A new ultra-luxury condo building under construction in Miami comes with a fractional ownership of two original works by the world’s most expensive living artist: Jeff Koons. 

The gorgeous top-floor penthouse that is asking for $29.5 million comes with a 1/240th stake in the Koons’s, according to the Wall Street Journal. 

The 19,321-square-foot Miami penthouse will also have five bedrooms, seven bathrooms, a sauna, an exercise area, two dens, and a massage room.

Plus, the condo is just a few steps away from the beach. 

The building is expected to be completed in 2016. 

Welcome to Oceana Bal Harbour in Miami’s Bal Harbour. The once-famous Bal Harbour Club is being redesigned to become the new Oceana Bal Harbour.

The new 240-unit ultra luxury condos will be home to two world-class works of art by Jeff Koons.

The five-bedroom penthouse on the top floor of the 28-story building will have a grand total of 9,950 square feet of outdoor space.

A purported version of the world's most iconic painting, Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa, has surfaced in Singapore, and appears to show a younger Mona Lisa in front of a different background. Said by its owners to be by the hand of the Renaissance master, the painting is thought to predate that of Paris's Louvre by a decade, and is claimed to have undergone scientific analysis that dates the piece to 1503.

Now being shown publicly for the first time at the Arts House in Singapore's Old Chambers of Parliament, the story being put forth about this unfinished painting is as follows. It's said to have been purchased by an English noble visiting Italy in 1778. It was rediscovered by British art collector Hugh Blaker in 1913 in Somerset, and became known as the Isleworth Mona Lisa after it was restored in his London studio.

The canvas, which has belonged to an international consortium since 2008, has now embarked on a tour of the Pacific, with stops in Hong Kong, China, South Korea, and Australia.

One of the new painting's champions is Switzerland's Mona Lisa Foundation, which manages the paintings and began attesting to its authenticity in 2012. "We feel these latest discoveries and new scientific analysis just carried out leave little doubt that it is Leonardo's work," foundation vice-president David Feldman told Reuters. "The vast majority of experts now either agree with us or accept that there is a strong case for our thesis."

Of course, it could also be that this Mona Lisa is just another Leonardo forgery, of which there are many (see "A Tale of Two Leonardos"). Leonardo expert Martin Kemp has been quick to voice his skepticism, warning the BBC that "the fact it's being shown in Singapore and is not getting an outing in a serious art museum [or] gallery is significant in itself," and criticizing the work's landscape and drapery as "inert."

Should the painting prove authentic, it would seem to debunk at least part of the theory of art historian Angelo Paratico, who recently voiced speculation that the iconic canvas's sitter was none other than the artist's mother, and that she was both Chinese and a slave (see "Was the Mona Lisa Leonardo's Mother and a Chinese Slave?"). If the newly unveiled version of the painting really does date to 1503, it seems to depict a woman in her 20s, even though Leonardo would have been around 50 years old at the time. (The Mona Lisa is more widely believed to be Lisa del Giocondo, the wife of a Florentine merchant.)

The Isleworth Mona Lisa is the third known copy of the painting, joining the well-known Louvre version, and a more obscure one held at the Prado in Madrid. Recent comparisons of those two paintings, now thought to have been painted during the same portrait sitting, have raised speculations that together they form a stereoscopic or 3-D image, perhaps the first in history (see "Was Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa the World's First 3-D Image?").

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Is this the best art project ever? 

Future Time Machine: Future Time Machine seeks to create a dialogue with the past and future by harnessing the power of compounded interest to amass enough money to create a fully functional time machine. An investment of $1000 will be put in a legal trust for 500 years. Assuming a modest 4% annual return, the investment will be approximately 328 billion dollars in the year 2515, at which point it will be spent on scientific research and the construction of a time machine. First stop for the time machine will be 2015 with a reception for the time travelers. There will be a variety of speakers lecturing on the ethics of time travel and what the future may have in store.

The steps of this project are:

1. Get $1000
2. Put in a trust invested in (presumably) an index fund
3. In 500 years, have someone build a time machine with the money
4. Back in 2015, have party, see people from the future

WHAT COULD GO WRONG?!?! Actually, though, thinking about what kinds of things could go wrong is what makes this so great. As a financial journalist, my first question is: who is going to get rich off stealing this money, and how long is it going to last? My bet is 20 years. And it will be stolen by the lawyer in charge of the trust. But who knows!

The project was just given a grant by the Idea Fund, part of a Houston-based arts group called Diverse Works. Idea Fund gives grants to projects that are "artist-generated, or artist-centered projects that exemplify the unconventional, interventionist, conceptual, entrepreneurial, participatory, or guerrilla artistic practices that occur outside of the traditional frameworks of support." 

(h/t Ben Davis)

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From explosives to LEGO bricks to actual human tears, artists in 2014 stepped away from traditional mediums to showcase their talents.

