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    Nondescript Human Heads Appear Burned into Large-Scale Matches by Wolfgang Stiller

    
    Art

    #matches
    #sculpture
    #wood

    September 8, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    Group of five Matchstickmen (2019), wood, polyurethane, paint, each 155 centimeters. All images © Wolfgang Stiller, shared with permission
    Often propped up in a row or symbolically arranged, the ongoing series of charred matches by Wolfgang Stiller are oversized and surreal renditions of the book-bound lookalikes. The German artist sculpts human heads in bright red or gradient-lined black signaling previous use that sit atop the square posts standing about five feet tall. Aptly titled Matchstickmen, the nondescript figures span the gamut of human emotion, ranging from pained expressions and distress to joy and calm.
    Stiller began the series more than a decade ago when he was living in China, and the earliest wooden iterations reflected his surrounding community. Today, they encompass a broader swath of identities and are sometimes cast in bronze for larger outdoor installations. Whether tucked in a large-scale box resembling a coffin or arranged as emblems like the Star of David to memorialize historic atrocities, the Matchstickmen series can be somber and even morbid, although Stiller tells Colossal they’re also speaking to the unpredictability and impermanence of life. He explains:
    It is an undeniable fact, which we like to forget, that our present existence, (our) body is going to fall apart. We all have a certain lifespan. The Matchstickmen serve as a friendly reminder of this fact. That might scare a lot of people, especially those with a very materialistic worldview who think everything ends with the death of our physical body, but it could be also seen as an encouragement to live a more meaningful life.
    Stiller’s solo show at Miart Gallery in London is up through September 21, and you can find more of his metaphorical works on his site and  Instagram.

    Group of three Matchstickmen (2019), wood, polyurethane, paint, each 155 centimeters
    Detail of “Matchbox” (2018), wood, polyurethane, and paint, 160 x 71 x 20 centimeters when opened
    Detail of “Matchbox” (2018), wood, polyurethane, and paint, 160 x 71 x 20 centimeters when opened
    Group of five Matchstickmen (2020), wood, polyurethane, paint, each 155 centimeters
    Matchstickmen (2011), wood, polyurethane, acrylic, and gouache, 155 to 158 centimeters
    Bronze installation of Matchstickmen at the Changwon Sculpture Biennale Korea (2018)
    Matchstickmen installation (2010). Photo by Achim Kukulies

    #matches
    #sculpture
    #wood

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    Imaginative Cartoon Characters by Yen Jui-Lin Express Playful Moods in Carved Wood

    
    Art
    Craft
    Design

    #sculptures
    #toys
    #wood

    September 8, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    All images ©Yen Jui-Lin
    Sporting waggish smiles or wide grimaces, Yen Jui-Lin’s wooden carvings are expressive characters that appear straight from a storybook. The Taiwanese craftsman (previously) stretches quirky figures, slices their bodies in half, and sprouts plant-like growths from their heads, exaggerating their cartoonish qualities in a playful and whimsical manner. Whether a character or plant, each work is evidence of his imaginative style and skillful process, which starts with a pencil sketch and gnarly hunk of wood—he shares more about his technique on Instagram—before becoming fully realized form. Although Yen originally began carving the smooth designs for his children, they’ve become collaborators on some of his pieces, like this wide-eyed monster.

    #sculptures
    #toys
    #wood

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    A Public Art Project Linking Environmental Concerns and Social Justice Brings Eight Murals to Essex

    
    Art

    #climate crisis
    #murals
    #public art
    #street art

    September 7, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    Aches. All images by Doug Gillen and courtesy of Re:FRAMED, shared with permission
    A spate of public art is flooding the streets of Basildon in Essex, England as part of a new initiative that falls at the intersection of social and environmental justice. Throughout the summer, curators Doug Gillen and Charlotte Pyatt, who are operating together as Re:FRAMED, tasked eight artists with creating large-scale murals and smaller painted works as part of Our Towns: Climate. The resulting pieces reconsider some of today’s most pressing issues through the lens of local art and include a glitched technicolor horse by Aches, INSA’s floral windows, and Michele Curtis’s bright message of support.
    Established by the government to house relocated Londoners following World War II, Basildon is marked by its Brutalist architecture and a lengthy history of braving devastation. “This sentiment forms the heart of the Our Towns programme, engaging culture to consider new solutions to old problems in addressing our relationship with public space and each other,” a statement says.
    Our Towns will kick off in-person programming on September 11 with workshops, tours, and live artmaking, and you can follow its progress on Re:FRAMED’s Instagram.

