Aurelia Butler

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    Thread Infused with Scent Embellishes Embroidered and Woven Textiles to Stimulate Memories

    
    Art

    #embroidery
    #fiber art
    #scents
    #textiles
    #weaving

    June 1, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    “Jasmine I” embroidery on silk organza with jasmine-scented yarn dyed with hibiscus, beetroot, indigo, and turmeric, 36 x  54 inches. All images © Pallavi Padukone, shared with permission
    Scent, memory, and emotion are inextricably bound together in the human brain, making it possible that a single sniff evokes feelings of delight, comfort, and calm associated with an experience. Pallavi Padukone uses this inherent connection in Reminiscent, a series of six fiber-based works infused with naturally derived fragrances, all of which the textile artist and designer equates with her hometown of Bangalore, India.
    Part aromatherapy and part nostalgic stimulus, the fiber pieces hang from the ceiling as delicate, sheer curtains that are accessible from all sides. Padukone weaves and embroiders using thread that’s covered in a wax-and-resin substance she developed through trial-and-error. “The testing phase for the coated yarn involved sampling weave structures and embroidery techniques that were best suited for the yarn. I kept a record of swatches as a test of their durability and how long the scent and color last when exposed to heat and light,” she says.

    “Sandalwood,” handset and machine embroidered sandalwood scented yarn dyed with cutch and beetroot over layered organza silk dyed with cutch, rojo quebracho, walnut, madder, and iron, 13.5 x 15 inches
    Infused with clove, vetiver, jasmine, citronella, sandalwood, or rose, the cotton yarns also are hand-dyed naturally, pulling out the golden color of turmeric and rusty tones from cutch and beets to pair with a corresponding aroma. “It’s ironic that I happened to choose scent during a time when wearing masks is the new normal,” Padukone tells Colossal. “While the beauty of olfactory art is that it has to be experienced in person, I use textiles, patterning, and color as a way to visually represent my depiction of the fragrance’s personality.” A yellow and green patchwork, for example, emits the grassy, lemon-like aroma of citronella, while sweet, musky sandalwood is paired with thick, abstract coils of yarn on sepia-toned silk.
    Although the scents are embedded in many of the works, tiny accessible pockets cover the undyed organza in “Jasmine II,” ensuring Padukone can replace the flower buds. She’s currently exploring other methods that allow replenishment considering most fragrances last between one and three months. The transience of sent, though, is part of its appeal. She explains:
    I find beauty in impermanence and how each textile’s color, structure, fragrance changes over time. In this collection, I have incorporated handspun recycled sari silk and cotton for my weaves and embroider on organza silk. I am drawn to the sheerness of the fabric, the way it interacts with light to visually evoke the ephemeral experience of fragrance.
    Padukone lives and works in New York, and you can see more of Reminiscent and other textile-based projects on her site and Instagram.

    “Citronella I,” handwoven pre-dyed cotton and citronella scented yarn dyed with turmeric, indigo, and chili, 16 x 40 inches
    “Sandalwood,” handset and machine embroidered sandalwood scented yarn dyed with cutch and beetroot over layered organza silk dyed with cutch, rojo quebracho, walnut, madder and iron, 13.5 x 15 inches
    Photo by Olivia Koval
    Photo by Olivia Koval
    “Jasmine I” embroidery on silk organza with jasmine-scented yarn dyed with hibiscus,  beetroot, indigo, and turmeric, 36 x  54 inches.
    “Jasmine II,” un-dyed silk organza, jasmine buds, 41 x 44 inches

    #embroidery
    #fiber art
    #scents
    #textiles
    #weaving

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    Enchanting Scenes Combine Multiple Precisely Carved Woodblocks into Full-Color Prints by Tugboat Printshop

    
    Art

    #flowers
    #posters and prints
    #printmaking
    #trees
    #woodblock prints

