Architecture

Subterms

    Latest story

    150 Shares199 Views

    Matt Bua’s ‘Repurposed City’ in Upstate New York Just Hit the Market

    by

    The interior of Matt Bua’s cabin in Catskill, New York. Photo by Photo by Kevin Witte Productions. All images courtesy of Matt Bua, shared with permission

    Matt Bua’s ‘Repurposed City’ in Upstate New York Just Hit the Market

    February 13, 2025

    ArtDesign

    Kate Mothes

    Share

    Pin

    Email

    Bookmark

    On nearly 27 wooded acres outside the town of Catskill, New York, artist Matt Bua has been hard at work on a creative compound like no other. For two decades, he has constructed an artist-built environment from salvaged materials comprising numerous living spaces and work areas. Recently listed for sale for $269,000, the off-grid property known as “B-Home” could be yours.

    Bua’s project originated with the idea to “build one of every type of dwelling we could with materials that were easily at hand,” the artist tells Colossal. From repurposed vinyl records, bottles, and reclaimed wood, a sprawling “repurposed city” emerged as painted signs, sculptures, and one-of-a-kind structures popped up over time.

    Bua describes his approach as “intuitive building,” working in response to the natural terrain, found materials, and vernacular structures of the northeast. He wrote a book titled Talking Walls, which focuses on the region’s tens of thousands of miles of historic stone walls and considers history and material culture merge in the ways we understand “place.”

    Bua lived in Brooklyn when he purchased the property. “All I wanted to do was go up there and build,” he recently told Artnet. He was inspired by self-sustaining communities like Drop City in Colorado, an artists’ commune formed in 1960 with a reputation for remarkable hand-built homes. Incidentally, he also used to maintain Catskill’s quirky Catamount People’s Museum, an installation of an enormous bobcat made from scraps of wood.

    Along with a cohort of friends who have contributed freestanding artworks and functional structures over the years, Bua approached “B-Home” as a collaborative experiment “informed by the needs and desires of our surrounding community.”

    Learn more about Bua’s work on his website.

    All images courtesy of Matt Bua, shared with permission

    Map of “B-Home” More

    More stories

    • 125 Shares129 Views

      in Art

      ‘Imagining the Future’ Honors Aleksandra Kasuba’s Trailblazing Installations and Environments

      by

      “Spectrum. An Afterthought” (1975–2014), synthetic fabric, neon lamps, colored filters, steel, aluminum, plywood, and plastic,
      40 x 105.6 x 53.9 meters. Photo by Antanas Lukšėnas. Image courtesy of The Lithuanian National Museum of Art, Estate of Aleksandra Kasuba

      ‘Imagining the Future’ Honors Aleksandra Kasuba’s Trailblazing Installations and Environments

      February 10, 2025

      ArtDesign

      Kate Mothes

      Share

      Pin

      Email

      Bookmark

      From immersive fabric installations and sculptures to photography, landscape design, and architecture, the work of Aleksandra Kasuba (1923-2019) merges myriad ideas about how we experience the world around us. The intersection of technology and nature enchanted the late Lithuanian artist, and she often experimented with a variety of materials and the effects of light, hue, and tension to explore relationships between ourselves and notions of shelter and place.

      The first major exhibition of her work in Europe, Imagining the Future at Carré d’Art—Musée d’Art Contemporain, explores the incredible breadth of Kasuba’s artistry.

      “Shell Dwellers III” (1989), paper and collage, 35 × 43.5 centimeters. Image courtesy of The Lithuanian National Museum of Art, Estate of Aleksandra Kasuba

      Born to an aristocratic family, Kasuba enrolled in art school in 1941, focusing primarily on sculpture and textiles. She married artist Vytautas Kašuba, with whom she fled Lithuania in 1944 in the wake of the Nazi occupation of the country. They landed in a displaced-persons camp in Germany where they stayed until making their way to New York in 1947, and her experience as a refugee and an immigrant significantly affected her work.

      In the U.S., Kasuba found employment in crafts and design and began laying the foundations for her future artistic practice, which merged applied and functional arts with abstraction. Her interdisciplinary practice took shape in earnest the 1950s and 1960s and was deeply influenced by tenets of modernism and the era of space exploration, which cast humanity’s existence on Earth in a new light.

      Mid-20th century scholarship on vernacular architecture also inspired Kasuba, and she was moved by a visit to Bernard Rudofsky’s 1964 exhibition Architecture Without Architects at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. He took a broader view of global architecture than the field typically covered and emphasized the ingenuity and beauty of structures built by Indigenous cultures.

