That stunning work is titled “Rest In Peace”. It is a life-sized, Baroque-inspired gown… made of PAPER. I know. It’s too much to wrap your head around, which exactly why I knew I had to have it’s creator on the podcast. Haitian born, New York based artist Fabiola Jean-Louis answered alllllll of my questions on today’s episode. So. Many. Questions. In between explaining the ‘how’ and ‘why’ behind her exquisite work, I also found out that she graduated from the same high school as Basquiat, was almost a doctor, and is a mother of five. Yep. You can listen right up there under “Rest in Peace”, or subscribe on Apple Podcasts and/or Spotify {and, you know, feel free to leave a lovely review while you’re there!}

First, since I don’t have images from her pre-med days, I’ll go as far back as her Polaroids… which by the way are MAGIC:

Self. Taught. Polaroids {and Photoshop} were how she got her instant gratification, but somewhere along the way her photographs got, well, much less instant! Here are just some of the pieces from “Rewriting History”. Brace yourself, because the level of detail is insane:

Gasp! Paper dresses, dollhouses, props and  yes, those lovely paper shoes! The final composition above is “Marie Antoinette is Dead”, the piece Fabiola talked about regarding the first pair of paper shoes she ever made… see them poking out from under that gorgeous blue paper dress? So much work for the tiniest little glimpse {that’s why I’ve included them on their own as well… they need their moment in the spotlight!}

Alright, and here are the paper gowns from “Rewriting History” when they’re displayed on their own:

I mean, come on. STUN. NING.

Ooh, and some of her latest work… the altar/shrine!

Look at that detail! When her father said “the magic is in the details”, Fabiola was obviously really listening.

And finally, a photo of this artist / rewriter of history / mother of five… plus, a quick “day in the life” video she posted not too long ago:

 

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Sigh. So beautiful. All of it. Also, I want to squeeze her ridiculously cute baby! Thank you so much to Fabiola for taking time out of her busy life to be on the podcast, and thank YOU for listening. Stay tuned on info about the podcast network I’m joining {with Andy J. Pizza}, and for details about joining my new club: “The NO SUCH THING AS TOO MUCH ART Society”… it’s gonna be good! ~ Danielle xo

Other links:

1. Fabiola on Instagram
2. High School of Fashion Industries
3. Isabella Gardner Museum, Boston
4. “Black Art : In the Absence of Light” {we talked about this new documentary after we stopped recording, but we both love it and think you should go watch it! It’s on HBOMax}

Quiet, soft and a little bit sad, no?. This is the ethereal work of Wisconsin based painter Kevin Foote. I saw that lovely fawn about to have a nap {48″ x 32″ mixed media on canvas} scroll by in my feed, and that was that… I was down the rabbit hole. Those palettes, the emotion in all of his subjects, and – of course – that crow. Love. Happy Friday.

Kevin is represented by Arcadia Contemporary, NYC, and they have a virtual show OPENING TOMORROW! You can also follow him on Instagram: @bitter_buff_alo

Sigh. I want to lie under these magical trees, looking up at birds and feathers and flowers and, well, whatever else might be floating by… mushrooms, shells, scribbles of color. This is the work of Copenhagen based artist Benny Dröscher. He has worked in all sorts of mediums from 3D to 2D. I’m pretty sure these are acrylic paintings… or lithographs? Or some kind of fabulous combo? Here’s the thing, it doesn’t really matter because I’m madly in love with them either way.

ps. Last week I wrote about Swiss artist Mathilde Tinturier’s lovely  mobiles, and someone said ‘they look like a Benny Dröscher painting.’ That person was right!

