Dolce & Gabbana: Where Appliances Meet Art

The world famous fashion house Dolce & Gabbana and internationally renowned home appliance manufacturer Smeg, combine both of their talents and skills to turn the archetype single-door refrigerator into a work of master Italian craftsmanship and artistry.  Each unique design in the new limited edition Frigorifero d’Arte collection, by the two Italian brands went through hours and hours of painting at the hands of expert Sicilian artists in the style form of Carretti Siciliani, or Sicilian carts.

Long ago, illustrations of a two wheeled horse or donkey drawn cart, recounts the stories of epic poems through masterfully detailed paintings, and Frigorifero d’Arte adds these extraordinary paintings into it’s very own collection.  Honoring these grand depictions of the fabled cart, and that of Sicilian marionette theater, the refrigerators (Smeg’s FAB28 model) features one of a kind pictographs like medieval knights in the midst of battle.  There is also cultural touchstones in the series, which includes the Trinacria emblem and the Amalfi Coast’s abundant lemons, that are limited to only 100 models (note: prices on request, D&G&Smeg).  Dolce & Gabbana and Smeg together, designed a worth whiled creation that is disputably the most stylish kitchen appliance ever created.

For more information visit: dolcegabbana.com & smeg.com

Art Exhibition At Met Breuer Unfinished: Thoughts Left Visible

The newly finished branch of New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art has put up a collection of unfinished works of art by some of the most famous artists in history on display.  We will be seeing a whole lot more from the nations oldest not to mention largest art museum, step right in and be instantly taken by the almost infinite amount of fine pieces of art that Met Breuer has to offer.

You may be wondering why does New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art (one of the world’s most amazing museums) need a second location?  Well the Met’s Director and CEO, Thomas Campbell said that “The Met has actually been collecting modern and contemporary art since its inception,” and “We want more space, we want to be more exploratory, we want to do more.”

So the Met started searching for the ideal spot to expand their marvelous collection, and as a result Met Breuer came to be.  Located a mere stones through away from the Met, Campbell said “really, it was a great gift”.  Many may know the new museum well as the former spot of the Whitney Museum, which was just recently relocated to a new spot in downtown Manhattan.  The location and structure are equally as famous designed by master architect Marcel Breuer, that opened in the year 1966.  Marcel Breuer became famous for his unique box-like building designs, in which was an architectural style known as Brutalist.

The Met’s Chairman of Contemporary and Modern Art, Shen Wagstaff took the iconic building, stripped it down and then recreated it the way Breuer originally had it designed.  She made it so that art can talk to you without any disturbances whats so ever, which gives you the most out of the exhibit as humanly possible.  Kelly Baum and Andrea Bayer are co-curating the exhibit that showcases unintentionally unfinished pieces of art.  This exhibit features over 200 works all the way from the Renaissance to the present day, including artists such as Cezanne, Warhol, and Da Vinci.

There’s one work that’s a portrait of James Hunter Black, a Vietnam War Draftee, by Alice Neel.  Alice Neel got as far as finishing his face, neck, and one of his hands.  The rest of the portrait was sketched in.  The man was later called to duty, and even though the portrait was not entirely finished, Alice Neel still signed it as well as exhibited it (during her lifetime), and even called this incomplete painting finished.

What’s really unique about this museum isn’t its shape or the names of artists displayed there, what’s really unique is the unfinished pieces that makeup the exhibition, because sometimes things that are incomplete can still be in motion.  The Exhibition will be opened through September 4th.

For more information visit:  “Unfinished: Thoughts Left Visible”

Meet Gianna Dispenza

Meet Gianna Dispenza; a young American artist currently residing in Beirut, creating some of the most unique and captivating works of our time.  Her art which tends to organically morph into an abstract creation of the utmost originality is like nothing else.  Having graduated the acclaimed San Francisco Art Institute, the philanthropic hearted Dispenza spends much of her time bringing art into the lives of underprivileged refugees.  We spoke exclusively with Gianna about art & life in the Paris of the Middle East.

