The G20 In 2050

By 2050, the United States and Europe will be joined in economic size by emerging markets in Asia and Latin America. China will become the world’s largest economy in 2032, and grow to be 20 percent larger than the United States by 2050. Over the next forty years, nearly 60 percent of G20 economic growth will come from Brazil, China, India, Russia, and Mexico alone. Read the full report.

Useful link:
www.carnegieendowment.org

Jeanne-Claude

Artist Jeanne-Claude has died (November 18, 2009). May her soul rest in peace.

Useful link:
www.christojeanneclaude.net

Diamond Investing

Tara Loader Wilkinson's viewpoint in the Wall Street Journal about diamond investing was interesting.

Like art, we would not advise someone to buy diamonds for investment purposes. People should buy diamonds for the joy of wearing them.
- David Bennett, Sothebys

Useful links:
www.sothebys.com
www.idexonline.com
www.kprcapital.com
http://english.alfacapital.ru
http://dazzlingcapital.com
www.juliusbaer.com
www.dodaq.com

David Bennett was spot on.

Polly van der Glas Jewelry

Australian silversmith Polly van der Glas's jewelry creation is different. I have never seen anything like this before. See for yourself.

Useful link:
http://vanderglas.com.au

Beware Of The Doghouse

J.C. Penney Co. Inc.'s Beware of the Doghouse viral marketing campaign is back. Check it out. www.bewareofthedoghouse.com

The Brixton Pound

Tim Nichols's The Brixton Pound Project is interestingly a brilliant idea. It encourages local consumption and help shrink carbon footprints. I liked it.

Useful links:
http://brixtonpound.org
http://www.site.transitiontownbrixton.org

Dieter Rams

Discover the work of one of the most influential industrial designers of the late 20th century alongside the science of everyday life. Dieter Rams' Ten Principles of good design:

- Good design is innovative.
- Good design makes a product useful.
- Good design is aesthetic.
- Good design makes a product understandable.
- Good design is unobtrusive.
- Good design is honest.
- Good design is long-lasting.
- Good design is thorough down to the last detail.
- Good design is environmentally friendly.
- Good design is as little design as possible.

I loved it.

Useful link:
http://designmuseum.org

Proud Gallery

Check out Helena Christensen's brilliant exhibition at London's Proud Gallery. Don't miss.

Useful links:
www.helena-christensen.com
www.proud.co.uk

Chaim Even Zohar Viewpoint

Chaim's viewpoint on Freddy Hanard. CEO, AWDC, was interesting. He may be the right person at the right time. I wish him all the best.

Useful links:
www.antwerpdiamondsymposium.com
www.awdc.be
www.diamondintelligence.com

Albie Hecht

Check out Albie Hecht's Bigby game that allows users to watch, explore, play, connect, collect, and create. Don't miss.

Useful links:
http://wwbiggies.com
www.addictinggames.com

Green Business Update

Ken Belson's story in the New York Times about urban farming was interesting and insightful. Maybe I should try these ideas in India.

Useful links:
www.utc.com
www.valcent.net
www.skyvegetables.com
www.verticalfarm.com
www.agreenroof.com
www.greenroofs.com
http://myplantconnection.com
www.gaiainstituteny.org

Cathy McClure

Check out how Cathy McClure turns disposable items into precious objects.

Useful links:
www.cathymcclure.com
www.mossonline.com

Cleantech Open 2009

EcoFactor has won this year's Cleantech Open 2009 prize for developing a unique but efficient personal residential energy management system. Check it out.

Useful links:
www.cleantechopen.com
www.ecofactor.com
www.alphabetenergy.com
www.micromidas.com

Expert Labs

I thought Anil Dash's new non-profit, Expert Labs, was a brilliant idea. I wish him all the best.

Useful links:
www.expertlabs.org
http://dashes.com
www.web2expo.com

Random Thoughts

Some people like the art, some people like being shocked by it. Everyone's happy.

- Charles Saatchi
www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk

Spot on.

