
Ed Sheeran makes a splash with debut collection of Jackson Pollock-esque paintings
The abstract pieces -- colourful Jackson Pollock -esque paintings and

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NZ Herald
2 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Sir Elton John set to perform at Steve Jobs' daughter's lavish wedding
'He will play a selection of his songs, including some of Eve and Harry's favourites. 'A concert from Elton doesn't come cheap. Apparently they've forked out over £1 million to have him perform. 'It's going to be incredibly special.' The couple – who began dating in 2022 and announced their engagement last September – have reportedly got quite the guest list for their 'upper-class English luxury with a cool, modern American vibe' wedding, which Eve and Harry have reportedly co-worked with celebrity events planner Stanlee Gatti, 69, to organise. Eve Jobs announced her engagement to British showjumping gold medallist Harry Charles in September. Photo / Getty Images It is claimed the former Democrat First Lady Kamala Harris, 60 – who is said to be very good friends with Laurence – will be attending, as well as Bruce Springsteen's daughter, American equestrian Jessica Springsteen, 33, and ex-Apple designer Sir Jony Ive, 58. The insider said: 'Kamala Harris, who ran for the [US] presidency last year, is very close friends with Laurene and is on the guest list. Kamala Harris is expected to attend the wedding. Photo / Getty Images 'This is a very quiet place, not far from the Cotswolds. Everyone is used to tourists and famous faces, but this is something else. 'The wedding is being planned like a military operation,' our insider said. 'The itinerary is scheduled so precisely, with guests starting to arrive all this week before the wedding celebrations begin on Thursday. 'Kamala and Bill Gates' daughters, Phoebe and Jennifer, are all on the VIP guest list. Bill Gates' daughter, Jennifer Gates, will also attend Eve Jobs' wedding. Photo / via Instagram 'Matt Helders from the Arctic Monkeys has been invited, too. It's an eclectic mix of stars and will be like a 'who's who' of the rich and famous. 'There are a lot of important American political figures going to be there. No doubt they'll all be Googling each other.' Eve's siblings – her brother Reed Jobs, 33, sister Erin Jobs, 29, and half-sister Lisa Brennan-Jobs, 47, who Steve had with his first wife Chrisann Brennan, 70 – are also expected to attend their wedding, with Harry's dad, London 2012 team jumping gold medallist Peter Charles, 65, and his close and extended family. A nearby village will go on lockdown from Wednesday – the day guests will reportedly fly into Oxford airport on their private jets, with helicopters on the ground ready to whisk them to the secret estate where Eve and Harry will say 'I do'. The source said: 'Eve and Harry's wedding is like a multimillion-pound fairy tale. 'It's a society wedding like no other, and it's turning rural Oxfordshire upside down. 'The sleepy village in which it's taking place feels like it's turning into a no-go zone, with secret service operatives and blokes who look like they work for the FBI.' One of the extravagant wedding venues in the Cotswolds. Photo / Getty Images And the insider claimed Eve, Harry, and Stanlee's organised event will be a wedding like no other. They added: 'Every final detail of the big day has been signed off by Eve and Harry, but this is Stanlee's baby. 'It's the meeting of two soulmates from across the Atlantic, and that will be reflected in the wedding, too. 'The vibe is upper-class English luxury with a cool, modern American vibe. It's going to be like nothing anyone at the wedding has experienced before.'


