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    Charles Gaines Maps the Meanings of Ancient Baobab Trees in Meticulous Charts

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    “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #4, Maasai”
    (2024),
    acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Fredrik Nilsen. All images © Charles Gaines, courtesy the artist and Hauser & Wirth, shared with permission

    Charles Gaines Maps the Meanings of Ancient Baobab Trees in Meticulous Charts

    February 17, 2025

    ArtNaturePhotography

    Grace Ebert

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    Since the 1970s, Charles Gaines (previously) has been charting the sprawling, unpredictable forms of trees onto numbered grids. He began with walnut trees in 1975, which he photographed while barren and then plotted onto hand-drawn graph paper.

    A leader in the Conceptual Art movement, Gaines’ works ask viewers to explore the relationships between what something appears to be and what it means as it shifts from one context to the next. He also argues for a greater divide between subjectivity and aesthetics, instead emphasizing culture’s immense role in shaping our experiences.

    Detail of “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #4, Maasai” (2024), acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Fredrik Nilsen


    In his ongoing Numbers and Trees series, Gaines continues to chart differences. During a 2023 visit to Tanzania, the artist photographed majestic baobabs, which form the basis for a collection of triptychs that entwine the magnificent specimens with colorfully numbered grids. Gnarled trunks and spindly offshoots both layer atop and are masked by Gaines’ sequences, all viewed through sheets of plexiglass.

    The baobab is known as “the tree of life” for its longevity, myriad roles in preserving the savanna ecosystem, and ability to host entire habitats within its canopies. The specimens are often associated with folklore and myth and in the era of climate disaster, are some of the casualties of unrelenting drought. Depending on location, epoch, and community, the trees can serve a wide array of purposes and hold a multitude of symbolism.

    Icons of the African continent, baobabs also connect to histories of colonialism and slavery. In this context, they’re distorted and mediated by both Gaines’ organizing principles and the acrylic panes. “What you bring to the image, adds to the image,” the artist says.

    Numbers and Trees, The Tanzania Baobabs is on view from February 19 to May 24 at Hauser & Wirth West Hollywood.

    “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #7, Makonde” (2024), acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Keith Lubow

    Detail of “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #7, Makonde” (2024), 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Keith Lubow

    “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #3, Tongwe” (2024), acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Fredrik Nilsen

    Detail of “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #3, Tongwe” (2024), acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Fredrik Nilsen

    “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #2, Zanaki” (2024), acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Keith Lubow

    Detail of “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #2, Zanaki” (2024), acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Keith Lubow

    “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #5, Rangi” (2024), acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Fredrik Nilsen

    Detail of “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #5, Rangi” (2024), acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Fredrik Nilsen

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      in Art

      Watery Landscapes Set the Stage for Lachlan Turczan’s Ephemeral Light Installations

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      “Veil IV” (2024), water, light, silt, 15 x 15 x 3 feet. All images © Lachlan Turczan, shared with permission

      Watery Landscapes Set the Stage for Lachlan Turczan’s Ephemeral Light Installations

      February 14, 2025

      ArtNaturePhotography

      Kate Mothes

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      In the dreamy installations of Lachlan Turczan, natural and perceptual phenomena combine in otherworldly installations merging technology with aquatic landscapes. Water is central to the Los Angeles-based artist’s work and helps shape an ongoing series of immersive projects incorporating light and sonic phenomena.

      Turczan is influenced by the Light and Space movement, which originated in Southern California in the 1960s and is characterized by the work of John McLaughlin, Robert Irwin, James Turrell, Lita Albuquerque, and more. The movement focused on perception, employing materials like glass, neon, resin, acrylic, and fluorescent lights to emphasize light, volume, and scale.

      “Constellation Grid” (2024), water, light, and fog. A swamp in Upstate New York

      Many Light and Space artists created installations and immersive spaces conditioned by naturally occurring elements like Turrell’s ever-changing glimpse of the sky through a ceiling aperture for “Space that Sees.” Not only does the view change as clouds roll by or the weather shifts, but the light continuously transforms the entire room.

