On Pointe
In lieu of a New York Fashion Week runway show, Opening Ceremony debuted its new collection in a ballet. Justin Peck, the New York City Ballet’s resident choreographer, arranged the piece to celebrate protest, immigration, and diversity.
[Time]
Going to Mecca
Foster + Partners submitted the winning design for a new hotel and apartment complex in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. “As the home of the Holy Kaaba—the holiest site in Islam—it presents a special challenge and honor for any developer and architect. Our design sets out to create an innovative building form that will be respectful to the scale and importance of the Grand Mosque,” said Luke Fox, head of studio and senior executive partner at the firm.
[Archdaily]
Battery Park
Tesla has built a battery facility in Southern California to help regulate the electric grid. The project demonstrates Tesla’s interest in expanding into clean energy industries besides electric cars.
[The New York Times]
Time Change
Luxury conglomerate Richemont will appoint new CEOs for four of its watch brands: Dunhill, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Piaget, and Vacheron Constantin. The move comes after a tough year for timepiece sales, and indicates that executives are looking to refresh the category. “I want to see less grey men, less grey Frenchmen, as a subcategory,” said Richemont chairman Johann Rupert an investor meeting in November. “We have too few women. We don’t have enough diversity.”
[Bloomberg]
Majority White
The American Institute of Graphic Arts has released a census showing that 73 percent of the design industry is white. While this is an improvement on the 91 percent figure found in 1991, the field still has a long way to go before it reflects diversity in the U.S.
[Co.Design]
International Relations
Phillips has hired two executives from Christie’s, Clarice Pecori Giraldi and Dina Amin, to expand the company’s reach in Europe. This is one of Phillips’s many recent international plays, which include opening a Hong Kong office and hiring regional employees in Rio de Janeiro, Mexico City, Cologne, Tokyo, Seoul, and Taipei.
[Artnet]
