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Diminutive Figures Traverse Vibrant, Post-Climate Disaster Environments by Seonna Hong
Art
#acrylic
#climate crisis
#identity
#oil painting
#painting
#pastelJanuary 19, 2022Grace Ebert“Kid World” (2021). All images © Seonna Hong, courtesy of Hashimoto Contemporary, shared with permissionIn Late Bloomer, Los Angeles-based artist Seonna Hong wades into landscapes filled with amorphous swatches of color and marred by climate disaster. Her acrylic, oil, and pastel works are on view through February 5 at Hashimoto Contemporary in Los Angeles in an introspective solo show that considers her place in an ever-evolving world. Set against abstract, blurred backdrops, Hong’s distinctly rendered animals and anonymous subjects navigate distorted terrains of once-familiar architecture and natural landmarks.Many of the stylized compositions evoke traditional Korean landscapes from the Joseon period—these are known for their asymmetrical forms, vibrant brushstrokes, and skewed perspectives—that contemplate the human-nature relationship by placing miniature figures among formidable environments. “I’m a second-generation Korean American that is surprised to be making identity-based work but realizing I’ve been making it all along. I’ve spent my entire life between the push and pull of being Korean and American, never feeling quite Korean enough or American enough,” Hong writes on Instagram. “I’ve realized the inherent connection between my work and my history, a belated but cherished revelation.”“Granny Square” (2021)“In The Joseon Period” (2021)“The View From the Studio” (2021)“Sunset Stone” (2021)“Gumball Dystopia” (2021)“Like Minded” (2021)
#acrylic
#climate crisis
#identity
#oil painting
#painting
#pastelDo stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now! Share this story More - in Art
A Cube of Scaffolding Encloses a Glowing Red Sphere That Looms 25 Meters Above Madrid
Art#climate crisis
#installation
#light
#public artNovember 16, 2021
Grace EbertPhotos by Ruben P. Bescos, © SpY, shared with permission
As a visual metaphor for the intensity and urgency of the ongoing climate crisis, urban artist SpY erected a luminous orb that towers nearly 25 meters above Madrid’s Plaza de Colón. The large-scale work, titled “Tierra,” features a cage of construction scaffolding that encloses the massive sphere, creating a contrast between the two geometric shapes and casting a brilliant red glow on the surrounding area. Set against the backdrop of the bustling Spanish city, the installation “asks us to reflect on the way in which our home makes up a whole of which we form part and in which everything is connected as if it were a living creature,” the artist says.
SpY is known for his public interventions, including ironic installations and a temporary park in the middle of Madrid, where he currently lives. Follow his upcoming projects on Instagram.
#climate crisis
#installation
#light
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Exquisitely Cut Paper Sculptures by Rogan Brown Highlight the Effects of Coral Bleaching
Art#climate crisis
#coral
#paper
#sculptureNovember 4, 2021
Grace EbertDetail of “Ghost Coral.” All images © Rogan Brown, shared with permission
“The coral reef is a microcosm of a macrocosm,” says paper artist Rogan Brown. “What is happening to the reefs today will ultimately happen to the planet tomorrow unless action is taken.” Through new paper sculptures comprised of delicately fringed sea creatures, Brown (previously) creates a striking visual display of the disastrous impacts of the climate crisis on marine life, showing how issues like coral bleaching can radiate outward into the wider world.
In “Ghost Coral,” two circular reliefs comprised of intricate paper cuttings splay outward, layering the fragile lifeforms sliced from stark, white paper. These monochromatic pieces contrast their vibrant counterparts, which are nestled into the protective center of one of the masses. The other work, titled “Coral Garden,” is Brown’s interpretation of the heat-resistant organisms that scientists grow and plant in deteriorating patches for rejuvenation, and he places bright, healthy creatures, which are enclosed in transparent bubbles, within swaths of spindly, pale creatures. To create both pieces, Brown follows the same meticulous process, which involves drawing the organisms, cutting them out with a laser, and carefully hand-painting and mounting them into their final, sprawling forms. “The fragility and delicacy of paper seem to fit perfectly with the subject it is describing,” he tells Colossal.
The exquisitely crafted assemblages shown here are part of an ongoing series, which Brown will show this month at Galerie Bettina von Arnim in Paris, and you can keep up with his work on Instagram.Detail of “Coral Garden”
Detail of “Ghost Coral”
“Ghost Coral”
Detail of “Ghost Coral”
“Coral Garden”
“Ghost Coral”
Detail of “Coral Garden”#climate crisis
#coral
#paper
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Hundreds of Ceramic Marine Creatures Radiate in Gradients to Show the Effects of Coral Bleaching
Art#ceramics
#climate crisis
#coral
#installation
#porcelain
#sculptureOctober 26, 2021
Grace EbertDetail of “Revolve” (2021), glazed stoneware and porcelain, 168 x 335 x 35 centimeters. All images © Courtney Mattison, shared with permission
Two new site-specific pieces by Courtney Mattison (previously) position ceramic sculptures of corals, sponges, and anemones in a swirling cluster of ocean diversity. Titled “Revolve” and “Our Changing Seas VII,” the wall reliefs are the latest additions to the Los Angeles-based artist’s body of work, which advocates for ecological preservation by highlighting the beauty and fragile nature of marine invertebrates.