      “While my work shares this lineage,” Turczan tells Colossal, “it diverges in several key ways: rather than exploring the ‘nature of experience,’ I create experiences of nature that challenge our understanding of light, water, and space.” He describes his approach as “complicating” these elements, emphasizing the ever-changing fluidity of the environment.

      In Turczan’s ongoing Veil series, light installations unfold organically in locations ranging from Death Valley’s Badwater Basin to a flooded park near the Rhine River. Lasers and beams of light are projected and submerged, capturing the movement of wind, mist, and the water’s surface.

      Additional pieces also merge light and water, like “Aldwa Alsael,” which translates to “liquid light,” and was commissioned for the 2024 Noor Riyadh Light Art Festival.

      “Veil I” (2024), light, water, and salt. Death Valley, California

      “For the most part, these installations unfold organically,” Turczan says. “I may discover a location in nature that seems perfect for a new Veil sculpture, but when I return, the conditions have inevitably changed.” Evolving circumstances require the artist to proceed with an openness to chance encounters that strike a balance between preparation and intuition.

      Find more on Turczan’s website, and follow updates on Instagram. (via This Isn’t Happiness)

      “Death Valley Veil” (2024), water, light, and haze. Lake Manly, a temporary lake that formed in Death Valley’s Badwater Basin after Hurricane Hillary

      “Veil II” (2024), light, water, and steam. Mojave Desert, California

      “Aldwa Alsael” (2024), water, light, and steel tower, 25 x 25 x 50 feet

      “Veil V” (2024), water and light, 15 x 15 x 3 feet

      “Aldwa Alsael”

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      in Art

      From Remedios Varo to Laurie Simmons, a New Exhibition Forwards a Feminist View of the Uncanny

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      Remedios Varo, “Tejido espacio-tiempo (Weaving of Space and Time)” (1954), oil on Masonite, 32 1/2 x 28 inches. Photo by Lee Stalsworth. Artwork © 2023 Remedios Varo/Artists Rights Society, New York/VEGAP, Madrid. All images courtesy of the National Museum of Women in the Arts, shared with permission

      From Remedios Varo to Laurie Simmons, a New Exhibition Forwards a Feminist View of the Uncanny

      February 4, 2025

      ArtHistoryPhotographySocial Issues

      Kate Mothes

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      In a 1906 essay, psychiatrist Ernst Jentsch coined the term “uncanny,” or unheimlich, meaning “unhomely” or “not home-like” in German. He defined the psychological phenomenon as the experience of something new or unknown that might initially be interpreted negatively.

      Austrian neurologist and founder of psychoanalysis Sigmund Freud popularized the word with the publication of his book The Uncanny in 1919, which elaborated on the idea as not just the sensation of the unknown but also something capable of bringing out other hidden or repressed elements. He even went so far as to describe the uncanny as frightening.

      Mary Ellen Mark, “Tashara and Tanesha Reese, Twins Days Festival, Twinsburg, Ohio” (1998; printed later), gelatin silver print, 20 x 24 inches. Photo by Lee Stalsworth. Image © Mary Ellen Mark/The Mary Ellen Mark Foundation

      During the 20th century, the Surrealists often turned to the concept to build a sense of mystery or tension in their works. Meret Oppenheim, for instance, famously created a teacup lined with fur, simply titled “Object” (1936), widely regarded as an iconic example of the movement.

      Oppenheim is one of more than two dozen artists whose work will appear in the National Museum of Women in the Arts’ forthcoming exhibition, Uncanny, featuring recent acquisitions and rarely shown pieces in NMWA’s collection, plus special loans.

      More than 60 works by renowned figures of modern art history like Louise Bourgeois, Remedios Varo, and Leonora Carrington will be shown alongside the likes of contemporary artists like Shahzia Sikander, Laurie Simmons, and Gillian Wearing. The large-scale presentation is the first to approach the concept through a feminist lens, organizing works around themes of safety and surreal imaginings.

