Ephemeral Tattoo Opens L.A. Parlor in Former Body Shop, and Other News

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Ephemeral Tattoo Opens L.A. Parlor in Former Body Shop 

For the tattoo-curious who fear commitment, Ephemeral Tattoo is a godsend. The brand’s medical-grade, made-to-fade ink is applied like a regular tattoo but promises to completely disappear from your skin within 15 months. Earlier this year, the company opened its first shop in Brooklyn and recently announced a second location in Los Angeles.

Envisioned by interior designer Pete Trentacoste, Ephemeral’s L.A. location pays homage to the site’s former industrial context. Floor-to-ceiling plastic curtains, vintage LED scrolling signs, and corrugated steel partitions add a rugged flair to this otherwise clean and millennial-chic parlor, complemented by a Phantom Dynamics disco ball that can immediately  transform the central lounge area into a community events center. 

1stdibs: Designers Are Over Neon Signs, Millennial Pink, and Cane Seating 

Earlier this week, 1stDibs released their fifth annual Interior Design Trends Survey, polling more than 750 designers around the world for their thoughts on next year’s most crucial design and furniture trends. Several of the incoming trends seem to directly respond to pandemic lockdowns that forced millions indoors, spurring a home refresh and renovation craze. With regards to the outgoing trends, signs seem to point to a more standard flux in tastes after an oversaturated few years of the same looks ad nauseum. 

What’s coming in? The color green, in both dark and light hues, as well as cobalt blue. Say goodbye to millennial pink, mustard yellow, greige, and navy. Green design remains in vogue, with natural materials, biophilic motifs, and an abundance of house plants still popular with designers. Instagram fads—think neon signs, black interiors, cane seating, and arches—are out. Finally, furnishings that personify comfort, like Noguchi lights and Eames chairs, still reign supreme, while 2022 won’t be a kind year for less comfortable chairs by Breuer and Panton.

Tadao Ando’s latest build is a trapezoidal gallery nestled in a valley of azaleas.

In celebration of the Benesse Art Museum’s 30th anniversary, the Pritzker Prize-winning architect Tadao Ando was called once again to design a space for the institution’s Japanese island-hopping campus. Located on Naoshima Island, Valley Gallery is his ninth structure for the museum and draws inspiration from traditional Japanese shrines. 

Coney Island’s iconic boardwalk will get a $114.5 million plastic-and-concrete facelift.  

Ipe wood—fuggedaboutit! The famed Riegelmann Boardwalk—home to Nathan’s Famous hotdogs and New York City’s annual Mermaid Parade—is slated for a robust overhaul to remove its weathered ipe planks and replace them with a textured plastic deck. The $114.5 million project will also include a concrete foundation beneath the plastic boards and revamped furniture. Some Brooklynites aren’t happy about the move to plastic, including incoming politicians who may have the power to block the conversion. 

Simone Leigh joins Matthew Marks Gallery after speedily departing Hauser & Wirth.

Following her decision to leave the mega-gallery after only 21 months, the famed sculptor has found new representation at Matthew Marks as she prepares for the 2022 Venice Biennale as the U.S. representative. Marking her debut with the gallery at Art Basel Miami Beach, Leigh joins its powerhouse roster alongside Alex Da Corte, Martin Puryear, and Jasper Johns.

Machine Gun Kelly jumps on the bandwagon of men debuting nail polish brands. 

On the heels of Harry Styles’ recently launched and much-hyped beauty brand Pleasing, Machine Gun Kelly enters the cosmetics industry with UN/DN LAQR, a nail polish brand targeted at men. Male celebrities boosting beauty brands would have previously been an unpopular move, but influential figures in Hollywood have steered the conversation around beauty away from austere gender norms and towards a liberated sense of self-expression. It’s also not a bad time to get into the nail business: due to the pandemic, sales in at-home nail care products increased 16 percent, and TikTok’s #NailArt hashtag sports 17 billion views.

Olafur Eliasson designs a vintage label for Château Mouton Rothschild 2019. 

Following in the footsteps of Dalí, César, Picasso, and Warhol, the Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson lent his artistic sensibilities to another iteration of the iconic Château Mouton Rothschild label. For the 2019 vintage, Eliasson designed Solar Iris of Mouton to be “a map of all the sunsets and sunrises that take place over a year at Château Mouton Rothschild.” The Rothschild tradition of asking artists to design labels has been going strong since 1945.

Nitrogen tracking could be the next super tool in the fight against climate change.

Researchers from the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center are developing nitrogen tracking technology that could slice greenhouse emissions by 12 percent—the equivalent of removing pollution generated by 10 million cars. The project will study the ways microbes use and recycle naturally occurring nitrogen in the soil. The goal? Promote the use of microbes over nitrogen fertilizers, which can leach polluting nitrous oxide into the environment.

Today’s attractive distractions:

Sweden wants to teach you about the locations behind Ikea furniture names.

Archaeologists may have found evidence of the Hanukkah-related rebellion.

VanMoof debuts a bright pink electric bike in collaboration with Jacquemus.

These NFT sneakers don’t physically exist yet and were designed entirely by AI.