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Louise Despont was born in 1983 in New York; she lives and works in New York and in Bali, Indonesia. Since discovering the potential of working with pencil and architectural stencils on paper, Despont has adopted an intuitive process in which she allows her drawings to develop as she creates them, resulting in an almost devotional object comprised of dense colors and shapes.

Preferring to draw on ledger paper with preexisting lines, Despont sees a parallel between the mathematical accounting the paper was designed to organize and the way that her practice is an accounting of her time spent. Even when Despont creates large-scale installations-such as for her 2016 solo exhibition at the Drawing Center, New York-her practice remains personally labor intensive. Having collected images for many years, Despont complements her broad visual references with her interest in energy and spirituality.

Links:
Artist's website
@louisedespont on Instagram

Artwork Survey

46 Images

Artist at Work

12 Images

Art21 is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization; all donations are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law.

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Art21 is a celebrated global leader in presenting thought-provoking and sophisticated content about contemporary art, and the go-to place to learn first-hand from the artists of our time. A nonprofit organization, Art21's mission is to inspire a more creative world through the works and words of contemporary artists.

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Swiss artist Clio Newton has been hard at work on a series of larger-than-life portraits of women portrayed entirely with compressed charcoal. The towering drawings can reach nearly 8 feet tall and capture near photographic detail of her subject's faces, hair, and bodies. Several of the new portraits will be on view in an upcoming show at Benjamin Eck Galerie in Munich titled ' Realism' that opens September 14, 2017. You can read an interview with Newton on Quiet Lunch and see more of her recent work and studio photos on Instagram. (via Supersonic Electronic, Gaks Designs)

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Towering Charcoal Portraits of Women by Clio Newton

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Swiss artist Clio Newton has been hard at work on a series of larger-than-life portraits of women portrayed entirely with compressed charcoal. The towering drawings can reach nearly 8 feet tall and capture near photographic detail of her subject's faces, hair, and bodies. Several of the new portrait

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© 2019 Heather Hansen. All rights reserved. Any reproduction, downloading or commercial use of any text, still or video imagery or other artistic elements featured on this website is strictly prohibited and may not occur without the prior written permission of artist.

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Heather Hansen is a performative and visual artist currently based in Los Angeles. Originally from Idaho, Hansen studied dance and theater design at Evergreen State before moving to Tokyo to work with butoh dancer, Kazuo Ohno. She works in many mediums, including painting, sculpture, installations a

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Ben Heine Content Creation: Marketing, Art, Drawing, Photography, Painting, Video Creation

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Pencil Vs Camera is an original visual concept mixing drawing and photo invented and popularized by Ben Heine since April 2010. A new art form and the artist's special trademark, it is also one of the most creative and powerful art concepts of the 21st century. Heine does not recreate photographs, but he reimagines them. In these images, he likes to tell a story and convey timeless messages using imagination, illusion, poetry and surrealism. His work is powered by a fearless positivity. An already beautiful-looking photo is enhanced with a sketch that adds a splash of satire and whimsy. The Pencil Vs Camera concept has also become popular in schools worldwide. Buy prints.

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Pencil Vs Camera - Drawing Vs Photography - Fiction Vs Reality

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Pencil Vs Camera is an original visual concept invented and popularized by Ben Heine since April 2010. A new art form and the artist's special trademark, it is also one of the most creative and powerful art concepts of the 21st century. The concept has also become popular in schools worldwide.

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I have been working in conceptual illustration since 1996 and in this time I have worked on a wide variety of publications, ie business, financial, medical, lifestyle and corporate. The work on this page is a selection of my work to showcase my style's potential. If you would like to see commissioned work please click here

Illustration about phishing scams

Editorial illustration about how a career can seem like it's going nowhere.

Illustration about failing career goals

This is about consumerism hindering the fight against climate change

This self promotional piece is about the rising cost of pharmaceuticals

This illustration is about how healthcare is trying to cut the amount of bureaucracy to free up time for patient care.

This illustration is about how common identity theft has become and hackers are finding a way in via public wifi spots.

Conceptual illustration about how having no self belief or confidence can hold you back from being your true self.

Illustration about how some social media pages can have a negative influence on teenagers' self esteem, giving them a false impression of what is normal in body shape. Reports say that this can lead to depression, anxiety is some cases anorexia.

This is called 'Making Rainbows' and is about hope and optimism, making something good out of a bad situation. This is available as a signed limited edition print from etsy.com

This is about releasing anxiety in preparation for interviews. Available as a print at society6.com

About gender equality

Conceptual illustration about how we are stronger when we integrate all races, cultures and social backgrounds. Available as a print from society6.com

Children addicted to devices such as ipads, phones and computers. The squid tentacles are a metaphor for the child's fixation. This can be bought as a print from society6.com

About freedom of speech. This is available as a print on society6.com

Editorial illustration about science and innovation funding cuts

Editorial illustration about is about trust in business and not knowing who you're really dealing with

This illustration was done as a self promotional piece about bullying. In the picture you can see that the bully is powered by fear and attention.

The cost of smoking

This is based on families in the UK experiencing highs and lows as the economy goes through turbulence.

The monotony of working in the city. This can be bought as a signed print from etsy here

This can be bought as a print on society6.com

Happiness kit, the elements needed to build a happy life. This can be bought as a merchandise from society6 and as a signed print from etsy.com

The earth is slipping through our fingers. This illustration was to show how the earth is taken for granted and the beauty see now could be lost in the near future.

This can be bought as a merchandise from society6 and as a signed print from etsy.com

'Self leaves' is about people suffering from Alzheimers and dementia

About families coping with depression of a loved one.

Editorial illustration about how addictive 'likes' can be

Editorial illustration about how dispensable people are in the workplace in the 'gig economy'

Recovering from depression

Editorial illustration about financial gains from deforestation

Public service funding shortages.

Parents controlling their child's career path

Editorial illustration about 'pink tape' a new take on the glass ceiling. This can by bought as a signed print on etsy.com

Illustration about ocean plastic which you can buy as a signed print here

This is about fatigue during the middle ages. This can be bought as a print on society6.com

Illustration about turning austerity into prosperity

The little man not being heard

The financial pitfalls of being a home owner

Smart phone

Conceptual illustration about owning your own home

Internet troll. This can be bought as a signed print from etsy.com and as other merchandise for society6.com

Classic cars

About teenagers on device for long periods

Conceptual illustration about the daily commute

Conceptual illustration about how unpredictable people's mindsets can be.

Choosing a persona for the right situation

Porporate greed

Dispensable workforce

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Conceptual illustration created for self promotion and is uncommissioned.

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This page has a selection of my self promotional, conceptual illustration work that wasn't commissioned. My illustrative style can reflect the many kinds of publication. Whether it's finance, business, lifestyle or medical, my work can adapt to depending on requirement.

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UK-based illustrator Carne Griffiths creates these striking portraits with uncommon mediums such as tea brandy, vodka, whiskey, graphite and calligraphy ink. His drawings most frequently explore human and floral forms, as says he's "fascinated by the flow of line and the 'invisible lines' that connect us to the natural world." The four pieces above are part of a limited edition postcard set just released by Griffiths, each of which comes in a fancy custom-illustrated, wax-sealed envelope. He also has a solo show at Ink-d Gallery in Brighton that closes this Saturday. (via behance)

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!

© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Portraits Drawn with Tea, Vodka, Whiskey and Ink by Carne Griffiths

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UK-based illustrator Carne Griffiths creates these striking portraits with uncommon mediums such as tea brandy, vodka, whiskey, graphite and calligraphy ink. His drawings most frequently explore human and floral forms, as says he's "fascinated by the flow of line and the 'invisible lines' that conne

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Austria-based artist Stefan Zsaitsits creates large-scale graphite portraits of truly strange and wonderful characters whose bloated faces often transform into unexpected landscapes. Some of the artists earlier portraits from 2010-11 (not shown here) were collected into a book called Headsongs. See much more in his drawing and painting portfolios. If you liked this, also check out the work of Pat Perry.

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!

© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Headsongs: Graphite Portraits Morph into Landscapes

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Austria-based artist Stefan Zsaitsits creates large-scale graphite portraits of truly strange and wonderful characters whose bloated faces often transform into unexpected landscapes. Some of the artists earlier portraits from 2010-11 (not shown here) were collected into a book called Headsongs. See

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The Daily Monster - An archive of Stefan Bucher's Daily Monster drawing videos!

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Moscow-based illustrator Elena Limkina fills the pages of her sketchbooks with detailed Baroque-inspired drawings of architectural elements, anatomical studies, and flowing calligraphy. She refers to the books as her "artist's diary" and indeed each page is practically an artwork unto itself. Limkina works primarily as a watercolor artist and creates concepts for brands, interior designers, and magazines, but also sells prints in her online shop. You can follow more of her work on Instagram and Behance. (via My Modern Met, Lustik)

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!

© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Elegant Dip Pen Illustrations Inside the Sketchbooks of Elena Limkina

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Moscow-based illustrator Elena Limkina fills the pages of her sketchbooks with detailed Baroque-inspired drawings of architectural elements, anatomical studies, and flowing calligraphy. She refers to the books as her "artist's diary" and indeed each page is practically an artwork unto itself. Limkin

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In December of last year London-based artist Patrick Vale spent several weeks drawing this impressive pen and ink illustration of the New York skyline as viewed from the Rockefeller Center. Luckily he photographed almost every moment of the endeavor to make this timelapse where we see building after building materialize at the tip of his pen. The final piece titled Colossus is a triptych of three huge A1 sheets of paper that he scanned and turned into an even larger wallpaper. You might remember Vale from his 2012 drawing timelapse of Lower Manhattan.(via Highsnobiety)

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!

© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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A Timelapse of Illustrator Patrick Vale Drawing a Huge Pen & Ink View of the New York Skyline

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In December of last year London-based artist Patrick Vale spent several weeks drawing this impressive pen and ink illustration of the New York skyline as viewed from the Rockefeller Center. Luckily he photographed almost every moment of the endeavor to make this timelapse where we see building after

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Sigh... these lovely drawings make me exhale. Perfect for a Friday. This is the work of California based artist/illustrator Liana Jegers. I love her simple color palette, those lovely lines, and the subjects she chooses. Her portfolio if filled with gorgeous work, zines, client collaborations ... but these "farmers market" inspired pieces are my favorites. Here's to a weekend filled with fresh fruit and fragrant flowers. Exhale.

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The Jealous Curator /// curated contemporary art /// liana jegers

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Sigh... these lovely drawings make me exhale. Perfect for a Friday. This is the work of California based artist/illustrator Liana Jegers. I love her simple color palette, those lovely lines, and the subjects she chooses. Her portfolio if filled with gorgeous work, zines, client collaborations ...

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"Hand drawn artworks in pastel on cotton paper" ... um, WHAT? This is the absolutely exquisite work of UK based artist / illustrator Anna Roberts. Drawings. Not photographs. I'm not sure my mind can handle this loveliness on a Monday.
{Thanks to my friend Liezel, at Subject Matter Art, for sending me a link to Anna's site.}

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The Jealous Curator /// curated contemporary art /// anna roberts

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"Hand drawn artworks in pastel on cotton paper" ... um, WHAT? This is the absolutely exquisite work of UK based artist / illustrator Anna Roberts. Drawings. Not photographs. I'm not sure my mind can handle this loveliness on a Monday.

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Danish artist HuskMitNavn (which translates to "Remember My Name") is a painter, muralist, and compulsive doodler who creates clever three-dimensional drawings. The simple constructions are made from paper and pen, and depict cartoon characters in humorous situations like Mario avoiding an arsenal of tumbling barrels thrown by a looming Donkey Kong.

"It's a long (and ongoing) process coming up with the 3D drawings," HuskMitNavn tells Colossal. "I have been making so many drawing on flat paper my whole life and one day a few years ago I just started to experiment with the paper to see if could add another dimension to it. The idea is to make it very simple only using A4 size paper and a pen. No scissors or glue. I want everybody to join in and also try to 3D drawings at the kitchen table."

HuskMitNavn has an upcoming solo exhibition titled TEGN at Nikolaj Kunsthal in Copenhagen from August 29, 2018 through January 2019. You can a variety of the artist's cross-media work on his website and dozens more of his ripped drawings on Instagram.

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!

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Three-Dimensional Paper Doodles Created With Playful Folds and Rips by HuskMitNavn

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Danish artist HuskMitNavn (which translates to "Remember My Name") is a painter, muralist, and compulsive doodler who creates clever three-dimensional drawings. The simple constructions are made from paper and pen, and depict cartoon characters in humorous situations like Mario avoiding an arsenal o

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British artist Olivia Kemp ( previously) creates sprawling, large-scale ink drawings of real world landscapes that are built from photography, observational sketches, and her own memories of the visited destinations. Her two most recent works took a combined nine months to complete, and are pulled from her travels to Malta and Bavaria. Kemp's drawing "Ascending The High Pass" is inspired by Bavaria's castles, and is composed of towers, cliffs, and a winding train line that connects the city through a series of bridges and tunnels.

For her other recent piece, she focused more on the plant life of the location. "Unlike with the castles drawing, 'Melita, Maleth' was very much a response to selecting a random location and spending time there getting to know it," Kemp tells Colossal. "I was interested in going to Malta, but didn't have any particular drawing or architectural style or composition in mind before I went. I loved the variation of plant life on the island, and felt really strongly that the drawing needed to have a full and rich foreground, including all the flora that had most interested me."

Kemp will often create smaller drawing studies while on location, which she will then incorporate into her larger works. Both "Ascending The High Pass" and "Melita, Maleth" will be included in the group exhibition Early Modern Matters which opens on September 6 at James Freeman Gallery in London and closes September 29, 2018. You can see more of the artist's work on Instagram and Twitter.

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!

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New Sprawling Ink Drawings by Olivia Kemp Explore the Landscapes of Malta and Bavaria

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British artist Olivia Kemp (previously) creates sprawling, large-scale ink drawings of real world landscapes that are built from photography, observational sketches, and her own memories of the visited destinations. Her two most recent works took a combined nine months to complete, and are pulled fr

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In this painting, Kehinde Wiley boldly recasts Napoleon as a contemporary black warrior. In his reference to Jacques-Louis David's painting Napoleon Bonaparte Crossing the Alps at Great St. Bernard Pass, Wiley creates a tension with traditional art history and its neglect of black subjects. His portrait symbolically reassigns value to the sitter, asking us to recall remarkable black leaders such as Toussaint L'Ouverture from Haiti, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and Nelson Mandela, whose images appear far less frequently, if at all, in histories of art.

-Tumelo Mosaka, independent curator

Kehinde Wiley's series of reclining figures offers some of his most eroticized images. In many ways, this is a result of the tradition on which he has drawn. In those older works, the recumbent and vulnerable body was often used as a vehicle for the sensual. Take Femme piquée par un serpent, which refers to the scandal-inciting 1847 sculpture by Auguste Clésinger of a woman supposedly dying from a poisonous snakebite. The sculpture was highly praised for its sensual naturalism, but many viewers and critics wondered whether her voluptuous writhing was, in fact, evidence of her death.

Wiley adapted the famously contorted torso of Clésinger's female nude to show both the rear and front of his model: the viewer is confronted with both the alluring expanse of the white underwear and, at the same time, the searching face with open eyes and mouth. But the titanic recumbent figures in this series both incite and scoff at attempts to reduce them to mere erotic objects, and the vulnerability of their sources has been transmuted into confidence by a scale that is nothing less than heroic. -David J. Getsy, Goldabelle McComb Finn Distinguished Professor of Art History, School of the Art Institute of Chicago

Though Kehinde Wiley is best known for his painted portraits, here he shifts from painting to sculpture. In both the lift and turn of the young man's head and the open V of his zippered collar, this bronze refers to an eighteenth-century marble bust by Jean-Antoine Houdon.

