LA COLONNE

IDA EKBLAD - SUPERB

2010-06-26T11:05:00.000-07:00

Recently went to Art Basel in Switzerland. Too many good paintings... but there were two that particularly caught my eye (not sure if they will catch your's) by a Norwegian artist named Ida Ekblad. This is a painting on her website, however, soon I will try posting pictures I took myself of different pieces she has done. I will also try ot take the time to post other pieces by other artists in a naive attempt t document the show. You can find Ida's work on her site, http://www.ida-ekblad.com/ , or on the galery in Paris where she is being shown at http://www.gaudeldestampa.com/ida-ekblad.html .

As for now I will enjoy the rest of my evening in the country side of Champagne.

Cheers!

PRE-WEDDING OCCASIONS

2010-05-04T13:04:00.000-07:00

Went to the seaside for a friend who's getting married and took a few photos.

FOUJITA

2010-03-15T12:01:00.000-07:00

I must say that Foujita ranks in my top favorite artists of the 20th century. His stroke and color palette are extremely refined and elegant, with great detail on the morbid fragility of the human body. I decided to put up a few of his pieces, as I believe they are of great inspirational importance for illustrators, designers, and painters. Not to mention, Jil Sander arranged a whole collection for this summer for men with his drawings on them.

"White Cat"

"Nude woman"

"Nude woman looking out window"

FASHION WEEK - FALL-WINTER 2010-2011

2010-03-08T10:49:00.000-08:00

Dear readers,

As many (orfew) of you know, fashion week has hit Paris the past few days. I've had several oppertunities to see the shows, and in general I have been quite unimpressed. However, some designers (or houses rather, as few designers actually have a big role in the collection) have managed to persuade me. I've picked up a few images from style.com to show you my selection.

Celine

Dries Van Noten

Jil Sander (Perhaps the most memorable for me - tweed of the future)

Jil Sander

Jil Sander (Ok, perhaps difficult to wear, but it is still striking)

Jil Sander (note : small bag with the extra wide belt)

Balenciaga

VILLA SAVOYE - LE CORBUSIER

2010-03-08T04:36:00.000-08:00

Dear readers and fans of architecture,

Yesterday I had the pleasure of taking a day trip to Poissy to visit a monument (in my opinion) located in a small industrial town named Poissy. It is, of course, the Villa Savoye built in 1929, designed by Le Corbusier. I had a great time taking photos. Here are some of them...

CHIC MUSIC 2

2010-03-05T07:22:00.000-08:00

Lovely music, and also I really wanted to bit this picture up of Sade - I find that she has real, very feminine, beauty that is often difficult to find.

This is a group I discovered recently that is really, really nice. Take a listen!

PRADA HEDI SLIMANE

2010-03-01T09:56:00.000-08:00

I know that this article is perhaps irrelevant as it is très passé but I still think that this photo shoot by Hedi Slimane for Prada homme (spring summer 2009) is très chic and, in my opinion, the enduring image of modern menswear for the past 3 years (and present!).

TWO SIDECARS AT THE RITZ

2010-02-27T11:30:00.000-08:00

DRINK AT THE HEMMINGWAY BAR

THIEVES LIKE US

2010-02-25T02:52:00.000-08:00

They will be performing live on March 5th at showcase (Paris).

A contemporary group that actually makes good music!

DAN FLAVIN - NEON

2010-02-22T05:20:00.000-08:00

A few images of the works of Dan Flavin.

MUSEE JACQUEMART-ANDRE

2010-02-07T06:50:00.000-08:00

Interesting trip this afternoon.

UNDERGROUND BASE ENTRIES

2010-02-02T12:22:00.000-08:00

I am not sure why but I find this subject interesting architecturally, because it provokes many different feelings to people: curiosity, scepticisme, disbelief, fear, anger, and fanaticism. For those of you who do not know what this article is about, it's about the entries to underground military bases. An underground military base is a facility built underground by a government to conduct business in a discreet fashion. People who are interested by "Area 51" could probably give more detail, however, I just wanted to show these photos because the site is similar to Lautner's house in Mexico.

GUNTA STOLZL

2010-01-27T03:20:00.000-08:00

Some Bauhaus tapestry...

SERGE LUTENS PALAIS ROYAL PARFUMERIE SHISEIDO

2010-01-19T03:18:00.000-08:00

For those of you who do not know Serge Lutens, a brief description provided by wikipedia:

At fourteen, Serge Lutens was taken on as an apprentice by a hair salon in Lille, a period which he described as crucial to his appreciation of beauty in three dimensions.^[1] Lutens started to experiment with makeup and photography, using friends to pose as models.

