There is definitly something kind of strange about these paintings by the English illustrator and painter Sophie Alda. That said, there’s also something kind of wonderful about them too. Painted in gouche, her images are filled with beautiful pastel shades and are populated with odd and ugly characters. The flat nature of her paintings is really beautiful, but for me it’s her warped view of people that I really like. They’re strange, awkward and creepy – yet in many ways they feel like very honest depictions of people.
If you get the chance and if you’re a fan of the absurd make sure to check out more of her work online here, I’m particullarly fond of her Wobbledogs, GIF PARTY!
The landmark Pacific Standard Time in Southern California is drawing to an end, an art event/happening/showcase that shared the history of mid-century Los Angeles and Southern California. The series of art shows kicked off in October and pushes on (officially) through Saturday, when it will end. To celebrate its closing and wish it a fond farewell, we have acquired a ton of limited edition matte posters that we want to giveaway!
We have three posters in total–one Ice Cube Celebrates The Eames, one Jason Schwartzman Celebrates John Baldessari, and one Anthony Keidis Celebrates Ed Rushca–which you can win if you tell us a few things. We want to hear what Southern California art means to you. Tell us who your favorite artists are and how you think they’ve shaped the greater artistic landscape in the world. Have any directly influenced you? How has that influence manifested itself? Give us your answer via Twitter with the hashtag #TFIBpst or on our Facebook post here.
This answer could be as long or as short as you want it to be: we just want to hear why Southern California art is important to you and what you think its place in the world at large is. Entries are due by April 10. If you want to up your chances of winning a poster, you can also enter a concurrent contest over on Los Angeles, I’m Yours. We can’t wait to hear what you have to say!
Today is Erik Marinovich’s birthday, so I figured the best thing I could give him was a post about how awesome he is, because it’s the truth. I’m not even sure how we met, though I’m sure Twitter was involved in some way. I’ve posted/worked with Erik a number of times, but if you’re unfamiliar with him he’s one part of Friends of Type, shares a studio space with Jessica Hische and has some of the best damn hand-writing I’ve ever seen. Plus I love his interpretation of Always With Honor’s fox logo!
He recently sent me a little care package, complete with a fully lettered package with an exclusive Friends of Type tote bag inside. I’m happy to admit that I didn’t throw the envelope above away and I fully intend on framing it. It’s a work of art that was made exclusively for me, and I’m proud to show it off. Happy birthday Erik, you talented bastard, and keep up the great work.
Update: One more thing. You should also check out this print he did for 8 Faces, and download the wallpaper he made to go along with it. This guy is unstoppable.
These paintings are by the Tokyo based painter and designer Yosuke Yamaguchi. What really attracts me to Yamaguchi’s work is how he creates unique fantasy worlds. His paintings are places where two girls can hover amid a mass of floating debris or where a large bull can stand watching a girl in a swimming pool. They’re wonderfully strange images and alluring to look at.
While the people in his paintings may look melancholy and the colors are muted, these are really beautiful works and they are delicately made with inks and watercolors. To me, they feel a bit like the paintings of Edward Hopper were re-imagined by David Lynch and brought to life by Marcel Dzama, but even as an analogy that feels a little limp as Yamaguchi’s work is truly unique.
To see more of Yamaguchi’s work, make sure to visit his frequently updated Flickr page where you can see a lot more of the projects he has worked on.
Being from Ireland means that I’m used to the rain. It feels like I see it nearly everyday. And despite a despairing dislike for the stuff, I must admit that sometimes I do occasionally find myself swept up in a simpleminded and childlike daze as I watch it run down my window. It’s a simple pleasure but one which I can’t help but like.
Perhaps that’s why I find myself really in love with these paintings by the American artist Gregory Thielker. Taken from a series called Under the unminding sky, his work capture the beauty of the rain, but it also explore the relationship between it and the medium of painting. As water falls on the windshield, Thielker’s style explores how the environment outside changes through fluidity, texture, transparency and mixing. Check out the whole series on Thielker’s website here.
As we notice so many young, sexy sounding craftsmen entering into the world to make a living from creating it should be noted that there are probably hundreds of people who have been slaving over the same craft for a lifetime without the same recognition. John Talbot is a woodman who turns pieces of wood, freshly cut from trees, into beautiful bowls and objects. He isn’t young, he isn’t opening some cute shop in Williamsburg to sell his goods, and he isn’t trying to make it a trend: this is something that he does and has done for a long time–he’s just now getting able to speak about it.
He is the subject of a video by Wiley Rogers where we get a glimpse of Talbot’s work process and what he thinks about it all. He speaks about how the bowls–which he sells at farmers markets–are like people to him, each with their own imperfections and souls that he has to accept and not try to change. You see him carving away and sanding and tuning a piece to his liking as it rotates quickly on a spit. The video is much like the video posted last week on ceramicist Sue Paraskeva but provides insight into the thought process behind the work.
You can check out the video here.
