TheArtGorgeous - Issue 3 Fall/Winter 2017

THEARTGORGEOUS.COM

ISSUE 3 2017

CHEAT SHEET

MASTERPIECES ON A BUDGET

SIMON DE PURY ON

Plus Anouska Beckwith, Pari Ehsan, Arvida Byström, Louise Bonnet

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CONTENT Condo for Kanye JUNGLE p. 30

How to Dress Like a Bonnet Girl STYLE p. 54

The Modern Romantic

14 Art Ba$ar 16 Your Digital Best Friends 21 Career Coach

JUNGLE p. 36

JUNGLE

24 Masterpieces on a Budget 30 Condo for Kanye 36 The Modern Romantic

STYLE

46 The Muse Who Married Art With Fashion

20 Tips to Boost Your Social Media Presence CANDY p. 78

54 How to Dress Like a Bonnet Girl 61 Raise Your Paddles!

63 Kenny Deconstructed

The Muse Who Married Art With Fashion STYLE p. 46

CANDY

66 The Ultimate Museum Horoscope 78 20 Tips to Boost Your Social Media Presence 86 The Art/Fair Warning 88 The Very Honest Gallerist 6 8 10 12

On the Cover Anouska Beckwith Indigo Child, 2017 Assistant: Katy Rose Bullard © Anouska Beckwith

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Content Imprint Editor’s Letter Contributors

TOILETPAPER Untitled, 2017. Gilded wood, mirror, glass, UV color print.143 × 87 cm / 56 5/16 × 34 1/4 in

NEW YORK LOWER EAST SIDE

PARIS MARAIS

HONG KONG CENTRAL

SEOUL JONGNO-GU

TOKYO ROPPONGI

FARHAD MOSHIRI

DANIEL ARSHAM

JOHN HENDERSON

MADSAKI

PAOLA PIVI

NOVEMBER 4 - DECEMBER 23

THROUGH DECEMBER 23

THROUGH NOVEMBER 11

NOV. 15, 2017 – JAN. 13, 2018

THROUGH NOVEMBER 11

GABRIEL RICO

JULIO LE PARC

JESPER JUST

TOILETPAPER

NOVEMBER 4 - DECEMBER 23

THROUGH DECEMBER 23

THROUGH NOVEMBER 11

NOV. 22, 2017 – JAN. 10, 2018

GIMHONGSOK NOV. 17, 2017 – JAN. 13, 2018

IMPRINT

Founder / Editor-In-Chief: Cordelia Noe Associate Editor: Cait Munro Publisher: Christoph Noe

Editorial Design Concept: Prof. Andine Mueller, Till Theissen and Prof. Dr. Lorenz Poellmann, Berlin Graphic Designer: Summer Tsui Photographers: Anouska Beckwith, Jason Gringler, Tylor Hóu, Kelly Elaine Smith Illustrations: Roma Manikhin, Christina X. Mui, Summer Tsui Contributing Writers: Colin Bedell, Anneli Botz, Vivienne Chow, Simon de Pury, Cait Munro, Charlotte Olbricht, Kathrin Rettig Copy Editor: Dawn Michelle d’Atri, PaperTrue Project Assistant: Emma Lam

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For Advertising and Sponsorship Enquiries please contact: Cristina Bove, cristina@theartgorgeous.com

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Special thanks to: Bernhard Bartsch, Harmony Hambly-Smith, Vera Neykov, Robb Pruitt, Angelica Sable, Mama TOY Printing: Druck- und Verlagshaus Fromm GmbH & Co. KG; Osnabrück, Germany

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MY

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CMY

TheArtGorgeous Magazine is a publication by TheArtGorgeous.

TheArtGorgeous is a subsidary of The Ministry of Art Ltd.

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TheArtGorgeous. Issue 3, Fall/Winter 2017. © 2017, The Ministry of Art Ltd. All Rights Reserved. See the magazine online at www.theartgorgeous.com and www.theartgent.com.

Reproduction in whole or part without written permission is prohibited. No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or part without permission from the publishers. The views expressed in TheArtGorgeous Magazine are those of the respective contributors, and are, not necessarily shared by the magazine or its staff. The magazine welcomes new contributors but can assume no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts, photographs or any other material.

Contact: TheArtGorgeous is published by The Ministry of Art Ltd., 340 Queen’s Road Central, Sheung Wan, Hong Kong Email: contact@theartgorgeous.com

Scan or Visit: theartgorgeous.com @theartgorgeous

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ArtGorgeous

ello Gorgeous,

EDITOR’S LETTER

Hopefully you had a great summer and did think of us – we could hardly wait to see you again. We haven’t been lazy at all but are bursting with new ideas to ensure some out-of-this-(art)-world content for you. As usual during this time of the year, we often lack sunshine, so our features are here to boost your Vitamin B production for a good mood.

On the following pages, you will meet photographer Anouska Beckwith, the modern romantic and her hippi-esh gaze on feminine beauty. Her works might make feel you nostalgic about your holidays, and in case you stopped in Germany to see Documenta and Skulptur Projekte Münster, then it’s time to meet Lily May Wong, the lead character of The Art/Fair Warning, a fiction format – think Sex and the City meets 7 Days in the Art World – who was on the grand art tour as well.

Following this romantic and spiritual vibe, Colin Bedell was digging in the archives of major museums and worked out the very first museum horoscope ever. Yes, Louvre is Leo …

In order to make the art world accessible to a wider audience, we chatted with the probably most stylish partner in crime, Pari Ehsan (aka @Paridust), on innovative ways to open up new windows to the art and fashion wonderlands.

Simon de Pury gave us some insider knowledge about his two passions – art and music – and in case you missed it: Jay-Z just commissioned Jeff Koons for a 40ft inflatable balloon dog to be on the stage at his tour.

Oh, and did we mention that we have got very crafty-creative, too? Let’s face it: the art we like is often the one outside of our budget. So it’s time to offer you some hands-on manuals to build your own Kusama-inspired pumpkin, among other masterpieces. We do expect an invite to your Halloween party if you succeed.

For partying in Miami, we selected the prettiest statement earrings and promise to have you covered, whether you are a Picasso babe or a Renoir muse.

You also can get a glimpse of Kenny Schachter in vintage track pants and learn 20 ways to tune up your social media presence, including why the usage of Boomerang is not always a good choice.

Last but not least, we are thrilled that Rob Pruitt designed the highly addictive collectible stickers for this issue.

We want to open up new windows to the art and fashion wonderlands

Much art, love & fun.

Founder / Editor-in-Chief cordelia@theartgorgeous.com

#artgirlsdoitbetter 10

COLLABO

SAPATO

DOCUMENTA

STYLE

“D14” / Hybrid of Coil R-1 upper and Ultimate outsole

STORY

With “D14”, KangaROOS and Sapato Store celebrate the 14th edition of documenta – one of the most important, regularly occurring exhibitions for modern and contemporary art in the world, taking place in Kassel (Germany).

ORIGIN

Made in Germany Schuhmanufaktur Hummel & Hummel Münchweiler an der Rodalb instagram.com/KangaROOS facebook.com/ROOS

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www.kangaroos.de

Kathrin Rettig Born in Heidelberg, in the south of Germany, she studied law in Leiden, Vienna and New York. Since she was little, she was passionate about writing, art and fashion; so she opted to follow new paths by becoming a fashion journalist and a student of media communication. Currently, she is based in Berlin and works for different cultural and fashion magazines.

Colin Bedell is a Gemini fraternal twin from Long Island, New York, and the cofounder of QueerCosmos – an astrology and comparative spirituality resource. His astrological focus is on love, family networks, and career.

Colin is a passionate student of personal-growth systems and a twotime graduate – Fashion Studies from Parsons School of Design and Literature from Eugene Lang College.

Charlotte Amadea Olbricht is a young enthusiast for visual arts. After spending time in New York, Melbourne and Hong Kong to experience the global art scene, she currently studies Art History.

Besides working for “me Collectors Room Berlin” on its digital media and project management, she visits galleries and travels the art fairs to further establishing her own contemporary art collection. Works by Sarah Bahbah and LaChapelle are currently among her favorite pieces.

Anneli Botz is a writer and curator, based in Berlin. She has an M.A. in Art History and Philosophy and focuses on cultural expression through contemporary art, fashion, and music. She writes for numerous publications such as Interview Magazine, Sleek Magazine or Amsterdam Berlin.

Vivienne Chow is an award-winning journalist, critic, and art world observer. She is the founder of the non-profit arts education initiative Cultural Journalism Campus and a university lecturer. Her stories can be found on her website www.viviennechow.com.

Rob Pruitt is an American postconceptual artist. Working primarily in painting, installation, and sculpture, he does not have a single style or medium. He considers his work to be intensely personal and biographical.

Pruitt lives and works in New York.

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Photo credit: Roe Ethridge

CONTRIBUTORS

Simon de Pury is a leading figure in the art market, well known for his legendary performance on the auction podium.

After being the Chairman of Phillips de Pury & Company, in 2013, de Pury founded, together with his wife, de Pury de Pury, a company specializing in building collections and consulting established collectors and institutions.

He is an active charity auctioneer, and has raised millions of dollars for charities and cultural institutions.

Cait Munro is a Brooklyn-based writer and editor obsessed with art, fashion, and culture, both pop and otherwise. Her work has appeared in BULLETT, New York Magazine, Artnet News, The Observer and Vice.

She is “the one with the big closet” in her group of friends and staunchly maintains that she invented the term “leather weather.”

GERMANY'S FIRST MUSEUM OF URBAN ART

www.muca.eu 13

Art Ba$ar

The most exciting places to see, sleep and stay

Musées YSL x 2, Paris and Marrakech

Ready for Boarding Start collecting fall’s most wanted passport stamps!

After partying on mind blowing Mykonos and chillaxing on the beaches of South East Asia during summer break (if you even had one), now in fall whatsoever time has come to travel for the art’s sake.

ASIA NOW, Paris, France (18. ‒ 22. Oct)

ART021, Shanghai, China (08. ‒ 12. Nov)

Artissima, Torino, Italy (03. ‒ 05. Nov)

Art Düsseldorf, Germany (17. ‒ 19. Nov)

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Art Basel Miami & Design Miami, USA (06. / 07. ‒ 10. Dec)

Image credit: Pierre Bergé; Instagram; Wikipedia

One of the world’s most influential fashion designers, Yves Saint Laurent is the only designer of his generation who has systematically archived his work since creating his couture house in the 1960s. Besides that, the sale of the massively significant private art collection of him and his partner Pierre Bergé set records as the “auction of the century” after his death in 2009.

This year two museums will open, in Paris and Marrakech, to house the thousands of garments, sketches, accessories, photographs and objects that represent YSL’s lifetime achievement. The Moroccan city deeply influenced the designer’s life and work, particularly his color palette. Unfortunately Pierre Bergé can no longer witness the fulminant opening. To the mourning of all involved he passed away on September 8th this year.