Yet in many other ways, Wiley's work could hardly be more different: in substituting male for female, black for white, and present for past, he upends the earlier sculpture even as he quotes it. His radical reinterpretation encourages us to examine the stereotypes that can be found in portraiture. -Rujeko Hockley, Assistant Curator, Contemporary Art, Brooklyn Museum

Consider Kehinde Wiley and the model in the studio, poring over art history books together to choose an image that will serve as the source for a new painting, in which the model will replace some long-departed exemplar of European privilege and power. The model was previously unknown to the artist, but struck him-perhaps by the strong cut of his jaw, perhaps by his leonine confidence-as a fitting candidate for the elaborate and sophisticated impersonation in which he was hired to participate.The model, who remains unnamed, is from Harlem (New York City), as was the original subject, Willem van Heythuysen, a Dutch wool merchant from Haarlem (the Netherlands), whose portrait was painted by Frans Hals in 1625. As Hals's bravura portraits defined the Golden Age of Holland, Wiley's painting-at once parody and tribute-gives image to our own age's conflicted relationship to privilege, power, and the past.

-John B. Ravenal, Executive Director, DeCordova Sculpture Park and Museum, Lincoln, Massachusetts

February 20-May 24, 2015

The works presented in Kehinde Wiley: A New Republic raise questions about race, gender, and the politics of representation by portraying contemporary African American men and women using the conventions of traditional European portraiture. The exhibition includes an overview of the artist's prolific fourteen-year career and features sixty paintings and sculptures.

Wiley's signature portraits of everyday men and women riff on specific paintings by Old Masters, replacing the European aristocrats depicted in those paintings with contemporary black subjects, drawing attention to the absence of African Americans from historical and cultural narratives.

The subjects in Wiley's paintings often wear sneakers, hoodies, and baseball caps, gear associated with hip-hop culture, and are set against contrasting ornate decorative backgrounds that evoke earlier eras and a range of cultures.

Through the process of "street casting," Wiley invites individuals, often strangers he encounters on the street, to sit for portraits. In this collaborative process, the model chooses a reproduction of a painting from a book and reenacts the pose of the painting's figure. By inviting the subjects to select a work of art, Wiley gives them a measure of control over the way they're portrayed.

The exhibition includes a selection of Wiley's World Stage paintings, begun in 2006, in which he takes his street casting process to other countries, widening the scope of his collaboration.

Kehinde Wiley: A New Republic is organized by Eugenie Tsai, John and Barbara Vogelstein Curator of Contemporary Art, Brooklyn Museum. A fully illustrated catalogue published by the Brooklyn Museum and DelMonico Books * Prestel accompanies the exhibition.

In this painting, Kehinde Wiley boldly recasts Napoleon as a contemporary black warrior. In his reference to Jacques-Louis David's painting Napoleon Bonaparte Crossing the Alps at Great St. Bernard Pass, Wiley creates a tension with traditional art history and its neglect of black subjects. His portrait symbolically reassigns value to the sitter, asking us to recall remarkable black leaders such as Toussaint L'Ouverture from Haiti, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and Nelson Mandela, whose images appear far less frequently, if at all, in histories of art.

-Tumelo Mosaka, independent curator

Kehinde Wiley's series of reclining figures offers some of his most eroticized images. In many ways, this is a result of the tradition on which he has drawn. In those older works, the recumbent and vulnerable body was often used as a vehicle for the sensual. Take Femme piquée par un serpent, which refers to the scandal-inciting 1847 sculpture by Auguste Clésinger of a woman supposedly dying from a poisonous snakebite. The sculpture was highly praised for its sensual naturalism, but many viewers and critics wondered whether her voluptuous writhing was, in fact, evidence of her death.

Wiley adapted the famously contorted torso of Clésinger's female nude to show both the rear and front of his model: the viewer is confronted with both the alluring expanse of the white underwear and, at the same time, the searching face with open eyes and mouth. But the titanic recumbent figures in this series both incite and scoff at attempts to reduce them to mere erotic objects, and the vulnerability of their sources has been transmuted into confidence by a scale that is nothing less than heroic. -David J. Getsy, Goldabelle McComb Finn Distinguished Professor of Art History, School of the Art Institute of Chicago

Though Kehinde Wiley is best known for his painted portraits, here he shifts from painting to sculpture. In both the lift and turn of the young man's head and the open V of his zippered collar, this bronze refers to an eighteenth-century marble bust by Jean-Antoine Houdon.

Yet in many other ways, Wiley's work could hardly be more different: in substituting male for female, black for white, and present for past, he upends the earlier sculpture even as he quotes it. His radical reinterpretation encourages us to examine the stereotypes that can be found in portraiture. -Rujeko Hockley, Assistant Curator, Contemporary Art, Brooklyn Museum

Consider Kehinde Wiley and the model in the studio, poring over art history books together to choose an image that will serve as the source for a new painting, in which the model will replace some long-departed exemplar of European privilege and power. The model was previously unknown to the artist, but struck him-perhaps by the strong cut of his jaw, perhaps by his leonine confidence-as a fitting candidate for the elaborate and sophisticated impersonation in which he was hired to participate.The model, who remains unnamed, is from Harlem (New York City), as was the original subject, Willem van Heythuysen, a Dutch wool merchant from Haarlem (the Netherlands), whose portrait was painted by Frans Hals in 1625. As Hals's bravura portraits defined the Golden Age of Holland, Wiley's painting-at once parody and tribute-gives image to our own age's conflicted relationship to privilege, power, and the past.

-John B. Ravenal, Executive Director, DeCordova Sculpture Park and Museum, Lincoln, Massachusetts

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The Brooklyn Museum is an art museum located in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. At 560,000 square feet, the museum is New York City's second largest in physical size and holds an art collection with roughly 1.5 million works.

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I am excited to introduce you to a lovely Southern talent with a penchance for color like my own. I have a feeling you will be seeing loads more of Britt Bass in the future. I had the pleasure of viewing her work first hand yesterday at Gregg Irby Fine Art.

Athens, GA
What is your training?
I studied painting at UGA's Lamar Dodd School of Art and received my BFA in Art Educaiton with a specialty in Painting in May of 2011.

Pictures all by the talented Jen Siska for my shoot with Anthology Magazine last Summer.

What inspires you and your designs?

Almost everything! I gather inspiration from many places and try to fill up from multiple resources. In a broad sense I am truly inspired by daily life- I am surrounded by and take note of palettes, shapes, textures and compositions.

More specifically, I am inspired by flipping through art, design, and lifestyle books, magazines, and blogs (a few include: DeKooning, Amy Sillman, Basquiat, The Selby, New American Paintings, Art Forum, Anthology, Kinfolk, domino, Emily Henderson, Design Love Fest, Curate 1k, Wit & Delight, etc, etc!). We are part of generation rich with visual information.

Beautiful images are so easily accessible via social media- all I have to do is open up pinterest or instagram to feed my right brain and get pumped up to paint something pretty and exciting to add to the visual conversation.

What is your favorite piece?

What a hard question! I think it would have to be Warm Geos. I painted it last spring on a warm Saturday in March.
How has the your area influenced your work?
The South has a rich cultural history in the arts and Southerners take great pride our food, music, land, and story telling. My paintings tell a small part of this story of the South and I, too, take great pride in that!
What is your favorite restaurant in (your city)?
I'm half Athens, half Atlanta right now so I'll answer for both because my husband and I love to try new places! Ok, Athens I'd have to say Mamas Boy for Breakfast,

and the National for Lunch and Cocktails, Last Resort for Dinner and Desert.

For Atlanta, I love Antico, JCT Kitchen, and Empire State South!
What is your favorite cocktail?
My husband has me hooked on a good Old Fashioned- the best I've ever had was in Charleston at HUSK! I love anything whiskey or gin and most always try something new on the specialty list, but Horse's Neck

and Tom Collins are my go-tos.
How do you balance personal life and work?
I'm a work in progress in this area- it's so hard because painting is my personal life AND my work! The two so often intersect, but I am trying to be better about setting hours and drawing boundaries as life is getting busier. It is so important to me to keep my time with my husband and community sacred and not let work overflow. My amazing friend and business consultant, Shanna Skidmore, has been such a blessing in helping me with this!
Dream trip?
I have two right now. 1. I studied British Art and Architecture for a few semesters in college and I cannot wait to go one day and visit all the places I studied.

2. My grandmother is from Japan, I'd LOVE to go visit the motherland with her and my mom and eat as much sushi as I possibly can!
Dream commission?
Hm, I'd love to have my work hang in a boutique hotel like ACE

or Wythe.

I'd also love to be in an Emily Henderson styled room.
Your favorite host / hostess gift to give?
Las Rocas Garnacha wine, it's so good and doesn't break the bank- we always keep in stock to grab as we're walking out the door!
Who is your style icon?
Alexa Chung - she is so effortless but makes the basics look so good!

Oh and Olivia Palermo.

Your favorite up and coming artist?

I really love Lola Donaghue - and she has the best name!
What is your most treasured possession?
My engagement ring!
What are you reading?
The Chronicles of Narnia

and BossyPants.
What are you listening to? What are your favorite blogs / publications?
I accidentally answered this one above!

(a few include: DeKooning, Amy Sillman, Basquiat, The Selby, New American Paintings, Art Forum, Anthology, Kinfolk, domino, Emily Henderson, Design Love Fest, Curate 1k, Wit & Delight, etc, etc!).

We are part of generation rich with visual information.

Enjoy Britt's work:

This beauty came home with me from Atlanta yesterday.

All Above paintings are from Gregg Irby Fine Art in Atlanta. Do not hesitate to contact them with inquires.

Pop over to Britt's website for ultra fun iPhone cases, iPad cases, prints and more!

Follow BRITT BASS on her BLOG, TWITTER, PINTEREST, INSTAGRAM, and FACEBOOK too.

If you want more of my Artist Spotlight Series see them HERE. Thanks for indulging in my misguided musing and love of art.

Follow The English Room in Tumblr

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Artist Spotlight Series: Britt Bass Turner - The English Room

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I am excited to introduce you to a lovely Southern talent with a penchance for color like my own. I have a feeling you will be seeing loads more of Britt Bass in the future. I had the pleasure of viewing her work first hand yesterday at Gregg Irby Fine Art.

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ボリス文庫とは通常の出版商業ベースでは成り立たないものの、ヒグチ自身のセンスとこだわりで自費出版するために創設したブランドシリーズです。

その第一弾はヒグチ自身の著である「かえるのほん」です。文字のない絵本で編集・デザインは名久井直子氏です。現在三刷目のバージョンがボリス雑貨店にて発売中です。

以下の「詳細はこちら」リンク先にてご確認ください。

今回描き下ろされたシーンは、グザヴィエ・ドラン監督自らセレクトし、「このシーンを描いてほしい」とオーダーしたこだわりショットとのことです。

9月25日ロードショー、映画については以下の「詳細はこちら」リンク先にてご確認ください。

ヒグチユウコのガチャ第三段は看板マグネットです。

冷蔵庫など、磁石でくっつけることができます。また内蔵電池で看板にライトが灯ります。

商品はボリス雑貨店にて販売しています。

以下の「詳細はこちら」リンク先にてご確認ください。

森に関する文学のアンソロジー「森の文学館」に表紙画を提供しました。

ボリス雑貨店でご購入の場合は非売品ポストカード付き（カードの絵柄はランダム）です。

以下の「詳細はこちら」リンク先にてご確認ください。

令和2年6月2日（火曜）から7月11日（土曜）まで開催されていました。

※コロナの影響範囲が図りかねるため、一時期告知を控えておりましたが今後も状況を注視しつつリアルタイムでの告知を再開したいと思います。

ホルベイン様とのコラボ商品が今年も発売されます。クロッキーブックやマスキングテープなどの定番品のほか、角缶やロールふせん等多種多様な商品ラインナップとなっています。

販売商品や販売店舗については以下の「詳細はこちら」リンク先にてご確認ください。

GUCCIとのコラボレーション(チルドレンズコレクション)、ヒグチユウコ空想の世界

Gucciとコラボレーションしたチルドレンズコレクションが2020年4月8日から発売されています。

グッチとのコラボレーションは2018年春夏チルドレンズコレクション以来3度目となります。

以下の「詳細はこちら」リンク先にてご確認ください。

高知県立文学館にて2020.02.01 - 2020.03.29の期間で開催されました。

※コロナの影響範囲が図りかねるため、一時期告知を控えておりましたが今後も状況を注視しつつリアルタイムでの告知を再開したいと思います。

アリアスター監督作品「ミッドサマー」にアートポスターで企画で参加。

「ヘレディタリー　継承」のアリ・アスター監督作品「ミッドサマー」の公開を記念して、ヒグチが本作のアートワークを手掛けたデザイナーの大島依提亜氏とともに日本限定のアートポスター企画に参加しました。こちらは後日、日本国内で数量限定で販売され、また米国内のA24公式サイトにてスクリーンプリント版が数量限定で販売されました（どちらも現在は売切れ）。

ボリス雑貨店では、ミッドサマー UHD+Blu-ray豪華版3枚組（スチールブック仕様・初回生産限定版）の予約販売が行われており、購入特典として「ヒグチユウコアートビジュアル大判（B5)カード」がヒグチユウコ直筆サイン入りでついてきます。2020年9月9日に発売予定です。

詳細は以下「詳細はこちら」のリンク先からご確認ください。

サーカス展、三島市の佐野美術館で11月9日より開幕！

サーカス展が静岡県三島市にある、佐野美術館で開催されます。
開催期間は令和元年11月9日（土）～令和元年12月22日（日）で、休館日は木曜日です。

以下、開催概要。

前売券販売所（11月8日まで）：一般・大学生750円　 小･中･高校生400円
■セブン-イレブン／チケットぴあ各店（Pコード：769-917）
■ファミリーマート各店（CNプレイガイド[Famiポート]にて直接ご購入ください）

当日割引券発売所（展覧会会期中）：各1割引
■伊豆箱根鉄道駿豆線有人駅
■セブン-イレブン／チケットぴあ各店（Pコード：769-917）
■ファミリーマート各店（CNプレイガイド[Famiポート]にて直接ご購入ください）

※各施設の休業日にご注意ください。

通常料金 一般・大学生1,000円　小・中・高校生500円
※土曜日は小中学生無料
※15名以上の団体は各2割引
開館時間 10:00～17:00（入館の受付は16:30まで）
休 館 日 木曜日

ラブレター（スリーブケース入り小型詩画集）発売中。

ヒグチの新作は詩画集のようなA６サイズの小さな絵本です。

少女、猫、たまご、うさぎ、夢...。魅惑的で感情豊かな32枚の絵とことば。
スリーブケース入りの美しい装丁で、贈り物にもぴったりです。

ボリス雑貨店でのご予約の場合、特典として「ラブレター」用オリジナルラッピング資材を
同梱されます。お友達へのプレゼントなどにご利用ください。

以下の「詳細はこちら」リンク先にてご確認ください。

モスバーガーコラボ第二弾！(冷凍モスチキン対応可能)

ヒグチユウコ×モスバーガー第2弾登場です。
第2弾は、ヒグチユウコデザインのマグネットクリップと紙バッグが、ヒグチユウコオリジナルデザイン箱入りの「モスチキンパック（5本入り）」や「バラエティパック」とセットになったスペシャルパックです。
期間限定、数量限定、店舗限定とのことです。

また、チキンパックについては冷凍モスチキンでも対応できるとのことです。パックに脂汚れをつけたくない！という方はぜひご検討ください（念の為対応可能か店舗にご確認の上、お買い求めください）。

対象店舗は以下のリンクにて。
https://www.mos.jp/img/cp/higuchiyukoset/pdf/shoplist20191031.pdf

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ボリス文庫とは通常の出版商業ベースでは成り立たないものの、ヒグチ自身のセンスとこだわりで自費出版するために創設したブランドシリーズです。 その第一弾はヒグチ自身の著である「かえるのほん」です。文字のない絵本で編集・デザインは名久井直子氏です。現在三刷目のバージョンがボリス雑貨店にて発売中です。 以下の「詳細はこちら」リンク先にてご確認ください。 ...

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Guadalajara-based painter Omar Ortiz (nsfw) recently completed this amazing new oil painting titled Salto de Fe ( Leap of Faith). Ortiz is an accomplished hyperrealistic painter and commands fine control over light and skin tone in all of his paintings which he generally paints on large canvases. You can also find him on Facebook. (via ghost in the machine)

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!

© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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New Hyperrealistic Painting by Omar Ortiz

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Guadalajara-based painter Omar Ortiz (nsfw) recently completed this amazing new oil painting titled Salto de Fe (Leap of Faith). Ortiz is an accomplished hyperrealistic painter and commands fine control over light and skin tone in all of his paintings which he generally paints on large canvases. You

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Flattening three-dimensional installations into two-dimensional images, Alexa Meade compresses reality by covering models in specifically applied paint, making sure to focus on painted shadows and highlights to transform her posed subjects into paintings. Meade's works, which she has referred to as "reverse trompe l'oeil" combine installation, painting, photography, and even performance, as many of her works are done live and with little room for error. Mistakes made during her painting process however, often add to the overall dynamism of the piece, creating an aesthetic tension for each of her living works.

"There are so many things going on at once in my process that something is always bound to go wrong," Meade recently told Colossal. "Having to problem solve in the moment and hack together a solution will typically result in me bringing something new and fresh to the painting that I didn't intend or expect. The artwork often turns out so much better than I had originally envisioned."

Often these errors are due to the fact that Meade is creating her works on live models, and unlike swathes of canvas, her medium has interests, personalities, and needs which influence the work. "If you are a painter painting on canvas you don't have to care about its feelings or emotions," said Meade, "the canvas doesn't have to go to the bathroom."

Meade didn't always start out as an artist, in fact she studied politics and worked in Washington D.C. before experimenting with her current practice. "I discovered my method completely by accident," said Meade. "Then I had to actually teach myself out to paint." Now Meade is a represented artist in three countries and is often asked to do live painting performances, such as this month during FORM Arcosanti, an outdoor micro arts and music festival which we attended with WeTransfer and came across Meade's work. You can see more of her process and images on her Facebook and Instagram.

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!

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Living Works That Flatten Three-Dimensional Scenes Into Two-Dimensional Photographs by Alexa Meade

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Flattening three-dimensional installations into two-dimensional images, Alexa Meade compresses reality by covering models in specifically applied paint, making sure to focus on painted shadows and highlights to transform her posed subjects into paintings. Meade's works, which she has referred to as

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Art Review

Kerry James Marshall's "Many Mansions" (1994) is included in a retrospective of his work opening at the Met Breuer on Tuesday. Credit... Kerry James Marshall, The Art Institute of Chicago

People say we're in the middle of a second civil rights movement, and we are. The only surprise is that the first one ever ended. The artist Kerry James Marshall was there for it. He was just a kid then, born in Birmingham, Ala., in 1955. But kids take in a lot.

He was in Birmingham in 1963, when white supremacists dynamited a Baptist church and killed four young girls. He was 9 and living in Los Angeles in 1965 when Watts went up in flames. He remembers all that, just as he also remembers growing up in those years in a loving family: mother, father, sister, brother. Home.

Artists take in a lot, too. Mr. Marshall has absorbed enough personal history, American history, African-American history and art history to become one of the great history painters of our time. That's the painter you'll see in "Kerry James Marshall: Mastry," the smashing 35-year career retrospective that opens on Tuesday at the Met Breuer.

The first thing you may notice about him as an artist is that he's an ace storyteller, so good that you realize how rare that is. Sometimes he spells out narrative scenes, even somewhat fantastical ones, straightforwardly as in the sublime 1997 painting "Souvenir I," in which a middle-aged matron arranges her living room as a shrine to 1960s civil rights martyrs. What's fantastical is that the woman has glitter-encrusted wings, like an angel.

Image

Just as often, stories are merely implied, and they can be perplexing. One of the earliest of the show's 72 paintings, "A Portrait of the Artist as a Shadow of His Former Self," dates from 1980, two years after Mr. Marshall graduated from what was then called the Otis Art Institute in Los Angeles. It's a small image - he would later typically work at mural scale - of a bust-length, black-skinned male figure whose contours are barely readable against a slightly lighter black background. His only clear features are the whites of his eyes, and his broad, gap-toothed smile.

You may think, with a twinge of unease, of cartoons, or of old racist stereotypes, or of race as performance: blackamoors, Sambos, Madea. What Mr. Marshall was thinking of was Ralph Ellison's 1952 novel "Invisible Man," whose African-American hero knows that his color makes him unseeable as a person in white America: He's a black; that's it. Mr. Marshall complicates this idea by taking it in two directions: His "self-portrait" is simultaneously recessive and unmissable, with his eyes and his assertive, mock-cheerful, near-skeletal smile that shine like pin spots in the dark.

Black skin is a constant in Mr. Marshall's art. More than three decades ago, he resolved to devote himself to creating a new, disruptive art history, one that would insert - big-time - the absent black figure into the tradition of Western art, which was a tradition he loved and identified with.

And that tradition is everywhere in his work. He points directly to it in a mini-exhibition, "Kerry James Marshall Selects," that's embedded within the retrospective, and made up of historical items he's culled from the Met's holdings. They include a 15th-century Holbeinesque male portrait, a gray-tinted Ingres odalisque, abstract pictures by Ad Reinhardt and Gerhard Richter, and a Horace Pippin self-portrait as tiny, and every bit as precious, as the Met's famous Duccio "Madonna and Child."

It's a treat to see these things. And it's not hard to track down traces of the artists who made them in his work. Always in his paintings, he gives his painter-heroes their props.

And it's his art you're here for, and may well want to come back to see again. The show - which originated at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago and is organized at the Met by Ian Alteveer, associate curator of modern and contemporary art, and Meredith Brown, a research assistant - verges on being disorientingly rich.

Chronologically, it starts on the Met Breuer's third floor with a few abstract collages and the 1980 "Self Portrait," then moves through the career in thematic increments. Early things are texturally dense and tactilely experimental. Mystically-themed pictures from 1992 are done on wood, leather and sheets of paper glued to canvas.

Imagery is similarly layered. The celestial-feeling 1992 painting "Voyager" - a memorial to lives lost on a 19th-century slave ship, and one of Mr. Marshall's first big history paintings - brings together anatomical prints, Haitian veve emblems, and showers of hand-stamped and painted roses. Some of these also turn up, not at all incongruously - part of the brilliance of Mr. Marshall's art is that it's incongruity-free - in scenes of domestic romance, like the 1992 "This Could Be Love," where a couple undresses for bed as the notes and lyrics of a pop song, Mary Wells's "Two Lovers," float over head.

In painting African-American daily life, Mr. Marshall monumentalizes and ennobles it. Ordinary is extraordinary. This is the dynamic in a 10-foot wide picture of terrific wit and gravity called "De Style." Five figures pose in a barbershop. Three have sensationally sculptural 'dos; the barber-artist responsible is haloed, like a saint.

The painting's title is multiply coded. It refers to the shop, Percy's House of Style, and to the princely chic of its clientele. It also points backward to the utopian Dutch art movement De Stijl, which, in the early 20th century, sought to aestheticize the everyday environment and produce universal harmony. Piet Mondrian was an adherent, and the barbershop's décor is based on his primary-colors palette.

In 2012, Mr. Marshall produced an indescribably fabulous pendant to "De Style" called "School of Beauty, School of Culture," set in a women's hair salon. The references are updated (there's a Chris Ofili poster on the wall), and the politics sharpened (the dominant colors are the red, black and green of the Pan-African flag). It is not to be missed.

Such images represent a conscious effort on Mr. Marshall's part to rescue the image of black life from a default air of pessimism. But he does not avoid bitter realities. A painting called "The Lost Boys," done the same year as "De Style," is a stabbing memorial to the violent deaths of black children. Nine immense pictures installed together in a wide-open gallery on the fourth floor tell a tale of a utopia failed - and worse, betrayed. Five of these paintings, collectively called "The Garden Project," date from 1994-95 and are reunited here for the first time in two decades. Mr. Marshall has said that one of his motivating ambitions as an artist was to paint black life "in the grand style," and here he did, in a fusion of autobiography and politics.

Part of the story of black urban life in late-20th- and 21st-century America, and part of Mr. Marshall's story, is of life in low-income housing projects. Such projects were designed by the government in the 1930s as alternatives to city slums. But the gesture had no follow-up. Once built, economic support was scant and by the 1960s the projects had drastically deteriorated, becoming media emblems of poverty and crime.

Mr. Marshall briefly lived in a project when he was a child and has good memories of it. In "The Garden Project," those memories collide and fuse with social realities. Landscaped projects in Los Angeles and Chicago (where Mr. Marshall lives) look both idyllic and corrupted. They are painted with photorealist precision, spattered with daubs of pigment that suggest bullet holes.

We see children, among them the young Mr. Marshall with his sister and brother. They play, glance shyly toward us, seem innocent of fear. Adults are not so carefree. In a picture called "Many Mansions," three men dressed in formal clothes, like churchgoers or undertakers, appear to be either gardening or digging a grave. Bluebirds flutter about; Easter baskets sit on the grass. The distant project towers look blank, dead; the earth seems to bleed.

In the years since 1995, Mr. Marshall has painted many gardens, blighted and edenic, ambiguously shaded. He has painted, with unambiguous seriousness, a gallery's worth of revolutionaries. In the "Portrait of Nat Turner With the Head of His Master" (2011), the ax-wielding rebel is a kind of biblical hero, a black David turning his back on a dead Goliath whose severed head is one of the show's very few images of a white person.

And he has painted artists, fictional ones, male and female, with regal coiffures; immense, paint-caked palettes; and paint-by-numbers self-portraits on their easels. As the catalog points out, the paint-by-number craze arrived in the 1950s, around the time the civil rights movement started, which was around the time Mr. Marshall was born. It was a type of painting for anyone and everyone, universal in that way. And although the subjects were fixed, the colors were not; you could switch them around, personalize your look, the way Mr. Marshall taught himself painting, and enriched it, by sampling themes and styles of older masters.

One of his fictional artists seems to be basing her portrait colors on those of the stunning print wrap she's wearing, which is a painting in itself. Another has depicted himself dressed entirely in pink, though he's wearing drab green and tan. In all cases, the painting of the face has been left unfinished - in some, untouched, as if that would be the last decision to make. Is it because they don't know what the colors will be? Or because black is so complex?

You know there would be some interesting choices from this group. Together, they look like an artist-army: mature, sober, purposeful, full of ideas, ready to get great, which Mr. Marshall already is.

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Kerry James Marshall's Paintings Show What It Means to Be Black in America

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Art Review People say we're in the middle of a second civil rights movement, and we are. The only surprise is that the first one ever ended. The artist Kerry James Marshall was there for it. He was just a kid then, born in Birmingham, Ala., in 1955.

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Every single day in 2013 San Francisco-based artist Klari Reis is creating an abstract painting inside the confines of the humble petri dish, a cylindrical container used by biologists to culture the growth of cells and algae, something the paintings seem to directly resemble. Called ' Daily Dish 2013' the project is a continuation of a series Reis completed back in 2009, but at a cursory glance I'm already enjoying the 2013 series much more. Despite the limitation of medium and space, it's amazing to see the variation of color and depth each painting has, for some reason it reminded me of Jason Fried's 2007 SvN post about the variation of watch faces. (via coudal)

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!

© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Klari Reis Creates an Explosively Colorful Abstract Painting Inside a Petri Dish Each Day

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Every single day in 2013 San Francisco-based artist Klari Reis is creating an abstract painting inside the confines of the humble petri dish, a cylindrical container used by biologists to culture the growth of cells and algae, something the paintings seem to directly resemble. Called 'Daily Dish 201

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Postcards for Ants is an ongoing painting project by Cape Town artist Lorraine Loots who has been creating a miniature painting every single day since January 1, 2013. The artist works with paint brushes, pencils, and bare eyes to render superbly detailed paintings scarcely larger than a small coin. After the first year, Loots relaunched the project in a second phase inspired by Cape Town's designation as World Design Capital 2014. You can watch her work and hear a bit more about her inspiration in the video below by Gareth Pon, and she also regularly updates on Facebook. Hopefully we'll see a 2015 project? (via Lustik)

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!

© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Postcards for Ants: A 365-Day Miniature Painting Project by Lorraine Loots

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Postcards for Ants is an ongoing painting project by Cape Town artist Lorraine Loots who has been creating a miniature painting every single day since January 1, 2013. The artist works with paint brushes, pencils, and bare eyes to render superbly detailed paintings scarcely larger than a small coin.

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Heavily tinted blue paintings form space stations, spacesuits, and rockets just after blast. Michael Kagan paints these large-scale works to celebrate the man-made object-machinery that both protects and holds the possibility of instantly killing those that operate the equipment from the inside. To paint the large works, Kagan utilizes an impasto technique with thick strokes that are deliberate and unique, showing an aggression in his application of oil paint on linen.

The New York-based artist focuses on iconic images in his practice, switching back and forth between abstract and representational styles. "The painting is finished when it can fall apart and come back together depending on how it is read and the closeness to the work," said Kagan about his work. "Each painting is an image, a snapshot, a flash moment, a quick read that is locked into memory by the iconic silhouettes."

Kagan exhibited this series of space-based paintings last year at Joshua Liner Gallery in an exhibition titled Thunder in the Distance. He was also recently commissioned by The Smithsonian to create three large paintings inspired by their air and space archives. You can see more of his work on his Instagram here. (via Fubiz)

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!

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Michael Kagan's Space-Based Paintings Explore the Fatalistic Power of Manmade Machinery

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Heavily tinted blue paintings form space stations, spacesuits, and rockets just after blast. Michael Kagan paints these large-scale works to celebrate the man-made object-machinery that both protects and holds the possibility of instantly killing those that operate the equipment from the inside. To

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Back in 2006, Warsaw's National Gallery of Art, Zachęta, held a group exhibition titled "Polish Painting of the 21st Century." Painter Leon Tarasewicz contributed a site-specific work to the 60-artist exhibition, redoing the museum's Great Hall in a bath of red, yellow, blue, and green splatter paint. The work splattered the stairs and crept up the surrounding walls, creating a dramatic entrance for anyone entering the exhibition. (via ArchAtlas which was inexplicably deleted by Tumblr last week?)

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!

© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Artist Leon Tarasewicz Covers the Poland National Gallery's Great Hall Staircase in Splatter Paint

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Back in 2006, Warsaw's National Gallery of Art, Zachęta, held a group exhibition titled "Polish Painting of the 21st Century." Painter Leon Tarasewicz contributed a site-specific work to the 60-artist exhibition, redoing the museum's Great Hall in a bath of red, yellow, blue, and green splatter pain

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I'm really enjoying these vertically sliced portraits by Amanda Clyne who uses images from fashion magazines as a starting point for a rather involved process, that I'll let her explain in her own words.

I begin my process by culling images from fashion magazines. Cropping the image into a portrait, I re-print the image on to a surface to which the printing ink does not adhere, so the image remains wet. I photograph the print as the fluid image morphs and dissolves over time. I then compose a new image from fragments of these photographs-each image each is comprised of slices of the image at various stages of dissolution. Once I have resolved the final composition, I project the basic outlines of the image onto a canvas, and use a print-out of my composition as a painting reference. Each fragment is taped off and painted separately. Because of the narrow width of the fragments (some are less than 1/4 inch wide), I usually paint every third fragment, then while I wait for those fragments to dry, I paint alternating fragments on a different painting. Some paintings require three or four rounds of painting, so I work on several paintings at once.

The results are really quite striking. Clyne will have three new works on display at Art Toronto at the end of October. Thanks Amanda for sharing your work with Colossal!

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I'm really enjoying these vertically sliced portraits by Amanda Clyne who uses images from fashion magazines as a starting point for a rather involved process, that I'll let her explain in her own words. I begin my process by culling images from fashion magazines. Cropping the image into a portrai

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Angered by the gendered division perpetually seen in classic Western films, painter Felice House decided to create her painted series Re-Western. The collection of works are a re-imagining of her favorite Western films cast with female leads instead of the traditional male cowboys, painting females in place of actors such as James Dean, John Wayne, or Clint Eastwood. The women in her paintings are strapped with shotguns riding horses, fiercely looking out onto a deserted plain, and strongly staring into the eyes of the audience clad in plain button-downs and bright red cowboy boots.

