I don’t write about architecture very often, but when you come across a building that looks like this, and is titled, “KALEIDOSCOPE in Tianshui”, you write about it. This light-filled, color-saturated, breathtaking building is the work of SAKO, an architecture firm with offices in Tokyo, Fukuoka, and Beijing. Now, what are all of those children doing running around in this work of art? IT’S A KINDERGARTEN! Yep, SAKO built this school in Tianshui, Gansu, China… and yes, I’m officially jealous of a bunch of five year olds {a rainbow school!?!? soooo lucky!}.

Sigh. I want to go to there. I won’t, though. I’ll stay home… but as soon as we’re allowed to travel again, I’m going to all of these cotton candy colored places! This is the work {acrylic on panel} of Texas born, LA based painter Kristin Moore. I’ll let this paragraph from her website explain why she does what she does:

“Her Texas roots and California influence have culminated into her current body of work. Often inspired by Ed Ruscha’s work Every Building on the Sunset Strip and A Few Palm Trees, Moore sources the images that influence her paintings from her many car rides, walks, and hikes up to overlooks. An homage to Hollywood, Moore also finds visual influence for her work in the world of film; particularly from visionaries such as Stanley Kubrick, Ridley Scott, and Alfred Hitchcock.

Her work continues to explore architecture, and atmosphere while oscillating through the ever-changing skyline of Austin, the landscapes of Los Angeles, and the highways in between.”

Dreamy. Happy Wednesday.

Oil paint on found thrift shop paintings… loooooooooove. This is the work of New York based artist Dave Pollot. Before becoming a full-time artist, Dave was a software developer but, clearly, those days are far behind him. Now he spends his time painting bits and pieces of pop culture into thrift shop finds:

“Painting has always been something of a hobby to me, but it wasn’t until I started repurposing thrift art in 2012 that I did it with any real consistency.  The idea actually began as a joke between my wife (who loves to shop at thrift stores) and I, but it quickly evolved into an attempt to answer a question:  Could I take a piece of unwanted art, and without changing its aesthetic, change its meaning by painting into it some bit of pop culture/nostalgia and make it desirable in the modern world?  Since that time, I’ve also started to explore a number of more personal themes in my work.  For example, using popular food items inserted into still life paintings to represent the distractions (both mental and material) that prevent us from being present and focused on where we are and what we’re doing.”

Ah, so good! Dave is one of the artists I’ll be talking about TODAY Tuesday April 14, at NOON EST. Yes, he’s donated one of his pieces to be sold as part of the online fundraiser being put on by Showfields NYC and TAX Collection… and hosted LIVE by me. Eep!? You can RSVP to this online art sale right here… {and wish me luck!}

YUM! … well, if you love the sweet taste of resin. These rainbow-hued sculptures are the fabulous work of Georgia based sculptor Jourdan Joly. I’ve written about him before, but it’s time to do it again! See those ombre/faded yellow and orange cones above? Well, I will be selling both of those during a LIVE online exhibition happening TOMORROW! Eep. I’m very nervous, but excited because, yes, this Tuesday, APRIL 14 at Noon EST, I am hosting an online ART FUNDRAISER TO BENEFIT FOOD BANK NYC organized by the amazing team at SHOWFIELDS, and assisted by the artsy eye of TAX Collection. I’ve just spent the past week talking to each artist on the phone – from Milan to New York, Georgia to Pakistan – and, oh my word, they’re all so FANTASTIC! The lineup looks like this: Jourdan Joly, Dave Pollot, Dot Pigeon, Elisa Valenti, Amber Vittoria, Marc Scheff, Erika Lee Sears, Sara Shakeel and Drigo 💕75% of profits will go to the food bank, and 25% will go to the artist.

Hop online with us at this futuristic art show … you can click/buy the work as I’m talking about it. Seriously. IT’S THE FUTURE! RSVP to the event right here.

Glass, handmade and slip cast porcelain, antiques, plants and – in some cases – water? Yes, that definitely qualifies as ‘mixed media’. This is the wonderfully weird work of Toronto based, Colombian artist Carolina Delgado-Duruflé. Some of her work was recently part of a group show, titled Grow Op, at the Gladstone in Toronto, and this is an excerpt of an interview Carolina did with them. They asked, “What is the message you wish for viewers to take away from your project?” and this was her beautiful answer:

“We live in a world where people treat nature like we are kings. We destroy everything, we cut trees in the Amazon, the lungs of our planet, we open new mines all the time. People need to stop and observe nature. I want them to stop and look at small things. I want them to stop in front of my characters and to see green, to see plants, and to realize that they are alive. I want them to realize that if we continue changing the climate like this, we will destroy everything. There is still time to act and we must act now.”

