After getting news that he had plans for opening his own art gallery, Damien Hirst has continued his media blitz with the unveiling of his own website. The site itself showcases over 250 works that spans the last 31 years of his artistic blossoming. Head over to Damienhirst.com to see a live-feed of the artist at work as well as the ability to peruse various works.

If you’re not familiar with Paddle8, it’s an online destination whose aspirations entail trying to bring the purchase of artwork to an online forum. Directed towards a generation of collectors, artists and gallerists who see the web as a viable space for learning and access, they create context for artworks by inviting influential cultural figures to participate as curators. Recently, ARTINFO explored the latest phenomenon to hit the art world. The entire piece on the business model of Paddle8 can be read at ARTINFO while a choice excerpt appears below.

If your view of Paddle8 is somewhat fuzzy, you probably aren’t the only one. In our unscientific survey of people in the art world, most have heard of the site (and its elegant design), but few could put their finger on what its purpose was. Plenty of Web sites are trying to make a go of selling art online, and while Paddle8′s site serves as an intersection for art buyers and sellers, online commerce isn’t its real game. In reality, it is trying to capitalize on streamlining the less romantic services that make selling art difficult and expensive — shipping, handling, invoicing, billing, and insurance. It hopes to profit by offering reduced rates on these services to the many galleries that use its platform, thereby taking advantage of bulk discounts and making it cheaper for the art world to conduct the back end of its business. The company, in turn, takes a four percent commission on deals done through the site.

Following a six-week hiatus, Kanye West tonight announced the release of an exclusive behind-the-scenes Watch the Throne tour video to his more than five million Twitter followers. Having recently taken a substantial retraction from his initially frequent Twitter posts, the artist chose to break his silence to promote the VOYR video episode which is voiced over by Ye himself and features a cameo by none other than Jay-Z. Intriguing at times and pensive at others, the well-done video captures a nice sample of the epic tour.

In October of 2010, Leica launched their Explorer campaign. The project itself revolves around select photographers traveling the world to document the world with both The North Face gear and Leica’s V-Lux 2 in tow. Following the review of over 1,000 submissions, you can follow the exploits of each of the 10 photographers via Leica’s special microsite. Each of the photographers are following a specific route traveled by select explorers in the past with full details below:

Marcus Werner from Berlin will be following in the footsteps of Ferdinand Magellan on his journey to South America. Sebastian Wolf from Magdeburg will be picking up the trail of Leif Eriksson in North America. In India, our Canadian explorer Hubert Hayaud and his partner Mayra Roffe will be taking the routes explored by Ibn Battuta. Lebanese explorer Roy Samaha is on the trail of James Bruce in Egypt. Daisuke Takahashi from Japan will be following James Cook’s route to Australia. American explorer Christopher Butler will be following Marco Polo on the way to China. Annie Atkins, our Irish explorer, will be traveling to Tibet to travel the routes of Nain Singh. Saulius Damulevicius from Lithuania will follow Roald Amundsen to the Antarctic and French adventurer Alary Romain takes up the trail of William Adams in Japan. Our Dutch discoverer MayLee Weernik has already completed her adventurous journey. She explored the routes taken by David Livingston in Africa.

Source: Leica Rumours

Sneakerpedia has all the makings of becoming one of the greatest sneaker resources around thanks to an interactive crowdsourcing element. Users can not only show off their collection digitally but also shed some insight and background into some of their rare sneakers. The official site and any updates will occur at Sneakerpedia.

COMME des GARÇONS have finally launched their official website; the virtual location showcases a modest selection of the numerous collaborations undertaken by the Japanese label over the past few years in conjunction with contemporary artists including: Mondongo, The Quay Brothers and the recent works completed in collaboration with Ai Weiwei. Whilst the future of the site is unclear, the current format allows fans to glimpse over some of the most celebrated projects to date.

PUMA Social honors the After Hours Athlete. Forget calorie counting, fitness training, and hydration levels. PUMA Social reminds us that we are all athletes, even if the only time we run is to catch a cab home. From ping pong and foosball to darts and karaoke, PUMA Social is dedicated to after hours sports. Because we know it takes just as much effort to score a phone number as it does to score a goal. Welcome to PUMA Social. Open all hours and serving all late night athletes with a side of smack talk and a few strips of bacon. Get involved with PUMA Social at Puma.com/social.

Jean Touitou announces the start of a new web branch for his label A.P.C. Dubbed the A.P.C. Journal, this new venture will offer further news and behind-the-scenes coverage of the various daily happenings from the popular French brand. For those interested, check it out here.

After several teasers, previews, and overall hype-filled intrigue, The Madbury Club makes its presence felt online as the Phil T. Annand-anchored publication goes live. Aside from your usual great dose of photography, the site is instantly recognizable with a distinct aesthetic that has brought The Award Tour its buzz-worthy status. For those looking to delve themselves into a well-thought out and thoroughly curated look into the ever evolving streetwear scene, The Madbury Club should do the trick. Enter here.

To celebrate the launch of Omar Salazar’s first signature shoe, Nike SB created a mini-site featuring a clip starring Omar himself, directed by Jon Humphries and Jason Hernandez. To watch the clip and check out the Zoom Omar Salazar SB please visit here.