      Rudofsky suggested that modernism—particularly modern architecture—had lost touch with the real needs of society, and he urged viewers to pay attention to artistic, idiosyncratic, culturally rich local styles free from elitist design rules.

      “Rock Hill House” (2002). Image courtesy of The Lithuanian National Museum of Art, Estate of Aleksandra Kasuba

      Kasuba’s artistic practice blended with daily life in her own living spaces, too, from her New York City home in the 1970s to Rock Hill House, a sculptural dwelling in the New Mexico desert she completed between 2001 and 2005.

      The convergence of sculpture and environmental design also fascinated the artist, spurring unique material combinations in large-scale public interventions and spatial installations. Concerned with how we move through places and are affected by our surroundings, she was also commissioned to create numerous public wall installations using materials like brick, marble, and granite.

      Kasuba explored the relationships between transparency, color, and light in works like “Spectrum,” privileging organic shapes and an immersive passageway made from stretched nylon. Her Space Shelters series, composed of fabric in curving forms without ninety-degree angles, exemplifies her desire to harmonize nature, people, and technology.

      Imagining the Future continues through March 23 in Nîmes, France. Learn more on the museum’s website.

      “Dreaming III” (1963), white marble, 103 x 91 centimeters. Photo Antanas Luksenas. Image courtesy of The Lithuanian National Museum of Art, Estate of Aleksandra Kasuba

      Installation view of ‘Imagining the Future’ at Carré d’Art, Nîmes, France. Photo by Cédrick Eymenier

      “Live-In Environment, 43W90, NYC” (1971–1972). From the digital archive of Aleksandra Kasuba. Image courtesy of The Lithuanian National Museum of Art, Estate of Aleksandra Kasuba

      Installation view of ‘Imagining the Future’ at Carré d’Art, Nîmes, France. Photo by Cédrick Eymenier

      Installation view of ‘Imagining the Future’ at Carré d’Art, Nîmes, France. Photo by Cédrick Eymenier

      “Rock Hill House” (2005). Image courtesy of The Lithuanian National Museum of Art, Estate of Aleksandra Kasuba

      Installation view of ‘Imagining the Future’ at Carré d’Art, Nîmes, France. Photo by Cédrick Eymenier

      “Shell Dwellers VI” (1989), paper and collage, 35 × 43.5 centimeters. Image courtesy of The Lithuanian National Museum of Art, Estate of Aleksandra Kasuba

      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

    • 113 Shares169 Views

      in Art

      Wycliffe Stutchbury Configures Miniature Wood Shingles into Mesmerizing Arrangements

      by

      “The Craig,” 17th-century barn blockwork repair clad in English oak sourced, harvested, seasoned, and machined from fallen branches in adjacent woods, 13 x 4.3 meters, Abergavenny, Monmouthshire

      Wycliffe Stutchbury Configures Miniature Wood Shingles into Mesmerizing Arrangements

      February 5, 2025

      ArtCraft

      Kate Mothes

      Share

      Pin

      Email

      Bookmark

      “Always in my mind is the desire to describe the landscape of the human body and the country,” says artist Wycliffe Stutchbury, whose elegant compositions are intimately tied to nature and a sense of place. He creates handmade wood shingles made from a range of sources like bog oak, holly, and ash, arranging the pieces into elemental compositions.

      “I work with wood because it is full of surprises, and it is a miraculous material,” Stutchbury tells Colossal. “Its character, texture, fragility, robustness, and the way in which it records the passing of time… I really just see myself as an editor of nature.”

      “Hundred Foot Drain 15,” excavated bog oak, 180 x 80 centimeters, Chatteris, Cambridgeshire

      The artist is fascinated by the human relationship with landscape, or what he describes as “the struggle between our desire to impose form on the natural world and its unwillingness to conform.” No matter how we try to manipulate, use, or suppress the natural environment, it always shapes our efforts.

      Stutchbury was formally trained as a furniture maker, and when he graduated from university, he focused on making what he calls “miniature realities,” or very precise models of everyday things, which he exhibited in large, white spaces. After university, he moved into a studio with some fellow graduates. The artist realized he needed to put the nose to the grindstone and began to gravitate back to woodworking.

      “One day, I was walking home and the neighbour’s house was being re-roofed,” the artist says. “The builders had left the old roofing battens in the front garden, and I asked if I could take them away. The rain and sun and time had produced these wonderful colours on the timber.”