Amen. Happy Friday.

“Each picture heals a part of me & I hope it heals a part of you too.”

Ahhhh, I’m feeling better already! I have to say, I kinda feel like Pakistani artist Sara Shakeel is winning the internet right now… crystal-covered images that remind us to wash our hands, not be greedy with the TP, and to stay inside? Yes, yes, a thousand times yes!

ps. She was one exam away from becoming a dentist. I’m so she went with art instead. Oh, and if you want more, here’s a great interview with Sara from 2019 on Elle Decor.

 

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A post shared by Karen Navarro (@karennavarroph) on Mar 5, 2020 at 4:30pm PST

You hit play on that video, right? Wow. LOVE. This is the fabulous work of Karen Navarro, an Argentine-born artist currently based in Houston. These pieces are from two different, but similar, bodies of work. The red/pink pieces are from “Deconstruction”, and the more sculptural works are from her ongoing series titled, “The Constructed Self”. So, why does she slice and dice her portrait photography? I’ll let Karen explain:

“I depart from stereotypical photographic portraits of subjects to render them through constructive and deconstructive methods. To disrupt photography’s flat, two-dimensional surface I cut and reassemble the images to build sculptures and collages. I use photography as the basis for the three-dimensional objects as a means to challenge our visual perception. Often implying that identity is, in fact, a social construct while also engaging with notions of existentialist.”

Love.

I’m sure I don’t have to explain how much I love this palette. Oh my word, from ceramic organics, to produce on panels {ok, just the final painting is on panel – the top three pieces are on canvas, but the alliteration was just too good to pass up}. This is the work of Liz Hernandez, a Mexican artist who is now based in California. Here is part of her artist statement:

[Liz] pulls imagery from her memories of living in Mexico City, focusing on the way the mundane and the extraordinary coalesce. Recently her work has been inspired by the idea that food is a language that we can all understand. She explores food as a way to communicate ideas of immigration, community, and home.

Beautiful.

I feel like this is all of us right now… peeking out from behind spring blossoms, just waiting for the world to feel safe again. Sigh. This is the work of Polish collage artist Magdalena Hasenbeck, aka @maggyback on Instagram. I found her work because she tagged these gorgeous pieces with #30DayArtQuarantine on Instagram. All I can say… thank goodness for artists during a global pandemic ♥ Happy Monday.

ps. whatever you’re making during this lockdown, feel free to tag it with that hashtag too, so that we can all be inspired by each other. xo

Mmmm, donuts and hugs… I’ll take a dozen of each, please. Today’s episode is really just me chatting with my amazing, funny, smart talented friend, Philadelphia based artist Martha Rich. We used to talk on Skype all the time when we were working on “Your Inner Critic Is A Big Jerk”, so I honestly kinda forgot we were recording… sooooo for those of you who tell me you like the episodes that make you feel like you’re eavesdropping on two artists talking in a café – pour yourself a coffee, hug a chocolate donut, close your eyes, and pretend you’re out at your favorite coffee shop listening in. You can listen right up there under that sprinkle-covered goodness, or subscribe right here.

First, an example of the pointy petal, cut paper pieces Martha’s been working on lately:

Loooooove. Also, the title of that piece? Yep, I LOVE that too. Plan accordingly, people.

Oooh, and here are a few grabs from her illustration job in New York Times Magazine:

She’s so good. And to all of you Americans out there, what does Martha want you to do? …

Yep. Ask your senators to make sure the November 2020 election happens!

And, I had to include this:

Hahaha! Yep, Martha and her voiceless cat, Mack, in her glass doorway. The two B&W photos are from a new series that her friend, photographer Andrea Cipriani Mecch, is doing in Philadelphia right now titled #FamilyAtADistance. The first one is Martha’s official photo, the second is clearly the most perfect outtake ever! AND, look, she’s really doing it… the paper installation on her door is underway {hm, I really should get my box of clay out at some point.} Thanks so much to Martha for hanging out with us for an hour, and thanks to you for listening! There will be more ART FOR YOUR EAR next weekend.

Other links:

1. Fiskars Ring Knife 
2. Beauty is Embarrassing {Wayne White Documentary}
3. Mimi Pond, Artist
4. More movies I mentioned: Fur / Frida 
5. Movies I forgot to mention : Finding Vivian Maier / Big Eyes / Saving Banksy / Kusama Infinity
6. Photo of Martha above: #FamilyAtADistance : Photo series by Andrea Cipriani Mecch