What are you currently inspired by?
“I’ve always been interested in and inspired by people. Right now, my direction is turning toward a study of form, character, and a return to biomorphic, gestural bodies.”

Being a frequent traveler, how has your exposure to multiple cultures influenced your work?
“Different places have always influenced my work, but I recently experienced a bigger shift. I’ll have to backtrack a bit to answer this question, though. In college I began studying art history more thoroughly and it opened up a dialogue between my own paintings and sculptures and the work of other artists and movements through history. For example, I might have made a painting where the brushstrokes referenced Cézanne, and that reference invited a conversation on perspective. This happened both intentionally and unintentionally, but whatever the case, when someone looked at the piece, a connection was suggested between my work and history. It was subtle, but I took for granted how much the culture and history of Western art contextualized my work.

Now, I am living in Beirut, a place with a very different history and naturally a very different art history. So suddenly, the influences of artists or movements that my work had been in conversation with were abruptly removed from their context. I realized that people viewing my work now couldn’t relate because I was asking them to relate to the art history of a different part of the world. My work needed to adjust to a new place and culture.

For a number of reasons, I now feel the need to return to a more basic study of character and form. Not necessarily realism but relating to the figure. The pieces will naturally become more and more abstract, but there is a space on the border of abstraction and representation where I think my work has always been strongest. I recently had a very conceptual and abstract exhibition in Beirut, and in moving forward, I hope to produce something that is more representational and ultimately more human.”

Favorite medium?
“I’ve been experimenting with different media over the past five years, but a simple water-based clay will probably always win. As a final product, I usually prefer the clay to be cast in bronze.”

What is your creative process?
“Like with anything, there are times when we feel compelled to create and there are times when its a real struggle. But I’ve learned that persistence is my friend. I work everyday and if I reach the point where I really want to give up—I mean outright, hysterical, ‘I’m-no-artist’ kind of giving up— and then I keep pushing forward, that’s usually when the best work happens.”

Favorite Restaurant in Beirut?
“There are so many. Lebanon also has great Armenian and Syrian food (there are about 160,000 Armenians living in Lebanon right now). One of my favorites is a tiny Armenian bistro called Onno in Bourj Hammoud. Makan usually has great art on the walls and it holds some of my dearest memories. The food changes every week but is nonetheless excellent. Casablanca is also great. I’d recommend Gram for lunch, for the food and the people and the heart and soul that’s gone into its opening. Though, one of the best meals I have had in Lebanon yet was actually in Nahr Al-Bared, a Palestinian refugee camp in the North about 20k south of the Syrian border. It was all prepared from a garden in the camp and exceeded standards not only in flavor but also in generosity, which is pretty remarkable considering how little they have to begin with.”

How has your style changed over the years?
“I began studying art in high school with almost no direction. To give you a sense, I tried to use water to thin my oil paints. I knew nothing but I was so eager just to make something. After some time studying in Florence with bronze and stone and marble figures at every stop, and maybe a hundred hours sitting beneath Perseus, I wanted to understand anatomy. I attended a university that enforced a kind of military approach to aesthetics and realism. This was all fine in the beginning, but after a while I started thinking about character and how realism sometimes leaves that out. So I got loose with my work and impulsive, and my teachers were getting hot-headed because I didn’t start the portrait with the cheekbones like they said I should or because the clay wasn’t quite as smooth as a boiled egg. Eventually I realized it was time to get out of there and into a place where I could experiment. I transferred to a more conceptually-driven institute where I was suddenly the classicist and so I started sprinting to catch up with everyone. I worked hard and produced a body of big sculptures in concrete and plaster. After that, Beirut happened, and for the first year I was quite unwell and wasn’t able to make much, but by the second year I was experimenting and exhibiting plenty. Now, after all that, I just want to take a few steps back and revisit reality. I think repeating this process in Beirut, the process of patiently pushing and deconstructing form, may take more time, but the work will be more whole and more genuine than it ever would have been had I stayed where I was.”