    June 1, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    “Blue Bridge” (2020), woodcut on ivory somerset paper, 18 x 22.5 inches. All images © Tugboat Printshop, shared with permission
    Valerie Lueth, who’s behind the Pittsburgh-based Tugboat Printshop (previously), continues to cultivate dreamy scenarios painstakingly printed with intricately carved woodblocks. Her recent creations include a distant truss bridge peeking through vegetation, a whimsically intertwined pair of trees—now in full color, this piece began as a black-line woodcut commissioned for an edition of Jean-Claude Grumberg’s The Most Precious of Cargoes—and a web of vines dripping with rain and jewels evoking a dreamcatcher.
    After sketching with pencil on plywood blocks, Lueth hand-carves the meticulous designs with knives and gouging tools and often cuts multiple panels with slight variances for each print. In addition to building depth of color, Lueth’s sequential process yields greater highlights, shadows, and overall detail to the completed work. The lush, leafy scene comprising “Blue Bridge,” for example, is the product of four blocks coated in black, blue, green, and purple oil-based inks, which are pressed in succession to create the richly layered landscape.
    Prints are available on Esty or from Tugboat’s site, and you can see more of Lueth’s process and a larger collection of her works, including a glimpse at a new floral relief in black-and-white, on Instagram.

    Detail of “Web” (2019), woodcut on natural Kitakata paper, 20 x 16 inches
    “Web” (2019), woodcut on natural Kitakata paper, 20 x 16 inches
    “Blue Bridge” (2020), woodcut on ivory somerset paper, 18 x 22.5 inches
    Detail of “Web” woodcuts
    “Together Trees” (2020), woodcut on natural Kitakata paper, 12.5 x 9 inches
    Detail of “Together Trees” (2020), woodcut on natural Kitakata paper, 12.5 x 9 inches
    Detail of “Web” (2019), woodcut on natural Kitakata paper, 20 x 16 inches
    Detail of “Blue Bridge” woodcut, 18 x 22.5 inches

    #flowers
    #posters and prints
    #printmaking
    #trees
    #woodblock prints

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    Technicolor Chunks and Drips Trickle Down Textured Ceramic Vessels Sculpted by Brian Rochefort

    
    Art
    Craft

    #ceramics
    #sculpture

    May 28, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    “Paint Can 8” (2019), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 12 × 12 × 11 inches. All images © Brian Rochefort, by Marten Elder, courtesy of MASSIMODECARLO, shared with permission
    Bulging hunks of glaze and smooth, speckled drips flow from Brian Rochefort’s chunky ceramic sculptures. The Los Angeles-based artist continues his signature abstract style in a newer series of paint cans and oozing vessels, many of which resemble the crusty remnants of volcanic eruptions. Rochefort builds each piece from a combination of clay, glaze, and glass fragments through multiple rounds of firing in the kiln. The final assemblages are literally overflowing with speckles, gloopy lumps, and delicately cracked patches all layered in a kaleidoscope of color and texture.
    In a note to Colossal, the artist describes his process as multi-faceted with a diverse array of influences that range from visual to intellectual and historical. The most important, though, are from travel and experiences outside of his studio or gallery spaces. “My work is generated from numerous trips to remote areas in Latin America and Africa such as the Bolivian Amazon, Ecuador, Peru, and Colombia. I think of myself as an authentic abstract artist and place importance behind the criticality of experiencing these environments in person,” he says.
    Rochefort’s sculptures are on view at Blum & Poe in Los Angeles through June 26, and you can follow his drippy works on Instagram.

    “Paint Can 6” (2020), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 12 × 11 × 11 inches
    “Paint Can 7” (2020), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 12 × 13 × 11 inches
    Detail of “Fiery Dawn” (2020), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 22 × 20 × 22 inches
    “Rocksteady” (2020), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 24 × 23 × 21 inches
    Left: Right: “Paint Can 1” (2020), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 11 × 11 × 9 inches
    “Paint Can 3” (2020), ceramic, glaze, 12 × 11 × 11 inches
    Top left: “Rarity” (2020), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 21 × 21 × 22 inches. Top right: “Supervolcano” (2020), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 21 × 21 × 20 inches. Bottom left: “Fiery Dawn” (2020), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 22 × 20 × 22 inches. Bottom right: “Captain Planet” (2020), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 24 × 22 × 20 inches
    Detail of “Rocksteady” (2020), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 24 × 23 × 21 inches

