Polka dot has a rich history, from the 1928 Minnie Mouse, dressed by Disney in red polka dot dress and a matching bow, through the high fashion of polka dot dresses of the 30s, 40s, and 50s, to the recent Louis Vuitton collection by Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama (herself became famous for her dotted art in the 60s), to the current fall collection by Valentino. In 1951, Marilyn Monroe was famously photographed wearing a polka dot bikini, stimulating this vogue in the postwar years.

This is what Charlotte Perrinad wrote on the Synthesis of the Arts Exhibition, which she curated at the Takashimaya department store in Tokyo in 1955: “There was a low, free-form table designed to be used Japanese-style; it was set on two carpets, one red and the other black; the benches were made of wooden slats; all the wooden elements were 

We loved visiting the Byrdcliffe Colony in Woodstock. Founded in 1902 by Jane Byrd McCall and Ralph Radcliffe Whitehead as a manifestation of the Arts and Crafts Movement in the US, it is today the oldest operating Arts and Crafts Colony in the country, still located in its original buildings, all designed in the Arts and Crafts style. The furniture crafted by the colony, with its distinctive carving is highly collectible and was the theme of a show at the New York Historical Society a couple of years ago. 

Copper in Architecture 

I so enjoyed the superb Jeff Koons retrospective at the Whitney Museum, because it really captures the essence of his art, his philosophy, his passion. The show begins with Koons' early vacuum cleaner pieces from the 80s, and it then takes the viewers all the way through all of his shows over the past three decades and to this day. To me, the show also captures a sense of nostalgia of the my early years in NYC in the 80s, when Koons emerged with piecs that fully explores the relationship between art and popular culture. It reminded me of my memorable visit to Koons studio in Chelsea when he worked on the show Popeye.  

The Centre for Studies of Home will featured an event entitled "Color in Historic Homes."  Scholars explore the domestic interior of historic homes though wall paintings, materials and furniture., presented recent research on such topics as Henry VII’s marriage bed; the evidence of interiors from portraits; early modern interiors and décor in lesser Georgian and Victorian interiors. 

The Dutch Design Week will be opening with an event with fashion designers Elisa van Joolen and Borre Akkersdijk and Liselore Frowijn, three Dutch designers who are daring, and create unorthodox fashion. Van Joolen is known for her collection Invert Footwear, in which she re-uses left over materials of big brands; Akkersdijk has made his name with an innovative use of materials and three-dimensional knitting method; and Frowijn’s work can be recognized by the surprising mix of graphic compositions, with daring color and fabric combinations. 

Not an easy pick with so many boring gowns. Here are my picks, and both by Zuhair Murad. 

R & Company is opening a show (dec)curation, an exhibition curated by Steven Volpe of the San Francisco-based design firm, Steven Volpe Design. For this exhibition, Volpe explores the concept of (dec)curation through arrangements of objects and furnishings from R & Company's collection of historical and contemporary works.