Talk me through a day in the life of Gianna Dispenza.
“I’m traveling now, but my days in Beirut have been pretty full. Around 7:15 I walk through Hamra to Ahmed’s car. Ahmed is my dear friend, my taxi driver, and something of an Arabic teacher for me. He takes me up to the mountains to a campus where I teach a kindergarten class for refugees, ages 4-5. After classes, I might go to a school on the outskirts of the Palestinian refugee camps in the southern suburbs where I meet two other teachers and we hold an English support program. Or, depending on the day, I’ll head back to Beirut and start sculpting. I usually need about an hour to decompress at home after work then I’ll sculpt or paint though the evening. If it’s a figurative collection, friends or neighbors or strangers will come model for 2-4 hours after work. At sunset I run or walk along the corniche (a long path along the shore), or go to our friends house by the sea. We meet on his roof or balcony and swim or talk and they all play music (I may or may not have thrown down a few notes on the flute). Anyway, it’s calm and it’s beautiful. Sometimes more friends come model at night; they stumble in around 11 and recline into a snoring pose on my studio floor. The past six months have been pretty demanding, and so I’m looking forward to a summer with a bit more of the snoring for myself.”

What are you working on right now?
“I’ve been on the road but I did fill a suitcase with clay, which, my travels have taught me the hard way, bears a striking resemblance to C-4. I’ve been doing sketches and figure studies as I go along. Once I get back to Beirut I’ll most likely work on a simple series of ceramic busts. I see myself returning to the figure more and more right now, emphasizing form and unity.”

What artists influence you most?
“The beautiful thing about studying art history is that artists tend to layer and build on each other over time. That layering is what excites me. But there is an abundance of artists whose work has influenced my own, and I could go down that road but it might test even the avid reader’s attention span. To name a few: Van Gogh, Bacon, Calder, Dubuffet, Hesse, Gorky, Abakanowicz, Rodin, De Kooning, De Keersmaeker.”

What are four things most people do not know about you?
“One thing I’ve struggled even to define for myself and in my work is a feeling of existing in liminal spaces. Coming from a background of extreme opposites has made me feel like a bunch of very different people are all paying tug-of-war with one brain. This might be why I connect in the way that I do with the people in the camps, because their liminal existence humbles my own. The work I am doing with refugees is also probably something most people don’t know about me. It’s been one of the best experiences I’ve had—getting to know all of these people and their stories and characters. In doing this work, I found out that teaching is awesome and hugely gratifying. And lastly, I don’t ever want only to be an artist. I’ll always need to keep my mind challenged and my heart engaged with something outside of myself and I feel lucky to be in a place where all of those things are happening.”

Where to next?
“I’ll be in Beirut for at least another year, hopefully. After that I really do not know.”

Where can we follow you?
Website:  giannadispenza.com
Tumblr:  giannadispenza.tumblr.com
Instagram:  @giannadispenza

Photographer: Ashley Jordan Gordon

Africa’s Longest And Brightest Cable Stayed Bridge

Mohammed VI has just been dubbed the longest cable stayed bridge in all of Africa, honoring the King of Morocco it shines like a star in the night sky.  The Mohammed VI Bridge lights up the desert just outside Morocco’s capital, utilizing powerful LED lighting by Philip Lighting (Euronext Amsterdam ticker: LIGHT), a global leader in lighting.

This recently inaugurated bridge is an architectural phenomenon, connecting the capital Rabat to the city of Salé.  The bridge is 950 meters long and 6 lanes wide, all supported by two 200 meter-tall towers with 160 cables.  The Mohammed VI Bridge’s one of a kind design is complemented by Philips Color Kinetics technology that provides architectural lighting effects and gives the adaptability to change up to 16 million colors.