"The western movie tradition is so established; so accepted, so mythologized that it spans the globe," said House to Colossal. "I love the genre, and at the same time when I sit down to watch a Western movie, I start to feel angry. For the most part, the roles in Westerns are totally inaccessible to me."

Deciding to start a conversation with this frustration, House choose to paint these reimagined Westerns to ask straightforward questions to a society that continuously handed over these roles to males. House seeks to ask what society would be like with this imagined reversal-how would education be changed? What would our reestablished priorities look like with females as the lead role?

"I would argue that in today's culture portraying women without objectifying them is an intentional and political act," said House. "The art historical and current cultural norm is to portray women to extol their sexual beauty and to encourage possessiveness. For centuries men have painted images of women for men. Now that women have access to education and training, women are painting women as we see ourselves."

House uses her female gaze and voice to create strong, female heroes in environments we all know, reestablishing our connection to the well-known historical settings. Working with the idea of a hero, House paints her portraits larger than life. She encourages the viewer to look up and become dwarfed by the women and their power, hoping this change in physical perspective might encourage a change in mental perspective as well.

Several of House's female portraits are currently in the group exhibition Sight Unseen at Abend Gallery in Denver through March 25. Pieces from her Re-Western series will be included the upcoming exhibition Woman as Warrior at the Zhou B Art Center in Chicago in August. You can see more of her work on her website and Instagram. (via The Creators Project)

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Artist Felice House Reimagines Scenes from Classic Western Films with Female Cowboys as Leads

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Angered by the gendered division perpetually seen in classic Western films, painter Felice House decided to create her painted series Re-Western. The collection of works are a re-imagining of her favorite Western films cast with female leads instead of the traditional male cowboys, painting females

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Kim Alsbrooks ( previously) began painting historical portraits on crushed cans in 2004 while living in the South. The series " My White Trash Family " was born out of the frustration of prevailing ideologies of class distinction, ideas she decided to challenge by placing portraits of the past onto everyman's consumerist leftovers. These paintings are typically depicted straight from 17th to 18th centuries, and tend to match the material environment they are placed upon (either through color choice, content, or both).

For each painting a gesso layer is applied first, followed by a drawn image in graphite, and finally oil paint and varnish. Alsbrooks only uses detritus she finds on the streets, faithfully sticking to cans that have already been trampled and crushed flat. Difficulty comes in finding the perfect cans, as they must be free of wrinkles that would impede upon on the paintings she places within the center of each surface.

Alsbrooks estimates that she has painted more than 700 of these portraits over the last 11 years, and the series will culminate with an exhibition at the Racine Art Museum in September of this year alongside jewelry maker Nikki Coupee. Alsbrooks often elaborates on the background of the portraits she paints, descriptions behind the portraits' selection can be found on her blog here.

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New Historical Portraits on Flattened Cans by Kim Alsbrooks

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Kim Alsbrooks (previously) began painting historical portraits on crushed cans in 2004 while living in the South. The series "My White Trash Family" was born out of the frustration of prevailing ideologies of class distinction, ideas she decided to challenge by placing portraits of the past onto eve

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Marija Tiurina's fantastical watercolor painting Eden is her biggest to date, measuring approximately 30 x 10 inches. The scene captures a woman kneeling amongst the inhabitants of a mythological forest, trapped within a busy scene that contains everything from an animated ramen bowl to an eel snaking its way through the center of her torso.

The painting was inspired by the chaos of Hieronymus Bosch's The Garden of Earthly Delights, Tiurina creating her own take on the hedonistic 15th century work. You can see more of her illustrations on the artist's Instagram, Facebook, and Behance, as well as a behind-the-scenes look into Eden in the video below.

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A Giant Bosch-Inspired Watercolor by Illustrator Marija Tiurina

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Marija Tiurina's fantastical watercolor painting Eden is her biggest to date, measuring approximately 30 x 10 inches. The scene captures a woman kneeling amongst the inhabitants of a mythological forest, trapped within a busy scene that contains everything from an animated ramen bowl to an eel snaki

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While Dutch artist Joris Kuipers spent years studying traditional painting and fine art techniques at both the Arnhem Academy and the Frank Mohr Institute in Groningen, his installations fly in the face of anything traditional. While borrowing from ideas rooted in expressionism as far as the application of paint and use of color, the artist constructs large-scale installations that spiral and twist off the walls, blurring the lines between painting and sculpture.

Two of his most recent works shown here were installed at Galerie Jaap Sleper in Utrecht and Het Plafond in Rotterdam. The artworks are made from suspended and raised components of depron foam coated with acrylic paint, appearing like a storm of whirling clouds or maybe flowers. I really hope he continues in this direction. (via saatchi online)

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Suspended Cloud Paintings by Joris Kuipers

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While Dutch artist Joris Kuipers spent years studying traditional painting and fine art techniques at both the Arnhem Academy and the Frank Mohr Institute in Groningen, his installations fly in the face of anything traditional. While borrowing from ideas rooted in expressionism as far as the applica

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Globalization and the Environment Collide in Mary Iverson's Mixed Media Paintings of Shipping Containers

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Mary Iverson fills natural and manmade landscapes with colorful shipping containers, objects haphazardly stacked on each other and taking up a majority of the otherwise tranquil scenes. The containers and boxes are cross-hatched with overlaid lines, connecting them a predetermined pattern seemingly

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Adam S. Doyle ( previously) creates sweeping monochromatic animals, painting creatures that jump, fly, and swim from his simplified brushstrokes. Doyle's environmental details are limited, instead focusing on the subject which takes up the majority of the painting's frame. His howling wolves and pensive rabbits have an illustrative quality to their compensation, something that may stem from his interest in interpreting narratives for book covers, greeting cards, and show posters.

Doyle doesn't attempt to mask his brushstrokes, but rather lets them evolve organically. He explains that his work always begins with his love of the magic of creation, transforming a blank surface into a living thing. "This act has been with mankind forever and yet never ceases to be awe-inspiring," said Doyle. "I always want my marks to be visible, to keep this sense of wonder present. I'm committed to making images that speak truth to power, that provide space to breathe, and that use simple forms to reveal and make accessible the heart of stories."

Doyle has exhibited his lively paintings internationally including New York, Los Angeles, and Hong Kong. Currently his paintings are part of the two-person exhibition Wild at Utah-based J GO Gallery. More images of his works can be found on the artist's Artsy. (via Samsara)

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Artist Adam S. Doyle Utilizes Simplified Brushstrokes to Organically Conjure Animals to the Blank Page

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Adam S. Doyle (previously) creates sweeping monochromatic animals, painting creatures that jump, fly, and swim from his simplified brushstrokes. Doyle's environmental details are limited, instead focusing on the subject which takes up the majority of the painting's frame. His howling wolves and pens

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Many painters working from photographic source material employ a wide variety of techniques to arrive at a final image. This will involve anything from loose sketching beforehand to complex grids, where a photograph is translated into paint box by box. Such is not the case with British painter Nathan Walsh who instead relies on elaborate drawings reminiscent of architectural blueprints before every committing paint to canvas. This deep reverence for the underpinning geometry and perspective gives each work a sense of life that might otherwise not be present in something created with the mechanical aid of a camera or software.

Walsh tells me his primary source materials are not photographs but pencil sketches drawn on-site, for example the Chicago pieces above began from over 100 drawings he then references in his studio. In this way he can easily alter the position and size of any particular element, a process he likens to "building a world from scratch". Personally I think the process is more akin to building the entire world in his mind so he can better represent it later in his paintings, each of which takes up to 3-4 months to complete. Via his website:

I deal exclusively with the urban landscape and aim to present a painted world which in some ways resembles the world we live in. I am fascinated by the city, it's visual complexity and constant state of flux. The act of painting is an attempt fix this information and give vision to our experience of living within it. [...] The work aims to create credible and convincing space which whilst making reference to our world displays it's own distinct logic. This space is created through drawing, which I see as fundamental in establishing a world the viewer can engage with. Drawing allows me to make human pictorial decisions instead of relying on the mechanical eye of a camera or software package. This process is open ended and changes from one painting to the next. Whilst I employ a variety of perspectival strategies, these methods are not fixed or rigid in their application. Working with a box of pencils and an eraser I will start by establishing an horizon line on which I will place vanishing points to construct simple linear shapes which become subdivided into more complex arrangements.

You can see numerous final works at a much higher resolution, as well as initial drawings over on his website. Walsh will have work at the Changing Perspectives technology conference in Paris later this month, and is working on a solo show at Bernarducci Meisel Gallery in November.

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Realistic Urban Landscape Paintings of Chicago and New York by Nathan Walsh

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Many painters working from photographic source material employ a wide variety of techniques to arrive at a final image. This will involve anything from loose sketching beforehand to complex grids, where a photograph is translated into paint box by box. Such is not the case with British painter Natha

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Welcome to the official site for Carmen Lomas Garza, a Chicana narrative artist who creates images about the everyday events in the lives of Mexican Americans based on her memories and experiences in Texas and California.

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Mexican artist Frida Kahlo is remembered for her self-portraits, pain and passion, and bold, vibrant colors. She is celebrated in Mexico for her attention to Mexican and indigenous culture and by feminists for her depiction of the female experience and form.

Kahlo, who suffered from polio as a child, nearly died in a bus accident as a teenager. She suffered multiple fractures of her spine, collarbone and ribs, a shattered pelvis, broken foot and a dislocated shoulder. She began to focus heavily on painting while recovering in a body cast. In her lifetime, she had 30 operations.

Life experience is a common theme in Kahlo's approximately 200 paintings, sketches and drawings. Her physical and emotional pain are depicted starkly on canvases, as is her turbulent relationship with her husband, fellow artist Diego Rivera, who she married twice. Of her 143 paintings, 55 are self-portraits.

The devastation to her body from the bus accident is shown in stark detail in The Broken Column. Kahlo is depicted nearly naked, split down the middle, with her spine presented as a broken decorative column. Her skin is dotted with nails. She is also fitted with a surgical brace.

Kahlo's first self-portrait was Self-Portrait in a Velvet Dress in 1926. It was painted in the style of 19th Century Mexican portrait painters who themselves were greatly influenced by the European Renaissance masters. She also sometimes drew from the Mexican painters in her use of a background of tied-back drapes. Self-Portrait - Time Flies (1929), Portrait of a Woman in White (1930) and Self-Portrait Dedicated to Leon Trotsky (1937) all bear this background.

I paint self-portraits because I am so often alone, because I am the person I know best." - Frida Kahlo

In her second-self portrait, "Time Flies," Kahlo uses a folk style and vibrant colors. She wears peasant clothing, and the red, white and green in the painting are the colors of the Mexican flag.

During her life, self portrait is a subject that Frida Kahlo always returns to, as artists have always returned to their beloved themes - Rembrandt his Self Portrait, Vincent van Gogh his Sunflowers, and Claude Monet his Water Lilies.

Frida and Diego: Love and Pain

Kahlo and Rivera had a tumultuous relationship, marked by multiple affairs on both sides. Self-Portrait With Cropped Hair (1940), Kahlo is depicted in a man's suit, holding a pair of scissors, with her fallen hair around the chair in which she sits. This represents the times she would cut the hair Rivera loved when he had affairs.

The 1937 painting Memory, the Heart, shows Kahlo's pain over her husband's affair with her younger sister Christina. A large broken heart at her feet shows the intensity of Kahlo's anguish. Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera divorced in 1939, but reunited a year later and remarried. The Two Fridas (1939) depicts Kahlo twice, shortly after the divorce. One Frida wears a costume from the Tehuana region of Mexico, representing the Frida that Diego loved. The other Frida wears a European dress as the woman who Diego betrayed and rejected. Later, she is back in Tehuana dress in Self-Portrait as a Tehuana (1943) and Self Portrait (1948).

Pre-Columbian artifacts were common both in the Kahlo/Rivera home (Diego collected sculptures and idols, and Frida collected Jewelry) and in Kahlo's paintings. She wore jewelry from this period in Self-Portrait - Time Flies (1926), Self-Portrait With Monkey (1938) and Self-Portrait With Braid (1941), among others. Other Pre-Columbian artifacts are found in The Four Inhabitants of Mexico City (1938), Girl With Death Mask (1938) and Self-Portrait With Small Monkeys (1945).

My painting carries with it the message of pain." - Frida Kahlo

Surreal or Realist?

Frida Kahlo participated in the "International Exhibition of Surrealism" in 1940 at the Galeria de Arte, Mexicano. There, she exhibited her two largest paintings: The Two Fridas and The Wounded Table (1940). Surrealist Andrew Breton considered Kahlo a surrealistic, a label Kahlo rejected, saying she just painted her reality. However, In 1945, when Don Jose Domingo Lavin asked Frida Kahlo to read the book Moses and Monotheism by Sigmund Freud - whose psychoanalysis works Surrealism is based on - and paint her understanding and interpretation of this book. Frida Kahlo painted Moses, and this painting was recognized as second prize at the annual art exhibition in the Palacio de Bellas Artes.

Kahlo did not sell many paintings in her lifetime, although she painted occasional portraits on commission. She had only one solo exhibition in Mexico in her lifetime, in 1953, just a year before her death at the age of 47.

Today, her works sell for very high prices. In May 2006, Frida Kahlo self-portrait, Roots, was sold for $5.62 million at a Sotheby's auction in New York, sets a record as the most expensive Latin American work ever purchased at auction, and also makes Frida Kahlo one of the highest-selling woman in art.

Widely known for her Marxist leanings, Frida, along with Marxism Revolutionary Che Guevara and a small band of contemporary figures, has become a countercultural symbol of the 20th century, and created a legacy in art history that continues to inspire the imagination and mind. Born in 1907, dead at 47, Frida Kahlo achieved celebrity even in her brief lifetime that extended far beyond Mexico's borders, although nothing like the cult status that would eventually make her the mother of the selfie, her indelible image recognizable everywhere.

At the Frida Kahlo Museum in Mexico City, her personal belongings are on display throughout the house, as if she still lived there. Kahlo was born and grew up in this building, whose cobalt walls gave way to the nickname of the Blue House. She lived there with her husband for some years, and she died there. The facility is the most popular museum in the Coyoacan neighborhood and among the most visited in Mexico City.

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Frida Kahlo: 100 Paintings Analysis, Biography, Quotes, & Art

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Mexican artist Frida Kahlo is remembered for her self-portraits, pain and passion, and bold, vibrant colors. She is celebrated in Mexico for her attention to Mexican and indigenous culture and by feminists for her depiction of the female experience and form. Kahlo, who suffered from polio as a child, nearly died in a bus accident as a teenager.

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By Ibram X. Kendi
Illustrated by Cbabi Bayoc

National Book Award-winning and New York Times bestselling author Ibram X. Kendi (How to Be an Antiracist, Antiracist Baby) returns with a new picture book that serves as a modern bedtime classic.

As children all over the world get ready for bed, the moon watches over them. The moon knows that when we sleep, we dream. And when we dream, we imagine what is possible and what the world can be.

With dynamic, imaginative art and poetic prose, Goodnight Racism delivers important messages about antiracism, justice, and equality in an easy-to-read format that empowers readers both big and small. Goodnight Racism gives children the language to dream of a better world and is the perfect book to add to their social justice toolkit.

Cbabi (pronounced Kuh-bob-bi) Bayoc

is an internationally-known visual artist and illustrator residing in St. Louis, Missouri. His subjects include family, children, music and a bunch of other cool stuff designed with line, bold color and phunk!

Bayoc, whose birth name is Clifford Miskell, Jr., adopted his name CBABI (Creative-Black-Artist-Battling- Ignorance) during his time at Grambling State University ('92-'95). In 1997, a legal name change took place at the time of his marriage. Later, Cbabi would change his last name to BAYOC (Blesed-African-Youth-Of-Creativity) as something that could be shared with his future children.

