Category: Art & Design

October 6 2016

Start Collecting Limited Edition Prints at Twyla

If you’re in the market to buy art, but you don’t want to buy a cheap print and you can’t afford something from Sotheby’s, check out the new website Twyla. The company takes all the hassle out of buying limited edition prints: they’ve hired a team of expert curators who have selected 300 pieces from 80 well-known artists from around the world whose works can be found at the Whitney, the Guggenheim, and the MoMa. Worried about framing? Each item arrives at the buyer’s home framed and protected in a sturdy box designed for Twyla by an aerospace engineer. For $150, Twyla can even send expert a gallery-trained handler to install the print on your wall, or you can install it yourself using a special “welcome kit” that Twyla created.

After perusing their site, I came across a lot of pretty artworks. Take a look yourself and then tell me what you think.

Above: Arno Elias, Elephant Rainbow

Warren Neidich, Skirting the Half Truths of our Love Drained

Marina Vernicos, Milos

Miya Ando, Bodhi Leaf Mandala (pink)

Miya Ando, “Obon” (The return of the spirits 2), floating phosphorescent Bodhi Leaves in a pond

Marina Vernicos, Sifnos

Peter Ruehle, Abstract Landscape 16

via Fast Company

Art & Design

October 5 2016

Burning Man’s Full Scale Humpback Whale in Steel and Stained Glass

At this year’s Burning Man, one of the most spectacular art pieces was the Space Whale, a monumental stained glass and steel sculpture consisting of two humpback whales. A mother is diving down to the Earth’s surface supported by her calf. The sculpture evokes the dynamic bond between child and parent and the intrinsic need to preserve our planet. At 50-feet-tall, the pair was a sight to behold.

I love that 3,200 stained glass panels were used to create this magnificent piece. Not only could you see this sculpture, you could hear it, too. It sang whale songs at the same frequency and decibel level as real whales, creating an ethereal experience for the visitor. The idea was executed by The Pier Group, an international collective of artists and builders led by Matthew Schultz as well as Android Jones, a “digital painter.”

Photographer Cliff Baise said this about his experience: “Every angle of this incredible sculpture was a treat to behold. I saw it utilized for meditation as well as serving as a backdrop for many weddings. In addition to the twinkling led’s, a beautiful whale song would resonate from within. Matthew, Android, and the rest of the Pier Group did such an amazing job. Appreciation is the name of the game. Realizing that every moment is fleeting and taking the time to stop and wonder, and give gratitude is key.”

Art & Design

September 28 2016

Inspiring Quotes by Elizabeth Gilbert

My team at @riverheadbooks came to my kitchen today to cook a celebratory meal for the paperback release of #bigmagic . They're making a FEAST. And this is me, pretending that I know how to help. ("How do you make a stir?") #bigmagic #riverheadtable

A photo posted by Elizabeth Gilbert (@elizabeth_gilbert_writer) on Sep 27, 2016 at 1:27pm PDT

The author of Eat Pray Love just came out with a paperback version of another one of her books, Big Magic. Popsugar had the opportunity to ask her a few questions about creativity. Here are a few Q&As that I liked. You can read the rest, here.

On Who Inspires Her
“I tend to be interested in people who are doing some of the most varied things with their lives, who reject the cult of specialization and sometimes even reject the cult of professionalism and try lots of different stuff because they’re not afraid to follow the scavenger hunt that their curiosity [takes them on].”

On Getting Over a Creativity Slump
“The work wants to be made and it wants to be made through you.”

On the Magic of Inspiration
“Inspiration is not your slave and it’s not your master, but it’s a partner.”

Art & Design

September 27 2016

Floral Cross-Stitch Street Art Pops Up in Madrid

I love any type of art that makes you stop and stare. That’s what this floral cross-stitch street art, by set designer and artist Raquel Rodrigo, does for me. How does she make this? Enlarged cross-stitch techniques utilizing thick string is wrapped on wire mesh before it is unrolled and affixed to surfaces. The cross-stitch appears like small pixels. From up close you can’t quite tell what you’re looking at but from far away, you notice the floral designs. Who would have thought to combine cross-stitch with street art? How creative and beautiful.

via [Colossal, Lustik, My Modern Met]

Art & Design

September 23 2016

Fun Links of the Week

It was a tough week. I was out for two days, feeling a bit under the weather. Got lots of sleep but felt very bad that the site was silent. I promise, I’ll be up and rearing to go next week!

This weekend, I’m meeting up with some girlfriends in Los Angeles for a bachelorette party. All girls, should be a blast.

A new book showcases the work of Vogue’s influential creative director, Grace Coddington. (You can buy it, here.)

Curing every disease is a crazy goal, but it’s one worth shooting for.

Does he deserve to be on the cover of TIME?

Never lose anything of importance again? Sold!

One of my favorite photographers just got a tattoo of his son’s name. Sweet.

The talent! Like these fungi and floral sculptures produced from recycled paper by Kate Kato.

I heart minimalist watches.

Stop painting your furniture – bleach it instead.

Made me laugh. What animals would look like if they had eyes at the front?

Love these delicately beautiful tattoos by South Korean artist Hongdam. (The whale’s tail!)

Think you’d have the guts to participate in this?

11 days to go on Kickstarter. Still contemplating whether or not I should back this project.

