Happy Valentine's Day

Here's a virtual Valentine for all of you! This year I decided to paint my V-Day cards after being inspired by Merrilee and her son and their fantastic color theory project. I think these are my best DIY Valentines yet.


All images by Maureen Price. Please do not use without permission.

Marbled

Paper marbling is just so cool. It's one of those things I've always thought I could really get into but have just never gotten around to the finding all of the necessary supplies (and teaching myself). I love how random and somewhat unpredictable the results can be. Marbling can produce some very organic and complex images. It often ends up looking like something under a microscope. If I ever have a little studio space then I'll definitely be giving it a try.


Image by Lulu Wolf

Gone painting...

I've been working on a little painting project lately. It's taking a lot longer than I planned (always does) but I hope it's worth it. It's a good practice in terms of meditation, patience, and letting go. Maybe I'll take a few pictures before my little paintings go through the mail...


Image by Suzanna Scott | Check out her shop!

Old School Alice

I've been re-reading Alice in Wonderland lately and remembering how much I enjoy the humor. I'm thinking about going back and reading some of the novels I was assigned in high school as I know I'll have a completely different experience with them now. I came across this footage from the first film adaptation of Alice in Wonderland which was released in 1903. Time hasn't been good to the film but it has some pretty impressive (for the time) special effects when Alice shrinks and grows. If you're a fan of Alice then I'd say it's definitely worth a watch! Here's a bit more information on the history of this little film. I love how quirky it is!




Image by John Tenniel

Orange

I was really drawn to bright oranges, yellows, and reds today for some reason (out of character for me).


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1 Artist / 1 Piece: Joseph Cornell

Oh, Joseph Cornell. I've been an admirer of his since I was in high school. I actually went through a "Cornell Phase" which involved searching flea markets for vintage boxes and bits of interesting randomness to make pieces in a similar style. Those boxes are still taking up space in my parent's house. Cornell is a curious character. He never had any formal art training. He was more of a collector. A collector with a fantastic imagination and an eye for piecing together the most beautiful creations. Poems in a box.


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Sleek

I've been meaning to do a post on Joe Cariati's gorgeous hand-made glass. He had a booth at Dwell on Design so I got to see some of his work in person and let me tell you...it's stunning. The colors are so vibrant and the pieces have exquisite lines. Joe is based here in Los Angeles so it's nice to feature local folks. He makes every single piece by hand using a Venetian off-hand glassblowing technique. Joe says, "I'm not a 'fussy' glass blower, I cannot stand spending time on surface decoration or frilly techniques. For me, the purity and essence of the process of glassblowing is immediate, there is a sense of urgency, the glass must be blown while it's hot! There are no breaks, there is no time to rest, no lull. My approach is to craft the glass quickly and efficiently; clean, pure, simple and beautiful." Check out his website to see more and feel free to buy me a decanter while you're there. *Wink*


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Costume History: Disney Style

Illustrator Claire Hummel has taken it upon herself to add a wee bit of historical accuracy to some of the most popular Disney heroines. Granted, many of the originals weren't too terribly far off the historical track in terms of costume design but there was definitely some room for improvement. I thought this was such a cool project but I'll fall all over myself for anything that glorifies historical accuracy. While Claire's renderings are still extremely stylized in that Disney sort of way (with a dash of artistic license), I think they are certainly more interesting than the originals.



Originally found here

Emerald City

I've been on an emerald green kick lately. Anyone out there in the midst of a color obsession?
PS: I don't know about you, but I would definitely wear this cloche. Check out the millinery shop here!


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1 Artist / 1 Piece: Alison Dunlop

As a fan of abstract watercolor, I am completely drawn to Alison's Inner Sound series. She describes the series and her process on her website, "This series of watercolours, begun earlier this year in my new studio at the edge of the sea, is my attempt to find an equivalent in paint for the experience of looking out beyond my studio windows to the seas of the Inner Sound and the Minch. In all of these recent watercolours, with this new reality of sea and sky through my windows, the images are becoming more and more abstract, more pared-down, re-defined and it seems, paradoxically, more REAL. The process of pressing forward with this series, not knowing what the next piece will bring, where it will take me, has taken on an energy of its own. Each piece seems to grow out of the previous one(s), to teach the eye and the hand something new and to give a renewed sense of boldness and vigour. To let the hand, the pigment, the paper and the water act in unison, giving form to my inner experience of the drama unfolding
beyond my window...." I think that says it all! Beautiful. Have a look at the rest of the series and Alison's wonderful realism portfolio.

James Nares

What can I say? I love the work of James Nares. I've included the picture of him working in his studio so you can see how he creates these paintings...suspended in mid air (!). Too cool...


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Letterpress class!

I'm pretty excited to take my first letterpress class today! Just wanted to gather up a little inspiration and a few cool videos. I'll report back after the class tonight. I can't wait to see what we'll get to make!