After working as a caricature artist at Six Flags over St. Louis, Cbabi pursued a career as an illustrator. His first notable client was Rap Pages magazine. During the entire year of 1998 he was given the RPM section on a monthly basis to display a caricature of the featured artist. Through that exposure, he was contacted by Violator Management to create the artwork for the cover of the Violator Compilation, Vol.1 album, featuring the likenesses of Busta Rhymes, Missy Elliott, Foxy Brown, Q-Tip, LL Cool J, Mobb Deep, Fat Joe and Big Pun.

Stay Connected

Follow Cbabi Online to see the latest first!

St. Louis, Missouri

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Cbabi (pronounced Kuh-bob-bi) Bayoc is an internationally-known visual artist and illustrator residing in St. Louis, Missouri. His subjects include family, children, music and a bunch of other cool stuff designed with line, bold color and phunk!

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Contemporary works and abstract expressionist masterpieces converge in "Shade," a collaborative presentation by the Denver Art Museum and Clyfford Still Museum that puts paintings by renowned contemporary American artist Mark Bradford in dialogue with work by American painter Clyfford Still.

In Shade, Bradford underscores the legacy of abstract expressionism and explores abstraction’s power to address social and political concerns. The exhibition examines both his and Still’s unique relationship to black in their paintings, whether it’s used to force viewers out of their comfort zones, evoke emotions, or confront conventional notions of race. Bradford reads Still’s relationship with black as an open-ended invitation for dialogue. Bradford says, "For me as an artist, I am much more interested in questions than answers. 'Shade' is simply putting questions into the public domain."

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Chicago-based Illustrator Diana Sudyka uses vintage stamps from Europe as the starting point for fanciful paintings created using gouache, ink, and watercolor. These miniature engravings of portraits, architecture, and ships become fully formed figures and landscapes that merge with trees and flowers and convene with animals. Many of the artist's paintings include phrases of hand-painted text that add an additional narrative element to the works.

Sudyka tells Colossal that she begins each new piece by selecting a stamp, but without a specific idea of the painting that will emerge from it. "I let the stamp inform the subject matter and color palette. It's a very intuitive process. The stamp is really just a stepping off point to get my imagination going."

Working mainly as a children's book illustrator, Sudyka creates her stamp paintings primarily as relaxing interludes between client projects. She explains to Colossal that her background is as a fine artist, specializing in intaglio printmaking, and her history with stamps goes back to her days as an undergraduate when she was inspired by collage artist Joseph Cornell, and picked up some vintage stamps at a coin collecting shop in her college town. Sudyka offers prints of many of her paintings on her website, and she also shares her work on Instagram.

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Vintage Postage Stamps Inspire Fanciful Storybook Scenes Painted by Illustrator Diana Sudyka

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Chicago-based Illustrator Diana Sudyka uses vintage stamps from Europe as the starting point for fanciful paintings created using gouache, ink, and watercolor. These miniature engravings of portraits, architecture, and ships become fully formed figures and landscapes that merge with trees and flowe

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Dallas-based artist Sergio Garcia creates simple, yet surreal moments within his sculptures, often incorporating realistic hands that are paused in the act of forming a bubble, or spray painting a wall. In one sculpture in particular, By Any Means, a miniature hand reaches out from a pencil's eraser as it is being sharpened, almost as if to stop the mechanism in which the utensil is trapped.

"I have always enjoyed the use of the unconventional as a base for my artwork," says Garcia in an artist statement. "I enjoy creating art that people can relate to and that stimulates the creative subconscious. Not only to create an emotional relationship between art and viewer, but to conjure up questions of how and why. It is this desire to create a connection with the viewer that fuels my creativity."

Another subject matter Garcia focuses on is tricycles, creating sculptural versions of the childhood toy with loops, hearts, and figure eights in place of the traditional frame. The bright red and pink works range from life-size to palm-size, yet when photographed each appear incredibly realistic.

You can see more work form the Cuban-American artist on his Instagram and website.

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Humorous Sculptures Twisted Into Unconventional Forms by Sergio Garcia

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Dallas-based artist Sergio Garcia creates simple, yet surreal moments within his sculptures, often incorporating realistic hands that are paused in the act of forming a bubble, or spray painting a wall. In one sculpture in particular, By Any Means, a miniature hand reaches out from a pencil's eraser

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Oh my goodness, I am in love with everything this woman makes. I am so excited to finally be talking to London based artist Katharine Morling. Her work looks like wonky black & white drawings... that happen to be made of porcelain! I had so many questions about her narratives, her process, and of course her story. Where did the idea for these beauties come from?! You can listen right up there under that lovely "pot of pencils", or you can subscribe on iTunes.

Let's get started with "Nature Boy", shall we? He started in this little box, which led to all of the work below him {and there's even more on her site!}:

Porcelain cameras?! A butterfly net?! No, no, no... it's all just too good.

This is the piece Katharine was talking about when she said she's still not quite sure what it's actually about! This is "Shifting Diamonds":

Gorgeous. Up next, the sewing basket she got at a very exciting Tupperware party when she was a kid, along with her mother's sewing machine:

I mean, come on! I want need a pair of those scissors.

This next piece is "Equipped". Note the crosses she mentioned in a few of these beautiful household utensils:

Lovely. That whisk might be my favorite.

Ah, her typewriter! I have loved this piece, titled "Poison Pen", for ages but boy oh boy it certainly has new meaning after finding out that Katharine has severe dyslexia:

... hence the wonky, confusing state of this lovely, porcelain machine.

I loved hearing about her process too! From sketching, to clay, to the fine line work {and I had to include a photo of Katharine so you could see the gorgeous woman behind that lovely English accent}:

Ah yes, nothing like a little peek behind the curtain!

And finally, a gem from the 'speed round'. Katharine's first job, when she was 13, was at a tiny little green grocer's. This was their cash register, and it inspired a piece titled "Plenty":

Her whimsical detail is just so insanely amazing! Look at that little box of matches... and those pencils... and allll of those coins! Sigh. Too good. And with that, I'll say thanks to Katharine {and Rosie!} for spending an hour with me, big thanks to Saatchi Art for supporting episode 60 {!?}, and as always GIANT thanks to you for listening each week. There will be more art for your ear next weekend.
Other Links:

1. Royal College of Art, London

2. She is represented by Long & Ryle Gallery, London

3. A few of the studio shots are from this New York Times article

4. Some of Katharine's smaller works are available in her shop

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The Jealous Curator /// curated contemporary art /// "drawing with porcelain"

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Oh my goodness, I am in love with everything this woman makes. I am so excited to finally be talking to London based artist Katharine Morling. Her work looks like wonky black & white drawings... that happen to be made of porcelain! I had so many questions about her narratives, her process, and of course her story.

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When first viewing the artwork of Shintaro Ohata up close it appears the scenes are made from simple oil paints, but take a step back and you're in for a surprise. Each piece is actually a hybrid of painted canvas and sculpture that blend almost flawlessly in color and texture to create a single image. The cinematic figures are sculpted from polystyrene while the backgrounds are made from traditional painting techniques. Via his artist statement:

Shintaro Ohata is an artist who depicts little things in everyday life like scenes of a movie and captures all sorts of light in his work with a unique touch: convenience stores at night, city roads on rainy day and fast-food shops at dawn etc. His paintings show us ordinary sceneries as dramas. He is also known for his characteristic style; placing sculptures in front of paintings, and shows them as one work, a combination of 2-D and 3-D world. He says that it all started from when he wondered "I could bring the atmosphere or dynamism of my paintings with a more different way if I place sculptures in front of paintings". Many viewers tend to assume that there is a light source set into his work itself because of the strong expression of lights in his sculpture.

Ohata will have work later this year at the Akita Museum of Modern Art, and you can see much more of his work online here. (via toxel)

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Artist Shintaro Ohata Seamlessly Blends Sculpture and Canvas to Create 3D Paintings

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When first viewing the artwork of Shintaro Ohata up close it appears the scenes are made from simple oil paints, but take a step back and you're in for a surprise.

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At first glance, you might not notice these amusing sculptures are made from everyday objects until you take a closer look. Tara Donovan is a contemporary American artist. She is better known for installations and sculptures, which are comprised of commonplace materials such as paper plates, Styrofoam cups, drinking straws ...

At first glance, you might not notice these amusing sculptures are made from everyday objects until you take a closer look.

Tara Donovan is a contemporary American artist. She is better known for installations and sculptures, which are comprised of commonplace materials such as paper plates, Styrofoam cups, drinking straws and buttons. When assembled these ordinary materials resemble organisms or growing cells yet they have their inherent characteristics and shapes. After an elaborate process of installing, common objects are transformed into art.

"It is not like I'm trying to simulate nature." Donovan says of her work, "It's more of a mimicking of the way of nature, the way things actually grow."

Visit Pace Gallery and ACE Gallery websites to see more of her pieces.

Enjoy her beautiful work!

All images ©Tara Donovan

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Sculpting Everyday Objects: Tara Donovan - Alfalfa Studio

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At first glance, you might not notice these amusing sculptures are made from everyday objects until you take a closer look. Tara Donovan is a contemporary American artist. She is better known for installations and sculptures, which are comprised of commonplace materials such as paper plates, Styrofoam cups, drinking straws and buttons.

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Recently on view as part of Sculpture by the Sea in Bondi, this unusual figurative sculpture by artist Alessandra Rossi seems to have captured the imagination of many, becoming one of the most popular pieces of this year's exhibition. Titled Untitled (coral), Rossi says the piece depicting a solitary young girl in a dress is inspired in part by the phenomenon of coral bleaching, something that occurs in nature when ocean water becomes too warm and coral begins to expel an algae giving it a white appearance. Additionally, the work grapples with modern issues of identity, functioning "as a metaphor for the patination and discoloration of emotion engendered by the digital era."

The sculpture's translucent layered appearance changes dramatically when viewed from different angles during the day and at times almost vanishes against the horizon of Bondi beach. You can see more sculptures from Sculpture by the Sea 2016 here.

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A Translucent Figurative Sculpture Appears Camouflaged Against the Horizon of Bondi Beach

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Recently on view as part of Sculpture by the Sea in Bondi, this unusual figurative sculpture by artist Alessandra Rossi seems to have captured the imagination of many, becoming one of the most popular pieces of this year's exhibition. Titled Untitled (coral), Rossi says the piece depicting a solitar

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Sculptor Anna Gillespie lives and works in Bath where she infuses her figurative sculptures with elements collected from nature including numerous acorn caps or beechnut casings. Gillespie also works with bronze and stone, often recreating some of the same environmental elements by hand, a process I imagine is even more meticulous than harvesting and using individual seeds themselves. She most recently had a solo show at Beaux Arts Bath and published a book of her work spanning 2006-2012 where you can see many more stunning images of her sculpture. (via my modern met).

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© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Anna Gillespie Fuses Nature and Art in her Figurative Sculptures Made of Acorns, Beechnut Casings and Bronze

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Sculptor Anna Gillespie lives and works in Bath where she infuses her figurative sculptures with elements collected from nature including numerous acorn caps or beechnut casings. Gillespie also works with bronze and stone, often recreating some of the same environmental elements by hand, a process I

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Sébastien Preschoux creates intricate installations in natural environments using hundreds of feet of multi-colored string. A quote from Preschoux from trendland:

Nowadays, the new generation disposes of images as a industrial rapidity and they are not asking themselves about where these things are coming from. Is it handmade or is it an electronic work? When they are faced with creating handmade work, they realize the labor and time it takes. The result is way more important than a printed work that is, easily reproduced. In my opinion, art makes sense if it is the result of the human hand.

Learn more and see many more installations via his website.

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© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Thread Installations by Sébastien Preschoux

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Sébastien Preschoux creates intricate installations in natural environments using hundreds of feet of multi-colored string. A quote from Preschoux from trendland: Nowadays, the new generation disposes of images as a industrial rapidity and they are not asking themselves about where these things are

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South American artist Luciano Polverigiani creates ceramic objects that lay at the intersection of fine art sculptures and toys, figures that are designed with both a playful and thoughtfully considered eye. Each work is produced from various clays and mud, and then fired with eucalyptus wood in a gas kiln at the ideal temperature for vitrification. Although much of Polverigiani's work is about experimentation with enamel and color glazes, the artist limits himself to materials that were readily available to ancient civilizations. You can view more of his ceramic figures on his Behance.

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© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Comical Ceramic Figures Produced With Ancient Materials by Luciano Polverigiani

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South American artist Luciano Polverigiani creates ceramic objects that lay at the intersection of fine art sculptures and toys, figures that are designed with both a playful and thoughtfully considered eye. Each work is produced from various clays and mud, and then fired with eucalyptus wood in a g

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Ceramic artist Tim Kowalczyk is drawn to objects of little material value-crushed tin cans, ripped up cardboard, and Polaroids that have been damaged during development. It is in these typical throw aways that he finds beauty, an attraction to the history embedded in their wrinkles and folds. To memorialize these items Kowalczyk creates their likeness in clay, creating works that look exactly like mugs haphazardly formed from cardboard with "Please Handle With Care" stickers still stuck to their sides.

"Ceramic's ability to replicate any form, texture, or surface is what draws me to the material," says Kowalczyk in his artist statement. "Replicating real objects out of ceramic material and putting them in a tableau is my version of writing a poem. I am able to sculpt, form, design, and construct sculptures with a sense of purpose, priority, and preciousness."

The Illinois-based artist graduated with an MFA from Illinois State University in 2011, and is the adjunct Ceramics instructor at Illinois Central in East Peoria, IL. You can see more of his work on his website or at Companion Gallery where he is represented.

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Ceramic Mugs That Imitate Used Cardboard by Artist Tim Kowalczyk

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Ceramic artist Tim Kowalczyk is drawn to objects of little material value-crushed tin cans, ripped up cardboard, and Polaroids that have been damaged during development. It is in these typical throw aways that he finds beauty, an attraction to the history embedded in their wrinkles and folds. To mem

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As if lifted from the wreckage of the Titanic, ceramic artist Mary O'Malley creates sculptural porcelain teapots, cups, and vases adorned with barnacles, tentacles, and other living sea creatures (she refers to them as "porcelain crustaceans"). Many original works from this series titled 'Bottom Feeders' are available over on Etsy. (via laughing squid)

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Bottom Feeders: Ceramic Objects Encrusted with Marine Life by Mary O'Malley

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As if lifted from the wreckage of the Titanic, ceramic artist Mary O'Malley creates sculptural porcelain teapots, cups, and vases adorned with barnacles, tentacles, and other living sea creatures (she refers to them as "porcelain crustaceans"). Many original works from this series titled 'Bottom Fee

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Hamburg-based ceramic artist Angelina Erhorn of Moij Design creates all matter of ceramic dishware that mimics the form of paper origami sheets, both folded and unfolded. Her designs include plates, espresso cups, and vases with delicate creases and occasional stained geometric elements. You can see more of her work on Instagram and some of her pieces are available on Etsy. (via So Super Awesome)

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© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Ceramic Origami Plates and Dishware by Moij Design

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Hamburg-based ceramic artist Angelina Erhorn of Moij Design creates all matter of ceramic dishware that mimics the form of paper origami sheets, both folded and unfolded. Her designs include plates, espresso cups, and vases with delicate creases and occasional stained geometric elements. You can see

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If you've been on the hunt for the perfect ceramic capybara planter, look no further. Ceramicist Priscilla Ramos from São Paulo, Brazil, has a fantastic line of animal planters in the form of foxes, whales, anteaters, and yes, even the world's largest rodent. She's even working on a sloth! The handmade stoneware pieces are perfect for small succulents or cacti, and you can see more in her shop: Cumbuca Chic. (via NOTCOT)

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Handmade Ceramic Animal Planters by Cumbuca Chic

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If you've been on the hunt for the perfect ceramic capybara planter, look no further. Ceramicist Priscilla Ramos from São Paulo, Brazil, has a fantastic line of animal planters in the form of foxes, whales, anteaters, and yes, even the world's largest rodent. She's even working on a sloth!

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Our Changing Seas III is the third piece in a series of large-scale ceramic coral reef sculptures by artist Courtney Mattison. The sprawling installation is entirely hand-built and is meant to show the devastating transition coral reefs endure when faced with climate change, a process called bleaching. She shares via email:

At its heart, this piece celebrates my favorite aesthetic aspects of a healthy coral reef surrounded by the sterile white skeletons of bleached corals swirling like the rotating winds of a cyclone. There is still time for corals to recover even from the point of bleaching if we act quickly to decrease the threats we impose. Perhaps if my work can influence viewers to appreciate the fragile beauty of our endangered coral reef ecosystems, we will act more wholeheartedly to help them recover and even thrive.