Photo: Kate Moss in Alexander McQueen, shot by Tim Walker/Condé Nast Publications

Art & Design

September 21 2016

Black Marble Table Ripples Like the Sea

Currently on view at the Victoria and Albert Museum as part of the London Design Festival, Mathieu Lehanneur presents a spectacular Liquid Marble table. Located in the V&A’s ornate Norfolk House Music Room, the table evokes a surreal vision of the sea, mimicking the look and feel of rippling water. Made of a single piece of hand-polished black marble, and designed using advanced 3D movie-making software, Liquid Marble reproduces the visual effect of a sea surface, gently touched by the wind. The structure reflects and distorts itself, and the intense black of the marble accentuates the color of the ocean as if it were fossilized in stone.

“I was inspired by the contrast between the deep silence of Liquid Marble and the luxurious decor of the Norfolk House Music Room, where the most beautiful symphonies were hosted,” stated Mathieu Lehanneur.

How I’d love to have this table inside my house!

Art & Design

September 21 2016

London’s “Smile” Structure Breaks New Ground

Currently on display at the Chelsea College of Art and Design as part of this year’s London Design Festival, The Smile is an impressive 34-meter long by 3.5-meter high (111.5 feet by 11.5 feet) rectangular tube that looks like a huge Chesire cat grin. It was created by Alison Brooks Architects in collaboration with Arup. Viewers are encouraged to wander through the hollowed interior and then walk up either of the two ramps which lead to open apertures with views of the sky.

What makes this structure so unique is that it’s the most complex structure ever to be made out of cross-laminated timber (CLT). As CNN states, “The Smile is an experimental building — part pavilion, part sculpture — designed to showcase the structural and spatial potential of a material that could transform the way architects and engineers approach timber construction.”

In essence, The Smile represents one of the most important developments in a decade of research into structural timber innovation.

Steel and concrete have been used as structural materials in buildings for centuries, the construction of this structure makes it a possibility that buildings could, one day, also be completely fabricated out of wood. CLT lends itself to prefabrication, it can be cut precisely in a factory and is easily assembled on site.

If you’re in London, you can see The Smile through October 12th.

Art & Design

September 16 2016

Fun Links of the Week

What are you up to this weekend? I’m attending a friend’s wedding in San Diego tonight. Can’t wait to catch up with old friends.

Fascinating read on creativity.

This weekend, Bill Murray is working at a bar in Brooklyn. Who wants to go?

Ellen + Michelle Obama = Hilarious!

I don’t own an instant camera but, after spotting this one, that may change. (Also eyeing this one.)

Art doesn’t get much more beautiful than a stained glass whale.

Can you imagine if you had a teacher who could do this?

Those chunky blankets look heavenly. (Go female entrepreneurs!)

Can the selfie generation unplug and appreciate national parks?

He’ll always be one of my favorite artists. (That waterfall!)

I’m really trying to get into this. (For my own sanity.) Liked the simple video, bought the book.

Mark your calendars! An epic Vincent van Gogh exhibition opens in Australia on April 28, 2017. (Check out that cool recreation.)

Astronomy lovers! Here are some out-of-the-ordinary images that pushed the boundaries of photography.

This photographer makes Japan at night look like something out of a dream.

I’d like to design my house with a color palette in mind. (Good idea: Ground it with neutrals.)

Hidden rooms?! Ok, now you’ve got my attention.

As a person who loves design, I must go to this festival (one day).

Newly renovated, Bergdorf Goodman courts the ladies who Instagram. (The place is pretty!)

Photo: Dani Caxete took Man on the Moon, using a telescope as his friend posed on Pena Munana, in Cadalso de los Vidrios, Spain.

Art & Design

September 14 2016

Papercraft Sculptures: Rainbow Birds in Flight

My favorite online art store, The Colossal Shop, just added a new product and I’m in love with it! Called Rainbow Birds in Flight Papercraft Kit, by Paperwolf, it’s a series of seven colorful birds that you have to put together yourself. The DIY kit comes flat, with pre-cut and scored pieces, as well as an instruction manual, for you to build your own birds. Make sure you have some time on your hands, though. It takes about one hour to construct each bird.

About the creator: “Based in Stuttgart, Germany, Paperwolf is run by Wolfram Kampffmeyer. Wolfram started the business in 2010 as a side project to his computer animation career, and he continually adds animals to the lively menagerie.” (I love the fox and the eagle owl, too.)

I love how the birds look like they’re in the midst of flying. What beautiful sculptural pieces to hang on your wall.

Inside of my house I have all white walls. I prefer to have my colors come from art or home accessories, like pillows. These would be perfect!

Art & Design

September 12 2016

Artistically Enhanced Images of the Rocky Mountains

I came across this series called Emergence, by Brooklyn-based artist Mark Dorf, and was immediately struck by its beauty. Shot in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, Dorf combines photography and digital media in a harmonious way. I love the colors he uses, especially when he takes part of an image and selectively enhances it.

Dorf uses landscapes as a point of departure to analyze how new media technology has altered the ways in which we understand and think about the natural world.

As he explains, “Emergence repeatedly highlights the hyper-focal quality of science and the simultaneous representation of a single subject in multiple ways: photographs with pixels re-ordered by hue and saturation placed on top of the source image, landscapes split into planes representing measured division of space, and images taken from a single valley that were then rearranged to create the form of a fictional and abstracted mountain.”

It’s a beautiful and different way to appreciate nature. The graphic design/nature/photography-loving part of me finds this series refreshing and unique.

You can buy the book Emergence Volume I, which is limited to 150 copies, at In The In-Between. Each copy is individually signed and numbered by the artist. I want a print of one of these (or maybe even several) to hang on my wall.

From Mark Dorf’s series Emergence

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