    #ceramics
    #sculpture

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    Five Towering Figures Sculpted in Wood by Artist Daniel Popper Loom Over The Morton Arboretum

    
    Art

    #sculpture
    #wood

    May 27, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    “Sentient,” 18 feet. All images © Daniel Popper, courtesy of The Morton Arboretum, shared with permission
    Spread across the 1,700 acres at The Morton Arboretum just outside of Chicago are five enormous figures by Cape Town-based artist Daniel Popper (previously). Constructed mainly of wood with elements of glass-reinforced concrete, fiberglass, and steel, the looming sculptures stand out against the verdant landscape and pay homage to nature’s endurance and diversity, particularly the 220,000 individual specimens growing on the grounds. Human+Nature is Popper’s largest exhibition to date.
    The female figures, four of which are shown here, vary in pose, material, and overall aesthetic. “Hallow,” which stands at the arboretum’s entrance, is a poetic sculpture evocative of the fern-canopied installation the artist unveiled late last year in Fort Lauderdale. “Sentient,” on the other hand, surrounds a central bust with a surreal assemblage of facial features depicted on angled hunks of wood. Each is constructed at a monumental scale, standing up to 26 feet tall and weighing multiple metric tons.
    Human+Nature opens May 28 at the arboretum and will remain on display for at least one year. Find more of Popper’s massive artworks in addition to glimpses into his process on Instagram.

    “Hallow,” 26 feet
    “UMI,” 20.5 feet
    “Sentient,” 18 feet
    “Sentient,” 18 feet
    “Heartwood,” 15.5 feet
    “Heartwood,” 15.5 feet
    “UMI,” 20.5 feet

    #sculpture
    #wood

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    Surreal Watercolor Illustrations Shake Back and Forth in Marija Tiurina’s Chaotic Stereograms

    
    Animation
    Art
    Illustration

    #painting
    #surreal
    #video
    #watercolor

    May 27, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    All image © Marija Tiurina, shared with permission
    Longtime Colossal readers will recognize the surreal, fictionalized scenes illustrated by Marija Tiurina (previously). Whether a bizarre mishmash of thoughts from quarantine or a crowded parallel universe in North London, Tiurina’s works are a seemingly endless exploration of mystery, delight, and general chaos, themes the London-based illustrator continues in her new series Stereogramos—the title is a portmanteau blending the “Spanish world for a bouquet (of endless objects and limbs, in my case) and ‘-os’ ending that is typical to the worlds of plural female form in Lithuanian language,” she says.
    Comprised of three jiggling gifs and a longer, scrolling animation, the works deviate from Tiurina’s static paintings and build a playful, peculiar setting around three central characters in her signature style. The female figures exude an air of cool disinterest and are surrounded by objects defining their unqiue personalities, including greasy slices of pizza, cracked vinyl, and even a disturbingly severed limb.
    To create the dizzying works, Tiurina began by drawing and painting the individual elements with watercolor, and after cutting each out, she layered them into rich, abstracted scenes with a single central character. Her stereograms, or two-dimensional renderings that give the illusion of greater depth, diverge from historical stereoscopic images that positioned two photos side-by-side on a flat plane viewed with binocular vision. Instead, the illustrator merges the two into one glitching visual that appears in three dimensions.
    Tiurina recorded her entire process for Stereogramos, which you can see in the video below, and you can find more of her packed, sprawling illustrations and similarly looping Droste Effect watercolor on Behance and Instagram. She also sells originals, prints, and books on her site, and if you’re in Reykjavík, stop by SIM Residency to see her work as part of a group show that’s open through May 29, 2021.

