Big, beautiful, woven CERAMICS. Oh my word. This is the absolutely stunning work of Dutch artist Cecil Kemperink. Elegant ceramic rings, in quiet colors, interconnecting to create a little bit of poetry…

“Her sculptures are connections between her varied passions: textile, clay, dance, fashion and sculpture. Kemperink works intuitively. The sculpture grows in her hands. The manual process of connecting the circles gives rise to an attentive, and labor-intensive process. Her sculptures have many appearances. They are more than 3 dimensional;  you can also change the form, hear the sound and experience the feeling when you touch the work.”

I want to touch them, pick them up, and carry them around just like Cecil! Happy Monday.

Beautiful and bizarre … yep, always a fabulous combo. I wrote about UK based artist Claire Loder waaaaay back in 2011, so clearly it’s time to do it again. Oh look, here’s a perfect excuse … a brand new gallery, Hey There Projects, is opening in Joshua Tree, California this May, and they just announced that Claire’s work will showing there in September. Flower faces staring directly into your soul while the middle of the desert? Yes, please!

ps. Hey There is the creation of LA’s Mark Todd and Aaron Smith. Both of them are amazing artists, they both teach at ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, and they’ve both been on my podcast. Obviously they needed to add “both own a gallery” to that list.

Ceramic ‘Happy Meals’ … LOVE. These pieces are the work of Mexican artist Ana Gómez, and are all part of her “Disposables” series. Here is part of the description of this work from her website:

Consumption as a synonym of happiness. The disposable as synonymous with modernity. The adoption of new habits as an illusion of progress. Three ideas that shaped, almost unconsciously, a consumer society after the war. Three ideas that, almost consciously, are suggested in the work – and the discourse that sustains it – that Ana Gómez presents to us in Disposable .
Knowing the role of food in the game of added value of consumption-in which the nutritious and healthy go to the background-Ana Gómez dissects our relationship with food and how it has been transformed from its Good interchangeability condition. A cultural, economic and nutritional exchange that, while leaving behind tons of garbage, children and adults with overweight problems and the perception that “for four pesos more” one feeds better with “potatoes and large soft drinks”, allows Ana Gómez to play with the idea that these waste, physical and emotional, can also be transformed and transited in the same plane in which consumption moves: the symbolic. 

If you happen to be in the Bay Area in the next few months, you can see some of these pieces in “Tradition Interrupted” at the Bedford Gallery in Walnut Creek, CA. The show runs from April 11 until June 23, 2019.

Plants on EVERYTHING! This is the bold and beautiful work of Swedish artist Linnéa Andersson. Clearly, she has found her creative voice, from subject matter to color palette. Also clear… I’m quite sure there’s not a surface in the world she would shy away from! Gorgeous.

If it’s possible, Canadian artist Susannah Montague, has taken Dutch vanitas to an entirely new and disturbing level! I’ve written about Susannah a few times already {plus, she’s one of the artists featured in my upcoming book}, so I happen to know that a lot of her work revolves around her twins and the struggle she faced trying to bring them into the world. Her detailed, meaning-packed work is stunning, but even more so in person… AND if you happen to live anywhere near Calgary Alberta you could see these bizarre, flower-covered delights this weekend! Her latest show, titled “Lucid Dreams” , opens this Saturday {March 16, from 2-4 pm} at Newzones Gallery of Contemporary Art. Here is Susannah’s statement about the show:

“… The inspiration comes from mysticism and esotericism which touches on daydreams and the fantastical elements that haunt our nights. Within the eerie beauty of these ceramic sculptures is an exploration of the intersection between dreams and reality – at the same time, fusing innocence and corruption in the flowers, dolls, lizards, toys and skulls that fervidly explode in these contemporary baroque compositions, asking us to revel in the beauty of the absurd.”

I have to share a story Susannah told me about the final piece above … “The piece with the gold halo is my daughter. She was born “unresponsive”. The necklace – with the arms – is from Mexican religious iconography which symbolizes “embrace and touch”, because after 36 hours of labour, I fought to keep my twins together, close with me and out of Neonatal Intensive Care Unit by doing “Kangaroo care”. The artichoke at the core has a heart, symbolizing love – and, throughout history, artichokes have represented hope, peace and a successful future.”   I’m not crying, you’re crying. A beautiful story from a beautiful person {And, I’ve met her twins. They are creative, kind and amazing … just like their mama.} 

*photos by Lilly Louise Photography

Marshmallow-like dots and green lettering that I desperately want to touch. Speaking of which: “beyondthebrittletownsasleep”  “hereandnownotforever”   “imayimightimust”   “idespair”   “nevereinthefieldofhumankindness” … there, now you don’t have to squint/guess what they say! These amazing ceramic wonders are the work of Australian artist Glenn Barkley. I was already so impressed by his work, but then I read his bio:

“Glenn Barkley is an artist, writer, curator and gardener based in Sydney and Berry NSW, Australia. His work operates in the space between these interests drawing upon ceramics deep history, to popular song, the garden and conversations about art and the internet. He was previously senior curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia (2008–14) and curator of the University of Wollongong Art Collection (1996–2007).”

impressiveandinspiring.

A post shared by Taili Wu (@tailiwu) on May 6, 2015 at 4:44pm PDT

Ceramics and stop-motion animation… well hello my new favorite combo! These whimsical wonders are the work of Taiwan born, New York based artist Taili Wu. Surprises inside Oreos, bacon ‘n egg eyes, and don’t even get me started on that record-playing ballerina! LOVE. Happy Friday.

Oh. My. Word. I have just come across the work of UK based artist Claire Partington, and I am completely in love. Her portfolio is filled to the brim with meticulously hand built ceramics that do a beautiful job of blurring the line between classical and, well, not classical. The pieces above are two of my favorites: “London Venuses”, aka Lewisham and Kilburn – they are young, empowered and pregnant; and “Venus” – Claire’s version of the mythical Venus “complete with two-headed dog and Reebok classics.” LOVE.

Gouache, watercolor, collage, ceramics … seriously, the portfolio of American artist Erin Harmon is filled to the brim with rainbow-hued magic! Just imagine if you could jump, spin and dance around in one of her worlds? Well, if you’re a ballerina in Memphis, you can…

Gasp! Sets that Erin designed for Ballet Memphis. Sigh.

Sweet and odd … and then you add pottery/ceramics into the equation and I’m alllll in. This is the work of Australian artist Penelope Boyd. The majority of Penelope’s portfolio is filled with paintings and functional ceramics, but I found these new little beauties on her Instagram feed and was instantly smitten.