Translate

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Global Business BBC

Andrew Witty viewpoint. Many thanks to Peter Day. http://www.gsk.com

SSEF Gem Explorer

Take a look at GemExplorer, an iPhone application that allows users to navigate the world's sources of colored gemstones, diamonds and pearls. http://www.ssef.ch

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Coil Festival

Annie Dorsen's Hello Hi There. Brilliant. Inspiring. Philosophical. Take a look. http://www.ps122.org/performances/hello_hi_there.html

Skate’s

A Sergey Skaterschikov art venture. I hope Skate's research team will initiate transparency/authenticity to the art world, which is usually translucent to opaque and secretive. The real art world needs good sparkle, really.

Useful links:
http://skatesartinvestment.com
http://artmeetslaw.blogspot.com

VeriChannel

Voorhees/Boyajian venture. http://www.verichannel.com

Eames Studio

Brilliant designs. A big fan of Charles and Ray Eames.

Useful links:
http://www.eamesgallery.com
http://www.eamesoffice.com
http://eamesfoundation.org

Syyn Labs

Art + Technology. http://syynlabs.com

Quayola

Baroque art. I liked it. http://www.quayola.com

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

National Society Of Film Critics Award

Winners list. http://www.nationalsocietyoffilmcritics.com

Art Market Update

The Economist Report on Cezanne's Card Players.

Useful links:
http://www.courtauld.ac.uk
http://www.metmuseum.org

Gemstone Treatment: Jeff Watson Viewpoint

Back in the mid 80s, I was a co-owner of a small emerald mine in Colombia. The stones were plentiful, but the quality was mediocre, very dull. My onsite partner used to gather all the emeralds, clean them up, wrap them in gauze, soak them in mineral oil, then put the whole gauze wrapped package over a 100 watt light bulb for a few weeks to 'treat' the emerald with heat. After being treated, the emerald also acted differently under fluorescent and UV light. We would wholesale the stones to buyers who came onsite, and we never dealt with the jewelry trade. The buyers all knew the stones were treated, and didn't care as they were mainly concerned with size and color and weight. I brought a treated stone back to the states and had a local jeweler look at it proclaiming it to be the best stone he ever saw. I showed him the equal stone but untreated and he couldn't believe the difference. Deception really does work in the gem trade with everything from obvious phony stones, to treated stones, to cut stones made to look bigger, and a whole other bag of tricks. One lesson I learned is that 90% of the emeralds sold in the USA have been 'treated' in one way or another, with only the untreated high end stones, going to Winston, Tiffany, Stern, etc.

Spot on.

The One-Minute Pitch

A lot to learn.

Useful links:
http://www.npowerpeg.com
https://jornostore.com
http://sonamba.com

Monday, January 03, 2011

A Sustainable Life

A very good guide indeed. Great many thanks to Tara Parker-Pope. http://taraparkerpope.com

Random Thoughts

Look at Silicon Valley. It is a place where smart people from all nations, all languages and all ethnic groups come together. It's the capital of of innovation assembly.

- John Kao
http://www.johnkao.com

Spot on.

Saturday, January 01, 2011

Tim Flach Photography

Visually striking photographs. Take a look. http://www.timflach.com

2011 Around The Globe

Ringing in 2011 worldwide. Great many thanks to New York Times.

Happy New Year 2011

Happy New Year to all my blog followers. Great many thanks for your friendship.

Snowflakes Under An Electron Microscope

Simply beautiful. Many thanks. http://emu.arsusda.gov/snowsite/default.html

GutCheck

DIY market research. Give it a try. http://gutcheckit.com

Best Design Books 2010

13 of the best design books of 2010. Many thanks to Fast Company.

1. FORM+CODE In Design, Art and Architecture
2. Obsessive Consumption: What Did You Buy Today? (Princeton Architectural Press, $19.95)
3. Victore or, Who Died and Made You Boss?
4. Tree of Codes
5. Less is More: The Design Ethos of Dieter Rams 
6. Predictable Magic
7. I Wonder 
8. Graphic: Inside the Sketchbooks of the World's Great Graphic Designers 
9. Designing Media 
10. Handcrafted Modern: At Home With Mid-Century Designers 
11. Muji
12. The Third Teacher: 79 Ways You Can Use Design to Transform Teaching & Learning
13.  Data Flow 2 

Area/Code

Truly a real-world gaming company. http://areacodeinc.com

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Gem Lab Notes

Gem Notes, Vol.1, No.4, December 2010. http://www.gemlab.net

Pawn Stars

A peculiar business indeed. As Thomas Miller rightly put it, this show is a great example of the ageless advice, 'never try to bullshit a bullshitter, you will never win'. http://www.history.com/shows/pawn-stars

Monday, December 27, 2010

Art Worth Seeing

Simply beautiful. Don't miss. Many thanks to CNN.

Useful links:
http://flydenver.com/artatdia
http://www.miami-airport.com/art_and_exhibitions.asp
http://www.atlanta-airport.com/passenger/art%20program/frmPassengerInformation_ArtProgram.aspx
http://www.dupreestudiosinc.com/Gallery.html

The Year In Pictures 2010

A selection of the best photographs of 2010. Many thanks to NYT.

Salvador Dali Fakes

An insightful piece that discusses the forgery methods, markets, and players. Take a look. http://www.salvadordalifakes.com

CIBJO Update

Mark your calendar. CIBJO Congress will be held in March 14 -16, 2011 in Porto, Portugal. http://www.cibjo.org

Worldstock

Fairtrade story. http://www.overstock.com

Sumit Dagar

Meet Sumit Dagar, TED fellow 2011. http://sumitdagar.tumblr.com

Wednesday, December 22, 2010