Rhode Island, long 
established as the home of some of the finest real estate in the world, seems to be in the vanguard of the revival of the luxury property market. Its otherwise buoyant market dropped off in the immediate aftermath of the financial crisis of late 2008, but the early signs point to 2010 as the year in which this region regained its dynamism.
The America’s Cup w
ill commence next week and Valencia is already in a state of high excitement. After the courtroom dramas of the past year, only the most pessimistic sailing fan would anticipate anything less than a good old-fashioned ding-dong battle when Switzerland’s Team Alinghi finally faces off against America’s BMW Oracle.
Critics and historians frequently refer to the artistic trajectory set in motion by the paintings of Giorgio de Chirico, the man who paved the way for the most fascinating and significant developments in art between the two World Wars, as a “Copernican revolution”.
Realising that Cubism and the formal avant-garde had run its course, de Chirico set about realising his life’s mission, to become a painter who was able to “show that which cannot be seen”.
Critics looking for evidence of how art changed in the latter half of the twentieth century could do little better than consider the name that Andy Warhol chose for his studio.
The Factory was originally based at 231 East 47th Street in Midtown Manhattan on the fifth floor, a sprawling space that became the meeting place for a dissolute posse of artistes manqué ranging from Velvet Underground’s Lou Reed and John Cale to future Warhol Superstars Holly Woodlawn and Candy Darling. This relentlessly social aspect was common to all of Warhol’s workspaces: while the artist busied himself with his endless stream of silk-screened images, the Factory hangers-on would entertain themselves with a variety of dubious activities.
Starting from humble beginnings, Jorge Martínez – or Aspar, as his fans came to know him – was to become a true motorcycling sensation. His prowess on the bike made him a national sporting icon and a much-loved figure in the sport internationally, but his success story did not end there, for he was to prove as influential off the track as on it, leading his racing teams to multiple successes and playing a pivotal role in the development of a world-class circuit in his home region of Valencia.
Born in the little village of Alzira, in an area surrounded by orange orchards, few would have foreseen the rise of Jorge Martínez to international motorcycling star. Here, most people earned their living as farm or factory workers, and his hardworking father was no exception, toiling long hours throughout his life. From a young age on Jorge displayed a total fascination with and talent for anything fast and mechanical, yet it would take time and determination to break through.
Sometimes houses are, completely accurately, described as unique yet few can measure up to the quirky individuality displayed by Casa Guastavino.
Walk along the South Shore of Long Island and you cannot fail to notice the row of elegant, well-established residences that evoke a period when life was lived on a grand scale. Considering that these memorable buildings were constructed between the 1880s and the 1920s, this is not surprising. However there is one especially eye-catching property that is very closely linked with the Spanish city of Valencia.
José Ribes Bas was recently interviewed by the prestigious international property magazine OPP after it learned of Rimontgó’s enviable end-of-year sales. This English language publication enjoys worldwide distribution and has developed a reputation as providing an incisive and intelligent picture of the international real estate market.
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