    

    #painting
    #surreal
    #video
    #watercolor

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    Cross A Bridge: A Typewriter Illustration Backdrops a Meditative Trip to Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Museum of Art

    
    Art
    Illustration

    #ink
    #travel
    #typewriters
    #video

    May 26, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    [embedded content]
    Lenka Clayton takes viewers on a short road trip to the Carnegie Museum of Art in a tiny and unusual vehicle. A 1957 Smith Corona Skyriter chugs along sparsely illustrated streets constructed with angled letters and punctuation previously typed on a single sheet of paper in her 2018 work “Cross A Bridge.” Commissioned by the Pittsburgh institution, the video project follows Clayton’s type guide as it steadily inches along the city’s roadways and passes by landmarks like the Fort Pitt Tunnel, Fort Pitt Bridge, and Monongahela River before coming to a stop at the museum’s entrance.
    Find dozens of Clayton’s inky illustrations, along with a similar 2016 project about going home, on her site and Instagram. (via The Kids Should See This)

    #ink
    #travel
    #typewriters
    #video

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    Precious Gemstones Cloak Giant Fruit Sculptures in Gleaming Pockets of Decay

    
    Art
    Food

    #fruit
    #gemstones
    #mold
    #sculpture

    May 26, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    “Bad Lemon (Sea Witch)” (2020), aventurine, serpentine, prehnite, chrysoprase, rhyolite, agate, moss agate, jasper, peridot, moonstone, magnesite, lilac stone, turquoise, citrine, calcite, feldspar, ruby in zoisite, labradorite, swarovski crystal, quartz, mother of pearl, freshwater pearls, glass, steel pins on coated polystyrene, 16½ x 18 x 20 inches
    Colorful, lustrous patterns made of precious and semi-precious stones coat a new series of oversized fruit sculptures by Kathleen Ryan. A bright rind peeks through layers of mold on a halved lemon, white and green Penicillium spoils a basket of cherries, and multicolored fungi crawls out of a grinning Jack-o-lantern. Continuing her practice of portraying the grotesque through traditionally beautiful materials, the New York-based artist (previously) ironically questions notions of value, desire, and “how objects bring meaning and carry a history.”
    You can see Ryan’s sculptures at Karma in New York through June 19, and find more of her unsightly fruits on Instagram.

