Luxist

What do you do when you work at a factory that's been shutdown due to a weak economy? Well, you can sit around and mope. Or you can volunteer your time and skills. Following their earlier art project to benefit cancer research, 59 craftsmen from the Bentley factory in Crewe have opted once again for the latter, and this is the result.

Named Luke, this retired London Routemaster double-decker bus was acquired by St Luke's hospice in Winsford, England, earlier this year. The idea was to transform it into a rolling vehicle for community service and public awareness. The Bentley workers put in some 2000 man-hours of their own free time to bring it to fruition, and the results look very impressive indeed. But don't take our word for it: see for yourself in the image gallery below.

Donald Trump's Atlantic City casinos might not belong to Trump anymore if billionaire banker and high-stakes poker player Andy Beal has anything to say about it. Beal and Trump were once partners doing battle against another group of bondholders to take control of the three bankrupt Trump Entertainment Resorts Inc. casinos. But now Beal has split from Trump and his Beal Bank has offered to convert its $486 million mortgage on the casinos into majority owner equity. The offer drew criticism from attorneys representing Trump Entertainment bondholders, who have offered to buy the casinos for $225 million. Previously Trump and Beal Bank had offered $114 million in cash for the company but last week Trump withdrew from that deal and instead agreed to back the bondholders in return for an ownership stake in the casinos.

Beal might love the art of the deal even more than Trump. After all, this is a man who won more money in a single day than any other poker player: $11.7 million at the Las Vegas Bellagio casino in 2004. Because of Beal's mortgage on the Trump casinos his bank is first in line among bankruptcy creditors.

U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Judith H. Wizmur has given both sides until December 3 to try to negotiate a deal. Wizmur has scheduled hearings to start in January to pick the company's new buyer.

I'm still not sold that the art market is recovering (it could be, but it's too soon to tell). But, if it is, the upside is going to the galleries and collectors -- the artists aren't getting squat. November was generally kind to Christie's, Sotheby's and Phillips de Pury, leading to hundreds of millions of dollars in art sales. So, to get their own piece of the art market pie that may or not be forming, artists are starting to go directly to the buyers.

Artist Ryan McGinness hosted a sale of pieces by several artists, with the person who did the work taking home all the spoils. The presale estimate of $47,000 to $57,000 made sense, as the final tally came to $51,300, pretty much in the middle. McGinness himself was present at the event ... via a video connection from Amsterdam.

The traditional auction model trends to benefit collectors rather than artists, as it creates a secondary market for artwork. It's really no different from the stock market. An IPO, if successful, will be the starting point, with the price going up later, to the advantage of all subsequent owners.

Read more →

We've seen an inn in Vermont offer getaways for the unemployed. Now a different inn is offering a free getaway for the uninsured. Tim and Amy Brady, the owners of Forty Putney Road Bed and Breakfast in Brattleboro, Vermont know firsthand the challenges of being without health insurance. In 2007, when they left their corporate jobs to start the bed and breakfast they struggled to find a healthcare coverage option that would be affordable and not exclude existing conditions. Now they hope to provide a healthy getaway to those who may be facing the same struggle with their own health care coverage by giving away one healthy getaway each month, complete with an apple a day , to an uninsured couple in need of some stress relief. Each month until a National Health Care Reform Bill is passed Forty Putney Road Bed and Breakfast will award one deserving couple with a two-night stay that includes a healthy breakfast. Visit the Forty Putney Road Bed and Breakfast website for more details.

The name, Tactical Nuclear Penguin, might be a bit silly, but this is a beer to take seriously. BrewDog, a Scottish brewery says the Penguin is the world's strongest beer and has a 32 percent alcohol content. Like other strong beers such as some of the Sam Adams offerings, this is a beer to be enjoyed in small servings. It is a double cask matured uber-imperial stout. A limited supply of Tactical Nuclear Penguin sells for £30 a bottle or £250 per bottle which includes a share in BrewDog PLC (value £230).

[via BBC News]

The Carlos Falchi Glazed Python Dr. Bag is by equal parts fabulous and dazzling.

It's like he took a basic black python bag and BeDazzled it. Like ... really, really well. We can't say this looks like a doctor-style bag to us, but we do love the shape. The gathers at the sides make it feminine enough to stand up to the great big appliquéd BeJewels.

Is it just us, or do the multiple shapes and the spacing remind you of Louis Vuitton? We're certainly not accusing Mr. Falchi of being unoriginal, but if LV did this with their signature shapes, the result would be outrageously awesome.

This perfect-for-the-holidays glazed python bag is a sensible 7"H x 13"W x 4"D; large enough for your stethoscope and your makeup.

The Carlos Falchi Glazed Python Dr. Bag is available from Bergdorf Goodman for $1,695.00.

The critics weren't kind to Damien Hirst's latest collection, which was exhibited at the Wallace Collection. It doesn't seem to have mattered. All news is good news in Hirst-land, as evidenced by the sales of his most recent effort. Hirst opened a new show yesterday at White Cube. Even if the media isn't crazy about his, the artist's collectors haven't ended the love affair. Five of the seven largest pieces in his new "Nothing Matters" collection sold before the show opened, with the highest-priced piece hitting $15.7 million, despite an initial point of only 235,000 pounds.

The show runs at White Cube through January 20, 2010, but you'll have to accept that you'll be checking out what is now other people's property. Hirst collectors are nothing if not loyal.

Need a stocking stuffer for a design lover in your life? Check out the new compact mirrors from Acme studios, the same folks that make pens and business card cases using designs from Karim Rashid, Frank Lloyd Wright and more. There are six designs each are made of chrome-plated stainless steel with a lacquered inlay cover. Inside there is a circular detail mirror as well as a square one. Each one sells for $39.

Surrealist, modern and postwar pieces will go under the gavel next week at the Christie's Impressioniste et Moderne auction in Paris. More than 140 lots will be offered on December 1, 2009, with presale estimates ranging from $6 million to $9 million. Among the artists represented in the auction, which consists of the Lefebvre-Foinet collection, are Alberto Giacometti, Max Ernst, Henri Matisse and Zao Wou-Ki. The collection was amassed over five generations, with the latest in the family making the decision to sell.

A portrait of Maurice Lefebvre by Giacometti could fetch between $1 million and $1.5 million, but other lots are more attainable. "Lyrical Explosion C," by Alberto Magnelli, is expected to sell for $210,000 to $270,000, and Sonia Delaunay's "Colored Rhythms No. 615" could go for up to $160,000. Playing on the success of the market for Chinese art, Zao Wou-Ki's "5.11.64" could move for as much as $600,000.

Paris has done pretty well through the art market slump, especially when the auctions deviate at least somewhat from the norm. Though there aren't any guarantees, let's keep an eye on this one. It could be the touch of fresh air we need.

[Photo via Christie's]

Today's estate is situated on Lake Tahoe's east shore with views of Glenbrook Bay and the Sierra Nevada Mountains. You can't have a home on Lake Tahoe without taking advantage of the view and this home does not disappoint with a great room that has walls of glass facing the lake. The home has an impressive gourmet kitchen with shining brass wine racks that belong in a bar.

A large rooftop deck includes a firepit and a hot tub with plenty of room. A full huge garage offers room for car collectors to protect their precious vehicles from snow. The current owner appears to be quite the film fan and has a collection of movie memorabilia and a cinema-worthy home theater. Other features include a wine room, office and four bedroom suites. This home is listed at $18.75 million.

Read more →