Under the expert direction of the late Vogue Editor Diana Vreeland, who became a consultant for The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1971, Broderson painted Edwardian seaside scenes for The Bell Epoque show. His atmospheric stage sets have graced the Academy Awards, pages of Condé Nast publications, and were even incorporated into advertising campaigns for Ralph Lauren and Marc Jacobs. Bette Midler, Jennifer Connelly, and Alan Cumming are but a few of the famous faces that have appeared on a Broderson set.

If you ever have the chance, raise the curtain, set your imagination free and watch a world come to life courtesy of Charles Broderson, backdrop artist extraordinaire.

Stilettos may be de rigeur for traditionalists, but flats add a youthful edge to day and evening ensembles. Fashionistas looking to lengthen their gams should pair a short dress with sexy sandals à la a certain Ms. Theron. Similarly, take a cue from Miranda Kerr’s streamlined style and pair dark denim or cigarette trousers with coloured flats.

Fashionistas need not fret because this season’s flats come in a seductive range of prints and embellishments, designed to convert even the most die-hard stilletoed sister . Lanvin’s bow-embellished patent leather ballerinas add feminine flair, while Tory Burch’s ponyskin leopard print flats spice up the plainest of emsembles. Comfortable chic is the name of Fall’s fashion game and boy, are we glad!

Hosted by Katy Perry and featuring live performances by U2, Green Day, Jay-Z and Shakira, over 17,000 fans attended the show whilst an estimated 2 billion tuned in from home.

Clad in a black dress by David Koma, Beyoncé came on stage three times to accept awards for Best Song, Best Video and Best Female, whilst Lady Gaga (Best New Act) and Eminem (Best Male) accepted their awards through televised speeches.

The EMAs were a prelude to the Fall of the Wall festivities that will kick off this weekend, which will see the likes of Bon Jovi, Mikhail Gorbachev, U2, and Hillary Clinton celebrate the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

© emdot/Flickr Creative Commons License

“Life is difficult. This is a great truth because once we truly see this truth, we transcend it.” So reads the opening sentence of M. Scott Peck’s book, A Road Less Travelled.

Although we may accept that life is full of challenges, we often hold on to negative experiences and use them to define our personality or illustrate our life story. The empathy received encourages us to keep stock of the difficult situations we face and recount our experiences with an air of quasi-heroism.

Yet harbouring negative information is not only bad for our mental wellbeing, but can affect our health. Through his crystal experiments, Japanese scientist Masaru Emoto discovered that water is powerfully affected by positive and negative energy. Water subjected to negative words or unkind gestures was photographed through a microscope, revealing astounding results and distorted molecules. When the same water was treated with kindness and classical music, snapshots revealed perfectly formed crystalline snowflake structures. Considering that our bodies are 80% water, negative thoughts and practices can potentially cause a significant amount of damage.

Learn to affront each challenge independently without carrying baggage from past experiences. When faced with a situation which appears insurmountable, recognise the challenge and learn from it. Above all, once you have overcome it, learn to let it go – for good.

In the words of a noted golf coach, “Play each ball as if it is the first. Play it. Forget it. Move on.”

Saatchi Online artist Stephanie Imbeau’s latest artistic creation, Shelter, recently made an appearance outside the headquarters of Channel 4 in Westminster, London. Constructed from over 1,000 multicoloured discarded umbrellas and shaped to form the Channel 4 logo, it is a perfect example of how the street meets art to create street art.

“In my mind, the main distinguishing factor of public art is context.  It exists alongside our everyday lives,” Imbeau commented, “My aim is for my art to have a positive and enjoyable impact on people, even if that impact is as small as a quick smile.”

The installation was the winning submission of Channel 4’s BIG4 public art competition held earlier this year, which was launched to find a fourth art work to complete a series of new commissions in which artists, worked with the company’s logo.

Image courtesy of Krug Mind Share

Krug has teamed up with some of the greatest minds alive to create a unique auction–all in the name of charity.

On 5 November, Christie’s will be holding the Krug Mind Share auction, which will see 8 high-profile individuals, including WPP mogul Sir Martin Sorrell, Net-a-Porter’s  founder Natalie Massenet and Booker Prize winner Sir Salman Rushdie, auction 60 minutes of their personal time.

The highest bidder will be treated to a one-on-one private meeting with their chosen personality, and all proceeds raised at the live auction will be donated to charity. Massenet has selected Fashion Targets Breast Cancer, whilst Sir Philip Green, another one of the 8 participating contemporary minds, will be donating to the Autism Trust. Other charities benefiting from the Krug Mind Share auction will include the Lang Lang Foundation and the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

As Sir Green remarks, “I am delighted to be participating in The Krug Mind Share auction and look forward to sharing my thoughts with my winning bidder!”

Financial Times / Krug Mind Share Benefit Auction, 5 November 2009, 7:30pm – 9:30pm, 8 King Street, St. James’s, London. Visit www.krugmindshare.com for further details.

© Jackie Munoz. Image courtesy of Karmaloop

Artist Shepard Fairey skyrocketed to success with his iconic poster images for the Obama “Hope” campaign. Having infiltrated public consciousness with his affiche-esque propaganda art, Fairey was commissioned to design catalogue covers and shopping bags for Saks Fifth Avenue and has since set his sights on yet another high profile campaign.

The creator of OBEY has teamed up with online streetwear retailer Karmaloop and MTV Staying Alive Foundation to create a limited edition T-shirt inspired by the late Keith Haring, an influential street artist and AIDS activist. Made of 100% cotton, the T-shirt features a sledgehammer with a red heart, representing breaking the stigma of AIDS through compassion and the dedication to spread awareness.

““AIDS awareness is really important, especially where people aren’t as aware or it’s culturally taboo…The goal of the T-shirt graphic is to fight this, get the message out, talk about the issue and encourage safe sex.  A lot of what I’ve done with my art is to use anger as a positive energy and re-channel it for something good”, said Fairey.

In addition to donating 40% of the proceeds to raise AIDS awareness, Karmaloop’s “Empower the Youth” call for action blends creativity with social activism. Youth have been asked to submit their own designs in the hope of winning US$5000, a custom-made T-shirt and the opportunity to retail the winning design on Karmaloop’s website. Moving beyond fashion fads to encourage youth to become active and creative supporters of change, Karmaloop’s message is clear.

Want to change the world? Commit yourself to the task and dont be afraid of wearing your heart on your T-shirt. Yes, you can.

T-shirts retail for US$24 and are being sold exclusively at www.karmaloop.com.

There is no doubt that fashion photographer David Anthony is a hot commodity. Having shot for leading publications such as Harper’s BAZAAR, Cosmopolitan and Rolling Stone, Anthony is known for his razor-sharp style and opinions. Chic Today traces Anthony’s meteoric rise from film to photography as he comes full circle.

Read online

Located next to the traditional Portuguese port towns of El Jadida (a UNESCO World Heritage site) and Azemmour, the Mazagan Beach Resort encompasses a 250-hectare site that includes an 18-hole golf course designed by Gary Player, a 7km stretch of beach, luxury boutiques, eight restaurants,  a spa and one of the largest conference centres in the region.

Over 1,500 guests were treated to lavish fireworks, performancs by fire eaters and snake charmers amidst thousands of roses and candles.