTLY CREATED A £20 MILLION JEWELED GARDEN FOR THE CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW. THE ACE OF DIAMONDS GARDEN IS LITTERED WITH A STUNNING ASSORTMENT OF JEWELS LOANED BY BOND STREET JEWELERS LEVIEV. THE GARDENS CELEBRATES THE LINKS BETWEEN PLANTS AND PRECIOUS STONES AND ITS CENTERPIECE IS AN ARRAY OF DIAMOND JEWELRY WORTH MILLIONS. THE CREATION BOASTS A £1 MILLION PEONY-SHAPED RING WITH PINK AND GREEN DIAMONDS AND A DAISY-SHAPED RING SET WITH A RARE, FLAWLESS BLUE DIAMOND WORTH £3.2 MILLION. THE GARDEN WILL BE WORTH MORE THAN ALL OF CHELSEA'S OTHER COLLECTIONS PUT TOGETHER WHEN THE ROYAL HORTICULTURE SOCIETY'S ANNUAL SHOWPIECE BEGINS 25.MAY. MANY OF THE PLANTS BEING USED BY DOMONEY HAVE GEMSTONES IN THEIR NAMES SUCH AS EUONYMOUS EMERALD GAIETY, POTENTILLA GOLD FINGER AND HOSTA DIAMOND TIARA. A LOOPING PATH OF STEPPING STONES LEADS TO A CENTRAL, DIAMOND-SHAPED PATIO. WHEN VIEWED FROM ABOVE, IT IS SAID TO LOOK LIKE A PENDENT NECKLACE. THE GARDEN WILL BOAST CHILTERN MARBLE, ROMAN PLINTHS AND BACKLIT WALLS WITH SEMI-PRECIOUS STONES SUCH AS QUARTZ AND AMETHYST. THE GEMS WILL BE ON DISPLAY FOR THE GARDENS LAUNCH AND THE DURATION OF THE JUDGING.

3.5.10

JEAN-LOUIS DUMAS, FORMER PRESIDENT OF HERMES DIES AT AGE 72


JEAN-LOUIS DUMAS, THE FORMER PRESIDENT OF HERMES AND ONE OF EUROPE'S GREATEST EXPERTS ON LUXURY, DIED SATURDAY MORNING AFTER A LONG ILLNESS. DUMAS, THE GREAT GREAT GRANDSON OF THIERRY HERMES, WHO FOUNDED THE FAMED LUXURY LABEL IN 1837, HAD BEEN PRESIDENT OF HERMES FOR 18 YEARS UNTIL HIS RETIREMENT IN 2006. FAMOUSLY ELEGANT, AND NOTED FOR HIS INVENTIVE AND CURIOUS MIND, DUMAS WAS REGARDED AS THE DRIVING FORCE IN HERMES' REMARKABLE FLOWERING IN THE PAST THREE DECADES, AS THE LABEL GREW FROM LARGELY A LEATHER GOODS BUSINESS INTO A MAJOR LEAGUE LUXURY BRAND. 'IT IS WITH A PROFOUND EMOTION AND GREAT SADNESS THAT THE HOUSE OF HERMES ANNOUNCES THE DEATH OF MONSIEUR JEAN-LOUIS DUMAS', THE HOUSE SAID IN A RELEASE MONDAY. 'POET AND MAGICIAN, LOVER OF CREATION AND QUALITY, ATTENTIVE TO ALL, HE SEWED THE DEEPEST BONDS WITH THE STAFF, SUPPLIERS AND CLIENTS', THE RELEASE ADDED. FLUENT IN ENGLISH WELL BEFORE MANY FRENCH EXECUTIVES OF HIS ERA, DUMAS TAPPED INTO HIS PERSONAL EXPERIENCE AS A BUYER FOR BLOOMINGDALE'S WHEN HE JOINED HERMES IN 1964, AFTER A LEGENDARY TRIP TO INDIA IN A CITROEN 'DEUX CHEVAUX' AUTOMOBILE TO KATMANDU, NEPAL. HE THREW OPEN THE DOORS OF HERMES TO WIDELY VARYING OUTSIDE IDEAS; CREATING A POLICY WHEREBY ANYONE CAN SUBMIT A SKETCH TO THE HOUSE WHICH, IF DEEMED FINE ENOUGH, WILL BE TURNED INTO A SCARF. AND IT WAS DUMAS WHO REQUESTED SINGER JANE BIRKIN TO DEVELOP ONE OF THE LABEL'S MOST ICONIC PRODUCTS, THE BIRKIN BAG. IN THE THREE DECADES AT THE HELM, DUMAS HELPED TRANSFORM HERMES FROM A COMPANY WITH ANNUAL SALES OF $53 MILLION, TO ONE WITH 2009 TURNOVER OF $2.5 BILLION. DUMAS' CHILDREN SANDRINE AND PIERRE ALEXIS SURVIVE HIM. HIS MEMORIAL SERVICE WILL BE HELD IN THE REFORMED CHURCH OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN PARIS THIS COMING FRIDAY.

