REMINDER: ART FOR HEART'S SAKE

Lovely readers, this is your 7-day warning! You have until Thursday next week to submit your Hipstamatic snaps of hearts into the Art For Heart's Sake competition. 

The top 100 submissions will be printed, framed and auctioned off at a special event in a Central London gallery in the lead up to Valentine's day - and absolutely all of the proceeds will be donated to Kids Company. 

Head here for a full recap on this, and check out some of the brilliant shots already submitted above & below. Excellent stuff.

45 MOST POWERFUL IMAGES OF 2011

Head over to BuzzFeed for a look at their selection of the 45 most powerful images of 2011, which includes shots of the devastation left after the tsunami in Japan (below), Chile's Puyehue volcano erupting (above), and a woman jumping out of a building of fire during the London riots (below below). 

MOSS + BOWIE = VOGUE

Brit icon Kate Moss does Brit icon David Bowie on the brand new January cover of French Vogue, shot by Mert & Marcus. Not the first time this has been done (see below), but we like it all the same.

AT HOME WITH ANOUCK

Let's have a little nosy around Belgian supermodel Anouck Lepere's apartment in Antwerp, shall we? 

Lepere studied architecture and design at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp, and is one of Louis Vuitton's latest Amble Ambassadors; check out her app here. (pics via Nowness)

ART FOR HEART'S SAKE

Keep your eyes peeled for hearts, lovely readers: we have an excellent competition for you. Our very own Simon Elborne has set up Art For Heart's Sake - a social enterprise that raises awareness & donations through creative engagement. 

Teaming up with the ever-popular iPhone app Hipstamatic, Art For Heart's Sake are inviting anyone to spot or create anything heart-shaped, snap it with the Hipstamatic app, and enter the resulting shot into the competition by sending it in (check out our own effort above!). Click here to find out how to enter your picture.

The top 100 submissions will be printed, framed and auctioned off at a special event in a Central London gallery in the lead up to Valentine's Day. The top 3 submissions, chosen by a select committee of artists, designers & creatives, will take home some very excellent prizes. And here's the best bit: absolutely all of the proceeds will go to Kids Company.

The competition launches today and runs until December 15th, so get creative and get snapping. Make sure you stop by Art For Heart's Sake's facebook page, follow them on twitter, and visit their official website for further details.

TURNER + TESTINO

It's just been announced that celeb fashion photographer Mario Testino will present this year's Turner Prize, which will take place at the Baltic gallery in Gateshead next month.

The 5th of December will mark the ceremony's 28th anniversary, and the four artists up for the £25k prize are Karla Black, Martin Boyce, George Shaw and Hilary Lloyd (but you already knew that because we told you all about it yonks ago).

Previous presenters of the prestigious award have been Dennis Hopper, Nick Cave, Miuccia Prada and of course Madge, who ruffled a few feathers in 2001 by swearing a bit. Silly Madge.

IF YOU LEAVE

Photographer Laurence Von Thomas had a simple idea: launch a photography blog, set an overall theme of peace & solitude, take open submissions from photographers from all over the world, and publish the best shots.

The blog, If You Leave, has been running since 2009 and is a runaway hit. So much so that Von Thomas is now launching his second book of selected works from the site, featuring photographs from over 250 international artists. (Find out where to buy it here)

Very little info is given about the work submitted or the creative minds behind it, which ads a welcome air of intrigue to the project. Check out our selection of excerpts from the book above & below, and make sure to visit the blog regularly for new work.

WONDELREY

Let's have a look at some nice pictures of Lana Del Rey from this month's brand new Wonderland magazine (out now), as shot by the marvellous Aj Numan. Lovely.

MARK ABRAHAMS

Celebrity portraiture is nothing new, and yet the difference between a generic press shot and an intimate moment-in-time meticulously captured separates the jobbing snappers from the true talents out there. 

Cue Mark Abrahams, who's worked with Vogue, L'Uomo & GQ for many years, and whose self-titled book of A-list portraits demonstrates a purity to his lens that simply works. Check out some excerpts above & below, and get the book here.

HAUNTED AIR

This ought to get you in the mood for this weekend's spooky festivities. We've just stumbled across this eerie collection of antique photographs of Halloweens past. 

They're all dated between 1875 & 1955, and have been compiled into a book by Ossian Brown, entitled Haunted Air. The introduction is written by David Lynch, and the afterword by Geoff Cox. Check out some excerpts below, and get the book here.

HIRST + RANKIN

Brit artist Damien Hirst and Brit photographer Rankin have joined creative forces for a shiny new book & exhibition, both entitled Myths, Monsters and Legends.

Working with model Dani Smith, the work explores their mutual fascination with the ancient world, photographed from a contemporary perspective. Check out some excerpts from the book above & below, and make sure to visit the Annroy Gallery until November 5th 2011 for the full exhibition.