Here are 7 of the most unique exhibits that were on display this year.

Produced by Alex Kuzoian. Video courtesy of Associated Press.

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Cape Town, South Africa, has an art scene unlike anywhere else. When I visited recently, I was moved by the colorful art works, which express unity and pride in a city once ruled by Apartheid.

The street art movement is centered in Woodstock, a former slum that has become a living canvas. Global artists have painted the walls of the homes in this area with eclectic imagery: an elephant, a tug-of-war, a caveman. 

Click here to go straight to the photos »

I visited design studios and spoke to innovators working in a range of mediums. Many use their talents to give back, such as Missibaba, a leather designer who employs craftswomen from townships. Others convey socio-political messages, like Ralph Ziman’s photography of beaded guns that speak out against the arms trade.  

Cape Town’s restaurants and nightlife are also filled with color. I was surprised to see a steampunk coffee shop and a gay bar decorated like a hot pink diner from the 1950s.

See a video about my travels in Cape Town:  

See more of La Carmina’s stories about South Africa on her blog. http://www.lacarmina.com/blog/

Disclaimer: La Carmina and her travel TV crew were hosted by Cape Town Tourism. 

The Bo-Kaap district is easy to spot, with its row of painted homes. This is the traditional neighborhood of the Cape Malay community.

Faldela Tolker lives inside the purple house and runs a cooking school. She taught me how to make Cape Malay dishes like tomato bredie stew and koesisters, a traditional doughnut.

A sleepy silver dog guards the entrance of Woodstock Exchange or WEX. This industrial building is filled with hip design studios and shops.

The embroidered patch is a concise way for different units within the military to show what they're about.

Patches can cram a lot of visual information and text into a small space, conveying the mission, history, and overall character of the armed forces' various sub-groups. Often, it's these units' unofficial patches that provide the most interesting material to parse for meaning.

We spoke with Trevor Paglen, an artist who compiled 40 such patches for his book, "I Could Tell You But Then You Would Have to Be Destroyed By Me: Emblems From the Pentagon's Black World."

Here's a look at 7 of them.

This one suggests that not only do aliens exist, but that there's a team within the US military dedicated to keeping them in shackles and milking their technology.

The reality is more mundane, but still intriguing. Paglen's source for this patch was "part of a unit that was based at, I believe, Space Command in Colorado," who worked in a Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility— a secured room off-limits to individuals below a certain security clearance. The patch was a way of poking fun at the unit's secrecy without breaking it.

Paglen says this patch belongs to the crew of "something called Desert Prowler, which is a UAV," an unmanned aerial vehicle, or drone.

Though unsure of what the Omega symbol (Ω) may represent, Paglen adds that the lightning bolt is a common symbol of electronic warfare. The New York Times, reporting on a secretive CIA drone's crash in Iran in 2011, cited independent experts saying "the drone almost certainly carries communications intercept equipment."

The crash led to the drone's declassification. The UAV is officially named the RQ-170.

Paglen started collecting patches after speaking with Peter Merlin, an aviation historian with a keen interest in Nevada's infamous Area 51, symbolized here by the white star encircled by five red ones. He says the Desert Prowler drone was likely tested there.

These patches are a window into the most classified reaches of the US military.  "This is one the very few glimpses that you get into this world, the black world, as they call it," says Paglen.

Paglen speculates that the above patch represents an NSA or signals intelligence satellite. "The dragon is a very consistent symbol of secret satellite iconography and signals intelligence satellites," he says.

A spy satellite's massive antenna — "about the size of a football field," Paglen says — recalls a dragon's unfold wings. On this patch, the dragon's gold color recalls the satellite's similarly-hued foil.

The stars on the right may represent the other satellites that make up this one's "constellation" and the red arrow its particular orbit, says Paglen. As for the tough-to-discern green cobra jutting into the foreground, Paglen is confident that it "refers to some kind of censor which is called the cobra brass sensor."

Finally, the Latin here reads "all your substructures [or bases] belong to us." The phrase first appeared in a Japanese video game's comedically awkward English translation before it was popularized online. Someone in the unit must be a fan of classic-era web memes.

Paglen speculates further on this patch in a blog post.

The 509th Bomb Wing is stationed in Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, and operates the B-2 Spirit stealth bomber.

The Latin reads "Tastes Like Chicken." This, along with the English words at top, are a reference to a classic episode of The Twilight Zone entitled "To Serve Man." Paglen says that older versions of the patch carried the words "classified flight test" at the top, which was later changed to appease a higher-up displeased with the patch's advertising of classified material.

Given the secrecy of the programs the patches represent, Paglen had to use a number of methods for obtaining them. Sometimes these were the unit members themselves —though "often times it would be the person who worked next door to where the secret units work, as weird as that sounds."