    Insa
    Gabriel Pitcher
    Franco Fasoli
    Erin Holly
    Marina Capdevila
    Michele Curtis
    Erin Holly

    #climate crisis
    #murals
    #public art
    #street art

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    Innumerable Metal Leaves and Flowers Cloak Intricately Sculpted Animals by Taiichiro Yoshida

    
    Art

    #animals
    #butterflies
    #flowers
    #metal
    #sculpture

    September 3, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    “The Dog in the Night Fog”
    Japanese artist Taiichiro Yoshida (previously) continues his surveys into the possibilities of metalsmithing with a new series of elaborately layered sculptures. Spending between two and six months on each work, Yoshida meticulously molds copper, bronze, silver, and other materials by hand, creating countless metallic pieces with intricately impressed textures and edgings. Once wrapped around an armature of a dog, chick, or stuffed teddy bear, the fragile components ripple across the form, or as is the case with “The Dog in the Night Fog,” they appear as dozens of butterflies poised for flight. Explore a larger collection of Yoshida’s wrought sculptures on his site.

    “Shell.” All images © Taiichiro Yoshida, shared with permission
    Detail of “The Dog in the Night Fog”
    “Red chick no. 6”
    “Vessel”
    “Calico”
    “Doppel”
    “Mottled rabbit”

    #animals
    #butterflies
    #flowers
    #metal
    #sculpture

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    Bizarre Wide-Eyed Hybrids Reflect Imagined Landscapes in Naoto Hattori’s Miniature Paintings

    
    Art

    #animals
    #miniature
    #painting
    #surreal

    September 3, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    “Green Walk.” All images © Naoto Hattori, shared with permission
    At once adorable and unnervingly surreal, the fantastical creatures rendered by Naoto Hattori (previously) seamlessly meld the myriad textures and colors found in nature into unusual hybrids. They’re often fluffy, equipped with horns in surprising spots, and bear eyes so inordinately large and glassy that they reflect full-scale landscapes. Whether a furry sea horse-like character or a large bulbous head floating mid-air, the figures are musings on Hattori’s experiences. “When I (am) lucid dreaming, I imagine myself as a floating hybrid creature or something in harmony with nature,” he tells Colossal.
    Primarily working in acrylic, the Japanese artist keeps his paintings small in scale, opting for miniature boards that generally don’t stretch more than six inches. He welcomes the technical challenge of such tiny spaces, although the size constraint originally developed when he was diagnosed with severe cervical spondylosis about 10 years ago. “When I tried to draw with my elbows and shoulders, my fingertips became numb and I couldn’t control the brush,” he says. “If it’s about the size of a notebook, I can draw without moving my neck or shoulders… So currently, I’m painting a smaller size that allows me to draw freely with the movements of my wrists and fingertips.”
    Hattori, who recently relocated from New York to his hometown of Yokohama, Japan, will be part of The Blab Show opening at Santa Monica’s CoproGallery on September 11. You can glimpse his process on Instagram, and shop originals and prints on his site.

    “Regeneration 3”
    Left: “Floating.” Right: “Regeneration 2”
    “Mind Pollinator”
    “Lucid Dreamer”
    Left: “Rooster.” Right: “Sing for Joy”
    “Baby Fungus”
    “Inner Sound”

    #animals
    #miniature
    #painting
    #surreal

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    Coral and Plant Life Consume Discarded Objects in Post-Apocalyptic Sculptures by Stéphanie Kilgast

    
    Art

    #clay
    #coral
    #found objects
    #plants
    #sculpture

    September 2, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    “Coral Royal” (2019), epoxy clay, acrylics on tin can, 14 x 15 x 11 centimeters. All images © Stéphanie Kilgast, shared with permission
    Artist Stéphanie Kilgast (previously) envisions a vibrant, post-apocalyptic world overgrown with coral, fungi, and lush moss. Using cheap devices and disposable containers that tend to outlast their original function as her base, Kilgast creates painted-clay assemblages that are teeming with fantastical colors and texture: mushrooms sprout from an empty paint tube, sea creatures envelop a crushed can, and plant life cloaks a pair of headphones with whimsical botanicals.
    Each of the works contrasts the enduring manufactured object with natural growth, imagining a universe that’s simultaneously devoid of humanity and still marred by its rampant consumption habits. “In that sense my work is joyous. I remove the root of the problem, us, and let all the other species just grow over our mistakes,” she shares. “Nature itself is full of bright colors. It’s inherently beautiful, and my work is an ode to all the living and existing species, (except) for us. Hope dies last, so I still hope my work opens up discussion, thinking, and eventually change.”
    Currently based in Vannes, France, Kilgast has exhibitions at Comoedia in Brest, France, Modern Eden in San Francisco, and three at Melbourne’s Beinart Gallery slated for 2022. She also shares much of her process on YouTube and Instagram.

