© helmut newton estate / photography: helmut newton - bergstrom over paris, paris [1976]

one of the 20th century's legendary photographers, helmut newton's work is marked by meticulously stylized - or should we say decadent? - and often erotically charged scenes. despite the controversy he went on to become highly influential, especial in fashion circles where he was regarded and recognized as an image innovator until hos tragic death in 2004. opening on fri - may 31 at stockholm's fotografiska is a retrospective exhibition that highlights newton’s photographic work. the show comprises some 180 works which are displayed thematically: fashion, nudes, portraits, sex and humour, and combined these encapsulate the master’s vision of the world and photography.

newton has worked simultaneously with fashion and editorial commissions, both for fashion magazines and erotic publications such as playboy. additionally, newton shot a sizeable range of portraits, but only of people that really interested him. he actually claimed that the job of a portrait photographer was to seduce, amuse and entertain. the list of contemporary creatives who have acknowledged being influenced by the german-born photographer is a lengthy one, and includes renowned icons such as mario testino, stanley kubrick, tom ford, roman polanski and herb ritts. location: stadsgårdshamnen 22 [södermalm].

© helmut newton estate / photography: helmut newton - yves saint laurent, rue aubriot, paris [1975]

© denham / photography: philip jintes - the new amsterdam flagship

since its inception dutch denim brand denham predominantly catered to a male clientele, but meanwhile it has diversified its offerings by adding a full-fledged women's line. as this collection is a tad more fashion-inspired, the brand has seized the opportunity to showcase both the men's and women's collections in new and more upscale retail locations. in a previous post we talked about how denham tested the water with a shop at swanky omotesando hills mall in downtown tokyo, and it has now followed up with a new flagship store in similar surroundings at its amsterdam homebase.

located around the corner from the dutch capital's most prestigious shopping strip the store occupies three floors and is designed denham's in-house creative team. although still featuring a number of the brand's signature design elements, such as swathes of white, parquet flooring and vintage tailor scissors, the vibe here is decidedly more sophisticated but with a typical denham twist. the store design includes a ticket-office inspired reception area, bespoke neon signage and an in-house popcorn machine. the ground floor presents highlights from both the menswear and womenswear collection, in addition to a tightly edited selection of accessories.

while the basement section is entirely dedicated to menswear, the second floor features womenswear and a concise collection of women's shoes. exclusive to the store, and a first, is the so-called private wardrobe concept, an invitational shopping experience that offers customers access to a selection of limited edition products not presented anywhere else on the planet. for this purpose a v.i.p.-inspired space has been created at the back of the store, replete with a well-stocked sake bar - mind you, it stocks denham-branded sake - and fitting room. last but not least, the store also offers a denim alterations and repair service. location: hobbemastraat 8 [amsterdam zuid].

© denham / photography: philip jintes - ground floor, basement, second floor and v.i.p. space [top to bottom]

© passado composto - brazilian design at its best

as of late modern brazilian furniture design has seen an increase in popularity among collectors across the planet. the appreciation back home has always been significant, in fact, brazil still remains the best place to scout for the most exceptional trophy pieces. currently on at são paulo's passado composto gallery is brasil moderno, an exhibition that serves as a tribute to the period in the 1950s when the nation's futuristic capital brasília was created. on display are no less than 82 exemplary furniture pieces - mostly from the gallery's own collection - by some of brazil's leading creative talents, including oscar niemeyer, joaquim tenreiro, sérgio rodrigues, lúcio costa and jorge salszupin [on through jun 3]. location: alameda lorena 1996 [jardim paulista].

