The launch of a 12-week arts festival to coincide with the 2012 London Olympics has been announced.

The festival, named Festival 2012, will bring together all of the cultural celebrations that surround the Olympics, and showcase the artistic influences that have had an impact on the nation.

The announcement of the festival has come after a new artistic team took over the running of the Cultural Olympiad – a series of events to display the UK’s art and culture to the rest of the world.

The arts manager, Ruth Mackenzie has said that the festival would aim to define the celebratory mood of the Olympics. The artistic team has £75.5m to spend on the whole festival, including £15.6m from the National Lottery and £3m from the British Council.

The Barbican in London will host a line-up of international stars, including actors Juliette Binoche and Cate Blanchett. The centre will host the biggest exhibition in the UK for 40 years focussing on the Bauhaus design school, which thrived in the 1920s and 30s.

The Barbican director, Sir Nicholas Kenyon states that the Barbican will be at the forefront of what will be a big moment for the UK, “with an extraordinary range of cultural experiences for all”. He also says reveals that it will be a “real collection of things that we believe in that represent the Barbican values.” The Barbican will receive a special grant of £700,000 from the London Olympics organisers to join the nationwide arts festival.

The art festival’s artistic team has announced a few highlights of next year’s festival. One of which is the Bauhaus exhibition, named Art as Life.

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Whether or not tattoos can be considered ‘art’ has long be the subject of many a heated debate.

Whilst some see them as being associated with social deviants, the art of tattooing has been around for thousands of years, with many contemporary art exhibitions and art institutions featuring tattoos as a form of art.

When it was reported that Jully Nascimento, a woman from Brazil, tattooed her arm with a QR Code Tattoo that could be scanned, the somewhat antiquated debate of whether tattooing one’s skin can be considered to be ‘art’, was taken to new heights.

According to Geeky Tattoo, Jully believes she is the first person in Brazil to get a QR code tattoo. The tattoo was made by a tattooist known as Andre, from True Love Tattoos, and the code actually reads as the name of a song by Good Charlotte, a band and song that helped Ms Nascimento through a tough time when she was growing up.

Whilst some may argue that marking one’s skin in reference to a turbulent time in one’s youth is impervious of the ‘rebellious nature’ of tattoos, others may hold the view that such scan-able tattoos are a unique and beautiful symbol of the modern-day technological era.

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Seoul’s new architectural marvel has proved to be a success in its first week as a tourist attraction.

Seoul’s Han River will be home to three man-made islands by the end of the year, but Viva –  the first island, opened to the public just last week.

At 3,271 square metres it will be the second largest of the three islands, but for now it is home to an impressive 3-storey structure. The building houses a 700-seat convention hall as well as other attractions, including restaurants and video games.

There are also parks, outdoor terraces and various view-points to really take in the sights of the city. The exterior of the building turns into a light show at night with brightly-coloured illuminations.

The next islands are due to open in September and the entire trio of islands will amount to 20,400 square metres of man-made land.

With Viva’s 3-storey business centre, each island will has its own theme. The second island will be a centre for arts and cultural events, while the 3^rd island will focus on aquatic activities – with special emphasis on yachting as well as other water sports.

The islands can each accommodate around 6,200 people and are guaranteed to generate even more attention from tourists to build on the 59 million people that visited last year.

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According to a poll by MasterCard, London appears to be the leading city when it comes to expecting the most international tourist arrivals during 2011.

The results of the poll were announced on 1^st June, and this new index of Global Destination Cities predicts that London will receive around 20.1 million inbound passengers over the course of this year.

This figure means that it beat competition from the ever-popular Paris, which can expect 18.1 million and Bangkok, which holds 3^rd place with just 11.5 million. In fact, 8 cities in the Asia-Pacific area have gained places in the Top 20 global destinations, something that may have something to do with the influx of travelers around this region.

Surprisingly, New York is the only US city that appears on the list, expecting just 7.6 million visitors. However, New York is expected to rake around $20.3 billion in terms of tourist expenditure during 2011.  This is a close second to London, whose 20.1 million visitors are predicted to spend a staggering $25.6 billion.

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