Synthetic Diamonds Update

According to Financial Times, a Luxembourg subsidiary of De Beers, has set up a $100 million venture fund to promote the use of synthetic diamonds in such devices as artificial hips and water purifiers. The company, Element Six, is the world’s largest manufacturer of synthetic diamonds, used primarily in industrial devices.

Useful link:
www.e6.com

Place Vendôme Update

Suzy Menkes writes about festivities at the Place Vendôme + other viewpoints @ http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/07/08/style/fjewel.php

Useful links:
www.salondesantiquaires.fr
www.boucheron.com
www.buccellati.com
www.kremlin.museum.ru
www.chanel.com
www.vancleef-arpels.com
www.dior.com
www.chaumet.com

Dancing

'Dancing' (by Matt Harding) is definitely a piece of Internet art. It is short + pleasing + its content is open to a multitude of interpretations. However you interpret it, you cannot watch
'Dancing' for very long without feeling a little happier. Great idea. I liked it.

Useful link:
www.wherethehellismatt.com

Africa Investment Horizons

Africa Investment Horizons by award-winning producer, Carol Pineau, follows the money, in Africa. There are risks but there seem at last to be genuine signs of economic vitality in the continent. Slowly the optimistic image of Africa starting to stand on its own feet is becoming plausible.

Useful links:
www.africainvestmenthorizons.com
www.africaopenforbusiness.com

Environmental Performance Index

Environmental Performance Index, or EPI, is jointly produced by Yale's Center for Law & Environmental Policy + Columbia's Center for International Earth Science Information Network. It provides comprehensive assessment of the world's environmental challenges and how individual countries are responding to them. The data may not be perfect but still, I think the EPI is the best measure we have of how nations are faring in the battle to save the environment.


Useful link:
http://epi.yale.edu

The Forgotten Half Of Change

The Forgotten Half of Change: Achieving Greater Creativity through Changes in Perception by Luc de Brabandere is an interesting book about the warning signals of change. Great read.

Useful link:
www.bcg.com

Simon Sainsbury Collections

Art collections from Simon Sainsbury, a generous philanthropist, who left to Tate Britain and the National Gallery, will go on display to the public for the first time. The paintings will be displayed at the Tate until October, 2008, before becoming part of the galleries' permanent collections.

Useful links:
www.tate.org.uk
www.nationalgallery.org.uk
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7493571.stm

Nasser Azam

Nasser Azam is a leading British contemporary artist, living and working in London. Nadia Dahabiyeh writes about his latest project, Life in Space + other viewpoints @ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7490227.stm

Useful link:
www.azam.com

Heard On The Street

Bribes have become a way of life. Bribes may be offered or taken anywhere. Only those who hand them out and those who take them keep it quiet.

Africa: A Biography Of The Continent

Africa: A Biography of the Continent by John Reader is a captivating book on Africa, bringing to life the land of our beginnings and beyond. Great read.

John Reader is a writer and photojournalist with more than forty years' professional experience, much of it in Africa. Born in London in 1937, he currently holds an Honorary Research Fellowship in the Department of Anthropology at University College London, and is a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.

Cancún Update

(via budgettravel) CANCÚN: The vendors selling jewelry on the beach will say just about anything to get you to buy their merchandise. Police say you should be skeptical of their claims. Jewelry sellers often tell tourists that their wares are made of real silver and then quote prices starting at around $20, says Verónica Fajardo, a spokeswoman for the Cancún police. But she points out that the jewelry is almost always made from cheap metal that will turn yellow or lose its sheen within weeks. 'Tourists from the U.S. and Canada are always looking for a bargain,' Fajardo says. 'They might get a cheaper price [on the beach], but the jewelry is definitely not of the highest quality.'

Buyer beware!

48 Hours Neukölln

48 Hours Neukölln offers a glimpse into the bubbling cultural realm that is northern Neukölln, one of the most dynamic and creative areas in Berlin. Artists + designers across the leafy Berlin district open their workspaces to visitors they’d never normally see. I think it's a great idea. It's a joy to see how people live, work and play.

Useful link:
www.48-stunden-neukoelln.de

Jazz On A Summer’s Day

Bert Stern's Jazz on a Summer's Day is one of the greatest concert film on the legendary 1958 Newport Jazz Festival. An amazing musical moment!

Useful link:
www.festivalnetwork.com

A must-see!

The Drowsy Chaperone

The Drowsy Chaperone is a musical with a book by Bob Martin and Don McKellar and music and lyrics by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morisson + is an homage to American musicals of the Jazz Age.

Useful link:
www.drowsychaperone.com

A must-see!

Jewelry Thief

I found Doris Payne's story, now in prison in Denver, who made a five-decade career out of stealing expensive jewelery @ http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-jewelthief6-2008jul06,0,7720835.story intriguing. Her formula: Pick a nice store and look like you belong there. Make sure your well-cut outfit has deep pockets.

Sad, what a story!

Top 200 Collectors

The ARTnews Top 200 Collectors are listed @ http://www.artnewsonline.com/issues/article.asp?art_id=2520

Heard On The Street

Gold is real money. Gold is honest money. Gold is not debt, it is no one’s obligation, it cannot be controlled. Gold stays ever vigilant, watching their every move. The more the international bankers debase paper currencies, the more gold rises in value – sounding the warning to all who will listen.

Jean-Antoine Watteau Painting

Economist writes about Jean-Antoine Watteau's paintings, the style and history + other viewpoints @ http://www.economist.com/daily/columns/artview/displayStory.cfm?story_id=11693220

Comic Books + Graphic Novels + Artists

ACK Media is an Indian entertainment company + a leading provider of high-quality entertainment and educational experiences for children of all ages + a new generation of readers.

Useful links:
www.ack-media.com
www.amarchitrakatha.com
www.tinkleonline.com.

Tell No One

Tell No One is a 2006 French thriller film directed by Guillaume Canet and based on the novel of the same name by Harlan Coben. It was written by Guillame Canet and Philippe Lefèbvre and stars François Cluzet, Marie-Josée Croze, Marina Hands, Kristin Scott Thomas, and Nathalie Baye. A must-see movie.

Useful link:
www.tellno-one.com