BRAD PITT AND ANGELINA JOLIE DESIGN $11,000 CUFF-LINKS FOR ASPERY


BRAD PITT AND ANGELINA JOLIE HAVE RECENTLY CREATED THE FIRST MEN'S ITEM FOR THE PROTECTOR COLLECTION, THE NEW LINE OF LIMITED EDITION FINE JEWELS AND SILVER OBJECTS DESIGNED IN COLLABORATION WITH FAMED LONDON LUXURY GOOD FIRM ASPERY TO BENEFIT CHARITY. THE PROTECTOR BLACK DIAMOND CUFF-LINKS, FEATURING THE COLLECTION'S SIGNATURE SERPENT EMBLEM, ARE IN 18 CARAT WHITE GOLD SET WITH BRILLIANT-CUT BLACK DIAMONDS AND EMERALDS, ARE ESTIMATED TO SELL FOR $11,000. THE DESIGN IS BASED ON JOLIE'S REFLECTION ON THE SERPENT AS AN ICONIC GUARDIAN AND CULTURAL SYMBOL OF FAMILY'S PROTECTION, INSPIRED BY A RING SHE WAS GIVEN WHILE PREGNANT WITH THE COUPLE'S FIRST CHILD SHILOH IN 2006. EACH PIECE IS THE PROTECTOR COLLECTION IS A LIMITED EDITION, HANDCRAFTED AT ASPREY'S LONDON FLAGSHIP STORE IN NEW BOND STREET. ASPREY, FOUNDED IN 1781, HOLDS A ROYAL WARRANT FROM THE PRINCE OF WALES, ONE OF SEVERAL GRANTED TO THE FIRM BY THE BRITISH ROYAL FAMILY OVER THE YEARS. THE BLACK DIAMOND SERPENT CUFF-LINKS MATCH RINGS, EARRINGS AND A PENDENT IN THE WOMEN'S COLLECTION. ALL PROCEEDS FROM THE PROTECTOR COLLECTION PIECES ARE BEING DONATED TO THE EDUCATION PARTNERSHIP FOR CHILDREN OF CONFLICT. CO-FOUNDED BY JOLIE, THE ORGANIZATION RAISES AWARENESS AND FUNDS TO EDUCATE CHILD VICTIMS OF WAR, CONFLICT AND NATURAL DISASTERS.