      With his mind still in “miniature mode,” Stutchbury imagined a small tiled roof, and a textural wall panel clad with little shingles emerged. The rest is history, as they say. Over time, he experimented with different types of foraged wood, making larger panels, multi-piece installations, tapestry-like wall hangings and, most recently, architectural interventions.

      Detail of “The Craig”

      His project “The Craig,” a title derived from the Gaelic word for rock, reinterprets the exterior cladding of a 17th-century stone barn in Abergavenny, Monmouthshire. Following the contours of the original stonework and the covered aisle through the center, Stutchbury applied hundreds of shingles in a delicately undulating pattern.

      The artist harvested material for “The Craig” exclusively from fallen branches in the adjacent woods. “The title for each work is provided by the location that the timber is found,” he says. “I seek out fallen and forgotten wood, and how it has responded to its surroundings and environment provides me with the platform to work from.”

      Stutchbury follows where the work takes him. “Although I strive to apply my own structure to these works through concentration and technical skill, I fail,” he says, adding:

      I make mistakes, my concentration wanders, I change my mind, (and) I can’t maintain a straight line or a perfect sphere. I find I am being pulled toward an intuitive way of working, like stacking firewood. So, I allow the timber I have before me to lead the way, and through a process of editing, I try and reveal the qualities and narrative held within it.

      The artist has been busy with commissions, including a trip in May to Maine—a region rich with Shingle Style architecture—where he will clad one elevation of a house on the coast. Explore more on the artist’s website.

      “Holme Fen 3,” handsawn excavated bog oak tiles hung on cotton twill, 330 x 228 centimeters

      “The Rodd,” discarded barn cladding, 127 x 79 centimeters, Prestigne, Powys

      “The Hill 10,” felled common holly, 180 x 90 centimeters, Abergavenny, Monmouthshire

      Detail of “The Craig”

      “Hundred Foot Drain 9,” excavated bog oak, 100 x 150 centimeters, Chatteris, Cambridgeshire

      “Oakhill Park,” felled ash tree, 93 x 88 centimeters, Oakhill House, Hildenborough, Kent

      “Fenland Drape,” excavated bog oak and autumn leaves on 230gsm artists linen, 270 x 270 centimeters, Chatteris, Cambridgeshire / Lucas Gardens London SE5

      “Hundred Foot Drain 9” in progress

      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 Shares169 Views

      in Art

      Simon Laveuve’s 1/35-Scale Dwellings Hint at a Post-Apocalyptic Way of Life

      by

      “Temple” (2025), mixed media. All images courtesy of Simon Laveuve, shared with permission

      Simon Laveuve’s 1/35-Scale Dwellings Hint at a Post-Apocalyptic Way of Life

      February 3, 2025

      Art

      Kate Mothes

      Share

      Pin

      Email

      Bookmark

      Whether slathered with graffiti, overgrown with moss, or decorated with found knick-knacks, Simon Laveuve’s sculptures hint at anonymous lives. Even though we never see those who inhabit the eclectic miniature dwellings (previously), the artist invites us to examine an alternative way of life.

      Crafted at 1/35 scale, tiny tables, windows, paintings, and other objects fill multi-story rooms and mezzanines. In his most recent works, Laveuve continues his characteristic assemblage-like style, imagining a post-apocalyptic reality where basic belongings provide for a simple life.

      Detail of “D’un bout à l’autre”

      In “D’un bout à l’autre,” for example, which translates to “from one end to the other” the structure appears to have risen from the pier of a long-destroyed bridge. Its swampy base contains old tires and other detritus, while above, a narrow, three-story shack includes basic amenities.

      In this imagined existence, there is presumably no electricity grid or internet, a windmill provides enough power for a fan and a refrigerator, and a tank stores water. Laveuve taps into a kind of “future past,” turning to equipment and methods many of us view as obsolete today, like gramophones and metal milk jugs.

      If you’re in Paris, you can see Laveuve’s solo exhibition Voir Loin at Loo & Lou Gallery through March 1. His work is also included in Small Is Beautiful, which is currently on view in Taipei. Discover more miniature worlds on the artist’s website and Instagram.