European Quality Circle

European Quality Circle is a new consumer-oriented organization that provides jewelers/ jewelry retailers educational and professional services. Check it out.

Useful link:
www.europeanqualitycircle.com

Global Gold Frenzy

Gold's appeal has really broadened. Suki Cooper (Barclays Capital) was spot on. It’s not that gold has changed, but gold buyers have changed. It’s a structural shift we’re seeing on the investing side, from Asian central banks right down to individual investors buying ingots and coins. Can anything stop it? If there was ever a time to find out about gold as an asset class and gold as money, it's now. There will be a time when the market corrects, the question is when. Yep, let's keep our fingers crossed.

Useful links:
www.argor.com
www.barcap.com
www.harrods.com
www.jimrogers.com
www.rgemonitor.com
www.gold.org

Bio-Diversity

Christoph Niemann's illustrations were brilliant. I loved it.

Useful links:
www.christophniemann.com
www.aiga.org

Platinum Update

I found Johnson Matthey's comments about the state of the platinum market interesting. I hope the industry is adapting to rapidly changing consumer needs + who knows we may see price corrections in the precious metals market pretty soon. Stay tuned.

Useful link:
www.matthey.com

Spiral Jetty

The Spiral Jetty story was fascinating. I think Dia officials should create a buffer zone around the sculpture that would help protect it while still allowing the lake area to be used for other purposes.

Useful links:
www.robertsmithson.com
www.spiraljetty.org
www.diacenter.org
www.getty.edu/conservation

Random Thoughts

It is in the nature of our species to connect and exchange. And the result is a common culture in which we all have a stake. It is not, and can never be, the property of one modern nation or another.

- Dr. James Cuno
www.artic.edu
www.eternalegypt.org
www.britishmuseum.org
www.louvre.fr
www.metmuseum.org

Interesting perspective.

Heading For 6C

Based on our knowledge of recent trends and the time it takes to change energy infrastructure, I think that the Copenhagen conference next month is our last chance to stabilise at 2C in a smooth and organised way. If the agreement is too weak or if the commitments are not respected, it's not two and a half or three degrees that we will get, it's five or six - that's the path that we are on right now.

- Corinne Le Quere

Useful links:
www.globalcarbonproject.org
www.metoffice.gov.uk
www.csiro.au
Nature Geoscience

I think it's too late. We are heading for 6C. Politicians are spineless and inert. We are staring at mountain goats. Sad, really.

Global Business BBC

Peter Day's interview with Russell Ackoff, Professor Emeritus of the Wharton School in Operations Research and Systems Theory was brilliant. Thanks Peter.

Useful links:
http://ackoffcenter.blogs.com
How to avoid the fatal F-Laws

YouTube Direct

Check out the winning film via YouTube Project: Direct.

Useful links:
www.youtube.com/projectdirect
www.whatisproject.org
http://festival.sundance.org/2010

Joe Kubert

Joe Kubert's original artworks is up for sale (live/online) via Heritage Auctions in Dallas. Check it out.

Useful links:
www.kubertsworld.com
www.ha.com

Green Startups

Check out the green startups and their products/services. Thanks Ariel.

Useful links:
www.altarockenergy.com
www.hara.com
www.imaracorp.com
www.integrityblock.com
www.industrialorigami.com
www.microgreenfilter.com
www.tendrilinc.com
www.oree-inc.com
http://calstarproducts.com
www.calera.biz

Knome

Human genome, sequenced and decoded. Check it out. Cheap? Not really.

Useful links:
www.knome.com
www.usb.org

Michelin Guide

John Colapinto's opinion piece in the New Yorker about Michelin guide, one of the best-selling restaurant guides in the world, was interesting and insightful. They operate on the principle that only reviews by anonymous, professionally trained experts can be trusted for accurate assessments of a restaurant’s food and service. It's amazing, really.

Useful link:
www.famouslyanonymous.com

The Story Of American Business

The Story of American Business: From the Pages of The New York Times: compelling and provocative articles from the 1850s to today.