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No clue what any of this is about? Here's a great instructional video from Naomie Ross:

Letterpress from Naomie Ross on Vimeo.

...and another fun one from Egg Press in Portland, OR:

Egg Press Letterpress Video from Pressing Letters on Vimeo.

1 Artist / 1 Piece: Vasily Kandinsky

Ahh, I completely forgot that yesterday was Friday. I've had a weird schedule this week. So, here's 1 Artist / 1 Piece a wee bit late. Better late then never!

This is one of my favorite paintings by Kandinsky. At the Norton Simon Museum, they have his piece "Heavy Circles" which is from around the same time period. There's a wall plaque next to "Heavy Circles" which describes Kandinsky's thoughts on circles.
"Why does the circle fascinate me? It is:
1. the most modest form, but asserts itself unconditionally
2. a precise, but inexhaustible variable
3. simultaneously stable and unstable
4. simultaneously loud and soft
5. a single tension that carries countless tensions within it
The circle is the synthesis of the greatest oppositions. It combines the concentric and the eccentric in a single form and in equilibrium. Of the three primary forms, it points most clearly to the fourth dimension.”


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The Illustrations of Kay Nielsen

Kay Nielsen (1886-1957) was a Danish illustrator who specialized in children's literature. He also worked for Disney in the 1940s. His work was used in the "Ave Maria" and "Night on Bald Mountain" sequences of Fantasia (one of my favorites). He also painted stage scenery for the Royal Danish Theatre in Copenhagen. I love how elegant and rich these illustrations are. You don't see too many books for children illustrated like this anymore. It's clear that Nielsen was influenced by Aubrey Beardsley (another favorite of mine) but he takes his work to a much more vivid and textural place. So beautiful...I would love an early edition of one these books.


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1 Artist / 1 Piece: Britt Bass

I spotted this mixed media piece a week or so ago and I was (and still am) smitten. The colors and movement make me think of summer and childhood. It's so vibrant and cheerful that I'm fairly sure I produce just a little bit more serotonin when I look at it. Britt is a very recent graduate of UGA with a BFA in art education (awesome). Head over to her website and pop in for a look at her Etsy shop!

1 Artist / 1 Piece: Alexander Calder

Today is the birthday of Alexander Calder so it seems only fitting to feature him. Calder started out as an engineer and then made the switch to art in 1923. I think his background definitely shines through his work. This particular mobile was created out of scrap metal and piano wire. All of the shortages during World War II prompted Calder to use scrap metal and bits of wood for his work. Fun fact, Calder also worked with Martha Graham. He designed sets for her ballets and created a moving stage construction to accompany Eric Satie's Socrate in 1936. Want to learn more? Check out the Calder Foundation.


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B/W

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Dwell on Design: 1

I've been meaning to post my pictures from this year's Dwell on Design convention for a few weeks (yikes!). Here's a post from my adventure at last year's convention. It's always more fun to go with folks you know (last year I flew solo). This time around I met up with my friend Beth. She worked some magic on one of the exhibits and then we ran into Abby who had also been working behind the scenes. We had some champagne at the Miele booth, checked out some very modern chicken coops, toured a luxury Airstream trailer, and I got my heartbeat made into an air brush painting. Yep. One of my favorite parts of the convention was Sasaki's Heartbeat Drawing Project. He began the project in 1995 and now travels the world listening to and painting heartbeats. At the convention, the proceeds were going to Architecture for Humanity's rebuilding efforts in Japan. It was too cool for me not to participate. You sit in chair in front of the giant canvas and Sasaki places an electronic pulse monitor on your finger. The sound is then amplified and he paints based on the speed and rhythm of your pulse. It was kind of surreal to know that everyone in the convention hall was hearing your heartbeat in real time as you watched someone methodically paint to its sound. Stay tuned for a bit more from Dwell! I'll share my own painting project and some very cool, new, eco-friendly paint.


All images by Maureen Price

Amazing!

These two pieces are absolutely remarkable. I can't even imagine the time and effort that went into their creation. Both are by the artist BLU (with a collaboration with David Ellis on this first one). I don't really know what else I can say other than...watch them!

COMBO a collaborative animation by Blu and David Ellis (2 times loop) from blu on Vimeo.

BIG BANG BIG BOOM - the new wall-painted animation by BLU from blu on Vimeo.

Pierluigi Maco

I guess this week's 1 Artist / 1 Piece got me into a Renaissance mood. This fashion shoot by photographer Pierluigi Maco with model Vlada Roslyakova is one of my all time favorites. It was featured in Vogue China in January 2007. The mixture of period and modern is spot on and the styling is gorgeous. Roslyakova was a perfect choice as she really does look like she jumped out of a Botticelli painting. I wish we would see more fashion spreads like this one.



Originally found here