A college project by artist Damien Hirst sold at auction last week for roughly $50,000. The collage, "Red Rubber Ball," sold at the low end of the estimate, which ranged up to $80,000. The piece includes a variety of found objects, such as a toy rabbit, a severed head from a doll and a dried out rose. Originally, Damien Hirst gave the piece to Julie Balmforth, who studied with him at Goldsmiths College.

The collage measures 39.5 inches by 31.5 inches and sold at Duke's of Dorchester, in Dorset. While the buyer's identity was not revealed, auctioneer Guy Schwinge would say that it went to an Irish collector "who is very excited at his purchase."

Whoever picked up the piece did buy something rare: a piece actually created with Hirst's own hands.

Off the western coast of Ireland with Croagh Patrick (or The Reek) Mountain within view, the secluded island of Inishturkbeg offers a sea-surrounded environment perfect for a family vacation or corporate getaway. Chock full of outdoor activities on land and sea with a variety of accommodations boasting scenic views and rustic yet luxurious island intimacy, Inishturkbeg could be the perfect answer to your need for a unique escape.

From archery and shooting to boating, ball games and animal husbandry this is not your typical resort. Enjoy the spa, roam the island's vast open space, or kick up a game of football on the pitch. You can choose between simply staying on the island among other retreat-ists or rent the entire island for your own private Irish excursion. For instance, rent Reek Cottage for two, four or seven days for just €2,250, €3,700 or €5,850 respectively. Likewise, you can rent the entire island exclusively for two, four or seven days for €17,400, €29,250 or €47,000 respectively.

All stays are fully catered utilizing the island's free range farm, home to chickens, rare Kerry Cattle, and over 100 sheep along with freshly grown fruits, vegetables and herbs. Additionally, the vast variety of delicious seafood available just beyond the edge of the island completes the menus. Lunch and dinner are provided while breakfast welcomes guests to help themselves to the fully-stocked kitchens. A wide selection of wines and spirits are also available of course.

Michael Collins, which is distilled at Ireland's last independently owned distillery, Cooley, just won a Double Gold Medal in the Single Malt Irish Whiskey category at the 2009 San Francisco World Spirits Competition.

Michael Collins Irish Whiskeys are double distilled to retain the flavor characteristics of their premium ingredients. Aged in small bourbon seasoned casks, they are refined, flavorful and well-balanced. The brand is named after the Irish national hero.

Michael Collins handcrafted Single Malt is bold with a distinctive and unexpected lightly peated style. Aged for a minimum of 8 - 12 years, it has aromas of chocolate malt with light citrus and honeysuckle notes.

Well-rounded and complex with rich maltiness, it finishes long with a hint of chocolate and smoke that lingers on the palate, and comes in a distinctive tall bottle. Michael Collins blend also won honors in SF, bringing home a silver in the Blended Irish Whiskey Category.

I couldn't resist celebrating St. Patrick's Day with an Irish estate. Kilmurry is a Georgian manor house set on 20 acres of parkland in County Kilkenny. The original Kilmurry house dates back to 1690 and was expanded in the early 1800s. The home has nine bedrooms and its reception rooms include a ballroom and dining room. It features original woodwork , ornate plasterwork and the fireplace in the dining room was hand carved by a former resident of the home. The home's classic beauty is surrounded by mature trees down a tree-lined avenue and there are formal and walled gardens as well as two paddocks of seven acres each. This home is listed at 3.5 million euros.

Experience more lush living in luxury homes and mansions or see the stars living large with celebrity homes galleries at AOL Real Estate.

This might be a great time to enjoy a luxurious getaway in Ireland. The Times Online reports that rooms at many of the nation's five-star establishments are going empty prompting some good deals. The Irish Tourist Industry Confederation told an Oireachtas tourism committee this month that as many as 20,000 of the country's 50,000 hotel beds are vacant at any one time.

The Shelbourne in Dublin reopened last year after an expensive renovation with rooms that started at €315 a night. Now the luxury hotel is one of several luxury hotels in Ireland offering guests free nights as it attempts to ride out the recession. customers who spend two weekend nights at the Shelbourne earn a free third night, with rates starting at €229 a night per person double occupancy. The Four Seasons in Dublin is also offering a third night free with any two night stay between December and April, and rates starting at €225. At the Ritz-Carlton in Powerscourt, Co Wicklow, American Express cardholders who stay three nights in a row get the fourth night for free. The hotel was offering rooms for between €450 and €500 a night but now rates run at €275 for a weekend night and €215 midweek and the hotel is offering value-added packages.

Overall rates in Ireland are at a six-year low and it is believes that hotel occupancy will continue to drop as the global recession continues. The timing is unfortunate, Ireland's recent tourism boom led to the addition of at least 8,000 new rooms overall in 2007 but now many of those hotels are struggling to pay the costs of rapid expansion leading to the discounted rates which will likely be in place for a while.

The latest architectural project to be shelved due to the economic crisis is the planned U2 Tower in Dublin, Ireland. The tower which has been in the planning stages for several years, was to have been the tallest building in Ireland. The Dublin Docklands Development Authority has said they are still committed to the project and are just putting it on hold until monetary conditions improve. The tower was supposed to have a recording studio for U2 at the top of the building as well as 180 apartments priced at over one million euros each, a price that now seems unreasonable as Ireland faces recession.