Bars were another big source, says Paglen. Watering holes near military bases would sometimes carry the insignia on their walls.

Another, more intuitive source of patches: FOIA requests, which are applications filed with the US government to disclose documents pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act.

Panther Den is a special access program that oversees "electronic combat intelligence support," according to one unclassified document. To that end, the patch has three lightning bolts, a traditional symbol of electronic warfare.

"All of these things are real things," says Paglen of the programs depicted on the patch. "It's just that the patch doesn't necessarily say what the actual thing is."

"The faceted shape used here may refer to early designs of stealth aircraft," Paglen writes about the above patch in his book. The patch belongs to "a unit also based at Area 51. They're a squadron of test pilots and all they do is fly secret airplanes."

The lower-case sigma (σ) represents a variable in the mathematical work engineers use to develop the tough-to-detect properties that can give aircraft radar-evading capabilities.

This last one is one of Paglen's favorites. In the pre-digital age of the 1960s, spy satellites captured their earthward observations on film. "The satellite would actually eject the film canister out of the satellite and the film canister would fall to Earth," Paglen says.

The patch was worn by the 6594th Test Group, Paglen writes in the book. Based in Hawaii, the "special film-recovery teams were charged with catching the film canisters midair over the Pacific using specially modified aircraft" equipped with nets.

Paglen says his book was especially popular among people within covert military projects. "People told me later that it was for a while a topic of different conversations, what I got right and wrong about patches from different projects people have worked on."

That goes to emphasize how little even experts can be totally sure of when dealing with the most secretive reaches of the US national security apparatus. Though his speculations are internally consistent and come across as plausible, Paglen was sure to add, in one aside, that "there are no guarantees."

SEE ALSO: The 10 biggest risks the world faces in 2015

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The granddaughter of the famous Spanish artist Pablo Picasso is selling off some art from her private collection for more than $290 million, The New York Post's Page Six is reporting. 

Marina Picasso, who famously published a book accusing her grandfather of destroying her childhood, is putting at least seven of his works up for sale, including a 1923 portrait of Pablo’s first wife Olga Kokhlova. 

The works are being sold directly by Marina, and she will meet the clients personally in Geneva, according to Page Six. 

The portrait of Picasso’s first wife, titled “Portrait de femme (Olga),” could sell for over $60 million. 

Marina will also be selling the 1911 painting “Femme à la Mandoline (Mademoiselle Leonie assie)” starting at $60 million (pictured on the left), and a 1921 work titled “Maternité” starting at $54 million (right). 

Marina Picasso is planning to sell her grandfather’s villa in Cannes as well. Picasso lived in the villa, called “La Californie,” with his second wife Jacqueline Roque.

The estate previously served as a museum and gallery dedicated to the artist's work. 

In her 2001 memoir, “Picasso: My Grandfather,” she claimed that the painter “drove everyone who got near him to despair and engulfed them.” 

A friend of Marina’s told Page Six that the decision to sell is “about letting go of the past."

NOW WATCH: Robot Funded By The US Military Can Sprint And Jump Just Like A Cheetah

SEE ALSO: 19 New Works Of Art That Have The World Buzzing

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Update: The artist who made the work is @LucilleClerc

There's an illustration being shared on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter that claims to be a tribute created by street artist Banksy in response to the terrorist attack that killed 12 people near the offices of the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris earlier today.

While the image does have a touching message, it's a fake - not created by Banksy.

Here's the illustration that everyone is sharing:

Mashable is reporting that the image was posted by a "popular 'Banksy' account" on Instagram. The instagram.com/banksy Instagram isn't run by Banksy at all, and is actually a fan page that shares street art created by a variety of different artists - rarely with any attribution.

Banksy has issued a statement to the Independent denying that the illustration is his work. "We can confirm this is not by Banksy," said a spokesman for the anonymous artist.

Instead, it appears that the illustration was originally posted by graphic designer Lucille Clerc, just with an added Instagram filter.

Here's Clerc's original Instagram post:

Search on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and you'll see plenty of popular accounts that seem to be official Banksy pages. The problem of fake social media accounts is so widespread that Banksy has even posted on his official website to deny he runs any Facebook or Twitter accounts. He does, however, have one Instagram account, which was used during his recent trip to New York.

Facebook was recently forced to remove the verification checkmark for a Facebook page for a Banksy account with millions of Likes after the artists PR representative denied that he had anything to do with it.

The Instagram account that the pencil illustration originates from is part of a ring of fake social media profiles. As well as the fake Instagram and Facebook accounts, the administrators behind the Banksy pages also run a YouTube account that re-uploads popular viral videos to capitalize on their popularity.

Here's an example of a video posted by the fake Banksy YouTube account:

Another clue that points to the image being fake is its file size. The image uploaded to the fake Banksy social media posts is pixelated and low-resolution. Banksy is an artist who makes a living from exhibiting his work, he wouldn't want his work to be displayed in a way that makes it look bad.

