This past weekend we spent a couple of days in Stockholm to attend the celebration of the Absolut Art Collection. Over the last 30 years, the Swedish brand has worked with an impressive number of high profile artists, communicating the values and quality of the brand and product. In celebration of the 30th anniversary of the brand, Absolut has announced this week that the Absolut Art Collection will find a permanent home in Stockholm Sweden, managed by the Museum of wine and spirits. Furthermore the brand has announced a creative collaboration with Spike Jonze on an upcoming short film, that we can hopefully show you soon.

The Absolut Art Collection includes works by Andy Warhol, Keith Haring, Helmut Newton, Damien Hirst, Louise Bourgeois, David Shrigley, Douglas Gordon, Sylvie Fleury, Dan Wolgers, Hung Tung-Lu and hundreds of other artists, designers and photographers. If the collection represents the brand’s creative history, Spike Jonze represents the future of its creative collaborations.

Absolut invited some of the artists they have worked with in the past to Stockholm. During a panel discussion they talked about commissioned work and whether it is more of a career boost or of a sell out. David Shrigley, Silvie Fleury, Dan Wolgers and Douglas Gordon participated in the panel and it was very interesting hearing their opinions on the subject. Furthermore their pieces of art from the Absolut Art Collection were on display, along with the works of Hung Tung Lu, Keren Cytter, and Carsten Höller.

Take a detailed look at some of the works from the Absolut Art Collection after the jump.

Over the weekend we presented to you the “Devil’s Diciple” exhibition by Neckface, showing the largest offering of works by the artist to date. Today the book “The Devil Made Me Do It” by the artist has been released. The book features an introduction by fellow artist Kaws, an esseay by Carlo McCormick as well as photography by Erik Foss, Jerry Hsu, Ako Jefferson, Atiba Jefferson, Norman Lendzion, Athena Razo, Giovanni Reda and Chris Shonting. It is now available from O.H.W.O.W.

Take a look inside the book after the jump.

For several weeks already the Neckface solo show “Devil’s Diciple” at the O.H.W.O.W. space in Miami has been announced with creations of the artist being placed around the city. With much anticipation the show opened yesterday and we can already give you an extensive recap of the exhibition.

The show offers the most extensive look at the artist’s work to date. From paintings to sculptures and installations, Neckface worked on a large and impressive line-up for Devil’s Diciple. The artist also used his own hair on a sculpture and some of his family was hiding in a house created by the artist to scare the invited guests upon entrance, making the exhibition a real experience. Also a giant skatepark has been integrated into the exhibition, with everything covered in Neckface tags. One can definitely say that no artist before Neckface made such good use of the space that the gallery offers.

Neckface makes a big step in his artistic career with Devil’s Diciple and we already look forward to see his work in the future. Should you be in Miami in the near future, make sure to pass by.

Neck Face – Devil’s Disciple

O.H.W.O.W Gallery
3100 NW 7 Avenue
Miami, Florida 33127

Take a more detailed look at the Neckface exhibition after the jump.

After Paris, the STAGES exhibition, a joint effort by Nike Sportswear and Lance Armstrong’s Livestrong foundation, has opened its doors in New York this week. Once again artists including Tom Sachs, Jose Parla, Kenny Scharf, Shepard Fairey, Kaws, JR, Richard Prince, Andreas Gursky and other art heavy hitters, were represented with custom works in the exhibition.

Take a tour of the STAGES New York exhibition, which takes place at Deitch Projects, after the jump.

Legendary New York street artist Craig “KR” Costello customized a Mini Cooper S with his signature KRINK aesthetic. The car was shown today at Erste Liebe Bar in Hamburg, Germany. A vernissage takes place at Vicious Gallery on October 31st.

Vicious Gallery
Kleine Freiheit 46
22767 Hamburg

Behind the scenes look at the KRINK Mini Cooper S after the jump.

Today we came across an interesting presentation of the work of artist Robert Bradford, known for his various sculptures, made up of old toys, most of the time.

“Toys ARE a colourful version of everyday life including fantasy life, love life, work life, even spiritual life, so pretty much everything can be mentioned/ referred to/ communicated about using them. New ones come out all the time, fads and fancies come and go – a whole cultural and anti-cultural history exists within them, waiting to be explored/ exploited. Like most series, the first couple of pieces were made as experiments, to see if the idea could actually work in tangible reality and of course one thing led to another – but it took me three years of false starts to find the most flexible construction method and another year to start doing it well so it has been no ‘instant fix’.”

You can head over to Yatzer to read a full interview with the artist.

To see more examples of his outstanding work, go after the jump.

As a companion space to the STAGES show, WNW is a pop-up installation within New York City cycling institution Trackstar. Named for a personal motto of Lance Armstrong’s, WNW will be open to the public Wednesdays through Saturdays every week from October 22 to November 22.

WNW is all dedicated to cycling and art in New York. It’s a place for the community to get a sense of what LIVESTRONG and the Lance Armstrong Foundation are about and to connect with people who are stoked on cycling and art.

Hopefully we can soon show you some images of the space!

Another busy week has passed by and as usually more than enough stuff across the network to keep us occupied. Some quality previews for both the upcoming holiday season and next spring were posted throughout. There has also been strong coverage of art, and don’t miss the posts detailing Tokyo denim culture from Selectism.

Highsnobette:

• Conceptual Designs by Una Burke
• Feiyue x Unholy Matrimony
• Adidas x PPQ Collection

Radcollector:

• Altamont Holiday Jackets
• Quarter Productions Self Edit
• Western Edition Skateboards | Bay Cruiser Boar

Selectism:

• Ally Capellino Spring/Summer 2010 Preview
• Tokyo | Inazuma Festival
• Ediface Weatherwear Collection

Curated:

• Superb Cycle Shop by Oziio Design
• Piecebook Reloaded
• Freaks and Flash (pictured).

Vans Vault and artist Robert Williams collaborated on an Era that celebrates Robert’s new show at The Tony Shafrazi Gallery, NYC. With only 13 pairs available, these hand-painted, hand-signed shoes will be available exclusively at DQM on October 31st, 2009. Check out the video above for an in-depth look at this very special release.

Photos of the Robert Williams x Vans Vault for DQM process after the jump.

Long time Arkitip collaborator artist Steven Harrington will be releasing a set of new prints tonight. Three new prints and one sculpture will be on offering by Arkitip, both exclusive to Arkitip and they come in a limited edition of 100.

Check out the two Steven Harrington Prints after the jump.