Graffiti and Street Art, a diagram by Daniel Feral from the recent Pantheon art show in NYC.
The Fiesta Resistance: mixed medias at its best
I may have never heard about this exhibition if Twitter did not exist so let me thank you Twitter first, some do not get you little Twitter tool, ART-PIE heart you little Twitter tool.
A swift click on that link from that tweet I got and am now onto the Picture On Walls website or POW. ‘I Like the left menu navigation items’ I instantly thought. ‘I like the sketchy look of them’ my second thought was. A quick scroll down to the bottom of the website and I got it right away: loads and loads of creativity, imagination, art wonders on here and ART-PIE was right, The Fiesta resistance exhibition did not disappoint.
Unique, fresh, rich, interesting, exciting, different, colorful, busy … the list could go on and on and be made of thousands of words here as what I was seeing was actually made of thousands of things on top of each other but all smiling at me as I was stepping into POW. As always, ART-PIE did not know where to start and unless more ‘classic’ galleries (like the Whitechapel Gallery which ART-PIE had just been to earlier that day) that room I had just stepped into did not help to lead you that way or the other so I went straight ahead, I went for what looked like a shed with tall stools in front. Yes, that place looks like a theater or a movie set! Continue reading The Fiesta Resistance: mixed medias at its best
Designs of the Year
I must admit I don’t often think about how design is all around me. I could say it is embedded in my life, from when I wake up to when I go to bed. My alarm clock, the typography in my book, the label on my favourite bottle of plonk and the lamp I switch off at night.
If you think design is just function, think again. Immerse yourself in the top floor of The Design Museum with their Designs of the Year exhibition.
This array of international pieces span: Architecture, Digital, Fashion, Furniture, Graphics, Product and Transport. Feast your eyes on this ‘look book’ across the design spectrum for the museums Design Awards. A high profile judging panel decide the best entries in each of the seven categories. The category award winners and the overall winner of the Design of the Year Award shall be announced in April 2012.
Turning function on its head, the Design Museum display also includes works poking fun at design in computer functions with – Your Browser Sent A Request That This Server Could Not Understand – an illustrated depiction of the internet by Koen Taselaar.
Designs of the Year looks outside the box; not just new spangled technology or expensive materials. Noma Bar (above) produces simple shapes, that reveal hidden possibilities, whose negative and positive spaces draw the eye every time. There are designs that are simplistic, that save lives. The Earthquake Proof Table by Arthur Brutter and Ido Bruno (below) is astonding in its clean back to basics design that could help thousands.
Shopping online and on the move is nothing new but South Korea have taken mobile and digital aspects to the next level. Homeplus Tesco Virtual Store is the result – below. Choose your item from their virtual store!
Augmented reality is given a breath of fresh air by Swappu, creating a ‘holo-deck’ feel, well, okay it’s not quite up to Star Trek level. The animations are great and the playfulness of it will be a hit for kids. Its a soft and easily lovable digital world that shall no doubt advance rapidly.
See the app in action here > http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBmLWdjtzPw
One Thousand Cranes for Japan is a charity project that aims to inspire and bring people together to be part of a final creation. Members of the public can choose, download and print off the paper designs to fold into their own origami creation. A chance to be part of the designs final creation, it’s nothing groundbreaking, but it’s not meant to be.
The Comedy Carpet (below images) takes typography bold and big. It reminds us font is more than just Arial and Times New Roman selected on a computer screen. This gigantic installation, created by Why Not Associates, sprawls out in front of the Blackpool Tower and features over 160,000 granite letters embedded in concrete. It refers to the work of more than 1,000 comedians and comedy writers, giving a visual form to jokes, songs and catchphrases.
The Crates (below) by Naihan Li & Co is a product that is a must for the clothes obsessed, and those who need organisation of all their essential fashion items. See just how functional a plain industrial looking crate can be, reacting to our clothing hoarding and need for storage.
This work is in stark contrast to Sarah Burton‘s now infamous handmade lace that’s delicately on display. This painstakingly handcrafted work was stitched into the nations memories on Kate Middleton’s wedding dress.
The wide spectrum at the Designs of the Year should open up your eyes to the flexibility and intricacy of design and its ability to problem solve, whilst looking back to the past for inspiration.
With mass market production all to easy to snub, design is at an exciting point; using mass production processes to save lives but taking us back to simplicity, creating unique angles on our lives.
The Designs of the Year exhibition runs 8 February – 4 July at The Design Museum. For tickets and information click me!
Street fonts – graffiti alphabets from around the World by MadABC
German artist MadABC has opened her show at Pure Evil gallery tonight in London. This coincides with the launch of her book – “Street Fonts – graffiti alphabets from around the world”. You can buy this book here on Amazon.
The work on display will feature a series of different alphabets on canvas and wall, MadABC is mad about letters. In preparation of the show, she painted a huge alphabet wall of about 5m x 25m Wenlock Road in Hackney which you can see photos (by Marco Prosch) and video of below.
MadABC show runs until the 1st May 2011 at Pure Evil gallery | 108 Leonard street, EC2A 4S, London
A glow in the dark skate park
We all like when art means having fun, don’t we? How about then if you could skateboard on a sculpture and even better glow-in-the-dark skate park? Yes you would or at least you would support the concept.