      The show also plumbs the phenomenon of the “uncanny valley,” a term coined by robotics engineer Masahiro Mori in 1970 to describe the apprehension or discomfort one feels when confronted with something that is almost human but not quite, like video game characters that appear realistic yet still somehow seem “off.”

      Laurie Simmons, “The Music of Regret IV” (1994), Cibachrome print, 19 1/2 x 19 1/2 inches. © 2019 Laurie Simmons

      In Laurie Simmons’ “The Music of Regret IV” (1994), a female ventriloquist dummy sits in the center of a circle of six male dummy dolls, whose gazes are trained on her as she looked out into the distance. Tapping into a medium that has been used in the horror genre to instill a sense of creepiness or dread, Simmons’ central character is dramatically spotlit, her smile belying the reality that she is unsettlingly hemmed in.

      Along the theme of safety, or specifically unsafe spaces, Fabiola Jean-Louis’s elaborately staged photographs tell two stories at once. The artist portrays “seemingly innocuous portraits of close acquaintances wearing elaborate period costumes typical of upper-class European women, while disturbing images of racial and sexual violence are hidden within the background or details of a dress, reminding the viewer of the lineage of violence,” says an exhibition statement.

      Many works in the show address physical trauma or the body’s relationship to the unknown. Frida Orupabo’s photographic collages, for example, portray Black figures that evoke colonial histories, critiquing historical violence and injustices through a process of fragmenting, distorting, and multiplying body parts.

      Orupabo’s compositions echo the surrealist collaborative practice of cadavre exquis, or exquisite corpse, in which participants add to elements others have drawn without being able to see their work, producing intuitive and peculiar drawings.

      Frida Orupabo, “Two Heads (detail)” (2022), framed collage with paper pins, 58 1/4 x 41 1/2 inches. © Frida Orupabo, courtesy of the artist and Galerie Nordenhake Berlin/Stockholm/Mexico City

      “The enigmatic, darkly humorous and psychologically tense artworks in Uncanny give form to women artists’ powerful expressions of existential unease,” said NMWA Associate Curator Orin Zahra, who organized the exhibition. She continues:

      Rather than comfort and soothe, these ghostly and fantastical figures haunt the unconscious. Instead of picturesque images, artists offer disquieting spaces that unsettle the viewer. In focusing on the ambiguity between reality and fiction, artists explore increasingly blurred lines between the artificial and eerily human.

      Uncanny opens February 28 and continues through August 10 in Washington, D.C., highlighting painting, sculpture, photography, works on paper, and video made between 1954 and 2022. Learn more and plan your visit on the museum’s website.

      Fabiola Jean-Louis, “They’ll Say We Enjoyed It” from the series ‘Rewriting History’ (2017), archival pigment print, 33 x 26 inches. © Fabiola Jean-Louis, courtesy of the artist and Galerie Myrtis

      Gillian Wearing, “Sleeping Mask (for Parkett, no. 70)” (2004), wax reinforced with polymer resin, paint, 8 1/4 x 5 5/8 inches. Photo by Lee Stalsworth. Artwork © Gillian Wearing/Artists Rights Society, New York/DACS, London

      Julie Roberts, “Sigmund Freud Study” (1998), oil on acrylic ground on cotton duck, 84 x 72 inches. Photo by Lee Stalsworth. Artwork © Julie Roberts/DACS, London

      Gillian Wearing, “Me as Mona Lisa” (2020), chromogenic print, 24 1/4 x 19 1/8 inches. © Gillian Wearing, courtesy of the artist, Maureen Paley, London, and Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York/Los Angeles

      Leonora Carrington, “The Ship of Cranes” (2010), bronze, 26 x 14 x 42 1/2 inches. Photo by Lee Stalsworth. Artwork © Leonora Carrington/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

