At Art Basel Hong Kong, More Collectors Are Buying With Purpose
While the energy is lively and the optimism palpable, dealers report the atmosphere is more measured than in previous years.
A Local’s Guide to the Best Spots for a Glass (or Bottle) of Wine in Cannes
Avoid tourist traps on the crowded La Croisette and grab a glass at one of these unexpected gems instead.
Dry-Aged Fish Pioneer Liwei Liao Unveils Joint Seafood’s Next Chapter With a VIP Party
Liwei Liao marks a new era for Joint Seafood in L.A., offering premium dry-aged fish, retail and omakase all in one spot.
Business
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Bret Taylor Leads OpenAI Foundation’s $1B Drive for A.I. Safety and Health
The OpenAI Foundation, under OpenAI chair Bret Taylor, embarks on an ambitious $1 billion plan for A.I. safety, health and societal resilience in 2026.
Tokenization Has a Wall Street Story. It Still Needs a Main Street One.
As the House Financial Services Committee holds its hearing on tokenization, Paybis’ Innokenty Isers argues that the industry has appealed to institutions and lawmakers, it has largely ignored retail investors. Whether tokenization benefits ordinary investors or merely enhances existing systems will determine whether this market grows beyond Wall Street.
Apple at 50: the Diverging Paths of Steve Jobs’ Two Co-Founders
As Apple marks its 50th anniversary, Steve Wozniak remains a tech evangelist while Ronald Wayne lives quietly after selling his stake for just $800.
The Funding Era That Built Most Nonprofits Is Over
With pandemic-era emergency funding drying up, investors tying grants to measurable milestones and federal contracts restructured around quantifiable outcomes, Love & War’s Kriston Rucker argues that the nonprofits best equipped to survive are the ones that have built the operational infrastructure to substantiate them.
As Permitting Rules Loosen, Ontario’s Water Faces New Risk
Headwaters Community Coalition’s Jeanette McFarlane brings a ground-level urgency to one of the province’s most consequential and least-covered policy failures. While governments across North America race to streamline development approvals, McFarlane argues that Ontario is dismantling the only oversight mechanisms standing between its most hydrologically sensitive land and irreversible aquifer contamination.
Art
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An Anti-Art Fair Is Taking Root in the Mojave Desert
The founders of the High Desert Art Fair wanted to create a fun, inclusive environment that would bring a more diverse audience into the fold. By all measures, they’ve succeeded.
Screening at SXSW: Boots Riley’s ‘I Love Boosters’
Down with the bourgeoisie? Absolutely. But must the revolution be so sloppy?
One Fine Show: “Edmonia Lewis, Said in Stone” at the Peabody Essex Museum
The sculptor found her audience with political memorabilia and rose to international fame in her own lifetime
Author Adam Steiner’s Essential Reading List for Those Ready to Reinvent Themselves
These books offer not only an escape from the day-to-day grind but also proof that circumstances can change if you’re willing to put in the work.
Gemini G.E.L.’s 60th Anniversary Show Is a Love Letter to L.A.
“It figures as a subject in artwork in a very real way that we don’t often think of a city as a subject,” curator Susan Dackerman tells Observer.
Lifestyle
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The 15 Best Independent Coffee Shops in New York City to Visit Now
From East Village stalwarts to Bushwick micro-roasters, these single-location cafes are where New Yorkers linger over their coffee.
The Essentials With Micaela Erlanger: Home Lasers, J.Crew Jeans and Luxury Cruises
From under-eye patches to Chanel blazers, celebrity stylist Micaela Erlanger shares her current favorites.
When the Hotel Is the Destination: Luxury Standouts Across the U.S.
Whether you’re looking to unwind poolside at Montage’s flagship property in Laguna Beach or want to enjoy a historic stay on Michigan’s Mackinac Island, we’ve rounded up the eight most destination-defining hotels in the United States.
Flowers, Fuchsia and Emma Heming Willis’s New Philanthropic Fund: Inside AFTD’s 2026 Hope Rising Benefit
The benefit chair was, as always, billionaire businessman and philanthropist Donald Newhouse, who in 2021 made a record-breaking $20 million donation to the organization
How to Build a Men’s Spring Capsule That Raises the Bar
We’ve curated a men’s capsule wardrobe built for the season that punishes lazy dressing.
Interviews
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Serakai Studio Launches a New Cross-Disciplinary Cultural Lab in Hong Kong’s Wong Chuk Hang
GOLD dissolves boundaries between art, design and commerce to test new, more sustainable models for cultural production.
