Paintings. All of these are oil paintings… okay, I guess the woman folded on the canvas-looking couch might have given that away, but still, I’m amazed by people who can paint like this. In today’s case, that person is Vancouver based artist Cara Guri. She “re-examines conventions and symbols that are found in historical portraiture by translating them into her current reality.” Yes, yes she does… enter a post-it note mask, spectrum-covered eyes, and of course, the aforementioned folded couch lady. Stunning.

Haunting and beautiful… these watercolor paintings are the work of Chinese artist Mohan Shi (aka Momo). She also works with oil paint, but there is something sad and mysterious about these greyscale portraits that I cannot resist. Monday mood, perhaps? ; )

I love how German photographer Matthias Heiderich sees the world… color, composition, and clever crops every single time. So. Good. All of these images are from his series titled “Summa”. Kind of perfect what with tomorrow being June 1st, no? Happy Friday.

ps. Follow him on Instagram because, as I’m sure you can imagine, his feed is GORGEOUS.

You know how I feel about cute/weird, right? Yep. This is the ceramic work of LA based artist Godeleine de Rosamel. Strange little creatures who, I can only assume, live in the magical forests of Godeleine’s imagination. Here are her words about what she does:

“They are imaginary animals adapted or evolved from reality, but nothing that really exists. I love that my work lets me play at being the original creator of new life forms. It really fits with my interest in natural history, evolution and the wonders of nature in general … I have also always been drawn to what is called “low tech”, and the fact that beautiful and meaningful art can be created out of very simple materials.

I also do illustrations for children’s books, inspired from my ceramic work.”

Yes, yes, yes! I was just about to say she should illustrate children’s books! Some of Godeleine’s work – ceramics and books – can be found in her online shop.

{Found via HeyThere Projects}

Um, what section should I put this in? Painting? Textiles? I’m going with BOTH! These paintings, woven from other paintings, are the work of Toronto based artist Elisabeth Heidinga. She paints the paintings, then uses a laser cutter to slice the various canvases into perfect thin strips, and then weaves them together. LOVE! The finished works are gorgeous, but can we talk about those big bunches of colorful strips of canvas before they’re even woven!? They need to be hung in giant knots beside their woven friends, yes? Yes!

Candy-colored balloons, magically stacked one on top of another. You’d think they could just float away… until you find out that they’re bronze! These sculptures (stone, urethane paint on bronze) are the work of Korean artist Gimhongsok, from his series titled “Untitled (Short People)”. All of these images are from his show, “Dwarf, Dust, Doubt” that was shown at Tina Kim Gallery (New York) in the fall of 2018. Here are some words from the gallery’s site that explains these gorgeous pieces:

“[In] Dwarf, Dust, Doubt, Gimhongsok has highlighted how society casually assigns values to objects using terms to describe their size, weight and how we perceive them. In isolating these arbitrary values, he questions the political and social judgment implied by their use, rejecting the cavalier way people treat objects upon seeing them … each work from Untitled (Short People) is comprised of blown up balloons that are cast in bronze. Varying in size, the artist enlists friends and acquaintances to blow up the balloons finding poetic resonance in the capture of human breath. Divided into groups of four and six balloons, the entire series represents a combined effort of more than one hundred people.”

Sigh. Beautiful.

Clean, vibrant, and kind of odd… perfection. This is a new, and very personal, series by Vancouver based photographer Jackie Dives. I’ll hand it over to Jackie for the beautiful explanation of these strange combinations:

“Patience and Balance” is a series of still life self portrait photographs that explore womanhood and aging as a woman. Earlier this year, while at an artist residency in Mexico City, a birthday of mine passed that left me feeling paralyzed emotionally and creatively. Looking for inspiration, I wandered the market in the local suburb where I was staying, and started to purchase items that I felt a connection to. These were mostly rotting fruit and vegetables. I received some confused looks when I purposely reached for the produce that was damaged, bruised, or rotting. But I thought they were beautiful, they were calling to me.

I brought them back to my studio and started to photograph them. I realized I was creating a version of a self portrait, a personal memento mori. When photography was a new art form and still quite expensive and laborious it was often only in death when a person would be photographed. These post-mortem photos or memento mori, which is Latin for “remember that you will die,” served as treasured keepsakes, valuable remembrances of a deceased loved one.

The process of making these self portraits about aging and death made me feel alive, and I even found humour in them. Through a mourning and celebration of my past self I found a way to heal my present self.

I looooove that she gave herself this assignment… smart and oh so lovely, just like Jackie herself. These pieces (and more) are part of a group show, titled Uncannyland, that opens this Friday, May 31 from 6-9pm at South Main Gallery in Vancouver, and runs until June 14, 2019. Go!

Art … for your fingers! What are these elegant, ethereal, translucent rings made from? Salad containers, produce bags, assorted fruit containers, and recycled silver. WHAT. I’ll let American artist (and recently graduated BFA student… as in last week) Charity Ridpath explain:

Year of Plastic

My wearable sculptures are informed by what we as humans make to be thrown away.  This past year, I collected all of the single-use plastic I used in order to better understand my own footprint. With “Year of Plastic” I transformed this collection into nature inspired, wearable compositions. I like to view these translucent forms as a hologram, a dystopian re-creation of something that no longer exists. It creates a link between the abundance of single-use plastic and nature’s destruction. Worn on the body, these pieces create an intimate relationship between the wearer and the material. I subvert the traditional ideas of jewelry as objects with value and symbols of status by replacing gold and jewels with plastic sculptures. The placement of these constructions on the body creates a visual focus on how we physically interact with packaging made of single-use plastic.The experience of wearing these pieces builds a tactile vocabulary that interrupts the common association of plastic products with convenience, and instead highlights their burden. Through this interaction with the work, I engage with the contradiction of single-use plastic; Though it plays an ephemeral role in our everyday, it has a long lasting impact on our environment and consequently, on us. 

Mic drop.

“Suburban Edens” … oh my word, yes! This is the work of Michigan based artist Jessica Tenbusch. She also draws and paints, but I can’t stop staring at these colorful, nature-infused (literally) wall sculptures. Here are a few words from her ‘about’ page to give a little insight:

[Jessica] explores the relationships between species and how they shaped her experience as a human animal. Her work is an observation on our role as ecosystem builders and destroyers. These works are fragments of our daily environment, showing just how close nature is in our everyday lives, embedded in our homes and neighborhoods.

{via Create Magazine’s Instagram feed}

Oooh, a beautifully painted peek into the life of Korean {California based} artist Paige Moon. Who needs Instagram when you can capture moments using acrylic on panel! Okay, Paige uses Instagram too, but it’s filled with painted snapshots instead. In fact, according to her lovely feed, that final piece is from an anniversary trip she and her partner took to Palm Springs. Yep, it’s Doug Aitken’s mirror house, aka “Mirage” as seen through Paige’s paintbrush. Love.

{Found via HeyThere Projects, Joshua Tree CA. ps. Their first show opens this Saturday, May 25 from 5-9m}