      “D’un bout à l’autre” (2025), mixed media, 52 x 40 x 31 centimeters

      Detail of “D’un bout à l’autre”

      “D’un bout à l’autre”

      Detail of “D’un bout à l’autre”

      “La Volière” (2025), mixed media

      Detail of “La Volière”

      “Temple” (2025), mixed media

      Detail of “Temple”

      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

    • 113 Shares99 Views

      in Art

      Asya Marakulina Sculpts Poignant Ceramic Portraits of Demolished Homes

      by

      All images courtesy of Asya Marakulina, shared with permission

      Asya Marakulina Sculpts Poignant Ceramic Portraits of Demolished Homes

      January 22, 2025

      ArtSocial Issues

      Kate Mothes

      Share

      Pin

      Email

      Bookmark

      Prior to the 20th century, apartment buildings and row houses were often built with shared walls between adjoining properties. Intrigued by these aging structures, Vienna-based artist Asya Marakulina began cataloging examples she first noticed on walks around her former home in St. Petersburg, Russia.

      “Since houses in the 19th century were built without gaps between them, when one house is torn down, the neighboring house often bears traces of the demolished one,” Marakulina tells Colossal. These remnants of decor, plumbing, and other signs of human habitation form the basis of her ongoing ceramic series, There Was a Home.

      When Marakulina moved to Vienna, she noticed a similar phenomenon in the remains of older buildings that had been demolished there, too. Fragments of floor still clung to the walls and the outlines of painted or papered rooms were suddenly—somewhat uncomfortably—external. The ease of a warm interior and its associated domesticity was upended.

      “What touches and affects me the most in images of ruined houses are the traces of wallpaper, tiles, and children’s rooms, which suddenly become visible to the entire street,” the artist says, sharing that the sight evokes a deep sadness. “These spaces were never meant to be seen in such a way.”

      Marakulina likens houses to the bodies of living organisms, imbued with emotions, memories, and layered histories. The ceramic cross-sections take on a portrait-like quality, capturing straightforward views of multistory edifices that are simultaneously immediate and intimate. “Maybe that’s why these images captivate me so much because a part of someone’s inner, domestic life is suddenly turned inside-out and put on public display,” she says.

      The houses in There Was a Home are typically drawn from real buildings, photographs of which she captures herself or finds on the internet. Marakulina also considers the impacts of war and is profoundly moved by the current conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, where thousands of homes have been destroyed and their inhabitants killed or displaced. The half-standing homes simultaneously represent lives lost and the hope of one day being able to rebuild.

      Rather than straightforward copies of the buildings she encounters, Marakulina takes liberties with wall colors, sometimes adding graffiti or words she sees on the streets or derives from the news. She scores the clay to create the textures of tile and concrete or delineate lintels and former doorways. The resulting reliefs become collage-like, merging locations and motifs.

      If you’re in Belgium, you can see the artist’s work in Ceramic Brussels, which opens today and continues through January 26. In London, Marakulina created a site-specific installation for a solo show at The Smallest Gallery in Soho, which continues through mid-February, and later that month, she will exhibit with Vienna Collectors Club. Find more on the artist’s website and 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

    • 150 Shares189 Views

      in Art

      Vibrant, Immersive Installations by Poh Sin Studio Emphasize Vulnerability as a Strength

      by

      “Projection: Kite” (2019) at night. Photo by David Yeow. All images courtesy of Poh Sin Studio, shared with permission

      Vibrant, Immersive Installations by Poh Sin Studio Emphasize Vulnerability as a Strength

      January 15, 2025

      ArtDesign

      Kate Mothes

      Share

      Pin

      Email

      Bookmark

      From vibrant rope to metal frames to acrylic panels, the chromatic installations of Poh Sin Studio invite viewers into glowing thoroughfares and sprawling pavilions. Founded by Pamela Poh Sin Tan, the studio emphasizes public art as a means of fostering relationships between people, their communities, and their surroundings.

      Tan’s immersive works blur the boundaries between disciplines, evoking a sense of curiosity and discovery. “I’m particularly drawn to engaging the public through art and creating experiences that inspire dialogue and connection,” she tells Colossal. “I believe public art is a powerful catalyst for urban renewal and psychological well-being, providing moments of reflection, joy, and connection.”

      Detail of “Crimson Cloud”

      For example, the artist shares that her most recent installation, “Structural Resonance,” explores the interplay between art and architecture, embodying layers of spatial and experiential narratives.” She is interested in how physical spaces interact with their environment and affect us visually and emotionally.

      Embracing fragility as a form of strength is central to Tan’s practice, manifesting in the way soft materials, like rope, complement those associated with resilience and permanence, like metal. “I find inspiration in overlooked details, such as plant veins, diatoms, mechanical and electrical systems, or even the skeletal framework of objects like a piano,” she says. “These hidden elements hold quiet beauty and complexity that I love to bring to light.”

