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      Dialogo: A Frenzied Short Film Translates Indiscernible Audio into Kinetic Sound Sculptures

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      Art

      #flowers
      #kinetic
      #language
      #neon
      #sculpture
      #senses
      #sound
      #video

      December 28, 2020
      Grace Ebert

      [embedded content]
      Juxtaposing natural elements and mechanics, “Dialogo” harnesses the frenetic, indiscernible components of language into a synesthetic experience. A mix of stop-motion and live-action, the short film features entirely hand-crafted sculptures by the Madrid-based design studio blo que. Each motorized work translates human utterings into movement, whether through an undulating tube of neon or oscillating florals, generating new associations in a conversation between the senses.
      To represent the original audio in a visual manner, blo que converts the speech waveforms into animation curves, which subsequently mobilizes the sculpture’s engines. “This is the voice of nature and order or the control of what cannot be controlled,” the studio says. “The passing of time in nature (freezing, rotting, etc.) is connected to the time of sound reproduction. This bond creates relationships between human emotions, language, and nature.”
      blo que details the lengthy creation process for the film on its site, and you can follow future projects that merge the tangible and digital on Vimeo and Instagram.

      #flowers
      #kinetic
      #language
      #neon
      #sculpture
      #senses
      #sound
      #video

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      Teeming with Flourishes, Narrative Sculptures by Amber Cowan Revitalize Vintage Pressed Glass

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      Art

      #found objects
      #glass
      #narrative
      #sculpture

      December 23, 2020
      Grace Ebert

      “Bridesmaid Returns to the Shore of Her Full Moon” (2019), glass and mixed media, 23 x 22 x 9.5. Photo by Matthew Hollerbush. All images © Amber Cowan, shared with permission
      The monochromatic assemblages of Amber Cowan (previously) are at once domestic narratives and homages to an abandoned industry. Delicate baubles frame a central figure or scene that the Philadelphia-based artist illustrates with scraps of pressed glass. Whether focused on a lone bridesmaid or a hen hoarding eggs, Cowan’s works explore the feminine experience through themes of “loneliness, the search for meaning, the search for love, and the following of symbolism in the mundane.”
      Cowan shops at antique stores and markets for materials, although she more frequently scours scrapyards around the country for discarded bits of glass, which are known as cullets. As a whole, the now-defunct industry was booming from the mid-1800s before it dropped off during the 20th Century. “Nowadays, this material is out of fashion and relegated to the dustbin of American design,” the artist writes, noting that she often finds masses of historic hues at the scrapyards. “These barrels of color are often the last of their run, and my work will essentially give the formulas their final resting place and visually abundant celebration of life.”
      Some of Cowan’s work is included in the recently published book, Objects: USA 2020. If you’re in New York, her piece “Dance of the Pacific Coast Highway at Sunset” is permanently on view at The Museum of Arts and Design, and she’s also part of an upcoming group exhibition at R & Co. Gallery. Until then, explore more of her textured sculptures on her site and Instagram.

      “Young Love Resting in Gray Meadow” (2019), glass and mixed media, 22 x 19 x 11 inches. Photo by Matthew Hollerbush
      “Nautilus in Crown Tuscan” (2019), glass and mixed media, 8 x 4 x 12 inches. Photo by Matthew Hollerbush
      “Hen Collecting All of Her Ova” (2020), glass and mixed media, 18 x 20 x 9 inches. Photo by Constance Mensh
      Detail of “Bridesmaid Returns to the Shore of Her Full Moon” (2019), glass and mixed media, 23 x 22 x 9.5. Photo by Matthew Hollerbush
      “Snail Passing Through the Garden of Inanna” (2019), glass and mixed media, 22 x 19.5 x 10.5. Photo by Matthew Hollerbush
      “Dance of the Pacific Coast Highway at Sunset” (2019), glass and mixed media, 34 x 46 x 12.5 inches. Photo by Constance Mensh
      “Hen Collecting All of Her Ova” (2020), glass and mixed media, 18 x 20 x 9 inches. Photo by Constance Mensh
      “Bubble Bath in the Tunnel of Love” (2020), glass and mixed media, 25 x 25 x 15 inches. Photo by Constance Mensh

      #found objects
      #glass
      #narrative
      #sculpture

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      A Small Scottish Town Delegates the Annual Christmas Light Display to Its Youngest Residents

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      Art

      #holidays
      #kids
      #light
      #public art
      #Scotland
      #street art

      December 22, 2020
      Grace Ebert

      All images via Poppy McKenzie Smith, shared with permission
      In a delightful holiday tradition, the small town of Newburgh in southern Scotland tasks its youngest residents with creating the glowing Christmas decorations that adorn the streets. Now in its 19th year, the annual event begins with school-age kids submitting their quirky designs to a competition. Once a winner is chosen, the artwork is sent to Blachere Illumination to be translated into LED before it’s unveiled at a ceremony held at Lampost 15, where the new work is hung each year. The winning artist gets the honor of turning on the light, illuminating their crooked gingerbread figure or beaming reindeer for the 2,000-plus residents to enjoy. In a similarly charming practice, the runner-up’s art is featured on the town’s Christmas card. (via It’s Nice That)

      #holidays
      #kids
      #light
      #public art
      #Scotland
      #street art

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      Futura, a King of Graffiti, Returns to His Roots