Ragtime

A great musical genre.

Useful links:
www.ragtimebroadway.com
www.neilsimontheatre.com

Ghost Forest

I thought Ghost Forest, by Angela Palmer was a brilliant metaphor for climate change. I liked it.

Useful links:
www.angelaspalmer.com
www.ghostforest.org

WFDB Price List For Polished Diamonds

It has been reported that the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) will be introducing a WFDB price list for polished diamonds to support the entire supply chain of polished diamonds, from manufacturers to retailers + the consumers. We shall wait and see.

Useful links:
www.wfdb.com
www.presidentsmeeting2009.com

Warren Buffett And Bill Gates: Keeping America Great

The CNBC Town Hall Event Warren Buffett and Bill Gates: Keeping America Great, hosted by Becky Quic was brilliant. I enjoyed it thoroughly. Check out the transcript at http://www.cnbc.com/id/33901003

Nature Conservancy

Damian Kahya's viewpoint in the BBC News about nature conservancy, corporate social responsibility, and rewarding nations for not cutting down their forests was interesting and insightful. I think preventing deforestation is a cheap way of cutting emissions than converting power stations to capture their carbon dioxide. It costs less.

Useful links:
www.nature.org
www.bp.com
www.rainforestcoalition.org
http://www2.gsb.columbia.edu/faculty/gheal
www.occ.gov.uk/activities/eliasch.htm
www.globalcanopy.org
http://canopycapital.co.uk
www.fan-bo.org
www.climatechangecapital.com

Global Entrepreneurship Week 2009

Global Entrepreneurship Week takes place from 16 – 22 November 2009. Details of this year’s activities can be found at www.gew.org.uk

Useful links:
www.unleashingideas.org
www.enterpriseuk.org

Gary Hamel Viewpoint

Great post. Thanks for the insights. Some people like change. Some people do not like change.

Useful links:
www.garyhamel.com
http://blogs.wsj.com/management

Design Thinking Symposium 2009

Design Thinking Symposium 2009 in Singapore. http://designthinking.sg

Startups In Retirement

Lauren Young's opinion piece in the BusinessWeek about launching businesses in retirement was interesting.

Useful links:
www.fromwhereisit.net
www.ageinplacetech.com
www.aarp.org/research/ppi
www.maryfurlong.com
www.acunetx.com

The 50 Best Inventions 2009

Check out Time's The 50 Best Inventions of 2009

Shreyas Doshi Viewpoint

Anil Mascarenhas's interview with Shreyas Doshi/Shrenuj & Company Limited was interesting and insightful. His viewpoint on the retail diamond jewelry trend in India was also interesting.

Useful link:
http://ho.shrenuj.com

Bill Cunningham Viewpoint

On the Street: Vested. Thanks Bill. I enjoyed it.

The Prize: The Epic Quest For Oil, Money & Power

The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money & Power by Daniel Yergin is a brilliant book about the impact of oil upon our global economy and way of life. A fascinating story indeed. A must read.

Useful link:
www.cera.com
The Oil Era

Beauty In Art

Matt Collings viewpoints were interesting.

