£145
Inspired by the iconic 1988 Christmas anthem by The Pogues, the Fairytale of New York gift box by Bella Freud features ceramic baubles and a signature candle in a beautifully crafted festive box. Freud produces the festive homeware sets annually but they vary each year. The perfect way to bring Freud’s playful, poetic style to your Christmas tree.
£140
You have the book and the blanket – all you need now is the candle, and Martha Freud provides it with this gorgeous, glorious and brilliantly witty Fearlessly Pink ceramic candle. It’s inspired by the iconic pale rose hue of the Financial Times, and is Martha’s nod to “the tenacity, drive and courage of those who fight to bring light and truth to the rest of us.”
£1500
The ultimate companion for a cosy night in this winter is this cashmere blanket by the inimitable British artist Rose Wylie. Made to order by a small family-run business in Scotland using traditional weaving techniques, you won’t want to get out from under it. It’s a limited edition with a design by Wylie with her trademark text, humour and verve.
£14
Katy Hessel, founder of the Great Women Artists Instagram and podcast, and author of The Story of Art Without Men, has a new book out this month, just in time for the cosy season. How to Live An Artful Life has quotes by artists for every day of the year, arranged according to the seasons, to inspire you every day. The artists range from Marina Abramovic, Lubaina Himid and Louise Bourgeois to Loie Hollowell and Michela Yearwood-Dan. Get your copy now in time for the holidays.
£3,550
The ultimate Day of the Dead artwork has to be a Damien Hirst diamond-encrusted skull, an icon of contemporary art. This limited edition, signed screenprint (edition of 250) immortalises mortality. It includes an image of Hirst’s famous 2007 sculpture of the same name, a platinum cast of an 18th century human skull adorned with 8,601 flawless diamonds – the teeth in the sculpture were original. Creepy but also beguiling.
£19
Halloween is of course associated with otherworldly creatures and supernatural spirits: find out more about them and how they’ve inspired artworks in this first major survey of the occult collection held in the Tate Archive, giving an unprecedented understanding of the esoteric and the mystical and the history and practice of the occult through 150 pieces, never seen before by the public, from artworks, letters, objects and ephemera left behind by artists like Francis Bacon, Barbara Hepworth, Henry Moore and Leonora Carrington. Surprising and extraordinary.
£350
Halloween is almost upon us – originating from the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, it marked the end of harvest and the beginning of winter—a time when people believed the spirits of the dead could return to visit the living. Pumpkins are of course synonymous with the season and who does them better than Kusama? This large soft sculpted pumpkin, available from the Tate, features her trademark hallucinatory spots on silkscreen printed nylon.
£319
Making its debut at London Fashion Week is Barbour’s new Ode to Aryshire capsule. This new collection returns to the birthplace of the British brand’s name and the roots of its iconic family tartan. We think this Elaine showerproof jacket, inspired by the popular Sprey jacket, is exactly what we need for this temperamental Autumn weather when on the move. It features all the familiar, classic Barbour details you know and love, updated with a patchwork of tartan, cord and plain panels paired with a lightly insulated snorkel hood, handwarmer pockets and cord trims.
Free
The Wick have long been fans of Jose Campos (aka Studio Lenca) an artist from El Salvador who was displaced during the country’s violent civil war. Inspired by his real life experiences and journey to the US, and then to the UK, the artist’s sharply dressed, confident characters unapologetically fill up space and return the gaze. In paintings, installations and sculptural works, he carves out place for belonging. It’s no surprise that the work has caught the attention of Hermès, who unveiled a special window by Studio Lenca last night at their London flagship store, coinciding with London Fashion Week, bringing the bright, celebratory and colorful world of Studio Lenca into the heart of the city with a lively scene of cut-out figures jumping and catching balloons.
