Visionaire 59 Fairytale: A Collection Of Unique Story Books By Various Artists

Visionaire 59: Fairytale presents a mini-library of children's stories by contemporary artists and photographers in collaboration with writers. Ranging in themes from the delightful to the philosophical, and packaged in a luxurious slipcase, Visionaire's newest issue offer a meditation on innocence and childlike creativity, and makes an ideal gift for readers of all ages.




Each book is individually-bound with a hard-cover and contains between 16 and 56 pages of artworks and text. Each story features some sort of unique production technique, be it glow-in-the-dark, scratch-n-sniff, lenticular, holography, flocking, or foil-stamping. Below are images of the cover of each fairy tale and one sample spread from each.

Jo Ratcliffe with text by Stéphanie Cohen Chaptal accompanied by the photography of Inez van Lamsweerde & Vinoodh Matadin:



John Baldessari:


Richard Philips and Gossip Girl writer Cecily von Ziegesar:


Douglas Gordon:


Gary Card, Dan Harris, Ted Klipper and Jon Perry:


Pierre Huyghe, story by Mario Bellatin:


James Franco & Carter:


Sculptor Ugo Rondinone and musician/writer John Giorno:


Karen Kilimnik, story by Kirsten Dunst:


Fashion designers Viktor & Rolf:


Musicians Björk and Sjón with artist Gabríela Fridriksdóttir:



Buy it here.
Soon to be available on Amazon here

About Visionaire:
Founded in 1991 as a collection of artwork and images hand-assembled by a group of friends in a one-room apartment in New York City, Visionaire has since grown into one of the most highly sought-after fashion and art publications in the world. The New Yorker has characterized Visionaire magazine as a "creative playground for leading designers, artists, photographers and thinkers," adding "it's a gallery in print. A cabinet of irresistible curiosities. A daring iconoclast dressed to thrill."

World's Most Expensive Aquarium Made with 24k Gold, Mammoth Tusk & T-Rex Bone.

The Aquavista Dinosaur Gold - The only Aquarium with a 65 million year old history.

This is the world's rarest, most exclusive, most expensive - and undoubtedly the most bizarre- fish tank ever made. 
No surprise that it's a product of Stuart Hughes of Liverpool, maker of all things elite (with the world's most annoying and poorly designed website) who was commissioned by Aquavista UK of London to design something luxurious and unique.




The result is a wall mounted panoramic aquarium whose frame is made with a massive amount of pure solid 24ct gold in the form of 68 kilograms. Embedded in the frame are two side veneers made from real mammoth tusk with a unique piece of dinosaur bone from an actual T-REX diagonally shaved into the tusk.



The specifications:
• Low maintenance – designed to simplify your life, the Aquavista Panoramic Wall Aquarium requires less 
than 15 minutes per month


• No daily care – complete with embedded Automatic Feeder, caring for your fish has never been easier. 
Just refill the feeder periodically and enjoy!


• Complete advanced aquarium system – the Aquavista Panoramic is pre-assembled with dual filtration 
system, heater, air pump, lighting, CO2 generator, and automatic feeder that is controlled by an easy to 
use programmable touch-screen control that simplifies all functions. Essential aquarium 
care accessories are included at no charge.




• Create an underwater garden – each unit comes with a Carbon Dioxide Generator that allows live plants to photosynthesize and 
flourish. Aquascaping is a new and growing hobby, and it has never been simpler.


• Space-saving design – Aquavista Panoramic Wall Aquariums’ sleek wall-mounted design brighten up any wall to create a 
clutter-free environment.


The project took 4 months to complete in London where Aquavista UK is based. Installation by Aquavista UK
.

Available as a limited edition of only 3
Priced at $4.8 million or £3 million

Buy it here

Jasper Johns and Tracey Emin Limited Edition Artist Beach Towels For 2011

above: detail from the Jasper Johns Beach Towel for 2011

above: detail from the Tracey Emin Beach Towel for 2011

Works on Whatever and The Art Production Fund have just released their Artist Series Beach Towels for 2011 whose proceeds go toward funding public art. This year they have reproduced the art of only two artists (as opposed to four in previous years) on the 60" x 70" limited edition cotton towels.



The 2011 Artist Towel Series featuring works by TRACEY EMIN and JASPER JOHNS will be on view at The Standard Spa during Art Basel Miami Beach from December 2-5, 2010.