Our Changing Seas III is currently on view at the Tang Museum at Skidmore College through June 15, 2014. (via Colossal Submissions)

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Our Changing Seas: A Ceramic Coral Reef by Courtney Mattison

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Our Changing Seas III is the third piece in a series of large-scale ceramic coral reef sculptures by artist Courtney Mattison. The sprawling installation is entirely hand-built and is meant to show the devastating transition coral reefs endure when faced with climate change, a process called bleachi

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Driven by an interest in the biological process of cell division, artist Jiyong Lee ( previously) fabricates translucent sculptural works of segmented glass components fused through coldworking techniques. Some pieces purposefully take the form of organic life with titles such as " White-orange Chromosome Segmentation" or " Geometric cell membrane segmentation" while others are decidedly more geometric in nature. Born and raised in South Korea, Lee has helmed the glass program at Southern Illinois University since 2005. He most recently had a solo exhibition with Clara Scremini Gallery in Paris, and you can see many more of his pieces on Artsy.

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© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Segmented Glass Sculptures Inspired by Cell Division by Jiyong Lee

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Driven by an interest in the biological process of cell division, artist Jiyong Lee (previously) fabricates translucent sculptural works of segmented glass components fused through coldworking techniques. Some pieces purposefully take the form of organic life with titles such as "White-orange Chromo

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I am a Texas-based artist originally hailing from Göteborg, Sweden by way of Tehran, Iran.

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Elizabeth Catlett was an African-American artist who explored themes relating to race and feminism in her range of sculpture, paintings, and prints. View Elizabeth Catlett's 509 artworks on artnet. Find an in-depth biography, exhibitions, original artworks for sale, the latest news, and sold auction prices.

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The first time I tried cutting rubber stamps I new I was hooked. I created a wonky looking acorn out of a eraser with a not so great linoleum cutter, but even so. It was magic. So I went out and got myself some proper tools and materials. Time flies when I am carving and it so much fun trying out the stamp for the first time and see if you succeeded.

I get inspired by nature and I love carving birds. I carve linoleum prints as well, but I do prefer working with rubber carving blocks.

I use stamps mainly to create art, hand printed cards and other decorations. Here you can see a small selection of my stamps. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me.

I get a lot of questions about my carvings and what materials I use. So I thought I should share a little bit about my process. I start off by tracing a drawing with a tracing paper. I use a soft pencil, like 4B, but not too soft or it will smudge too much on the rubber block later when I carve. I then carefully transfer the drawing onto the rubber carving block with a bone folder (the White thingie below). There are different brands of rubber carving blocks (moo carve, speedy carve etc) but I buy mine from Amazon.co.uk . Search for "rubber carving block" and you will find several options to choose from. You can also try out carving on white erasers to create smaller stamps.

Once the drawing is transferred I start carving with my linocarving tools. I love mine from Pfeil. They are a bit expensive but brilliant. I use the scalpel for cutting away the rubber around the design.

Once I'm finished with my carving, I wash it in lukewarm water and neutral soap. I wait a bit for it to dry. Then I apply ink with an ink pad. I use these from tsukineko called versafine which I think are great (se image below).

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The first time I tried cutting rubber stamps I new I was hooked. I created a wonky looking acorn out of a eraser with a not so great linoleum cutter, but even so. It was magic. So I went out and got myself some proper tools and materials.

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In her newest artwork, Valerie Lueth has grown intricately intertwined roots and branches to form a 4-color woodblock print titled 'BRANCHING.' Lueth, who owns and operates Tugboat Printshop ( previously) in Pittsburgh, hand-illustrated one key block and three additional color blocks to combine black, yellow, blue, and grey in the formation of the tree. To create the tree's subtle shifts in tone and shape, Lueth first drew and carved the key block on 3/4 inch birch plywood. Next, she transferred the image via press onto the three color blocks, and hand-drew and carved each of the three color blocks. Finally, using very precise alignment, Lueth printed all four blocks sequentially on one sheet of paper to create the complete artwork.

The artist describes BRANCHING as "an image of generation and growth," and it scales thirty inches tall and twelve inches wide. The print is currently available for pre-order on the Tugboat Printshop website. Lueth also shares her works in progress on Instagram.

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A Tall Leafy Tree Grows in Tugboat Printshop's New 4-Color Wood Block Print

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In her newest artwork, Valerie Lueth has grown intricately intertwined roots and branches to form a 4-color woodblock print titled 'BRANCHING.' Lueth, who owns and operates Tugboat Printshop (previously) in Pittsburgh, hand-illustrated one key block and three additional color blocks to combine black

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Cut Paper Artist | Custom Artwork | Marc Paper Scissor

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Cut Paper Art - Cut Paper Artist | Custom Artwork | Marc Paper Scissor

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Cut Paper The Design Collection Digital Installations & Paintings Pet Portraits

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©2021 by Ekua Holmes | Design by Isidor Studio

All images on the site are copyright Ekua Holmes and may not be used in any fashion without express written permission from the artist.

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©2021 by Ekua Holmes | Design by Isidor Studio

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Small sculptures made from scraps by Lydia Ricci.

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Oooh, intricate hand-cut collages. This is the very organized work of London based artist/designer Mandi Keighran. Not only are her color palettes gorgeous, and her cuts insanely precise but she also notes the magazine each piece was created with... and sometimes she even lists how many tiny pieces went into the piece. Have I mentioned that I love systems and organization?
ps. There are only a few items in her Etsy shop and as luck would have it all of them are in this post! ps. she'll be adding more tomorrow!

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The Jealous Curator /// curated contemporary art /// mandi keighran

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Oooh, intricate hand-cut collages. This is the very organized work of London based artist/designer Mandi Keighran. Not only are her color palettes gorgeous, and her cuts insanely precise but she also notes the magazine each piece was created with... and sometimes she even lists how many tiny pieces went into the piece.

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As a four-year-old living in Lenoir, South Carolina, Stephen Eichhorn refused to learn how to read. While everyone else in his class was singing their ABCs, he'd stubbornly deemed it unnecessary - he already knew he was destined to be an artist, communicating through images rather than words.

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Brazilian designer Fabio Araujo digitally composes images of abandoned sites to create undesirable islands, small patches of earth ripped up from long neglected corners of civilization. The series, Abandoned Places, exists both as image and video as Araujo animates discrete elements of the works to play in a loop. These areas serve as the only "living" aspect in-frame, focusing on a single deer or bubbling creek that has managed to survive amidst crumbling architecture and rusted water towers.

Araujo explores a similar island concept in another work titled Favela, a much larger creation that seems to float through the sky rather than a flat matte background. You can see more of Araujo's digitally composed pieces on his Behance and Instagram.

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Islands Digitally Composed From Images of Abandoned Sites by Fabio Araujo

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Brazilian designer Fabio Araujo digitally composes images of abandoned sites to create undesirable islands, small patches of earth ripped up from long neglected corners of civilization. The series, Abandoned Places, exists both as image and video as Araujo animates discrete elements of the works to

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The Avant/Garde Diaries recently did a short feature on collage artist Mark Wagner ( previously) and got some excellent footage of the artist at work as well as a timelapse of one of his recent pieces coming together. Directed and produced by Kelly Nyks and Jared P. Scott.

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!

© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Money is Material: Watch as Collage Artist Mark Wagner Turns the U.S. Dollar into Art

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The Avant/Garde Diaries recently did a short feature on collage artist Mark Wagner (previously) and got some excellent footage of the artist at work as well as a timelapse of one of his recent pieces coming together. Directed and produced by Kelly Nyks and Jared P. Scott.

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As part of a personal project exploring typography, artist Lola Dupre ( previously) imagined a series of unusual structures shaped like letters of the alphabet. The artist utilized her well-known collage technique that incorporates existing photographs that are cut into tiny pieces, often in duplicate, to make each building. Dupre recently started an Instagram account where you can see some of her latest completed works. (via Soft Shock)

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Buildings Shaped Like Letters of the Alphabet Made with Photographic Collage by Lola Dupre

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As part of a personal project exploring typography, artist Lola Dupre (previously) imagined a series of unusual structures shaped like letters of the alphabet. The artist utilized her well-known collage technique that incorporates existing photographs that are cut into tiny pieces, often in duplicat

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Since we last featured works by collage artist Eugenia Loli ( previously) her works have popped up all over the place from Wired Magazine, New Scientist, and a recent series of 5 collages for Cosmopolitan. The nurse-turned-programmer-turned-journalist-turned-artist first began exploring digital collages in 2013 by scanning images from old vintage magazines and science textbooks that she assembled in Photoshop and shared on her Tumblr. You can follow more of Loli's work on Instagram or Facebook, and she sells prints and other things in her shop.

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© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Since we last featured works by collage artist Eugenia Loli (previously) her works have popped up all over the place from Wired Magazine, New Scientist, and a recent series of 5 collages for Cosmopolitan. The nurse-turned-programmer-turned-journalist-turned-artist first began exploring digital colla

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Psychogeography is the act of exploring an urban environment with an emphasis on curiosity and drifting. Or, more colloquially put, a "toy box full of playful, inventive strategies for exploring cities." For the Brooklyn-based artist Dustin Yellin, his toy box is full of everything he finds on the street-flowers, leaves, bugs, and even dead rats, which are then composed into three-dimensional collages and sealed behind resin.

In his most recent series "Psychogeographies," Yellin uses multiple layers of glass, each covered in detailed imagery, to create a single intricate, three-dimensional collage with a mix of magazine cut-outs and acrylic paint. When pressed to describe what he does, Yellin struggles, but not with a lack of words. Here is an excerpt from a mini-essay "concerning the difficulty of saying something about what I do."

"Is it a copout to say "the work speaks for itself"?
I feel like it is
But I'm also awful talking about what the work is.
So sometimes I say "it speaks for itself"
But what does that even mean?

However, he does offer some advice:

First and foremost, they're massive see-through blocks
And that's one way to read them, listen to them "speaking"
As massive see through blocks.
Another is to listen to what's inside them
The forms, the clippings, the dead things, the painted things,
Frozen between the layers of glass, what I've called
The captured and frozen "dynamism" of culture.

You can follow Dustin Yellin on Facebook or Instagram, or read more about him in this NYT article.

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Psychogeographies: 3D Collages Encased in Layers of Glass by Dustin Yellin

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Psychogeography is the act of exploring an urban environment with an emphasis on curiosity and drifting. Or, more colloquially put, a "toy box full of playful, inventive strategies for exploring cities." For the Brooklyn-based artist Dustin Yellin, his toy box is full of everything he finds on the s

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Joseba Elorza is a sound technician who makes a living with his unique brand of digital collage and illustration. The Spain-based artist blends humor, technology, science fiction and anonymous historical photography to create some really splendid digital imagery. You can see much more in his portfolio, and pickup prints in his shop. (via iGNANT)

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Joseba Elorza is a sound technician who makes a living with his unique brand of digital collage and illustration. The Spain-based artist blends humor, technology, science fiction and anonymous historical photography to create some really splendid digital imagery. You can see much more in his portfol

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And we have another great documentary short today. Meet Toronto-based artist Christine Kim whose recent artwork explores intersections between illustration, cut paper collage, and architecture. The video above is part 10 of an ongoing series of top-notch artist interviews conducted by filmmaker Jesse Brass called Making Art.

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Revelation: Cut Paper Collages and Illustrations by Christine Kim

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And we have another great documentary short today. Meet Toronto-based artist Christine Kim whose recent artwork explores intersections between illustration, cut paper collage, and architecture. The video above is part 10 of an ongoing series of top-notch artist interviews conducted by filmmaker Jess

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I am totally in awe of the detailed map collage work of Dallas, Texas artist Matthew Cusik.

Defacements are obsessively crafted amalgamations of word and image in the tradition of altered books and concrete poetry. The re-contextualization of image, word, and number creates a new storyline that is often in the spirit of a prankster student who has marked up a textbook with irreverent and provocative commentary.

His large-scale Bible work, Passages, is also something to behold. (via green chair press

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© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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I am totally in awe of the detailed map collage work of Dallas, Texas artist Matthew Cusik. Defacements are obsessively crafted amalgamations of word and image in the tradition of altered books and concrete poetry. The re-contextualization of image, word, and number creates a new storyline that is

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While primarily working as a landscape painter and art teacher, UK artist Jamie Poole was struck with the idea of deconstructing printed poems into individual words and using the text to create large scale portraits. The final pieces are quite large measuring several feet tall, allowing for excruciating detail in both line and shadow, as well as creating an intriguing hybrid of portraiture, typography, and collage. You can see more images of Jamie's work on his blog and in his Flickr stream. If you liked this, also check out the work of Evan Wondolowski and Lola Dupre. (via junk culture)

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© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Portraits Made of Shredded Poetry by Jamie Poole

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While primarily working as a landscape painter and art teacher, UK artist Jamie Poole was struck with the idea of deconstructing printed poems into individual words and using the text to create large scale portraits. The final pieces are quite large measuring several feet tall, allowing for excrucia

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Artist Ekaterina Panikanova creates densely layered paintings across large spreads of old books and other documents, resulting in artwork that blurs the lines between painting, installation and collage. Born in St. Petersburg in 1975 Panikanova graduated at the top of her class from the Academy of Fine Arts and was subsequently given a studio to work from for five years. She now lives and works in Rome. Much of what you see above was from her second ever solo show Un, due, tre, fuoco at z2o Galleria earlier this year, and if you'd like to see more, check out her website. (via this isn't happiness)

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© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Artist Ekaterina Panikanova creates densely layered paintings across large spreads of old books and other documents, resulting in artwork that blurs the lines between painting, installation and collage. Born in St. Petersburg in 1975 Panikanova graduated at the top of her class from the Academy of F

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Morgana Wallace ( previously) began making cut paper collages after her interest was sparked during a monotype session in printmaking class. Wallace was most attracted to the texture of cut paper compositions, especially with unique materials like wallpaper samples. Currently her work revolves around female heroines and mystical beasts, adding detail to her characters with banners and leaves that float around the subjects' heads and torsos.

Wallace often uses Japanese linen paper in her work because of her attraction to its texture, mixing it with Canson thin card stock to create her characters' flowing hair. Other materials used in her works include X-ACTO knives, water colors, gouache, and pencil crayons. To create depth and shadows she also uses foam board which adds to the painterly quality of her scenes.

Wallace is represented by Madrona Gallery in Victoria, British Columbia. You can see more cut paper collages on the gallery's artist page here.

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Mythical Cut Paper Collages by Artist Morgana Wallace

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Morgana Wallace (previously) began making cut paper collages after her interest was sparked during a monotype session in printmaking class. Wallace was most attracted to the texture of cut paper compositions, especially with unique materials like wallpaper samples. Currently her work revolves around

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Photographer Stephen McMennamy merges his original photography in humorous ways to create what he calls #ComboPhotos: two photos paired to create unexpected situations, usually involving huge constrasts in scale. Tractors and heavy machinery are turned into giant mechanisms for food delivery, while an ice cream cone becomes an actual snowy mountain top. McMennamy is also a creative director at BBDO Atlanta and you can see more of his work here. (via Colossal Submissions)

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© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Stephen McMennamy's #ComboPhoto Mashups Result in Humorous Juxtapositions

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Photographer Stephen McMennamy merges his original photography in humorous ways to create what he calls #ComboPhotos: two photos paired to create unexpected situations, usually involving huge constrasts in scale. Tractors and heavy machinery are turned into giant mechanisms for food delivery, while

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Cataloging the tools once used for the very same purpose, Augustine Kofie creates collages that utilize file folders, index cards, and steno notepads from the '50s through '80s that were found while scouring the contents of Los Angeles estate sales. Kofie chooses to compile vintage materials from before the dawn of the digital age, a time when data took up physical space rather than gigabytes on an external hard drive.

