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      Fantastical Digital Paintings Position Wildlife in Unnaturally Colorful Environments

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      Art

      #animals
      #digital
      #environment
      #painting

      October 14, 2021
      Grace Ebert

      All images courtesy of Grove Square Galleries, shared with permission
      Photographic artist Jim Naughten casts a fantastical, candy-colored lens over luxuriant ecosystems and surreal animal portraits in Eremozoic, a solo exhibition on view at Grove Square Galleries through November 18. Comprised of digitally altered compositions, the series centers on rhinos, manatees, and myriad wild animals in strange, unearthly settings: a tall brown bear stands on its hind legs in a field of bright pink grass, a gorilla rests in similarly vibrant foliage, and orangutans swing through leafy branches in shades of blue.
      While the animals usually are isolated in true color, the backdrops evoke infrared photography, and Naughten’s unnatural alterations tinge the otherwise realistic imagery with magical elements. The artist says the manipulations convey humanity’s ever-growing disconnect with the environment, which he explains in a statement:
      I’m interested in how, in the evolutionary blink of an eye, humans have come to dominate and overwhelm the planet and how far our relationship with the natural world has fundamentally and dangerously shifted from that of our ancestors. I hope the work will create awareness and discourse about this disconnection, our fictionalized ideas about nature and possibilities for positive change.
      Although the pieces venture into a strange realm of kaleidoscopic details, they have biological reality at their core, and the exhibition title, Eremozoic, refers to the current era of the earth’s evolution. Biologist and writer E. O. Wilson introduced the term to characterize this “period of mass extinction due to human activity. The Eremozoic Age is alternatively referred to as The Age of Loneliness, and this sense of dislocation and disorientation is captured in Naughten’s depiction of nature as an unfamiliar, unnatural realm.”
      In addition to the collection shown here, Naughten shares a variety of otherworldly renderings on his site and Instagram. (via Creative Boom)

      #animals
      #digital
      #environment
      #painting

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      Colorful Strips of Metal Coil into Minimal Animal Sculptures by Artist Lee Sangsoo

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      Art

      #animals
      #metal
      #sculptures

      October 12, 2021
      Grace Ebert

      All images © Lee Sangsoo, shared with permission
      Considering his practice a form of “drawing in the air,” artist Lee Sangsoo forges colorful, spiraled flamingos, dogs, parrots, and other creatures with long strips of metal. He sculpts the minimal works with resin or stainless steel depending on the size—he uses the latter for any piece that spans more than one meter—and coats each angled side with subtle gradients or a complementary palette. Although three-dimensional and sometimes so large that they tower over the landscape, the creatures are inspired by Picasso’s small, abstract animal drawings, which the artist explains:
      Lines, planes, and colors are important elements that work in my work. The lines drawn in the two-dimensional sketchbook determine the large flow and form of the work, and it becomes three-dimensional in the three-dimensional space. The square lines are shown in various shapes and colors according to the flow and twist, and you can feel the dynamism in the still work. Also, depending on the flow, the thickness of the lines may be rhythmically thickened or thinned.
      Some of Lee’s works are on view as part of KIAF Seoul, and you can find more of the twisted menagerie on his Instagram. (via Lustik)

      #animals
      #metal
      #sculptures

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      Between Wounds and Folds: Suspended Cow Carcasses and Tree Stumps Reveal Layers of Discarded Fabric by Tamara Kostianovsky

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      Art

      #animals
      #death
      #installation
      #sculpture
      #textiles
      #trees

      October 11, 2021
      Christopher Jobson

      Photo © Etienne Frossard. All images courtesy the artist, shared with permission.
      Working with the tattered remnants of consumer culture, artist Tamara Kostianovsky (previously) asks us to question the origins, process, and disastrous results of our seemingly unquenchable desire to buy and waste. Four distinct bodies of the artist’s work spanning fifteen years have been gathered at Smack Mellon in DUMBO, Brooklyn to form Between Wounds and Folds. The textile ecosystem of cow carcasses harboring new life, vibrantly hued cross-sections of trees, and colorful birds of prey, are constructed from repurposed fabrics and discarded textiles. In this final state, the soft pieces function as an echo of their concealed beginnings. Smack Mellon shares in a statement:

      Through alternating softness and aggression, her installations identify the nuances of violence that exist between a personal encounter and its normalization on a social and ecological level. Kostianovsky’s work asks for a re-imagination of human rights and environmental redemption models in order to consider the resultant violence as part of a larger, inseparable system.

      Between Wounds and Folds is on view until October 31, and you can explore more of the Brooklyn-based artist’s work on Instagram.

      Photo © J.C. Cancedda
      Photo © Roni Mocan
      Photo © Etienne Frossard
      Photo © J.C. Cancedda
      Photo © Etienne Frossard
      Photo © J.C. Cancedda
      Photo © J.C. Cancedda
      Photo © J.C. Cancedda
      The artist in her studio © J.C. Cancedda

      #animals
      #death
      #installation
      #sculpture
      #textiles
      #trees

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      An Eerie, Fairytale Forest and Silhouette Creatures Sprawl Across a Three-Story Mural by David de la Mano

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      Art

      #animals
      #forest
      #murals
      #narrative
      #night
      #silhouettes

