Go for Broke | Gucci Tattoo Heart Joy Boston Bag, $695

Go for Broke is a column about big purchases worth rationalizing.

What: Tattoo Heart Joy Boston bag
How much: $695 at Gucci
Who: Anne Christensen, T Magazine’s women’s fashion director

Thankfully, some people out there still feel the urge to go shopping and still have some money to spend. To these people I say, “Instead of wearing your heart on your sleeve, wear birds on your handbag!” This Gucci bag, decked with a swallow tattoo motif, not only conveys wealth, but it actually gives some, too!

ABMB | Sacking the Art World

A tote designed by Jeremy Blake for Tommy Hilfiger and Free Arts NYC.

There have been a lot “it” bags popping up at Miami Basel. From the limited-edition canvas totes by Sean Landers at the White Columns booth to Banana Republic’s “I Need Money” version that has proven popular with those who can’t afford the actual art. But our favorite is the one from Tommy Hilfiger and Free Arts NYC, a charity which brings art-related programming to underprivileged kids in New York City.

Now Scoring | Steven Meisel in 032c

When the latest issue of the Berlin-based art and culture magazine 032c hit our desks here at T, we were ecstatic to discover that the notoriously press-shy photographer Steven Meisel had granted a rare interview request for its “Post-America” issue. Here Victoria Camblin, 032c’s assistant editor, discusses scoring a conversation with one of the most important imagemakers in fashion and why Meisel is very much still a plain old New Yorker at heart.

Steven Meisel is an epic photographer, and a profile on such an epic photographer has to be monumental, too. It has to somehow do justice to his not only massive but also massively important body of work—especially when what you are doing hasn’t really been done before, when you’re profiling someone who in the past has given so few interviews.

Now Showing | Zero Rising

Otto Piene working in his studio (Maren Heyne)

The world of art history is a place where art manifestos go to die, and it’s also a place where important movements can become obscured by louder, more lauded voices. The Zero Group may be one of the more unjustly overlooked avant-garde forces of the last century, though that neglect should soon right itself. One need only step into the first room of Sperone Westwater’s catacomb-like retrospective, “Zero in New York,” to bask in the timeless good graces of simple, revelatory art.

What Gives | The Design Addict

The editors of T Magazine present What Gives, a guide to holiday gifting.

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Areaware’s 2B Tube Amplified radio by Jonas Damon is a super-chic way to capture all the warm tones of Carl Kassel’s voice in your own home, without having to be a winner on NPR’s “Wait Wait — Don’t Tell Me!” WeSC’s acid green headphones, on the other hand, will give you some street cred — even if you’re in the midst of your annual Mariah Carey Christmas album marathon on your iPod.

Jonas Damon for Areaware 2B Tube Amplified radio, $550 at Areaware.

WeSC Oboe headphones, $55 at the Conran Shop.

Need more gift ideas? Read previous posts of What Gives.

Art Basel Miami Beach | Homegrown Talents

“Night Ride,” by Nikki Katsikas

Although the crowds weren’t huge at GEISAI Miami during the V.I.P. vernissage on Tuesday night, the excitement was palpable for the 21 artists who were selected to show off their work. Takashi Murakami’s Kaikai Kiki studios served as the sponsor, while the panel of jurors included Matthew Higgs, the director and curator of White Columns in New York; Bonnie Clearwater, the director of the Museum of Contemporary Art North Miami, Shamim Momin, a curator at the Whitney Museum of Art; and Joao Ribas, the curator of the Drawing Center in New York. The artists were each given a free booth to exhibit their works during the festival; two standouts are shown here.

Sandra’s Sources | Dress Rehearsal

 

Inside the Webster Temporary, a mural by the French artist Christophe Brunnquell.

T Magazine’s Senior Editor Sandra Ballentine opens up her little black book of tips on where to go, what to buy and whom to know.

Name: The Webster Temporary
File Under: Women’s Boutiques, Miami
Address: 919A Collins Avenue, Miami Beach, FL 33139
Web site: The Webster Miami

What To Get: The Webster, a 20,000-square-foot style emporium in Miami Beach, won’t be opening its Deco doors until January, but fashion-loving Basel attendees can get a tantalizing preview of the store’s insider-y inventory at the Webster Temporary, a pop-up shop down the street.

Now Listening | El Guincho, A Music Phenom With Sensible Shoes

Pablo Díaz-Reixa, aka El Guincho (Oliver Faig)

“New York is going to be cold,” El Guincho said by phone last week from Barcelona. The 25-year-old musician was about to embark on his first proper U.S. tour and had the herculean task of scouring the Catalan capital, with its warmer climes, for winter wear. “I’m flying to the U.S. tomorrow,” he said exasperated, “and I have to find shoes for the cold.”

Thoughts of sub-Arctic temperatures were far from anyone’s mind last spring when the relatively obscure El Guincho (né Pablo Díaz-Reixa) played a sizzling set at Williamsburg’s Union Pool. From the moment the Canary Islands native took the stage, twiddling sampler knobs with his left hand while simultaneously playing live percussion with his right hand and foot, he shook the full house with a potent potage of Latin beats, tripped-out techno, tribal chants, Afro-Caribbean percussion and infectious melodies. Music, however, is only one hue among many of this artist’s Technicolor palate.

Now Emoting | An Aura of Uncertainty

(Carlo Van de Roer)

The New Zealand-born photographer Carlo Van de Roer recently paid a visit to the ophthalmologist, saying he had been seeing clouds in his eyes. The occurrence wasn’t completely abnormal for Van de Roer as of late; for the past month, he’s been taking portraits of people’s auras, a pseudoscientific phenomenon discussed by migraine sufferers and W.E. Butler alike.

The Insider | Mikhael Subotzky

Julia Cloete

The Insider is a recurring profile of tastemakers in the fields of fashion, design, food, travel and the arts. Here, the photographer Mikhael Subotzky shares a few of his essentials. Subotzky’s “Beaufort West,” a recent body of work exploring the cultural landscape of South Africa’s West Cape, is currently on view at The Museum of Modern Art as part of its “New Photography 2008″ show until January 5th. At the age of 27, Subotzky is the youngest photographer to be included in the New Photography series.

Name: Mikhael Subotzky
Age: 27
Occupation: Artist
Home base: Johannesburg
Retail standby: Killarney Mall – a two minute walk from my apartment in Johannesburg.
Music venue: Some karaoke bar I once got taken to on the Lower East Side.
Favorite concert: The Leonard Cohen show I still have to see.
Music: From Kwaito to Cohen – and that’s a long way!