The desire for collecting these specific paper forms comes from his obsession with historical forms of organization, the physical pen-to-paper process of keeping information tidy. After building collages from the papers in various colors and weights, he utilizes ballpoint pen, silkscreen, and acrylic ink to draw shapes and lines over top. These resulting collages have an architectural appearance, built forms with interlocking lines that mimic the precision of a building's blueprint.

The Los Angeles-based artist merges his background in graffiti with interests in illustration and architecture to create work that references all three, focusing on form and line most intently in his compositions. Kofie's solo exhibition "INVENTORY" will be on display at Jonathan LeVine Gallery in New York from November 21st through December 19th 2015.

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Geometric Collages Created From Layers of Vintage File Folders and Index Cards

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Cataloging the tools once used for the very same purpose, Augustine Kofie creates collages that utilize file folders, index cards, and steno notepads from the '50s through '80s that were found while scouring the contents of Los Angeles estate sales. Kofie chooses to compile vintage materials from be

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In the 1910s, German artist and feminist Hannah Höch was the lone woman among Berlin's avant-garde Dada movement, the raucous group responsible for naming a men's urinal and turning it into one of the most influential artworks of the last century. Though she hung out with art stars like Piet Mondrian, they never quite saw her as an equal-artist Hans Richter once smugly dismissed her as "the girl who procured sandwiches, beer, and coffee, on a limited budget."

Well, Hans, flash-forward a century and this sandwich-procurer's Wikipedia bio is longer than yours, and her radical legacy is being honored in a major new exhibition at London's Whitechapel Gallery. It showcases over 100 works from the 1910s until her death at age 88 in the 1970s.

Höch has been called art's first punk-her strikingly contemporary-looking photomontage style wouldn't seem out of place on rock album covers. "Höch's work continues to inspire people," exhibition co-curator Daniel Herrmann tells Co.Design. "She is one of the most influential artists in the reconfiguration of mass media images and her work has never seemed more relevant. More than anything, her work after 1945 seems to ring a chord with contemporary artists. Its compositional skill and innovative attention to detail make it look incredibly fresh today."

She is one of the most influential artists in the reconfiguration of mass media images.

Hans Richter wasn't the only one who denigrated Höch: the Nazis shut down a planned 1932 retrospective of her photomontage, calling it "degenerate art." She eventually left Berlin for a suburb, where she hid out during WWII.

Höch was also a staunch feminist and an early supporter of reproductive rights, often marginalized for her manly dress and bisexuality. In her piece From an Ethnographic Museum, naked breasts paired with mustachioed tribal masks lambasted traditional sex roles in the Republic's repressive social climate.

Way ahead of her time, history has taken a while to catch up to her, but this exhibition helps destroy anything that's left of the "sandwich-procurer" reputation, securing her place in the pantheon of major 20th-century artists.

Hannah Höch is on view at the Whitechapel Gallery in London until March 23rd.

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The Best Of Hannah Hoch, Art's First Punk

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In the 1910s, German artist and feminist Hannah Höch was the lone woman among Berlin's avant-garde Dada movement, the raucous group responsible for naming a men's urinal and turning it into one of the most influential artworks of the last century.

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Bearden was also a respected writer and an eloquent spokesman on artistic and social issues of the day. Active in many arts organizations, in 1964 Bearden was appointed the first art director of the newly established Harlem Cultural Council, a prominent African-American advocacy group.

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Spanish artist Nuria Riaza uses bright blue ballpoint ink to create drawings of segmented faces and other surreal scenes, pieces that capture an expressive detail most would not associate with the everyday office supply. Riaza has been attracted to the medium since she was five or six, and fully dedicated herself to working with ballpoint pens since she was around 21-years-old.

The process is one of her favorite aspects of the medium, losing herself in the many hours it takes to finish each drawing. In addition to the blue ink, Riaza sometimes incorporates embroidery to give a warmth to the work, adding small details of gold or red thread to emphasize the surreal qualities of specific drawings. Despite branching out to experiment with other mediums, these elements are only ever a small part of her practice, ballpoint pen continuing to serve as her main inspiration.

"I recommend that you try and use the pen as something more than a writing tool-to eat it as if it were a toothpick, to make fake tattoos with it, to use them as rollers in your hair, and to draw a lot," says Riaza in her artist statement. "It's something almost therapeutic, like how people draw mandalas, and you learn that the mistakes are also beautiful on paper."

You can see more of her blue drawings and peaks into future projects on her Instagram. (via Creators Project)

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Surreal Drawings Created From Ballpoint Pen and Embroidery by Nuria Riaza

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Spanish artist Nuria Riaza uses bright blue ballpoint ink to create drawings of segmented faces and other surreal scenes, pieces that capture an expressive detail most would not associate with the everyday office supply. Riaza has been attracted to the medium since she was five or six, and fully ded

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When scouring through the minute details of artist Cayce Zavaglia's embroidered portraits ( previously), it's difficult imagine each work is scarcely larger than 8″ x 10″. Her process, which she refers to as both "thread painting" and "renegade embroidery," begins with a photoshoot of each subject, namely friends, family, and fellow artists. Roughly 100-150 photos are winnowed down to a single selection which she then begins to embroider with one-ply embroidery thread on Belgian linen. She shares via her artist statement:

Over the years, I have developed a sewing technique that allows me to blend colors and establish tonalities that resemble the techniques used in classical oil painting. The direction in which the threads are sewn mimic the way brush marks are layered within a painting which, in turn, allows for the allusion of depth, volume, and form. My stitching methodology borders on the obsessive, but ultimately allows me to visually evoke painterly renditions of flesh, hair, and cloth.

Zavaglia is also interested with the backs of her portraits, a tangled mesh of thread and knots resembling a more abstract version of the exacting portrait on the reverse. In a return to her roots as a painter, she creates gouache and large format acrylic paintings of the backsides, effectively creating a painting of an emboirdery of a photograph. Included here are several works from the last two years including works that will be on view at Art Miami this December through Lyons Wier Gallery. (via Booooooom)

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Thread Paintings: Densely Embroidered Portraits by Cayce Zavaglia

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When scouring through the minute details of artist Cayce Zavaglia's embroidered portraits (previously), it's difficult imagine each work is scarcely larger than 8″ x 10″. Her process, which she refers to as both "thread painting" and "renegade embroidery," begins with a photoshoot of each subject, n

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Self-taught embroidery artist Lauren Spark was asked by her mother to create an embroidery of Van Gogh's Starry Night. Over the next month, Spark spent almost 60 hours working on the piece, using the Google Cultural Institute's website to explore extremely high resolution views of the iconic painting to better mimic the strokes of paint, stitch by stitch (double-click the painting on Google's site, the level of detail is incredible). The final piece is a surprisingly faithful interpretation, full of motion and color much like the original.

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© 2010-2020 Colossal, all rights reserved. We try our best to attribute images, videos, and quotes to their creators and original sources. If you see something on Colossal that is misattributed or you would like removed, please contact us. Colossal participates in affiliate marketing programs and may earn a commission on sales through links to Etsy, Bookshop, Society6, and various book publishers.

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Van Gogh's 'Starry Night' Rendered in Thread by Lauren Spark

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Self-taught embroidery artist Lauren Spark was asked by her mother to create an embroidery of Van Gogh's Starry Night. Over the next month, Spark spent almost 60 hours working on the piece, using the Google Cultural Institute's website to explore extremely high resolution views of the iconic paintin

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i'm always jealous of emily barletta

Drawings? No. Prints? No. Embroidery on paper? Yes.

I think I've written about every series that New York based artist Emily Barletta has ever done. And every time I think "Wow. That's amazing. I can't get more jealous than this." ... and then, she gets me again. Look at this work?! Embroidery on paper. Crazy, detailed, meticulous, perfectly chosen bits of colored thread {how does she get them to almost fade in and out of each other?!} working together to create beautifully bizarre mounds and hills that make me say, "Wow. That's amazing. I can't get more jealous than this."
ps. Emily is one of the artists in my book, and I could not be more thrilled, and honored, that she is involved!

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The Jealous Curator /// curated contemporary art /// i'm always jealous of emily barletta

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i'm always jealous of emily barletta Drawings? No. Prints? No. Embroidery on paper? Yes. I think I've written about every series that New York based artist Emily Barletta has ever done. And every time I think "Wow. That's amazing. I can't get more jealous than this." ... and then, she gets me again.

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There are artists who when you see their work, you immediately know it's their work. And then there are other artists who constantly explore and experiment to the point there's a wonderful element of surprise for viewers: "Oh! She made that?"

Izziyana Suhaimi is one of those artists who's constantly evolving, and her portfolio is filled with discovery and experimentation. Certainly, her body of work is connected in the sense that each informs the next. But they're also wonderfully distinct from one another.

The fact Izziyana started her art journey as a photographer fuels the adventure. You'll read how her first foray into textile art involved stitching on her photographs. Then you'll learn how those early works became a springboard to exploring embroidery, weaving and developing large-scale installations.

Izziyana also provides an insider's look into how her Muslim faith informs her works, as well as some of her favorite chosen techniques.

Based in Singapore, Izziyana has been practising since 2008. She had her first solo show before the age of 30 at the FOST Gallery (Singapore) in 2015. She has also exhibited in the Singapore Art Museum, has worked with Hermes, and created artwork for the cover of Fashion Illustration Now published by Taschen.

Izziyana Suhaimi: Small studies of an everyday practice VI (Part of a series), 2014, 11 x 10 cm, Cotton thread, woven and embroidered

Stitching on paper
TextileArtist.org: What initially attracted you to textiles as a medium? How was your imagination captured?
Izziyana Suhaimi: I began working with textiles as a medium when I was at the School of Art, Design and Media at Nanyang Technological University (NTU). I was actually doing my degree in Photography, and one of our assignments was to explore other ways of translating an image. So, I chose to embroider on anatomical illustrations of the heart, and I just fell in love with it.

I loved the slowness of embroidery (though not so much now), the attention you need to give it, and the build-up of stitches to create varying textures. I also loved the action of punching a hole and then pulling the needle and thread through-the sound the action makes.

My first foray into textiles as a medium (embroidery specifically) began with stitching on paper instead of traditional cloth. I found it easier because I could easily draw, adjust and change my design on the paper itself while working. And I could combine it with pen/pencil and watercolor.

I would use a needle to punch a series of holes, giving me control over the length of stitch and where it would end up. It was very like drawing on paper but with thread.

Izziyana Suhaimi: I don't think it will ever stop feeling like this, 2008, 28 x 40 cm, Cotton thread embroidered on digital print on tracing paper

What or who were your early influences and how has your life/upbringing influenced your work?
I grew up in Singapore and have always lived there. Both of my grandmothers were embroiderers as a hobby. And my mom was good at sewing and made all of our clothes when we were kids.

When we had to pick universities after my A-Levels, I went to many open houses where I discovered Fine Arts courses. Something about doing a Fine Arts course really captured my imagination. I had always liked drawing and working with my hands, so I decided I would apply and see what happened.

But my early 'art education' was looking at photographs instead of traditional paintings or sculptures. I loved images that had a sense of mystery, something in between that you cannot quite describe but can clearly feel. And that's something I try to translate in my own work.

Sally Mann is a favourite photographer of mine. Her images have multiple narratives, yet you never know what's really going on. She manages to capture everyday scenes and familiar landscapes with a sense of magic and mystery in them, contrasting the familiar (usually associated with comfort) with something that kind of unsettles the viewer. It's so captivating.

In terms of my life and upbringing, religion also plays a big part in my work, especially now. It is not something immediately obvious, but the initial thoughts and concepts behind the work always go back to my Muslim identity.

For example, in my large weaving 'Waiting for the Northwesterly Winds,' that's a reference to Makkah, the most important holy site in Islam. The work was inspired by a prayer mat I used every day and was quite worn out. The woven piece was informed around ideas of prayer, of daily litanies, of longing for a place, and a very human desire to reach something higher, bigger, and greater.

Another concept I often think about in my art is 'time.' Time is God's creation. It is finite, and it behaves however God wills it to behave. In Islam, there is a concept of 'blessed time,' and this is what every Muslim tries to achieve. Not to waste time, but to have blessed time.

This makes me imagine time as something solid and tangible that can be shaped and worked with our hands. I first started exploring this idea in my series 'Making Working Time,' and I have been trying to express it ever since.

Izziyana Suhaimi: Reaching for equilibrium, 2013, 45 x 37 cm, Cotton thread; embroidered on watercolour paper

What was your route to becoming an artist?
Entertaining the thought of becoming an artist came quite late. After graduating from art school, I did not really fancy working a regular job in an office. I liked making with my hands, and I wanted to find a way to keep doing that, so I decided to try and find exhibitions in which to participate.

At first, I approached a store ( The Little Drom Store) whose 'feel' I liked and had a corner for exhibiting art. The owners like my work and were keen to show them in their space. That gave me a boost of confidence to keep making and showing. That led to more exhibits in other locations.

After my graduation show, I also managed to participate in a few group shows. Some were invitations from galleries and others were organized by friends.

It was definitely scary when I first started, and there is still a level of anxiety when I do shows now. There was much to learn in terms of installing my art, getting them framed, arranging pieces, etc. But you just learn as you go along. The more shows you do, the more you will learn what works best.

It took me a really long time to feel comfortable with being labelled as an 'artist.' I was so new in the art world, my art education started pretty late, and it had never crossed my mind to become an artist until later on in university.
'Artist' just seems so heavy. When you think of an artist, you think of the greats. You're waiting for an institution to label you as an artist.

But the more I work, the more it's become clear to me what I make is art. And the one who makes art is an artist. And ultimately, it's just a job title at the end of the day.

Izziyana Suhaimi: Voices of our hearts (in collaboration with inmates from the Changi Women's Prison), 2015, 100 x 100 cm, Variety of yarns; woven

Learning to weave
Tell us about your process from conception to creation
Often, I will already have an image in my head to work toward. It's sort of a backwards way to work because I have the final artwork in my head but don't quite know what it is about.

That's the hard part for me-to find the intention behind my work. But I work toward finding that out slowly.

Often when making the artwork, it is slowly uncovering the thought processes. It is like having a conversation with yourself-your inner voice. This relates to the concepts/ideas and intentions behind the work. The more time I spend making artwork, the more I uncover what I am trying to express in that work.

Izziyana Suhaimi: The loom in our bones, 2012, 20 x 30 cm, Cotton thread; embroidered on watercolour paper; pencil and watercolour

Tell us a bit about your chosen techniques and how you use them
At the moment, I am mostly working with hand embroidery and weaving (very simple weaving on a frame loom). Early in my career, I started with embroidering on paper and I loved how I could combine thread with drawing.

My favourite paper to embroider on is 300-gsm watercolour paper. I start off with a drawing, making a rough outline of where stitches will go. I then pre-punch holes using needles where I know I want the stitches to be, and then stitch accordingly. After the embroidery is complete, I add in any illustrations or watercolour.

But as I progressed, I wanted to make my own fabric to embroider on, and so I started weaving. At that time, weaving was gaining popularity over the Internet. I wanted to give it a go, so I did some research online.

I did not have the patience to find a proper weaving loom, so I just grabbed a small wooden frame (the kind used to stretch canvas), wound some threads around it to form the warp, and then started weaving!

I like combining the two in a single work. Weaving is much faster than embroidery, so I also like that aspect.

Izziyana Suhaimi: The birds gather for the homeless men (Detail), 2016, Diameter 80 cm, Cotton thread; embroidered and woven on wooden hoop

What currently inspires you?
I have been having a bit of trouble with inspiration at the moment. I feel like I am 'too inspired.' The Internet makes it so easy to find inspiration-works that make you say 'I wish I made that!'

I have to keep reminding myself to shut off all the noise, which basically means taking breaks from social media and spending some quiet time observing myself and my thoughts. It's really hard!

Everyone has their own way of doing 'me time.' For myself, I really need to be alone and focus on my work. (I have two small kids now, so this is nearly impossible).

I find that when I persevere with making (stitching, weaving, sketching ideas) even when I don't feel inspired, it really gives me clarity.

But I still spend way too much time on Pinterest!