“Women Words” by American artist Betty Tompkins. There are decades of history behind this work, but these are some of the latest iterations of a series that now includes thousands of paintings, and mixed media pieces. These ones, ripped from the pages of art history books*, are the most recent {2017-2020}. I found so many interesting interviews with Betty, that instead of retelling the story, I just pulled my favorite bits from several places:

In 2002 and 2013, Tompkins circulated the following email: “I am considering doing another series of pieces using images of women comprised of words. I would appreciate your help in developing the vocabulary. Please send me a list of words that describe women. They can be affectionate (honey), pejorative (bitch), slang, descriptive, etc. The words don’t have to be in English but I need as accurate a translation as possible. Many, many thanks, Betty Tompkins.” Over 3,500 words and phrases were submitted in seven languages, equally split between men and women. – Gavlak Gallery

…

Tompkins had bought more than *60 art history textbooks and was tearing out pages, unapologetically defacing some of the world’s best-known paintings and using female figures as canvases for unused suggestions for “Women Words.” “I come from a family where you couldn’t even crack the spine of a book, let alone tear out a page,” she recalled, admitting that “it was a lot of fun!” – Artnet Interview

…

ELLE: A lot of anger, violence and frustration towards women comes out through this process of audience participation. How do you deal with that?

BT: I have a really good sense of humour, and I think it’s saving my life – and my blood pressure! There was one guy who had written ‘the only thing that would make her more beautiful would be my dick in her mouth’ and I thought, who is this guy? You have to laugh. Someone else had written ‘heck, most people don’t like women’ and I thought ‘okay, let’s think about this one!’ – Elle Magazine Interview

…

Words on Mona Lisa above: “POOPSIE” IS A WORD USED BY MY EX-BOYFRIEND WHICH I THOUGHT WAS SEXIST AND DEMEANING. HE MIGHT HAVE TREATED ME NICE BUT I WAS HIS CONCUBINE, BOUND FEET, DYSLEXIC, SUZY WONG OR TROPY WIFE. AFTER A SEVEN YEAR REATION, HE GOT HIS 7-YEAR ITCH. HE GOT ME ARRESTED FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AFTER I GOT LAID OFF. I WAS HOMELESS FOR 6 MONTHS. EH ENCOURAGED ME TO COLLECT DISABILITY BENEFITS WHILE HE SURFED THE NET FOR A WIFE. SHE JUST HAPPENS TO BE 29 YEARS OLD. IN ADDITION, HE KEEPS HIS 2 HOUSES IN PROVINCETOWN AS WELL AS HIS RENT-STABILIZED APARTMENT. OF COURSE THERE IS NO WORD FOR A MAN UNLESS HE IS A CASANOVA, A PLAYBOY, AND OTHER POSITIVE THINGS TO PROVE HIS VIRILITY. – via @bettytompkinsart on Instagram

Kick-ass women are my favorite.

Ah, the absolutely gorgeous, totally mind-bending work of Vancouver based painter Eric Louie. Yes, I said painter… large-scale oil on canvas to be exact. Every time one of Eric’s pieces scrolls by on Instagram, I catch my breath. Colorful metallic ribbons… that aren’t metal or ribbons!? Here’s part of his artist statement:

“My paintings have always had a sensibility towards the natural order of things. I’m interested in creating events that both acknowledge and deny spatial illusion simultaneously. I feel as though there never is an end to these works in their self -fulfillment, which is exciting and challenging to me. My process in the beginning is to make a painting in response to one of its predecessors. None of the works are planned and continually change course until they come to some resolve where I can let them go. The forms are invented during the process, some of which survive until the end, others lost in the many layers of thin glazes of paint.”

‘Acknowledging and denying spatial illusion simultaneously’ … ummm, CHECK! Happy Monday.

Gasp! That’s exactly the sound I made in 2017 when I stood in front of the final piece above, titled “Colourfall”, installed at the Giardini during the Venice Biennale. It was ridiculously hot that day, and so I wasn’t completely sure if I was melting or if the art was! All of these “poured paintings” are the work of London based artist Ian Davenport {there he is sweating in the Venetian humidity while taking care of the finishing touches}. Here’s a description of Ian’s work:

Davenport’s artistic is an exploration of line and form in paint. Driven by an enduring fascination with the materiality of paint, his signature technique is to allow the fluid properties of the medium to form compositions of vibrant colours in defined lines across his support. The Artist’s intent is evident in the carefully composed series of colours that appear in his paintings, exploring colour relationships and guided by his intuition and decades of experience as a painter. Davenport often uses groups of colours from a historical painting as a reference point to initiate his own sequences. Inherent in his process is the question of how colour gives shape and structure to an image and how it produces rhythm and dynamism in abstract art. ~ via Jenna Burlingham Fine Art

Ah, what I wouldn’t give to be sweating beside that poured rainbow in Venice again. One day.