It's tricky to verify new Banksy work. Because of Banksy's continued anonymity, and the often confusing similarity to other graffiti artists, many works of art end up mistakenly labeled as created by Banksy. A handful of galleries and companies in the UK are, however, experts in his work, meaning that they can verify prints purported to originate from Banksy.

Nevertheless, given today's tragic events, the sentiment is strong.

SEE ALSO: "Vive la France!": Massive Rallies In Paris After Terrorist Attack

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Apple has attracted a cult following across the globe for its high-quality design and the attention to detail apparent in the products it creates.

Now Apple is highlighting the more artistic aspects of its brand with "Start Something New," a campaign bringing work created on Apple products to retail locations worldwide. 

Pieces created by select artists have already been installed in Apple stores in major cities across the globe. Online, pictures of Apple products are being substituted with photos of the incredible artwork people have created with them.

Travel photographer Austin Mann took this amazing shot with his iPhone 6 Plus while traveling in Iceland. 

"We had driven by this same spot earlier, but as we were coming back around, the fog had lifted and we saw this giant glacier," Mann told Business Insider. "The shot presented itself, and I captured it." 

Mann was able to take the picture, edit it, and share it with his followers within 30 minutes. That same process would take hours with more traditional photography gear.

"A lot of the time, planning and setting up photos is sort of contrived. Inspiration is something that’s so spontaneous and kind of comes and goes," he said. "Being able to do it on my phone keeps it a continuous process, keeps the inspiration flowing."

Mann says that he may use other cameras for situations that require more technical equipment — low lighting, for example — but that nothing compares to the iPhone's flexibility. 

"Because I have so much power in my pocket, it really conforms to the lifestyle of a curious photographer," he said.

Chad Riley is a similarly curious photographer, having traveled all over the world for his work with Apple and other major brands. Last year, he used only an iPhone and an underwater housing unit to shoot a national ad campaign for Target.

But it was a series of photos he took using the burst mode on the iPad Air 2 that were selected for the "Start Something New" campaign.

(Click the arrow on the right to scroll through all of the photos). 

 Riley shot the photos in Amalfi, Italy, while on location for a project he was working on with Apple. He has collaborated with Apple several times in the past.

"It was kind of fun to frame up with the shot with the iPad, since the screen was so big," Riley said. 

Riley primarily uses the editing software already built in to the iPad, but he also uses the Photoshop app to edit his shots. As a photographer who's constantly traveling for both work and play, it's important for him to have his creative process streamlined.

"The quality has gotten so that I can take a shot, send it to my printer over Wi-Fi, then immediately send it to a client," Riley said. "Plus I have my Mac at home — it's all integrated so seamlessly."

Artist Roz Hall graduated with a degree in video art from the U.K.'s University of Chichester in 2003, but it wasn't until 2010 that he really started to play around with digital art. His first experiment was with the Brushes app on his iPhone. 

He has since upgraded to the iPad and now creates amazing portraits on the Procreate app for the iPad Air 2. The art looks just like it was painted with real acrylic paint. 

Hall says that creating art digitally has one especially great benefit: instant feedback. 

"The community plays a big role. I have acrylic paintings which have probably been seen by 4 or 5 people. Whereas on the iPad I can paint something and immediately post it online where you'll get feedback and learn others' processes," Hall said, adding that anyone with an iPad can do what he does. "It makes people, who have never painted before, pick it up and have a try. That is something very special."

Hall says that he was shocked to be picked by Apple for the campaign — he was so surprised in fact, that he was convinced it was a prank until he saw his work on Apple's web site.

"This sets a strong message to their creative community, making it clear that Apple takes them very seriously and is dedicated to them," Hall said.

SEE ALSO: Take A Look At The 256-Foot Yacht That Was Designed For Steve Jobs Before He Died

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Creating gorgeous art on an iPad requires an immense amount of patience and practice.

Artist Miki Früh uses finger blending and small thin strokes to create the illusion of waves.

Many iPad artists work off of photographs or images they've seen, many draw from their imagination. Paper by FiftyThree user eichan68 perfectly captures this lion's fur.

Photorealistic iPad art is viewed as extremely taxing and can take days to perfect. Artist Zhang Justin's teacup looks real enough to sip from.

If you’re not following “Guardians of the Galaxy” director James Gunn on Facebook or Instagram, you should.

The director puts out behind-the-scenes photos from the film, shares lists of his favorite films, fan art, and videointerviews, while taking the time to respond to a lot of fan comments.  

Earlier this week, Gunn posted an image of a painting from artist Chris Foss which the director said inspired his “Guardians of the Galaxy” team the most.

Gunn said he presented this piece of art and other Foss works during a pitch meeting with Marvel to direct “Guardians of the Galaxy.” 