Useful link:
www.emmabiggsandmatthewcollings.net

Art Market Update

(via Economist) The most talked about work of the week was Warhol's “200 One Dollar Bills”, an historically important, hand-drawn silkscreen painting from 1962. Until the day before the sale, the identity of the consignor, described in the catalogue as having a “distinguished private collection”, had been a well-kept secret. Then word slipped out that it had belonged to Pauline Karpidas, a London-based collector. Back in 1986 Mr and Mrs Karpidas had paid $385,000 for the picture, the highest price ever paid for a Warhol at auction during the artist's lifetime. Tobias Meyer, Sotheby's chief auctioneer, opened the bidding at $6m whereupon Alex Rotter, a Sotheby's specialist on the phone with a client, immediately doubled the bid. The price escalated in million-dollar increments so quickly that it was hard to tell where the bids were coming from. Philippe Ségalot, an art advisor, Jose Mugrabi, a dealer who owns some 800 Warhols, Abdallah Chatila, a Lebanese collector, and two other Sotheby's staff members, Loic Gouzer and Bruno Vinciguerra, together nodded and waved the lot all the way up to its $39m hammer price. In the end, Mr Vinciguerra won the picture for his anonymous buyer for $43.7m with fees. It was the second-highest price ever paid for a Warhol at auction, exceeded only by “Green Car Crash”, which sold in May 2007 to Philippe Niarchos for $71.7m. The price proves the adage that real masterpieces retain their value in almost any economic climate. As Mr Ségalot affirmed, “The date, subject matter, composition and condition are all fantastic. The painting probably sold for the same price as it would have two years ago.” A typical auction house drama with a happy ending, really.

Useful links:
www.sothebys.com
www.christies.com

Random Thoughts

Getting to know the management of a company is like getting married. You never really know the girl until you live with her. Until you’ve lived with a management you don’t really know them.

- Philip A. Fisher
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Arthur_Fisher

So true!

Man Ray

Check out Man Ray's stunning art collection at The Jewish Museum in New York City. His art is natural and provocative. Don't miss.

Useful link:
www.thejewishmuseum.org

Charter For Compassion

I thought Karen Armstrong's Charter of Compassion was a brilliant idea. We live in a world of conflict and aggression. I hope her ideas will bring peace and self-control.

Useful links:
www.tedprize.org/karen-armstrong
http://charterforcompassion.org

Hype And Illusion

Leonard Mlodinow's opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal about wine rating system was interesting, educational and insightful. I think humans are not as good as we say we are when it comes to wine tasting/rating. It's a state of mind.

Useful links:
http://www.its.caltech.edu/~len
www.fieldbrookwinery.com
www.bigfun.org
www.apa.org/journals/xge
www.thewinenews.com
www.winespectator.com
www.wine.com
www.erobertparker.com
www.calgrapevine.com

Startup Ecosystems

Spot on. New startup ecosystems takes time. You can't fast forward because we are talking about experience which can't be manufactured. Thanks for the post.

Useful links:
http://seedcamp.com
http://laurarich.typepad.com

World's Most Intriguing Startups

BusinessWeek's inaugural list of the world's most intriguing new companies was interesting and insightful. Some will blow up, some will go big.

RCA Secret 2009

RCA Secret is an annual contemporary art exhibition and sale consisting of original postcard-sized artworks, made and donated by professional artists, designers and illustrators, plus up-and-coming students from the Royal College of Art. What’s the Secret? Each postcard is signed on the back, so buyers don’t know the identity of the artist until they have made their purchase. Postcards can be viewed in person at the RCA or on-line at www.rca.ac.uk/secret from 13–21 November, 2009. Dont' miss.

Random Thoughts

It was just me and a cousin in a two-room office. We would go door to door with our stones. I’ve always held that no matter how big you are in this business you are still a salesman and a salesman should have no ego.

- Dilip Mehta
www.rosyblue.com

Spot on.

The Messenger

The Messenger = War’s casualties, in all their forms. It's an interesting story. It's straightforward.

Useful link:
www.themessengermovie.com

Gail Albert Halaban

Check out a new series of photographs by Gail Albert Halaban titled 'Out My Window NYC'. I think observing private lives of strangers from the windows of our homes is an interesting experience.

Useful links:
www.gailalberthalaban.com
http://outmywindownyc.blogspot.com

Karen Eland

I really liked Karen Eland's coffee art. Brilliant. Keep up the good work.

Useful link:
http://coffee-art.com

MAXXI

MAXXI, acronym of Museum of the Arts of the 21thcentury, is a newly established institution of the Italian Ministry of Culture. It will be open to the public on November 14, 2009. Don't miss.

