InsideLux – The Luxury News Authority

When Elizabeth Taylor passed of congestive heart failure on March 23^rd, she left behind not just an estate, but a collection of tangible memories from her iconic 79-year life. Before being sold off at the New York City Christie’s Auction house, the actress’ collections of jewelry, fashion, accessories, memorabilia and art pieces will go on a world tour, beginning in September. Fans around the world will be able to visit Liz’s personal belongings in Paris, Los Angeles, Dubai, Moscow, London, Geneva, Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates.

The auctions will take place at an evening gala on December 13^th, two bidding sessions on December 14^th, and an online-only Christie’s LIVE sale throughout the 10-day exhibition. With her full estate valued between $500 million and $1billion, there is no telling what kind of revenues will be made.

Sold at 106.5 million dollars (65.6 million pounds), Pablo Picasso’s “Nude, Green Leaves and Bust”, is known to be the world’s most expensive original painting to date. Painted in 1932, the piece was inspired by his mistress, Marie Thérése Walter, whom he had been extra-martially seeing four years prior.  Though Picasso separated from his wife, he never married Thérése and she hung herself several years after his death, leaving their child, Maia, parent-less.

Purchased at Christie’s Auction House in New York City, May of 2010, the generous buyer has decided to share the five-foot by four foot painting with the city of London at the Tate Modern art gallery. With this new addition, Tate Modern Britain will debut a Picasso exhibition next year.

Among all the “palaces” in the famous 90210, one in particular, jumps off the block with it’s custom design. Ron Dayan of Piccadilly Designs has out-done his 25 years of design experience with Beverly Hill’s own livable art form. To call this home a “house” would be an insult to the entire interior design world. From the inside out, no detail was left as an after-thought or unplanned add-on. The ethereal gardens, grand indoor columns and blending of masculine and feminine touches make this home perfectly livable for anyone with high levels of taste.

The sleek hardware and smooth appliances in the kitchens and bathrooms modernize the home and balance the opulence of the drapes, chandeliers, and spiral staircases while the open design and 360 degree views remind the inhabitants of the outdoor beauty beyond their custom home. While every room offers something different, Ron had real living space in mind while designing an entertainment room with black leather chairs, complete with cup holders atop a chic cheetah carpet. This recent home is unquestionably breathtaking with every crevice of the property holding a unique and interesting element, making this one of Ron’s most beautiful endeavors to date.

CrystalRoc, in collaboration with Steinway & Sons, is announcing the addition of fully-crystallized, custom-built grand pianos to its collection of exclusive musical instruments.

Encrusted with over a million, individually-positioned Swarovski crystal elements, no two pianos will be alike, as the colour and design of the crystallization will be personalized according to the wishes of each individual client.

“The CrystalRoc Piano is unparalleled and will add to the elegance of any luxury private residence, penthouse suite, or super-yacht,” explains Morten Schjolin, Creator, CrystalRoc.  “The range will cater to the elite private consumer, high-end interior designers and the world of entertainment and celebrity”, he continues. “All our customers will have the ability to influence the creative process as the aim is to produce an original work-of-art that represents their unique style.”

CrystalRoc, whose clients include Rihanna, Leona Lewis, Girls Aloud, Mary J Blige, Kylie Minogue, and The Pussycat Dolls, considers Steinway & Sons to be the ideal partner for this exceptional range. Commenting on the collaboration, Glen Gough, Managing Director of Steinway & Sons in the UK, said, “Steinway pianos have always set an uncompromising standard for sound, touch, and investment value. A Steinway is an instrument of rare quality and now, through our partnership with CrystalRoc, there is the opportunity to own an extraordinarily distinctive, bespoke Steinway grand piano that is the perfect blend of sophistication and glamour.”

The CrystalRoc Piano will be available worldwide in small (Model M), medium (Model B) and large (Model D) sizes. Prices start at £495,000 and any existing design (brand images, personal motifs, artist logos, family crests, franchise colours, team emblems), or an original concept, can be incorporated into the structure of the crystallization.

The MOCCA art gallery in Cannes features a young photographer in the “Beau Sebastian Scott Photo Exhibition”. Growing up in an artistic family, Beau was surrounded by the art world at a young age. His father, Eric Scott, a realist painter, transferred his knowledge of the arts to his son, allowing Beau to discover his passion for photography. His captivating work enthralls art enthusiasts with his raw talent of finding normal, mundane, or even things deemed as ugly and capturing them in a way that transforms the subject into beautiful and interesting photographic pieces.

Wildly successful Kenzo Takada, the designer behind fashion house Kenzo, took up a new artistic endeavor after selling his label to LVMH ten years ago: painting. And yesterday, June 16, he opened his first painting exhibition in Paris.

The exhibition is made up of eight autobiographical paintings, all of which feature Takada in a printed kimono, seemingly inspired by his past career. “Art and fashion are really not that different,” he told the Associated Press in an interview.

If you are interested in seeing the exhibit for yourself, you’re in luck – there is no admission fee. It runs until July 10 at the Studio 55 gallery on Duras Street.

A sculpture by Italian artist Amedeo Modigliani has fetched 43.2 million Euros ($52.6 million) at a Christie’s sale in Paris.  The 65 cm limestone work, entitled “Tete,” was executed in 1910-12 and in the likeness of Modigliani’s most well-known portraits, with an oval face, almond-shaped eyes, a small mouth, a long fine nose and long neck.

The “Tete,” was one of 10 Modigliani sculptures held privately, most of Modigliani’s 27 sculptures are currently in museums around the world

The last record for a Modigliani was in November 2004, when a portrait of his wife and muse, Jeanne Hebuterne, went for 31.3 million dollars at a New York auction held by Sotheby’s.

Zaha Hadid, the iraq-born architect, has set a goal for the opening of Abu Dhabi’s new performing arts center for 2013. As part of the Guggenheim development on the Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi, the structure will hold an opera house, music hall, drama theatre, concert hall, and 450,000 square foot museum designed by Frank Gehry. The massive arts center will hold, with combined seating, a total of 6,300 people.

Beloved French fashion house Hermès has released a new origami kit paying homage to its iconic scarves.

The set contains several patterned sheets of origami paper encased in a hand-stitched leather envelope, and is priced at $750 .

S.T. Dupont has launched a limited edition S.T. Dupont Neptune serenity gift set inspired by Roman mythology. S.T. Dupont pays tribute to Neptune the God of Water and the Sea in Roman mythology through this limited edition gift set that embodies waves and serenity in deep blue Chinese placed lacquer.
The S.T. Dupont Neptune serenity gift set includes one Ligne 2 lighter and three Olympio Large pens; fountain pen, roller and ballpoint. This S.T. Dupont Neptune serenity gift set is limited to just 888 units and costs $1000.