    Detail of “Bad Cherries (Twins)” (2021), freshwater pearl, magnesite, quartz, moonstone, agate, turquoise, lapis lazuli, amazonite, garnet, citrine, serpentine, jasper, limestone, rose quartz, unakite, rhodonite, pink opal, calcite, glass, steel pins on coated polystyrene, fishing poles, lead sinkers, 36½ x 49 x 16 inches
    “Bad Cherries (Twins)” (2021), freshwater pearl, magnesite, quartz, moonstone, agate, turquoise, lapis lazuli, amazonite, garnet, citrine, serpentine, jasper, limestone, rose quartz, unakite, rhodonite, pink opal, calcite, glass, steel pins on coated polystyrene, fishing poles, lead sinkers, 36½ x 49 x 16 inches
    Detail of “Bad Lemon (Sea Witch)” (2020), aventurine, serpentine, prehnite, chrysoprase, rhyolite, agate, moss agate, jasper, peridot, moonstone, magnesite, lilac stone, turquoise, citrine, calcite, feldspar, ruby in zoisite, labradorite, swarovski crystal, quartz, mother of pearl, freshwater pearls, glass, steel pins on coated polystyrene, 16½ x 18 x 20 inches
    “Bad Cherries” (2021), amazonite, aventurine, fluorite, turquoise, malachite, angelite, labradorite, smokey quartz, quartz, rose quartz, citrine, magnesite, aquamarine, green line jasper, sesame jasper, pink aventurine, agate, tiger eye, garnet, carnelian, lapis lazuli, moonstone, mother of pearl, shell, freshwater pearls, wood, acrylic, glass, steel pins on coated polystyrene, fishing poles, lead sinkers, steel pallet cage, 98½ x 100 x 110½ inches
    “Bad Cherry (Bite)” (2021), garnet, pink opal, agate, peach moonstone, red aventurine, smokey quartz, quartz, carnelian, brecciated jasper, magnesite, glass, steel pins on coated polystyrene, fishing pole, lead sinker, 11½ x 31½ x 10 inches
    “Bad Lemon (Sour Blush)” (2020), aventurine, smokey quartz, rhodonite, calcite, quartz, labradorite, green line jasper, kambaba jasper, pink opal, citrine, amethyst, rose quartz, agate, serpentine, pink lepidolite, malachite, mother of pearl, freshwater pearl, bone, glass, acrylic, steel pins on coated polystyrene, 28 x 19½ x 18½ inches
    “Jackie” (2021), azurite-malachite, lapis lazuli, agate, black onyx, breccicated jasper, moss agate, malachite, calcite, labradorite, rose quartz, smokey quartz, ching hai jade, red aventurine, carnelian, citrine, amethyst, quartz, acrylic, polystyrene, fiberglass, nails, steel pins, wood, 66 x 90 x 86 inches
    Left: “Bad Cherry (Junior)” (2021), garnet, aventurine, rhodonite, serpentine, quartz, marble, agate, pink opal, amazonite, jasper, moonstone, carnelian, smokey quartz, limestone, unakite, freshwater pearls, glass, steel pins on coated polystyrene, fishing pole, lead sinker, 32½ x 23½ x 17½ inches. Right: “Bad Cherries (Shirley Temple)” (2020), carnelian, garnet, rhodonite, rhodochrosite, amethyst, marble, agate, moss agate, lava rock, red aventurine, flower amazonite, brecciated jasper, hessonite, pink opal, tiger eye, glass, steel pins on coated polystyrene, fishing poles, 39 x 23 x 11 inches
    “Bad Lemon (Armadillo)” (2021), tiger eye, tektite, limestone, agate, amber, lava rock, turquoise, magnesite, carnelian, serpentine, garnet, citrine, brecciated jasper, tigerskin jasper, unakite, moonstone, pyrite, mother of pearl, black turban shell, horn, acrylic, glass, steel pins on coated polystyrene, 21½ x 18 x 28 inches

    #fruit
    #gemstones
    #mold
    #sculpture

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    Miniature Architectural Spaces Nestle into Carved Chunks of Raw Marble

    
    Art

    #architecture
    #marble
    #miniature
    #sculpture
    #stone
    #stone carving

    May 25, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    “Tetraconch II” (2019), Faxe limestone, 38 centimeters. All images © Matthew Simmonds, shared with permission
    Since antiquity, marble has been a preferred material for sculptors and architects alike because of its relative softness and the unlikelihood that it’ll shatter. British artist Matthew Simmonds (previously) fuses these two traditional forms and honors their history with his miniature models carved into hunks of the raw stone. Evoking ancient ruins and sacred architecture—most pieces aren’t modeled after specific structures—the chiseled sculptures are complete with grand archways, ornately tiled ceilings, and minuscule statues on display in their halls.
    Within the spaces, Simmonds contrasts the rough, jagged edges of the stone with precise angles and detailed flourishes. “Drawing on the formal language and philosophy of architecture the work explores themes of positive and negative form, the significance of light and darkness, and the relationship between nature and human endeavor,” he says in a statement.
    See more of the artist’s carved interiors, which are often less than a foot wide, on his site.

    “Mystras” (2020), Carrara marble, 39 centimeters
    Left: “Essay in Perpendicular” (2018), limestone, 42 centimeters. Right: “Window” (2020), limestone, 24 centimeters
    Detail of “Hidden Landscape II” (2019), Carrara marble, 180 centimeters
    “Gothic Passage II” (2021), limestone, 25.5 centimeters
    Left: “Single Helix II” (2019), Faxe limestone, 24 centimeters. Right: “Landscape: study” (2020), limestone, 10 centimeters
    Detail of “Basilica V” (2020), Carrara marble, 170 centimeters
    “Stepwell” (2020), Faxe limestone, 39 centimeters
    Detail of “Stepwell” (2020), Faxe limestone, 39 centimeters

    #architecture
    #marble
    #miniature
    #sculpture
    #stone
    #stone carving

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