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    Magic and Whimsy Abound from Shannon Taylor’s Fantastic Watercolor Dioramas

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    All images courtesy of Hashimoto Contemporary, shared with permission

    Magic and Whimsy Abound from Shannon Taylor’s Fantastic Watercolor Dioramas

    October 29, 2024

    Art

    Grace Ebert

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    Tucked inside vintage compacts are magical worlds of whimsy and mischief carefully concocted by Shannon Taylor. The Oakland-based artist (previously) transforms antique vessels into lush breeding grounds for fantastic creatures, spirited gatherings, and the occasional vampiric character.

    Taylor’s solo exhibition Night Market opens at Hashimoto Contemporary next month with a stunning collection of works that peek into the strange happenings occurring after darkness.

    Meticulously cut with a precision knife from watercolor paintings, each miniature scene lures the viewer into an enchanting environment that appears much more robust than its inches-wide frame. Taylor’s recent works conjure intricately layered narratives of supernatural rituals and a moon passionate about her own likeness, which, at the right angle, is reflected in the mirrored pond below.

    Night Market runs from November 9 to 30 in Los Angeles. Until then, find more from Taylor on Instagram.

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    • 188 Shares129 Views

      in Art

      In ‘Boogey Men,’ Monumental New Works by Hugh Hayden Reflect on American Culture and Politics

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      Art
      #cars
      #copper
      #furniture
      #sculpture
      #skeleton
      #trees
      #woodDecember 9, 2021Grace EbertAl images courtesy of ICA Miami, by Zachary Balber, shared with permissionAn exhibition now on view at ICA Miami samples the recurring themes and motifs that are central to artist Hugh Hayden’s body of work: twisting flames spout from a wooden Adirondack chair and spindly twigs envelop a massive skeleton carved from bald Cyprus trees, two works that evoke the Dallas native’s barbed furniture and embedded branch designs. In a suspended installation comprised of metallic instruments and pots, faces mimicking traditional African masks emerge from copper cookware similar to the cast iron skillets he presented last year.The metaphorical new pieces comprise Boogey Men, Hayden’s solo show that responds to myriad social dynamics, cultural issues, and an increasingly tense political environment through imposing, anthropomorphic forms and more subtle works. At the center of the exhibition space is a hammered stainless steel car disguised by a sheet painted in white. Both cartoonish and sinister in its reference to hooded Klansmen, the titular sculpture is an effective indictment of police brutality. Hayden gives attention to the origins of facets of American culture in the pieces that surround that central work, alluding to jazz and culinary traditions.Boogey Men is on view in Miami through April 17, 2022, before it travels to the Blaffer Art Museum for a stay from June 11 to August 21. You can find more of Hayden’s work and view the process behind many of the pieces shown here on his Instagram.
      #cars
      #copper
      #furniture
      #sculpture
      #skeleton
      #trees
      #woodDo 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

    • 200 Shares189 Views

      in Art

      Vines and Flowers Intertwine with an Imposing Skeleton in an Elegant Graphite Drawing by Guno Park

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      Art

      #drawing
      #graphite
      #momento mori
      #plants
      #skeleton

      August 6, 2021
      Grace Ebert

      Detail of “Nature of Things,”  graphite/pencil on paper, 85 x 51.5 inches. All images © Guno Park, shared with permission
      Brooklyn-based artist Guno Park evokes the tradition of memento mori with an exquisite new drawing highlighting the precarious line between life and death. Titled “Nature of Things,” the meticulously crosshatched piece rendered in graphite stands at a striking 85 inches, portraying the oversized human figure with botanicals winding around its spinal column and through its chest. “Putting the skeleton together with vine, leaves, and flowers represents for me the power of nature and its inevitability of continuum. I find comfort in nature,” the artist says.
      Park shares that although skulls and bones are common subject matter, he relegated most to his sketchbook until magnifying the concept a few months into the pandemic. “This drawing has been a journey —as many drawings are—that started a little more than a year ago…I think our whole world was reminded of how close death can be, and I had a constant reminder of it on the news and media,” he says.
      In addition to his studio practice, Park teaches drawing at The New York Academy of Art, ArtCenter, and New York Film Academy, and you can see more of his figurative drawings on Instagram.

      #drawing
      #graphite
      #momento mori
      #plants
      #skeleton

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    • 125 Shares129 Views

      in Art

      Otherworldly Paintings Trap Skeletons in Perpetually Bizarre and Eerie Situations

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      Art

      #anatomy
      #painting
      #skeleton

      July 8, 2021
      Grace Ebert

      “Born of Paint,” 6 x 8 inches. All images © Jason Limon, shared with permission
      In his ongoing Fragments series, San Antonio-based artist Jason Limon (previously) uses muted jewel and earth tones to paint uncanny scenarios for his recurring skeleton figure. The bony subject finds itself in a variety of bizarre situations, whether bursting from a tube of paint, orchestrating a puppet show with a pair of ornate paper hands, or nervously awaiting an encroaching fire. Often set against backdrops filled with multi-colored dabs of paint, his small pieces are imbued with a sense of creative problem-solving as he traps figures in scenes with boxes of pencils, scuffed erasers, and other craft supplies.
      Although skeletons are typically tied to ideas of death and afterlife, Limon sees the anatomical subject as a universal image that allows him “to portray a thought, feeling or idea without the identity of the figure getting in the way,” although he tends to pair the ubiquitous form with actions and environments that are tied to his personal life. “My biggest concern has always been what’s been going on around closest to me and that is my family. Things were not so easy growing up in our family, and these days we’ve been able to get closer and help each other out,” he shares.
      Originals, prints, and a few wearables are available in Limon’s shop, and you have a few chances to see his unearthly works in the coming months: at the LA Art Show from July 29 to August 1, at Copro Gallery in Santa Monica in September and October, and at Long Island’s Haven Gallery in April 2022. Until then, head to Instagram for an extensive archive of his pieces.

      “Grasp,” 6 x 8 inches
      Left: “Breaktime,” 6 x 8 inches. Right: “Replicate,” 6 x 8 inches
      “Garden of Flames,” 6 x 8 inches
      “Unravel,” 8 x 8 inches
      Left: “Pulse,” 6 x 8 inches. Right: “Pencils,” 6 x 8 inches
      “Doodle Brain,” 6 x 8 inches
      “Unbind,” 6 x 8 inches

      #anatomy
      #painting
      #skeleton

      Do 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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    • 150 Shares159 Views

      in Art

      Vibrant Skeletal Interpretations of Celebrities and Fashion Icons Define Bradley Theodore’s Paintings

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       “Anna and Karl” (2017). All images © Bradley Theodore Energetic brushstrokes, chromatic colors, and the skeletons of pop culture icons make up the prolific work of Miami-based artist Bradley Theodore. His bold use of color is inspired by his roots in Turks and Caicos and the fashionable subjects he’s met in New York and […] More