Wow. That’s all I have to say about these paintings by Buenos Aries artist Diego Gravinese. Wow.

{via Artsy Forager on Pinterest}

Ok, who else wants to start worshipping at the church of The New York Times? American artist Donna Ruff finds beauty & inspiration in “sacred texts such as the Torah and the Qur’an, but also in the New York Times and the Manhattan phone book; in cathedrals, mosques and synagogues.” Guess where I find beauty & inspiration. Yep… you’re lookin’ at it.

{via Poppytalk on Pinterest}

American photographer Neil Krug has me swooning… again. I wrote about PULP ART BOOK in 2010, but now there’s a volume 2 – and it’s filled with even more sassy, vintagey, vixen-ish images that I absolutely love! These shots look like stills from a 1970s B-movie, and they kinda make me want to light a fire and commune with nature! However, there are also these ones {no nature in sight, but I was totally incapable of leaving them out of this post!}

Love.

Gah! Siobhan McBride’s work is dark & moody, gouache on paper. Ok, now I’m feeling a little dark & moody that I don’t know how to make gouache look like this on paper! Here is her description of this work:

They are descriptions of awkward experiences, passages from books and film fragments, things caught in the corner of my eye, and an attempt to conjure slippery memories … I hope the work is strange and suspenseful like the excitement of exploring a new place, and the thrill of knowing you are drifting back into a frightening dream.

Yep!

I am waking up in Philadelphia this morning, getting ready for tomorrow’s GIRL CRUSH with the lovely Shauna Alterio {where amazing things will happen!}, and I thought it was appropriate to feature a Philly-born* artist for the weekend post! Enter the hand-lettering work of  Mary Kate McDevitt… so fun, so charming, and her color choices are fantastic! Can I get a HIGH 5? Nice!

* Mary Kate is now based in Portland, but then this post wouldn’t have been quite as timely!

…snap snap snap tappity tap… yep, I want to take pretty pictures, and then write a short novel to accompany them! Luckily, American artist Jessica Brilli has me covered! Lovely, very sweet, nostalgic paintings. Sigh.

Oh my! Jellyfish, mushrooms, flowers & fish in all their saturated, neon glory! Ok, I’m not sure I’d want them on my head, but that’s exactly where Chinese artist Zhou Fan wants them to be, and here’s why:

… my paintings are based on dreams that I had as a child of many, many jellyfish floating in the sky, some of which fell to the ground on parachutes and became mushrooms. These dreams had a strong impact on me, and I remember them vividly.

Vivid, indeed ♥

Sigh. The photographic installations of Rune Guneriussen. I wrote about him just a little over two years ago {my how time flies when you’re jealous!}, and he’s been very busy since then. Lamps, and books, and tables all finding new, temporary homes in the wilderness… just long enough for Rune to photograph them – and then just as magically as they appeared, they’re gone again. I wish he’d leave them there for a little while! I’d love to be out for a hike and come upon, well, any of these amazing groupings! Oh, and did I mention scale:

Yep… BIG and beautiful! This work is currently being shown at Rhein Galerie Bonn {exhibition shown above}, until November 10th 2012.

Ok, I love these. L.O.V.E. these! This is only a small sampling of one series by American artist Nathan Ritterpusch. All of these gorgeous oil paintings are part of  a series titled, “Old Enough To Be My Mother”. Wobbly, saturated portraits inspired by vintage film stills… frankly, it’s a miracle that I was able to control myself, and only show five. Such restraint, no?!

{Another series of Nathan’s work will be exhibited in “Wrap Troubles in your Dreams” at RARE in New York, October 11th- November 8th}

Whoa. An embroidered “carpet”, on a wall, partly finished, and then stretched across the room. This insane installation is the work of  Faig Ahmed. He is a master of textiles, and clearly has a thing for carpets… and I have a thing for his work! Not only has he created this beautiful embroidery installation, but there’s also this:

A wooden wave, covered in a woolen, handmade carpet. Whoa… x 2. Oh, and also, this:

A ’stretched’ handmade carpet. Whoa… x 3. And on that crazy beautiful note, I hope you all have a lovely weekend ~ see you on Monday!

{first installation via the artful desperado, other images found on Faig’s portfolio site}