RETOX x DETOX

Two Leading Hotels for Art-Loving Nomads

The “Oh la la, comme c’est top”

The “Remote but worth checking out (In)”

Hôtel Costes, Paris, France

Miura – Art & Design Hotel, Čeladná, Czech Republic

Romance, roses and sex appeal… Can you think of anything more French (other than macarons and Louboutins) right in the museum’s quarter of Paris? The Hôtel Costes caters to those pleasures at a whole new level, although this luxury doesn’t come cheap. Get started with the “Mini Room,” which, according to its own statement “one would really be in love” to share it. But well, Paris is the city of love. Don’t fret though, whether BAE is joining you or not, you will be sure to fall head over heels for one of the best Mojitos in town.

Detox from the urban jungle and reconnect with nature on the private golf and tennis courts or recharge your inner goddess with the wide offer of high tech spa treatments. The sleek steel building also offers an incredible collection of world class art and you will find yourself surrounded by the likes of Basquiat, Warhol or Hirst – tucked away in the Beskydy Mountains. For extra premium service, the hotel owns a helicopter available for guest transfer.

Art World Apps on the Go Yahoo Currency Converter: Wonder why an artwork seems so affordable?

Make sure you check the currency… those extra zeros may sneak up on you.

Insta-Gorgeous

Didi Dache: Better to use the local Apps for getting around in China. Here is your alternative to Uber.

Make sure to run into the most fashionable art fair director Kylie Ying by booking a trip to booming Shanghai mid November. The fashionista, art lover, and entrepreneur is the co-founder of the increasingly popular art fair ART021, presenting top tier global galleries to a Chinese audience. The art event is bound to attract a variety of collectors from all corners of the world, showcasing Eastern and Western art.

Curiator: Your musthave for the upcoming art escapes. Shoot and organize your favorite pieces without even having to type one letter.

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Vistajet: You want it classy, quick and comfortable? Vistajet makes it possible to book and manage your flight even (almost) until the last minute.

Artppl: Meet like-minded people, but not in the “Tinder”-way. Receive relevant content – art is the filter – to unlock your network’s potential in the art scene.

Your Digital Best Friends These Artists Understand Everyday Girl Issues Social media is often related with perfection. You see perfect people with perfect bodies, living a perfect life. You think that is boring? These artists feel you and help you keep it real like a best friend. Their works on social media visualize what a girl needs: Someone who tells you that it is absolutely fine to be real. After a break-up, they make you laugh again, if you feel stressed, they show you how to relax, even for all your other daily stress, they have one answer: Be and love yourself with all your imperfections.

Writer KATHRIN RETTIG

Sanam Khatibi Imagine life thousands of years ago, no technology, not even laws and social norms. Sanam Khatibi takes us into a world in which humans are impelled by primal impulses, being animalistic and fierce. Her paintings are of intriguing, exotic landscapes reminiscent of Henri Rousseau’s jungle scenes. Naked pale female hunters bathing with snakes and riding on wild animals.

Actually, a recurring motif in art – the hunter playing with its prey, wouldn’t it be the other way around. The artist questions our relationship with male-female power structures and appeals us to rethink the “natural superiority” of men, picturing the bestiality which lies dormant in every female soul waiting to break out.

Favourite #tags used #exhibitionview #pffffffff #magnificientteam #studiokhatibi #groupshow

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Arvida BystrÖm If you love pink, glitter, and flowers, Arvida Byström is your girl. The young artist, born in 1991 in Stockholm, was part of the first generation who used Instagram as a medium not to create a perfect image of herself as a modeling beauty, but rather as “a little window out of a very closed room of teenage depression,” she says. She shamelessly shows off orange-peel skin, while posing in sexy underwear. With her fine sense for the right amount of girlishness and female power, she encourages people of all gender, and proves that behind every scar on our body, there is a story worth telling.

Favourite #tags used #selfiestickaerobics # # #period #picsoritdidnthappen

Tara Booth Calm down, you are not the only girl who does not know how to pee in a romper. The comic book artist Tara Booth visualizes the bigger and smaller problems of a woman’s daily life. Looking at her highly detailed sketches feels like going through the diary of her alter-ego, with all her ups and downs.

“My work is about living with chronic anxiety and depression. It can be therapeutic to see how many people deal with the same issues and have similar experiences.” Her impeccable intuition expresses feelings through body language, which declares that being a little jerky never killed anybody.

Favourite #tags used #unwell #mybodymychoice #cheetosinbed

#bummers

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#juicycouturequeen

Amber Vittoria Shaved or not shaved? These days, this decision can make a statement. The fashion industry and advertising makes us think that the skin of a woman has to be smooth as silk surrounding a perfect body shaped like an hourglass. Amber Vittoria breaks down these boundaries of traditional femininity in her own peaceful and humorous way. Her figures resembling primitive art featuring strange creatures with hairy bodies, wearing Gucci T-Shirts have become her trademark, and to us, it feels like Amber wants to convince us that fashion is not conventional. So it’s no wonder, that clients like Man Repeller and The New York Times love her work!

Favourite #tags used #illustration #handdrawn

Alejandra Hernández The life paintings of Colombia-born artist Alejandra Hernández seem like glimpses into the private space of the artist’s friends – all of us can identify with at least one of them. With a love for vibrant colors and details, she captures the “small world” of the portrayed persons, highlighting its uniqueness and preserving the intimacy of the moment. You can almost feel the familiarity between the subject and the artist. By adding some little “clues” in her work, she blurs the lines between fantasy and reality and makes us draw our own conclusions about the people and their current situation in her art.

Favourite #tags used #detail #sketch

#watermelonjuice #hibiscus

#happyaccidents

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#feminist #society6 #girlssupportinggirls

Monica Kim Garza Sitting in the office on a rainy fall day, the art of Monica Kim Garza is the better alternative to the pictures of a supermodel’s Instagram account, with skinny girls riding pink flamingos in a pool in Mykonos. The artist, whose art is influenced by her Korean and Mexican roots, paints women surfing, stretching, and – one of her recurrent topics – in total relaxation. What feels better than enjoying some beautiful food in bed after a long day at the beach? The pieces radiate the zest for life, showing curvy, brown skinned, self-confident women who show us the high value of self-care.

Favourite #tags used #1brush

#chorizo

All images via Instagram

#facetime #5boronyc #10brushes

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Career Coach

The First Ever Insider's Guide for Art World Job Struggles

vs

Fine Art Restorer

Director of the museum, but assistant to the collector.

DESCRIPTION

The plastic surgeon of the art scene.

Extremely respected, but if you don’t need him, you don't miss him.

Intellect meets elegance. Often blackishminimal.

OUTFIT

Very laid‒back wardrobe: Overalls or boyfriend shirt, sneakers, and the obligatory gloves.

If the collector is a major client at the gallery you are working, and you know the collection well, entry is not hard.

GETTING IN

Start with arts and crafts, ideally from kindergarten. If you already fixed your doll house or scooter, you are on track.

Better be not on the clumsy side, otherwise it might become quite expensive.

Unless an art fair hits your town, or you are setting up a new show, a 9-6 would be the norm.

WORKING HOURS

Leonardo’s Adoration of the Magi took six years to restore. So steady rather than overtime.

SALARY

If you could only keep those gold leaflets that you are gluing on the little Baroque cherubs.

Private Museum Director

More money will go into the collection than your pay packet.

A healthy mix between butler school, art history studies, finance, and practical event agency experience. Shipping background is plus.

RECOMMENDED STUDIES

When your boss is off to his holiday home in the South of France for the next six weeks.

BEST MOMENT

Budget discussions: You still have not found the secret of how the revenues can exceed the costs.

FEARFUL MOMENTS

Some art fairs and conferences e.g. privatemuseumconference.com, otherwise people come to you.

TRAVEL PENSUM

More MBA than Art History.

UNTOLD FACTS IN JOB INTERVIEWS 21

The traditional path: studies, travels to Italy, meditation classes.

When you managed to fix the broken Kusama pumpkin, so it doesn't look like a badly glued granny tea cup.

If you start to remove a minor stain on a canvas, and suddenly you have a major unexpected chemical reaction.

Florence, Florence, Florence.

The UV lamp does not lie.

JUNGLE

Condo for Kanye Simon de Pury on Art and Music p. 30

Gorgeous Jungle Masterpieces on a Budget p. 24 / Condo for Kanye p. 30 / The Modern Romantic p. 36 23

Cheat Sheet

JUNGLE

Masterpieces on a Budget Most art works you like are out of your budget. It‘s just as simple.

We feel it is time to save you from plastering your walls with LUMAS prints (yes, certainly there are also nice ones) and rather give you some guidance, on how to re-master contemporary masterpieces. Like Bob Ross taught us how to paint the perfect sunset, we share with you the list of ingredients needed to upgrade your private collection.

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Hommage to Yayoi Kusama

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Hommage to Daniel Arsham

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+ 26

Hommage to Campana Brothers

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Hommage to Jeff Koons

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M I E H N E P P O ME R E T F F U C R A E S NAKE E A R C L IP, L IM

IT E D E DIT IO N

WWW.GEMSANDLADDERS.COM 29

Condo for Kanye Auctioneer and art specialist Simon de Pury, in conversation with Anneli Botz on Kanye West, Jay-Z, auction concerts and the potential of music to change the art world.

Kanye West is a big collector of George Condo’s work, and the artist collaborated with him on five different versions of the cover for his My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy album

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connection to music – like the Michael J a c k s o n p r i nt s – m a d e b y A n d y Warhol or the cover for the band “The Hours” by Damien Hirst. There are many pieces of contemporary art that depict musicians or have some kind of reference to music. Then there are also many musicians who have done great artwork themselves such as Bob Dylan, David Bowie, Miles Davis. We would combine such music referencing auctions with a DJ set, played by the musician Matthew Herbert. Herbert started to adapt the music accordingly to the piece up for sale. For instance, a portrait of Beyoncé Knowles clearly required a Beyoncé song, which led to a great example of how music encourages the audience. People bid in the rhythm of the music, and it led to a complete fusion of music and art.

During the music auctions, a special kind of audience came to the shows. The Damien Hirst album covers, for instance, were bought by people mainly interested in music. This way a different access to art was found. It was a nice extension to the usual audience we were accustomed to.

Over the past twenty years, an interesting change has happened regarding the crossover between art and music. At the auction house, we have had thought about many ways on how to get art and music together but it were actually the Hip Hop artists who enabled a more direct contact between their profession and the art world. The first one to really do so was Kanye West, who commissioned many artists throughout the years. When he asked Takashi Murakami to design the artwork for his album, Murakami created his famous bear sculpture that also ended up to be on the cover. Again it was West, who called up George Condo.

Condo, by the way a very talented musician at the guitar himself, had never heard of Kanye West, which was quite unbelievable to everyone. Nevertheless, he took the job and designed another cover for West. Unfortunately, you hardly ever get to see the full version of this artwork, as it shows a woman’s breast with nipples, and those are usually highly pixelated, even on iTunes.