      Remedios Varo, “Fenómeno de ingravidez (Phenomenon of Weightlessness)” (1963), oil on canvas, 29 1/2 x 19 5/8 inches. © 2023 Remedios Varo/Artists Rights Society, New York/VEGAP, Madrid

      Polly Morgan, “Receiver” (2009), taxidermy quail chicks and Bakelite telephone handset, 9 x 2 1/2 x 3 1/2 inches. Photo by Lee Stalsworth. Artwork © Polly Morgan

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    • 188 Shares197 Views

      in Art

      In London, an Enormous Exhibition of 500+ Works Roots Out the Creative Seeds of Flowers

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      Rebecca Louise Law, “Calyx” (2023). Image courtesy of the artist

      In London, an Enormous Exhibition of 500+ Works Roots Out the Creative Seeds of Flowers

      January 29, 2025

      ArtNaturePhotography

      Grace Ebert

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      In nature, flowers serve as an essential component of the reproduction process. But for humans, scented blooms are ripe with myriad meanings and symbolism that transcend their biological functions.

      During Victorian times, offering a bouquet to someone with your right hand indicated a non-verbal “yes,” while a yellow carnation would reject an admirer. Similarly in art history, wilting flowers rendered as a momento mori remind us of death’s inevitability, and for van Gogh, sunflowers were the perfect stand-in for gratitude.

      Aimée Hoving, “Compost” (2019). Image © Aimee Hoving, flowers by Brigitte Gentis van Dam Merrett

      A massive exhibition opening next month at Saatchi Gallery cultivates a vast repertoire of works that explores how blooms have become an omnipresent entity in human life and creativity. Flowers: Flora in Contemporary Art and Culture brings together more than 500 photographs, installations, sculptures, archival pieces, and other objects to create a rich landscape spanning millennia.

      Anchoring the exhibition is an expansive and immersive work of 100,000-plus dried flowers by Rebecca Louise Law. Smaller pieces include Xuebing Du’s ethereal photos of flowers in natural light, VOYDER’s streaky steam-laden compositions, and lush, vibrant gardens by Faye Bridgewater.

      Opening in time to usher in spring in London, Flowers runs from February 12 to May 5.

      VOYDER, “In Love with the Idea of You” (2024). Image courtesy of the artist

      Kasia Wozniak, “Anemoia #7.” Image courtesy of the artist

      Sandra Kantanen, “Still Life (Flowers I).” Image courtesy the artist and Purdy Hicks Gallery

      Xuebing Du, “Mother of Pearl” (2018). Image courtesy of the artist

      Carmen Mitrotta, “Geometric Leaves.” Image courtesy the artist

      Faye Bridgewater, “En Masse” (2025). Image courtesy of the artist

      Ann von Freyburg, “Floral Arrangement 1 (After Jan van Huysum, Still Life).” Image courtesy of the artist

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    • 113 Shares189 Views

      in Art

      A Provocative Photography Exhibition Invites You to Experience ‘Chromotherapia’

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      Maurizio Cattelan and Pierpaolo Ferrari, “Toiiletpaper.” Image courtesy of ‘Toiletpaper.’

      A Provocative Photography Exhibition Invites You to Experience ‘Chromotherapia’

      January 28, 2025

      ArtBooksPhotography

      Kate Mothes

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      In the world of photography, the color image has long held an inferior reputation to black-and-white, which connoisseurs historically deemed to be more dignified. Today, vibrant images are embraced in a wide range of fields, from fine art and fashion to advertising and journalism.

      Championing the potential of the medium, artist Maurizio Cattelan and French Academy in Rome—Villa Medici director Sam Stourdzé curated Chromotherapia: The Feel-Good Color Photography.

      Martin Parr, “Common Sense.” Image © Magnum Photos

      Color therapy, though deemed a pseudoscience, has its roots in color theory, which focuses on interactions between hues and how they affect our moods and emotions.

