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    ‘Fake Food, Real Garbage’: A Satirical Store is Fully Stocked with Groceries Made Entirely of Plastic

    
    Art
    Food

    #installation
    #plastic
    #satire
    #stores

    July 7, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    Photo by Tony Lewis. All images courtesy of UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance, shared with permission
    Wander into a new pop-up grocery store in Downtown Los Angeles, and you’ll find all of the typical options with an unusual twist: freezers stocked with tubs of “Bag & Jerry’s,” a robust produce section with bananas and tomatoes printed with advertisements, and mysteriously gray “polluted sausage” stuck to styrofoam trays.
    Dubbed “The Plastic Bag Store,” the witty and satirical installation is the project of Robin Frohardt, who repurposed scores of bottle caps, packaging, and other single-use materials into a full-fledged grocery. Each of the non-edible items—many of which have undergone clever rebrands, meaning you’ll find family-sized boxes of Yucky Shards cereal, cases of Bagorade bottles, and clamshells of Earthbag Farms non-organic spring mix in the aisles—is made entirely with discarded waste that the Brooklyn-based artist, puppet-maker, and designer collected from garbage bins and trash sites.

    Photo by Bailey Holiver
    Paired with a performative component that envisions how future generations will interpret the inordinate amount of waste produced in today’s world, the installation literally displays the longevity of the items many of us use on a daily basis. According to recent estimations, the amount of plastic in the ocean is predicted to exceed the volume of fish by 2050, an ongoing crisis Frohardt wants to make more apparent. “’The Plastic Bag Store’ is a visually rich and humorous experience that hopefully encourages a different way of thinking about the foreverness of plastic, the permanence of the disposable and that there is no ‘away’ when we throw something out,” she says.
    The grocery, which debuted in Times Square last fall with the tagline “Fake Food, Real Garbage,” is open at UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance through July 11. You can find more of Frohardt’s projects, many of which critique mass consumerism and capitalism through a humorous lens, on her site and Instagram. (via Hyperallergic)

    Photo by Bailey Holiver
    Photo by Bailey Holiver
    Photo by Maria Baranova
    Photo by Tony Lewis
    Photos by Maria Baranova
    Photo by Maria Baranova
    Photo courtesy of Rundle Mall

    #installation
    #plastic
    #satire
    #stores

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    An Annual Exhibition Features Over 1,000 Illustrated Coasters at Nucleus Portland

    
    Art
    Food
    Illustration

    #coasters
    #home

    June 14, 2021
    Christopher Jobson

    Top left: By Kelly Louise Judd. Top right: By Lydia Nichols. Bottom left: By Mariya Pilipenko. Bottom right: By Molly Egan. All images via Nucleus Portland
    Each year Nucleus Portland tasks hundreds of artists with creating original works on a miniature canvas usually reserved for dewy beverages. Salut! harnesses the friendly camaraderie associated with the word and gathers more than 1,000 coasters illustrated in an expansive variety of styles, including minimal color-blocked toucans, trippy starscapes, and dreamy, candid portraits. See some of Colossal’s favorite 4×4-inch pieces below, and browse the entire exhibition and available works, which are up online and in-person through July 5, on Nucelus’s site.

    Top left: By Zoe Persico. Top right: By Sam Kalda. Bottom left: By Shinyeon Moon. Bottom right: By Vin Ganapathy
    Left: By Megan Wood. Right: By Catherine Ho
    Top left: By Juliette Toma. Top right: Chris Uphues. Bottom left: By Jennifer Davis. Bottom right: By Jialun Deng
    Left: By Edward Cao. Right: By Hayley Powers

    #coasters
    #home

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    Asparagus, Cucumbers, and Cabbage Leaves Take a Fresh Twist on the Iconic Hermès Birkin Bag

    
    Art
    Design
    Food

    #fashion
    #humor
    #vegetables

    June 8, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    All images © Ben Denzer, shared with permission
    Ben Denzer cultivates what could be the next trend in sustainable fashion with a green redesign of the classic Hermés Birkin bag. The artist and designer whipped up these vegetable versions of the iconic, high-end accessory by arranging asparagus stalks, cucumber slices, and cabbage leaves into a trio you’d be more likely to find in the produce aisle than a luxury shop.
    Denzer is known for his playful food pairings, including books bound with cheese slices and condiment packets and an entire account dedicated to matching his favorite reads with ice cream. Find more of his quirky designs on his site, and check out his Instagram for the apple and banana bags that didn’t make the cut. You also might enjoy Nicole McLaughlin’s edible attire. (via The Morning News)

