What to do, see & buy: L'Atalante; Vicki Murdoch; Seydou Keïta; Yayoi Kusama; Jess Mills
Va-va voom
Jean Vigo's heart-stopping 1934 masterpiece, L'Atalante, starring Dita Parlo and Jean Dasté as a newly-married couple, set the precedent for the French New Wave. It continues to influence film-makers from François Truffaut to Jim Jarmusch and appears on every best film list worth its salt. Don't miss its re-release. In selected cinemas from 20 January.
Square numbers
'Silken Favours', a collection of super-cute neckerchiefs by Scottish designer Vicki Murdoch, is proving a hit at Liberty. Her nature-themed silk squares are all hand-drawn, and the latest collection, featuring kittens and unicorns, gives the trad granny scarf a playful facelift. From £65, silkenfavours.com
Pictures from home
Bamako, Mali 1948-1963, is a weighty new coffee-table book from Steidl that collects previously unpublished portraits from the archives of Seydou Keïta – whose stylised studio shots documented life in his hometown in the colony of French Sudan, then a bustling transport route to Dakar – with some of his most celebrated work. £86; steidlville.com
Time for tea
The season of abstinence is upon us. How better to steer yourself away from the bottle than with a nice new teapot? This bold design from Toast, with hand-painted handle and lid – and matching cups, if you want to go all the way – is just the thing. £49, toast.co.uk
Infectious spots
Dots are in. While the Gagosian flaunts Damien Hirst's spots this month, Tate Modern prepares a retrospective of polka-dot-obsessed Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama, whose works she says are inspired by lifelong hallucinations. Opens 8 February; tate.org.uk
Lucky voice
After singing with Leftfield and old school friend Ms Dynamite, Jess Mills impressed Island Records execs while on the festival circuit last year. (Trivia: she's also Tessa Jowell's daughter). Hear her blissed-out vocals at Koko in north London on 13 January, or on her nationwide tour. 'Pixelated People' is out on 12 February
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