Aurelia Butler

More stories

  • 75 Shares179 Views

    in Art

    Colossal’s Favorite Art Books of 2024

    Colossal’s Favorite Art Books of 2024

    December 4, 2024

    ArtBooksPhotography

    Colossal

    Share

    Pin

    Email

    Bookmark

    As we get ready to say goodbye to 2024, we’re celebrating some of our favorite books shared on Colossal throughout the year. We published dozens of articles about spectacular new monographs, photography, architecture, painting, science, history, and more. Peruse our top 10 below, and find many more in the Colossal Shop and on Bookshop.

    Shirin Neshat, “Land of Dreams” (2019), film still. © Shirin Neshat, courtesy of the artist, Gladstone Gallery, and Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg, Cape Town, and London

    The Women Who Changed Photography: And How to Master Their Techniques

    From bold black-and-white visages to masters of disguise, identity plays a vital role in many of the practices featured in The Women Who Changed Photography. The tome investigates the trailblazing practices of Lee Miller, Shirin Neshat, and many more, chronicling the individuals, aesthetics, and approaches that have shaped the field.

    Available in the Colossal Shop

    Detail of Astrolin Color Card, Établissement Georget Fils Peintures Laquées et Vernis, Chantenay-Lès-Nantes (c. 1906). Image courtesy of Bibliothèque Forney, Paris

    Color Charts: A History

    From chemists’ plant-derived dyes to consumer paint swatches displayed at the hardware store, the history of color charts reflects a varied relationship between pigments, science, culture, and commerce. Anne Varichon explores the entwined evolution of this categorization through nearly 200 vibrant samples from the 15th century to modern day.

    Available in the Colossal Shop

    The Art Book for Children

    Two decades ago, Phaidon published the first volume in The Art Book for Children series, which quickly became beloved by children and parents the world over. To share its legacy with a new generation of readers, this edition pairs a selection of “best of” artists from the original series with 30 brand-new contemporary entries.

    This year was a plentiful time for children’s art books, and we also enjoyed the informative narrative, I Am an Artist.

    Available in the Colossal Shop

    Sacred Sites (Library of Esoterica)

    From ancient pyramids to subterranean labyrinths to mountaintop meccas, we have always been drawn to visiting or building sites that inspire reverence and awe. Sacred Sites celebrates how we traverse and transform the world around us through ritual and art. Compiled by Jessica Hundley, the volume surveys a remarkable array of places and artworks through more than 400 images centered around pilgrimage, performance, and devotion.

    Available in the Colossal Shop

    Beth Moon, “Heart of the Dragon” (2010), archival pigment inks on cotton paper, 32 × 48 inches. Image © Beth Moon

    Tree: Exploring the Arboreal World

    Spanning 3,500 years of art, science, culture, and history, Tree: Exploring the Arboreal World surveys the awe-inspiring beauty and romance of trees. The volume includes more than 300 illustrations ranging from ancient wall paintings and botanical illustrations to captivating photography and multimedia work by today’s leading artists.

    Available in the Colossal Shop

    Image © Ivan McClellan

    Eight Seconds: Black Rodeo Culture

    Eight Seconds comprises 118 images by Ivan McClellan, a Portland, Oregon-based photographer who’s spent nearly a decade documenting the lives, wins, and losses of the Black rodeo community from Alabama to Los Angeles. He offers an insider’s view, capturing the addictive energy of the sport and the rich sense of camaraderie it fosters.

    Available on Bookshop

    Camo

    Camo is the first publication to chronicle the work of Thandiwe Muriu, celebrating her vibrant portraits that combine cultural textiles and beauty ideologies. Muriu takes us on a colorful, reflective journey through her world as a woman living in modern Kenya as she reinterprets contemporary African portraiture.

    Available in the Colossal Shop

    Cover of ‘Hidden Portraits: Old Masters Reimagined,’ featuring “Hidden Jacometto” (2019), from “Portrait of a Young Man” (1480s) by Jacometto Veneziano

    Hidden Portraits: Old Masters Reimagined

    This monograph gathers a quintessential selection of Volker Hermes’s works into one volume. Highlighting the artist’s wry commentary on luxury, social status, and fame, the selection delves into the history of portraiture through a humorous lens.