      Cattelan and Stourdzé emphasize ebullient hyperreality, humor, and the absurd through works like Juno Calypso’s “Chicken Dogs,” in which an anonymous figure lies face-down next to a can of hot dogs, or Walter Candoha’s expressive pets. And in “Toiletpaper,” by Cattelan and Pierpaolo Ferrari, who co-founded a magazine of the same name in 2010, a man sits on a tan couch, wearing a matching suit, covered in spaghetti.

      In total, twenty artists explore a range of approaches in the exhibition, from portraits of people and animals to food and uncanny tableaux. “Many have freed themselves from the documentary function of the photographic medium to explore the common roots of the image and the imaginary, flirting with pop art, surrealism, bling, kitsch, and the baroque,” says a statement.

      Chromotherapia opens February 28 and continues through June 9 in Rome, and an accompanying catalogue published by Damiani is slated for release in March in the U.K. and May in the U.S. Pre-order your copy in the Colossal Shop.

      Cover of ‘Chromotherapia’ (2025). Featured image by Walter Chandoha, “New Jersey” (1962). Image ©️ Walter Chandoha Archive

      Juno Calypso, “Chicken Dogs” (2015), archival pigment print. Image © Courtesy the artist and TJ Boulting

      William Wegman, “Ski Patrol” (2017). Image courtesy of Galerie George-Philippe & Nathalie Vallois

      The back cover of Damiani’s catalogue for the exhibition ‘Chromotherapia: The Feel-Good Color Photography,’ featuring a photo by Walter Chandoha

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    • 63 Shares159 Views

      in Art

      Our Favorite Stories of 2024

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      All images © Todd Antony, shared with permission

      Our Favorite Stories of 2024

      December 13, 2024

      ArtColossalHistoryPhotographySocial Issues

      Colossal

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      As we look back at the hundreds of remarkable initiatives, artworks, discoveries, and events we’ve chronicled throughout 2024, we’re continually awed by the creative work we’re able to write about everyday. It’s a privilege to be able to share so much creativity with you, and we thought we’d compile a list of our favorites.

      Below, you’ll find eight picks—two from each of us—that showcase just a few of the remarkable projects we published over the past twelve months. Many of these articles impart deeper context, delve into personal experiences through interviews, and highlight important stories that may have flown under the radar.

      You might also enjoy our readers’ choice top articles of the year and Colossal’s favorite books of 2024. Happy reading!

      —Christopher, Grace, Kate, and Jackie

      Image © Irina Werning

      Jackie’s Pick: In ‘Las Pelilargas,’ Irina Werning Celebrates the Impeccably Long Hair of Latin American Women and Girls

      For the last 17 years, Irina Werning has traveled throughout Latin America photographing women and girls for her ongoing series, Las Pelilargas, or The Longhairs. Shot in color and black and white, the portraits document a distinct cultural practice through an incredibly alluring, even surreal lens.

      L.V. Hull at her home in Kosciusko, Mississippi, in 2002. Photo by Bruce West. Image courtesy of the L.V. Hull Legacy Center

      Grace’s Pick: The Home Studio of the Late Artist L.V. Hull Is Added to the National Register of Historic Places

      Kosciusko is a small town in the center of Mississippi with just under 7,000 residents. Known as the birthplace of Oprah Winfrey, Kosciusko was also home to the late artist L.V. Hull (1942–2008) who devoted her life to painting and assembling found objects.