The concept is out there in fact and in France precisely. Korean artist Koo Jeong-A has come up with a solution. The structure is called Otro, and is made from green phosphorescent concrete (how cool is that) so it gives off a radioactive glare at night. It is composed of different bowls, a cradle and three tunnels. See pictures below.
Koo Jeong-A invites anyone to share the physical and sensorial experience of her sculpture/skatepark. With OTRO, Koo Jeong-A tries out the fragile visibility of the artwork, its discrete appearance that tests our perception, obliging you to discover with patience the artwork’s essence. So if you are on holiday in France near Limoges, make a stop for Otro, you’ll like it.
Exact location: Lac de Vassivière | 87120 Beaumont-du-Lac, France | View the location on Google maps
Go onto the www.escaut.org website to find out more about the OTRO project
The billboard art project
Some will tell you how ugly all these road signs, billboards and others are and how much they give our cities an ugly look. This is when The Billboard Art Project comes in with a awesome idea which surely will enhance the city landscape.
They acquire digital LED billboards normally used for advertising and repurpose them as roadside galleries. .Projects are currently held in various US cities only.
What makes this project even better is that it is open to anyone who is interested in contributing. The type of artwork consists of images specifically created for the medium or art turned into the required format. And you should never get bored since artwork rotates every 6-10 seconds.
Watch the time lapse video below and check out The Billboard Art Project website for more information
5 Great Cities For Street Art
These days, some of the most interesting artists and art projects from all over the world are accessible from the comfort of our own homes. Whether you’re interested in digital art, galleries from your favourite artists, or even researching and comparing different pieces, you can do just about anything you need on your computer. Indeed, there’s something appealing about picking up a bottle of wine from Marks and Spencer, getting comfortable at your computer, and sifting through sites for your favourite art.
However, there’s also something special about getting out into the world to see great works of art in person – particularly if you’re interested in street art. Sure, you’ll find endless collections of images online, and in some cases you can even have them made into canvases for your apartment! But you can’t do street art justice unless you see it in person. With that in mind, here’s a quick look at 5 of the best cities in the world for viewing exceptional street art, as identified by Fodor’s.
Buenos Aires, Argentina
Giant maps, abstract art, football celebrations, and of course, political statements dominate Buenos Aires’s buildings, largely because the city has made it completely legal to tag. The only catch is that building owners have to agree – and in a city already full of incredible graffiti, most owners are probably inclined to encourage more!
Los Angeles, California USA
LA is famous for celebrating artistic expression, and that characteristic of the city certainly extends to street art. From Banksy, to Retna, and even the artist behind Barack Obama’s campaign posters, LA brings in the stars, resulting in outstanding murals and graffiti.
London, England
Not only is the local tagging in parts of London fairly legendary, but the city is also a hub for famous artists from all over the world. In terms of celebrity status, Banksy is about as big as a street artist can get, and has done a great deal of outstanding work in London’s Square Mile.
Berlin, Germany
Known as an artistic hub in general, Berlin is home to some of the world’s most inspired street art. In fact, well known street artists from all over the world travel to Berlin specifically to tag, and this has led to some truly outstanding creations worth seeing in person. Head to Gustav Meyer Allee in Kreuzberg to see a clock tower mural recently installed by famous French artist JR.
Bogota, Colombia
Murals and graffiti dominate the city walls of Bogota, and vary greatly in nature. From politically inspired art and inscriptions against former government executives, to vibrant, expressive art, Bogota has it all. Be sure to visit the portion of the city called La Candelaria – a charming city quarter on its own, but also the centre of street art activity.
Guy Denning at Signal gallery – Paradiso
Bristol born artist, Guy Denning final part of his trilogy of exhibitions (It’s the final part of his trilogy of exhibitions interpreting Dante’s The Divine Comedy; PARADISO. Inferno and Purgatorio, which were shown in Bologna and New York) interpreting Dante’s The Divine Comedy: PARADISO has just happened at Signal gallery and has delighted us by his intensity and display of technical art skills.
Each piece in this show is boiling with emotions and dynamism and mirror the ecstatic route to a place of resolution and rest for Dante, the route to heaven that is for Dante.
A quite large part of the show present a series of female portraits appearing soft and fragile but transposed in some sort of tragedy thanks to the sketchy technique used by the artist, although achieved mostly with oil which is remarkable. The artist inspiration comes from Beatrice, Dante’s long dead love, who is the central figure in the poem and who symbolises feminine purity and vulnerability.
Denning’s characters are floating, dancing, tangling with each other and give you a sense of dizziness. The color palette is dark and deep like the multitude faces expressions disseminated all over the canvases. The perspective used for some of his pieces is also remarkable and is an invitation to dive into his vision.
Guy Denning will definitely arouse the viewer’s curiosity about Dante’s life and has given us an unique and modern representation of Dante’s 14th century world.
The show is now over.
Dan Witz and his 3D street art
New-York based street artist and real painter, Dan Witz masters the technique called “trompe-l’oeil” with his technique – he uses metal grate graphic that he backs with a 1/8″ thick plastic that give the lifting effect and then the 3D effect is achieved.
Head to the blitz website to check out the latest series entitled “What the %$#@?” (WTF) series and pocket you one up for just 30 dollars.
Check out the video about Dan Witz 3D street art:
Tutorial: oil portrait lesson by David R Darrow
David R Darrow explain the basics on how to oil paint a portrait Continue reading Tutorial: oil portrait lesson by David R Darrow