Izziyana Suhaimi: Friends to keep you warm, 2012, 20 x 30 cm, Cotton thread; embroidered on watercolour paper; pen and watercolour

Finding the story
Tell us about a piece of your work that holds particularly fond memories and why?
Oh, this is hard! I really love the 'Friends to Keep You Warm' series I started in 2008. And I still think about bringing it back to this day. It's partly sentimental because those were my earlier works that received positive attention and that made me feel like 'yes, I can do this!'

The series is also reminiscent of a time when I did not think too much about concepts and theories. Instead, I was just making for the fun of it.

Izziyana Suhaimi: The loom in our bones (Detail), 2012, 20 x 30 cm, Cotton thread; embroidered on watercolour paper; pencil and watercolour

How has your work developed since you began and how do you see it evolving in the future?
The more works I make, the more I understand what my 'story' is about. Not necessarily completely, but with every work, I uncover the answer a bit more.

Every person has a story, and every story is different. And everyone's telling their story in a million different ways. I think life is like a journey in uncovering our stories.

Moving forward, I am looking to incorporate more sustainable and recycled materials in my work.

I would also like to try other techniques like natural dyeing.

Izziyana Suhaimi: Let's Make! (installation at Singapore Art Museum, in collaboration with the public), 2015, Variable dimensions, Variety of yarns; woven and embroidered

What advice would you give to an aspiring textile artist?
If you're just starting out, don't just wait around for galleries to find you. Organize shows with your friends, learn about the process of putting up exhibitions, and get creative finding funds. Approach any space that you find interesting and might be a good fit to exhibit your artwork. One at a time, they're all stepping stones to building your career.

And just begin! Don't think too much. Go make something you wish existed, and have fun.
For more information visit Have you stitched on photographs or other paper? Let us know about your experiences below. www.izziyanasuhaimi.com

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Izziyana Suhaimi: Finding one's own story to stitch - TextileArtist.org

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There are artists who when you see their work, you immediately know it's their work. And then there are other...

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"La Deriva del Gesto y la Forma"-Exposición Centro Cultural Valparaíso 2018

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The much-travelled artist Sarah Symes lived in London, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Vancouver before settling in Ottawa with her husband. Sarah studied Architecture at the prestigious University College London before training and working as a Graphic Designer.

She describes herself as a fearless creator making abstract textile art through a self-discovered process. Having exhibited in the USA, Canada and Europe, Sarah's honours include the prestigious 'Best of Show' award at the 2007 Los Angeles Art Association exhibition.

In our interview with Sarah she tells us why the LA lifestyle led her to a career as an artist and why being both business-minded and creative is just part of the job.

The limitations of the medium
What initially captured your imagination about textile art?
I was 10 years old and standing in a school classroom. We were asked to make a picture using scissors, glue and fabric scraps. I spent the afternoon excitedly cutting and sticking a vast collage of colours and shapes.

Looking back on that day, I was captivated by the same thing that captivates me today - the limitations of the medium. Where a set of paints offers limitless possibilities, a pile of fabric does not. I enjoy the challenge of making fabrics work together and find reward in the creativity this inspires.
What or who were your early influences and how has your life/upbringing influenced your work?
My earliest influence was my Dad. He is an architect and painter and he always brought home the best quality art materials. He taught me to treasure them as the valuables they were and when we did art together it was always the real thing - other kids did craft projects, but we were making art.

My life path has had an enormous influence on my work. I have lived in London, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Vancouver and now Ottawa. All that moving around has brought about significant changes to my outlook on life and art. If I try and summarise how these many experiences have influenced my work, I would say this: My career as a graphic designer has evolved alongside my textile art and gives me an invaluable edge in presenting and promoting my work. Living away from family and friends has forced me to be self-sufficient and become my own worst critic and greatest champion. Moving house 20 odd times has forced me to adapt to working anywhere and this has made me comfortable with change, not just in my changing studio space, but also in my changing mindset.

Sometimes bad things happen in life and they help put creative challenges in perspective - I am now a fearless creator and I believe that I can make anything. When a client recently approached me to make a very large textile piece ( Dreamcatcher), I eagerly accepted the challenge. As expected, it was physically demanding and I had to adapt my technique to cope with the size and weight of the fabric, but it worked out really great in the end.
What was your route to becoming an artist?
At school, I excelled in art classes despite the pressures of a highly academic school system. I worked hard to get good grades across all subjects and went on to study Architecture at the prestigious University College London. I became increasingly dissatisfied with the highly conceptual teaching methods and quit the course to train as a Graphic Designer. I worked as a designer for the next five years, only making textile art occasionally at evenings and weekends.

When I moved to Los Angeles in 2005 the Californian lifestyle opened my mind to a career as an artist. In 2006 I made a large textile piece and had it stretched on a frame. Driven to do more, I spent 6 months devoted to making the 20 pieces that would become my 2007 Beach Series. A local gallery liked my work and starting exhibiting me and soon after that I made my first sale. Since then, I have called myself a professional artist.

An improvised process
What is your chosen medium and what are your techniques?
My medium is textiles. My self-discovered process is the result of many years developing skills and techniques with fabric. Each piece begins as a sketched idea. I select quality fabrics and carefully pre-wash and hand dye each piece as needed. The fabric is then cut into squares or strips and stitched together using a sewing machine. It's an improvised process, more like painting or collage than traditional textile work, enabling the gradual build up of colour and texture. The finished piece is stretched over a wooden frame and completed with a hanging wire. Each piece is a unique, gallery-quality work of art.
How would you describe your work and where do you think it fits within the sphere of contemporary art?
I describe my work as abstract textile art. My work has hung in fine art galleries alongside paintings and sculptures. I was the only textile artist in the 2007 Los Angeles Art Association show and I won 'Best of Show'. Gallery owners and collectors wouldn't hang my textile art unless I presented myself as a fine artist.
Tell us a bit about your commission process?
I begin the process with a phone call to get a detailed brief from the client. Then I sketch some ideas and mock up detailed room views of the proposed artwork in location. At this design stage, I also send out a cost sheet, so that the client can make a decision based on design and cost. When the design is confirmed, I will begin making the textile piece. During the making process, I send daily photos to involve the client in the process and give them the opportunity to see it coming together. My making time depends on size and complexity. I seek final approval before stretching it.

Demanding and exhausting
What currently inspires you and which other artists do you admire and why?
I am currently inspired by my trip to the Rocky Mountains in October 2013 and my time spent in Cuba in June 2014. I am developing work inspired by both of these experiences. The artists I most admire are Rothko for his emotional multi-forms and Klee for his deceptively simple abstract compositions.
Tell us about a piece of work you have fond memories of and why?
I don't have fond memories of my own work. They are rarely a pleasure to make. The creative process is demanding and exhausting and I am always happy to walk away from them when they let me go.
How has your work developed since you began and how do you see it evolving in the future?
Over the years, my process has become more about the end result and less about the technique. I've learnt to let go of my own rules and stay focused on my vision for the work. There is no fast track to making great art, you just have to put in the time.

Finding a balance
What advice would you give to an aspiring textile artist?
Stay true to your vision for your art career and don't get distracted. Distractions come in many guises.

Say yes to every reasonable request.

Make a good website.

Graciously accept compliments and forget them. Graciously accept negative comments and remember them.

Don't give up.
You seem to be very business-minded as well as extremely creative; how do you find that balance, what are your top tips for creating art to sell and what are your most effective promotional tools?
Being business-minded and creative is just part of the job. Being a professional artist means running a business. The internet has opened up a whole new art world and artists and buyers have never been more connected. Every artist must find a balance between making art and promoting art that doesn't erode their creative process. I find writing blog posts tedious and repetitive, but I enjoy sharing quick Instagram snaps.

My top tips for creating art to sell are these:

Don't waste your time on expensive art prints or reproductions. The art galleries often push for this. The unique beauty of textile art can rarely be captured in a photograph and it's better to spend your time and energy on original work.

Don't over-price your work. Understand that sales are key to your success.

Don't spend more time promoting your art than making it.

Buy art. Know how it feels to be an art buyer.

Be open to finding another source of income. Selling art is hard. Months away from making textile art won't affect your career, as long as you make art as often as you can. Time away might even improve your work.

My most effective promotional tools are my website, my Etsy shop and the art galleries that hang my work. In that order. This generates interest and I get invitations to do interviews and shows which further promote my work. Additional to this, I have an Instagram feed, a Facebook page and a Pinterest account.

The challenge of making do
What piece of equipment or tool could you not live without?
Nothing. I thrive on the challenge of making do. It's definitely a condition I have developed from moving around so much! I have many times lived without all my sewing equipment for months on end and it didn't stop me creating.
How do you go about choosing where to show your work?
Primarily, I show my work on sarahsymes.com because it receives more visits in one day that a gallery would in a month. I also choose to showcase my work on Etsy, Pinterest and Instagram because these platforms all have strong artistic communities and an interface that presents images beautifully.

In the real world, it's not so easy. There are not many art galleries open to textile art submissions. I have been lucky to find a few who are and I'm very thankful for their support. I still hold fast to my dream of one day having a solo show.
Where can readers see your work this year ?
All of my work is on sarahsymes.com and for anyone in Canada, my work is currently on exhibition at the Orange art gallery in Ottawa.
For more information please visit: sarahsymes.com
If you've enjoyed this interview with Sarah then please let s know by leaving a comment below

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Sarah Symes: A self-discovered process - TextileArtist.org

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The much-travelled artist Sarah Symes lived in London, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Vancouver before settling in Ottawa with her husband. Sarah studied Architecture at the prestigious University College London before training and working as a Graphic Designer. She describes herself as a fearless creator making abstract textile art through a self-discovered process.

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JamesFox | Textile and Fabric Artist Based in Lancaster

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In an attempt to subvert traditional embroidery culture, Lithuanian artist Severija Inčirauskaitė-Kriaunevičienė applies standard floral and decorative patterns found in embroidery magazines to metallic objects like plates, spoons, lamps and even car doors. The juxtaposition of functional objects emblazoned with traditional textile work is certain unexpected and little amusing, an aspect Severija further illustrates with some of her more humorous pieces depicting cigarette butts embroidered at the base of a tin can, or the skewed reflection of a person's mouth on the edge of a spoon. From an essay on her work by Dr. Jurgita Ludavičienė:

Employing irony, Severija conceptually neutralizes the harmfulness of kitsch's sweetness and sentimentality. Irony emerges in the process of drawing inspiration from the postwar Lithuanian village, with which artists have lost connection today, or from the destitute Soviet domestic environment, which women were trying to embellish with handicrafts, no matter what kind of absurd forms it would take. The intimacy of indoors freed from all tensions is the essence of coziness, that is crystallized in Severija's works as cross stitch embroidery on various household utensils not intended for it.

You can see much more of her embroidery work right here.

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Ornate Embroidery Patterns Stitched into Metallic Objects

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In an attempt to subvert traditional embroidery culture, Lithuanian artist Severija Inčirauskaitė-Kriaunevičienė applies standard floral and decorative patterns found in embroidery magazines to metallic objects like plates, spoons, lamps and even car doors.

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, S14
2014
full figure: 31″ x 9″ x 12″, squirrel: 4″ x 3″ x 8.5″

merino wool, silk, cotton and tulle fabrics, cotton and waxed linen thread, acorns, beach glass, tubing, repurposed colander, stainless steel wire, cotton fill; naturally dyed silks, wet felted, free-motion machine embroidered, hand stitched construction

photo credit: Steve Mann

commissioned by Sharon Nugent

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A Journey, S14 2014 full figure: 31″ x 9″ x 12″, squirrel: 4″ x 3″ x 8.5″ merino wool, silk, cotton and tulle fabrics, cotton and waxed linen thread, acorns, beach glass, tubing, repurposed colander, stainless steel wire, cotton fill; naturally dyed silks, wet felted, free-motion machine embroidered, hand stitched construction photo credit: Steve Mann [...]

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Surreal felt sculptures by contemporary artist Zoë Williams.

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Set designer and artist Raquel Rodrigo brings the macro details of cross-stitch embroidery to building facades around Madrid. Her colorful installations are prepared beforehand with enlarged cross-stitch techniques utilizing thick string wrapped on wire mesh before each is unrolled and affixed to a surface. The decorative pieces create a fun, pixelated texture that looks completely different close up versus at a distance. You can see much more here. (via Lustik)

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Floral Cross-Stitch Street Installations by Raquel Rodrigo

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Set designer and artist Raquel Rodrigo brings the macro details of cross-stitch embroidery to building facades around Madrid. Her colorful installations are prepared beforehand with enlarged cross-stitch techniques utilizing thick string wrapped on wire mesh before each is unrolled and affixed to a

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When Adrian Brandon starts to color a portrait, he sets a timer. For his rendering of Breonna Taylor, the clock is set to 26 minutes-for George Floyd, 46 minutes, for Tony McDade, 38, and for Aiyana Stanley Jones, just seven. "When the alarm sounds, I am hit with a wave of emotions ranging from anger, to deep sadness, to hopelessness, to feeling lucky that I am still here," he says.

The Brooklyn-based artist is working on Stolen, a series of partially filled-in depictions of Black people murdered by police. Each portrait remains incomplete as Brandon only colors one minute for each year of the subject's life before it was cut short. "Aside from being able to give the viewer a visual of the various ages affected by police violence, the timer creates a lot of anxiety for me as the artist," he says, wondering, "'When is the timer going off?' 'Will I be able to finish this eye?' 'Damn, I haven't even gotten to the lips yet.'" In a note to Colossal, Brandon expanded on the project:

Although this anxiety may seem minor in that the consequences for me are very low, it does really have an effect on me. Anxiety is a feeling that black people are far too familiar with, and to experience that feeling while illustrating these portraits allows each piece to feel like a performance. A lot of Black people are forced to live with this anxiety and accept it as part of our every day. But these feelings build up and are exhausting. I shouldn't have to do a prayer every time I see police pursuing a Black person in the streets. I shouldn't feel anxious when the police are talking to a person of color. I shouldn't feel so damn anxious that I remove my hat and jewelry when the cops pull me over. I shouldn't feel so anxious that I would second guess calling the police if I ever needed to. This series is pulling me in, in ways that art has never done.

Brandon has been sharing deeper insights behind the portraits, in addition to timelapse videos, on Instagram. (via Kottke)

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In Artist Adrian Brandon's Incomplete Portraits, A Year of Life Equals One Minute of Color

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When Adrian Brandon starts to color a portrait, he sets a timer. For his rendering of Breonna Taylor, the clock is set to 26 minutes-for George Floyd, 46 minutes, for Tony McDade, 38, and for Aiyana Stanley Jones, just seven.

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Look closer

The British Library is an installation artwork by Yinka Shonibare. An installation is an artwork that is so big you might need to walk through it. Usually it is made for a specific place.

This installation is a library made up of over 6,000 books covered in fabric. This fabric is brightly coloured and Shonibare uses it a lot in his work. It is called 'Dutch wax print' and it has a complicated history.

In The British Library, Shonibare printed people's names in gold on some of the books. They are all first or second generation immigrants to Britain. An immigrant is someone who has left one country to live in another.

Shonibare chose to add the names of famous footballers and authors, as well as people who are not well known.

If you were in the installation you might see some names you recognise! There is also a table with tablets. If you visit the artwork you can read more about the stories of the people whose names are printed on the books. You can also use the tablets to submit your own personal history for people to read.

What do you think?

The books in the library represent many different family histories. This artwork asks us to think about all the families who have come to Britain. Why did they come? It could be big reasons (like the economy or politics or war) affecting the country they are leaving, or more personal reasons to do with their family.

This work makes us think about identity. What does it mean to be British? How can we celebrate the importance of immigrants to British society? Who writes our collective history down? What stories should we keep in a library? Is a library the best place to keep our history?

What do you think? Don't worry if you don't have all the answers.

This artwork is definitely meant to make you think, and the questions it asks us to consider are not always easy!

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Look closer The British Library is an installation artwork by Yinka Shonibare. An installation is an artwork that is so big you might need to walk through it. Usually it is made for a specific place. This installation is a library made up of over 6,000 books covered in fabric.