Then t here was Jay-Z who did t he song Pica sso Baby t hat he recorded at the Pace Gallery, Downtown New York. As a performance piece, he danced with a number of people and amongst them artist Marina Abramović. Ultimately, Jay-Z had turned himself into art. Kanye West and Jay-Z also composed a song together, based on an original by Otis Redding. In the video, they dismantled and crashed a Maybach in New York. This car was then sold at a contemporary auction at Phillips. During the auction, we had an incredible number of teenagers stopping by to look at the car. Finally, a Chinese collector bought it for her eighteen-year old daughter as a graduation gift.

Warhol was commissioned by Time magazine to paint Michael Jackson’s portrait in 1984

Image credit: DISCOGS, Time.com

“i

have always been as interested in music as I have been interested in art. One, I follow with passion, the other, I make a living of. At a point in my career, I thought about how to merge both worlds, how to establish a crossover between art and music.

This was the starting point of having concerts at auctions, which turned into quite a tradition ever since. The first auction concert we did, starred “George Clinton and the P-Funk All Stars”. George Clinton, who is known as the godfather of funk, went on stage with a band of eighteen people right after the auction. They were basically hidden in a cloud of marijuana, and everyone had the time of their life. I vividly remember Cindy Sherman dancing on stage. Another time “Kid Creole and the Coconuts” were playing.

At this auction, we were selling a fish tank by Damien Hirst.

Everyone was dancing around the tank, and I felt the fish were slightly irritated with what they were witnessing outside the glass.

But the tank sold. Which is also one of the main keys why we had these concerts: they were supposed to bring joy to the auction, just as much as they were meant to gather a fun crowd that would be encouraged to buy art.

One time in London, we organized a marathon auction of Russian art, followed by a collection of Chinese art. Right when the last blow of the hammer went down, the curtain fell, and Nile Rogers and Chic started performing Le Freak, C’Est Chic. This concert happened even before Nile Rogers got big with his hit Let’s get lucky tonight; it was fantastic. We loved inviting these bands from the eighties because their music was great and also they were not as pricy as the top bands. These concerts usually turned into parties. When we invited “The Human League,” with their wonderful hit Don’t you want me, the neighbors started complaining because of the noise. But we let them keep playing until the police came and literally cut off the power.

After a while, we also started doing music auctions at Phillips, which basically meant that we were selling artworks that had some

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De Pury in action: Swinging the gavel along with DJ Matthew Herbert Fine Art meets Hip Hop: Takashi Murakami and Kanye West The album cover for Graduation by Kanye West was designed by Takashi Murakami

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Image credit: The Otis Maybach via Phillips Auction, GQ, Tumblr, Wikipedia

clockwise Kanye West and Jay-Z collaborated for their song Otis. In its accompanying video clip, they dismantled and crashed a Maybach, which was then sold at a contemporary auction at Phillips

Image credit: Instagram

The artist is present. No, two artists are present: Jay-Z and Marina Abramović at Manhattan’s Pace Gallery, performing Picasso Baby

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main differences is that music is often produced in collaboration with others, whereas art is mainly created in complete isolation.

In the eighties, I saw a number of concerts where musicians also did art work, like Graffiti on stage at the same time. I never w itnessed a ny t hing great coming from t hat, so not every merger of music and art is productive. However, what is great about the current times is that people accept an artist to also be a musician or the other way around. This kind of diversity was not possible for a long time. You were focused on one field, and that would be it. Take Victor Hugo, who was not only a great writer, but also an artist with an exceptional skill for drawing. Yet, he is only known for his written work.

People have to distance themselves from being biased by the things they know the artist or musician by. Just because you are a great artist does not mean you can not be an outstanding musician as well.

About sixteen to twenty years ago, we produced a soundtrack to accompany the auction. This caused quite a discussion among colleagues, as apparently they felt bothered by the sound. But my point was always that we have to distinguish ourselves from others, that we have to be different from the established competition. When I went to Christie’s last Sunday for a viewing, they played all kind of contemporary music. Today, nobody opposes anymore.

I think, in the future, the crossover between music and art evokes the complete opposite: Silence. Now, music and sound are everywhere. There is hardly a place, a restaurant or a cafe, that does not play any kind of music. So people might start longing for absolute silence. There should always be the right balance for everything.

Pop music was very rebellious in the sixties, but then got more and more mainstream, followed by fashion, which also became more and more mainstream. And now, this is the same for art.

These are just some examples of crossovers between music and art, and I think they helped art to become more mainstream.

Pop music was very rebellious in the sixties, but then got more and more mainstream, followed by fashion, which also became more and more mainstream. And now this is the same for art.

Most of the big artists are sold outside the small circles of art loving insiders these days. And the influence of Hip Hop in this development is crucial. The idea of collaboration is deeply rooted in that culture. I saw a Kanye West concert in Las Vegas, where he had asked the artist Vanessa Beecroft to take care of the whole enactment of his show on stage. He is probably the one artist that has been working the most interdisciplinary, crossing all kind of borders between music, art, fashion and film. Unfortunately, people often seem to underestimate his influence, as his personality polarizes.

Although artists and musicians are both artists, I guess one of the

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Image credit: Jeff Koons Instagram

Jay-Z is performing in front of a 40-foot Jeff Koons Balloon Dog

Founded in St-Tropez in 1971

vilebrequin.com

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Discover our collaboration with the artist Alex Israel

How a modern

romantic embraces feminine beauty

Photographer ANOUSKA BECKWITH Writer ANNELI BOTZ

Yuka’s Snapcxxxxxxxxxxhat, 2016

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Entwined With Birds Of Hope, 2016

Do Not Be Lonely, 2014

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Dissolution, 2014

“Feminism is coming through society more and more.

There is something going on in the air, whether it is the Women’s March, or even Beyoncé at the Grammys, who presented herself as a Hindu Goddess.„

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this year. Her pictures speak a distinguished and coherent pictorial language, often putting the Ceremony, 2016 female in the center and evoking a free-spirited (Collaboration with Anika Nixdorf) vibe that additionally brings to mind the romantic iconography of Pre-Raphaelite paintings. However, her British heritage does not play a dominant role in the overall presence of her oeuvre, or for that matter, in her perception of citizenship.

“I don’t feel very British. My dad ’s side of the family is German-American, so I grew up a lot in America. I have been privileged to travel quite a bit, so I kind of have always seen myself as a citizen of the world rather than from just one country. I have a lot of love for England, but when I am creating, my superior inf luence is nature. I feel that this is something much more powerful than any kind of country or state. I definitely feel like Mother Earth is something that needs to be protected rather than being dominated. And then there is the feminine aspect in my work, which is rea lly important and picks up on an atmosphere I recognize a lot these days, as I feel like feminism is coming through society more and more. There is definitely something going on in the air, whether it is the Women’s March with millions of women around t he world, or even Beyoncé at t he Gra mmys, who presented herself as a Hindu Goddess, the embodiment of femininity itself. I feel like we are coming to a nouska Beckwith is a photographer based in London. time where, in order to have great changes in the world, we need Her ar t work evolves around topics of feminism, to rebalance the patriarchal society that we have been dominated nature, and the esoteric and is an ode to beauty itself. by for so long, basically run by men who think that money and Though she has found her passion in her occupation, her path to greed are the most important things. But if we don’t have a planet fulfillment is a good example of how important it is to stay opento live on, money is not going to be worth anything.” minded to find your vocation, both professionally and in life.

Beckwith’s distinct views on feminism and gender equality don’t stem from nothing, nor does her urge to create. Growing up in “I lived in London until I was twenty-three, then I started moving a household surrounded by strong women and an encouraging around, to New York, to LA. I wanted to be an actress, but it was family, the roots for her artistic mindset and free-spirited nature coming to the surface that the industry wasn’t making me very were set at a young age. Nevertheless, having London as her home happy. I started doing a bit of soul searching and thought about base also challenged her to make some tough decisions early on. what I liked doing outside of performing. I realized that I had “My mother had me very young, and we lived with my grandalways taken photographs and really loved doing that. So I tried parents together with my aunt. Then I would see my dad’s side of it out for six months to see whether I would also enjoy pursuing the family every week, and I was brought up in a household with this as a career, and it turned out I did. So I decided to go and lots of love. My mother was always taking me to exhibitions and study photography for a year, as I was also keen to learn more art events and had a lot of creative friends around. Creativity about the digital approach of the medium. I always wished to live was a major influence from the day one in my life, and my whole in Paris and had thought this might be happening a bit later in family encouraged me to pursue what I loved in all aspects. my life, but then I felt Paris would be the perfect place for me to Essentially, as I got older, I went through a slight teenage rebellion do my studies. It is a great surrounding for a creative person; it as most teenagers do. I kind of followed the darkness slightly is visually inspiring and very romantic. So I moved to Paris and more. Growing up in London was quite intense, and I think you went to school there.” mature quickly. It ended up making me feel very depressed. I Though Beckwith fell in love even more with the art of photothen realized it was not very healthy and not necessarily the right graphy in the year of her studies, she did not feel ready to exhibit place for me at that stage. I did not really know who my friends on her own after finishing school – a fear that she quickly turned were and surrounded myself with people in not great situations into something positive. sometimes. I think I was quite lost, and I did not have the tools to “I was very nervous at the time. Instead of having a solo show, I find myself.” created the collective “World Wide Women,” which originally It was not until a radical and unfortunately sad moment in the started with eight women but grew from there. We promoted artist’s life that she changed her path and opened up a new way of female empowerment through creativity. The collective was life to herself. supposed to highlight that there are no social boundaries in terms “When I was twenty-two, my grandmother got sick, and ultiof creativity. I see the world as a rainbow family; we all have the mately she died. This was when I really started looking at what same hopes and dreams and desires, and it does not matter where made me happy. I had not really consciously thought about you are from – essentially, we all have the ability to create.” that beforehand. I was living in somewhat of a complex where I By now, Beckwith has long overcome her initial fear, and her work thought that things were being done to me rather than feeling has been honored with two solo shows in New York and London like I had power over my own life. So I went on a spiritual and a third one is coming up at the Saatchi Gallery in London

I’m happy when the viewer allows himself or herself to get lost in it so it becomes their world too

a

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Fantome, A Story of Ophelia, 2015

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other than paying bills and taxes? Most grown-ups in their seventies who I speak to, still feel like they are still eighteen inside.”

Although she consciously turns away from an overload of the media-focused world, her artwork and its nature-driven core is not a counteraction toward the rise of digitization.

“I just like to create beauty. I feel like there is enough ugliness out there, and I don’t want to feed more ugliness into the system. I want to inspire others to create beauty of their own, to empower, and spread a message of hope. I want to connect to the divine, as I fully believe there is magic in the world.