Useful links:
www.maxxi.beniculturali.it
www.zaha-hadid.com

You Are What You Choose

You Are What You Choose: The Habits of Mind that Really Determine How We Make Decisions by Scott de Marchi + James T. Hamilton explains why seemingly similar people make vastly different decisions. A must read.

Useful links:

www.duke.edu/~demarchi

http://fds.duke.edu/db/Sanford/jayth

Alex Woo Jewelry

Haagen-Dazs and Alex Woo have teamed up to raise awareness about the plight facing honey bees. Check out Alex Woo's special edition bee-shaped pendants set in silver, gold and white gold, with some featuring diamonds. I thought it was brilliant idea. Hats off to Alex!

Useful links:
www.alexwoo.com
www.haagen-dazs.com

Random Thoughts

Let me tell you about the very rich. They are different from you and me. They possess and enjoy early, and it does something to them, makes them soft where we are hard, and cynical where we are trustful, in a way that, unless you were born rich, it is very difficult to understand. They think, deep in their hearts, that they are better than we are because we had to discover the compensations and refuges of life for ourselves.

- F. Scott Fitzgerald

A very interesting viewpoint.

Powering A Green Planet

Check out the interactive report by Stanford civil and environmental engineering Professor Mark Z. Jacobson + University of California-Davis researcher Mark Delucchi about new research mapping out and evaluating a quantitative plan for powering the entire world on wind, water and solar energy, including an assessment of the materials needed and costs. http://news.stanford.edu/news/2009/october19/jacobson-energy-study-102009.html

Traffic Report

Richard Black's report in the BBC News about the illegal ivory trade in Africa + the Chinese connection was interesting.

Useful links:
www.traffic.org
www.cites.org

Andy Warhol's 200 One Dollar Bills

Andy Warhol's 200 One Dollar Bills has been sold by Sothebys for a whopping $43.7 million. Art collectors with deep pockets are back again and paying for tried-and-true artists. Amazing, really.

Useful links:
www.sothebys.com
www.warhol.org
www.warholfoundation.org

Club Monaco

One-of-a-kind jewelry. Give it a try.

Useful link:
www.clubmonaco.com

SightUnseen

Check out the lifestyles of designers at www.sightunseen.com

Nervous System Jewelry

I thought Jessica Rosenkrantz/Jesse Louis-Rosenberg's design approach was brilliant. I liked it. Check it out.

Useful links:
http://n-e-r-v-o-u-s.com
www.massart.edu

Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

It's really amazing that video games are now as big a financial force in the entertainment industry as feature films. Just like some movies/books, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is intended for an adult audience. It's emotional, intense. Definitely not for children.

Useful links:
www.modernwarfare2.com
www.infinityward.com
www.elspa.com

Gold Market Update

According to Aaron Regent, president of Barrick Gold, global output has been falling by roughly 1m ounces a year since the start of the decade. If this is true, then we're into a price spiral.

Useful links:
www.barrick.com
www.gold.org
www.rbccm.com
www.thebulliondesk.com

Random Thoughts

People already feeling, or merely anticipating, the negative impact of recession have taken to stealing ... at the very time retailers also suffering from the downturn have had to cut back on security staff. In addition to the usual criminals, you have lots of newcomers to stealing who figure they don't run much risk at getting caught, won't pay much of a price if they are and justify their action on the hard times we're all facing.

- Joshua Bamfield
www.retailresearch.org
www.globalretailtheftbarometer.com

So true!

Jewelers of America

Jewelers of America (JA) has redesigned their website. Have a look.

Useful links:
www.jewelers.org
www.jic.org

Chaim Even Zohar Viewpoint

Everyone has his or her little angle to look at events. It’s quite telling to see that all the erstwhile committed cartel members are now increasingly moving away from having just a long-term steady clientele to some form of tender system. All of these things occurred in a relatively short timeframe. Chaim was spot on. Diamond business have no permanent friends and no permanent enemies. Only permanent interests, period.