Here’s how he explains the painting’s inspiration and what happened during that meeting:

Yellow is an underused color in films, especially science-fiction and fantasy films. In Guardians, I used it as a signifier of change, rebirth, and redemption - the yellow prison uniforms, Drax drowning in the yellow spinal fluid, the yellow Groot spores, and the yellow interlocking Nova Corps net... I believe color is a part of what made Guardians successful. When so many huge, spectacle films have the beige color palette of Saw, the brain becomes thirsty for color. We were that technicolor pitcher of water at the edge of the summer desert.

This doesn't mean all movies should be colorful, just that color in general is important, and too much of one thing is boring. If, over the next few years, films become oversaturated with bright colors, brains will be relieved by a film entirely hazel and gray. 

Anyway, this painting, along with other Chris Foss works, was a part of my original presentation to Marvel when I pitched myself as director and I explained the visual direction I was going to take with the film. They were immediately on board, and we ended up hiring Chris Foss to help design some of the spaceships in the film. He was, of everyone, my biggest visual inspiration on Guardians.

SEE ALSO: The real-life raccoon who inspired Rocket in "Guardians of the Galaxy"

MORE: Director Steven Soderbergh's Epic List Of Everything He Read And Watched In 2014

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In honor of the Grateful Dead's 50th anniversary, the band is reuniting for three final farewell shows July 3-5 at Soldier Field in Chicago. 

The show will be titled "Fare Thee Well," and will mark nearly two decades after the band last performed together with the late Jerry Garcia at the same 55,000-capacity venue.

Grateful Dead Ticketing mail order begins today, January 20th, to continue the band's snail mail ticketing tradition.

Online tickets, which range in price from $59.50-$199.50, will first be made available to members of the Grateful Dead fan club before anyone else, but still on a first-come-first-serve basis from Feb. 9-11.

After that, a local public presale will occur Feb. 12-13, with a general public sale to follow Feb. 14. Ticket information is available at Dead50.net. 

The band's devoted fan base, also known as Dead Heads, are already snail-mailing in their ticket requests and in keeping with tradition, are intricately decorating the envelopes in hopes of helping their chances at getting tickets.

Our Grateful Dead ticket order envelope! Thanks to Jakes little bro for decorating it for us! #Dead50#GDTSTOOpic.twitter.com/47NLE3kGec

— Ellen Nied (@AndSheWasN2F) January 20, 2015

Past fan art is even the subject of 2011 book "Dead Letters: The Very Best Grateful Dead Fan Mail," which showcases years of fan art on envelopes.

The book's description explains:

"Dead Heads went to extraordinary, often inspiring, lengths to get their hands on concert tickets by mailing the band and its staff. After all, the only way to get tickets for the Dead was to go directly to the source. Most often, this took the form of letters (and envelopes) with personalized Dead artwork the likes of which the U.S. Postal Service had ever seen."

With the new tour set to release tickets next month, many Dead Heads are uploading photos of their decorative envelopes to social media under the tag #Dead50, in honor of the group's upcoming anniversary.

Check out some of the most detailed artworks below:

Wish us luck on #GDTSTOO cc @rskipnis#Dead50pic.twitter.com/D1tQKOJKgz

— Ikes (@DedFishHed) January 20, 2015

Off we go! I'll be there regardless. #dead50#gratefuldeadpic.twitter.com/CYhgQMkhzA

— Tribe Zero (@TribeZero) January 20, 2015

Things like this make me realize I have no chance. RT @mkdevo: Saw this on the facebooks. Awesome. #Dead50pic.twitter.com/CHdaGaih1i

— Cameron Garrison (@CGarrisonKC) January 20, 2015

In line at the post office. #Dead50 thanks for the color @theBetsyCAT!!! pic.twitter.com/dHuoDtho52

— \mm/ Phil's \mm/ (@PhilthyG) January 20, 2015

American Beauty... #Dead50 Artist: Lisa Stambler Shiroff pic.twitter.com/kYKrPigo9M

— Ikes (@DedFishHed) January 19, 2015

You guys are AMAZING!! I've seen so much creativity with ALL these envelopes. Here are just a few... #Dead50#NFApic.twitter.com/ZXzyVasn9V

— Marigold (@deadgirltoo) January 20, 2015

Fare thee well my little envelope! #Dead50pic.twitter.com/to8z7nRmMh

— Rennie Karnovich (@needsmorechalk) January 20, 2015

SEE ALSO: Here's The Painting That Inspired The Entire Look Of 'Guardians Of The Galaxy'

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New York graffiti artist KATSU has debuted a new portrait of Mark Zuckerberg painted with his own fecal matter. 

The work is part of his new show, called "Remember the Future," at The Hole gallery in New York. The theme of the show is life and technology.