    Available on Bookshop

    Great Women Sculptors

    Presenting a more expansive and inclusive history of sculpture, Great Women Sculptors surveys the work of more than 300 trailblazing artists from more than 60 countries, spanning 500 years from the Renaissance to the present day.

    Available in the Colossal Shop

    Artwork by Christina Fong

    Art Is Art: Collaborating with Neurodiverse Artists at Creativity Explored

    Spurred by the belief that art changes lives, Florence and Elias Katz founded Creativity Explored in 1983, a San Francisco-based nonprofit studio and gallery designed for disabled, neurodivergent artists. More than 135 people currently participate in its programming, learning techniques across painting, drawing, clay, textiles, and more. In Art Is Art, Ann Kappes, Creativity Explored’s director of artist partnerships, celebrates the organization’s 40th anniversary through hundreds of artworks.

    Available on Bookshop

    Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member now, and support independent arts publishing.

    Hide advertising

    Save your favorite articles

    Get 15% off in the Colossal Shop

    Receive members-only newsletter

    Give 1% for art supplies in K-12 classrooms

    Join us today!

    $7/month

    $75/year

    Explore membership options

    Next article More

  • 150 Shares119 Views

    in Art

    In Chicago, an Expansive Exhibition Offers a New Vision of Himalayan Art

    Losel Yauch. “Procession Immemorial.” Installation view of ‘Reimagine: Himalayan Art Now’ at Wrightwood 659. All photos by Michael Tropea, shared with permission

    In Chicago, an Expansive Exhibition Offers a New Vision of Himalayan Art

    December 4, 2024

    ArtSocial Issues

    Grace Ebert

    Share

    Pin

    Email

    Bookmark

    Suspended in the atrium of Wrightwood 659 in Chicago is a three-story installation of vibrant prayer flags in yellow, green, white, red, and blue cascading from above. Five sculptural horses emerge through the lush curtain of textiles at varying points, appearing to gallop mid-air.

    Each flag’s color refers to the five elements and states of mind in Tibetan Buddhism. Yellow, for example, denotes earth and wisdom, while green references water and equanimity. White is air and purity, blue is space and endurance, and red refers to fire and compassion.

    Asha Kama Wangdi, VAST Bhutan, “The Windhorse (lungta)” (2024), cloth and metal

    By Bhutanese artist Asha Kama Wangdi, the monumental work utilizes the Buddhist tradition of lungta (wind horses), which are symbols of positive energy and good luck thought to carry prayers to the heavens. For this installation, the artist collected tattered and worn flags that broken loose and scattered across the landscape. This shift from spiritual object to a source of pollution inspired Asha Kama Wangdi, as he explored the contradiction between sacred practice and environmental care.

    “The Windhorse” is one of dozens of works included in Reimagine: Himalayan Art Now, a large-scale exhibition curated by Michelle Bennett Simorella of the Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art in New York. As the title suggests, the show aims to present a more contemporary view of Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan, and other Himalayan regions.

    Bennett Simorella tasked 28 artists with pairing objects from the Rubin’s collection with their works, contextualizing today’s aesthetic and making practices within a long history of artists and crafters. Featuring works from across hundreds of miles of the Himalayan region, Reimagine is broad in scope, style, and medium, yet retains several throughlines.

    For example, New York-based artist Losel Yauch presents a riderless cavalry of woven horses in “Procession Immemorial,” which similarly draws on the concept of wind horses. Stitched onto their silk coats are images from stories the artist’s grandfather shared about fighting for freedom in his home of Kham in east Tibet.

    Shraddha Shrestha, “Dus Mahavidyas (Great Goddesses of Wisdom): Kamala” (2023), acrylic on canvas. Photo by Dave De Armas

    Also on view is a vibrant collection of paintings Shraddha Shrestha, who reinterprets the doe-eyed Powerpuff Girls as Hindu goddesses. The artist was raised in Patan, one of Nepal’s most historic cities, and shares in a statement:

    Growing up in a conservative, patriarchal Newari household meant staying within a lot of cultural, social, and gender boundaries. All the girls and women in my family were used to catcalling, unwanted stares from the neighbors, being scolded by male family members for dressing with our knees showing, getting judged for walking with a male friend, and being shouted at for reaching home after dark.  