    “Quinacridone Magenta” (2021), cold porcelain, epoxy clay, acrylics, wire on empty paint tube, 10 x 7 x 13 centimeters
    “Cyltonic” (2018), polymer clay, acrylics, wire, thrifted can of cleaning agent, 17 x 9 x 19 centimeters
    Top left: “Blue Boletus” (2020), polymer clay, acrylics, wire on tin can, 25 x 14 x 10 centimeters. Top right: “Serene” (2020), epoxy clay, polymer clay, acrylics, wire on empty acrylic plastic bottle, 25 x 12 x 17 centimeters. Bottom left: “Yellow Exploration (Octopus)” (2020), epoxy clay, polymer clay, acrylics on empty acrylic plastic bottle, 32 x 16 x 15 centimeters and “Blue Bottle (Coral Reef)” (2020), epoxy clay, polymer clay, acrylics on empty acrylic plastic bottle, 35 x 15 x 11 centimeters. Bottom right: “Mojito” (2019), poxy clay, polymer clay, acrylics on tin can, 17 x 17 x 7 centimeters
    “Losing My Song Culture” (2021), epoxy clay, air-dry clay, cold porcelain, paper, watercolor, acrylics, on broken headphones, 28 x 18 x 17 centimeters
    Detail of “Blue Bottle (Coral Reef)” (2020), epoxy clay, polymer clay, acrylics on empty acrylic plastic bottle, 35 x 15 x 11 centimeters
    “Mother (Elephants)” (2019), epoxy clay, polymer clay, acrylics, wire, thrifted plastic canteen, 17 x 14 x 26 centimeters

    #clay
    #coral
    #found objects
    #plants
    #sculpture

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    Bees Embed Ava Roth’s Organic Mixed-Media Artworks in Waxy Honeycomb

    
    Art
    Science

    #bees
    #encaustic
    #honey
    #mixed media

    September 2, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    “Honeybee Collaboration: Tulip Tree Leaf and French Knots,” natural honeycomb, paper, encaustic medium, leaf, thread in Canadian Maple frame, 17.5 x 17.5 inches. All images © Ava Roth, shared with permission
    In collaboration with master beekeeper Mylee Nordin and swarms of the honey-producing insects, artist Ava Roth develops elaborate encaustic works that literally visualize the interaction between humans and the environment. The Toronto-based artist stitches small collages with leaves, twigs, rose quartz, porcupine quills, and other organic matter before handing control over to her six-legged counterparts, who faithfully build hexagonal cells around the original piece. Once complete, the waxy inter-species works are brimming with texture and color variances that highlight the inherent beauty and unpredictability of nature.
    Whereas previous iterations of Roth’s embroideries used stock hoops at the center, she now enlists the help of woodworker Bernoel Quintos, who custom-makes inner and outer frames in the same dimensions that are typical in Langstroth hives. “Each piece requires some kind of border that separates my work from the bees’ work,” she says. “This (change) has allowed me to experiment with different sizes and shapes and has helped to make every aspect of my work hand (or bee) crafted.”

    Detail of “Honeybee Collaboration: Honeycomb and Twigs,” natural honeycomb, paper, encaustic medium, twigs, thread, gold seed beads in Canadian Pine frame, 17.5 x 17.5 inches
    Roth tells Colossal that although it’s possible to manipulate the hive conditions to produce a 3D honeycomb or work with artificial elements, she creates self-imposed limits to use only organic materials and engender environments that mimic those bees would gravitate toward naturally. She explains:
    I recognize that Langstroth hives are not a natural habitat for bees, but neither are most of the spaces that humans find themselves occupying right now. Ultimately, this project is about exploring the ways in which humans collide with the natural environment today and finding ways to make making something beautiful from this specific time and place. This means working in cities, in manufactured hives, in the midst of enormous environmental and political despair.
    Roth will be pulling multiple pieces from her hives in the next few weeks, and you can follow that progress on Instagram. She also has a few works on paper currently available at Wallspace Gallery in Ottawa.