    #fashion
    #humor
    #vegetables

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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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    Circular Paintings Expose the Fleshy Innards of Halved Oranges, Pomegranates, and Other Fruits

    
    Art
    Food

    #fruit
    #painting

    October 16, 2020
    Grace Ebert

    “#65 (orange)” (2017), oil on canvas, 20 inches. All images © Alonsa Guevara, shared with permission
    Using round canvases with a range of diameters, Alonsa Guevara deftly paints the plump, juicy insides of oranges, watermelon, and other fruits. Each circular piece depicts a seemingly perfect slice down the middle, capturing the fibrous veins and central seeds found within fresh produce.
    Guevara spent her childhood in the Ecuadorian rainforests surrounded by tropical landscapes and nearby agriculture, an experience of nature that influences her artistic practice. The Chilean artist, who lives in New York City, began fruit portraits in 2014 as she reflected on her adolescence and thought of creating a body of work that felt universal.
    “Immediately I thought of fruits; they are everywhere and have been present as an essential part of evolution and as symbols throughout human history,” Guevara shares with Colossal. “I decided to paint the fruits cut open, revealing their insides, recreating and depicting all the incredible patterns, seeds, and infinite information they carry, which many people take for granted.”
    Now an extensive series with dozens of paintings—the artist creates both miniatures that are as little as 1.5 inches and larger works spanning 30 inches—Guevara considers the collection a representation of desire and fertility, in addition to death and decay. “These fruits of the earth can be delicious/poisoning, juicy/rotten, real/imaginary,” she says. No matter the type, though, every work is painted to elicit a sensory response.
    A limited print series of Guevara’s orange, kiwi, and pomegranate will go on sale on October 21 on Her Clique, a new platform dedicated to promoting women’s art, with a portion of the proceeds donated to a program for low-income international students at The New York Academy of Art. Explore the full series of fleshy fruits on Guevara’s site, and stay up to date with her work on Instagram and Artsy.

    Left: “#27 (kiwi)” (2015), oil on canvas, 12 inches. Right: “#55 (pomegranate)” (2016), oil on canvas, 20 inches
    “#47 (apricot)” (2015), oil on canvas, 10 inches
    “#48 (cactus pair)” (2015), oil on canvas, 5 inches
    Left: “#51 (imagined fruit)” (2015), oil on canvas, 8 inches. Right: “#52 (watermelon)” (2015), oil on canvas, 20 inches
    Installation view
    Upper left: Mini Fruit Portrait Lemon. Upper right: Mini Fruit Portrait Avocado. Lower left: Mini Fruit Portrait Watermelon. Lower right: Mini Fruit Portrait Orange
    “#42 (pineapple)” (2015), oil on canvas, 8 inches

    #fruit
    #painting

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    Precious Gems Form the Unsightly Rot of Artist Kathleen Ryan’s Decomposing Fruit

    
    Art
    Food

    #fruit
    #gemstones
    #mold
    #sculpture

    September 15, 2020
    Grace Ebert

    “Bad Grapes” (2020), amethyst, aventurine, agate, garnet, pyrite, ruby in zoisite, tektite, tigereye, turquoise, serpentine, obsidian, blackstone, Indian unakite, labradorite, Sierra agate, red agate, black agate, serpentine, quartz, marble, amazonite, rhyolite, calcite, dalmation jasper, glass, steel and stainless steel pins, copper tube, and copper fittings, polystyrene. 59.5 x 90 x 54 inches. Image courtesy of Kathleen Ryan and François Ghebaly, Los Angeles, by Marten Elder
    New York-based artist Kathleen Ryan harvests inspiration for her oversized sculptures from natural sources: cherry orchards, vineyards, and mineral mines below the earth’s crust. She’s known for her fruit pieces that appear to be covered in mold, whether in the form of a deflated bunch of grapes or a pair of cherries spotted with fungi.
    Ryan portrays the moldy substances through precious and semi-precious gemstones like amethyst, quartz, and marble. The materials’ durability and longevity directly contrast the decay they represent. Whereas the most valuable and lustrous stones cover parts of the fruit, Ryan uses simple glass beads to create the still supple portions, forming the bright red flesh of the cherry or the pockets of yellow rind on the lemon.
    A virtual exhibition of the artist’s rotting sculptures, which sometimes span as many as 90 inches wide, is available for viewing from Karma. Follow Ryan on Instagram to see more of her work that explores the beautiful and the unsightly.

