Luxury Lifestyle, Design & Architecture blog

One does not usually associate Pablo Picasso with jewelry, but the painter apparently designed some rare pieces during his time. Over the years, there have been several exhibitions dedicated to the artworks of artists like Picasso, Georges Braque and Jeff Koons . But how often do you hear of an exhibition that showcases the art jewelry of these famous artists. The Museum of Arts and Design, New York is doing just that – dedicating an exhibit to the jewelry created by leading artists. The exhibit is entitled “ Picasso to Koons: The Artist as Jeweler “. What To Expect: There are no paintings and sculptures here. Only an array of limited edition works pertaining to jewelry designs . The art jewelry being showcased here often highlights the personal relationships of the artists themselves, since many of the adornments were created as gifts for friends and family. The Museum of Arts and Design will be displaying 180 such examples of sculptural jewelry during the “Artist As ...

The Denver Art Museum has the unique honor of hosting the internationally acclaimed exhibition Yves Saint Laurent: The Retrospective. This exhibition will not travel anywhere else. The exclusive exhibition will feature 200 haute couture outfits showcasing the designer’s 40 years of creativity. The development of Saint Laurent’s style will also be highlighted through several photographs, drawings and films. The exhibition will run at the museum from 25th March to 8th July 2012. The visitors will get to see the legendary designers first days at Dior in 1958. There will be well defined sections in the exhibition. In fact it will be organized thematically. It will cover the designer’s entire career including his final runway collection of 2002. The exhibition will highlight how Saint Laurent bent and even broke the rules of what women were expected to wear. A lot of the wardrobe of today’s modern woman has roots in Saint Laurent’s revolutionary designs. There will be the Y...

Featured above is a Qur’an written in 1203, signed signed by Yahya bin Muhammad ibn ‘Umar, dated 17 Ramadan 599 (June 1203). The inscription in the manuscript was done in gold outlined in thin black lines, and the marginal notes are in silver outlined in red. Identified as the oldest copy, this holy book was estimated to sell for up to $715,000 but it fetched $2,327,300 on 23 October at Christie’s auction house in London. This very auction has set the two new world auction records viz. for Quran and for any Islamic manuscript. Along with it another 10th-century Kufic Quran from North Africa or the near East, was sold for $1,870,000. Both were the ancient manuscripts offered for sale by the Hispanic Society of America, and were purchased by trade buyers in London. Read

An Aston Martin will always be an Aston Martin. Before you think we have gone ga ga in the head (like a certain madam who sometimes sings when she isn’t flaming controversies), let us tell you that a 1965 Aston Martin DB5 Vantage Convertible is making news. The beautiful car is one of the nine ever produced and eats rare status earned it a remarkable price tag of £551,500. The sale took place at the Bonhams annual Collectors’ Motor Cars and Automobile auction at Goodwood Festival of Speed. As automobile enthusiasts would already know, the Vantage engine is extremely powerful. So you know that the car comes with a strong make. It has seen three owners with two comprehensive restorations. In fact, we even got to see it at the prestigious, invitation-only Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este last year. The Aston wasn’t the only thing that went under the hammer. There was a 1937 Bentley (featured in the Bond film “Never Say Never Again”) that was sold for £221,500. A rare Liste...