    After school, Shraddha Shrestha enjoyed watching American cartoons, particularly the trio with superpowers. These animated characters soon became fixtures in her imaginary world, which combined facets of her home city with the girls’ strong-willed attitudes.

    “Womanhood should be celebrated. Instead, we need to fight for basic things like education, work, health, and more,” she says. “Doesn’t it contradict the tradition we believe in? Doesn’t it disrespect the deities we worship?”

    The second iteration of Reimagine, which was originally shown at the Rubin earlier this year, is on view through February 15.

    Asha Kama Wangdi, VAST Bhutan, “The Windhorse (lungta)” (2024), cloth and metal.

    IMAGINE (a.k.a. Sneha Shrestha), sculpture fabricated and engineered by Black Cat Labs, “Calling the Earth to Witness” (2023), acrylic on masonite, steel

    Tsherin Sherpa in collaboration with Bijay Maharjan and Regal Studio Metal casting team, including Durga Shrestha, Sajal Siwakoti, and Sangita Maharjan, “Muted Expressions” (2022), bronze.

    Tsherin Sherpa in collaboration with Bijay Maharjan and Regal Studio Metal casting team, including Durga Shrestha, Sajal Siwakoti, and Sangita Maharjan, “Muted Expressions” (2022), bronze.

    Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member now, and support independent arts publishing.

    Hide advertising

    Save your favorite articles

    Get 15% off in the Colossal Shop

    Receive members-only newsletter

    Give 1% for art supplies in K-12 classrooms

    Join us today!

    $7/month

    $75/year

    Explore membership options

    Next article More

  • 125 Shares169 Views

    in Art

    Nature Alights on Cheerful Faces in Abi Castillo’s Ceramic Sculptures

    All images courtesy of Abi Castillo, shared with permission

    Nature Alights on Cheerful Faces in Abi Castillo’s Ceramic Sculptures

    December 3, 2024

    ArtCraft

    Kate Mothes

    Share

    Pin

    Email

    Bookmark

    Whether sprouting flowers for spectacles or summoning bluebirds, Abi Castillo’s playful characters mirror our inner selves, one another, and the world around us.

    “When I was little, they called me ‘Big Eyes,’ a name I received with pride, since it is an inheritance from my paternal grandmother, whom I barely knew but who stood out for her big eyes and powerful gaze,” Castillo (previously) says in a statement. “Carrying this legacy makes me aware of the importance of knowing where I come from and where I belong.”

    Through standalone sculptures and functional objects, Castillo emphasizes the act of seeing. Eyes are everywhere, looking back at the viewer as a reminder to reflect on what the artist describes as “this ephemeral, hectic, and hostile life.” She adds, “Each of my characters also holds a reflection of myself, of my connection with nature and of that little girl that I still carry inside…”

    Castillo is looking forward to moving to a larger studio soon, and she is currently busy making new sculptures, experimenting with different techniques to explore new shapes and formats, like jewelry. Find more on her website, and stay up-to-date on Instagram.

    Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member now, and support independent arts publishing.

    Hide advertising

    Save your favorite articles

    Get 15% off in the Colossal Shop

    Receive members-only newsletter

    Give 1% for art supplies in K-12 classrooms

    Join us today!

    $7/month

    $75/year

    Explore membership options

    Previous articleNext article More

  • 113 Shares169 Views

    in Art

    Yumi Okita’s Butterflies and Botanicals Metamorphose from Colorful Thread

    Yumi Okita’s Butterflies and Botanicals Metamorphose from Colorful Thread

    December 2, 2024

    ArtCraftNature

    Kate Mothes

    Share

    Pin

    Email

    Bookmark

    From vibrant thread and wire, Yumi Okita conjures thrillingly lifelike moths, butterflies, and flowers. The Raleigh-based artist (previously) meticulously embroiders insects’ colorful wings with an eye for realism, so until you’re up close, they appear as though they could flutter away at any moment. And in her more recent series of otherworldly botanicals, petals, leaves, and roots curl to look as though they were just plucked from their habitats.