Otago Daily Times
8 hours ago
- Otago Daily Times
Festival suggested after Sheeran snub
Dunedin Mayor Jules Radich says he has a solution to attract top acts after the disappointment of the city missing out on Ed Sheeran. Mr Radich believed the answer was creating a new event called "Dunedin Sounds" — which he first suggested after the death of Dunedin musician Martin Phillipps. Bands from Dunedin and around the world could perform at the event which could not be taken away from Dunedin given its name. "Maybe we could send it to Dunedin, Florida, play some shows there, and we can send it to Edinburgh because Dunedin is, after all, the Gaelic name for Edinburgh so there is a lot of synergy there. "Just as Edinburgh has sent its Tattoo to New Zealand, we could send Dunedin Sounds to Edinburgh," he said. He suggested Dunedin Sounds could be an event Ed Sheeran might one day headline along with other international artists including Taylor Swift. He felt the likelihood of Dunedin Sounds coming to fruition was strong. There had been times when there was an influx of acts to the city. "It's either a feast or a famine." Mr Radich said transport was not an insurmountable issue, despite telling the Otago Daily Times on Tuesday the city missed out on Ed Sheeran because the airport was too small. He said the problem was not many artists were touring post-Covid and it was more difficult to attract acts to smaller cities. Dunedin Venues chief executive Paul Doorn said he and his team were continuing to work aggressively to attract international acts. Mr Doorn said the organisation's challenge was making Forsyth Barr Stadium and the city more attractive to the artists. There was a steady stream of acts playing at the Dunedin Town Hall which had a capacity of about 2200 seats. The stadium had a capacity of about 38,000 and international artists were necessary to fill it. He said in the current climate it was a good sign that artists were coming to New Zealand at all, let alone the South Island. Benefits of coming to Dunedin included the covered stadium which was like an "indoor arena on steroids" and being close to scenic locations in Central Otago and Southland. He did not subscribe to the theory the new Christchurch stadium would take acts away from Dunedin. While Christchurch had a bigger population, Dunedin had diversity with the student cohort and people from Central Otago and Southland. The city had history and culture surrounding live music. "There's a passion for live entertainment here which is really good. "We've just got to be able to group that all together with a really good economic proposition to get them to come further south." Dunedin Venues was working through transport challenges and trying to find clever ways to get around accommodation-related issues. "We're working with big transport logistic-type companies to try to find and unlock more cost-effective ways to bring shipping containers down via rail or trucks." He stressed Dunedin's airport size had not stopped big acts coming to the city in the past. The $1.645m the Dunedin City Council put aside for events attraction funding for Dunedin Venues in its nine-year-plan made a big difference in attracting artists, he said. He assumed Sheeran's logistics for making it to the next leg of his tour in Australia was part of the reason why there was not going to be a Dunedin show. Dunedin Airport chief executive Daniel De Bono said while the airport was not approached by Sheeran's promoters, it maintained the full capability for narrow body jet operations. When Pink came to Dunedin, the airport facilitated two Qantas charter flights carrying crew and equipment.


Scoop
19 hours ago
- Scoop
Significant Art Sale Next Week
Press Release – International Art Centre A highly sought after art work by one of the country's most acclaimed painters of New Zealand bird life, is predicted to bring up to $750,000 when it is offered for sale for the first time in many years in Auckland next week. Don Binney, who died in 2012 aged 72, was an avid bird lover and his oil painting, Fatbird II, will be offered at an auction of Important and Rare Art at the International Art Centre in Parnell, Auckland, next week (subs: Tuesday, July 29). The sale also features numerous other works by renowned artists including New Zealand's Charles Frederick Goldie, Frances Hodgkins, Peter Siddell, and the world-acclaimed British street artist known only as Banksy. The signed and dated oil painting, Fatbird II was painted by Binney in 1964 and features a New Zealand native wood pigeon (kereru) swooping over two New Zealand tom tits, affectionately known at the time as fatbirds. International Art Centre director Richard Thomson, who will conduct the sale, said the Binney work had not been offered for sale for many years. He said Binney was known as a great innovator in the art world and Fatbird II, is considered to be an exemplary work from the greatest period of his art. He said like numerous Binney bird life paintings, in Fatbird II he has brought together stylised birds of two different species. The sale also included three works by Goldie, one of which has been described as an exceptional portrait of a 90-year-old kaumatua (respected Maori elder) and another of a respected 102-year-old Maori woman, said to be an exquisitely rendered image painted with an academic precision and deep reverence. Three works by the British street artist known only as Banksy include a screen print, estimated to bring up to $150,000. Mr Thomson said Banksy has a world-wide reputation for challenging social norms in his art work which often expose uncomfortable truths through his sharp and visually arresting style. City with Towered Houses, a 1974 painting and one of the two works by Peter Siddell, the New Zealand artist who died in 20111 aged 76, was expected to bring up to $200,000. 'Even in tight economic times art works of the style and quality we have listed in this sale, have always attracted a lot interest and we have been fielding calls from throughout New Zealand and other parts of the world, particularly for the Banksy and Goldie works,' Mr Thomson said.