      Ellie Hannon works on one of her paintings on the aft deck during sunset on the Timor Sea around Ashmore Reef. Images © Schmidt Ocean Institute

      Kate’s Pick: Art and Science Set Sail in Schmidt Ocean Institute’s Artist-at-Sea Program

      “There are many ways to tell a story or to document and share research and discoveries,” says artist Ellie Hannon, one of 54 artists who have embarked on a unique residency organized by the Schmidt Ocean Institute. From slip-cast porcelain and painting to 3D printing and virtual reality, the storytelling possibilities are endless in the Artist-at-Sea program, which invites artists to work alongside scientists on weeks-long expeditions into some of the least-explored areas of our oceans. More

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      in Art

      Ethereal, Glowing Curtains Drape Over Lake Michigan in Reuben Wu’s Light Paintings

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      Ethereal, Glowing Curtains Drape Over Lake Michigan in Reuben Wu’s Light Paintings

      December 10, 2024

      ArtPhotography

      Kate Mothes

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      Along the Lake Michigan shoreline, Reuben Wu (previously) created a unique confluence of light shows over the water last summer. Known for creating light paintings in dramatic landscapes using drone-mounted lasers, his ongoing series SIREN marks a new direction of illuminated “aeroglyphs,” which transcend their original geometries to open up into more fluid shapes.

      “This series captures ephemeral, curtain-like structures that hover delicately in space, shaped by their environment rather than imposing upon it,” Wu says. The cascading white forms mimic the lake’s rolling waves and, on this particular evening amid a Perseids meteor shower, the surprise appearance of the northern lights. See more on his website.

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    • 63 Shares189 Views

      in Art

      Colossal’s Top Articles of 2024

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      Image courtesy of Wally Dion

      Colossal’s Top Articles of 2024

      December 10, 2024

      ArtColossalDesignHistoryNaturePhotography

      Colossal

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      Throughout 2024, we were awed by archaeological finds, vibrant paintings, striking sculptures, remarkable photography, immersive installations, and so much more. It’s tough to choose only 10 top articles for the year!

      Lucky for us, dear Colossal readers, you’ve helped pick the best. Below, dive into our most-read stories on the site during the past twelve months, and find hundreds more in the archive.

      “Untitled (after François Gérard)” (2023), oil on canvas, 100 x 80 centimeters. Images © Ewa Juszkiewicz, courtesy of Almine Rech

      Ewa Juszkiewicz’s Reimagined Historical Portraits of Women Scrutinize the Nature of Concealment

      From elaborate hairstyles to hypertrophied mushrooms, an array of unexpected face coverings feature in Ewa Juszkiewicz’s portraits. Drawing on genteel likenesses of women primarily from the 18th and 19th centuries, the artist superimposes fabric, bouquets of fruit, foliage, and more, over the women’s faces.

      Image courtesy of Greg Jensen

      A Rare Cross-Section Illustration Reveals the Infamous Happenings of Kowloon Walled City

      At its height in the 1990s, Kowloon Walled City in Hong Kong housed about 50,000 people. Its population is unremarkable for small cities, but what set Kowloon apart from others of its size was its density. For a now out-of-print book titled Kowloon City: An Illustrated Guide, artist Hitomi Terasawa drew a meticulous cross-sectioned rendering of the urban phenomenon to preserve its memory.

      Image © Isak Finnbogason

      Remarkable Drone Footage Captures a New Volcanic Eruption in Iceland

      In January, photographer and drone pilot Isak Finnbogason captured stunning footage of an eruption on Iceland’s Reykjanes peninsula in December, documenting the nearly two-mile-long lava vent on the first day it was active. 

      “Water Lilies in Bloom” (2023), oil on canvas. Image courtesy of Erin Hanson

      Landscapes Radiate Light and Drama in Erin Hanson’s Vibrant Oil Paintings

      In vivid pinks, blues, and greens, radiant landscapes emerge in Erin Hanson’s impressionistic oil paintings. The artist is based in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, where the rolling hills and surrounding mountain ranges cradle miles of vineyards.

      Image © Richard Johnson

      Framed by Frozen Lakes, Richard Johnson’s ‘Ice Huts’ Capture Wintertime Communities in Canada

      Every year, Ontario’s 279-square-mile Lake Simcoe draws more people for its ice fishing than any other lake in North America, attracting upwards of 4,000 huts each year. The colorful villages caught the eye of Toronto-based architectural photographer Richard Johnson (1957-2021), who captured hundreds of the structures, from the artistic to the ad-hoc, in a series of bold portraits taken between 2007 and 2019.

