How do you know when someone is your friend? When they find something like this, and immediately send you the link {thank you Victoria!} These amazing painted animal masks on photographic portraits are the work of French artist Charlotte Caron. They were featured on Trendland yesterday, {so I’m sorry if you’ve already seen them}, but I couldn’t control myself – I had to post them too… it was that petite deer in her cream cable-knit sweater that got me!

Oh my. French artist Stephane Dauthuille uses layers of lines and pattern to create these gorgeously ornate images. Orange legs, an orange “jupe”, and graphite details that I could look at all day long! However, there is something to be said for what’s under all of those layers:

Seriously, I cannot decide whichI love more… Stephane’s girls in clothes, or, well, not so much.

There is something very quiet, comforting, and nostalgic about the work of American artist Rachel Mosler. All of these pieces feel like simple, yet confusing family trees that I would quite happily spend the afternoon trying to unravel. I would love to see them up close, because those details are killing me! Sigh ~ lovely.

Oh, and then there’s this… it’s a close up of one of her studies, but wouldn’t it be amazing if she created a printed fabric with it?  I want a “Rachel Mosler” skirt… what do you say, Rachel?!

Yep, I have a thing for portraits. I also have a thing for work that combines beautiful detail, with absolutely no detail. Oh, and let’s not forget the fact that I have a thing for wood grain. Ok, clearly I have no choice but to have a thing for the work of Berlin based artist Tilo Uischner. Sigh ~ that woman’s lovely face, and gently crossed hands… ♥

Boy oh boy… so many amazing people are helping me all over the US! Portland based artist Lisa Golightly {who was featured in Martha Stewart Living last year, AND was invited to have a booth at the Martha Stewart 2011 Holiday show!} and I are so excited that we’re able to drop the price of GIRL CRUSH Portland from $275, to $175! Elephants Deli is helping us with some of the food, and the lovely crew at Plywerk has kindly donated a whole bunch of their gorgeous panels for us to get creative on! I’ll announce our sweet treat sponsors as we get closer to our June 9th workshop! I sure hope you can come… it’s going to be a lovely day at Lisa’s Portland studio to talk artist blocks & inspirations, have an amazing lunch & tea party, followed by an afternoon of making art. We’ll get motivated, we’ll paint, we’ll collage, we’ll eat cupcakes. Really, does it get better than that? Nope. Spots are filling fast, so sign up soon... see you in Portland!

I know nothing about this artist, except that her name is Caitlin Doherty. And I know nothing about this series, except that I’m about 83% sure it’s titled, Learn to Multiply. Hm, not a very informative post… but, here’s what I do know. I love it. The end.

{via Pretty Things}

Whether you’re into superheroes, Star Trek, or weird little devil boys who enjoy iced coffee {perhaps a statement on the establishment where the devil boy purchased his iced coffee?}, LA based artist Alex Gross has something for you! In this very large series of mixed media work, he paints over found vintage portraits, and adds just a dash {alright, a huge dollop} of pop culture. Love.

Thanks to some amazing people, we were able to lower the price from $275 to $175… and the workshop is now sold out!

First of all, Jennifer Davis is not only an insanely talented artist, she’s also unbelievably generous. She has donated so many fantastic things for the gift bags… art supplies {for our afternoon art project!}, one of her zines, a set of mini prints, a giclee print… and the list goes on. Not only that, but she’s going to raffle off an original piece to one very lucky tea party attendee {I’m secretly hoping it’s me, although I’m sure that wouldn’t be seen as ethical}. The generosity doesn’t end there though – Carolyn Payne, the executive director at sooVAC has offered her space to us, and is working like a mad woman to get us a few sponsors… sponsors like Common Roots Catering who will be providing breakfast treats {along with much needed coffee & tea!}, and Chowgirls Killer Catering who will be donating lunch… and all of it looks DELICIOUS! We’d also like to thank Hang It, for giving coupons to all of the attendees… so that you can frame those lovely prints donated by Jennifer! And, thank you to Vandalia Street Press who will popping a few pretty printed things into our gift bags as well! We’ll be announcing the sponsor for our tea party sweets very soon. See? So much love in Minneapolis! Can. Not. Wait.

Happy weekend everyone! I’m going to be spending it with my family, knee-deep in chocolate that was delivered by the Easter Bunny. Keep your eyes open for him though… clearly, he’s a master of disguise:

See you on Monday! xo

{1. Lissy Laricchia 2. Andrea Zuill 3. Ann Marshall 4. Joost Van Brug 5. Langdon Graves 6. Debra Broz 7. Denise Nestor 8. Bayley Collins}

Yes – it’s a blog switch-aroo! I’m not really here, I’m actually over on Pikaland today, writing about my favorite illustrators… and I’m leaving you with the lovely Amy Ng of Pikland who has come to write about her favorite contemporary artists! Ready? Here we go:

Hi there! My name is Amy and I run a blog called Pikaland where I share lots of love for illustrations. Whether it’s emblazoned on a pillow, or a print on the wall, you could say that I go bonkers over anything remotely illustrated. And here in the interwebs I get to meet loads of lovely people and Danielle is one of the most fantastic ladies I’ve ever had a chance to know online. If we were in the same postcode (or country, for that matter), I’m sure we’ll be hanging out with a cup of tea and cakes before we bust out our list of online peeps who rock our world just so that we could swoon all over our screens. I’m sure we are pretty much doing that now, but nothing beats having company!

So the thing is, Danielle and I – we have a bit of a thing between us. She tries her darndnest to find me names of illustrators that I have not come across in the four years of my blogging, and I enjoy myself thoroughly with a giggle whenever I have to tell her “nope, I’ve written about them before!”. So today, the tables are turned and when it came time for me to find artists that she has not already got all huffy and jealous about, I almost wept with despair.

BUT.

I have managed to pull this one off. Because of late I have been super inspired by pattern, abstracts and color. I can’t explain it, but I am inextricably drawn towards the brazen works of a few select artists who wield their brush and their imagination to create art that draws me in, and here are my three favorites that Danielle hasn’t touched on quite yet (AHA!):

Misato Suzuki lives in Los Angeles and her paintings feature glorious colors and elements of repetition, brought to life through scale and interaction! I love how in her images, there’s this one prominent element that is offset by subtle patterns that add so much texture!

What I love about Jenni Rope is that she toggles between being an artist and an illustrator effortlessly! Apart from that, she also runs a gallery and a publishing arm called Napa Books where they have books that are to die for. She is based in Helsinki, I am really digging her latest paintings! They’re mostly staged abstract landscapes that really show off her affinity with color, but you have to check out her website for all the wonderful things she’s putting out in so many different mediums.

And lastly, Mara Caffarone is based in Bueno Aires and I really love her bold use of colors. I discovered her via Little Paper Planes (check out this interview with her) and her paintings have haunted me ever since. What I enjoy watching was how she gradually shifted her style; from figurative works to her current abstracts. I especially love her experimentations that use different base materials to see how each piece is transformed, ultimately bringing out the beauty of individual artwork.

Well D, I hope you enjoyed some of my picks for the switcharoo! I had so much fun getting all these abstract art out of my system, and I hope your readers will too!