Author Archives: Aaron Berger

Anne Lemanski’s Socially Conscious Sculpture of Animals

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Anne Lemanski‘s sculptures of various animals done in unique textile surrounding a copper armature are rich in symbolism. An eagle is composed of stitched-together dollar bill designs, while a pigeon is put together with pieces of a service worker’s uniform. A water bird is made of slick, oily latex. The sculptures are great, and the social, political, and environmental commentary are a bonus. Lemanski’s work, which ”highlight[s] our admiration for animals as symbols, and our exploitation of them to suit our needs…” touches on a nice dichotomous conflict that adds some strong intellectual power to each piece. Coyotes, snakes, primates, and more after the jump. (via)

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Abbey McCulloch’s Evocative Paintings of the Female Figure

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Really nice work from Australian artist Abbey McCulloch. There’s almost a fashion illustration vibe with these paintings, which feature female figures staring at you from eyes weighed down with heavy makeup. And so often when an artist does cite fashion illustration as an influence, what they really mean is straight up fashion illustration placed in a gallery setting. That wouldn’t be the case with McCulloch’s work, whether she drew direct inspiration from the realm of fashion or not. Her palette selection is so good. And the expressions on her subjects’ faces, captured with  just a few brushstrokes, are uncommonly evocative. Click past the jump to see more. (via)

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Liesbet Bussche Accesorizes the City with Oversized Jewelry Street Art

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Liesbet Bussche is doing some really creative, involved work in the street right now. I really like her “Urban Jewellery” campaign, which integrates over sized pieces of jewelry into public, urban space. Stone roadblocks become cufflinks. Pendants are placed upon chain barriers to create “necklaces”. The project exposes the city’s characteristics as highly individual, asserting that it is appropriate to accessorize public space in the same manner we would accessorize ourselves. It reminds us that urban areas have just as much personality as a living, breathing entity. (via)

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Robert Hardgrave’s Map Like Abstract Paintings

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Seattle artist Robert Hardgrave creates swirling, abstract mixed media paintings. Sometimes a figure or structure will appear, but you can never be too sure of exactly what you’re looking at. Any element of order in each work is shrouded beyond most comprehension by beautiful chaos. Things are better off that way. And Hardgrave’s work is so textured and effortlessly intricate that all you want to do is swallow each painting whole. Who cares what a single brushstroke might mean? There’s too much going on not to take it all in at once. When you do get the chance to examine detail though, Hardgrave’s insane skill level is undeniable.

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Yukinori Yanagi Uses Ants to Manipulate National Flags

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Japanese artist Yukinori Yanagi uses a pretty unique technique in his work. For years now, he’s created custom ant farms with colored sand and used the natural lifecycle of ants to manipulate images rendered with the sand. His work using national flags is some of his best. Soviet banners assembled into a pyramid. Japanese Hinomaru fractured by tunneling ants. The strong symbolism inherent in banners and flags lends the work a lot of power. The ants show us that even things that once seemed unshakable are susceptible to decay and eventual ruin, even at the hands of seemingly tiny, insignificant forces. (via)

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Video Watch: Fashion Designer Jeff Staple Interviews Jose Parla

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A little over a week ago, we featured an interview between James Jean and Jeff Staple. This week, check out another vid of Staple stirring up some insightful chatter with a talented artist.

NYC artist Jose Parla is known for bringing the most subtle graff references to his abstract expressionist paintings. Tags and drips meld seamlessly with texture and scale in his atmospheric work, eschewing the familiar graffiti-aesthetic-as-gimmick-syndrome.

Full interview after the jump.

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Artist Collective DOMA’s Insane Output of Fun, Creative Work

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Argentinian collective DOMA (Julian Pablo Manzelli, Mariano Barbieri, Orilo Blandini, Matias Vigliano) have a long track record putting on absurdist installations, performances, “happenings”, etc. They also run Turbo Gallery in Buenos Aires. They design characters and toys, and direct videos as well. Insane. Even with such extraordinary output, DOMA doesn’t seem to have overly serious ideas about their work. Even worksfeaturing severed limbs or raw meat and blood splatters take on an air of fun, creative freedom. Check out some of their previous projects below (furry dudes, robots, futuristic machines- all the good stuff). (via)

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Jacopo Rosati’s Felt Collage Illustrations

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Venice, Italy-based artist/illustrator Jacopo Rosati does these felt collage illustrations that are really cool. Rosati, whose clients include -among others- Wired Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, and Geico, has a nice sense of color. Each piece really pops and the felt adds a unique texture to his work. The images are so subtle, but they communicate everything they need to through the artist’s clever, economical character design. The superhero piece (above) is especially great. (via)

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