Real magic. And I have seen and experienced it. In life, it is not good to be an extremist, and I would certainly not want to dictate my way of living to anyone else. It is just a suggestion.

A long w it h m i xe d me d i a a nd photog r aphy, I have b e en creating an installation room, and I have also been working on short f ilms and a music video. However, if there is one coherency within my work, it would and will be the focus on nature, the esoteric, and the feminine.”

The esoteric has not only been a guideline in Beckwith’s artistic career but is also incorporated in her daily life.

“I created an altar, which I give prayers to when I get up in the morning. It is not about praying to god necessarily, but rather to the universe. There are a lot of general things, no-brainers,

Womb IV, 2016

that will still have an effect on your everyday life: smiling at people, looking them in the eyes, just these basic things.

Things that get less and less and which make people sometimes even think that you want something from them. When you are shining or smiling at them, they think that it is a weird thing to be doing, although it is actually the opposite. And if you are spreading this positivity around, it will come back to you.

Not every day is perfect, and everyone has moments and mood swings, but I think if you can notice when you are not being positive, it’s quite a stark contrast to when you are in a bit of a mood, and things are not going as you wanted, and there is not a f low to life. So I kind of try to stay positive and happy and share that with people as much as possible.”

Beckwith’s generally focused, level-headed, and peaceful approach to life is also true for the way that she deals with criticism and an overall judgment of her artwork.

“Obviously criticism is nothing that anyone particularly enjoys.

But art is very subjective, so out of ten people, five might like it, and five might not. I feel like you need to be at peace with yourself and be fine with the fact that not everybody is going to love what you do. And not everyone is going to like you as a person either, and that’s okay. Because if you have positive people around you, then that should not even bother you. If what you are working on does not work out, you go back to the drawing board, and start again. As an artist, you can never really know what will sell and be popular until it is, or it isn’t. There is no primal reason why somebody is successful. It has a lot to do with luck and time, and how much you are able to sell yourself.

But the most important starting point is that you are proud of what you do.”

journey and tried different types of practise. Throughout this process, I realized that a more pagan and shamanic culture suited me, which then ended up becoming a way of life for me. When I look at my life, I see that there was a moment of a lot of pain and sadness, but weirdly, the loss of somebody so close to me, prepared me to see and to live in the light and to seek happiness in everyday moments, even when you are really suffering. It is important that you are loved and that tomorrow is another day.”

Living in the times of digital media, Internet, and rapid changes of our current times has led Anouska Beckwith to steer her life in a more conscious direction that has a lot to do with the liberal expression of her creativity.

“We are living in a time right now where the world is quite uncertain. For our generation, sometimes it is diff icult to have hope when you are constantly being told by so many different sources that we are at the point of the apocalypse.

Every generation has had that, but it is more in your face now because of the intensity of the media. So you have to find a surrounding that will offer you support. And for me that was finding people on a spiritual path. But obviously that is not for everyone. It might be joining a dance class; it might be having a singing group. Being creative or letting the inner child come out is really the key. We are all told to grow up way too fast and not be a child. But you need to be a grown-up and take responsibility, and I think: What does being a grown-up mean

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Image credit: Anouska Beckwith

I just like to create beauty.

I feel like there is enough ugliness out there.

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STYLE

How to Dress Like a Bonnet Girl Like you, we get most of our fashion inspo from Instagram, models, and models on Instagram p. 54

Gorgeous Style The Muse Who Married Art With Fashion p. 46 / How to Dress Like a Bonnet Girl p. 54 / Raise Your Paddles! p. 61 / Kenny Deconstructed p. 63 45

The Muse Who Married Art With Fashion The Instagram sensation Pari Ehsan aka @paridust matches high-end couture with artworks from around the world. By combining these visual wonderlands, she opens new windows to make art and fashion accessible to a wide audience.

Writer CAIT MUNRO

Photograph by Tylor Hóu

STYLE Justin Adian, Skarstedt

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Sunset Tower, Los Angeles

Photograph by Jason Gringler

i

n New York, the rarefied worlds of fashion and contemporary art have many occasions to blend, and when they do, Pari Ehsan is almost always at the epicenter. As the face of the beloved art-meetsfashion blog Pari Dust, Ehsan seamlessly weaves the city’s most talked-about exhibitions (most recently, Daniel Buren’s at Bortolami Gallery and the artist-designed jewelry curated by Celia Forner at Hauser & Wirth) together with pieces picked from the runways of major houses like Chanel and Missoni as well as from up-and-coming designers like Marques’Almeida, Dorateymur, and ALYX. The results are fashion mag-worthy shoots that serve as inspiration for both outfits and afternoons spent gallery-hopping.

All this may make Ehsan sound rather intimidating, but, in reality, she’s anything but. Our meeting at Ludlow House, to which Ehsan wore an oversized white button down and slim-leg trousers paired with a classic Chanel crossbody, involved drinking rosé out of red Solo cups and discussing her recent move to a new apartment, following a period of time spent reluctantly couch surfing. It takes about five minutes to realize that Ehsan isn’t in it for the fame or the clothes or even the massive (203k, to be exact) Instagram following. Instead, she views her platform as a way to champion the work of her many artist and designer friends, collaborate with people she looks up to, and, as cheesy as it may sound, inspire others to follow their passions and lead visually rich lives.

When you’re being a character and you’re giving yourself to the art, it’s such a different thing. Stepping outside of myself helps me feel different. It’s a bit of a performance.

To start out, can you tell me a bit about Pari Dust, and how it got its start? What inspired you to want to make a website?

I’m glad you asked about the website, because that is truly where it all started. A lot of people, I guess, think of it more as an Instagram, but

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that’s where it started. The idea was to have, like, this diary of things I wanted to create over time. I had it in my mind that I was going to do this blog for a while, and at first it was going to be collages from old interior design magazines and contemporary fashion magazines and stuff, and I was collaging those images on top of each other, and I thought that was what I was going to put up on the website. And then I was taking a photo for my interior design website − which never came to be − and I was with my friend and photographer at the galleries in Chelsea, and I happened to be matching this painting. I was wearing a fur jacket and you know how the colors in Helen Frankenthaler’s pieces are so specific? It was this blush color and the texture of the fur kind of looked like the brush strokes in the painting. And so I was like, “wait, that’s the idea! I should perform these dialogues and photograph them, and that’s what I want to put out − something that’s more original.” I liked the idea of it being an exhibition that was current, that people could actually go and see themselves, because a part of a human interacting with an art piece, is people imagining themselves there.

Worlds are so merged now and the idea of keeping someone out of an art gallery who isn’t interested in buying something, is really antiquated at this point.

That’s not cool. Anyone should be able to see art.

Photograph by Kelly Elaine Smith

So when you take these photos, do you go see the show first and then figure out the clothes, or how does all that work?

Usually, the art comes first. I see something and be like, ‘I want to shoot this,’ and then it’s about finding the perfect look or some collaboration that I want to do. So I think about it for a long time. Sometimes it’s more spontaneous, and it happens faster, and it’s nice to have those − the slow and thoughtful and then the more impulsive, ‘ohmygod, I need to shoot this before it ends’ ones − but, usually, the art is the inspiration point.

Or a movement of art that I’m really interested in, like right now I’m really into Arte Povera. So I’ve been thinking about it a lot, and a couple of things have come up, like at Magazzino in Cold Spring [New York], it just opened in June, and it’s these two collectors [Nancy Olnick and Giorgio Spanu] who have a house nearby in Hudson, and they’ve been conceptualizing a place for their Arte Povera collection for a while, and it’s just literally − ‘magazzino’ means warehouse in Italian − and the architecture of the space is just absolutely stunning. Since those are very experiential, it’s nice to have them in a space that was thought for that type of work.

When I was thinking about you and this story, I was thinking about how I think styling is actually very similar to curating. Would you agree with that?

I’ve never thought about it that way, but it’s very true. Especially when you’re doing multiple looks − even in one look, there’s still that

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Miller House, Architecture by Eero Saarinen, Interiors by Alexander Girard

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So that actually leads to my next question, which is about the convergence of art and fashion, and how art people can often be so weird about fashion. Because I feel like fashion people typically love art and the art world, while artists and art people can sometimes be really closed off to fashion. I’m wondering if you have any insight into why that is?

It’s weird. I think it’s about fear. It’s about putting things on a pedestal and having them land a certain price in front of a certain audience and there’s fear of pushing that off. Like, turning it into some kind of free-for-all or something. But I believe that fear is just about the worst thing. If you’re at least able to hear what the other person is saying − and a lot of people are able to do that, which is so nice − so if you can articulate an idea and a concept that is meaningful and compelling, even the hardest critic will hear you out. And sometimes it’s surprising. Someone you think will say no or someone who has said no in the past, if you go to them with a new idea, they’re sometimes going to say yes. And I think there’s this idea that the fashion world is vapid.

aspect − but when it’s a story, definitely. I just shot something for Editorialist magazine, and we did it at the Mystical Symbolism exhibit at the Guggenheim, and we had to shoot the looks separately, which I had never done before. So we shot the show, and we shot in the studio and collaged me into the images. And the styling was really specific − I’m really excited and happy with it. It’s a true curation of all these designers who I thought tied together. They’re all European designers.

In these shots, you’re basically modeling. Did you have experience doing that before? How did you get comfortable in front of the camera?

I looked at my friends in high school, and I felt like they had way more confidence [than I did]. I always felt not very confident in photos. But I always danced, so I felt like if I could not be myself, I could be more comfortable, and that’s kind of the same thing with this. Because it’s me stepping outside myself. I personally still feel very awkward being photographed in real life.

Really?

Yeah, definitely. This has helped. But when you’re being a character, and you’re giving yourself to the art or the show, it’s such a different thing.

For me, it’s stepping outside of myself, and it helps me feel different. It’s a bit of a performance, you know?

Which is funny, because in my experience, the fashion world is not all that different from the art world.

I agree. And some fashion designers, what they reference, if you really look at it, it’s really insane. It’s brilliant. I think this whole hierarchy − I don’t know how I feel about it, I go back and forth, because I am friends with a lot of artists, and I don’t know if you saw recently, the whole Brad Troemel thing [in which designer Vika Gazinskaya allegedly plagiarized Troemel’s work].

What was the process of building your audience and finding your readership? Did it all happen very quickly?

It did! I think that for a while I was just doing it, and it was just my mom and some of my friends who thought it was cool [reading the website].

But I didn’t care, because I was really into it. I got obsessed with doing it because it felt very me and very much a confluence of all the things I had studied and all of my passions. It made me feel balanced, because I practiced architecture before [launching the site], which did not make me feel balanced. It felt very rigid, practicing architecture. There wasn’t enough of an expressive side, and I wasn’t happy. I think that when you do something you love, people notice. You have to work hard at it, and you have to think about it, and you have to do it well, but I think that in that sense, it all happened really fast.

Oh yeah, I did.