      September 30, 2021
      Grace Ebert

      All images by Sol Paperán, Nicolás Pezzino and David de la Mano, courtesy of David de la Mano
      Set against a forest in shades of blue and white, a dark, twisted fairytale lines the entrance hall of the Catholic University of Uruguay. The three-story mural by David de la Mano is titled “Cosmos” and uses the Spanish artist’s signature silhouette figures and thin, branch-like lines to create a sinister narrative consumed by mystery and disorder: hybrid creatures escape down a stairwell, an army marches along the balcony, and myriad characters twist and flail in chaotic clusters.
      Completed with the assistance of artist Andrés Cocco, the large-scale piece is derived from the shared etymological root of “university” and “universe,” which means a totality or everything that exists. “Cosmos” evokes Fernando Gallego’s 15th-Century painting of constellations and the zodiac that once cloaked a vaulted ceiling at the University of Salamanca library in de la Mano’s hometown, although this new iteration is devoid of stars. “It is a work full of mystery… There is my own iconography. There is the idea of ​​migration, a constant in my work from years ago,” the artist says in a statement. “The stars were replaced by two forests. There is a dark forest that does not let you see, and there is a clear forest in which the light comes.”
      After spending years in Uruguay, de la Mano is back in Salamanca, and you can follow his works on Instagram.

      #animals
      #forest
      #murals
      #narrative
      #night
      #silhouettes

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    • 163 Shares199 Views

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      Seven Origami Animals Transform New York City’s Garment District into a Vibrant Menagerie

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      Art

      #animals
      #origami
      #public art
      #sculpture
      #street art

      September 24, 2021
      Grace Ebert

      All images by Alexandre Ayer/Diversity Pictures for the Garment District Alliance, shared with permission
      Thanks to Gerardo Gomez-Martinez (aka Hacer), the public plazas on Broadway in New York City’s Garment District are now a zoo of origami-style animals. The Mexican-American artist installed a series of powder-coated steel sculptures that loom over dining areas and walkways as part of Transformations. Commissioned by The Garment District Alliance, the project consists of seven creatures that vary in size, including a yellow dog, a magenta elephant,  a green bear cub, and two turquoise rabbits and coyotes, one of which extends 14 feet from nose to tail.
      If you’re in Manhattan, stop by the plazas between 36th and 39th streets before November 23 to see the bold animals in person. (thnx, Laura!)

      #animals
      #origami
      #public art
      #sculpture
      #street art

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    • 163 Shares189 Views

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      Flora and Fauna Intertwine with Strands of Hair in Miho Hirano’s Dreamy Portraits

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      Art

      #animals
      #oil painting
      #painting
      #portraits

      September 15, 2021
      Grace Ebert

      “Heart Beating” (2020), oil on canvas, 33.3 x 33.3 centimeters. All images courtesy of Gallery Sumire, shared with permission
      Wrapped within the piecey curls surrounding Miho Hirano‘s subjects are twigs, vine fragments, and clusters of pink blossoms. Using a cool color palette tinged with blues, the Japanese artist (previously) paints ethereal, introspective portraits of women enveloped in movement whether through small fish swimming around their torsos or branches growing from under their hair. Hirano tells Colossal that she tends to center her oil-based works around finding harmony and the inevitability of change, particularly in relation to life’s fragile nature.
      Many of the pieces shown here are on view at Beinart Gallery in Melbourne, and Hirano is currently preparing for a solo show in London next year. You can see more of her dreamy paintings on Instagram.

      “Blooming Relaxedly” (2021), oil on canvas, 41 x 32 centimeters
      “Rest” (2021), oil on canvas, 41 x 32 centimeters
      “My Wishes” (2021), oil on canvas, 33.3 x 33.3 centimeters
      “Fragrance” (2021), oil on canvas, 53 x 45.5 centimeters
      “Spring Breeze Blowing Through” (2020), oil on canvas, 33.4 x 33.4 centimeters

      #animals
      #oil painting
      #painting
      #portraits

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      Mammoth Straw Creatures Populate Japanese Farmland in the Annual Wara Art Festival

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      Art
      Food

      #animals
      #farming
      #Japan
      #sculpture
      #straw

      September 13, 2021
      Grace Ebert

      All images courtesy of Wara Art Festival
      If you visit Japan’s Niigata Prefecture during the region’s annual rice harvest, you’re likely to find enormous tarantulas, eagles, and dinosaur-like creatures stalking the bucolic landscape. The towering sculptures are part of the Wara Art Festival, a summertime event that displays massive animals and mythical creations fashioned from the crop’s leftover straw.
      Traditionally, the byproduct is used as livestock feed, for compost that revitalizes the soil, and to craft household goods like zori sandals, although farmers increasingly have found themselves with a surplus as agricultural technology and culture changes. This shift prompted a partnership between the people of the former Iwamuro Village, which is now Nishikan Ward, and Tokyo’s Musashino Art University (known colloquially as Musabi) in 2006. At the time, Department of Science of Design professor Shingo Miyajima suggested that the unused straw be used in a collaborative art project between the university and local farmers, resulting in the first Wara Art Festival in 2008.
      Today, students design the oversized characters—you can see previous year’s creations in this gallery—and artisans from Nishikan Ward construct the wooden armature and thatched bodies. The monumental figures stand as high as 30 feet, looming over the green landscape in a playful celebration of local culture.
      Although the festival paused in 2020 because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it’s back for its 13th edition at Uwasekigata Park. This year’s motley cast includes insects, animals, and even legendary monsters like the Amabie, all on view through October 31. (via Hyperallergic)

      #animals
      #farming
      #Japan
      #sculpture
      #straw

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

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      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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