There are just so many nice prints in the Keep Calm Gallery that I want them all. The problem is the American dollar is garbage right now compared to the pound. So if you happen to be one of the lucky few in the UK or Europe you might want to drop in and pick up something for your wall.
Image Savant is a fine art studio in Hollywood, California run by Richard Bailey. Bailey’s primary focus is digital FX animation however he makes time for side projects like SPORE. SPORE is “an ongoing software/aesthetic development project that has grown out of a proprietary ultra-high speed particle renderer which runs on Irix, Linux, and OSX. All the images on page 1 and 2 are stills from animations, and some of these stills are constructed with over 1 billion particles.”
SPORE has been used not just to created the interesting images on the site but also to generate imagery and effects in several major motion pictures. It’s an interesting idea and some really stunning images have resulted from the effort.
I received an email from Format Mag today stating that they have just released over 70 new wallpapers with the Sneaker Wallpapers II Collection and the Issue 40 Anniversary Collection. The Issue 40 collection includes pieces by 123 Klan, Bigfoot, Cole Gerst, Jeremyville, MCA, MWM Graphics, Quickhoney, and many more.
Each wallpaper is available in 1600×1200, 1280×1024, and 800×600. These recent additions bring the total count of sneaker and artist wallpapers at Format to over 150.
Wow, I stumbled across this comic today and it basically sums up my opinion of why I felt like a lot of the guys I grew up with in middle America felt like they had to own the biggest SUV on the block. Not necessarily design, art or politics related but I would still file this one under art.
Simply gorgeous sculptural work by the french artist Xavier Veilhan.
Discovered via The Strange Attractor.
Todd from Joyengine sent me a note about this today and asked if I would do a little write up about it, so here it is. I was really impressed with the conceptual nature of some of the work and really like that it is something very different and contemporary. It is also nice that it can be seen right here in Denver.
So without further ado, here is the press copy:
“Artyard Contemporary Sculpture presents an exhibition of a new body of work by Colorado artist Joseph Shaeffer in an exhibition titled, CONFRONT(A)VOID. This is Shaeffer’s 3rd solo exhibition at Artyard. A reception, with the artist in attendance, will be held on Friday, May 23rd, 2008, from 6 -9 p.m.. This exhibition continues through June 29th, 2008. Artyard Contemporary Sculpture is open Thursday through Saturday from 1:30 to 5:30 p.m., and by appointment.
For more information visit Artyard online at www.artyardgallery.com or call (303)777-3219. Artyard Contemporary Sculpture is located at 1251 South Pearl Street minutes from downtown Denver”
Unfortunately I am flying out of the country this weekend so I won’t be able to attend but if you are in the city, please do stop by and check it out. It looks like it will be an interesting show.
I have always admired the work of Tiffany Bozic. She is just an enormously talented artist and her paintings extend beyond the low brow scene by having a real mass appeal. Her dream-like images often take parts from nature combining them into surreal landscapes. All her work is stunningly detailed and invokes deep feelings and memories in the viewer.As a person she is incredibly humble and sweet. She has a show coming up the weekend of May 24 at the Kinsey/DesForges (formerly the Black Market) Gallery in Culver City (Los Angeles), California.
Here is a quote about the upcoming exhibit:
“In this latest series, she applies her trademark stains of acrylic washes to the natural grain of maple panel to render resonant stories based on observations in her travels and research while an artist-in-residence at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, where she helped establish the residency program in 2007.”
Tod Bell put together a short film highlighting Tiffany’s process and I have posted it above to give a little added insight into her work and personality. You can also see more of Tiffany’s work at her personal website. You can see work prior to her upcoming show there to get an idea of what she is capable of.
I really wish I could be in LA to see the show. I really want to see her work in person and I would very much like to meet her. If you are in the neighborhood I highly recommend going. I am sure it will not disappoint.
There is a long list, literally, of interesting work and projects at Bruster Special from the mind of Uraguan artist Martin Albornoz. It’s a little tedious having to click every single link and then click the back button to go back to the list, but there is some good stuff on display if you have the time and patience.
Link discovered at The Strange Attractor
This video really blew my mind, literally right out of the back of my head. Muto is the creation of Blu Blu in Buenos Aires, Argentina. You can see more of Blu Blu’s work at their website. You can also keep track of them at their blog.
Bizarre but fascinating artwork from Erica Ilcane. There isn’t much more that can be said.
Josef Lee is a designer / animator / illustrator from Singapore. At his website Museum of Modern Fiction he has been creating a series of what he calls ‘bedtime stories for adults’. They are very clever and have some really nice illustrations to accompany them.
You can read his first story, a modern retelling of Adam, Eve and the Apple with a supporting role by Steve Jobs here.
He also has a nice love story between a giant monster and lady liberty, minus the citywide destruction here.
Laslty, he has a modern and strange Japanese folktale about a half-fish, half-human boy named Yutaro here.
They are really neat little stories and I haven’t seen many other artists do anything like this on their blog before. A nice whimsical little way to kill a few minutes on a Friday afternoon.
Well, I had known about this before it even happened and I apologize for not writing about this earlier. Banksy held a one-of-a-kind show this week simply titled, ‘Cans Festival’ (a word play on the Cannes film festival). He invited more than 3 dozen international artists but also encouraged visitors to contribute their own grafitti starting Saturday. The festival was held in an apparently rarely used South London tunnel. Banksy told the Times of London, “I’m hoping we can transform a dark forgotten filth pit into an oasis of beautiful art – in a dark forgotten filth pit.”