LYNN REDGRAVE DIES AT 67 AFTER LOSING BATTLE WITH BREAST CANCER


LYNN REDGRAVE DIED YESTERDAY AGED 67. THE AWARD-WINNING BRITISH FILM AND STAGE ACTRESS, WHO HAILED FROM THE WELL-KNOWN REDGRAVE DYNASTY, PASSED AWAY AFTER FIGHTING A LONG BATTLE WITH BREAST CANCER. SHE ALSO STRUGGLED TO COME TO TERMS WITH THE RECENT TRAGIC DEATH OF HER NIECE NATASHA RICHARDSON AND BROTHER CORIN, WHO PASSED AWAY AGED 70 LAST MONTH. REDGRAVE DIED AT HER HOME IN CONNECTICUT, HER PUBLICIST RICK MIRAMONTEZ SAID. SHE WAS HAD BEEN TREATED FOR BREAST CANCER OVER THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS AFTER BEING DIAGNOSED IN 2003. IN A JOINT STATEMENT, HER THREE CHILDREN SAID: 'OUR BELOVED MOTHER LYNN RACHEL PASSED AWAY PEACEFULLY AFTER A SEVEN YEAR JOURNEY WITH BREAST CANCER.' LYNN REDGRAVE WAS AN INTROSPECTIVE AND INDEPENDENT PLAYER IN HER FAMILY'S ACTING DYNASTY WHO BECAME A 1960s SENSATION AS THE FREETHINKING TITLE CHARACTER IN THE FILM 'GEORGY GIRL'. LATER SHE DRAMATIZED HER TROUBLED PAST IN ONE-WOMAN STAGE PERFORMANCES INCLUDING SHAKESPEARE FOR MY FATHER AND NIGHTINGALE. IN 1967, REDGRAVE MARRIED AND PROFESSIONALLY PARTNERED WITH THE BRITISH ACTOR AND DIRECTOR JOHN CLARK. TOGETHER THEY HAD THREE CHILDREN, BENJAMIN, KELLY AND ANNABEL WHO IS A PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER IN NEW YORK. THE MARRIAGE SADLY ENDED IN DIVORCE IN 2000. THE YOUNGEST CHILD OF MICHAEL REDGRAVE AND RACHEL KEMPSON, LYNN REDGRAVE RECEIVED OSCAR NOMINATIONS FOR GEORGY GIRL AND GODS AND MONSTERS, AND TONY NOMINATIONS FOR MRS WARREN'S PROFESSION, SHAKESPEARE FOR MY FATHER AND THE CONSTANT WIFE.

BREGUET CRAZY FLOWER


ONCE AGAIN, BREGUET HAS CREATED A STUNNING DISPLAY OF BOLD CONTEMPORARY JEWELRY DESIGN IN ITS NEW COLLECTION. BREGUET RECENTLY LAUNCHED CRAZY FLOWER WHICH IS A DRAMATIC MELDING OF THE BEAUTY OF DIAMONDS TO THE TECHNICAL DARING OF A MOBILE SETTING. HOUSING A CALIBRE 586 SELF-WINDING MECHANICAL MOVEMENT, THE WATCH-CASE FEATURES ASYMMETRICAL ROWS OF BAGUETTE-CUT DIAMONDS MOUNTED ON MINIMALIST SETTINGS AFFIXED TO THE CASE FROM THE MIDDLE SECTION UP TO THE BEZEL. THE SUPPLE, SPRINGY SETTINGS MAKE THE MOST OF THE STONES' BRILLIANCE, SWAYING GRACEFULLY IN RESPONSE TO THE WEARER'S MOVEMENT. 116 BAGUETTE-CUT DIAMONDS WILL OSCILLATE BACK AND FORTH IN A GRACEFUL AND SUBTLE DANCE REMINISCENT OF WIND-RUFFLED PETALS. FOR ITS PART, THE DIAL COMPRISES 206 BRILLIANT-CUT DIAMONDS 'INVERSE-SET' ON A CONCAVE FACE RIMMED BY THE FLANGE SET WITH A FURTHER 66 BRILLIANT-CUT STONES AND ENHANCED WITH AN HOUR CIRCLE COMPOSED OF 20 BAGUETTE-CUT STONES. OVER 36 CARATS OF DIAMONDS GLIMMER IN WONDROUSLY FINE SETTINGS, A TRULY EXCEPTIONAL ACHIEVEMENT BY THE TALENTED CRAFTSMEN OF BREGUET'S HAUTE JOAILLERIE WORKSHOPS. THE DAZZLING TOUR DE FORCE ALSO COMES WITH A CRAZY FLOWER HAUTE JEWELRY SUITE.