      Image courtesy of the Italian Ministry of Culture / AFP Photo

      Archaeologists Discover an Extraordinary 2,100-Year-Old Mosaic Near the Colosseum

      Early this year, we shared news that the Italian Ministry of Culture had a remarkable find in the heart of Rome. In the late Republican era, a luxurious townhouse had been laden with designs made from shells, glass, white marble, and Egyptian blue tiles. A large “rustic” mosaic dating to the last decades of the 2nd century B.C.E.—a little over 2,100 years ago—was likely inspired by the decorative styles of Near East monarchies.

      ‘The Whole Booke of Psalmes.’ London: Company of Stationers, 1643. Image courtesy of The Grolier Club

      Spanning Seven Centuries, ‘Judging a Book by its Cover’ Celebrates an Enduring Art

      The Grolier Club’s exhibition, Judging a Book by its Cover, highlighted some of the most unique editions within its collection, including a pigskin- and brass-bound Jewish Antiquities and the Jewish War created for a Benedictine monastery in Bavaria around 1473—the oldest in the club’s library. The collection also features several religious texts, like the miniature book of psalms shown above, made by women at the Royal Exchange in London with a variety of silk and gold threads.

      Image courtesy of Wally Dion, shared with permission

      Vivid, Translucent Quilts by Wally Dion Stitch Together Indigenous Culture and Making Traditions

      For many rural and economically strapped communities throughout history, quilting was a necessity. Tattered clothing and blankets were cut up and refashioned into new blankets, their patchwork styles evidence of the fabrics’ earlier uses. For Indigenous people, though, quilts “hold a particularly important cultural value,” says artist Wally Dion, “appearing as gifts, ceremonial objects, and celebratory markers.”

      “লয় [Loy]” (2019), Arjunpur Amra Sabai Club, Kolkata. Photo by Vivian Sarky. Image courtesy of Asim Waqif

      Immersive Bamboo Installations by Asim Waqif Whirl and Heave in Monumental Motion

      In his monumental, swirling structures, Delhi-based artist Asim Waqif merges tenets of architecture and sculpture into sweeping site-specific compositions. Using natural materials like bamboo and pandanus leaves, he often incorporates found objects, scaffolding, sound elements, cloth, and rope.

      “Animal in the Wind” (2014), clay, 36.7 x 20.8 x 30 centimeters. Image courtesy of JiSook Jung

      From Fire to Wind, JiSook Jung’s Ceramic Sculptures Animate the Elements

      JiSook Jung has long been drawn to clay for its inherent malleability. “Clay has the advantage of being able to quickly mold an image in my head into a visual form because it is soft and plastic,” the Seoul-based artist tells Colossal. “In that sense, I think clay is an intuitive and instinctive material.”

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      Colossal’s Favorite Art Books of 2024

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      Colossal’s Favorite Art Books of 2024

      December 4, 2024

      ArtBooksPhotography

      Colossal

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      As we get ready to say goodbye to 2024, we’re celebrating some of our favorite books shared on Colossal throughout the year. We published dozens of articles about spectacular new monographs, photography, architecture, painting, science, history, and more. Peruse our top 10 below, and find many more in the Colossal Shop and on Bookshop.

      Shirin Neshat, “Land of Dreams” (2019), film still. © Shirin Neshat, courtesy of the artist, Gladstone Gallery, and Goodman Gallery, Johannesburg, Cape Town, and London

      The Women Who Changed Photography: And How to Master Their Techniques

      From bold black-and-white visages to masters of disguise, identity plays a vital role in many of the practices featured in The Women Who Changed Photography. The tome investigates the trailblazing practices of Lee Miller, Shirin Neshat, and many more, chronicling the individuals, aesthetics, and approaches that have shaped the field.

