Oh, I love these so much. Large-scale, jaw-dropping work that combines collage, drawing, painting, printmaking, and photo transfers – and, of course, I had to include that gorgeous pink portrait too! This is the work of Nigerian-born, Los Angeles based artist Njideka Akunyili Crosby. Here’s a description taken from Victoria Miro {London}, the gallery that represents her work:

“Drawing on art historical, political and personal references, Njideka Akunyili Crosby creates densely layered figurative compositions that, precise in style, nonetheless conjure the complexity of contemporary experience. Akunyili Crosby was born in Nigeria, where she lived until the age of sixteen. In 1999 she moved to the United States, where she has remained since that time. Her cultural identity combines strong attachments to the country of her birth and to her adopted home, a hybrid identity that is reflected in her work.”

Only in her early 30s, Njideka is having record-breaking success… you know, successes like selling this piece, titled “The Beautyful Ones”, at Christie’s for $3.1 million last month:

GAH!!!!! Congratulations, Njideka!

“A contemporary take on chinoiserie wallpapers, producing unique and luxurious embroideries that transform walls into works of art.” Exactly! Oh my word, this is the gorgeous work of London based artist Claire Coles. Could you imagine having your walls covered in this kind of art? Exotic birds, flowers in full bloom, and elegant embroidery living in perfect harmony! Here is a little blurb about her process, materials etc:

“Claire designs and handcrafts couture wallpaper murals and appliqué artworks. Papers, silks and leathers are collaged and freehand embroidered to create a range of decorative surface patterns inspired by flora and fauna. Claire uses the sewing machine as others would use a pen or a pencil in a loose and fluid way, intricately stitching her motifs together. All designs are handmade in her London studio.”

Sigh. Lovely.

What? Yep, that’s exactly what I thought when I saw this work by Canadian-born, Brooklyn-based artist Amanda Marchand. The answer is: photographs, and a dreamy series titled “because the sky”. Sigh… pink skies and black suns, a perfect combination. Happy Tuesday.

I was madly in love the second I laid eyes on these “Dolly Totems” by American artist Kate Sweeney {in collaboration with master printer Elizabeth Tapper}. Strange shapes, gorgeous colors, each beautiful hand-etched image in exactly the right spot playing its part in the narrative… but what is the narrative? To be honest, I stared at these beauties for quite a while trying to guess, and then I found this:

“The Dolly Totems are about states of doubt surrounding the creative urge. Innocent childlike forms have a sinister relationship with the dark side of creation and willful destruction.”

A-ha! No wonder I was drawn to them immediately.

{These pieces are available via Zinc Contemporary, Seattle.}

Magical forests, triangle mountains, Sasquatches, small towns, a question about beaver tails, AND a fellow Canadian … painter Meghan Hildebrand is my lovely guest today. This is a description of her work that sums it up perfectly: With a unique vocabulary of symbols, she translates her northern coastal landscape into electrifying dreamscape scenarios, each image often alluding to a larger narrative. Exactly. Listen right up there under “If The Flame Rises”, or you can subscribe on iTunes.

First up, Meghan’s visual vocabulary that she calls on in all of her work. There are dots, dashes, rainbow-esque lumps, upside down Vs, and lots of pointy Ms. Take a peek:

Sigh. Love.

These are a few pieces from her latest series, titled “Fire Season”. It was the body of work she mentioned that began with a coat of light pink gesso! Gorgeous, and a really smart way of getting around the whole ‘scary white canvas’ situation:

Oh, it’s all just so beautiful! For those of you in Toronto, this is the info for her solo show of this work opening at Mayberry Fine Art on May 6. GO!

Up next, “Giants”. This is my favorite series… Sasquatches staring back at the viewer, dreamy watercolor tree bark, tiny faces hiding in the trees, and oh, all of those patterns! Seriously, just so gorgeous:

Doesn’t that just make you want to make stuff? Beautiful.

Speaking of beautiful, Meghan lives in a lovely small town on Vancouver Island overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Not a bad place to spend your days:

Ahhhh, that view. I’m kind of waiting for a bear or a Sasquatch to pop up into frame though.