The Zuckerberg portrait is displayed among paintings made by drones and “Android Selfies” (images of robots taking photos at tourist sites).

This is not the first time KATSU has used art to skewer the Facebook founder. In 2013 he plastered New York City streets with images of Zuckerberg depicted with a black eye. 

“With the Internet being literally woven into the human experience, I cannot stand by and not voice my discontent with those who plan on owning our lives,” he told Gizmodo. “I’m upset and confused. I want the ability for people to permanently remove their information from Facebook. … I want Facebook to adequately explain to all users the extent to which their data will be farmed out and shared. … Mark is Mark. He’s this mutation, this gross aspiration everyone idolizes. His face has reach. He deserves to be ridiculed.”

The artist is also well known for his spray-painted skulls and art created with a fire extinguisher.

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Artists don't usually have access to satellite imagery to help them in their creations.

But when a British artist was given that chance, the result was a massive gif cobbled together from photos taken from space.

INSA, as he calls himself, is the brains behind the gigantic project, which is really a large-scale version of an "gif-iti," an art form he pioneered.

"Gif-iti is an idea that I came up with," INSA explains in a video about the project.

"I paint a wall, take a photo, repaint a wall, take a photo, do this until I've got a smooth motion to then upload these images into a computer, make them into an animated gif."

Here's an example of what that looks like, made by INSA himself:

ACAB well maybe not All, Most- MCAB........ Another close up of the 'Cycle Of Futility' piece🔥🔥🔥🔥 #acab #mcab #INSA #gifiti #gif #28redchurchstreet #DownloadTheApp

A video posted by insa_gram (@insa_gram) on Oct 15, 2014 at 6:15am PDT

Thanks to the 576 manhours provided by whiskey maker Ballantine's (yes, the video is essentially a cool ad), INSA was able to create gif-iti over 154,774 square feet of ground in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil — that's more than two and a half football fields — just across a marina from one of the city's airports.

The area was painted and repainted, while two Pleiades satellites 431 miles above the earth took an image on each of four days. Put together, the result is this vibrant, pulsating patchwork of yellow and pink hearts, a recurring image in INSA's art.

Ballantine's approached INSA about large-scale ideas he might have in mind. "I said I want to paint something big enough to be seen from space and to animate it," the artist told Mashable.

The colossal project resulted in the most sprawling gif of INSA's collection, big enough that satellites can clearly see it from space with a little zoom action. Pretty impressive!

For more of INSA's gif-iti, you can check out his Tumblr page dedicated to the novel art-form. He also shared his own version of the "space gif-iti", as seen below, on his Instagram.

So here is the actual GIF captured by satellite 431miles away in space! 🔥👀🔥👀🔥👀🔥👀🔥👀🔥👀🔥 Press play ▶️ 57,515 square meters painted over 4 days Its takes the earth 24 hours to do one revolution- that was the time we had between shots to paint each layer........ Watch the process: @Ballantines_Official Presents INSA’s Space GIF-ITI’ here -youtube.com/Ballantines Link in Profile #BiggestOnThePlanet #NextLevel #StayTrue

A video posted by insa_gram (@insa_gram) on Jan 23, 2015 at 6:41am PST

SEE ALSO: Mind-Blowing Images Of Earth From Space

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An 130-year-old painting by French impressionist Claude Monet was seemingly irreparably damaged after an incensed man punched it in 2012 while was on display in Dublin's National Gallery of Ireland.

The man was sentenced to 5 years in prison last year, but "Argenteuil Basin with a Single Sailboat," a panting worth an estimated $12 million, now had a hole thought it with cracked paint and a broken canvas.

Now after an 18-month restoration process, conservators at the gallery completed the seemingly impossible job of repairing and restoring the painting.

Here's how they did it, according to the process the gallery posted on its website:

The first step, of course, was to remove the damaged painting from public display. It was then taken out of its frame and restorationists noted any changes in condition from when it was previously inspected.

The underside was where the real repair work began. A protective film was applied to the painting while it was flipped.

The damaged canvas had to be flattened and aligned before it could be rejoined. A small amount of moisture was applied and, thread by thread, the canvas was rejoined using a microscope and tiny tools.

A specially made adhesive helped secure the canvas threads.

When the painting was punched, the paint cracked, split and chipped off. Larger paint fragments were able to be reattached to the canvas, but the smaller pieces (barely bigger than specs of dust) were not.

Instead, conservators added a chalk glue solution called gesso to fill in the areas of paint loss. It was pigmented identically to the painting so as to blend right in. Watercolor was then added on top of that to finish off the restoration.

The final result is a painting that looks like it's old self again.

All the materials used in the restoration are reversible and easily removable without destroying the original paint, should the need to do so ever arise. Additionally, the watercolor used shows up darker in ultraviolet light so it's easily identifiable.

Looks like a job well done.