    Okita often adds original sculptures to her Etsy shop, and you can also follow updates on Instagram.

    Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member now, and support independent arts publishing.

    Hide advertising

    Save your favorite articles

    Get 15% off in the Colossal Shop

    Receive members-only newsletter

    Give 1% for art supplies in K-12 classrooms

    Join us today!

    $7/month

    $75/year

    Explore membership options

    Next article More

  • 100 Shares199 Views

    in Art

    Masakatsu Sashie’s Mysterious Spheres Hover Over Post-Apocalyptic Landscapes

    “TOKI.” All images courtesy of Masakatsu Sashie, shared with permission

    Masakatsu Sashie’s Mysterious Spheres Hover Over Post-Apocalyptic Landscapes

    December 2, 2024

    Art

    Kate Mothes

    Share

    Pin

    Email

    Bookmark

    Encircling eerie orbs, architectural elements and neon signs hover above urban landscapes and fields of detritus in Masakatsu Sashie’s oil paintings. His fantastical, post-apocalyptic scenes envision Earth “as a representation of the universe,” the artist tells Colossal.

    Sashie adds, “This led me to the idea of symbolically expressing the sphere. My inspiration came from designs that feature circles symbolically composed within rectangles, such as the Japanese national flag, Hanafuda cards, and mandalas.”

    “Phantasm (night)”

    Sashie begins by gathering images related to a theme, such as signage, aging buildings, or retro motifs. He works from his own photographs, in addition to images he finds online. Likening the composition to a two-dimensional assemblage, he then merges all of the shapes into floating globes, rendered in oil on canvas.

    Devoid of people, Sashie’s landscapes interrogate the nature of mass consumerism, waste, and aging infrastructure. Like some of sci-fi’s most iconic spaceships—think the Death Star from Star Wars—the illuminated spheres appear to run on inexplicable sources of energy, leaving their internal workings or possible inhabitants a total mystery.

    If you plan to be in Melbourne in May, Sashie’s work is slated for an exhibition at Outré Gallery, followed by another show in July at i GALLERY in Osaka. In the meantime, dive deeper into the artist’s imaginary worlds on Instagram.

    “Phantasm (day)”

    “Echo”

    “Concrete”

    “Shield”

    “Hall”

    “Boiler”

    “SYMBOL パ”

    Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member now, and support independent arts publishing.

    Hide advertising

    Save your favorite articles

    Get 15% off in the Colossal Shop

    Receive members-only newsletter

    Give 1% for art supplies in K-12 classrooms

    Join us today!

    $7/month

    $75/year

    Explore membership options

    Previous articleNext article More

  • 138 Shares199 Views

    in Art

    Swans, Plants, and Fragmented Figures Warmly Embrace in Yool Kim’s Paintings

    “Sitting on the Couch.” All images courtesy of Yool Kim, shared with permission

    Swans, Plants, and Fragmented Figures Warmly Embrace in Yool Kim’s Paintings

    November 28, 2024

    Art

    Grace Ebert

    Share

    Pin

    Email

    Bookmark

    Warmth permeates Yool Kim’s most recent body of work, which portrays tangled masses of limbs and swans in rich palettes of reds, pinks, and oranges.

    Laying dense lines in acrylic paint, the Seoul-based artist examines the interactions between living things and their sometimes contradictory desires. Her new paintings entwine fragmented iterations of human figures with graceful black and white birds, monsteras, and ferns to explore peace and equality.

    “A Peaceful Afternoon”

    “I wanted to express the beauty of being able to care (for) the weak and taking care of each other, without a sense of superiority and inferiority in living things that are set by the world,” Kim tells Colossal. “By hugging, touching, or leaning on each other, I highlighted the meaning of connection and warmth.”

    As with earlier bodies of work, this series similarly explores the fractured nature of the self. Kim shares that she’s feeling calmer and more tranquil these days, which is reflected in the ways figures stretch to embrace one another.

    “I also wanted to express that I have many egos and personalities within me; I am a human being full of complexity who cannot grasp existence as a single disposition,” she adds. “I’m always considering myself.”

    Kim will show paintings in several exhibitions this spring, the first of which opens in March at Hall Spassov in Seattle. Find more of her work on Instagram.