2.5.10

VIRGINIA MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS RECEIVES DONATION OF ENGLISH SILVER


FIFTY DAZZLING WORKS OF ART IN ENGLISH SILVER HAVE BEEN GIVEN TO THE VIRGINIA MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS BY COLLECTOR RITA R GANS OF NEW YORK, SIGNIFICANTLY ELEVATING THE STATURE OF THE MUSEUM'S COLLECTION. VMFA DIRECTOR ALEX NYERGES CALLS IT 'THE MOST IMPORTANT AND FABULOUS GIFT OF ENGLISH SILVER IN MEMORY IN MANY YEARS TO ANY MUSEUM IN THE WORLD'. 'THIS ADDITIONAL GIFT, WHEN UNITED WITH THE 102 WORKS OF ART ALREADY IN THE VIRGINIA MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS' JEROME AND RITA GANS COLLECTION OF ENGLISH SILVER, MEANS THE COLLECTION IS ARGUABLY THE BEST OF ITS KIND IN AMERICA. WHEN THE NEW GIFT IS INSTALLED, THE GALLERY WILL BE THE MOST IMPORTANT OF ITS KIND ON VIEW IN THE US', NYERGES ADDED. THE SILVER IS THE LATEST GANS GIFT THAT RANGES IN DATE FROM 1440 TO 1845. THE LARGEST PORTION IS FROM THE GEORGIAN PERIOD, WHEN LONDON'S SILVERSMITHS LED EUROPE IN SKILL AND INNOVATION. GANS' EARLIER GIFTS, IN 1997, 2001 AND 2006, ESTABLISHED VMFA AS A PRIME DESTINATION FOR SERIOUS SCHOLARS OF BRITISH SILVER IN AMERICA. AFTER THE DEATH IN 1996 OF HER HUSBAND, GANS ANNOUNCED THAT SHE WOULD NOT CONTINUE TO COLLECT, BUT SHE QUICKLY RELENTED. HER GIFT THIS YEAR OF AN OUTSTANDING GROUP OF OBJECTS, PURCHASED BY GANS BETWEEN 1997 AND 2009, BRINGS A NEW DEPTH TO THE COLLECTION. VMFA WILL OPEN A NEW GALLERY DEVOTED TO THE GANS COLLECTION IN SEPTEMBER.