In both installations, Mattison contrasts the vibrant, plump tentacles of healthy creatures with others sculpted in white porcelain to convey the devastating effects of the climate crisis, including widespread bleaching. Her recurring subject matter is becoming increasingly urgent, considering recent reports that estimate that 14 percent of the world’s coral population has been lost in the last decade alone.
Each of the lifeforms is hand-built and pocked with minuscule grooves and textured elements—she shares this meticulous process on Instagram—and once complete, the individual sculptures are assembled in sweeping compositions that radiate outward in shifting gradients. “Water connects us all, from the lush banks of Lawsons Fork Creek to the icy glaciers of the Arctic and glittering reefs of Southeast Asia. Life on Earth is dependent on healthy oceans,” she shares about “Revolve.” “The swirling design of this work is inspired by these connections and patterns, with revolving forms repeated in nature through hurricanes, seashells, ocean waves, and galaxies.”
Mattison’s solo exhibition Turn the Tide is on view at Highfield Hall & Gardens in Massachusetts through October 31 before it travels to the New Bedford Whaling Museum, where it will be through May 1, 2022. You explore a larger archive of the artist’s marine works on Behance and her site.Detail of “Our Changing Seas VII” (2021), glazed stoneware and porcelain, 213 x 350 x 40 centimeters
Detail of “Revolve” (2021), glazed stoneware and porcelain, 168 x 335 x 35 centimeters
“Our Changing Seas VII” (2021), glazed stoneware and porcelain, 213 x 350 x 40 centimeters
Detail of “Revolve” (2021), glazed stoneware and porcelain, 168 x 335 x 35 centimeters
Detail of “Our Changing Seas VII” (2021), glazed stoneware and porcelain, 213 x 350 x 40 centimeters
“Revolve” (2021), glazed stoneware and porcelain, 168 x 335 x 35 centimeters#ceramics
#climate crisis
#coral
#installation
#porcelain
#sculptureDo stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!
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Poignant New Works by Pejac Confront the Urgency of Global Crises in Disquieting Detail
Art#acrylic
#activism
#capitalism
#climate crisis
#oil painting
#painting
#spray paintOctober 20, 2021
Grace Ebert“Counterweight” (2021), oil, acrylic, and spray paint on paper mounted on a wooden stretcher, 190 x 135 x 4.3 centimeters. All images © Pejac, shared with permission
Spanish street artist Pejac (previously) addresses the concept of “returning to normal” in a discerning new series that focuses on the urgency of the issues affecting the world today. Centered on the increasingly disastrous effects of the climate crisis and the social issues that dominate the news cycle, the artist speaks to the myriad global crises in his largest exhibition to date, which opens on October 30 in a former train factory in Berlin. Titled APNEA, the solo show features 45 of his newest works in myriad mediums and themes, including chaotic scenes in acrylic, oil, and spray paints, delicate honeycomb on cardboard, and large-scale sculptures and installations that occupy the industrial space.
Pejac created many of the pieces on view since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, an ongoing concern that also formed the basis for his 2020 trio of interventions paying tribute to health care workers. The new series includes a disquieting depiction of the White House overcome by a violent riot, with canisters releasing billowing smoke and an unaware figure golfing in the foreground, in addition to a cyclone-like drain on a paint palette. Other pieces depict a surreal earthen map of the U.S. with state lines cracked in the dirt and a rendering of Rodin’s “The Thinker” precariously balanced on scaffolding. “During a time of lockdown, painting within the four walls of my studio felt like a liberation and a lifeline. APNEA represents this contradiction,” the artist says.
To coincide with the show’s opening, Pejac is releasing “The Boss” (shown below) as limited-edition prints and postcards available through a lottery system, and proceeds will be donated to Sea-Watch, a German NGO that has helped thousands of migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea. The artist also teamed up with the organization for an installation depicting a child wearing a life jacket atop Neo-Gothic Holy Cross Church in Berlin, a heartwrenching visual that draws attention to the refugee crisis. You can find out more about the release and see additional works on Instagram.“Drain I” (2021), oil on artist’s palette, 50 x 40 x .4 centimeters
“Flying Ashes II” (2021), pyrography and colored pencil on wood, 189.5 x 121.8 x 3.8 centimeters
“Urban Albatros” (2019), oil, acrylic, and spray paint on paper mounted on a wooden stretcher, 190 x 135 x 4.3 centimeters
“Geography Lesson II” (2020), oil and spray paint on paper mounted on a wooden stretcher, 190 x 135 x 4.3 centimeters
“Landless Stranded” (2021)
“Animal Kingdom” (2021), oil, acrylic, and spray paint on paper mounted on a wooden stretcher, 190 x 135 x 4.3 centimeters
Detail of “Sweet World” (2021), acrylic on honeycomb cardboard, 145 x 200 centimeters
“The Boss” (2021)
Detail of “The Boss” (2021)
“Social Distancing” (2021), oil and acrylic on viroc, 125 x 200 x 1.2 centimeters
Detail of “Social Distancing” (2021), oil and acrylic on viroc, 125 x 200 x 1.2 centimeters
Detail of “Social Distancing” (2021), oil and acrylic on viroc, 125 x 200 x 1.2 centimeters
#acrylic
#activism
#capitalism
#climate crisis
#oil painting
#painting
#spray paintDo stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!
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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 artSeptember 7, 2021
Grace EbertAches. 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 artDo stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now!
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