    “Bad Cherries (BFF)” (2020), agate, amazonite, aquamarine, aventurine, amethyst, angelite, brecciaded jasper, garnet, jasper, labradorite, magnesite, moonstone, quartz, red aventurine, rhyolite, serpentine, snow quartz, smoky quartz, spotted quartz, unakite, tiger eye, freshwater pearls, glass, steel pins on coated polystyrene, fishing poles, 26 × 12 × 39 inches. Image courtesy of Kathleen Ryan and Karma, New York
    “Bad Grapes” (2020), amethyst, aventurine, agate, garnet, pyrite, ruby in zoisite, tektite, tigereye, turquoise, serpentine, obsidian, blackstone, Indian unakite, labradorite, Sierra agate, red agate, black agate, serpentine, quartz, marble, amazonite, rhyolite, calcite, dalmation jasper, glass, steel and stainless steel pins, copper tube, and copper fittings, polystyrene. 59.5 x 90 x 54 inches. Image courtesy of Kathleen Ryan and François Ghebaly, Los Angeles, by Marten Elder
    “Bad Cherries (BFF)” (2020), agate, amazonite, aquamarine, aventurine, amethyst, angelite, brecciaded jasper, garnet, jasper, labradorite, magnesite, moonstone, quartz, red aventurine, rhyolite, serpentine, snow quartz, smoky quartz, spotted quartz, unakite, tiger eye, freshwater pearls, glass, steel pins on coated polystyrene, fishing poles, 26 × 12 × 39 inches. Image courtesy of Kathleen Ryan and Karma, New York
    “Pleasures Known” (2019), various semi-precious stones, shells, beads, wood, steel, plastic, hardware, coated polystyrene, iron trailer. Image courtesy of Kathleen Ryan and François Ghebaly, Los Angeles, by Marten Elder
    “Bad Grapes” (2020), amethyst, aventurine, agate, garnet, pyrite, ruby in zoisite, tektite, tigereye, turquoise, serpentine, obsidian, blackstone, Indian unakite, labradorite, Sierra agate, red agate, black agate, serpentine, quartz, marble, amazonite, rhyolite, calcite, dalmation jasper, glass, steel and stainless steel pins, copper tube, and copper fittings, polystyrene. 59.5 x 90 x 54 inches. Image courtesy of Kathleen Ryan and François Ghebaly, Los Angeles, by Marten Elder
    “Bad Cherries (BFF)” (2020), agate, amazonite, aquamarine, aventurine, amethyst, angelite, brecciaded jasper, garnet, jasper, labradorite, magnesite, moonstone, quartz, red aventurine, rhyolite, serpentine, snow quartz, smoky quartz, spotted quartz, unakite, tiger eye, freshwater pearls, glass, steel pins on coated polystyrene, fishing poles, 26 × 12 × 39 inches. Image courtesy of Kathleen Ryan and Karma, New York
    “Pleasures Known” (2019), various semi-precious stones, shells, beads, wood, steel, plastic, hardware, coated polystyrene, iron trailer. Image courtesy of Kathleen Ryan and François Ghebaly, Los Angeles, by Marten Elder
    “Pleasures Known” (2019), various semi-precious stones, shells, beads, wood, steel, plastic, hardware, coated polystyrene, iron trailer. Image courtesy of Kathleen Ryan and François Ghebaly, Los Angeles, by Marten Elder
    “Bad Lemon (Persephone)” (2020), Turquoise, serpentine, agate, smokey quartz, labradorite, tiger eye, tektite, zebra jasper, carnelian, garnet, pyrite, black stone, magnesite, Ching Hai jade, aventurine, Italian onyx, mahogany obsidian, vanadinite, glass, steel pins on coated polystyrene, 19.5 × 28.5 × 18 inches. Image courtesy of Kathleen Ryan and Karma, New York
    “Bad Lemon (Tart)” (2020), Citrine, amber, agate, turquoise, fluorite, prehnite, magnesite, Ching Hai jade, quartz, amethyst, garnet, labradorite, white lip shell, serpentine, sesame jasper, zebra jasper, grey feldspar, marble, glass, steel pins on coated polystyrene, 19 × 16 × 17 inches. Image courtesy of Kathleen Ryan and Karma, New York

