Archive for July, 2010
Caroline Wright is a painter, a cellist, and a yoga instructor who creates dreamy paintings.
“In art, as in life, I am interested in slowing down. Finding vitality in stillness, calm in tumult. Colors unwind at a specific tempo, and the work reveals itself when the viewer walks around inside at a leisurely pace.”—Caroline Wright
[ via carolinewrightart.com ]
Michael Aldana works in acrylic and gouache to create his large-scale, abstract compositions.
“Recently my art works have been attempts to grapple with the issue of coastal erosion in South Louisiana. Louisiana is losing land at a rate of a football field every 35 minutes. This is primarily due to the erosion happening along the coast as oil and gas companies have dug canals in their exploration of this oil rich region. The salt water moves in the man made canals and destroys the wetlands further inland, causing vegetation to die, and in turn, causing the land to erode. Before Katrina, I hadn’t thought much about the prospects of losing the land and the culture with which I grew up. After being a part of Katrina and her aftermath, I see just how serious the issue is, and my work since has been aimed at bringing Louisiana’s plight to light.” —Michael Aldana
[ via michaelaldana.com ]
Los Angeles native Jeff Nishinaka is a paper crafting genius, having worked in paper for the last 28 years. His impressive paper sculptures appear in a wide array of commercial work for clients such as Bloomingdale’s, Visa, Penn State University, Paramount Pictures, Coca-Cola, Mattel, Sprint, and the Peninsula Hotel.
“I have always wanted to be a painter, but while studying illustration at Art Center, I was given assignments in both a graphic design and fashion drawing class at the same time to experiment in different mediums, one of them being paper. That was my ‘Ah-ha!’ moment. I quickly developed a feel for working with paper. From then on, I began experimenting with different papers, finding ways to shape, bend, and round edges on it. I wanted to manipulate paper in the least invasive way, to keep the integrity and feel of it. Paper to me is a living, breathing thing that has a life of it’s own. I just try to redirect that energy into something that feels animated and alive.”—Jeff Nishinaka
[ via jeffnishinaka.com and papercrave.com ]
Perhaps the work of painter and illustrator Brooke Reidt looks familiar to you? If you were a fan of Dollhouse, the two-season hit drama by famed Buffy creator Joss Whedon, you would have noticed Brooke’s work in an episode about a Los Angeles-based painter named Priya. A graduate of Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, Brooke’s beautiful paintings have a whimsical, organic feel to them.
[ via brookereidt.com ]
Okay, I’m not usually one to talk about time spent in the bathroom. However, I just have to make an exception for the über-luxe guest bathrooms at the St. Regis hotel in Beijing. Alright, I’m not actually just talking about the bathrooms, although the designer bath and body products, fresh flowers, and flat screen television in the mirror are certainly nice. What I’m really dying to tell you about is the toilet!
Meannorth is the brand of Naja Conrad-Hansen, an artist living and working in Copenhagen, Denmark. Having studied visual communication in college, Naja also works as a freelance designer and her work spans both design and fine art.
“Inspiration comes equally from the worlds of fashion, hardcore music, and traditional art and design and in general observing the world…finding some untouched areas of the mind and stimulating the eye and imagination.”
—Naja Conrad-Hansen
[ via MeanNorth.com ]
The Octonauts are a series of beautifully illustrated children’s books filled with the most adorable, round underwater characters, and fantastical ocean imagery. The brainchild of Vicki Wong and Michael Murphy, aka Meomi, the Octonauts website is super cute as well, with animated sea creatures and fun “octogoodies” like coloring pages and desktop wallpapers.
Hong Kong artist Danny Lee Chin-fai’s three-piece sculpture titled Dance of Clouds and Rain is an awe-inspiring, elemental sight to behold, housed in the skyward-sweeping lobby of the Grande Hyatt Macau. Composed of giant suspended raindrops and water rivulets spilling from clouds in the ceiling, Danny’s pieces sway slightly in the breeze, the soft curves of these stunning show-stoppers dangling harmoniously amongst a sea of geometric modernism.
I adore Frida Kahlo. She was such an amazing artist and person. She was born on this day in 1907, so technically speaking, today is her birthday. You’ll notice the tribute to her on Google’s home page today. Click here to read more about Frida.
You know fine art has entered a new age when artists are painting from live models on their iPads. Without spending a dime on paint or art supplies, you can now paint away in the studio, with the option to undo any mistake you make. Wow.
Using the Brushes app on the iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch, you can paint on the go with a full digital toolkit that includes a color picker, digital brushes, layers, transparencies, and zooming capabilities. Plus Brushes will record every stroke you make, which you can later export as a QuickTime movie, like the one at the end of the video above. Revolutionary!