© passado composto - a rare sofa by joaquim tenreiro, exhibition setting [top and bottom]

© one leicester street - right in the heart of london's chinatown

london has not shortage of stylish lodgings, and the number of establishments that cater to design-conscious travelers is ever increasing. the latest opening to have caught our eye is one leicester street, a newly opened hotel + restaurant concept of singaporean entrepreneur peng loh and acclaimed chef tom harris. the 15-room propertry is situated in the heart of london's chinatown and is the first european outpost of the unlisted collection of boutique hotels and restaurants. one leicester street's interior design has been concocted by london-based universal design studio and features rooms in a clean contemporary style. walls and ceilings are lined in slats of white-washed timber, and the setting is complemented by carefully selected custom furnishings and high-end fixtures. obviously, they come with all the modern amenities, such as a flat-screen tv, a dvd player and free wireless internet.

heightening the sense of luxe are the range of complimentary bath amenities from penhaligon's, a classic british fragrance house. on the ground floor the property features a very stylish all day and late night bar and lounge, decorated in deep blues and grays. the colour scheme extends, albeit somewhat tweaked, to the restaurant at one leicester street, a relaxing dining space with black ash timber dining chairs, paired with pristine white tablecloths and bespoke-designed copper pendant lights. the place not only serves breakfast and brunch, but also lunch and dinner. offering the very best of british produce, harris presents the latter two in a daily changing menu and allows guests to share smaller and larger dishes and step outside the more traditional starter, main course and dessert format. an outside terrace, shielded by a victorian awning, allows al fresco dining while also offering passers by a proper coffee and bite pitstop location. location: 1 leicester street [soho].

© one leicester street - our kind of place

© études - cover of bryan dooley's new book

études is a design studio based founded in 2002 by aurélien arbet and jérémy égry. based in paris and new york, the venture is the successive merging of contemporary menswear brand hixsept and publishing house jsbj, and continues to produce men’s fashion, artist books while also offering creative services to third parties. études has had a book launch at colette earlier this month, introducing six new publications by paul kooiker, colin snapp, bryan dooley, nicolas hosteing, nicolai howalt and daniel everett. a related exhibition, featuring photo prints of these books can still be viewed at the store [on through jun 6]. location: 213 rue st.-honoré [st.-honoré].

© études - spreads from bryan dooley's new book

© semi-permanent - look who's on stage...

founded in sydney a decade ago, semi-permanent established itself as a leader in presentations and exhibitions throughout the creative world, and has become something of a fixture for the creative community across the planet. this year's edition kicks off at sydney's convention & exhibition centre on may 24-25. as a creative platform semi-permanent aims to spread art and design inspiration by bringing together a panel of exceptionally talented, globally renowned speakers. as always, the program is anchored by a conference, in addition to a slew of exhibitions, competitions, workshops and parties going on as well.

it’s pretty much a week-long celebration of all things design, from graphic design, film and art, to illustration, web design, photography, visual effects, animation, graffiti and more. invited speakers for the sydney edition include march studio's rodney eggleston and laure cavigneaux, saturdays nyc's colin tunstall, morgan collett and josh rosen, perks and mini, illustrator sandra dieckmann and claudio palmisano. click [here] to purchase tickets. semi-permanent's next event will be held in auckland on may 30-jun 1. sydney location: convention & exhibition centre, darling drive [darling harbour].

© semi-permanent - browsing the program

© différentes lattitudes - a black façade that signals a promise of minimalist chic

after establishing différentes latitudes, a distribution label for independent perfume brands, owner david froissart has opened up shop to cater directly to those in search of an olfactory sensation. called liquides, the boutique is tucked away in a quiet street of the upper marais area. a glazed black façade - featuring the boutqie's name in gold lettering - signals a promise of minimalist chic from afar, and this is fully redeemed when stepping inside. designer philippe di méo has stripped the compact retail space of superfluous features, creating a new décor of exposed wooden beams, white walls and a polished concrete floor.

a box-shaped perfume bar, constructed from shiny brass, mirrors and black lacquered wood forms the center piece and adds a glamourous touch. the myriad of bottled merchandise is reflected in a hall of mirrors and this play of light and reflections sets free the liquids’ glow and creates an additional kaleidoscope of gold and silver. the liquides boutique carries an exclusive range of men's and women's artisanal perfumes, including parfum d'empire, byredo, olfactive studio, fornasetti and arquiste. fancy a new fragrance? location: 9 rue de normandie [marais].