    “An Autumn Night”

    “Cozy & Silent”

    “Dream”

    “Let Me Shine, Let You Shine”

    Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member now, and support independent arts publishing.

    Hide advertising

    Save your favorite articles

    Get 15% off in the Colossal Shop

    Receive members-only newsletter

    Give 1% for art supplies in K-12 classrooms

    Join us today!

    $7/month

    $75/year

    Explore membership options

    Next article More

  • 125 Shares109 Views

    in Art

    In Striking Assemblages, Portia Munson Elucidates Societal Constraints on Women

    “Serving Tray #6” (2022), found figurines, string, rope, and serving tray, 29 x 17 1/2 x 18 inches. Photo by JSP Art Photography. All images © Portia Munson, courtesy of the artist and P·P·O·W, New York, shared with permission

    In Striking Assemblages, Portia Munson Elucidates Societal Constraints on Women

    November 27, 2024

    ArtSocial Issues

    Kate Mothes

    Share

    Pin

    Email

    Bookmark

    From a vast accumulation of found and readymade consumer products, Portia Munson has created elaborate sculptures and installations for more than three decades that explore the thinly veiled messages and codes embedded in mass-produced objects.

    Based in Catskill, New York, the artist first began working with found consumer items like plastic figures and kitsch in 1989 when she presented an early version of a bright pink assemblage titled “Pink Project: Table” for her MFA thesis exhibition at Rutgers University.

    “Pink Project: Bedroom” (2011-ongoing), found pink plastic and synthetic objects along with salvaged pink bedroom furnishings, 96 x 216 x 120 inches. Photo by JSP Art Photography

    Munson had been collecting pink plastic objects to use as references for paintings, but over time, they began to overtake her studio. “I realized it was a piece unto itself,” she says. “If you have an idea and something you want to express, then you find the medium that’s best going to express those ideas.”

    Pink emerged as a central interest for Munson as she began to interrogate why the color is associated with women, especially babies and young girls. For years, she collected anything that was pink, plastic, and manufactured on a mass scale, often rummaging through knick-knacks at garage sales, thrift stores, and flea markets.

    Over time, Munson’s pieces expanded to include immersive environments constructed entirely from a single color, such as the fabric-draped interior of “Garden” or the Pink Project series that continues through works like “Pink Project: Bedroom.”

    “Bound Angel” (2021), found figurines, lamps, candles, string and rope, wedding gowns as tablecloth, extension cords, and oval table, 192 x 68 x 66 inches. Photo by Lance Brewer

    Tables and serving trays provide platforms for Munson’s seemingly jumbled compositions, bundling numerous figurines together with string and rope, like in her Serving Tray series or the large-scale “Bound Angel.”

    “Serving Tray #6,” for example, presents a mix of ceramic and glass representations of women, tethered with string and perched on a silver platter. Munson describes the group of blindfolded, fettered figures as “sacrificial martyrs, inviting the contemplation of what we are being fed as a culture and who ultimately pays for it.”

    Displayed across the entirety of a cloth-covered oval dining table, “Bound Angel” brings together dozens of found white statuettes and lamps, many of which depict angels. Munson has wrapped rope and string around their bodies and faces, emphasizing the constraints society places on women, illuminating struggles that may be hidden in plain sight.

    Detail of “Bound Angel.” Photo by Lance Brewer

    “This piece is one in a series of works that explore how femininity and the female body are portrayed in our culture,” Munson says in a statement. She adds:

    “Bound Angel” reviles the insatiable, consumerist, sexist, and repressive value systems which degrade society. By bringing these objects together, this piece harnesses their collective power, transforming their original function to pacify, sexualize, and infantilize women into one of retaliation, confrontation, and strength.

    “Bound Angel” will be on view at Art Basel Miami Beach in the Meridians area, a sector of the fair dedicated to large-scale installations, sculptures, and performances. The show runs from December 6 to 8, where Munson’s work will be presented by P·P·O·W. Find more on the artist’s website.