Here's a sign of a slumping real estate market, even historic castles in Ireland are getting the price chop. A listing for Kinnitty Castle in Offaly, Ireland touts its $9 million price cut. The castle's historic roots date back to the 10th century. it is located on an ancient druidic ceremonial ground and the castle went through several different building stages. It was burned down in 1922 but rebuilt in 1928. It was sold to The State in 1951 but then the Ryan family bought it in 1994 and turned it into a hotel. Kinnitty Castle has been restored with three reception rooms, grand drawing room, large library and 37 bedrooms. It has been used for weddings and events (over 1400 couples have married here in the past 14 years) but could also be converted back into a private residence. It is being sold fully furnished. The 61 acre grounds include gardens, stables, paddocks forests and a river. Yours for $18 million.

The global economic crisis may be troubling minds everywhere but those attending the Luxury Collection exhibition this weekend at the K Club in County Kildare, Ireland might do best to put it out of their minds for at least a little while. From now until Sunday, the golf resort will be home to a variety of luxury exhibits including the first Bugatti Veyron on show in Ireland. Art experts from Sotheby's will value paintings, international property developers will be showcasing the latest villas and vacation spots and a collection of 1920s and 1930s vintage jewels will be displayed. The K Club website has a full list of the events planned.

[via Herald.ie]

Inspired by the beautiful rolling hills and heritage of Ireland, John Christopher Condron has created the John Christopher collection of luxury jewelry. Based in Dublin Ireland, Condron has been working with jewelry since he was just out of high school. His tastes lean towards strong lines that keep things simple and classic with lots of sparkling diamonds set in shiny golds and silvers. The Irish influences can be seen in the most subtle of places -- for example the gold brush stroke appearance of the "New Aristocrats" pieces represents furrows found in fields in the Irish countryside. They're fairly hefty looking designs that appear fashionable without being terribly trendy or looking too hard to 'make a statement.'

Do you think a serious art collector would recognize the work of Damien Hirst if it was presented, unsigned and anonymous, at an art auction? Apparently, at least one would. Film producer Allan Maloney managed to snap up Hirst's Spin for a mere £200 at an anonymous auction at the Flatlake Arts and Literary Festival in Ireland.

Festival organizer Kevin Allen came up with the idea of offering up Hirst's painting of concentric circles alongside 41 other anonymous works. In attendance were some of Ireland's most prestigious art dealers and media types - they knew there was a Hirst on the block, but didn't know which one it was. The other pieces were deliberately misleading, painted in Hirst's style. In trying to guess which one was 'the one', buyers paid up to £5,000 for works they mistook as being Hirst's, including a sculpture entitled Two Rats in a Drainpipe, made by some A-level students in London.

Hirst donated the painting, which he created for his 'Spin' series, hoping it would go to someone who really liked it. I wonder how he feels about the fact that Maloney immediately offered up the painting for auction again, selling it for £95,000 to Irish gallery owner Kevin Spillane.

The next Capella resort is set to open next week in Ireland. Capella Castlemartyr is a 17th Century country manor house set on 220 acres that include the ruins of a thousand-year-old castle. There are 109 guest rooms and suites ranging from 500 to 3,000 square feet with the largest being a two-bedroom Presidential Suite. Amenties include the two handsome Irish Setters who love to go for walks, a bar with a fireplace and a grand piano, a fine dining room and an Auriga spa that includes ten treatment rooms, an ozone-treated swimming pool and a Pilates studio. The first nine holes of the 18-hole links-style gofl course will be open this month with the remaining nine set to be completed next spring. Rates start at 425 euros a night.

The first Capella resort opened in Austria several months ago.

I've been following the development of "The World," Nakheel's Earth-shaped development in Dubai for a few years. The ambitious project to create islands representing the land masses of the world off the coast of Dubai has been steadily proceeding. Now comes the news that Nakheel has sold the island of Ireland to an Irish business consortium. Ireland sold for AED 142 million (around $38 million). The consortium will turn the island into "Ireland in the Sun" a resort with homes, restaurants and leisure opportunities with an Irish theme. Sometimes this whole project seems like a huge and luxurious version of Epcot Center.

Now that the world is reaching completion, interest in the project seems to be accelerating. Several celebrities have been rumored to have bought in to the project and last fall, race car driver Michael Schumacher was gifted with his own island. The islands are 92% reclaimed and construction should finish up by the end of 2008.

Windsor House in Belfast, Ireland isn't the prettiest building I have ever seen but it is, for now, the tallest building in Ireland. It will also now be home to luxury apartments. Building company P Elliott, has bought Belfast's Windsor House for around 44 million euros with the plan to turn it into fancy apartments. The building has a prime location in the city business district. Both Dublin and Ireland are becoming home to more and more high-rise complexes and costs have soared in both cities.

The band U2 is behind a plan to build the tallest tower in Ireland. The Irish Times reports that the plans for the U2 Tower on Dublin's south Docklands has been lodged with the Dublin Docklands Development Authority. The twisting tower will be 130 meters (427 feet) tall and will be topped by a recording suite for U2 in a penthouse to replace U2's existing studios which are set to be demolished. The project is expected to be completed in the next couple of years and will contain 182 one, two and three bedroom apartments which should sell at prices starting around 1 million euros. The tower twists as it rises so that the last floor is rotated 45 degrees from the first floor. The project has been the source of some controversy and the project has been repeatedly delayed but hopefully it will proceed as planned now.

Last time we followed Michael Jackson around he was traveling around Dubai and Bahrain. Now it is being reported that he has been enjoying a different landscape entirely, he has been holed up at Luggala Castle. The seven-bedroom castle has been the setting for many films. Michael Jackson has been spendhappy as usual. The beautiful Irish home costs 30,000 euros a week to rent and Jackson has already been there several months.