{Thanks to @taxcollection – and this insane video they just posted – for reminding me of Ian’s fabulous work}

“Figures Of Playful Rebellion” at UNTITLED ART 2020, Miami. Oh, I love every single circular piece! This is the vibrant and joyful work of Nigerian artist Dennis Osadebe. Here are a couple of excerpts from Dennis’ artist statement to explain the WHY and the WHAT behind his work:

Osadebe’s vibrant post-pop style is centered around the idea of reimagining Africa through the use of positive, provocative, and progressive imagery, and narratives, forging a dialogue where tradition meets invention and innovation. Through juxtaposing elements of the past alongside the present, while utilizing his Nigerian heritage as a starting point, Osadebe places Africa in the context of the future and its limitless possibilities  …

Osadebe’s process blurs the line between digital and psychical. The digitally composed scenes are elevated by painted adornments of carefully selected areas. This distinct texture change is inherent to the narrative of the work, by providing a visual relationship between the processes of the new generation artists and old masters together. Osadebe consequently renders each work as unique, as he removes the possibility for digital reproduction. The references to traditional materials and crafts, such as masks and colorful textiles, are inspired by the historic arts and culture of Osadebe’s home, Nigeria.

Beautiful. Happy Monday.

Okay, I know you’re not supposed to touch art… but I WANT TO. This is the latest work by Brooklyn based artist Lauren Clay. I loved this soft – but not actually soft – work immediately, and then I remembered I’d written about Lauren YEARS ago… in 2011 to be exact. Her work has evolved so much, from cut paper pieces to THIS! Arches and marbling and curves, oh my! ps. the short list for most of the sculptures reads: oil, paper pulp, plaster on panel.

{Re-discovered via Create! Magazine}

Urethane paint on wood. What about lights, or plastic… or something!? Nope. Urethane paint on wood. This is the mind-bending work of American artist Beverly Fishman. Not only is her work fabulous, apparently so is she. I’ve met so many artists who give Beverly credit for helping to shape their careers. You see, Beverly was the head of the painting department at Cranbrook from 1992 – 2019! Wow. She had a show, titled I DREAM OF SLEEP, last fall at Miles McEnery Gallery in New York, and I thought the description explained her work beautifully:

“The paintings in I Dream of Sleep are based on the slick, angular packaging of the pharmaceutical industry. They suggest the sleek corporate marketing and the fluorescent language of caution, even emergency. Each one contaminates the spaces of art and pharmaceuticals, speaking of the rage of loss in the language of corporate cure. Instilled with the standardized shapes of mass-produced medications, Fishman’s works deliver what looks like an opaque, machine high-gloss finish that, paradoxically, is meticulously handmade.”

Brilliant! Hm, I wonder if she’s working on anything vaccine related at the moment!? I’ll have to keep an eye out… first stop, Los Angeles, as Beverly has a show opening there this April at Gavlak Gallery.

 

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Any post that starts and stops with an ‘in progress’ video, well, you know it’s gonna be good! Acrylic paint on hand-carved panel, murals that turn corners, and a new, large-scale piece in action. Sigh. This is the gorgeous work of Oakland based artist Carmen McNall, and this is her artist statement:

“My work tells the stories of female figures of strength, focusing on those who work with their hands; keeping alive the artifacts of humanity. I find great power in the passing down of trades from generation to generation, commanding a presence and pride as craft-makers and workers of dying traditions. Incorporating patterns I find in nature, I reflect on the relationship of people and their environments as times change and we change. 

Through my work, I try to recreate the emotional content of a time, place or face that I fear will be lost in the near future.  I am interested in capturing the odd experiences of the human condition. The simple, quiet moments between large events.  The impacting details that make up life that are easily forgotten.”

Beautiful. Happy Friday.