SPENCER TUNICK CREATES HOMAGE TO LS LOWRY






HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE STRIPPED OFF AND BRAVED THE COLD MORNING ENGLISH AIR IN THE NAME OF ART. THE VOLUNTEERS POSED FOR AMERICAN ARTIST SPENCER TUNICK IN A PARK IS SALFORD, AS HE AIMED TO REFLECT THE WORK OF ENGLISH ARTIST LS LOWRY. NAKED FIGURES, MALE AND FEMALE, YOUNG AND OLD, SPREAD OUT ACROSS PEEL PARK, AS TUNICK GAVE THEM INSTRUCTIONS THROUGH A LOUDSPEAKER FROM A STEPLADDER AT THE TOP OF A BANK. THE INSTALLATION, 'EVERYDAY PEOPLE', FOCUSES ON ORDINARY MEN AND WOMEN, REFERENCING THE COMPOSITION STYLE OF THE ARTIST KNOWN FOR HIS 'MATCHSTICK MEN'. IT WAS COMMISSIONED BY THE LS LOWRY GALLERY TO CELEBRATE ITS 10th BIRTHDAY. TUNICK HAS PHOTOGRAPHED SIMILAR PIECES AT THE SIDNEY OPERA HOUSE IN AUSTRALIA AND THE INSTITUT CULTURA IN BARCELONA, SPAIN, AS WELL AS AT THE SAATCHI GALLERY IN LONDON AND THE BALTIC IN GATESHEAD. OVER 4,000 PEOPLE APPLIED FOR 1,000 PLACES FOR 'EVERYDAY PEOPLE', WHICH IS BEING STAGED IN EIGHT SECRET LOCATIONS AROUND SALFORD AND MANCHESTER. FOR EACH LOCATION SHOOT 500 VOLUNTEERS ARE BEING USED , AND ARE TRANSPORTED BY HEATED BUSES FROM EACH LOCATION. AT THE MOST RECENT SHOOT, THE MASS OF BARE BOTTOMS RUSHED DOWN THE BANKS OF THE PARK, WHERE THE 8am MORNING SUN CAST SHADOWS THROUGH THE BLOSSOMING TREES. TUNICK ASKED THE PARTICIPANTS TO SPREAD OUT AROUND 20 FEET APART, AND AT TIMES TOLD INDIVIDUAL PEOPLE TO MOVE INTO CERTAIN SPACES OF GRASS. HE GOT THE CROWD TO JUMP UP AND DOWN AND WAVE THEIR ARMS ABOUT TO LOOSEN UP AND KEEP WARM. 'ARE YOU OK?', HE SHOUTED. 'YEAH!', HIS NAKED SUBJECTS SHOUTED BACK. THEN WHEN HE WAS HAPPY WITH THE COMPOSITION, HE TOLD THE WOMEN TO LOOK EAST TOWARDS THE SUN, AND THE MEN TO FACE WEST. FOR ANOTHER SHOT HE ASKED THEM TO WALK ABOUT AND FREEZE, AND FOR ANOTHER HE ARRANGED THEM IN GROUPS AROUND CIRCULAR FLOWER BEDS. SPEAKING AFTER THE EVENT, TUNICK SAID: 'I THINK IT WENT REALLY WELL. I THINK WE GOT IT. I THINK THE PEOPLE IN SALFORD HAD THE INTENTION TO MAKE ART. I FEEL LIKE I DIDN'T MISS ANYTHING. I MADE SOME REALLY GOOD WORKS HERE.' ASKED ABOUT PEEL PARK AND THE ASSOCIATION WITH LOWRY, HE SAID: 'THIS IS THE ONLY LOCATION I'M USING WHICH IS THE SAME AS HIS.' HE EXPLAINED WHY HE IS FASCINATED BY THE NAKED HUMAN BODY: 'I THINK BEING NAKED CREATES A NEW MEANING FOR THE BACKGROUND. IT CREATES A RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE CONCRETE WORLD AND THE REAL WORLD. THE REAL WORLD IS US AND EVERYTHING AROUND US IS TEMPORARY.'

CAMPARI'S 150th ANNIVERSARY ART LABEL COLLECTION


FOR CAMPARI'S 150th ANNIVERSARY, AN AMBITIOUS AND INNOVATIVE PROJECT FOCUSES ON ITS LABEL, ONE OF THE MOST DISTINCTIVE AND FUNDAMENTAL ELEMENTS OF THE ICONIC ITALIAN APERITIF. CAMPARI RECENTLY ENLISTED THREE CONTEMPORARY ARTISTS; AVAF, TOBIAS REHBERGER AND VANESSA BEECROFT, FOR ITS ARTS LABEL PROJECT WHICH IS AN INITIATIVE TO HIGHLIGHT THE COCKTAIL'S LONG-STANDING AFFAIR WITH THE ART WORLD. THE THREE LABELS ARE DIFFERENT BUT COMPLEMENTARY AND TOGETHER THEY CREATE AN EXCLUSIVE COLLECTION THAT DESCRIBES THE VARIOUS FACETS OF THE UNIVERSE OF CAMPARI. FROM JAZZ-INSPIRED, TO AM ETHEREAL FEMALE WRAPPED IN HER OWN HAIR, TO AN ABSTRACT INTERPRETATION OF DIGITAL DESIGN, ALL THREE ARE UNIQUE AND BEAUTIFUL. A GREAT GIFT FOR CAMPARI AFICIONADOS (I PERSONALLY PREFER CAMPARI AND ORANGE JUICE), THESE LIMITED EDITION WORKS OF ART WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR A LIMITED TIME STARTING IN MARCH AND JULY IN THE US.