BEAUTY: Interior--Vanessa Alexander

Interior designer Vanessa Alexander completely renovated her own home in Malibu, knocking down walls, rearranging the floorplan, and even planting over 100 old-growth olive trees on the property in an effort to conjure up the magical villas of Tuscany. Since our two climates are similar, that is easy to accomplish here in California! Alexander created a beautiful, sun-bleached, washed-out feeling in her easy, comfortable home that she says is a "beachy version of a Tuscan farmhouse." And I love the sauna with a view of the backyard through a glass wall...

http://www.alexanderdb.com/

BEAUTY: Painting--Matheo de Bruvisso

The abstract work of French painter Matheo de Bruvisso (an anagram of his real name Thomas Desbouvrie) feels like each narrative is working, struggling to tell its story...

http://www.debruvisso.com

Be Kind To Animals

Indefinite Vases by Studio E.O.

It is easy to forget that glass is not a solid--it is a a liquid. And these marvelous vases by Erik Olovsson of Studio E.O. in Stockholm bring that point home. I love how each vase has been blown to drape, droop, slip, or slide over a gorgeous polished piece of marble, granite, or onyx. Playful, whimsical, and biomorphic.

http://studioeo.se/

Dear Nice...

...With a broken heart, thinking of you...

Fendi In The Trevi

OH. MY. GOD.
For the end of the women's Paris Fashion Week, Fendi shuttled guests via jet to ROME where they staged their Fall-Winter '16-'17 show at--in--ON--that city's iconic Trevi Fountain. Which is appropriate since Fendi just funded a multi-million dollar cleaning and renovation of the breathtaking landmark. The translucent runway was mounted at water level and made it seem as though the models were literally walking on water. The clothing was reminiscent of Italy in 1890 with some Aesthetic Movement and Art Nouveau touches here and there. And of course how can one stage a show with an Italian motif without using the music of Nino Rota from classic Fellilni films: here we hear excerpts from Fellini's films "Casanova," "Roma" (appropriately from the Vatican Fashion Show sequence, previously here), and possibly my all-time favorite Fellini, "Juliet of the Spirits." But of course the ultimate Fellini-Trevi reference is the legendary fountain scene from "La Dolce Vita" (previously here and here) featuring Marcello Mastroianni and Anita Ekberg romping in the water in the middle of the night.

Karl Lagerfeld and Silvia Venturini Fendi came out for bows at the end of the show both for the beautiful collection and for the gloriously renovated, now-pristine Trevi.

http://www.fendi.com/

BEAUTY: Photography--Geebird & Bamby

The photographic duo of Geebird & Bamby (Robert G. Achtel and Jens Bambauer) was initiated in 2009 with the primary objective to create, manufacture and distribute "The New World," a photographic series they refer to as an original visual design product. It is based on the partnership's architectural photography from California, Nevada, and Florida.

The Artists' Statement about the series:
"'The New World' revisits anonymous places of the 20th century. It is set in a time characterized by the conflict of Modernist and Postmodernist convictions, its influence on later 20th century history, and ultimately, the world we live in today.

On a formal level, this conflict defines the aesthetics of the collection. The interrelation of rational graphic design and anonymous photorealism reflects the contrast of manmade ideals and the acceptance of life in chaos. 'The New World' is shaped by an original set of rules, metrics and processes. This enables the revelation of eclectic utopias that, for better or worse, withhold the definition of a photograph."

I've seen so many of these monolithic, Brutalist/Mid-Century store fronts in both Florida and California and they really do represent a certain cultural idea from a certain period. The emptiness here seems to speak to the failed state of that idea and period.

http://store.geebirdandbamby.com/

BEAUTY: Painting--Eric Roux-Fontaine

Abandoned amusements parks and theaters, beds or bridges or pools in the middle of tropical jungles, flying...the stuff dreams are made of. This is the verdant, haunting work of painter Eric Roux-Fontaine.

Top to bottom: A l'insu de l'infini; An Ordinary Man; Another Country; Conquistador; Goya's Dream; Heartland: La voce della luna; untitled; Neverlandscape; Reves lointains, mondes nouveaux; untitled; Wild River

http://www.rouxfontaine.com/

"It's Over" by Eskmo

From Eskmo (aka Brendan Angelides) (previously here and here), "It's Over" from his "Sol B Sides" release.

http://www.eskmo.com/

"Late Evening Thoughts" by Multi-Panel

"Late Evening Thoughts" by Multi-Panel (Ludo Maas of the Netherlands). This beautiful, enigmatic song has always broken my heart.

sitting here, speaking without words
i wonder
why does she stay inside the house for so long
so long

it is good now in the evening
and tomorrow will be a good day
tomorrow i will tell him
i'll never look again

sitting here, speaking without words
why does she stay inside the house for so long

and it's good now in the evening
tomorrow will be a good day
i will tell him
i wish i could
i wish i could

http://www.multi-panel.nl/