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      #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }The Best of 2020Best ComedyBest TV ShowsBest BooksBest MoviesBest AlbumsThe graffiti artist Futura, born Leonard McGurr, near the Eric Firestone Gallery in Manhattan, where “Futura 2020,” his first solo exhibition in New York in 30 years, is on view.Credit…Celeste Sloman for The New York TimesSkip to contentSkip to site indexFutura, a King of Graffiti, Returns to His RootsThe artist has gone from painting subway cars to the runways of Comme des Garçons. After a hiatus, his two exhibitions are his first in his hometown in 30 years.The graffiti artist Futura, born Leonard McGurr, near the Eric Firestone Gallery in Manhattan, where “Futura 2020,” his first solo exhibition in New York in 30 years, is on view.Credit…Celeste Sloman for The New York TimesSupported byContinue reading the main storyPublished More

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      Subversive and Grandiose, Kajahl’s Vivid Portraits Supplant Historical Narratives

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      Art

      #oil painting
      #painting
      #portraits

      November 20, 2020
      Grace Ebert

      “Silent Incantation II” (2020), oil on canvas over panel, 38 x 33 inches. All images © Kajahl, shared with permission
      Through his meticulously rendered portraits, Santa Cruz-born artist Kajahl subverts the tradition of Blackamoor—a highly stylized European aesthetic that visualized people of color, particularly African men, in exoticized forms and subservient roles—by instead depicting Black subjects in valorized positions. Part of a series titled Royal Specter, the vivid paintings center alchemists, scholars, astronomers, and various intellectual figures within grandiose and luxurious settings.
      While the artist’s works evoke the racist sculpture and decorative pieces of Blackamoor, they remove the historical context and alter the original narrative through anachronistic details. Each oil painting is layered with imagined elements, from the inaccuracies of the source material to Kajahl’s portrayals of fictional characters. “My fantasy is gazing back at their fantasy. I am their fantasy and they are mine… I am the specter of their imagination,” he says.
      Kajahl’s work currently is on view at Chicago’s Monique Meloche Gallery through December 19. You can keep up with his historically subversive projects on Instagram.

      “Alchemist” (2020), oil on canvas over panel, 36 x 48 inches
      Left: “Huntress Eclipse” (2020), oil on canvas over panel, 60 x 48 inches. Right: “Tigress Guardian In Palmtree Oasis” (2020), oil on canvas over panel, 60 x 48 inches
      “Star Gazer In Solitude” (2020), oil on canvas over panel, 72 x 54 inches
      “Huntress In Oasis (Astride A Crocodile)” (2020), oil on canvas, 66 x 84 inches
      Left: “Moment of Contemplation (Scholar)” ( 2020), oil on canvas over panel, 48 x 36 inches. Right: “Oracle (Holding Mirror)” (2020), oil on canvas over panel, 48 x 36 inches
      “Silent Incantation I” (2020), oil on canvas over panel, 38 x 33 inches
      “Oracle Snake In Globe” (2020), oil on linen over panel, 48 x 36 inches

      #oil painting
      #painting
      #portraits

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      Celebrating the Late Tamara Djurovic, AKA Hyuro, and Her Sincere, Monumental Murals

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      Art

      #murals
      #public art
      #street art

      November 20, 2020
      Grace Ebert

      Argentinian artist Tamara Djurovic, who worked under the name Hyuro, died Thursday at her home in Valencia. Known for imbuing her works with sincerity, the artist utilized her large-scale pieces to capture the complexity of human emotion. Her style was distinct and subdued, and her process was informed by her concerns and questions about the world, a process she spoke of at length previously on Colossal.
      During her life, Djurovic made significant strides in the international mural community that is largely male-dominated. She completed projects across Europe, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, the United States, Morocco, and Tunisia, many of which you can see on her site and Instagram.

      #murals
      #public art
      #street art

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      Graffiti-Laden Shelters Arise From an Uncanny Post-Apocalyptic Universe Crafted in Miniature

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      Art

      #apocalypse
      #graffiti
      #miniature
      #sculpture

      November 19, 2020
      Grace Ebert

      “La Tourelle, IDF2068” (2020), 41 x 14 x 14. All images © Simon Laveuve, shared with permission
      Enveloped by trailing vines and mosses, the dilapidated shelters that Paris-based artist Simon Laveuve crafts appear to emerge from a post-apocalyptic universe as eerie safe-havens. Often elevated aboveground, the miniature buildings feature vertical constructions with various platforms and stairs leading upward. “My pieces, for the most part, have this aspect of shelter… I like to work on the height and the inaccessible. Protection and surrender. Fallen icons and their symbolism. Resistance and insubordination,” the artist says.
      Marked with signage and advertisements plastered on the walls, the decaying dioramas showcase an alternate world now abandoned. Graffiti marks the siding, and thick vegetation cradles the remaining environments. Each sculpture displays the destructive qualities of humanity, while ultimately showing the natural world’s ability to survive.
      Laveuve’s shelters are featured in Small Scale, Big World: The Culture of Mini Crafts, which is available from Bookshop. Explore more of the uncanny works on the artist’s site and Instagram, where he also shares glimpses into his process.

      Detail of “La Tourelle, IDF2068” (2020), 41 x 14 x 14
      “Vestige IV” (2020), 26 x 10 x 8
      “Station 9/4, IDF2068” (2019), 20 x 20 x 45
      Detail of “Station 9/4, IDF2068” (2019), 20 x 20 x 45
      “Le Navigator, IDF2068” (2020), 25 x 15 x 39

      #apocalypse
      #graffiti
      #miniature
      #sculpture

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