© différentes lattitudes - inside the store

in a city as compact as hong kong, you might think finding everything would be easy. well, it's not! hong kong is an epic hyperconsumeristic maze. there is so much packed into a few square kilometres that you can easily get sucked into certain shopping malls and get lost for weeks. as with all superfuture urban guides we aim to filter out the majority of destination options to give global shopping experts a heavily curated selection of the more interesting establishments. not only do we cover fashion and food, but also art, design, clubs, hotels and more. like our PDF superguides, this iphone app focuses on geographical city zones where interesting retail is clustered. to assist in your navigation, our custom offline gps maps mean you don't need to have your phone on data roaming to know where you are located. please note that this launch hong kong iphone app version 1.0 is a beta and we expect to have a revised version uploaded in a week or so to address some minor iphone 5 specific layout adjustments. you can purchase the hong kong iphone app at the itunes store and can get future updates whenever we upload them. if you happen to be in town next week [may 23 - 26] for art basel hong kong we'd like to think this will help you get around!

© experimental beach / photography: ana lui - can you picture yourself here? we certainly can.

after enticing savvy crowds in new york city, london and paris with a signature hospitality concept, pierre-charles cros, olivier bon, romée de goriainoff and xavier padovani take their experimental cocktail club to sunny mediterranean shores. appropriately dubbed experimental beach, this summer's place to be opens today on the party island of ibiza. similar to the previous set-ups, it's all about simple unpretentious service, exquisite decorum and a savvy blend of exceptional food and cocktails, basically all the ingredients for debaucheries of the fabulous kind. the resort-like setting of experimental beach - located just south of the tranquil ses salinas nature reserve - has been designed by dorothée meilichzon, the mastermind behind the group’s previous bars. the designer whipped up a stylish party environment that takes cues from the island's 1960s hippy chic and blended in elements of contemporary understatement, all captured in a warm palette of pastel and muted hues.

experimental beach is very much an ode to the good life and what's on the menu merely reflects this hedonist approach. chef gerard ortiz arlandis is a native of the island and as such his culinary expertise is a natural extension of his fisherman's a skills. expect to find plenty of tasty marine delicacies, matched with a list of no less than 150 spanish and international wines picked by a renowned sommelier. do we hear you say cocktails? check! expert bartenders inko garat and peter hanmer from the experimental cocktail club venues in paris and london, have concocted a special cocktail menu with a spectacular range of signature drinks that celebrate the summer season. and similar to the city venues, the fun doesn't stop at sunset. experimental beach will regularly host local and international deejays to spice things up in the evening, but you might as well opt to leisurely enjoy that sunset - which manifests spectacularly here... - while sipping your cocktail of choice. location: playa d’es codolar [ses salinas].

© experimental beach / photography: ana lui - beach bliss

© special request - cover of issue #1

special request is a new quarterly culture journal based in london. led by founder and creative director paul sethi and editor-in-chief thomas viney, the magazine minutely dissects contemporary culture and zooms in on the bits that make it up. well, obviously only the interesting ones. with this critical approach special request looks at the entire human experienc piece by piece, subjecting it to a revealing analysis by some of the planet's finest minds. special request's launch issue is dedicated to the culture of food, and featuring a series of essays, editorials, interviews and stories that revolve around food one way or another.

who's in it? a rather eclectic number of people, including john c. reilly, daisy lowe, coolio, sam lipsyte and florence welch. and to keep it real and tasty, it'll also feature contributions by british culinary mavens such as margot henderson of rochelle canteen, viajante's nuno mendes and brett redman of elliott's. the magazine has a circulation of 2,500 copies and will be available at select stores in the u.k. and abroad. mind you, to celebrate the launch of special request a related exhibition opens at mach schau gallery in soho on wed - may 22. location: mach schau, kingly court, second floor [soho].

© special request - spreads from the inaugural food issue