Yeah, and that’s messed up. And Vika Gazinskaya, I like her stuff, I’ve shot her stuff before. I really liked her. But that is so not cool.

And I guess that happens a lot to artists.

Yeah. And a lot of times it’s probably not intentional. But it was fascinating to me to observe that whole dialogue [between Troemel and Gazinskaya on Instagram]. Because I don’t know what she was thinking.

It just was strange. Because Brad is so smart and such a good artist, and he’s so critical and sharp and witty and all of these things. It’s the wrong person you could have picked to knock off.

You were also doing something that no one else had really thought of.

I think it was the right time. It wasn’t as oversaturated. I don’t like to compare myself to anyone; I like to exist in a vacuum, but I love to collaborate with people. I think that’s part of the joy. I love to learn about what other people are into and their art and their expertise.

But yeah, I think I hit it at the right time. And the worlds are so merged now, and the idea of keeping someone out of an art gallery who isn’t interested in buying something, is really antiquated at this point. That’s not cool. It’s just not. Anyone should be able to see art. I think that it’s a beautiful thing. That’s been kind of broken down. And I understand both sides, there’s two sides to everything.

[Art is] something the galleries are trying to protect and not make trivial, but it’s interesting how every different institution reacts when I ask them permission to shoot. It’s really all over the map.

Yeah, because he’s not just going to lay down, and take it. He’s going to come for you.

Yeah, and he’s funny. I think there are a lot of struggling artists − and a lot of struggling fashion designers, too − I think everyone’s just trying to make it, and do their best. And be able to work. New York is tough.

I’m curious about what’s happening with Pari Dust these days. I feel like it’s really turned into more than just a blog, and I love all these really indepth interviews with artists that you’ve been doing. What’s next?

I’m glad you asked that because I have so much that I want to do but I’m only one person! I have someone who is helping me now and she’s amazing, but it was hard for me to bring someone else on to help me, because I’m so specific, but I realized that in order to expand and grow, you can’t if you’re physically just one person. So she’s helped me to be able to do a lot of things. And one of the things that I’m going to launch any day now is called The Board and it’s going to be a monthly curation of exhibitions to see all over the world. And I’m excited about it because I do feel strongly about these things that I see and I do get to travel a lot and I do see things that aren’t just art, but fashion or music, and I’ve been

Really? I would assume they would all be psyched, because it’s such good publicity for them.

Well, now it is more that. Now they’re usually really gracious and welcoming, but sometimes the artist doesn’t want it, or the institution is too busy to think about it. Or they’re nervous.

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Photographs by Tylor Hรณu

clockwise Ugo Rondinone, Seven Magic Mountains; Paola Pivi, Galerie Perrotin; Adam Silverman, Friedman Benda; Katharina Grosse, Rockaway!

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Philippe Decrauzat, Elizabeth Dee

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Hanuk

Photographs by Tylor Hóu

wanting a place to put it all up. For people in the art world, it’s easy to navigate the scene, but sometimes there’s just so much going on. You just need it curated for you. Or if you have a different type of job, and on a Saturday you just wanna go see some things, I want to be a resource for that. It’s a natural elevation. So for this month, I started with ten exhibits, and some of them are well-known, but some of them aren’t. And it’s nice to have a place for that without necessarily having to go shoot it, because I just couldn’t. Maybe someday I will be able to, and that’s how I envision this platform, for it to be like an online magazine.

don’t like lots of stuff. It’s hard for me to wear jewelry − I love it, but it’s hard for me to wear it in real life. I’m very minimal. I love silhouettes and cuts. I’ve always been obsessed with cuts that are sculptural.

What advice do you have for young women who are on a career track they don’t love and want to quit it and go into something creative like you did?

I have a lot of strong thoughts on that. First of all, you only live once, so if you’re living with a lot of fear, you have to find something to help with that. For me, I started meditating right before I started my website and it really helped me break down a lot of fear. And I think it helped me tap into what was already there that I wanted to create, but for some reason felt so hard. And then it felt so easy and so natural. So I think finding a meditative practice that resonates with you is the first step. And then, I think, after that, once you break through what your expectations are and the pressures you feel surrounding you − and those will always be there − but once you get over them and tap into what it is that you want to create, social media is amazing. You can do anything. The possibilities are endless. It would have taken me years to grow [the website without social media], but it grew so quickly because of this tool. But you have to exist in a vacuum. You can’t look at other people. Like I really just didn’t look at other blogs, I really just thought about what I wanted to say. For me, it’s about what value you’re giving. What are you seeking that you can’t find? Be a source of value. Because there’s a lot of noise and being noise isn’t sustainable. So finding a valuable idea or concept or service − it could be anything − that you want to share with others, I think that’s a good place to start. Just think about adding value.

Has there been a moment when you realized that what you’re doing with the site is really making an impact on people?

That definitely is a goal; the whole idea of being able to expose someone to art, especially in a part of the world where maybe their parents can’t take them to an art museum, and maybe they see someone, and they wanna research their work and maybe they become an artist, maybe they become a curator. Maybe it just sparks something in them. That’s the goal − being inspired. Isn’t that what everyone always is searching for? I think so, too, my dad is from Iran and my mom is American, I’ve always had all these cultures coming together, and I loved growing up like that with so many different perspectives. It’s caused me to be a very open-minded person. But I think that since we are such a global world − with social media and the ability to connect with anybody in a moment, from wherever − it’s a beautiful resource that should be used. It can be such a great tool, and I want to use that.

How would you describe your personal style?

Minimalistic and architectural. I always tend to be really pared-down. I

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How to Dress Like a Bonnet Girl Like you, we get most of our fashion inspo from Instagram, models, and models on Instagram. But what if we looked to art to help us get dressed everyday? After all, it is always nice to blend in with your surroundings. Painter Louise Bonnet’s figures all have one thing in common: cartoonishly large, bulbous noses. The kind that dip into their water glasses and obscure the rest of their features. Humorous and melancholic at the same time, Bonnet’s figures are too surreal to be aspirational (at least, in the traditional sense), but that doesn’t mean they don’t have style.

Writer CAIT MUNRO

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Veil and Thumb, 2017

A Good Haircut Changes Everything While Bonnet’s women have what you might call – were they real people, ‘unconventional’ facial structures – they also rock shiny, lustrous, shampoo-commercial hair. There’s a ‘70s vibe to their long, middle-parted locks, which are occasionally embellished with a flower peeking out from behind the ear (think of it as a low-key, significantly less obnoxious way to channel the Coachella flower crown goddess). It just goes to show that a good blowout and a great colorist can make literally anyone look glam.

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The Pros, 2015

Channel Your Inner Sporty Spice Okay, so you haven’t been to the gym in over three months − who cares? You need not possess actual athletic prowess in order to dress like you do. So take your cues from Bonnet’s tennis champs and rock nautical colors like blue and white in crisp, clean silhouettes. The look is two parts country club, one part 60’s summer camp, and it’s sure to make you feel instantly prettier and more put together. And should you feel motivated to pop the freshly starched collar on your monogrammed polo shirt, well, I say, go for it.

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The Bubbly Water, 2016

Embrace Your Oddness So you’ve got a big nose or crooked lips or bad skin or squinty eyes, or whatever perceived flaw haunts you whenever you look in the mirror. So what? If Bonnet’s characters teach us anything, it’s that everyone feels like they have something wrong with them, and these flaws tend to appear much larger in our own minds than they do IRL. Go forth, and love yourself (and your giant nose)!

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De-Sexify Those Old Going-Out-Tops A few years ago – it may have been the aughts, but it may also have been simply whenever it was you were in college − the uniform for a night on the town was designer jeans and some manner of “going-out-top.” Going-outtops usually have at least one of the following characteristics: sparkly, embellished, hard to get on (but easy to get off) and unable to be worn with a regular bra. As times have changed, and our fashion senses have matured beyond “things frat boys will find hot,” the going out top has gone out of style. But here’s a thought: Why not take a cue from this Bonnet girl and slip a silk blouse under one of those buckle-embellished halters you’ve got sitting in the back of your closet? Provided, it’s not still stained with cheap beer, of course.

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Image courtesy: Louise Bonnet

The Ice Skater, 2015

The Daisy, 2016

Put on a Turtleneck Nothing is more inadvertently sexy than a perfectly fitting turtleneck, especially when you allow just a little bit of nipple to poke through, Ă la Rachel from Friends. Tuck your turtle into trousers for a professional ensemble (maybe leave the nips at home for that) or rock one under one of the aforementioned going out tops for a layered look.

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Kenny Deconstructed With his honest and satirical scans, multifaceted London-based dealer, curator, writer, and artist Kenny Schachter is known for deconstructing the art market. You might know that he is a passionate collector of vintage cars but do you know the basics of his personal style? We do. Vintage track pants are just one of them.

The frames are

by LINDBERG (Eyes On Soho, 13 Ingestre Place, London).

The frames held together by a tightly wound titanium coil. I bought enough pairs to last me till I die.

Photo credit: Leon Chew

Richard Prince Protest Painting from 1990. The painting is formally based on the shape of a protest sign with a selection of Prince’s classic New Yorker style jokes overlaid: “I’ve been married for thirty years to the same woman. If my wife ever find out, she’ll kill me.” After a decades long career, and nearing 70 years-old, the artist is still pushing buttons and provoking not just the art world but the world at large. A man after my own heart.

Stack of newspapers and supplements: In the UK on a given weekend, there are 3x as many newspapers and magazine sections as New York where I am originally from. As a journalist/ artist/curator/dealer I can’t help myself but to hoard them. Observer, Guardian, Telegraph, The Times, Daily Mail, the Sun, The Financial Times. Fun to collect!

Vintage Adidas track pants from the 1990s. Shamefully, I live in them (comfort dressing).

Somehow they became fashionable.

Asics sneakers which I have been wearing for decades; I spice up the geriatric sensibility of the shoes with sparkling laces from www.biglaces.com.

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CANDY

From Boomerang to Emojis 20 Tips to Boost Your Social Media Presence p. 78

Gorgeous Candy The Ultimate Museum Horoscope p. 66 20 Tips to Boost Your Social Media Presence p. 78 / The Art/Fair Warning p. 86 / The Very Honest Gallerist p. 88 65

CANDY

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The Ultimate Museum Horoscope Without a doubt, astrology aficionados are the most curious to know the zodiac’s perceptions on concepts of the self and interpersonal compatibility. Astrology as a topic is as infinite as the very subject matter it explores. But why begin and end the subject of astrological inquiry at humans? We can understand the identities of our technological devices, historical events, homes, beloved pets, and even our country’s political trajectory, when properly explored with astrology. The ancient dictate of “As Above, So Below” is as inclusive as it gets. Even our favourite museums have a resonating astrological signature the universe gave them that correlates to their historical beginnings, the artistic mediums they carry, and the cultural momentum they commenced on opening day.

