While I was familiar with Jenny Holzer truisms (on shirts and plaques etc), I had never seen her Projections series until this weekend. It really strikes a chord with me – poignant words cast out onto jagged urban landscapes.
Florence, Berlin, NYC. Places like these. So beautiful…
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Katie Turner is an illustrator living in Brooklyn, New York. She draws loads of fun, brightly hued pictures of people telling ghost stories and cute boys.
There’s also a lot of great hand crafted type in her portfolio, viz:
This however, is my favourite piece:
YES. Right? How did she know that’s what floats my boat? (Although if we’re going to get a little more specific, I like 80′s horror movies.)
If these made you giggle, check out Katies’s website and her blog for more delightful illustrations.
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For the last three years or so, the fashion world has been braid crazy. Now, plaits have just gotten even wilder, with this concept from French hair stylists Studio Marisol, in conjunction with the Spanish creative agency CuldeSac.
Hair bonnets, obviously the next step up from Lady Gaga’s hair bows. I like them a lot! The images are part of a promotion for ‘Crazy Hair’, a styling workshop to be held at Domaine de Boisbuchet in August.
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All that glitters is not superficial. Last week with Laza, post ramen feast, I checked out Dear Beauty, Dear Beast; Reuben Paterson’s recent exhibition at Auckland’s Gow Langsford gallery.
The series began for Paterson as a reaction to New Zealand’s provocation debate. In the way that previous bodies of work have honoured his whakapapa and found basis in the emotional responses to his genealogy, Paterson views these works, in part, as a personal homage to the victims of murder cases which have successfully used the provocation or “gay panic” defence. The work suggests that in the same way that we have an underlying culture of racism, there is also an underlying culture of homophobia.
The result is a series of strong images representing a weak outcome for victims and their families. In person the works are dazzling – and had a depth that in no way can be replicated through a photograph. Paterson commissioned custom glitter colours for each individual piece of work in the exhibition. In an interview with Radio New Zealand he said: “Although the imagery may be familiar, you’ll probably never see it again because these colours will never be manufactured again.”
Reuben Paterson
b.1973, Auckland (Ngati Rangitihi and Ngai Tuhoe)
Lives and works in Auckland
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‘Box Of Birds’ is the name of Seed Gallery’s latest exhibition. They’re releasing a new range of greeting cards featuring prints by some of their favourite artists and to celebrate they’re dedicating the gallery to both the cards and the originals.
The gorgeous work below is by artists John Pusateri (I have some of his birdy etchings hanging in my home), Annie Sandano and Aroha Lewin.
The gallery show is on till March 28, 2010, but the cards will be available to snap up beyond that. I can’t wait to go buy some… one can never have too many beautiful blank cards.
My pick of the lot? Annie Sandano’s Wise Owl. Naturally.
Seed Gallery, 23A Crowhurst Street, Newmarket, Auckland.
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Nicolas Henry is a filmmaker, photographer and artist. Usually based in Paris/Marseilles, he is currently working on a major photographic series – Les Cabanes de nos Grands Parents. This has seen him traverse the world from Marrakech to Moscow, meeting and engaging with all sorts of grandparents.
Henry travels to the home of each of his subjects (he says a friendship is sealed when you visit a home) and invites them to make a hut or play-space with their personal belongings. Inspired by their childhoods, the resulting huts are intimate glimpses into their strikingly rich and diverse lives.
If you can read French (or use a translation tool) you should visit Henry’s site and read why each space is a a reflection of their imagination. I always appreciate it when older people have the chance to share their stories, their loves, their dreams.
Delightfully, Henry had the good fortune to meet and photograph my wonderful grandmother in New Zealand. As I understand it they met while she was volunteering at the local visitors centre of her seaside village.
Here she is in her much beloved but wild sub-tropical garden – click for a larger view. The picture above Betty’s head is one of her crocheted woolen blankets and a portrait of her as a young girl. Note the teaspoon collection in the back! I love this photograph so much.
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The number one reason for our Wellington visit (I use the word ‘our’ but in reality I was gatecrashing my friends’ holiday) was to go see the Yayoi Kusama: Mirrored Years exhibition at the City Gallery.
To celebrate the exhibition, they kitted the entire gallery exterior out in polka dots!
Yayoi Kusama is an avant-garde Japanese sculptor, painter and novelist.; her work concerns many themes, but is usually expressed through the polka dot and infinity net motifs that are her trademarks. Kusama started painting dots at a young age, after suffering ‘hallucinations’.
In her twenties, Kusama moved to New York and nurtured her talents further, gaining recognition for her large scale works, working in the same sphere as Warhol and other notables. In 1973 she returned to Japan and produced several novels and anthologies while continuing to create art.
Today, Kusama’s trippy paintings, tentacle like sculptures, performance art and installations have attracted a cult following around the world, and she has found acclaim as one of the world’s most important living artists.
The Mirrored Years exhibition is on in Wellington till February 10, so if you’re anywhere in the region and you haven’t scoped it out yet, you simply must! It’s simply dotty, mind boggling and a lot of fun to be immersed in.