The bridges powerful Philips LED lighting system illuminates the pillars and cables that run high above the bridge, and for whoever enjoys a good light show is sure to love the Mohammed VI after seeing it in action.  The LED lighting system is expected to be up to 75% more energy efficient than conventional lighting systems.

While the Mohammed VI bridge holds the title of the longest bridge in Africa, it is in fact only the third longest cable-stayed bridge in the world.  The longest cable-stayed bridges in the world (not including pipeline bridges) are currently the Sutong Bridge in China (1,088 meters) and the Russky Bridge in Russia (1,104 meters).

Images courtesy of:  Lighting.Philips.com

Versailles: Treasures from the Palace

The Famed Palace of Versailles has surprised everyone, lending its grand collections outside of France.  Many of the museum’s art pieces will be up for display in Canberra, Australia.  The Palace of Versailles has never showcased its collection outside of France, and this amazing turn of events will be sure to make people flock from all over the globe for a chance to see their one of a kind art collection.

Titled “Versailles: Treasures from the Palace”, lovers of art will be given the opportunity to view more than 130 paintings, tapestries, statues, furniture, etc, as each piece comes directly from the Palace of Versailles.  Pieces of the utmost interest are a marble bust of Louis XIV and a formal portrait of Marie Antoinette.  The exhibition will be chock- full of French history’s most worthwhile pieces, even including personal items of Marie Antoinette, like her harp and hand-crafted chair.

“We thought that Canberra was a wonderful place because it is so different from Versailles but, at the same time, the power is located in Canberra as it was in Versailles.” Revealed President of the Palace of Versailles, Catherine Pegard, as for her reason of putting the collection on display in Australia.  The exhibition will start on December 9th of 2016 and end on April 17th of 2017 at the National Gallery of Australia.  A once in a lifetime opportunity is here and you better not miss it.

For more information visit: Versailles

Christo’s Floating Pier Opens on Lake Iseo

Starting off this week, The Floating Pier installation by renowned artist Christo Vladimirov Javacheff is open, visitors can now walk on water over the Italian Lake Iseo.  And for anyone that is a fan of The Wizard of Oz, you can now travel to the Lake for a stroll on the elongated ‘yellow-brick road’.

“It’s not a painting, it’s not a sculpture.  You need to walk on it.  Feel it with the sun, with the rain, with the wind.  It’s physical, not virtual” Said Christo.  The project was originally thought up by his late wife Jeanne-Claude back in 1970 for the River Plate delta in Argentina.  The total cost exceeded 16 million USD, but it is open at no cost to the public and is expected to attract more than 500,000 visitors by the time it closes on July 3rd.  The pier was created using over 100,000 square meters of yellow fabric, carried by a floating dock system of 220,000 high-density polyethylene cubes, that move with the lake.

For the first time ever you can walk from Sulzano to Monte Isola and onto the island of San Paolo, which is framed by Floating Piers. “Like all of our projects, The Floating Piers is absolutely free and accessible 24 hours a day – weather permitting, there are no tickets, no openings, no reservations and no owners.   They are an extension of the street and belong to everyone.” Said Christo.

For more information visit: christojeanneclaude.net/the-floating-piers

The Most Extravagant Picasso

An extravagant Picasso painting was available at Christie’s New York auction house on may 11 2015.  The appellation of the Picasso is Les Femmes d’Alger (version 0) 1955.  The Painting is estimated to be valued at around $140 million, and was the cynosure of a recently developed type of auction that incorporates touches of contemporary and modern artwork stretching from 100 years.  This began its postwar and contemporary sales.  As of now postwar and contemporary art are the biggest grossing auction category at Christie’s since 2011.  This 1955 Picasso is undeniably an extravagant work of art and is truly a sight to behold.  Visit the link below for more information on upcoming lots.

Christie’s Auctions: www.Christies.com