Writer COLIN BEDELL Illustration CHRISTINA X. MUI

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Metropolitan Museum of Art

ARIES Leave it to an Aries-born museum, the very first sign in our zodiac beginning on the Spring Equinox to be ranked the number one museum in the United States.

Opened on April 13th, 1870, the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET) in New York City is the largest and most celebrated American museum. Boasting magnificent Aries architecture, the MET offers 5,000 years of art inside a splendid Victorian infrastructure; a rich range of national and international collections from antiques to contemporary forms, a temple from ancient Egypt next to Central Park, and even the Anna Wintour Costume Center. Whatever Aries does, Aries insists on doing it larger than life, and the MET is an awe-inspiring space of larger than life grandeur.

The MET is so Aries that its entire mission statement only reads, “The Metropolitan Museum of Art collects, studies, conserves, and presents significant works of art across all times and cultures in order to connect people to creativity, knowledge, and ideas.” Nothing more. The MET has no time to explain ad infinitum it’s purpose because Aries energy is so painfully obvious. Directly to the point, the MET speaks about its purpose succinctly, and I love it. I mean, do Aries Diana Ross or Mariah Carey have to explain what they do? No. Neither does the MET.

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TAURUS

Rockbund Art Museum Tate Modern

On Earth Day, the first day of Taurus season begins in the dead of spring.

The second sign in the zodiac calendar but the very first Earth sign, Taurus is concerned with the valuable preservation of aesthetics in the beautiful months of April and May. With gentle nods to tradition, and an acute understanding of the contemporary’s place in the artistic industries, Venus-ruled Taurus always welcomes modern sensibility. That’s why the Rockbund in Shanghai and the Tate Modern in London are both renovated historical spaces with contemporary artistic focus. The Rockbund Art Museum (RAM) opened on May 4th, 2010.

Interestingly, the RAM building was first opened in 1932 originally as the Royal Asiatic Society (RAS) where it was celebrated as a temple to the artdeco movement, brimming with contemporary art, lectures, and cross cultural conversations between Europe and Shanghai. A rich zeitgeist of the pre-World War II moment in time, RAS closed its doors in 1952. 58 years later, the RAM opened in the same space. The RAM in its true Taurus tenacity began a larger political project which strives to renovate heritage Chinese spaces and revitalize cultural conversation. Taurus always seeks to preserve and sustain beauty albeit practically. There’s hardly a better architectural way to do just than the repurposing of landmarks.

Less than a week after the RAM opened in Shanghai, the Tate Modern opened in London on May 12th, 2010 with a parallel Taurus pattern, of course. As a homage to the original 1897 Tate Britain – which is the largest curator of British art since 1500 – the 2010 Tate Modern respects tradition as its namesake, but recognizes the value of contemporary artistic reflections in England. In typical Taurus old made new fashion, the Tate Modern was formerly a power station for the surrounding towns. Extensive renovations were executed to recycle the oil tanks, simplify the interiors, and strengthen the sustainable development of the museum, so that the space allowed for grand displays of contemporary art. Its totally Taurus materiality and emphasis on recycled elements for is jaw-dropping as the interior architecture honors Taurus’ ruling planet Venus beautifully. Its young age doesn’t deter Taurus Tate from being ranked as the 4th most nationally visited and 6th globally visited museums. When Taurus does something, its energy does it right the first time, and the Tate is no exception.

GEMINI

Van Gogh Museum

In the 1880 Letter to Theo, Vincent Van Gogh wrote to his brother, “For my part I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream.”

The Van Gogh Museum dedicated to Van Gogh’s starry eyed post-impressionist paintings opened in the third zodiac season of Gemini season on June 2nd, 1973. As the sign of the twins, Gemini is happy to celebrate and mirror the accomplishments of another. This resonates with the Gemini museum reflecting the work of an Aries avatar artist and his contemporaries. Collaboration is the name of the Gemini’s game. Speaking of twos, the Van Gogh museum even has two buildings holding the collections – the Rietveld building and the Kurokawa.

Another high-minded Gemini quality of the Van Gogh museum is its floor to ceiling windows, open floor plan, and maximum airflow. As an air sign, Gemini needs liberated spaces to feel safe, and the Van Gogh museum has a beautiful quality of bringing the outdoor infinity into the indoor perimeter. How very Gemini to incorporate a very dual awareness in everything it can to celebrate Van Gogh in the museum named after him.

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Louvre

LEO There are many connections between the iconic French culture and the fixed fire sign Leo. The French can thank the fabulous fire of Leo energy for Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte and his role in the revolution. And my favorite is how the Leo CoCo Chanel named her signature perfume “Number 5” after Leo’s chronological placement in the zodiac’s calendar. And I daresay, it doesn’t get any more French Leo than the Louvre. The first bricks commissioned by a Leo King himself, Philip Augustus in 1202; it was a fortress turned royal palace – hello, royal Leo! – until it became a museum formally celebrating the contributions of French art to the world on August 10th, 1793. There’s an entire entrance called “Le Porte des Lions” with two Leo lions guarding the doors. Given its divinely ordained synchronicity, it’s no wonder why the Leo Louvre is the most visited museum in the world when it’s so perfectly compatible with astrology. All museums revolve around the Sun of the galaxy – the Louvre itself – and it’s so deserving, given its divine majesty.

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Guggenheim

LIBRA

Mori Art Museum

When the autumn equinox descends, beautiful Libra season begins. Libra inspires a touch of glamour, artistic mediums, luxury, and intellectual impulse. The seventh sign in the Zodiac, Libra is the leader of the air signs’ ruler of new thought, modern ideas, and communication. One such recent example of a Libra-born museum which houses both beauty, with stunning views of the Tokyo skyline, and intellect, rich with lectures and seminars, is the Mori Art Museum. Opened in Tokyo on October 18th, 2003, the modern Mori is a very Libra curatorial experiment insofar as it presents contemporary Asian artists only and houses no permanent collection. It’s all temporary. The official statement from the Mori museum reads, “The Mori Art Museum strives to be a place for enjoyment, stimulation and discussion – a place where what is important in our culture and society is openly debated, not only through the exhibitions that are shown there but also through a wide range of Learning programs.” If that’s not Libra, I don’t know what else is. From its selection to its emphasis on adjectives like discussion, what is important, and openly debated - is it any wonder why the symbol for Law and Libra is the scales? Of course not.

The modern negotiation of morality all comes down to discussion and debate, which is the very crux of the Mori’s avant-garde Libra affiliation. To balance the Libra analysis, the Guggenheim in New York City is textured with modern, intellectually driven artistic

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forms. Named after the Aquarian Solomon R. Guggenheim, the museum was designed to be a “Temple of the Spirit.” A beautiful Manhattan haven of impressionist, post-impressionist, and modern/contemporary fine art. The categories of fine art curated in the Guggenheim are both balanced like the Libra scales and uniform in their artistic sensibility. The museum’s biography could also describe what the high-minded Libra qualifies. “Committed to innovation...the Guggenheim collects, preserves, and interprets modern and contemporary art, and explores ideas across cultures through dynamic curatorial and educational initiatives and collaborations.” Innovation, ideas, dynamism, and collaboration all speak to the best of Libra energy, and I suspect if you visit the Guggenheim close to its birthday, you’ll feel Venus’s resonance.

Understanding modernist and particularly impressionist work, the great geniuses of the genres were trying to become the active intellectual alternative by analyzing new aesthetic paradigms and subverting classical techniques. The works of art that make up the Mori and the Guggenheim are safe in Libra season because they provide a critical commentary, a metaphysically modern understanding of life and art after the World Wars ravaged meaning as they understood it. They are the perfect representation of beginnings, alternative possibility, and artistic forms that reflect back the moment in time that created them.

MoMA

SCORPIO

Hamburger Bahnhof

In the dead of fall, the Scorpio season comes alive on October 23rd. The eighth sign in the zodiac, Scorpio’s energy concentrates on the element of water with all its creative, emotionally charged, fantastical energy in whatever it puts its brilliantly capable mind to. Scorpio Abby Aldrich Rockefeller – wife to Aquarian John D. Rockefeller, Jr. – was a prominent patron of the once unpopular modern art and joined forces with her girlfriends to create the first official space in New York City to house contemporary art.

Don’t let Abby’s last name let you think she relied on her husband’s money. John Jr. detested modern art so the MoMA’s fundraising and acquisition of paintings came from Abby’s solicitation from the public, donations, corporate sponsors, and fundraising from prominent New York aristocrats. Loyal Scorpio energy allowed for the MoMA’s opening date to be in Scorpio season on November 7th, 1929. Though sometimes Scorpio energy shows us both the highs and the lows of the human experience. Just a week before, the New York Stock market crashed and gutted the American economy, ending the roaring twenties. And the MoMA struggled to find its footing as an already controversial museum amidst the classical elite in an economic crisis. “Surrender” is a word and behavior unknown to the Scorpio, so, a decade later, Scorpio Pablo Picasso saved the museum’s momentum with a retrospective in 1939. This retrospective marked a profound reimagining of Picasso for future art scholars and historians. The exhibition now twinned with the MoMA, lionized Picasso as the greatest artist of the time and set the model for all the museum’s retrospectives that were to follow.

It boosted the MoMA to quantum legitimacy and the museum has

stayed sitting on the throne of the contemporary art industry ever since. How’s that for a Scorpio survival story?

The MoMA is a very convincing historical data of Scorpio’s resurrection power. And the modern museum, Hamburger Bahnhof in Berlin is another textured Scorpio story of a space rising from the dead. Formerly a terminal in the BerlinHamburg train station built in 1846, then a transportation museum in 1908, the museum was bombed by the allied forces in 1944. The Neoclassical architecture took a hit but the art survived. Its proximity to West Berlin and East Germany stalled any major development in cultural creation. When the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, the Senate voted in the same year for an architectural competition for the renovation of the train station. Josef Paul Kleihues won, and the Hamburger Bahnhof reopened on November 2nd, 1996. In its short twenty-year life span, the Hamburger Bahnhof has demanded its rightful place among international modern museums, particularly in the contemporary mediums of video and photography. The mission statement reads, “the museum reveals these artistic trends in all their diversity: the audacious redefinitions of painting, the continuation of traditional sculpture in object art, the special role of photography and multimedia concepts in video and film.” Notwithstanding the Scorpio self-actualization of rising from the destruction of WWII, the Hamburger Bahnhof is also particularly Scorpio in its visual storytelling. Scorpios hate to admit it, but they make gifted storytellers given their pulse for the big truths of human experience.

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Victoria and Albert Museum, Shenzhen

CAPRICORN In December this year, a sort of homecoming for Capricorn energy will begin again since 1989. Its ruling planet Saturn will enter Capricorn, asking us all to preserve a tradition or legacy and sustain our connection to elevating the collective achievement. When the Victoria and Albert Museum, Shenzhen opens in December, the scope of British art in London will make its way to China, thereby honoring London’s legacy, while preserving the direction of Chinese contemporary art in the Capricorn season. The Capricorn in its highest expression cannot help but succeed so I’m sure the art industry will see scale heights accomplished by the Victoria and Albert Museum, Shenzhen.