Useful links:
www.riotintodiamonds.com
www.argylediamonds.com.au
www.argylepinkdiamonds.com.au
www.diamdel.com
www.dtc.com
www.antwerpdiamondsymposium.com

Luke Johnson Viewpoint

Entrepreneurs are in a hurry: they stir things up and disrupt; they overturn companies and ways of doing business; they invent better products and threaten the status quo; they relish upheaval because it presents opportunities to supplant the existing order. Luke was spot on. Thanks for the insights.

Useful links:
www.lukejohnson.org
www.riskcapitalpartners.co.uk
www.channel4.com

Alto Alentejo, Portugal

The Rural Charms of Alto Alentejo, Portugal. Brilliant slide show. Thanks NYT. A must visit.

Useful links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alentejo
www.allentejo.com

Global Business BBC

Peter Day's interview with Daniel Yergin of IHS CERA about the state of the oil and energy industry was interesting. Thanks Peter.

Useful link:
www.cera.com

Red Light Art

The National Gallery is about to exhibit its first contemporary art installation, The Hoerengracht - which is Dutch for Whore's Canal, by recreating a street scene from Amsterdam's Red Light district.

Useful link:
www.nationalgallery.org.uk

Bourse Africa

It has been reported that the pan-African commodity and derivatives exchange, Bourse Africa, will offer multi-asset class trading in commodities, currencies, bonds and diamonds. Check it out.

Useful links:
www.bourseafrica.com
www.mcxindia.com
www.dgcx.ae
www.gbot.mu
www.botswanaifsc.com

Jewelers Alert

Read and share information about scammers, thieves & frauds.

Useful link:
www.jewelersalert.com

Annie Griffiths Belt

A Camera, Two Kids, and a Camel: My Journey in Photographs by Annie Griffiths Belt was incredibly beautiful. See for yourself.

Useful link:
www.anniegriffithsbelt.com

Opower

Ellen Gibson's viewpoint in the BusinessWeek about Opower, and the application of behavioral psychology to energy conservation was brilliant. I guess the psychology of persuasion does work.

Useful links:
www.opower.com
www.influenceatwork.com

Oki Sato

Check out Oki Sato's new show titled Ghost Stories: New Works from Nendo at New York's Museum of Art and design. Don't miss.

Useful links:
http://madmuseum.org
www.nendo.jp

Tinariwen

This year's Uncut Music Award for best album has been won by Tinariwen. Check it out.

Useful links:
www.tinariwen.com
www.uncut.co.uk

The Berlin Wall: 20 Years Later

A brilliant recap of events. Today, 20 years on, its dismantling inspires us still, really.

Jewelry Market Update

Ken Gassman's report in IDEX Online about the state of specialty jewelers in the U.S was interesting and insightful. Consumers are seeking value, and they are shopping at merchants who offer merchandise with a clear, definable value. So true!

Useful links:
www.kennethgassman.com
www.commerce.gov

Jewels Of France

Check out the Jewels of France exhibition at Aaron Faber Gallery, in New York. The interesting fact is that all pieces are guaranteed by the French Union BJOP as manufactured, mounted, set, and polished in France following strict ethical, legal, and environmental standards.

Useful links:
www.aaronfaber.com
www.ubifrance.fr

Random Thoughts

I predicted a year ago that contemporary art sales would rebound. There was an enormous amount of money standing on the sidelines and people are now putting it into less risky investments. It's a good thing for the market. What has happened is it made people think they can get good value for artists that stand the test of time. It was a great auction of blue-chip artists. With the dollar weakening and inflation soon to hit consumers there's a flight to blue-chip artists and many are turning art into an asset class.

- John Smiroldo
www.antiquesandfineart.com

Only time will tell.

Cellphone Into A Microscope

Anne Eisenberg's opinion piece in the New York Times (November 7, 2009) about cell phone microscopes/application was brilliant. I think the low-cost cell imaging and diagnostic platform could be applied to a number of different products.