SEE ALSO: 25 Of Banksy's Cleverest Works

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Apple has commissioned another colorful mural in China. It's for a new retail outlet in Chongquing, set to open at the end of January, 9to5mac reports. 

The artwork covers a cylindrical entrance to the new store. It was designed by China-based painter Yangyang Pan and US photographer Navid Baraty, who collaborated on the piece.

Apple has released a video of the mural charting the process of its creation and the finished building in all its splendor. 

And Baraty tweeted about the project.

The mural shows a bright, bold cityscape with a cable car and abstract blocks of colour. It's a contemporary image amid the city's otherwise grey tower blocks and walkways. 

The company has announced the unit, its 11th to open in China, on its website. The description of the mural reads:

To celebrate the opening of the new Apple Store retail outlets, we have invited international artists from Chongqing to Yangyang Pan, as well as award-winning international photographer Navid Baraty co-authoring a piece of art. This works not only convey the worth of Chongqing is a wonderful gathering of the city, also means that the new Apple Store retail world will be a fusion of art, culture, creativity and technology in one.

The artwork is the second to peak interest in China; Apple is trumpeting its Chinese expansion in style. Last week, Apple's Chinese website posted a video of a mural on the outside of the company's new store in Hangzhou. To create excitement for the store's opening, Apple commissioned famous calligrapher Wang Dongling to create artwork for the outside of the store.

As 9to5mac mentions, the company's move into China is running at a quick speed. Apple is reportedly now selling more iPhones in the county than in the US, and the company is also recruiting US employees to boost the retail operation in China and maximise reach.

The grand opening of the Chongqing site is at 10am on January 31. More stores are expected to be unveiled in 2015. 

SEE ALSO: Here's What The Mural On The Outside Of Apple's New Store In China Means

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In honor of the Grateful Dead's 50th anniversary, the band is reuniting for three final farewell shows July 3-5 at Soldier Field in Chicago. 

The show will be titled "Fare Thee Well," and will mark nearly two decades after the band last performed together with the late Jerry Garcia at the same 55,000-capacity venue.

Tickets for the extravaganza were first open to mail order beginning January 20th, in keeping with the band's snail mail ticketing tradition.

Fans intricately decorated envelopes in hopes of helping their chances at getting tickets — and in many cases, it worked.

The Grateful Dead wrote on their Facebook page:

"We're truly humbled by the envelopes pouring in! Check out some of our favorites so far and share your crafty work in the comments below. Counting down to Chicago!"

Check out some of the group's favorite envelope art below:

Check out more of the band's top picks on Facebook here.

As the Grateful Dead encouraged, hundreds of fans have posted their own designs in the comments section:

Past "dead head" fan art is the subject of 2011 book "Dead Letters: The Very Best Grateful Dead Fan Mail," which showcases years of fan art on envelopes.

The book's description explains:

"Dead Heads went to extraordinary, often inspiring, lengths to get their hands on concert tickets by mailing the band and its staff. After all, the only way to get tickets for the Dead was to go directly to the source. Most often, this took the form of letters (and envelopes) with personalized Dead artwork the likes of which the U.S. Postal Service had ever seen."

For July's concerts, online tickets will first be made available to members of the Grateful Dead fan club before anyone else and range in price from $59.50-$199.50. Tickets can be purchased on a first-come-first-serve basis from Feb. 9-11.

After that, a local public presale will occur Feb. 12-13, with a general public sale to follow Feb. 14. Ticket information is available at Dead50.net.

SEE ALSO: Grateful Dead Fans Are Creating Awesome, Intricately Designed Envelopes In Hopes Of Getting Mail Order Tickets For The Band's Farewell Tour

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Earlier this year, we learned that Marina Picasso, the granddaughter of famed Spanish artist Pablo Picasso, planned to sell off her grandfather's art from her private collection.

Early rumors hinted that she would be parting with seven very famous paintings as well as the villa she inherited, La Californie, which together have an estimated value of $290 million.

But on Wednesday, The New York Times reported that Marina Picasso is actually in possession of 10,000 original Picasso works that she inherited. She plans to sell them all personally — one by one — with the money going towards her philanthropic efforts.

The announcement has art investors, auctioneers, and dealers all worried — with that amount of goods flooding the market, prices for Picasso works could drop and the art world could lose out on millions of dollars.

Marina Picasso became famous in 2001 for her memoir "Picasso: My Grandfather," in which she accused the artist of destroying her childhood. She recounts living in near-poverty while her father begged for an allowance from Picasso.

Because Picasso left no will when he died in 1973, his wife, ex-wife, four children, and eight grandchildren were forced to scramble over his estate. Marina, to her surprise, inherited a fifth of the estate, including the villa La Californie.

But her new-found wealth was not enough to soften her memory of her late grandfather. In her memoir, Marina wrote that she turned around all the paintings in the villa as an act of vengeance.