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AQUARIUS

Centre Pompidou

Aquarius as the symbol of the prolific water bearer is misleading. These souls born in the winter midpoint are all air. Like the Gemini and Libra signs we discussed thus far. Aquarius’ brilliant energy focuses the seemingly infinite quality of intellect, theory, social equality, and access for all. Opened on January 31st, 1977, the Centre Pompidou is a paragon of Aquarian excellence. Particularly since its founding ideology is the decentralization of art and culture by political hegemony. I’d put more money that I could to bet Aquarius thought of “Power to the people!” And the Centre Pompidou is a rich example of a museum as a modern multicultural complex making space in one place for a range of different forms of art and even literature. Aquarius cannot rest unless equality for all becomes actualized and the Centre Pompidou is a phenomenal example of ensuring collective access to the arts. Which proved a successful marketing strategy. The Centre Pompidou was designed to host 8,000 visitors a day. In its first two decades it attracted more than 145 million visitors, more than five times the number predicted. High vibe intentions really do lift outcomes to the highest, don’t they? With 5 other spaces, the Centre Pompidou is intentionally working with integrity to ensure access to art in socially conscious and elevated ways.

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20 Tips to Boost Your Social Media Presence Illustration ROMA MANIKHIN

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1

#HASHTAG

Be creative with hashtags: Rather than adding 30 tags from #art to #monochrome to #emerging to every new post (which might statistically lead to more followers but less sympathy), show your individuality: #nakedmuseeatingabanana is definitely more entertaining.

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EMERGING TALENT As an artist, who just graduated and still painting in your parent’s garage, don’t tag Zwirner, Gagosian, White Cube or Perrotin in every work uploaded.

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BE PREPARED

If you state being a “collector” in your profile, be sure to get masses of artists sending you their collages or watercolors, dealers offering you random works, and ladies asking you for a date (the latter might worry you the least). Think twice, unless you love the continuous correspondence.

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BOOMERANG

Yes, Boomerang videos get a higher engagement. But please help us to decode those silly penguin steps: #happyaboutmyrecentacquisition or #inurgentneedforthefairsrestrooms will be appreciated by your audience.

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5

STILL LIFE

A still-life image of your couch table filled with a slightly demanding art history lecture is not a bad idea. You are smart, so show off.

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LOOK WHOM I MET 1 Certainly you can include some “Look whom I met” snapshots in your social media profile, but don’t upload the ones where your hand is desperately trying to touch Murakami or Gagosian, while they are not even looking at you. That seems too desperate.

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LOOK WHOM I MET 2 If you are really daring, kiss you art world celebrity while the image is being taken. Be sure to receive lots of replies (also nasty ones) for that post.

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ART FAIR POSTS

Art fair posts: Try the “funny one” (e.g. you hysterically laughing next to a wooden sausage sculpture), the “Anish Kapoor reflection,” or the “intellectual-dreamy” one (pretend that a third person took it), if you run out of ideas.

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NO FOR NUDES If you are big on nude photography, IG might not be the right tool for you, as all female nipples are being censored. Either you add some cherry emojis on every image or you shift to male nudes.

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PRIVACY

A little glimpse into your private life can’t harm: especially, a handsome boyfriend, adorable puppy, or some amazing vegan buddha bowls might add some extra followers.

11 DM

Yes, you theoretically can DM an artist whose dealer you know for available works, but if he connects you to the gallery after that approach, don’t expect them to give you a reasonable price.

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SLANG

We all know that engagement is important, but if you are 40+, please avoid “bro, that’s dope,” “hot mama, you are a bomb,” or other teenage phrases to comment on art works.

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EMOJIS

Emojis are apparently fun - well kind of. Some emojis always lie and we disclose the true meaning: as reply to an artist’s new work: Nice try! You might get there, but definitely not yet. Never give up. to your gallerist’s birthday party: I wasn’t invited and therefore am super mad at you, but pretending is everything. from one collector to another collector’s new acquisition post: Thanks, prick, for getting the work before I did.

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PREFERENCES If you follow too many artists who are big on wearing little, be prepared to get recommended to Brazilian pole dance accounts rather soon.

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HONESTY

You are a dealer? Sure thing, IG is a tool, that might also help you sell works. But please be straight forward about it e.g. #forsale, #thepriceisnotwritteninstone, #20percentoffifyouorderbytoday, and don’t pretend you have seen that artwork “by chance” in the studio or even tag it as a piece of your own collection.

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WARDROBE

Artist: Overalls with paint splashed all over; dealer: high endsmart, so at least future clients believe you to do your job well; curator: all black with glasses and red lipstick is a favourite.

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313 ART PROJECT (SEOUL), PIERO ATCHUGARRY GALLERY (MALDONADO), BAGINSKI GALERIA / PROJECTOS (LISBON), BARTHA CONTEMPORARY (LONDON), GALERIE BASTIAN (BERLIN), BECK & EGGELING INTERNATIONAL FINE ART (DÜSSELDORF), GALLERI BO BJERGGAARD (COPENHAGEN), GALERIE BOISSERÉE (COLOGNE), CANADA (NEW YORK), CARLIER GEBAUER (BERLIN), CENTURY PICTURES (BROOKLYN), CHERTLÜDDE (BERLIN), CORTESI GALLERY (LONDON, MILAN, LUGANO), COSAR HMT (DÜSSELDORF), CROY NIELSEN (VIENNA), DIE GALERIE (FRANKFURT/ MAIN), DITTRICH & SCHLECHTRIEM (BERLIN), DREI (COLOGNE), DVIR GALLERY (TEL AVIV), DANIEL FARIA GALLERY (TORONTO), GALERIA FRANCISCO FINO (LISBON), GREEN ON RED GALLERY (DUBLIN), CRISTINA GUERRA CONTEMPORARY ART (LISBON), HAAS (ZURICH), LUCAS HIRSCH (DÜSSELDORF), GALERIE HEINZ HOLTMANN (COLOGNE), RODOLPHE JANSSEN (BRUSSELS), KARMA (NEW YORK), GALERIE PETER KILCHMANN (ZURICH), GALERIE DOROTHEA VAN DER KOELEN (MAINZ, VENICE), KOENIG & CLINTON (NEW YORK), KÖNIG GALERIE (BERLIN), KOW (BERLIN), KRINZINGER (VIENNA), TIM VAN LAERE GALLERY (ANTWERP), GALERIE CHRISTIAN LETHERT (COLOGNE), ALEXANDER LEVY (BERLIN), LEVY GALERIE (HAMBURG), LIANG GALLERY (TAIPEI CITY), GALERIE LÖHRL (MÖNCHENGLADBACH), LINN LÜHN (DÜSSELDORF), MARKUS LÜTTGEN (COLOGNE), EDOUARD MALINGUE GALLERY (HONG KONG), MAM MARIO MAURONER CONTEMPORARY ART VIENNA (VIENNA), RON MANDOS (AMSTERDAM), MARLBOROUGH CONTEMPORARY (NEW YORK), GALERIE HANS MAYER (DÜSSELDORF), GALERIE MAX MAYER (DÜSSELDORF), MEESSEN DE CLERCQ (BRUSSELS), KAMEL MENNOUR (PARIS), MISAKO & ROSEN (TOKYO), MONTRASIO ARTE (MONZA), GALERIE NEU (BERLIN), CAROLINA NITSCH (NEW YORK), ALBERT BARONIAN (BRUSSELS), OV PROJECT (BRUSSELS), GALERIE PRISKA PASQUER (COLOGNE), POLANSKY GALLERY (PRAGUE), PSM GALLERY (BERLIN), THOMAS REHBEIN GALERIE (COLOGNE), PETRA RINCK GALERIE (DÜSSELDORF), GALERIE BRIGITTE SCHENK (COLOGNE), GALERIE ANKE SCHMIDT (COLOGNE), SCHÖNEWALD FINE ARTS (DÜSSELDORF), SIES + HÖKE (DÜSSELDORF), SPERLING (MUNICH), GALERIE GREGOR STAIGER (ZURICH), SUZANNE TARASIEVE (PARIS), GALERIE BENE TASCHEN (COLOGNE), GALERIE DANIEL TEMPLON (PARIS), GALERIE UTERMANN (DORTMUND), VAN DOREN WAXTER (NEW YORK), VAN HORN (DÜSSELDORF), SOFIE Art Düsseldorf | Nov. 17–19, 2017 VAN DE VELDE (ANTWERP), AXEL VERVOORDT Areal Böhler | www.art-dus.de GALLERY (ANTWERP), MICHAEL WERNER Partner KUNSTHANDEL (COLOGNE), GALERIE THOMAS ZANDER (COLOGNE), ZILBERMAN GALLERY (ISTANBUL), DAVID ZWIRNER (NEW YORK)

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GET YOUR GADGETS Selfie sticks are so yesterday (actually they have never been cool), but time to gear up with some really cool gadgets. How about the selfie drone that directly uploads your studio visit photos on your WeChat.

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PHOTOSHOP

As a collector, every once in a while you might try going for a little photoshop surprise. E.g. make yourself stand in front of a Basquiat with a nonchalant “Very glad this beauty is mine” comment.

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CRITICS

The most fun feeds to learn from are often the ones of critics or writers - they don’t need to show off an (more or less) amazing collection, can make fun of nearly everyone, and don’t need to sell their work #kennethschachter, #jerrysaltz, #dylanbrant.

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DRESS VS UNDRESS There is a naked skin to followers ratio: The less followers you have, the more juicy your photos need to be to get more followers. Once they are loyal to your feed, you can slowly get dressed again. And no, this is not only the case for an artist’s social media but also a collectors’ profile can roar when she/he just wears a tight swimming pants, while in Antibes.

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The Art/Fair Warning A Tale of Greed, Rivalries, and Broken Hearts Revolving around the Art Circus Writer VIVIENNE CHOW

EPISODE ONE THE MOON The art world, however, operated with a completely different scale and dynamics. Money was essential, but its exclusivity was built upon knowledge, taste, and class, which money could not buy. Dealers and auction houses would be over the moon for making a lucrative sale, but genuine respect for the buyer, the artist, the curator, and other players in the entire ecology was not guaranteed in the process.

This was exactly what made the art world so fascinating to a lot of people, and plenty of them tried to find their way in and climb up the ladder using means besides money.

Not everyone dares to dream big, but those who do must have an agenda, and this is particularly true in the art world. Take my friend Lily May Wong, for example. Her day job was being a professional psychic, reading Tarot cards and astrology for the rich and famous, and writing an astrology column for a local newspaper. But she was not satisfied with that. She felt that art was her true calling, and she wanted to make it big in the art world. “I’m destined to be an artist,” she told me when we first met over a decade ago at the opening of ART HK, Hong Kong’s first decent modern and contemporary art fair, not long after she earned her MFA at Slade School of Fine Art in London. “THIS is going to make Hong Kong an art hub. I know I’m right.”