Useful links:
http://microskia.com
www.cnsi.ucla.edu
www.disp.duke.edu
www.ee.ucla.edu/faculty-ozcan

Random Thoughts

We are geared by nature to look for patterns. And what is most confusing to people is the case when there is no pattern, when it really is governed by luck. The stock market is a perfect example of that. Today you have Abbott and Costello on CNBC. One says the market will go up, and one says the market will go down. You have nobody who says, 'I simply don't know, and there is no way of knowing.

- Dr. Meir Statman
Professor of Finance
Santa Clara University

Spot on.

A Christmas Carol

Check out Robert Zemeckis's high-tech adaptation of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. He connects the dots with special effects. I'm a huge fan of Robert Zemeckis + Christmas movies.

Useful link:
http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/achristmascarol

Geodynamics

I thought the Hot Fractured Rock (HFR) technology was interesting. I hope it works. Check it out.

Useful link:
www.geodynamics.com.au

Only God Knows I'm Good

Check out Tracey Emin's new exhibition, Only God Knows I'm Good, at the Lehmann Maupin Gallery in New York. Don't miss.

Useful links:
www.lehmannmaupin.com
www.whitecube.com
www.tracey-emin.co.uk

Jeweler's Story

Emily Maltby's viewpoints in the Wall Street Journal about main street jewelers, chain stores and the internet was interesting. You were spot on. Younger generations are becoming less interested in jewelry. Sign of the times.

Useful link:
www.jewelersboard.com

Bill Cunningham Viewpoint

On the Street: Vested. The weather. The change. It was marvelous. Do your own thing. Thanks Bill. I enjoyed it.

ASIAN Art In London

London is still the centre of connoisseurship of fine Chinese objects, with about 30 specialist dealers, more than there are in the whole of Europe and America combined. So it is not surprising that the biggest treat for anyone interested in Chinese fine art this week lay within the discreet dealer showrooms a few hundred yards north and south of Piccadilly and around Kensington Church Street.

Useful links:
www.asianartinlondon.com
www.christies.com
www.sothebys.com

So true!

Carl Tashian's Wine Tasting Toolkit

I thought Carl Tashian's descriptive flavor words for wine was brilliant. I wish the graphics were interactive. http://tashian.com/wine-flavors

Jancis Robinson Viewpoint

Jancis Robinson's opinion piece in the Financial Times about South African wines was interesting and insightful. Thanks Jancis.

Useful links:
www.jancisrobinson.com
www.ft.com/arts/columnists/robinson
www.kwv.co.za
www.wosa.co.za

World Architecture Festival 2009

Check out the winners of World Architecture Festival 2009.

Useful link:
www.worldarchitecturefestival.com

Andreas Seibert

I thought Andreas Seibert's long-form documentary storytelling about Chinese migrant workers was brilliant.

Useful links:
www.andreasseibert.com
www.helmhaus.org

Raw Beauty: Diamonds In The Rough

Jemima Sissons's viewpoints in the Wall Street Journal about original types of diamonds, with rough cuts/alternative hues was interesting. I think these natural stones are becoming popular for their raw, organic quality. Period.

Useful links:
www.mingdesign.com
www.stephenwebster.com
www.pieronistudio.co.uk
http://diamondintherough.com

Art Market

Edward Dolman's viewpoints on the art market, on new collectors and old artworks was interesting.

Useful link:
www.christies.com

Berlin Wall: The East Side Gallery

Check out the largest open air gallery in the world.

Useful link:
www.eastsidegallery.com

Diamond Trade In Mozambique

Sarah Childress's opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal (November 6, 2009) about trading of Zimbabwean rough diamonds in Mozambique was interesting. Members of the Kimberly Process Certification Scheme issued a toothless statement in Namibia declining (November 5, 2009) to suspend Zimbabwe from the organization over its failure to take strong action on human rights and other abuses in the Marange diamond field of eastern Manicaland province. Sad really.

Useful links:
www.kimberleyprocess.com
www.wfdb.com
www.pacweb.org
www.globalwitness.org