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Plus: Art that excludes men, a fake phone that calms you down, and Disney vs. the algorithm.

Ai (ahh yes, the topic showing up in every newsletter this side of the internet). We use it everyday for any number of reasons, and it continually seems to step up to the plate with answers to our most trivial questions or deepest intrigues. Slides, logos, taglines, product names delivered in seconds. It’s the content generation wunder-tool. But with all those options… who picks the right one? That’s still on us.

As the tools grow more capable, the bottleneck shifts.
Creation is no longer the hard part, curation is.

The work may not be made by human hands from start to finish, but it still requires human judgment. Taste becomes something more concrete, the ability to choose well, to recognise what’s good and to set a direction when the options won’t stop multiplying.

The hard part isn’t making something anymore, it’s recognising what matters, what carries weight, and what fits. That kind of discernment is shaped by our lived experience and cultural values, something that can’t be automated.

And for brands? Taste isn’t just an internal compass.
It’s a signal. A vibe. A shorthand for identity.
A way of saying this is us without needing to explain it.

The Atlantic’s Nitin Nohria explores how AI is reshaping our relationship to taste, and why, in a sea of infinite outputs, it might be the most human tool we have left.

We don’t really watch things anymore, not in the way we used to. We’re checking phones, replying to something, maybe even watching something else at the same time. So if you were a company whose business is your attention, what do you do? You adjust. That’s exactly what Netflix is doing, and not just what it recommends, but how its shows are made.

Storylines are tighter. Performances are more direct. Even jokes are being rewritten to land faster. Not because we’re getting dumber, but because the way we watch has changed. Streaming is becoming second-screen native, and what that means for the future of storytelling is foreboding.

Is exclusivity always the enemy or can it be a protest?
Kirsha Kaechele’s women-only gallery flips the art world’s open door policy on its head.

Sometimes the best tech is the illusion of it.
The latest response to screen fatigue is a clear plastic phone that does nothing at all.

When AI learns your style too well, is it still yours?
Disney draws a line in the sand to protect aesthetic ownership.

01
Resort-core is the new visual language of rest
Stained glass, linen, terracotta and sun-faded tones are showing up far from the coast. From fashion to tech packaging, brands are borrowing the aesthetics of the slow holiday to signal calm, control, and a life well styled.
→ Style as self-care, coded in colour.

02
Authors vs. AI on #BookTok
Bestselling writers are calling out AI-generated novels on TikTok, turning the platform into a protest stage for creative authenticity.
→ The algorithm writes fast. But who writes with feeling?

03
Stained glass makes a comeback in restaurant design
Once retro but now a statement, stained glass is cropping up in the new wave of dining rooms and bakeries, setting a mood beyond nostalgia.
→ It’s not nostalgia. It’s ambience with memory.

We’re proud to unveil the latest evolution of our Rushcutters Bay headquarters: a collaboration with internationally acclaimed interior designer Jason Bonham to launch Bonham Gallery Sydney, a new destination for collectible design, functional art, and creative exchange.

Founded by acclaimed interior designer Jason Bonham, the gallery brings together a world-class roster of artists, designers, and makers - many of whom have never exhibited in the region before. This is the first space in Australia dedicated exclusively to internationally sourced collectible design and functional art.  From sculptural lighting and handcrafted furniture to museum-grade objects and contemporary works, each piece is made with intention and material integrity crafted in studios, not factories - reflecting a deep commitment to time-honoured craft and cultural dialogue.

Originally a smash repairs workshop, the space was first reimagined by Example in 2019 as a creative office for Sydney’s design and hospitality industries. Now, with Bonham, it enters a new era: a hybrid headquarters and gallery that brings our shared values of design, storytelling, and cultural curiosity to life.

Our Example HQ is still here but now it does more. It’s a living reflection of the work we believe in, and the world we’re helping to shape.

Bonham Gallery Sydney is now open by appointment.

Founder and Creative Director at Bonham Art & Design

Most mornings begin with stillness to bless the day ahead. Before the chaos of emails or phone calls, I give myself a moment of visual clarity, usually with a curated print publication or a deep scroll through the work of global artists and designers I respect. It could be an issue of Apartamento or Abitare, a portfolio in The World of Interiors, Hauser or Arch Digest, or a quiet visit to an artist’s site I’ve bookmarked at 2am.

It’s less about trends and more about connection, to material, to place, to the hands behind the works. That pause, even just ten minutes, grounds me. It helps me see the day as a creative act in itself. In a world of constant noise, beginning with beauty, intentional, crafted, and thoughtful, is oxygen to me.

I’ve always felt deeply connected to nature, and one of the most moving exhibitions I’ve experienced recently was The Four Seasons by David Hockney. Immersive, captivating, and profoundly moving, it reawakened my appreciation for the natural world.

Having lived in Oxford in the UK for many years, seeing the familiar Woldgate road rendered across the changing seasons stirred vivid memories, noting that in various locations in Britain, many roads feel the same in rural locations. Driving with the warm wind in your face on a summer day, or walking that same path in autumn, crisp air biting your cheeks as leaves fell in quiet spirals around you and your dogs.

Hockney’s lens captures not just a place, but the passage of time and emotion. It reminded me how art can reconnect us to ourselves.

Two artists whose work continues to inspire and surprise me are BREAKFAST Studio and Fabio Viale, both pushing boundaries in very different, but equally compelling ways.

BREAKFAST Studio, based in New York, explores kinetic art with a deeply human interface. Their large-scale installations respond to movement and light, often integrating sound, creating experiences that are immersive, sensory, and meditative. There’s a grace to their technical mastery, where interaction and emotion are given equal weight. To me, great art should stir something within, and their work does exactly that.

In contrast, Fabio Viale’s practice is rooted in classical sculpture but subverted with striking, contemporary interventions. His reinterpretations of Greco-Roman forms layered with tattooed surfaces or contextual shifts feel bold and poetic. I’m continually drawn to the scale of his work and the tension between tradition and modern identity. There’s a quiet power in how he carves space within space, infusing ancient motifs with something undeniably current.

Both artists remind me that originality doesn’t come from noise, it’s found in nuance, craftsmanship, and the courage to reimagine.

Gibbs Farm in New Zealand holds a special place in my heart. It belongs to dear friends, Janey and Alan, who welcomed me regularly, summer swims, winter walks, feeding the animals, or simply sitting together in conversation, surrounded by some of the most extraordinary artworks in the world.

Set against the dramatic backdrop of Kaipara Harbour, the property itself is vast and cinematic. But it’s the integration of land art and sculpture that makes it unforgettable. The scale is humbling, monumental works by Anish Kapoor, Richard Serra, Maya Lin, and others don’t just sit on the land; they inhabit it, breathe with it. Kapoor’s Dismemberment Site 1 is especially haunting, its curved form catches the wind and seems to pulse with life.

It’s a place where art, nature, and friendship intersect. You leave changed, perspective widened, senses sharpened, and spirit lifted. It’s not just a cultural experience, but a deeply personal one.

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