      Art and architecture are inherently intertwined in Tan’s view. Design and engineering provides structure, context, and utility, while the artistic aspect adds compelling narrative and emotion. “Together, they reveal hidden dimensions, evoke movement, and connect deeply with viewers,” she says.

      Explore more on Poh Sin Studio’s website and Instagram.

      “Structural Resonance” (2024)

      “Projection: Kite.” Photo by David Yeow

      Detail of “Projection: Kite” (2019). Photo by David Yeow

      “Sunnyside Up” (2023) at MRT Pasar Seni, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

      “Sunnyside Up” (2023)

      “Crimson Cloud” (2022), at Pavilion Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

      Detail of “Crimson Cloud”

      “Eden”

      “Structural Resonance”

      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 Shares199 Views

      in Art

      Mantra’s Murals Collect Enormous Butterflies in Building-Size Specimen Cases

      by

      Mural on the Southeast Financial Center building in Miami, Florida. All images courtesy of Mantra and Justkids.art, shared with permission

      Mantra’s Murals Collect Enormous Butterflies in Building-Size Specimen Cases

      January 10, 2025

      ArtNature

      Kate Mothes

      Share

      Pin

      Email

      Bookmark

      French artist Youri Cansell, a.k.a. Mantra (previously) continues to brighten neighborhood streets and large cities alike with his vivid insect murals. Drawing on a fascination with nature and its preservation, he creates monumental specimen cases on buildings around the world, filled with a wide variety of butterflies.

      The artist recently completed his largest mural to date in Miami, positioned on the rooftop of the Southeast Financial Center building. Nestled into the surface of a characteristically organized case, a range of colorful butterflies rest alongside the structure’s utility systems.

      Detail of progress on mural in Miami

      The mural features numerous species, including the endangered Miami blue butterfly that’s native to South Florida. “It’s always a pleasure to paint in Miami, a city that thrives on its vibrant mix of people and cultures—much like the butterflies in my mural, which represent a diverse selection of specimens,” the artist says.

      Additional recent projects include a giant glass-fronted display on the side of a building in Brooklyn and a towering, narrow composition in downtown Houston. Find more on Mantra’s website and Instagram.

      Houston, Texas

      Brooklyn, New York

      Crans-Montana, Switzerland

      Breda, The Netherlands

      Detail of progress on mural in Miami

      Rombas, France

      Detail of progress on mural in Miami

      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 Shares159 Views

      in Art

      Beams of Light Lance Monumental Architecture in Jun Ong’s Astral Installations

      by

      “STAR/BUTTERWORTH.” Photo by Ronaldas Buozis. All images courtesy of the artist, shared with permission

      Beams of Light Lance Monumental Architecture in Jun Ong’s Astral Installations

      December 30, 2024

      ArtDesign

      Kate Mothes

      Share

      Pin

      Email

      Bookmark

      In artist Jun Ong’s luminous installations, rays of light pierce through concrete, stone, and steel. In his ongoing Stars series features LED strips that intersect with the human-built environment in monumental, illuminated geometries.

      Ong’s latest piece, “HALO,” relies on an existing architectural structure to provide a site-specific framework. Beams of light appear to permeate stone and concrete, simultaneously contained by the buildings yet impervious to their solidity.

      “HALO.” Photo by YueJin Art Museum

      Exploring themes of time and space, “HALO” radiates from within the Xiu De Bai Pavilion, a former Buddhist temple in Yan Shui, Tainan, Taiwan. “Built in 1919, the temple has history tracing back to the Qing dynasty and was pivotal in supporting the community,” Ong says.

      “Light in Buddhism is an important metaphor for enlightenment—the awakening or the understanding of truth,” says a statement from YueJin Art Museum. Just as Buddha, in addition to sacred figures in other religions, is often portrayed with a bright aura or halo around the head or body, Ong envisions the burst of light as a means of illuminating our surroundings and our past.

      “HALO” builds upon a work titled “STAR/BUTTERWORTH,” which he installed in Penang, Malaysia, in 2015. The artist was inspired by the idiosyncratic designs of Buckminster Fuller, like his geodesic domes, and M.C. Escher’s optical illusions.

      He says, “Using only two materials—tensile steel cables and LED strips—I manipulated light and architecture to create a colossal object that seemingly burst out of the building like a glitch in time.”

