“A good cigar is the essence of life.” — Zino Davidoff
This line captures not just a sentiment about premium cigars, but a deeper lifestyle ethos — one that resonates with collectors, connoisseurs, and anyone who sees enjoyment and craftsmanship as inseparable.
Michael John Valentine’s Davidoff Cigar and Grey Goose Flying Martini Wall Art isn’t just a visual composition — it’s a curated symphony of refined lifestyle, indulgence, and elevated taste. This piece transcends mere representation and becomes a billboard for an ethos: that the finer moments in life, the sensory pleasures we choose to savor, are as deserving of artistic celebration as any classic subject in the canon of fine art.
At its heart, this work places two sophisticated icons — a Davidoff cigar and a Grey Goose martini — into an arresting, almost surreal space of flight. They hover, unbound by gravity, inviting the viewer into a shared reverie. It is a visual metaphor for elevation not just of object, but of experience. This art does not ask “What do you see?” so much as “What do you feel when you breathe in the moment?”
Celebrating Elevation and Ritual
The Davidoff cigar — himself steeped in legacy and refinement — stands as a signal of connoisseurship. Zino Davidoff, founder of the brand itself, understood that a cigar is not simply an item but a philosophy of living slowly, richly, fully.
Across cultures and centuries, the ritual of the cigar has been an opportunity for pause — a space in time carved out of everyday rush. To light a cigar is to commit to a moment. The plumes of smoke chart the arc of that commitment, curling upward like quiet meditations. In this piece, the cigar hovers mid-air, a visual celebration of that suspended time, inviting the viewer to slow their own breath and enter an inner contemplation of life’s finer pleasures.
The Grey Goose Martini: Elegance in Motion
Paired here with the martini — specifically a Grey Goose martini — the visual language broadens from tradition to avant-garde leisure. A martini is itself a statement: precision, balance, clarity. Grey Goose, an emblem of elevated vodka craftsmanship, brings with it associations of European sophistication and refined social ritual.
The “flying martini” in the artwork does not simply pour or rest — it takes flight. This visual choice signals transformation, inviting a dreamlike state where tastes and sensations are liberated from gravity and convention. In doing so, Valentine has created more than a portrait of objects: he has crystallized sensations — the crisp herbed whisper of grey goose vodka, the cool embrace of a perfectly chilled glass, the briny hint of olive or twist — and allowed them to dance with the tactile richness of fine tobacco.
Craftsmanship as Metaphor
Both objects in the artwork are products of meticulous craftsmanship. Davidoff cigars are hand-made with premium tobaccos, and the brand has stood for world-class rolling and aging practices for decades. Their creation itself is an art form — growers, rollers, and blenders working in harmony to produce a sensory narrative within each stick. In a similar spirit, Grey Goose vodka is distilled from carefully selected French wheat and pristine spring water, then crafted through a process that emphasizes purity and smoothness.
Valentine’s canvas elevates these stories of craft into visual poetry. Every stroke, every compositional choice, resonates with the reverence due to such mastery. This is art in conversation with other forms of craft — a celebration of human hands, human intention, and human passion.
A Lifestyle Visualized
What Valentine has accomplished here is the visualization of a lifestyle — not generic leisure, but curated, selective, mindful pleasure. This artwork speaks to those who appreciate the ritual of a fine smoke paired with a perfect martini; who know that luxury is not about excess, but about discernment. In a world that often prioritizes haste and distraction, Valentine’s piece reminds us that true enjoyment is an act of presence.
There’s no rush in this scene. The objects hover in a space without tension, without the need for movement toward finish. They simply are — suspended in a moment of perfection. The viewer is invited to linger, to taste the imagined aroma of cedar and citrus, to feel the subtle juxtaposition of warmth and chill.
The Visual Conversation of Elements
Visually, the piece balances masculine and refined energies. The cigar — dark, earthy, textured — contrasts with the cool clarity of the martini glass. Together, they create a dynamic interplay of weight and lightness, density and transparency. This interplay isn’t simply aesthetic; it is philosophical. It suggests that indulgence is not a single note, but a chord — complex, blended, harmonious.
Valentine’s use of flight imagery further underscores liberation: these objects are not bound to a tabletop or lounge chair. They are free. And in this freedom, the artwork invites the viewer not only to admire but to imagine — to mentally inhabit the scene and feel their own gaze lift with the objects as if into an elevated state of mind.
Legacy Meets Contemporary Expression
In choosing these two iconic elements, Valentine places his work within a lineage of contemporary pop-culture sophistication — yet his technique and composition transcend mere homage. This is art that lives in the space between nostalgia and futurism: a cigar from a past century paired with a timeless cocktail that defies eras; a moment of stillness cast outward in a visual metaphor of flight.
For collectors, this piece becomes a trophy of discerning taste. It is not merely decorative; it is declarative. It asserts a worldview — that life’s greatest pleasures deserve reverent attention and artistic commemoration.
The Exhibition Canvas comes in 3 sizes and goes through several steps that include overpainting with acrylics, signing with acrylics on the front and a final glazing to protect the canvas before being rolled in a sealed tube then a box ( shipping is free in the USA )
The Matted Prints come in 3 sizes and are shipped in a box. ( shipping and handling is free in the US)
The Glossy Poster Print measures 16 x 24 and arrives in a sealed tube that is placed in a box. ( shipping is free in the US )
The 4 Inch Round Peel And Stick Decal is perfect for many applications beyond cars and comes in a sealed envelope ( shipped for free )