    “Honeybee Collaboration: Honeycomb and Twigs,” natural honeycomb, paper, encaustic medium, twigs, thread, gold seed beads in Canadian Pine frame, 17.5 x 17.5 inches
    “Honeybee Collaboration: Rose Quartz and Porcupine Quills,” natural honeycomb, paper, encaustic medium, rose quartz, porcupine quills, thread in Canadian Maple frame, 17.5 x 17.5 inches
    “Honeybee Collaboration: Porcupine Quills and Thread,” natural honeycomb, paper, encaustic medium, porcupine quills, thread in Canadian Maple frame, 17.5 x 17.5 inches
    “Honeybee Collaboration: Twigs and French Knots,” natural honeycomb, paper, encaustic medium, twigs, gold leaf, thread in Canadian Maple frame, 17.5 x 17.5 inches
    “Porcupine quills, Green and Gold,” encaustic, Japanese tissue, porcupine quills, seed beads and thread in an embroidery hoop, embedded in honeycomb, 17.5 x 17.5 inches

    #bees
    #encaustic
    #honey
    #mixed media

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    Launched in Detroit This Summer, A Black-Led Mural Festival Wants to Revitalize Neighborhoods with Public Art

    
    Art

    #Detroit
    #murals
    #public art
    #street art

    September 1, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    Max Sansing. All images courtesy of BLKOUT Walls, shared with permission
    Murals have long been associated with placemaking because of their unparalleled ability to transform underutilized corridors and city stretches into spaces primed for cultural gatherings, tourism, and subsequently, economic growth. This revitalizing potential is what drives a biannual festival that launched in Detroit earlier this summer as it dramatically altered the urban landscape of the city’s central North End neighborhood.
    Back in July, BLKOUT Walls saw the work of 19 muralists produced across the area, which was once regarded as an entertainment hub that produced famed Motown talents like including Smokey Robinson, Diana Ross, the Four Tops, and Aretha Franklin. Participating were visiting artists like Sentrock (previously) and Detroit natives like Tylonn J. Sawyer, Bakpak Durden, and Sydney James, who co-founded the festival with Chicago’s Max Sansing (previously) and Thomas Evans, aka Detour 303.
    The resulting works span a range of themes and styles from Sansing’s sprawling technicolor creations to Tony Whgln’s whimsical botanicals to James’s contemporary twist on “Girl with the Pearl Earring,” which turns the iconic Vermeer into a subversive portrait of artist Halima Cassells. Swapping the white gem for a large “D” and cloaking her garment in patches, James’s revision is an homage to Detroit and its people.

    Sentrock. Image courtesy of the artist
    Whereas other festivals don’t always prioritize racial diversity or pay their artists, organizers wanted to bake those tenets into BLKOUT Walls’s mission. The Black-led event prioritizes artists of color with the idea of “mirroring the demographics of the city of Detroit and thereby creating a cohort of artists representing equity and inclusion,” a statement says. Beyond representation, though, organizers also recognize the necessity of monetary support as key to lasting change, which James explains:
    As an artist, I understand the importance of being paid for my experience and ability, especially as artists are often treated like we are supposed to work for free. What we do as public artists brings economic value to the area as economic development tends to follow, so it is imperative that we be compensated for not only the work we do but also the impact we have on the community and economy.
    In addition to rejuvenating the area, BLKOUT Walls was designed for public engagement, with the weeklong festival schedule packed with live painting sessions, talks, walking tours, and a block party to celebrate its close. On the final day alone, it attracted more than 8,000 visitors, a testament to its power to draw patrons to nearby establishments and have a reverberating impact on the local economy.

    Rick Williams
    Now having completed the inaugural event, co-organizer Che Anderson tells Colossal that the team envisions BLKOUT Walls traveling to cities like Chicago, Oakland, Memphis, Boston, Atlanta, and Charleston. “Our intent is to have a biannual festival in Detroit like a family reunion. In between those events, we’d like to host a festival somewhere else in the world to engage other Black communities,” he says.
    If you’re in Detroit, check out the BLKOUT Walls map to tour the completed works, and follow the festival on Instagram to find out where it’s headed next. (via Hyperallergic)

    Tony Whgln
    Bakpak Durden
    Zoë Boston
    Just

    #Detroit
    #murals
    #public art
    #street art

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