“MONOGRAM is timeless, yet with this project we wanted to celebrate it in a way that defied the conventions of ‘classic” , says MICHAEL BURKE, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of LOUIS VUITTON.

In celebration of Louis Vuitton 160th Anniversary, Vuitton assembled six renowned ‘Iconoclasts’ for this special ‘Icon and the Iconoclasts’ project.

Six masters in their own discipline, Christian Louboutin, Cindy Sherman, Frank Gehry, Karl Lagerfeld, Marc Newson and Rei Kawakubo, will be given carte blanche to create a personally inspired bag and/or a piece of luggage, using the iconic Monogram.

Click here to find out more.

Human beards combined with furry ferrets and rabbits fused together to hone in on the point that the beard needs to go for the summer. Who would have thought that hair could actually become a way to decorate a man’s face?

This super smart Schick Free Your Skin campaign is one of the best to come out this year. It’s simple, understated, totally hipster and funny!

But honestly – if you had a beard this gloriously alive, would you really want to shave it off?

Read more here.

“But I actually enjoyed writing the notes because in the process of opening a note, feeling the paper, seeing the imperfection of the writing, reading the message in another person’s voice, you actually feel like you have a piece of that person in your hand.”

We couldn’t agree more. Personal handwritten notes grow rarer by the day. It may seem nostalgic, but I still believe there’s room for the handwritten note in personal and professional communication. They cost something, mean something, and have permanence in a way emails and text messages don’t. They let the people in our lives know we appreciate them enough to do something as archaic as pausing for 15 minutes to put pen to paper in an attempt to connect and sustain a relationship with them.  Do you agree?

Read more here.

“Carefully irons and folds the fabric, pleating it into jaw-dropping pictures, ranging from portraits of iconic stars to beautiful abstractions.”

British artist Benjamin Shine creates large stunning portraits from a rather unusual material – tulle.
Shine’s works are entirely monochrome, but his skilled precision helps create manifold layers and shades that turn his tulles into vivid portraits with rich texture and depth.

Read more here.

Recall seeing a very well contorted Kate Moss along the streets of Orchard Road, or a suspending foetus right above the neatly manicured greens at Gardens By The Bay? Then, you would have witnessed a piece of British artist Marc Quinn’s wide-ranging oeuvre of artworks.

Often dealing with the distanced relationship we have with our bodies and with nature and highlighting how the conflict between the ‘natural’ and ‘cultural’ has a grip on the contemporary psyche, his works are both deeply spiritual and provocative. Quinn often employs an uncompromising array of materials, from ice and blood to glass, marble and lead in his works.

Check out more of his works here.

From a scientific approach in Bueno Aires, to potion makers in New York. to an industry veteran branching out on his own, a new breed of dedicated perfumers honour past traditions as much as they push forth with pioneering scents. Representing a new generation of modern innovators, artisanal perfume makers rely on a acute set of senses and expert knowledge of their craft- bringing forth contemporary and alternative expressions of smell…

Watch all about it here.

Works of Calder on Nowness.com

Take a peek into the wonderfully inspiring world of renowned sculptor and artist, Alexander Calder in this rare footage from Herbert Matter’s 1950 film ‘Works of Calder’. “Renowned for his ability to “sculpt with air,” Calder dedicated his seven-decade career to observing the complex nature of movement, pioneering kinetic sculptures, called mobiles, which prefigured the work of a diverse range of contemporary artists.”

Via here.

Working religiously and tirelessly behind canvases, brushes and oils during the Cultural Revolution in China is a group of brave artists who quietly banded together during a repressive period. Showcasing their works for the first time in an exhibition titled “Light Before Dawn: Unofficial Chinese Art 1974 to 1985″, the three distinctive schools of artists, each with a distinctive style will display more than 100 paintings and sculptures.. Heroic artisans out there, this will surely pique your interest.

Find out more here.

To mark the 60th anniversary of the Coronation of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, a major exhibition will bring together a spectacular array of dress, uniform and robes worn by the principal royal party. Works of art, paintings and objects used on the day will also be on display to recreate the atmosphere of that extraordinary occasion.

In particular, sketches by British couturier Norman Hartnell, whose design for The Queen’s Coronation Dress, considered to be his masterpiece of royal couture, is immortalized in an intricate drawing. In watercolour and bodycolour over pencil, it shows in detail the full-skirted gown with its tiers of rich embroidery terminating in a wide multi-coloured border.

Something you wouldn’t want to miss if you were in London..

Visit the site for more information here.

This year marks the 200th anniversary of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. While a slew of celebrations are lined up across the pond, the English department at the University of Texas decided to commemorate the event by creating a portal that gives us glimpses into the writer’s world.

The website, ‘What Jane Saw’ is an online re-creation of an 1813 exhibit that Austen attended, giving viewers a chance to tour and see the artworks as Jane may have seen them. A retrospective of famed portraitist Joshua Reynolds, the exhibition features portraitures whose subjects range from King George III to actress Sara Siddens and other ‘abnormally interesting’ people..

Take a tour here.