Brave new world: the best-designed travel destinations for 2020

From treetop cycle paths to a micro hotel, we guide you through new design marvels around the globe

Tortue de Soirée: a fusion of high jewellery and contemporary art

 

Bvlgari turtle by Francesco Vezzoli is on display at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris.

@Bvlgari

Fusion between high jewellery and contemporary art, Bvlgari and the Italian artist Francesco Vezzoli have come together to create a precious sculpture, a brass-shelled tortoise set with precious stones, titled Tortue de Soirée.

The polished tortoise shell, beautifully rendered, is studded with tumbles of amethysts and cabochon-cut rubellite, peridot, citrine, and topaz (43 gems for about 1,500 carats in total), paired with nine ancient Greek silver coins.

Following the inspiration of Lucia Silvestri, Bvlgari’s Creative Director, Bulgari’s artisans passionately worked for 530 hours to set the stones and coins, turning the carapace into a jeweled masterpiece.

 

“Bvlgari is a brand deeply rooted in the past and deeply projected into the future. When I have approached them, I could have never hoped such a participation, such an enthusiasm in creating a project that has never been made before,” said Francesco Vezzoli.

“For me this sculpture is a case of public jewellery. It is an extremely precious object but it’s not made for private consumption. It is made for public consumption. So this is for me very interesting and I would like to say that it’s probably the first time in the history of art that something like that has happened,” added Vezzoli.

“The work combines Vezzoli’s exuberant imagination and Bvlgari’s creative talent, and it was made possible thanks to the Département du Patrimoine (heritage department) of Bvlgari. This project showcases the commitment of the brand to support creative talent, as well as cultural heritage,” wrote vogue.fr.

Discover La Tortue de Soirée at Musée d’Orsay, until 1st March 2020. The Bvlgari turtle is part of Musée d’Orsay’s exhibition ‘Joris-Karl Huysmans Art Critic. From Degas to Grünewald’.

 

@Bvlgari
@Bvlgari
@Bvlgari

2020 Prada Mode Paris will occupy the legendary Maxim’s Restaurant in Paris

    Italian luxury house Prada will present the fourth iteration of Prada Mode, a travelling social club with a focus on contemporary culture that provides members a unique cultural experience along with music, dining, and conversations. The club is organized to augment and extend significant cultural events in various cities worldwide. The first inaugural … Read more

A renowned Jazz composer and advanced robotics create a tribute performance with cognac glasses

 

 
A composition as a tribute to the specific “G-Sharp” musical note created when toasting with Louis XII glasses.

LOUIS XIII COGNAC PRESENTS ONE NOTE PRELUDE
LOUIS XIII COGNAC PRESENTS ONE NOTE PRELUDE 2019/2020; @LOUIS XIII

When two LOUIS XIII cognac glasses are clinked together to make a toast, they produce a very specific sound –a clear, extended G-sharp note. ONE NOTE PRELUDE composition explores the multi-faceted nature of this distinctive sound with a specially commissioned piece of music written by the Paris-based Israeli pianist YaronHerman, who composed a one-note symphony using only G-sharp.

“The symphony has a complex simplicity. It’s just one note, but with many dimensions. The idea that one note, like one drop of LOUIS XIII, can evolve over time and reveal itself was something that I found fascinating,” said YaronHerman.

The one-of-a-kind piece written by Yaron Herman begins with a single piano note, which cleverly draws you in.The piano is then joined by a string quartet playing the same note, but at different octaves and using contrasting rhythms, the individual instruments adding texture, structure, and harmony to the composition. A violin provides the main melody, while a second violin and a viola add colour and harmony. A cello adds a rhythmic bass line, bringing structure to the melody, which rises to a crescendo.

The pair of specially choreographed robotic arms come together, in time with the music, to make a unique toast with two LOUIS XIII cognac glasses. The robots are going to give precisely the right angle and the right speed to get the G-Sharp sound. “ONE NOTE PRELUDE composition not only pays tribute to this musical note. It also expresses the complexity of one single note, as an echo to the tasting of one drop of LOUIS XIII Cognac, which lasts for up to one hour on the palate” shared Ludovic du Plessis, LOUIS XIII Global Executive Director.

As of April 2020, the unique robots’ arms will be displayed in the LOUIS XIII Boutiques and then will travel the world.

LOUIS XIII COGNAC PRESENTS ONE NOTE PRELUDE 2019
LOUIS XIII COGNAC PRESENTS ONE NOTE PRELUDE 2019/2020; @LOUIS XIII
David O. Russell and Louis XIII Global Executive Director Ludovic du Plessis at the LA Premiere of the Restored 1919 Classic THE BROKEN BUTTERFLY in Los Angeles on December 13
David O. Russell and Louis XIII Global Executive Director Ludovic du Plessis at the LA Premiere of the Restored 1919 Classic THE BROKEN BUTTERFLY in Los Angeles on December 13; @LOUIS XIII

 

Thanks to The Film Foundation and Martin Scorsese, THE BROKEN BUTTERFLY film can be experienced once again one century later.

