Monday, August 31, 2009

hilary white does plastic & light.

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as one third owner of the toothless cat gallery here in good ol' philly, i have the privilege to be sent work by artists looking to show at our space. recently i was sent the work of local artist hilary white, and was completely floored. (i love it when that happens, especially around the cusp of fall when the prospect of newness takes over everyone//thing) her work seems to be collage like in theory, but instead of paper, she uses an interesting mix of plastic/wood/paint & light to create these glorious wall sculptures. in her artist statement she talks about being motivated to straddle the idea of art being used for religious purposes as well as personal. i'm very interested to see her work in person & to hopefully show her next year. in the meantime, if you live in philly, you can check her work out at ven & vaida.

Sunday, August 30, 2009

i am absolutely obsessed with crystal morey.

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ok i went a bit overboard with posting images of crystal morey's sculptures but i couldn't help it. i'm madly lusting over everything!!! the emotional weight of how these female figures hold their bodies//hands & their sad eyes is killing me. killing me!!! i've lately been investigating more sculptural work for the gallery & i've found some other new lovelies to post about. but! in the meantime, i suggest taking your own investigation into crystal's work & i hope that maybe more than a few of you will have a similar reaction.
xoxo

Thursday, August 27, 2009

vania zouravliov does the erotic macabre

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vania zouravliov lives up to my favorite notion of russians being dark & moody. his at times hyper realistic renderings focuses mainly on the juxtaposition of erotica and the macabre, decadence & decay. the highly detailed work is both disturbing & beautiful, just the way i like it best.
xoxo   

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

the hydra of babylon x camille rose garcia

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camille rose garcia is my absolute favorite contemporary artist. seeing her work in person makes me feel like i have a swelling ocean in my chest. so, to set my lusting at ease, the queen of doom & gloom will have a new show of apocalyptic//gorgeous work, the hydra of babylon, opening at merry karnowsky gallery in la this september 12. the teasers of the new work suggest she is following with her themes of war//excess//destruction of natural resources paired with her ever evoloving psychedelic color palate. i would give a phantom limb to be there.......
xoxo

kelly tunstall//ferris plock: sea of love.

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i'm finally! home from the sea. i've been thrilled with the new show of dynamic duo kelly tunstall & ferris plock's new show, sea of love. i've been a long time fan of kelly's work & admire their joint prolificness. sea of love is their biggest show to date and i love all the mermaids & ice cream eating monsters. to see a short animation that accompanies the show, check it out here.
xoxo

Sunday, August 23, 2009

current nighttime obsessions iv.

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although i've posted about the amazing work of amy earles before, i'm lusting over these new drawings. one of which is in the possession of fellow etsy cabinet of curiosities team member, mon petit fantome, whose work is equally enchanting.
xoxo

Saturday, August 22, 2009

nicole dextras does ice

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i've been fascinated by these haunting, ephemeral images of clothing imbedded in ice by nicole dextras. they eerily remind me of the evidence left behind after a catastrophe, the ghostly remains of what should have a body//woman inside them. these spook me in a similar way that abandoned landscapes//dollhouses do, with a hint of the apocalypse.   
xoxo

Friday, August 21, 2009

james jean does hint mint.

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although no stranger to illustrating product (prada), james jean has just released word of his hint mint tins, & i'm very excited. i love little boxes and things to keep secrets in & i imagine that once the mints are eaten, these little tins will be perfect for just that.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

the mythic qualities of hair.

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as i pulled seaweed and other gelatinous sea life from my hair when i walked out of the waves, i began to think about all the mythic & seductive qualities of the female's hair. an artist friend once told me that hair was the most important thing to pay attention to while painting women, that it is the root of her femininity. and power for that matter. 
xoxo

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

gitte meldgaard does joan of arc.

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if you know me,even a little, you know i am obsessed with the strange life & tragic death of joan of arc. i'm ever on the hunt for new///old images of her and i recently stumbled upon these by gitte meldgaard, whose other photography is quite lovely as well.
xoxo

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

a room of one's own.