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I’ve had various drafts on the work of Roger Dean sitting in my to edit folder on my computer for years. He has been one of my favourite artists since my Dad first introduced me to his work as a kid. Not only is Dean a prolific fantasy style painter/illustrator, he is a champion of eco-architecture. This guy has imagination A+ when it comes to creating new worlds!
Here in an assortment of Dean works I really like, starting with his 1989 cover design for the Amiga game Shadow Of The Beast:
An illustrated logo for Virgin Records:
If you like any of these pieces, be sure to check out Dean’s 1975 book Views. It’s heavy, the size of an LP and a intriguing mix of design concepts and finished artwork. I treasure my copy and think it’s worth tracking one down for a look.
Finally, look at these Dean illustrations – his ‘Floating Islands’ and dragons:
If you’ve seen Avatar, these might look familiar. People the world over are speculating that James Cameron took more than a little inspiration from Roger Dean’s fantastic work. I for one enjoyed seeing them come to life!
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Guido Mocafino is a photographer for the likes of Wallpaper during the day. By night he gets down with the creepy crawlies. His photography series and book, Serpens, is a look at the most dangerous and beautiful reptiles around – SNAKES.
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Hot art tip from my mum, who got back from Sydney last night – “This is the sort of weird thing you’d really like!”
She found a plethora of brightly coloured bird cages strung across one of Sydney’s lanes (Angel Place). There were lots of birds calling, but none visible to the eye! In fact, these were the sounds of Sydney’s lost birds, those that inhabited the area before alleyways replaced trees.
The project is Forgotten Sounds – part of the By George! Hidden Networks 2009 program. I love this idea! Especially the fact that during the evening you only hear nocturnal chirps. You can see more pictures here.
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{From End Of March‘s gorgeous Book of Ships}
Narwhals, the unicorns of the sea! I like their cute little horned faces so much I got one on my arm. Crappy picture, but this little beast is an absolute work of art. Exquisite. I am so happy to have him on my left arm.
I wasn’t planning a tattoo, but you know, it was rainy and I didn’t want to go to yet another film (three in three days). Tattoos are generally indoor activities, right? So yeah, NARWHAL!
[Super big thanks to Mike Lucena from Flyrite Tattoo in Brooklyn. What a pro.]
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At first I wanted these two Japanese jazz albums based on the track listings, but after seeing the cover artwork, I’m coveting the entire package.
Simple use of block colour, bold lines and a cute play on the theme all adds up to some pretty striking illustrations. Definitely worthy of framing. Have you seen any great record covers lately?
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Monday, August 17, 2009 – m4w – (greenpoint)
asked myself why the letter ‘n’ all night long, then you were gone before i got a chance to ask. also, i saved you a piece of cake. do you always sit in a circle of asian girls? and sit at the top of the stairs so everyone gets a crush on you when they get to the roof?
So many questions -will they be answered? Will the sweet scrabble gal get in touch after reading this missed New York connection? Will the buds of attraction blossom into love? No matter, Brooklyn illustrator Sophie Blackall has given life to the sentiment at least. She takes fascinating missed connections and immortalizes the words in a very clever drawing. Once she’s done, she posts her illustrations on her blog. The results are so precious and heart melting.
The NYTimes have published a great piece on Sophie, where she details how and why she started drawing these beautiful, fleeting moments. “These illustrations have recurring themes of love, loss, regret and hope. Even the most grim postings have this little kernel of unflagging hope which is just so lovely and optimistic. I think that is what appeals to other people, too,” she said.
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I’ve noticed a lot of cute projects using maps recently. Is it a trend or am I merely a travel bug obsessed with navigation? I think it might just be the former. Funnily enough I have my own map project in the works.
Anyway, here are my picks of the neatest accessories and art to get lost with:
Olivia makes stylish framed maps and thoughts… perfect whether you are near home or abroad! Are those map envelopes in the corner too?
With a wee purse from Map 29 you’ll always be able to get your bearings: “Map 29 was born when looking for a quirky, one off gift to give a friend in memory of our childhood friendship and where we lived. She loved it and told her friends who told theirs…”
Elisabeth Lecourt is the artist behind these exquisite map garments. As described by others already, they would look amazing hanging on a wall; perhaps above a travel-fashion-design writer’s desk?
Shannon Rankin/Selflesh also makes artworks out of maps. I’ve interpreted the selections above as a message that travel opens your mind, eyes, heart. Personal discovery stems from external exploration? Yes.
“I bought this at the Aotea Square market yonks ago… It’s still alive despite my thrashing. The screen print is of Auckland CBD street map.”
Making this post reminded me of my my old map bag! Do you already own something cartograpy inspired, too?
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Hello! My name is Amber Parkin. I'm a New Zealander living in London. I'm a writer obsessed with fondue, chesterfield sofas, vintage dresses, foxes, and 35mm.
Here I like to talk about fashion, design, food, travel, writing & books, and culture. Everything else (including my photography) goes into my digital notebook.
If you'd like to email me the address is amber@codeforsomething.com
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