    “Pink Project: Bedroom” (2011-ongoing), found pink plastic and synthetic objects along with salvaged pink bedroom furnishings, 96 x 216 x 120 inches. Photo by Daniel Salemi

    Detail of “Pink Project: Bedroom.” Photo by JSP Art Photography

    “Crescent Moon” (2024), found figurines, string, and thread, 26 x 30 x 8 inches. Photo by JSP Art Photography

    “The Garden” (1996), found/recycled manufactured synthetic and plastic floral and garden-related objects with salvaged floral bedroom furnishings, dimensions variable

    Detail of “The Garden”

    “Nightstand” (2021), found figurines, lamps, string and rope, and bedside table, 51 1/2 x 34 x 27 inches. Photo by JSP Art Photography

    “Pink Moon” (2024), found figurines, string, and thread, 18 x 18 x 7 inches. Photo by JSP Art Photography

    Installation view of “Bound Angel” at P·P·O·W. Photo by Lance Brewer

    Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member now, and support independent arts publishing.

    Hide advertising

    Save your favorite articles

    Get 15% off in the Colossal Shop

    Receive members-only newsletter

    Give 1% for art supplies in K-12 classrooms

    Join us today!

    $7/month

    $75/year

    Explore membership options

    Next article More

  • 150 Shares169 Views

    in Art

    In a Resounding ‘Renaissance,’ Conrad Jon Godly’s Acrylic Paintings Scale Alpine Peaks

    “RENAISSANCE # 21” (2024), acrylic on canvas, 39 3/8 x 47 1/4 inches. All images courtesy of JD Malat Gallery, shared with permission

    In a Resounding ‘Renaissance,’ Conrad Jon Godly’s Acrylic Paintings Scale Alpine Peaks

    November 27, 2024

    Art

    Kate Mothes

    Share

    Pin

    Email

    Bookmark

    Through the deft manipulation of thick acrylic paint on canvas, Conrad Jon Godly summons snow-capped peaks, tumbling mountain springs, and shifting weather.

    At JD Malat Gallery, the Swiss artist (previously) presents his largest body of work to date, RENAISSANCE, which follows a four-year hiatus. Godly is open about the mental health struggles that prevented him from painting, and in addition to his return to the gallery setting, the title refers to his experience of a “rebirth” as he overcame personal strife.

    “RENAISSANCE # 03” (2024), acrylic on canvas, 23 5/8 x 19 3/4 inches

    Godly is known for his dramatic impasto depictions of mountain landscapes, which were historically created using oil paint. In this new series, he has transitioned to acrylic, which dries much faster and lends itself to opacity. He conveys the striking beauty of the Swiss Alps through fundamental compositional elements like texture, form, and tonal shifts.

    Viewed up close, Godly’s paintings melt into near-abstraction as our attention is drawn to the qualities of the paint and the interaction of light and shadow. Farther away, the meticulously formed edges and gestural brush strokes reveal the crisp outlines of snow, rock, waterfalls, and storms.

    RENAISSANCE will inhabit both floors of the gallery in London and run from December 12 to January 18. In the meantime, see more on the artist’s website and Instagram.

    “RENAISSANCE # 06” (2024), acrylic on canvas, 23 5/8 x 19 3/4 inches

    “RENAISSANCE # 34” (2024), acrylic on canvas, 59 x 51 1/8 inches

    “RENAISSANCE # 25” (2024), acrylic on canvas, 47 1/4 x 39 3/8 inches

    “RENAISSANCE # 43” (2024), acrylic on canvas, 70 7/8 x 90 1/2 inches

    “RENAISSANCE # 29” (2024), acrylic on canvas, 59 x 51 1/8 inches

    “RENAISSANCE # 07” (2024), acrylic on canvas, 23 5/8 x 19 3/4 inches

    “RENAISSANCE # 28” (2024), acrylic on canvas, 47 1/4 x 39 3/8 inches

    “RENAISSANCE # 05” (2024), acrylic on canvas, 23 5/8 x 19 3/4 inches

    Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member now, and support independent arts publishing.

    Hide advertising

    Save your favorite articles

    Get 15% off in the Colossal Shop

    Receive members-only newsletter

    Give 1% for art supplies in K-12 classrooms

    Join us today!

    $7/month

    $75/year

    Explore membership options

    Previous articleNext article More