LOUIS XIII Cognac, The Film Foundation, the American Cinematheque & Filmmaker David O. Russell, co-hosted the Los Angeles premiere screening of Maurice Tourneur’s silent film THE BROKEN BUTTERFLY on December 13 at the iconic Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. Guests were treated to live musical accompaniment by instructors from the Young Musicians Foundation. The screening was followed by aQ&A and private dinner co-hosted by Oscar-nominated writer and director (Silver Linings Playbook, AmericanHustle, The Fighter) David O. Russell at The Sunset Tower Hotel in West Hollywood.

“To see a pristine print of this beautiful 1919 film is to make history alive with vitality by traveling through time tosee it for ourselves – this is only one of the reasons it is a treasure to preserve and restore these remarkable cinematic artifacts,” commented filmmaker David O. Russell.

Think a century ahead
LOUIS XIII COGNAC PRESENTS ONE NOTE PRELUDE 2019/2020; @LOUIS XIII

 

 

Eleven artists transform the 2020 Lady Dior bag into their own unique work of art

 

 

 

For the 4th edition of the ‘Dior Lady Art’ project, eleven artists from around the world transformed the ‘Lady Dior’ bag into their own unique work of art. For Dior, these new reinterpretations of the Lady Dior luxury handbag are odes to freedom and creativity.

RAQIB SHAW for Lady Dior Art 2019-2020-
RAQIB SHAW for Lady Dior Art 2019/2020; @dior

Eduardo Terrazas offers up a precious tribute to Christian Dior, who dreamed of being an architect before becoming a couturier. The Mexican architect drew on Amerindian folk art techniques for his intricate, graphic reinterpretation of the Lady Dior.

African artist Athi-Patra Ruga explores society through the prism of art, crafts and pop culture. He transformed the Lady Dior into a self-portrait, with a spectacular play of embroidery and textured beading.

Korean painter Jia Lee transforms the Lady Dior into a pristine canvas imbued with her poetic, emotional vision of nature.

For Lady Dior Art, American artist Mickalene Thomas created a graphic landscape evoking Monet’s garden at Giverny. In a vibrant collage she conceived a dazzling patchwork of embroidered leather and intricate beadwork.

Joana Vasconcelos delivers a resolutely futuristic ode to love with her interpretation of the Lady Dior, featuring a beating heart illuminated by 300 LEDs. The Portuguese artist captures Dior’s avant-garde spirit in her designs.

Like bubbling magma, Kohei Nawa’s kinetic creations for Dior Lady Art change in function of temperature and light.

Marguerite Humeau merges hi-tech and tradition with her 3D-printed interpretation of the Lady Dior. French contemporary artist’s vision gave birth to a sensual, wave-like work.

Lady Dior Art 2019-2020-
Kohei Nawa (1), Marguerite Humeau (2) and Mickalene Thomas (3) for Lady Dior Art 2019/2020; @dior

Evoking the joyful atmosphere of Carnival, Brazil-born artist Maria Nepomuceno painstakingly embroidered a heady mix of flowers and mouths on her sensual creation for Lady Dior Art.

The melancholic beauty of Raqib Shaw’s imaginary paradise is transposed onto leather and embellished with dazzling enamel charms for Lady Dior Art.

Sculptor Rina Banerjee transforms the Lady Dior into a spiritual message evoking universal peace. In this video, she reveals the meaning behind designs that bring together organic materials to create a “cabinet of curiosities” for the fourth edition of Lady Dior Art.

Inspired by his ‘Coffin Paint’ series, Chinese conceptual artist Wang Guangle creates relief effects and textured movement in rainbow stripes on leather for Dior Lady Art.

 

WANG GUANGLE for Lady Dior Art 2019-2020-
WANG GUANGLE for Lady Dior Art 2019-2020; @dior
Lady Dior Art 2019-2020-artists
Lady Dior Art 2019/2020; @dior
Lady Dior Art 2019-2020
Lady Dior Art 2019/2020; @dior
EDUARDO TERRAZAS for Lady Dior Art 2019-2020-
EDUARDO TERRAZAS for Lady Dior Art 2019-2020; Lady Dior Art 2019/2020; @dior

Architect Kengo Kum unveiled new Museum Hotel concept, featuring over 100 pieces of art

    Unique Museum Hotel in Osaka, Japan Featuring over 100 Artworks. From the earliest planning stage, the core concept was to create a hotel that honored the heritage of the Osaka Shin-Kabukiza Theater while heralding a completely new value: an original service that transcends the norms of business or suite hotels to offer a … Read more