Starry Night Sazerac

With tasting notes of a pastel palazzo graced by Audrey Hepburn (allegedly), a new product offering from Vacation®, therapeutic smoothie viewing, a tranquil retreat in Oaxaca, an anti-sartorial bible, the typography of arcade games, a New Balance sneaker inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright, a pared back Barcelona home & new work from Purienne.

Hot Hyperlinks

☼ A pastel sun-drenched Palazzino in Rome where Audrey Hepburn was rumoured to have once lived

☼ The wait is over: The final instalment of the Vacation® Summer Sunscreen Release Tour Extravaganza is here! It’s baby oil, baby, and you can wear it in the sun…

☼ Casa Viento is a stunning retreat in Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, photographed recently by Pia Riverola

☼ Photographer Hans Eijkelboom’s book People of the Twenty-First Century, is an anti-fashion bible for the ages culminating in over 6,000 individual images of “hardcore normcore that ranges from stonewashed denim to contemporary office uniforms and the denim-on-denim ensembles sometimes known as Canadian tuxedoes” across cities like Amsterdam, Paris and New York

SUMMER-ENHANCING STYLE

It is with great pleasure we share with you the next chapter in our Web III character experiment Grand Leisure in collaboration with leaders in iconic style: Ralph Lauren.

If you hold a Leisurist, you may now indulge your creativity inside the RL-3000 and upgrade your avatar with Expansion Pack 1.0, featuring carefully curated pieces from Ralph Lauren's Spring 2023 collection.

Don't have a Leisurist? Try your hand at styling with the demo here.

SUMMER-ENHANCING PEOPLE

Limitless Joy: Céline van Heel & “The Spanish King”

Céline van Heel’s photography caught our eye a while ago, not only for its seductive vibrance and intriguing storytelling, but also due to one of her main subjects — her vivacious 91 year old grandfather, Andrés. During covid, Céline moved from her home in Paris to stay with her grandfather in Madrid where she began photographing him and posting online under his new moniker, “The Spanish King”. The colourful photographs of Andrés’ infectious personality quickly caught on and the duo have now worked together on a multitude of projects and campaigns.

Céline brings to life through her photos of Andrés many of the leisure-oriented qualities that we admire — he is carefree, intelligent and stylish with a voracious lust for life, proving that joy has no age limits. He is an embodiment of the good life.

This week, we spoke exclusively with Céline about the rise of The Spanish King, her inspirations and distinct visual style.

Our conversation with Céline

• On her start in photography: “I started with photography during covid. My grandfather and I where alone at home — he gave me his camera and I started shooting him! One day, out of the blue, I decided to create an Instagram account for him called “The Spanish King”. I wanted to create fun, colourful and extravagant content. My first pictures were all about him and I instantly discovered a passion.”
• On her creative process: “I don’t have an exact creative process… What inspires me without doubt is colour, exaggeration, intensity, horror or beauty… Whatever might catch the immediate attention of the viewer.”
• On shooting her grandfather Andrés & the story of the growing popularity of The Spanish King: “We were bored at home during covid and I had this idea of creating an Instagram account about an old man that lived his life à la “dolce vita”, getting tanned all day, having fun, smoking cigars and just vibing! I started taking pictures and videos and followers started growing on his account. People actually liked the idea of an old man showing his wrinkles and being proud of his age no matter what! After quarantine, it became almost a full time job: We started to get campaigns, editorials, videoclips, acting in series… My Grandpa got a second life full of excitement and I got to travel with him and start a new path in my career. When I think about all the amazing and fun times we’ve had together creating things… I’m just super thankful to get to live this with him. He’s my bro!”
• On her grandfather’s philosophy: “My grandfather always says that age is in your head, not in your appearance (easy to say that when you look like him haha). But honestly, since I’ve known him, he has always been the coolest, happiest person I know. He was born with this amazing energy, he doesn’t give a f*** about bad critics or situations, he loves to get tanned (for real, he has an addiction), to swim (he still jumps like a pro in the swimming pool almost everyday in his house in Spain), he loves to smoke and listen to opera music, he eats super healthy (almost never carbs), he plays golf everyday, he loves himself and his life… He does WHATEVER he wants to do, without hurting no one. I think that’s the key. He also loves young people, listens to them and learns about new things; he doesn’t like to get stuck in the past. He wants to be super modern in his head and always up-to-date! I call him “Abuelito Alien”, which means Grandpa Alien because I still don’t understand how he can be like this both physically and mentally. It’s a mystery… He comes from another planet!”
• The biggest lesson from her grandfather: “To not give a f*** about what people think of you, and never compare yourself with anybody else. Age has no limit!”
• On her use of colour & photographic style: “I always say: “COLOUR IS MY RELIGION”. I love to use intense colour in every image I create. Colour is also a way of acting for me, acting with colour is acting with intensity… I like to present colourful characters, in fun/mysterious/weird /dramatic situations. As I mentioned before, I really want to catch people’s attention with a picture or a video, to have something bombastic aesthetically speaking! Like when Americans say: “There’s a pink elephant in the room…”
• On her future moves: “I recently directed my first short film that is available online called The Spanish King, and I really enjoyed the experience. I’m focusing in directing another movie right now. For the future, I want to be the best! I want to continue creating images, directing films, singing (I love to sing), writing, painting…. Maybe creating "The Spanish Queen"?! Who knows. Whatever is creative and makes me feel super passionate about what I do. And also, COLOUR for me means to laugh and be happy no matter what, as my grandfather has taught me.”

Hotter Hyperlinks

Reserved with utmost care for the most discerning followers of leisure...

☼ An eclectic collaboration: KITH releases a New Balance sneaker inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright sketches

☼ ASMR alert: The most therapeutic and Pantone-esque smoothie-making you’ve ever seen

☼ Arcade Game Typography is the first book of its kind, a definitive and beautifully designed survey of 70s, 80s and early 90s arcade game pixel typography

☼ A pared back Barcelona apartment that’s the perfect blend of warm yet curated and industrial, mixing a range of vintage and contemporary pieces

☼ Iconic photographer Henrik Purienne’s latest edition of Mirage is out, packed with Alfa Romeo’s and summer-inducing photographs frolicking on beaches around the world

SUMMER-ENHANCING ART

Miscellaneous artworks by Sophie Sachs

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