And finally, I’ve always thought Meghan’s work would be perfect for a mysterious, beautiful, fantastical kids’ book… especially her whimsical watercolors. I mean, just look at these:

Right!? Someone call her about this because seriously, these could become one of those books that children remember forever … much like the three books that Meghan and I were reminiscing about – links below. Oh, and btw, I am totally reaching out to galleries in LA and Portland because this woman should be showing up and down the coast, yes? YES. {Watch out Seattle and San Francisco, you’re on my list too.}

Alright, and with that I will say thank you so much to Meghan for doing this with me,  granted I wish we’d been eating ‘Beaver Tails’ during our conversation… next time! Thanks to Saatchi Art for supporting this episode, and as always thanks to you for listening. There will be more art for your ear next weekend.

Other links:

1. “That Night In Toronto” – the show Meghan is doing with me!
2. Mayberry Fine Art
3. The Tragically Hip
4. Madrona Gallery, Victoria BC
5. Martha Rich, Episode 1
6. Kootney School of the Arts, Nelson BC
7. NSCAD
8. “Norbert Nipkin” / “The Rainbow Goblins” / “Swimmy”
9. Beaver Tails!

If eating oil paint wasn’t bad for you, well, you know. This is the delicious work of Australia painter John Honeywill. He paints “the quiet visual conversations between everyday objects; paintings that explore presence and stillness in the genre of the still life – a genre that links the intimate world with the public.” Yes, yes he does. His portfolio is full of lovely tabletop subjects like bowls filled with gooseberries, and old jugs overflowing with flowers – but it’s Friday, and honestly the only thing I could see were his beautifully reflected meringues, rocky road bars, and those pink blocks of Turkish delight … ah yes, let your weekend cravings begin. You’re welcome.

London based artist Charlotte Keates spent the summer and fall of 2016 on an ‘inspiration trip’ around the USA and Canada. The result? “Sojourn”, a new solo show that opens May 4th at Arusha Gallery in Edinburgh. Now, you’d think I’d be posting all of the Canadian pieces, but weirdly my favorite pieces are the California-esque pieces… this Canadian girl wants to see palm trees!

Gasp! This is the absolutely gorgeous ceramic work of Korean artist Yunhee Lee. The detail, the gold, and of course my weakness, portraits of women. Here is a description of her work, found on Gallery Huue’s {Singapore} website:

“Lee calls herself a collector: collector of common stories around her, regarding people’s insatiable desires, fears, anxieties and the cure they search and find to overcome them. She takes note of these ‘curing processes’ and bring them to life with her hands using clay as a medium. Layers of variously sized units and the splendid patterns and colors have created a beautifully delicate and refined artwork that has come to define Lee’s artistic style.”

Beautiful.

PAPER. Each of these are just one piece of PAPER. My mind is officially blown. This is the elegant, meticulous, beautifully cut work of Toronto based artist Annyen Lam. Not only is she a paper-cutting artist, she’s also a printmaker. In fact, these pieces are a combination of those skills… “Lithograph, hand-cut paper, one sheet”. Mind blown. Again.

ps. so excited to say that Annyen is one of the Canadian artists who’s participating in “That Night In Toronto”, a show I curated to honor Gord Downie of the Tragically Hip. The show opens on July 8th at Mayberry Fine Art in Toronto. Put it in your calendars!

And for scale…

Oh, YES! Years ago, as in within the first month of launching “The Jealous Curator” I wrote about Mando Marie (aka Amanda Marie in 2009). To say I was obsessed with her work back then would be a massive understatement. Over the years I tried finding her again but her site was gone and I wasn’t sure if she’d stopped making art… thankfully that is not the case! I just discovered that she has a new solo show, titled “Can It Be?” that is currently showing at The Marcy Project, 275 South 2nd Street Brooklyn (co-curated by Darren Johnston of Marcy, and Hyland Mather of Andeken Gallery, Amsterdam). If you’re in New York, please go… these large scale mixed media pieces (acrylic, aerosol, and sewing pattern on canvas) still take my breath away, 8 years later.

ps. I’m trying to book her for the 100th episode of the podcast! … #fullcirclemoment