    #fruit
    #gemstones
    #mold
    #sculpture

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    Insatiable Mouths and Fingers Rouse a Delicate Tea Set by Artist Ronit Baranga

    
    Art
    Food

    #anatomy
    #cake
    #ceramics
    #pie
    #sculpture
    #surreal

    September 14, 2020
    Grace Ebert

    All images © Ronit Baranga, shared with permission
    Israeli artist Ronit Baranga (previously) embodies voracious appetites by merging anatomical parts, desserts, and serving ware in an evocative ceramic series titled All Things Sweet and Painful. Dextrous fingers balance a plate and manage to swipe a bit of frosting from a cupcake. Whether implanted in a fruity pie or a teacup, gaping mouths clamor for a taste of the pastries and stick their tongues out for a taste.
    In a statement, Baranga explains that the surreal series is focused on luxurious foods. “The mixed emotions of need and the insatiable hunger for more – more sugar, more attention, more love. There is a constant push against the boundaries of rational consumption, craving the sugar rush, forever tempted to go overboard,” she says.
    Baranga has a number of ongoing and upcoming exhibitions scheduled, including at Munich’s størpunkt through October 31 and the Eretz Israel Museum in Tel-Aviv through 2021. The sumptuous artworks shown here will be on view at Beinart Gallery in Melbourne starting mid-October, and you can browse more of Baranga’s sculptures on Instagram.

    [embedded content]

    #anatomy
    #cake
    #ceramics
    #pie
    #sculpture
    #surreal

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    Evoking West-African Masks, Faces Emerge from Cast-Iron Skillets by Artist Hugh Hayden

    
    Art
    Food

    #cooking
    #diaspora
    #masks
    #sculpture

    August 12, 2020
    Grace Ebert

    “Jazz 10” (2020), cast iron, 16 1/2 x 11 3/4 x 3 1/8 inches. All images © Hugh Hayden, courtesy of Lisson Gallery
    New York-based artist Hugh Hayden (previously) visualizes the ways African traditions are embedded into multiple facets of American culture through a series of cast-iron skillets. Part of a larger exhibition titled American Food, the 26 pans are molded to reveal facial impressions that evoke West African-style masks, blending the cooking tool and cultural object.
    Generally established by cooks who were enslaved, southern food includes many of the flavors, techniques, and ingredients prevalent in African cuisine, forming what Hayden sees as one of the foremost culinary traditions distinct to the United States. This direct impact is evident in the physical artworks—the expressive masks literally emerge from the pans—although it transcends the effects on the kitchen. As he writes about “The Cosby’s” (shown below) on Instagram, “I made this triptych as an homage to the indelible cultural impact of the African diaspora on the creation of American entertainment, food, industry, and society.”
    Hayden creates the skillets through sand casting, a manufacturing technique that utilizes the granular substance as a mold, which the artist employs as a way to recognize “the imperfectness of the materials, their colonial histories, and the inherent loss of detail in the reproduction process.” He also parallels the sculpting process to the diaspora, considering how the original object is obscured and imbued with cultural significance when it’s finished. Ultimately, American Food celebrates “the indebtedness to African origins in the cooking—as a form of creation of America, Western culture, and Modern Art,” a statement says.

    “Jazz 19” (2020), cast iron, 21 1/4 x 12 x 5 1/2 inches
    “The Cosby’s” (2020), cast iron, three skillets, 12 1/8 x 8 1/4 x 5 7/8 inches, 14 1/2 x 10 5/8 x 4 1/4 inches, 18 7/8 x 14 1/8 x 2 1/2 inches
    “Jazz 15” (2020), cast iron, 16 7/8 x 11 3/8 x 6 1/4 inches
    Left: “The Cosby’s” (2020), cast iron, three skillets, 12 1/8 x 8 1/4 x 5 7/8 inches, 14 1/2 x 10 5/8 x 4 1/4 inches, 18 7/8 x 14 1/8 x 2 1/2 inches. Right: “Jazz 17” (2020), cast iron, 16 1/4 x 10 3/8 x 7 inches
    “Jazz 18” (2020), cast iron, 19 5/8 x 9 5/8 x 5 inches

    #cooking
    #diaspora
    #masks
    #sculpture

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