She is currently in possession of 10,000 works of art by Picasso, which includes 300 paintings, according to the Times. They will be sold directly by Marina, and she will meet the clients personally in Geneva, according to an earlier report by the New York Post's Page Six. 

The first work that Marina will sell is the 1935 painting "La Famille," a rare realistic-style painting that could fetch millions.

“It’s symbolic because I was born in a great family, but it was a family that was not a family,” Marina Picasso told the Times.

Marina is also in possession of a portrait of Picasso’s first wife, titled “Portrait de femme (Olga),” which could sell for over $60 million if she ever chose to part with it. 

Another set of famous works in her collection is the 1911 painting “Femme à la Mandoline (Mademoiselle Leonie assie)” which could sell for as much as $60 million (pictured on the left), and a 1921 work titled “Maternité” starting at $54 million (right). 

A friend of Marina’s told Page Six that the decision to sell is “about letting go of the past." The Times reports that the money will go towards her philanthropy projects, including a pediatric hospital in Vietnam and projects in France and Switzerland that would benefit the elderly and troubled teens.

SEE ALSO: 19 New Works Of Art That Have The World Buzzing

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NOW WATCH: The 7 Most Interesting Art Exhibits Of 2014

A new public art project in Aukland, New Zealand is upsetting locals for its resemblance to a penis. 

First picked up by the New Zealand Herald, the artwork was installed 27 feet above the ground by the New Lynn train station is a four-part installation of aluminum mesh sculptures that’s called “Transit Cloud.”

It was created by sculptor Gregor Kregar, artist Sarah Hughes, and architect Davor Popdich, and is meant to be a nod to the city's local history as a portage hub. It cost NZ$200,000, or over $150,000 to build and install.

But after seeing the hanging sculpture, Aukland residents are upset. “What the hell is that? It’s certainly not a cloud. It looks like a penis,” Auckland resident Joy Dale told the New Zealand Herald.  

Another passerby said to the New Zealand Herald, “Don’t you think it’s rude? It’s definitely [a penis]. What else could it be.”

People on Instagram also noticed the sculpture’s resemblance to male genitalia.

What a dick of an artist. People of New Lynn, Auckland have been blessed with this 'cloud' sculpture. #itsalaugh #art #lookslikeapenistome 😂

A photo posted by Charlotte (@emsoncharlottexo) on Feb 6, 2015 at 11:27pm PST

Umm that don't look like no cloud lol #lookslikeagianture #200Kart #newlynn #auckland

A photo posted by @sianruka on Feb 5, 2015 at 10:31pm PST

The so called "clouds" sculpture which was installed at New Lynn. When I was there, I saw a lot of people was laughing at it. Half of the people took a photo! #art #notart #sculpture #newlynn #auckland

A photo posted by Ian (@ianray58) on Feb 8, 2015 at 10:48pm PST

Here's how it looks from other angles and with the three other sculptures. 

Congratulations clever husband, Sara Hughes and Gregor Kregar! 'TransitCloud' has been unveiled! #nzart #incontext #sculpture #gregorkregar #sarahughes #davorpopadich #newlynn

A photo posted by Abbe Popadich (@abbepop) on Feb 5, 2015 at 5:34pm PST

Went to see the Transit Cloud sculpture at New Lynn on my way home. While the one the media has covered is indeed pretty phallic, the rest of them are actually really cool, and make the Merchant Quarter Lane look great (much like the Train Station in the back of this shot). Plus there were heaps of people there looking and debating them. Pretty sure that means it's successful art! #transitcloud #clouds #art #sculpture #lane #laneway #trainstation #merchantquarter #urbanism #architecture #newlynn #auckland #eyeonauckland #newzealand

A photo posted by Luke Elliott (@usernamesaretough) on Feb 9, 2015 at 8:43pm PST

Charger told the New Zealand Herland that the sculptures will be connected to over 160 feet of neon lights and will be illuminated at night.

“Art is out there to stir reaction,” Kregar told the New Zealand Herald. He also said that people would like the art much better once it was officially complete.

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NOW WATCH: Mark Cuban: Here's The Hardest Part Of Being A Billionaire

"Seeing-I" is a social-artistic experiment that questions how much of the individual is an inherent personality and how large a portion of the individual is a cultural identity.

For 24 hours a day for 28 days, artist Mark Farid will wear a Virtual Reality Headset through which he will experience life through another person’s eyes and ears, this person is known as - the other. The other will wear a pair of glasses that covertly capture audio and video. This footage will then be watched back by Mark, who will be confined to a gallery space. 

Between February 19-21 the Seeing I team will hold a Q&A and demonstration at Imagine Science film festival at NYU, Abu Dhabi. Click here for more information on the event.

Video courtesy of Nimrod Vardi

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