Craig Green’s Ribbed “Tools” Debut at Dover Street Market, and Other News

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Yes, Those Are… Craig Green’s Latest Launch

Whether in Miami, New York, or, in this case, London, the occasion of art week inspires peacocking in many forms. Some prefer to party to get their names in the press, while others stay firmly inside their lane and let the headlines coalesce around them. The British fashion designer Craig Green chose to let his work speak for itself, expanding his eponymous label’s footprint at the London outpost of Dover Street Market with an attention-grabbing new accessory: ribbed wooden… tools that look quite a bit like sex toys.

Created for the occasion of Dover Street Market London’s 20th anniversary, which coincided this year with Frieze London, interpreting the purpose of these accessories has been left as an exercise for the reader by Green himself. In launching the 11-piece, limited edition collection on his own Instagram, the designer simply referred to them as jumbo wooden tools. —Jenna Adrian-Diaz

A design team has been selected to help pedestrianize Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue.

Economists gauge the vitality of a location by its foot traffic, the number of customers it attracts. New York City Mayor Eric Adams recently unveiled the four design teams for his Future of Fifth program, aimed at permanently transforming parts of Fifth Avenue between Bryant Square and Central Park to enhance foot traffic and liveliness. The selected teams, including Field Operations, Sam Schwartz, Arcadis, and Public Works Partners, will collaborate to create a comprehensive plan. Their goal is to convert one of the car lanes into pedestrian space and extend the sidewalk into the street based on findings that such transformations can significantly boost revenue for local businesses, as demonstrated by a recent Mastercard study. The program aims to release a comprehensive master plan in mid-2024, with public engagement and design development continuing into early-2025.

The British Museum will digitize its collection after more than two decades of theft.

George Osborne, the British Museum’s chairman of trustees, recently disclosed that theft of 2,000 gems from the museum’s collection occurred over a 20- to 25-year period. This revelation highlighted the critical need for cataloging and proper documentation of the museum’s 2.4 million uncatalogued or partially catalogued objects. The cataloging effort is expected to cost £10 million ($12.14 million) and take around five years to complete. The stolen objects have been recently returned, and the museum plans to display them in the future to raise awareness and aid in further recoveries.

Djabril Boukhenaïssi wins the first environment award from Lee Ufan and Guerlain.

French painter Djabril Boukhenaïssi has been honored with the inaugural Guerlain x Lee Ufan Art and Environment Award at Paris+ par Art Basel. This prestigious award, a collaboration between Lee Ufan’s museum in Arles and Guerlain, the renowned French perfumery, recognizes artists whose work engages with environmental themes. Boukhenaïssi, known for his art that portrays the fragility and impermanence of the natural world, will also enjoy a residency in Arles and present a solo exhibition at Lee Ufan Arles next summer. Guerlain is currently hosting an art exhibition, “Les Fleurs du Mal,” to celebrate 170 years of the Bee Bottle at their Champs-Elysées location, featuring works by 26 artists until November 13.

E-commerce platform Basic.Space acquires Design Miami/ to expand its footprint.

The e-commerce platform Basic.Space has acquired Design Miami/, a leading forum in collectible design for nearly two decades. The move aims to boost Basic.Space’s digital presence and tap into the cultural cachet of Design Miami/, while also exploring new collectible sectors. This comes as Design Miami/ recently opened its inaugural Paris edition, featuring top exhibitors from New York, London, and Paris showcasing a diverse range of collectible design pieces. Basic.Space intends to reach a younger audience of collectors interested in a variety of products, from rare Hot Wheels toy cars to antique Pierre Jeanneret Chairs, while retaining the independence of Design Miami/.

Vacheron Constantin partners with the Met to focus on new educational programs.

Vacheron Constantin, in collaboration with the Louvre in Paris since 2019, has established an affiliation with the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The three-year agreement involves the brand’s financial support for educational initiatives, including a residence program for young artists. The partnership seeks to uphold the preservation of arts and knowledge through mentoring programs and cultural engagement. Louis Ferla, the brand’s CEO, emphasized the significance of the United States as a strategic market and its commitment to becoming part of the cultural fabric of the community. Vacheron Constantin has previously introduced programs and collections that fuse art and horology, and there is potential for future watch designs featuring Met masterpieces.

Today’s attractive distractions:

Pepper X is three times spicier than the world’s previously hottest pepper.

These rare daguerreotypes are the earliest surviving photographs of Iran.

Apple uses a secret screen cleaner to ensure its floor products are pristine.

Embark on a brief history of 47th Street, New York City’s diamond district.