In 1962 Lutens moved to Paris, where Vogue magazine hired him to create makeup, hair and jewellery. Throughout the 1960s he collaborated with photographers such as Richard Avedon, Bob Richardson and Irving Penn. In 1967 Christian Dior commissioned Lutens to create a makeup line.

Lutens' 1973 series of photographs (inspired by the artists Claude Monet, Georges-Pierre Seurat, Pablo Picasso and Amedeo Modigliani) was shown at theGuggenheim Museum in New York. In the mid-1970s he directed two short art films, "Les Stars" (1974) and "Suaire" (1976). Both were shown at the Cannes Film Festival.

Shiseido hired Lutens in 1980 to develop their product image. Throughout the 1980s he shot various advertising campaigns and films and designed makeup and packaging. These works won him two 'Lions d’Or' at the International Advertising Film Festival. In 1982, Shiseido commissioned Lutens to create a fragrance called "Nombre Noir".

In the early 1990s Lutens conceived and designed the "Les Salons du Palais Royal", a house of perfume.^[2]

In 2000, Lutens launched his own brand "Parfums-Beaute Serge Lutens".

For four consecutive years, 2001 to 2004, Lutens was awarded the "Fifi Award" for best Original Concept. In 2004 he was selected to participate in "Lille 2004 - European Capital City", where he erected his "Olfactory Maze" an installation of concrete and light where he recreated scents from the city of his childhood such as rain, earth and leaves.

In 2006 the "Sommet du Luxe" awarded Lutens the "Talent d’Or", and in 2007 the French Government gave him the title of "Commandeur" in the Order of Arts and Letters.

Serge Lutens currently lives in Marrakech, Morocco.

---

I took the time to visit the boutique where one can purchase his perfumes. It was a devine experience - if every boutique in Paris had the same service, the world would be a better place. In any case, the perfumes are absolutely marvelous - very refined and somehow exotic. There's another thing that I like about Serge Lutens, it is his photography. Here are a couple examples.

Cheers.

SAATCHI GALLERY - LONDON JANUARY 2010

2010-01-13T04:02:00.000-08:00

BRANIFF INTERNATIONAL BY PUCCI

2009-12-21T09:58:00.001-08:00

Back in the old days of aviation...

uniforms by Emilio Pucci

NOËL

2009-12-20T05:19:00.000-08:00

Christmas is almost upon us, as Paris is covered in snow - some photos from the month - my apologies for not havng many entries but there was much to be done these past weeks.

Merry Christmas and happy new year!

(crossing my fingers that santa will not let my plane get canceled...)

THE NIGHT

2009-12-05T10:36:00.000-08:00

Went out to Ferdi's for dinner last night followed by Mathi's, and a failed attempt to visit a party at Maxim's which was already over upon arrival. Some photos of the evening and especially lovely Miss Julie.

STREET STYLE

2009-12-04T04:35:00.000-08:00

PARIS

PEOPLE

12.2009

JULIA

SERIN

LE WEEK-END

2009-11-27T09:02:00.000-08:00

Had the time to visit the Musée d'Orsay this weekend, as well as Costes bar. Some photos.

LOUIS KAHN

2009-11-25T03:09:00.000-08:00

Recently trying to find inspiration from my native city of Philadelphia, I fell upon an interesting bit of information. Louis Kahn, a brilliant architect from Estonia, was based for a very long time in Philadelphia. If you are not familiar with his work, here are some of his famous pieces.

MEMPHIS DESIGN

2009-11-20T12:00:00.000-08:00

Went to the gallery Alaia to see the Memphis exhibition. Here are some shots.

RUGS

2009-11-19T12:48:00.000-08:00

Today I felt like I had to look around for some art deco/art nouveau rugs. Here are some of the results. Why may I look at rugs? Well, the colors and illustrations I find to be quite often spectacular in their richness as well as simplicity, and there is much to help the creative mind in his or her eternal quest of beauty.

Frida Hansen - Danaids Jar - 1914

Edward Trojanowski - 1925

Unknown - 1930s

Uknown - 1930s

THE ROOM MAGAZINE

2009-11-19T04:33:00.000-08:00

Dear Reader,

There are a lot of fashion magazines today, and that's wonderful. However, there are few that I can recomend as far as content and overall layout goes. The Room, a Hungarian magazine, is one of those few that I love. Take a look at their page.

TAMARA DE LEMPICKA

2009-11-18T02:52:00.000-08:00

What better way to start off the day than with some Lempicka paintings. Did you know Lempicka was from Poland?