Bird Heart by Amy Ross

As I said many times before, I love love love the work of the very talented and accomplished Amy Ross.
Keep Calm Gallery now offers a limited edition print of her "Bird Heart" piece. This is a great opportunity to own a print of her work.


Love Love Love © Amy Ross/Keep Calm

Anne Lass

I am became aware of the work of Anne Lass via Remain in Light, who have chosen her work to be featured in Vol. 1

Anne Lass' work has a beautiful sense of light and a very strong sense of composition as well. And I like the contemplative mood that prevails throughout the imagery.

Ms. Lass originates from Germany, like I, and and her images from Germany made me think about how the most mundane things can trigger nostalgia. Objects that one does not consciously think about, but that subconsciously send strong signals as to where one is-- like the shape of a window frame, a doorknob, a street sing, the aesthetic of apublic pool. In the age of globalization these small differences perhaps become more precious or jarring -- depending on how one responds to them.
Ms. Lass' work deals a lot with observation of infrastructure and how humanity coincides or collides with nature. If this is a topic that interests you make sure to also look at the work of Rona Chang.

PS: also of note is the work of Estelle Hanania, which was also selected for Vol.1 of Remain in Light

Print Out A Pinhole Camera!

Corbis just made available four different printable pinhole cameras on their site: http://pro.corbis.com/creative/readycam/ (via Photojojo).
To see more examples of pinhole photography, take a look at some of the work of this year's Guggenheim fellow Ardine Nelson.


"Look Ma, No Lens" : ) © Nina Buesing Corvallo

The Leaf: The First Photograph?

Read "An Image Is a Mystery for Photo Detectives" by Randy Kennedy for the New York Times, published April 17, 2008.

Etsy, Etsy, Etsy

My list of favorite Etsy Artists:
ohmycavalier!
artandghosts
toadbriar
therunnybunny
irisschwarz
naturemandalas
missmouse
ideapearle
aubreyhyde
katedurkin
arabbitgirl
bluedogrose
electricdaisy
wondercabinet

Hank Willis Thomas, Angela Davis @ Pratt

Black Power © Hank Willis Thomas

Urban Artists and the Politics of Visibility:
A Conversation with Angela Davis
When: April 23, 12:30 to 2:30 p.m.
Where: Memorial Hall, Pratt Institute, Brooklyn (G train to Clinton/Washington)
Panelists: Hank Willis Thomas, Dread Scott, Amy Sananman,
Alan Ket.

By Popular Demand

Some snapshots from the incredible exhibit of the work of artist Cai Quo-Giang at the Guggenheim New York:

Valerie Hammond & Julianna Swaney

The magical work of Julianna Swaney © Julianna Swaney

This post has been a long time coming. The more I care about something the harder it can be to write about it.
I came across the work of Valerie Hammond via Apartment Therapy the other day, and instantly responded to her work. Ms. Hammond studied alongside Shiran Neshat at Berkley and has taught along side Kiki Smith at Columbia and NYU (Smith & Neshat are two of my favorite artists). Ms. Smith wrote an insightful introduction to the exhibit she curated of Ms. Hammond's work for The Cue Art Foundation and you can read it here.
Ms.Hamond is a printmaker as is Kiki Smth of course. Printmaking is a medium I really love, because it combines elements of my two favorite disciplines: drawing & photography.
And while we are on the topic of printmaking and Victorian aesthetic (both a strong influence for Smith & Hammond) I wanted to mention a young Michigan artist named Julianna Swaney, who I encountered just a couple of weeks ago on Etsy and am totally smitten with!
Ms. Swaney has distinct vision, reminiscent in style of Ms. Smith. She has her pulse on what is creative/artistic trend/obsession right now: anthropomorphism & the Victorian aesthetic. She uses a very female approach to incorporating childhood & folklore into her artwork.
Her work resonates very strongly with me. Perhaps her and I share some childhood experiences that resulted in similar aesthetic preferences and preoccupations -- even though we grew up on opposite sides of the globe. Or maybe her work is simply appealing to a universal audience.
I own some of Julianna's work and it is even more exquisite than it looks on your computer screen. On top of that Julianna is a really lovely person and caring about her patrons.


Bears & Foxes from Oh My Cavalier! © Julianna Swaney

Not Quite the Same

Polaroid tries to recapture the magic. Read Anne Eisenberg's article "Instant Digital (and Polaroid Nostalgia)" for The New York Times, published today.