In hindsight, Lily May might have been a better psychic serving others than reading her own fortune. Nearly ten years on since then, she was still nowhere near her artist dream. Her fortune-telling business fared far much better. Her conceptual performance art inspired by her New Age theories simply did not interest any curators or gallerists, not even her dealer boyfriend Raphael Kunst, who had inherited the gallery business from his parents living in Cologne and opened an art space in Berlin. Raphael had secretly told me that Lily May’s art was simply not up to standard and not sellable. But he did not want to upset her, so he only told her that performance art was too avant-garde for his young gallery at this stage.

And as for me, I simply declined to review her shows - a critic should never write about their friends.

First, one must demonstrate their love for art. This August, I saw the lovebirds while queuing for Gregor Schneider’s N. Schmidt Pferdegasse 19 48143 Münster Deutschland, an eerie installation featured at the Skulptur Projekte Münster this summer. Located on the top floor of the LWL-Museum für Kunst und Kultur, the German artist created an apartment occupied by someone named

Lily May had been telling me how wonderful Raphael was since they met in Berlin last summer, and how much she was in love with him. She said she was ready to spend the rest of her life with him at any moment.

There was no other playground that was as dazzling and alluring as the art world

“Are you ready to give up everything in your life here and move to Berlin? And more importantly, have you resolved everything with you-know-who?” I asked.

“The universe will come up with the best solution. Besides, I can focus on my art in Berlin. The transit Pluto has just entered my ninth house of higher education and long-distance travel, making a nice angle with my natal Sun. I think this is it,” she said happily, though I had no idea what she really meant. “Don’t worry about you-know-who. It’s long over.” She probably needed another psychic’s help.

N. Schmidt, according to the doorbell. Essentially it was an installation comprised of two symmetrical apartments. Occasionally, the alarm went off as disoriented individuals found themselves trapped in the space pushing the wrong door. Since only one person was allowed to tour the private space of N. Schmidt each time, the wait could take up to ninety minutes or even longer.

Bragging about your travel to the lesser-known German town and patiently waiting for your turn to view the artwork was certainly one good indicator of your passion for art.

You might hate me for saying this, but a big part of the art world was made up of vanity. From the glitzy art openings and private dinners supplied with a free flow of champagne to headline-grabbing, multimillion-dollar auctions, there was no other playground that was as dazzling and alluring as the art world. It was fueled not just by the power of money. It was an exclusive little universe that would only open its doors to a handful of privileged players.

There was no better time to have Lily May and Raphael join me in the queue. Lily May was more charming than ever. Her skin was glowing. Her long black hair was shiny in the sunlight. I had never seen her this happy. Art and romance. She had it all there.

In the past, those fundraisers were for charities devoted to the poor, the sick, and the suffering. Socialites dressed to the nines in order to get their pictures taken by society-page photographers and to be interviewed by the press, as if they were strutting down the red carpet of the Oscars. It was pretty easy and straightforward to get into the game. All you had to do was simply buy your way in. But that was already so last century.

To Raphael, on the other hand, I believed it was more than just keeping his girlfriend happy. He had missed the opportunity to mingle with the traveling art circus during the opening weekend of the decennial event in June because he was too busy with preparing his gallery for its first Liste Art Fair, which opened just a few

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days afterward, coinciding with Art Basel. To ensure that he had something to talk about with his clients (and his relevance to the contemporary art world), he had to come to this decennial in the name of research.

“Babe, YOU are in my private collection,” Raphael playfully kissed Lily May’s cheek. To be honest, I was surprised to see how much Raphael was into my friend.

“By the way, Prudence, are you here alone? Where is Mr. Miyazaki?” Lily May asked.

It was 28 degrees Celsius, and there were still a few people ahead of us. Raphael ran off to buy us some cold drinks. Lily May then turned around as soon as her boyfriend was gone and whispered into my ears: “Something is off.”

“He has business to attend to. I decided to reward myself with a solo holiday - technically, I’m not alone. My assistant is with me, but she has gone to run a few errands.

I decided to come now so that I don’t have to run into that traveling art circus. You know what it’s like,” Prudence laughed awkwardly. “I haven’t done this since my freshman year at university. I deserve a break after thirty-five years of marriage.”

I raised my eyebrow and asked her to spill the beans. My friend said she had a funny feeling about this trip. “I drew ‘The Moon’ last night,” she said, trembling.

“Sweetheart, I do not speak your Tarot language.”

The three of them chatted away while waiting for their turn to go inside the door guarded by a man in uniform and sunglasses. The people emerging from the big black door all carried an intriguingly puzzled face. They looked as if they were lost and disoriented. I felt so much like an outsider watching the three of them.

“This card means uncertainties ahead, and secrets are to be revealed,” Lily May said. She took her iPhone out and showed me the image of the card. There was a big moon hovering over two white towers. In front of the towers were two dogs.

“See this crayfish at the bottom? It’s climbing out of the water to walk on the path to the moon. Crayfish are not designed to live on dry land. My intuition tells me that once the cat is let out of the bag, it’s doomed.”

Prudence kept herself entertained with the romantic stories from the couple. There were just two people ahead of us. “It’s going to be our turn very soon,” she said with a hint of excitement. And then she turned to Lily May. “How was Menorca? The photos you sent me were lovely. I assume you two had a great time there for New Year’s?”

I was too confused by the crayfish and cat talk. “Lil’, you think too much. You need Raphael’s cold drinks to cool you down.”

There it went her ticket to the art world and possibly her true love

Someone just joined our queue behind us. I thought it was Raphael with his cold drinks, but it wasn’t.

“Hello, Prudence! Oh my God! What a surprise to see you here!” Lily May said with great enthusiasm.

“Lily May, my darling, what a delightful surprise!” said Prudence Miyazaki, one of Asia’s most powerful collectors who lived between Hong Kong and Tokyo. She was wearing an elegant black wide-brim hat, a pair of Chanel sunglasses that were large enough to cover half of her face, and white wrist-length gloves. The style was typical upper-class Japanese, a graceful shield against the harmful UV rays. No wonder Prudence looked twenty years younger than her real age.

Lily May’s face went pale. Raphael turned to her, trying to keep himself composed.

“As a matter of fact, I was in Berlin at the time. Obviously an invitation to celebrate the New Year in freezing cold Berlin was not as tempting as a trip to sunny Menorca albeit it was winter. What did you do there, Lil? I thought you said you had to stay in Hong Kong because you had an emergency appointment,” he questioned her.

“It was …,” Lily May lost her words as a shiver went down her spine. She knew this was what ‘The Moon’ meant. “There was an emergency and I was meant to tell you earlier.”

Prudence was originally from Hong Kong. Thirty-five years ago, she married Ryuichi Miyazaki, the scion of the Miyazaki Corporation, one of the biggest electronics manufacturers in Japan, whom she had met while studying art history at the Courtauld Institute of Art in London. The Miyazaki family held one of the most important collections of Impressionist and Modern paintings acquired in the 1980s during the Japanese economic bubble. Prudence might be filthy rich, but she was not satisfied with the role of being a tai tai who did nothing but shop and get beauty treatments. Fortunately, the family needed someone to look after the collection, so she had put her knowledge in art history to good use by managing the collection, which was still expanding today.

“In Menorca? Was it an emergency secret meeting with him?”

“Let’s talk later,” Lily May uttered the words while keeping a firm grip on Raphael’s hand. But Raphael shook her off.

The guard opened the black door and signaled one of us to go in. There was no better time for Prudence to escape from what was going to happen in the next few minutes.

“I’d better get going. I’ll see you after this intriguing art experience,” she said and headed inside.

She turned to me and greeted me politely. I had interviewed Prudence a few times before, but I certainly did not know her as well as Lily May did. It turned out that Prudence was one of Lily May’s fortune-telling clients.

Raphael glared at Lily May after Prudence walked away. Tears welled up in Lily May’s eyes. “I always knew there was something you had been hiding from me. If you cannot be completely honest with me then … I thought we were going to be together for a very long time,” he said to her. “I need to be alone now.”

I always had trouble carrying on a conversation with these super-rich people, who sounded like they came from another planet. Just as I was scratching my head trying to come up with something intelligent to say, Raphael returned with three bottles of ice-cold Coca-Cola.

“Don’t go, Raphael. Wait. I can explain.”

Raphael did not listen. He left.

They “air-kissed” each other’s cheeks. I did not know that Raphael had known Prudence since he was a child. “Prudence came to our house in Cologne for dinner on a regular basis. She is my parents’ best client,” Raphael said, taking a sip of the coke.

“You should come visit my new space in Berlin. I’m taking the family business to a new era and am showing more avant-garde contemporary art pieces there. You might find something you like.”

I held Lily May’s hand and tried to comfort her. There went her ticket to the art world and possibly her true love. She was in tears, trembling. “I knew this was coming. I knew he did not trust me 100 percent.”

She took her phone out and texted her best friend Charles Ng: “R left … ;-( .”

Charles replied seconds later: “What???”

“But you won’t see any of my works,” Lily May sulked. “Apparently my works are not good enough for the Kunstgalerie.”

TO BE CONTINUED …

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The Very Honest Gallerist Daniele Balice and Alexander Hertling of Balice Hertling Paris

1. Describe your gallery in one sentence for an art world newbie?

We have the ambition of showing artists that we think are historically relevant and that represent the diversity of the world we live in.

2. Most gorgeous artist in your gallery program?

Our group of artists represent a range of different racial backgrounds, gender, sexual orientation, age, and styles. The concept of gorgeous is pretty relative, but I believe everyone of them can be considered gorgeous. Anyways, none of them is single right now.

3. Whom would you love to sell an artwork to?

Probably we would like to sell to ourselves, but for now every profit we make is reinvested in our artists‘ projects.

4. What drinks are you serving at an exhibition opening?

Red wine, white wine, beer, water!

5. The coolest event you ever hosted?

A performance by American artist Puppies Puppies, dressed as the Statue of Liberty in front of the gallery, few months before the elections in the US.

6. What is the dress code for the staff?

Anything comfortable!

7. What are the most hated/loved jobs of your interns?

Cleaning up or archiving of books and artist portfolios. But if the intern is motivated, it could also be the best one, as you can learn a lot about art making.

8. Does hot staff help selling better?

The art we show doesn‘t need hot staff to be sold.

9. Most used apps or websites used daily by the gallery?

Instagram, Facebook, Contemporary Art Daily

In fashion, it would be Comme des Garçons.

11. How many works did you sell via an instagram post?

Some works are sold via Instagram, but we believe people should look at the work in person or discuss about it.

Puppies Puppies Statue of Liberty 2016 Performance costume, latex and textile Various dimensions

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Image courtesy: Balice Hertling

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