Charles Saatichi’s op-ed pice in the Guardian UK is about a week old now, but still drawing attention from the those interested in the art sale’s market. Published on December 2, the advertising exec’s editorial is vey much a blow off on his view that many purchasing art today see it as a commodity that takes away from the purpose of the “art” itself. Read the full story over on the Guardian, but we’ll leave you with this from Mr. Saatchi:

Do any of these people actually enjoy looking at art? Or do they simply enjoy having easily recognised, big-brand name pictures, bought ostentatiously in auction rooms at eye-catching prices, to decorate their several homes, floating and otherwise, in an instant demonstration of drop-dead coolth and wealth. Their pleasure is to be found in having their lovely friends measuring the weight of their baubles, and being awestruck.

photo credit

Germany’s famed camera maker, Leica, has announced the release of their new Leica V-Lux 3 compact digital camera; coming this January 2012. All the hype on the new Leica revolves around the super telephoto lens on the unit. Using the Leica DC “Vario-Elmarit” 4.5 – 108 mm,  f/2.8 – 5.2, 24-fold super-telephoto zoom lens the V-Lux 3 range of focal lengths is equivalent to 25–600 mm in 35 mm format. Impressive for a small body unit.

The Leica V-Lux 3 also shoots a full 60 frames per second in 1080p for video fans. They also throw in a 3inch LCD display with 460,000 pixel resolution.

More looks after the click.

In an attempt to take a break from Christmas cheer and winter blues we’re going to turn our attention to Spring/Summer 2012 for a moment. This lookbook from Heritage Research has us right back there in sunnier times, when skies were blue and thermals just a distant thought.

Creator Russ describes the collection as having a “Vietnam era Counter Culture feel”, an apt description for a relaxed collection full of patchwork print, madras fabrics and that incredible tiger camo. Short sleeved shirts, vests, sweats and a nice line in blazers, as much as much as we’re enjoying our current extreme layering, it can’t hurt to look to the months ahead.

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Epaulet bring us another ‘Mash-up’ item. This time they’ve taken Harris Tweed in three varieties; navy marl, oatmeal herringbone and gray-green basket-weave. Woven in Scotland’s Outer Hebrides, this traditional fabric starts its life as 100% virgin wool.

Epaulet have created a traditional half-canvassed blazer (the canvas giving added structure to the jacket) featuring what they describe as ‘a natural shoulder’. Features include double rear vents, slim lapels, royal purple lining, goat suede elbow patches and goat suede undercollar. The real selling point is the patchwork of tweeds, rather than making this ‘wacky’ it actually just adds a bit of interest to a classic American sportcoat.

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Michael Halsband has been shooting since the 70s. Growing up in NYC meant he was never short of subject matter. “There was Central Park and the Bandshell, West Side, the Riverside Park scene and all the kids that hung out there… Once you tapped into anyone who was connected to that scene you were drawn into it very naturally”.

He went on to work at Rolling Stone Records where small projects turned into shooting Mick on the ‘81 “Tattoo You” tour and Keith Richards for Rolling Stone Magazine. Working with the likes of Warhol, Basquiat and Klaus Nomi, Michael’s career has been an eventful one. Have a peek round his Flat Iron apartment courtesy of Freunde Von Freunden.

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Bally offer up endless personalised possibilities with their bespoke Scribe service. This is a chance to invent your own shoe based on some of their classics from the archives. A range of hides, brogueing, colours and styles are available to order.

Perfectionists and control freaks this is a chance to get the shoe you’ve been dreaming of, whether it’s something understated and simple or a more ostentatious vision you’ve been harbouring. The choice is yours. Built to last,  everything comes with Goodyear welting, hand-dyed leather uppers, mutiple stitching as well as full leather lining, all embossed with the Bally crest inside.

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Polo Ralph Lauren bring us this classic single breasted trench. Hidden button placket front, single vent, slant pockets, this one comes with a waist belt making the whole thing feel a lot smarter. The fabric is described as ‘medium weight cotton canvas’ which means you’ll probably want to layer up underneath. As much as we love the double breasted variety they’re not the easiest styles to wear. If you’re going to take your cue from a detective on this one we’d say Columbo rather than the Pink Panther. Find it at Nitty Gritty.

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01. Shiny Squirrel Pop Up to Ppen in Boston at Stel’s – December 10th

“I am opening my 3rd location for one month at Stel’s on Newbury St in Boston with local blogger, N’East Style. We have some old favorites and new designers including Forestbound, Corter, Ursa Major, and vintage home goods from Buckshot Sonny’s which is the brainchild of All Plaid out & Joe Gannon.” 334 Newbury St. Boston (stelsboston> shineysquirrel)

02. Garrard x Bombay Sapphire Limited Edition Bottle

“In this holiday season, legendary Bombay Sapphire gin has joined forces with the oldest house of jewelry in the world to reveal a royal gift sold in limited edition. Bombay Sapphire Gin celebrates its 250th anniversary with a dazzling jewel signed Garrard: a prestigious bottle of crystal cabochon royal for a legendary gin, unique and subtle.” (viacomit)

03. Apple Submits Revised Plans and Renderings for Apple’s New Campus

“As noted by iPhoneinCanada, Apple has submitted revised plans for their so-called “Spaceship” campus proposal. The massive new campus is expected to provide Apple with approximately 2.8 million square feet for up to 13,000 employees. Steve Jobs personally presented the original plans to the City of Cupertino in June. ” (macrumors)

04. Behringer iNuke Boom

10,000 watts. $30,000! “Yeah, we know. Another day, another iPod Dock. But unlike the one sitting in your bedroom, the 8-foot by 4-foot Behringer iNuke Boom ($30,000) probably won’t fit on your nightstand. Then again, it won’t win any awards for classy product names either. Inside the 700 pound stereo beast, the iNuke has been endowed with 10,000 watts — no, it’s not April 1st — of ear-dissolving power. Behringer, who you may know from their lineup of sturdy pro-audio gear, will have the iNuke Boom on display at CES 2012, just in case you didn’t think it was real. Let’s just hope they kick it off with Regulate.” (gearpatrol)

Highsnobiety gives us a look at the DSM exclusive t-shirts from the CdG PLAY line. We have to say, they look great. “As usual they keep it simple and mostly based around their heart logo graphic. Overall there are two designs, coming in several colorways for men, women and kids. The tees are exclusive to Dover Street Market. More at Highsnobiety.

Here’s something that’s a little outside the remit, but interesting enough for us to feature. Julien Renault goes around the world collecting photogenic stuff, takes pretty pictures of it and uploads them onto his site. Simple enough, but it’s actually a very involving site once you get pulled into the rabbit hole. (Julien Renault)