The interesting thing to note here as it is a sharp turn in the career of the outlaw artist is that the show was approved and facilitated by Eurostar. Eurostart manages tunnel as it lies under an old train platform belonging to them at Waterloo Station. It’s an interesting development for Banksy as he has in the past been considered a wanted man by London authorities. It begs the question also as to whether or not he has unofficially been adopted into the mainstream. I am hoping not because it always seems like you can apply an expiration date to an artist once they reach that critical mass. I think Banksy is a true innovator though and I can easily imagine him reinventing himself, maybe even in another medium, under another name where he will no doubt burn another new and amazing trail.
Pictures from the show:
At Flickr
At Notcot
At the Pinewood Design Blog
News of the show:
At The International Herald Tribune
Video of the setup:
At Youtube
Depthcore released their 33rd themed exhibition, titled ‘Requiem’ today. Kervin Brisseaux is spotlighted in this issue as ‘Requiem’s’ featured artist. The site itself has also been updated, removing the community elements to place a stronger emphasis on the artists featured on the site along with their work. I wonder if this is early positioning for Depthcore to become a talent agency for these artists as they appear to have the market cornered for the kind of style that the work for Depthcore embodies. It’s just a speculation on my part, take no real stock in it but it could be a possibility.
You can see all the art for Requiem right here.
Sarah Spitler is an abstract painter with an interesting technique.
Here is her artist’s statement from her website:
“I am concerned with layering the systems and structures of our physical world against those elements more ephemeral in their nature. Form, for me, relates to the structure and specificity of geography. Geographical form, such as the pattern of land against bodies of water, is seemingly arbitrary; however, it is contingent upon an infinite number of determinates: the system of erosion as influenced by temperature, the molecular structure of water, the vicinity of cities and infrastructure, jet streams and currents, geological and soil composition, the species of surrounding foliage, continental plate construction, etc . . . Contingencies influence the physical aspects of our world; the layering of imagery is also about contingency because, as in science, they force us to make connections between two ( perhaps ostensibly disparate ) elements.
Chaos manifests itself alongside form in my work. Chaos is powerful in that it is beyond human control; specifically, it interests me in depiction as catastrophe – as the uncontrollable and random force of natural cataclysms. I enjoy the emergence of fragments of imagery in relation to a destructive force – they become reduced and ephemeral, they are representative of the momentary and transient. However, according to the scientific study of chaos, it is the minute and transient that manifest as larger factors, further down in the equation, in the study of matter.“
The Kaibo Zonshinzu Anatomy Scrolls were painted in 1819 by a Kyoto-area physician by the name of Yasukazu Minagaki (1784-1825). They have been heralded by Japan’s Ministry of Culture as evidence of the level of knowledge reached by medical science in the Edo period. The bodies used for the purpose of examination usually belonged to heinous criminals executed by decapitation. The pronounced differentiation of the illustrations when compared to European anatomical drawings from the same period is the total absence of romanticism whereas blood and other fluid are shown leaking from faces writhing is painful expressions.
The Keio University Library is currently storing the scrolls which contain 83 illustrations documenting over 40 bodies. The scrolls are regarded as the best collection of 19 century Japanese anatomical drawings ever found.
I have always been fascinated by the divide between Western and Eastern (Asian) art and these drawings only deepened my interest. You can read more about them and see several more illustrations at The Pink Tentacle.
Robert Lindstrom of Design Chapel has updated his Blau Gallery website with new prints and a new layout. You can find large canvas prints of his work, Jon Burgerman, and a few others. I have always liked Burgerman’s doodles. They look attractive on canvas. The prints run at 800 euros however. I like to be paid for my work as well but I think that is just a little steep. I know I could never afford it.
Kathleen Lolley has created some interesting artwork in her day. It’s whimsical with a touch of dark.
Here is her bio copied from her website:
“Kathleen Lolley (born 1978 in Marshfield, Wisconsin) moved to Kentucky nine months after her birth. She spent her childhood split between Louisville, KY and Pittsburgh, PA.
She attended California Institute of the Arts and received a BFA in experimental Animation. While at Calarts she experimented with hand-crafted stop motion puppets. This experience introduced her to the world of comics and sequential art. In addition to working on various commercial animations, including Nickelodeon’s Sponge Bob Squarepants and titles for the movie Willard, Kathleen has created a handful of short films.
After spending six years in Los Angeles, she moved back to Kentucky to concentrate on painting and living a simple life. Storytelling still plays a prominent role in her work. Critters try to break the spell of day to day heartbreak. Rabbits flee from hunters, girls are lost in the woods. Giant elk stumble over towns clasping bottles, is it a remedy they hold or just a beer?
Her work can be found in small shops and galleries across the U.S. Last year her work received international recognition by appearing in Elle & Japanese Vogue and appearing on the latest album cover of My Morning Jacket. Also she has been published in a few comic anthologies (Unicorn Mountain) Lolley currently resides in Kentucky where she spends her time making crafts, comics and fine art.”
Normal Natural comprises the work, autobiographical recollections and premonitions of Lance Sells’s conscious and subconscious life. His work has been online for a long time now and has received many accolades over the years. Out of highschool, Sells worked a stint as a comic book illustrator for Image Comics. Since then he has worked in the creation of CGI, storyboards and graphic design for clients such as MTV, Sony and American Express. He also co-founded Motherland in New York city where he now splits his time as Creative Director with his personal work at Normal Natural. He just updated his site and there is now a pretty large archive of his work on display for your creative inspiration.
