Don Pendleton

WE'RE SUPPORTING

New York-based photographer Michael Lavine took the iconic photo of Kurt and Courtney for the cover of Sassy magazine back in the early 1990s. We asked him to recount the story behind the shoot: ‘We shot the photos at my Bleeker St loft on the Bowery. I remember that my friends Andrea Linett and Janet Billig were there. I remember the ridiculous twelve foot silk lighting setup I used. I remember people having to go out and score dope. I remember Kurt telling me that the reason that he loved Courtney so much was that she was the only girl he knew that would stand up at a party and smash a glass table to bits just for the hell of it. I remember thinking that was a pretty odd reason to love someone’. There’s an extensive interview with Michael Lavine on the Feature Shoot website.

WE'RE TRAVELLING TO

Of all the weird places the world has to offer, the Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia has to be one of the coolest. Literally. At 3,700m above sea level, it’s the biggest and highest salt flat in the world, where after dark, temperatures can drop to minus 40 degrees celsius. The best way to explore the salt flat is to hire a 4WD and driver from the Uyuni township. En route, you can even stay at a Salt Hotel, where everything is, quite literally, made from salt: the chairs, beds, tables and even the walls. There’s no heating and the beds aren’t exactly ‘plush’, but it’s worth every salty second. Read more

WE'RE WEARING

The fashion brand Jack Spade created a new concept in winter fashion: the moustache gloves. Available in red, blue, grey and yellow, they are recommended for putting right below your nose. Enjoy! Read more

WE'RE THINKING

Kathleen Lolley takes a narrative approach to her folky paintings, using fairy-tale, fantastical, and mythological imagery to weave cryptic stories both imaginary and referential to her personal life. Read more

WE'RE READING

Our friends over at Sex In Art recently posted the work of Japanese artist Aya Kato. Says Justin, the founder of the site: ‘I have this folder on my desktop titled Cool Shiat. It’s where I save all the inspirational images I find on the net. I’ve just finished filling it up with Aya Kato’s amazing images. Argh wow. Wow, wow, wow. I won’t say anymore. Just check her work out for yourself’. Read more

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly is a reminder of why the medium of film is so special. It features first rate visuals, performances, direction and acting, all of which fits together into one of the most insightful, powerful and touching pieces of cinema ever. Read more

WE'RE LISTENING TO

The latest band to make LA proud is tropical-nu wave act Abe Vigoda. These guys are so new and so exciting that even your grandparents don’t know who they are. Yet! They describe themselves as tropical punk, but I like to think of them as nihilistic rockers — no form, no shape, just chaos. If LA’s new breed of punk popstars such as Health, Meiko Meiko and Pocohauntas make you tremble, then this band are sure to get you very worked up.