In L.A., Christina Quarles Confronts the Tension Between Body, Space and Identity
“I think right now, everyone is reaching this crisis moment. All these bodies I’m portraying in my works are struggling to still fit within it. My work is about confronting all those tensions we are experiencing.”
Inside M+’s Mission to Shape Asia’s Art Canon, With Chief Curator Doryun Chong
“The success we are seeing in terms of visitor numbers is undeniable. But the formula, if there even is one, is something no one really knows yet. And that’s actually a very interesting space to be in.”
XPrize’s Peter Diamandis Funds Films to Challenge Hollywood’s Dystopian Narrative
The XPrize founder is inviting filmmakers to pitch optimistic sci-fi worlds, one of which will be turned into a feature film.
Curators Dieter Buchhart and Anna Karina Hofbauer Want to Reintroduce You to Keith Haring
A new exhibition at the Brant Foundation focuses on the three years in which the artist went from graffiti prankster to one of the most consequential artists of his generation.
Power Lists
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Observer New Media Power List: Call for Submissions
Nominations are open for Observer’s 2026 New Media Power List
The 50 Most Powerful PR Firms of 2026
This year’s honorees are emblematic of a notable shift in public relations from responsive publicity to proactive leadership in the moments that matter most.
Wall-to-Wall Cultural Capital: Inside Observer’s Art Power Index Party
Under the dim lights of the Lower East Side’s Maison Nur, art world luminaries gathered to celebrate Observer’s Art Power Index—and each other. From the impassioned speeches to the sharp tailoring and Damien Hirst over the bar, the evening embodied our legacy of chronicling power with style.
2025 Nightlife & Dining Power Index
Humanity is still the most vital ingredient in hospitality, and that isn’t changing anytime soon.
Observer’s 2025 Art Power Index: The Art Market’s Most Influential People
Their acquisitions, affinities and approbations move the needle on valuation and redefine how art is made, shown and sold.
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Are Hong Kong and Mainland China Poised for an Art Market Rebound?
After years of decline, Mainland China and Hong Kong have seen renewed Asian bidding, stronger luxury collectible sales and growing institutional interest in historically validated artists.
Observer’s April 2026 Art Fair Calendar (Updated)
Here’s (almost) everything happening on the art fair circuit this April.
Block CFO Amrita Ahuja Defends Jack Dorsey’s A.I.-Driven Layoffs
Ahuja argues that internal A.I. tools like Goose have boosted developer productivity by 40 percent, giving Block the “confidence” to shrink headcount and still grow. After cutting 4,000 roles, Amrita Ahuja says peers are “coming out of the woodwork” to study Block’s cost-cutting strategy.
Meet the Collector: Dwight Cleveland On Turning Hollywood Ephemera into Museum-Worthy History
Over five decades, he built—and then shared—a one-of-a-kind cultural archive.
New Alternative Fairs Kick Off Hong Kong Art Week With Fresh Energy
A growing network of independent, dealer-led initiatives is challenging the traditional fair model during Art Basel Hong Kong.
Flying Car Billionaire Brett Adcock Launches Startup to Build Personal A.I.
Billionaire Brett Adcock is building Hark, a “human-centric” A.I. lab that fuses multimodal models with custom-designed devices to create assistants that anticipate your needs.
These Are the Exhibitions Not to Miss in Hong Kong
A tightly curated guide to Hong Kong’s most compelling shows.
Hollywood’s Next Hit Strategy Isn’t More Sequels, It’s Smarter Nostalgia
Dormant IP like “LOST” and “Interstellar” are thriving on Netflix and social platforms, signaling a missed opportunity for Hollywood studios.
The 2026 Lincoln Aviator Black Label: Powerful by Design, Civilized by Nature
Built for comfortable cruising more than rugged sojourning, it’s a viable luxury entry in the urbanized SUV market.
An Insider’s Guide to the Best Italian Restaurants in Los Angeles
From Roman-style pinsas to fresh pastas, explore L.A.’s best Italian spots.
Edinburgh’s Most Noteworthy Luxury Hotels
Edinburgh’s luxury hotel scene has flourished over the past decade, with new standouts like Gleneagles Townhouse and 100 Princes Street joining longtime grand dames like The Balmoral.
At the Outsider Art Fair, Artists at the Margins Become the Market Stars
The fair’s most compelling booths told stories the mainstream art world has been too slow to tell.