The Jasper Johns Beach Towel:


The Tracey Emin Towel:


I have blogged about these each year since they began producing them. Previous years' towels included artwork by Alex Katz, Jeff Koons, Julian Schnabel, Cindy Sherman, Yoshitomo Nara, Elizabeth Peyton, Kehinde Wiley, Raymond Pettibone, Rob Pruitt, Karen Kilimnik, Richard Phillips, Ed Ruscha, Peter Doig and Marilyn Minter.

The 2008 Artist Series Beach Towels

The 2009 Artist Series Beach Towels

The 2010 Artist Series Beach Towels

The price continues to rise on these functional pieces of art. Priced at $95 each, you can purchase them, and available ones from years' past.
Buy them here.


WOW (Works on Whatever): is part of Art Production Fund’s WOW project; a unique collection of everyday items designed by artists. APF invites artists to experiment with the latest commercial materials and techniques to bring art off the walls and into homes as everyday objects. WOW introduces contemporary art to a larger community, with revenues from sales supporting our non-profit mission. WOW functions conceptually with APF’s program of expanding art audiences and helps fund additional major public art initiatives. Art Production Fund (APF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to producing ambitious public art projects, reaching new audiences and expanding awareness through contemporary art.

The Seventh Artist Edition Yo-Yo Is Illustrated By Travis Lampe

The seventh in an on-going series of Artist Edition Yo-Yos, this latest hardwood yo-yo features original artwork by Chicago artist, Travis Lampe.

The unadorned yo-yos themselves are a work of art. Made in the United States and turned from a single piece of Hard Rock Maple, they are made in the traditional fashion of yo-yos from the 1920s. While most modern yo-yos are made of high-impact plastic or aircraft-grade aluminum, these wooden yo-yos are meant to evoke a simpler time in American history. The yo-yo is the second-oldest toy in the world and still one of the most popular; it’s with this heritage in mind that these wooden yo-yos were chosen.

Other Yo-yos in the series featured the work of, amongst others, Brian Morris:

and Jeremiah Ketner:


This Artist Edition Yo-Yo will be $15 each, limited to 30 pieces worldwide, and will never be manufactured again. One side is laser-engraved with original art by the selected artist, while the other side is engraved with the artist’s signature and the Steve Brown Gallery logo.



The goal of this series, as expressed by Steve Brown Gallery, is to provide people with a work of art that is meant to be part of their everyday life. It is their hope that this yo-yo provides you with simple pleasure for years to come.



Yo-yos manufactured and engraved by Arizona-based YoYo Factory.


You can find other Travis Lampe originals for sale here.

Kiehl's X Koons Limited Edition Collection Benefits Kids And Dry Skin.

Kiehl's has collaborated with world-recognized contemporary artist Jeff Koons (again*) to raise awareness - and funds- for kids in need.




Jeff Koons is using his creative genius and Kiehl's is using their brilliant body lotion (I kid you not, it's one of the greatest products ever made) to help children in need around the world. With the shared vision of creating safer, more sustainable environments for children, the partnership is raising awareness and funds through the sale of the 2010 Limited Edition Creme de Corps Holiday Collection, a four-product collection that includes 3 sizes of their awesome body lotion, each with a colorful Koons label and their newest formulation, Creme de Corps Whipped Body Butter.

The Jeff Koons painting used for the Keihl's limited edition collection labels:

above: Tulips, oil on canvas, 111 5/16 x 130 11/16 inches, 282.7 x 331.9 cm, 1995–1998

1 Liter ($70) and 16.9 oz ($45) pump bottles :

8.4 oz size ($27) and the new Whipped Body Butter ($35):


Buy the products here

Keihl's has collaborated with artists several times before. Below is their 2009 Creme de Corps Holiday Collection with labels by KAWS:



100% of Kiehl’s net profits from the sale of each product will benefit The Koons Family Institute, an initiative of the International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (ICMEC).

*This is not the first time Koons has lent his creative talents to Kiehl's. This past March, in celebration of Earth Day, Jeff Koons, along with Pharell Williams, Julianne Moore and Malia Jones created special edition labels for Kiehl's Acai Damage-Protecting Mist.

images and information courtesy of Kiehl's