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lately i've been thinking about personal//private space. i would love to get back to my novella but am swarmed with other projects & interests. i've always thought that if i had the perfect place to write, that it would come easier. my dream places are tree forts, caravans (see above!), or a huge tent on the sea in the south of france. although none of these places are feasible anytime soon, i am currently away at the sea, reading through a stack of books i let from the library. i'm also working on cover art for my friend's lovely band, the chimeras, as well as dreaming up and sketching new painting ideas for my upcoming show 'hideous beauties & strange magic' at omoi in my favorite month of november and of course, new autumn designs for blood milk. i'll be having another give- a- way very very soon!!!! 
xoxo

Monday, August 17, 2009

simen johan.

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simen johan is one of those photographers that manages to simultaneously creep me out and hypnotize me. i'm interested in the idea of darkness//strangeness against the innocent and awkwardness of coming of age//childhood & i believe he manages to capture and balance these ideas wonderfully. i've been long loving these specific images from his 'evidence of things unseen' series and even wrote a few of them into my fiction thesis. 

Friday, August 14, 2009

please be welcome.

although i was born and raised in NY until i was sweet 17, my heart mostly belongs to philly. so i'm always delighted when fellow philadelphians make it in nyc, which is exactly what's going down this saturday at fuse gallery. philly artist, space 1026 member and curator damian weinkrantz has collected some of my favorite local artists for a witty show, 'please be welcome', that will feature three different rooms of an apartment, with work respectively fitting into each nook, such as a life size refrigerator made out of paper mache and quirky acrylic paintings on vhs tapes. 
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'a loose tooth' damian weinkrantz. this reminds me of the winchester mystery house in san jose. also, i love anything to do with teeth.
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jake henry's bronze skateboard. jake had a show at the toothless cat last month and i had the opportunity to see this in person. it is heavy as hell.
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kris chau is one of my favorite local artists and i never tire of seeing/speaking of her work.

Thursday, August 13, 2009

wheat toast

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wheat toast is an international online curation of some of my favorite young contemporary illustrators such as fumi mini nakamara & irana douer. however the site also has some interesting photographic work for view as well. i'm interested in how work can be collected for public view online as well as in galleries; & i hope to see more of these spring up.
xoxo 

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

the black spot books.

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although margaux kent (who is a fellow philadelphian & etsy cabinet of curiosities team member) of the black spot books is becoming widely known for her incredible handmade, vintage leather books// book necklaces, she is also an amazing photographer. her painter husband walter kent is returning home soon from being away for a year at war and i'm pleased to say that they will have a joint show at the toothless cat gallery next year. if you're so inclined, take a peek at their lovely wedding video, 'an ever- sure antidote to despair' that took place in iceland last year.

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

naomi nowak.

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continuing my theme of multi- medium talents is swedish born naomi nowak who has the face & figure of my dreams. not only is she a very talented painter, but is also a successful comic book writer//artist. her subjects are dreamy and melt into each other and the work is colored beautifully. her blog, claw diaries, is filled with equally dreamy self portraits and musings of the young artist. i feel fortunate to have picked up an original from her a few years ago.
xoxo

lewis carroll photographs

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lately i've been really into the photos of famed 'alice in wonderland' author, lewis carroll. they are strange & lovely, innocent & yet slightly disturbing. as a person who works on many creative projects at once, i love it when someone is successful at different facets of their creative pursuits. 
xoxo

Monday, August 10, 2009

low brow tarot

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i recently stumbled across a new project entitled 'low brow tarot'. an open call was made to artists to create the major arcana of the tarot. i believe there are still some spots open, but most have been taken by amazing artists such as carrie ann baade, cate rangel (above) &kris kuski. i can't wait to see what it looks like completed.

Thursday, August 6, 2009

jonathan levine does a summer mixer

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ana bagayan 'corpse flower'
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martin wittfooth 'the blind fisherman'
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adam wallacavage 'mother puncher'
i've been a little m.i.a. here due to getting work ready for my show that opens at mew gallery this saturday. because of all this painting and typing, i also missed out on last night's opening a JLG in nyc. the show boasted new work from a slew of over 20 amazing artists, i hope to see it before it comes down on the 22nd. i'll be back next week to my normal daily routine & with lots of exciting news.
xoxo