“Milano” by Paola Pivi at Moroso’s New York showroom. Photography by Alex Kroke…
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At Moroso, Paola Pivi Fashions a Plush Crawl Space
When we last caught up with Paola Pivi, she had recently transformed Perrotin’s expansive Manhattan gallery into a “magic cube of protection” where visitors traversed through a giant denim tunnel—a welcome salve for turbulent times. The Anchorage-based artist, beloved for her provocative eccentricity, now returns to New York with a like-minded experience albeit on a slightly smaller scale, situated at the front of Moroso’s newly unveiled terracotta-hued showroom designed by Patricia Urquiola.
This time, Pivi beckons exploration inside Milano, an interactive artwork named after her hometown comprising two stacks of four technicolor plush velvet mattresses. The upper stack hangs from the ceiling directly above its lower counterpart, creating a comfortably cozy crawl space in which visitors can do what they wish, from laying down and contemplating to rolling around inside (as long as they don protective slippers). Pivi created Milano in collaboration with Perrotin and More-So, the Italian furniture brand’s experimental division that develops limited-edition furnishings and objects with vanguard artists. It first appeared at the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh last April but will grace Moroso’s storefront windows until May 15. —Ryan Waddoups
Bethan Laura Wood, recipient of the 2023 MECCA x NGV Women in Design Commission. Photography by Mark Cocksedge…
Bethan Laura Wood receives the NGV and MECCA’s Women in Design commission.
Bethan Laura Wood has been awarded the 2023 Women in Design Commission by the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) and MECCA’s M-Power initiative, which aims to empower and engage female artists and designers. Wood’s maximalist, colorful, and experimental work will form an installation that combines furniture, textiles, and scenography, focused on a theme of the gendered history of education and learning. The NGV and MECCA partnership will commission five new female designers over five years, with the final works presented by the end of the year in an exhibition held at NGV.
The Cartier Retail Innovation Lab creates virtual try-on technology for its pricy rings.
The Cartier Retail Innovation Lab has created virtual try-on technology, using generative adversarial networks (GAN) for its high-end jewelry pieces. The technology uses a marker ring, worn by customers, with a small raised white dot acting as a motion capture point. The system has been trained on a wide variety of skin tones based on Rihanna’s inclusive makeup brand, Fenty, and reduces the lag between the real hand and its digital counterpart to under 15 milliseconds, creating a seamless experience. The technology is an in-person experience only and can be tested at six boutiques across North America.
The $750 million fundraising campaign for LACMA’s redesign is nearly complete.
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art has nearly completed its $750 million fundraising campaign for its new building, called the David Geffen Galleries. The museum has appointed 11 new board members, contributing to the $736 million raised so far, with board contributions totaling $330 million. Despite pandemic-related delays, the museum is still on track for a late 2024 completion of the building project, with construction currently at 50 percent completion.
WeWork’s headquarters in New York…
The cash-strapped WeWork is working with SoftBank to shore up its financial footing.
Embattled co-working company WeWork is negotiating with investors to restructure its debt of more than $3 billion and raise more cash. A new investment would allow the company to keep operating for at least a few years, while restructuring would allow executives to continue reshaping the company without worrying about running out of funds. SoftBank is the largest shareholder and creditor, but it is not expected to put any additional money into the company.
Notre-Dame’s long-awaited reconstruction is slated for completion by the end of 2024.
French officials have announced the Notre Dame Cathedral’s reconstruction is proceeding quickly, with the landmark’s reopening scheduled for the end of 2024. The cathedral’s spire, which collapsed during the fire, will begin to rise above the monument this year, signaling its revival. While the reconstruction began last year, an exhibition called “Notre-Dame de Paris: at the heart of the construction site” will open Tuesday underground in front of the cathedral, showcasing the site’s ongoing operations as well as the expertise and skills of workers.
The inaugural ABC Art Baja California Festival will serve as a showpiece for local art.
The ABC Art Baja California Festival will celebrate art and culture across three cities in Baja California Sur. The festival offers two main programs: Lo Local and El Patio, which aim to promote local spaces and projects, and showcase sculptures and installations in an open-air landscape. In addition to these programs, visitors can enjoy special events such as El Cine, La Reunion, The Market, and La Fruta.’With works and NFTs on display and for sale the festival promises to be a vibrant and exciting showcase of talent from artists such as Ana Teresa Fernández, Arturo Hernández Alcázar, and Joel Grossman. The festival kicks off March 10 and lasts for 45 days, ending on April 23.
The Shiva vase by Ettore Sottsass…
Today’s attractive distractions:
Phallic obsessions are nothing new, but still make for provocative decor.