      Available in the Colossal Shop

      Detail of Astrolin Color Card, Établissement Georget Fils Peintures Laquées et Vernis, Chantenay-Lès-Nantes (c. 1906). Image courtesy of Bibliothèque Forney, Paris

      Color Charts: A History

      From chemists’ plant-derived dyes to consumer paint swatches displayed at the hardware store, the history of color charts reflects a varied relationship between pigments, science, culture, and commerce. Anne Varichon explores the entwined evolution of this categorization through nearly 200 vibrant samples from the 15th century to modern day.

      Available in the Colossal Shop

      The Art Book for Children

      Two decades ago, Phaidon published the first volume in The Art Book for Children series, which quickly became beloved by children and parents the world over. To share its legacy with a new generation of readers, this edition pairs a selection of “best of” artists from the original series with 30 brand-new contemporary entries.

      This year was a plentiful time for children’s art books, and we also enjoyed the informative narrative, I Am an Artist.

      Available in the Colossal Shop

      Sacred Sites (Library of Esoterica)

      From ancient pyramids to subterranean labyrinths to mountaintop meccas, we have always been drawn to visiting or building sites that inspire reverence and awe. Sacred Sites celebrates how we traverse and transform the world around us through ritual and art. Compiled by Jessica Hundley, the volume surveys a remarkable array of places and artworks through more than 400 images centered around pilgrimage, performance, and devotion.

      Available in the Colossal Shop

      Beth Moon, “Heart of the Dragon” (2010), archival pigment inks on cotton paper, 32 × 48 inches. Image © Beth Moon

      Tree: Exploring the Arboreal World

      Spanning 3,500 years of art, science, culture, and history, Tree: Exploring the Arboreal World surveys the awe-inspiring beauty and romance of trees. The volume includes more than 300 illustrations ranging from ancient wall paintings and botanical illustrations to captivating photography and multimedia work by today’s leading artists.

      Available in the Colossal Shop

      Image © Ivan McClellan

      Eight Seconds: Black Rodeo Culture

      Eight Seconds comprises 118 images by Ivan McClellan, a Portland, Oregon-based photographer who’s spent nearly a decade documenting the lives, wins, and losses of the Black rodeo community from Alabama to Los Angeles. He offers an insider’s view, capturing the addictive energy of the sport and the rich sense of camaraderie it fosters.

      Available on Bookshop

      Camo

      Camo is the first publication to chronicle the work of Thandiwe Muriu, celebrating her vibrant portraits that combine cultural textiles and beauty ideologies. Muriu takes us on a colorful, reflective journey through her world as a woman living in modern Kenya as she reinterprets contemporary African portraiture.

      Available in the Colossal Shop

      Cover of ‘Hidden Portraits: Old Masters Reimagined,’ featuring “Hidden Jacometto” (2019), from “Portrait of a Young Man” (1480s) by Jacometto Veneziano

      Hidden Portraits: Old Masters Reimagined

      This monograph gathers a quintessential selection of Volker Hermes’s works into one volume. Highlighting the artist’s wry commentary on luxury, social status, and fame, the selection delves into the history of portraiture through a humorous lens.

      Available on Bookshop

      Great Women Sculptors

      Presenting a more expansive and inclusive history of sculpture, Great Women Sculptors surveys the work of more than 300 trailblazing artists from more than 60 countries, spanning 500 years from the Renaissance to the present day.

      Available in the Colossal Shop

      Artwork by Christina Fong

      Art Is Art: Collaborating with Neurodiverse Artists at Creativity Explored

      Spurred by the belief that art changes lives, Florence and Elias Katz founded Creativity Explored in 1983, a San Francisco-based nonprofit studio and gallery designed for disabled, neurodivergent artists. More than 135 people currently participate in its programming, learning techniques across painting, drawing, clay, textiles, and more. In Art Is Art, Ann Kappes, Creativity Explored’s director of artist partnerships, celebrates the organization’s 40th anniversary through hundreds of artworks.

      Available on Bookshop

      Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member now, and support independent arts publishing.

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