      Detail of “HALO”

      For “HALO,” Ong created a starburst form that can also be interpreted as a ring of light, reimagining a 2022 piece called “STAR/KL,” which he installed in brutalist interior in Kuala Lumpur. “I hope that the Star series continues to emerge across different cities and cultures and possibly also in interesting terrains, like caves, the desert, or even forests,” Ong says.

      Commissioned by for the 2024 Yuejin Art Museum Festival, “HALO” remains on view through February 16. If you’re in The Netherlands, you can also see Ong’s piece “POLARIS” on view as part of the Amsterdam Light Festival through January 19. Find more on the artist’s website and Instagram.

      Detail of “STAR/BUTTERWORTH.” Photo by Ronaldas Buozis

      “POLARIS”

      Detail of “HALO”

      “HALO.” Photo by YueJin Art Museum

      “POLARIS.” Photo by Merce Wouthuysen

      Detail of “STAR/BUTTERWORTH.” Photo by Ronaldas Buozis

      Detail of “HALO.” Photo by YueJin Art Museum

      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

    • 138 Shares189 Views

      in Art

      Lush Growths and Classical Architecture Converge in Eva Jospin’s Meticulous Sculptures

      by

      “Forêt” (2024), wood, cardboard, 94 1/2 x 133 7/8 x 19 3/4 inches. All images courtesy of Mariane Ibrahim, shared with permission

      Lush Growths and Classical Architecture Converge in Eva Jospin’s Meticulous Sculptures

      November 16, 2024

      ArtNature

      Grace Ebert

      Share

      Pin

      Email

      Bookmark

      Rather than position herself as an observer of landscapes, Eva Jospin imagines humans and their environments as one. The Parisian artist carves intricate forests and stately architecture subsumed by vines and craggy cliffs all from humble cardboard, accentuating the corrugated textures to add depth and intrigue.

      In her Chicago debut at Mariane Ibrahim, Jospin presents a series of freestanding sculptures and wall works that invite the viewer to venture into her large-scale, yet incredibly intricate worlds. Titled Vanishing Points, the exhibition gestures toward perspective and the ways subtle details and contemplation can shift how we see.

      “Forêt troglodyte” (2024), wood, cardboard, and mixed media, 72 1/2 x 59 x 31 1/2 inches

      As with earlier bodies of work, Jospin’s paper sculptures and vivid, silk tapestries draw on classical styles and the 18th-century tradition of follies, architectural structures designed for decoration. These often ornate buildings could be found in many Baroque gardens, which took human mastery over nature as an imperative.

      The artist’s works instead depict a convergence between the manufactured and the organic. In the six-foot tall “Forêt troglodyte,” for example, vines crawl down from a ceiling embedded with shells and sea sponges. The exquisite vault stands parallel to a similarly shaped cavern, occupied by trees rising from a rugged bluff.

      Jospin walks viewers through her process and studio in the video below. If you’re in Chicago, see Vanishing Points before January 25.

      Detail of “Forêt troglodyte” (2024), wood, cardboard, and mixed media, 72 1/2 x 59 x 31 1/2 inches

      “Capriccio” (2024), wood, cardboard, and mixed media, 76 3/8 x 41 3/8 x 21 5/8 inches

      Detail of “Capriccio” (2024), wood, cardboard, and mixed media, 76 3/8 x 41 3/8 x 21 5/8 inches

      “Jardin Constantine” (2024), silk thread, silk canvas, wood and cardboard frame,46 x 96 7/8 x 4 inches

      “Jardin Constantine” (2024), silk thread, silk canvas, wood and cardboard frame,46 x 96 7/8 x 4 inches

      “Petit Bois” (2024), wood, cardboard, 28 x 34 1/2 x 9 1/4 inches

      “Treille” (2024), silk thread, silk canvas, wood and cardboard frame, 100 3/4 x 69 1/4 x 4 inches

      Detail of “Forêt” (2024), wood, cardboard, 94 1/2 x 133 7/8 x 19 3/4 inches

      Detail of “Treille” (2024), silk thread, silk canvas, wood, and cardboard frame, 100 3/4 x 69 1/4 x 4 inches

      “Labyrinthe” (2024), wood, cardboard, and mixed media, 41 x 39 3/8 x 27 1/2 inches

      Detail of “Labyrinthe” (2024), wood, cardboard, and mixed media, 41 x 39 3/8 x 27 1/2 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

      Next article More