EDWARD WESTON: Clouds, Trees, Water
07/02/2011 § 3 Comments
Artist Feature, vol. 6
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Though Weston is mostly known for his still lifes of inanimate objects such as peppers and cabbage leaves, his landscapes explored the same subject of form that guided most of his work. Here, in Clouds, Trees, Water Weston captured the flora and scenery at Point Lobos,CA and the desert landscape of Oceano,CA.
If you look closely through his images you’ll note why Edward was a part of the f/64 group (which included legendary landscape photographer Ansel Adams). His images often employed the use of deep depth of field allowing for all planes of the images to be crisp and in focus (achieved through closing the aperture to f-stop 64). As in his still lifes, curves, cracks and shadows seem to bring the objects to life as Weston’s compositions create movement, contrast, and texture.
Perhaps intentionally, or not, you can start to see traces of human characteristics in these images. Limbs within clouds. Bodies within trunks. Faces within stones. You back up to recognize your imagination is playing with your sight but nonetheless clues suggesting anthropomorphism are in place. Now I wonder, did Weston see the same mirages and were they what drove him to take these photographs in the first place?
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Oak, 1929
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Iceburg Lake, 1937
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Oregon Coast, 1939
Cypress, Point Lobos, 1929
Cypress, Point Lobos 1930
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Rain over Modoc Lava Beds, 1937
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White Sands, 1946
Oceano, 1936
Tracks in Sand
Untitled Rock Formations
Stonecrop and Cypress, Point Lobos, 1941
White Dune
Surf, 1938
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>HIROSHI SUGIMOTO: SEASCAPES
PROJECT FEATURE: Casa BOX
06/29/2011 § Leave a Comment
Project Feature vol. 1
This 387.5 squared ft getaway on the shores of Sao Paulo was designed by Brazilian architects Alan Chu and Cristiano Kato as a maid’s quarter . The petite treasure of a building was featured in the 8th Brazilian Architecture Biennale in 2009.
This often forgotten programmatic space was given a new importance in the Casa Box. The upper bedroom juts out from the large boulder adjacent to it as the kitchen grows organically below. The structure is at once modern and contextual with the use of linear forms and natural materials such as stone and wood. In this not-so-humble abode the simplicity of the design establishes its elegance and beauty. Oh, and did I mention the view?
(Photography by Djan Chu)
MILAN: Salone del Mobile 2011
04/23/2011 § 1 Comment
Baccarat in Milan Salon Del Mobile 2011
Baccarat in Milan Salon Del Mobile 2011
EVERY YEAR IN MILAN THE MOST INNOVATIVE AND INFLUENTIAL PERSONALITIES of the design world gather for a week to contemplate the newest creations, trends and technologies. This year the event hosted by Baccarat and Veuve Cliquot was held April 12-17th. Baccarat displayed their new collection of crystal chandeliers amongst whimsical cloud installations (as seen above).
So what did all the big names in Italian design bring to the table this year?
Moroso displayed the Biknit Seating collection by Patricia Urquiola: “an exaggerated stitch pattern, an expanded, intense aesthetic transforms a weave into a visible, dramatic design.” They also showed her Klara collection of wooden chairs, Tokujin Yoshioka’s Memory chair and Doshi & Levien’s Impossible Wood chair among several other novelties.
MOROSO Biknit by Patricia Urquiola
MOROSO Klara by Patricia Urquiola
Artemide showed off Karim Rashid’s newest lighting creation, the Nearco pendant, alongside Guido Matta & Enrico Girotti’s Nuboli lamp (a translucent ceiling pendant in the shape of a cloud).
ARTEMIDE Nearco by Karim Rashid
ARTEMIDE Nuboli Lamp
Zanotta presented their 2011 Novelties at the show including the steel asymmetrical Lama Chair by Ludovica & Roberto Palomba alongside the twisted Elica 2576 Table that comes in a white or black high gloss finish.
ZANOTTA Lama Chaise
ZANOTTA Elica 2576
Domitalia brought to the table some beautiful new seating options with the New Retro chair by Fabrizio Batoni Design, the Playa chair also by the same designer, and the glow-in-the-dark outdoor Baba chairs by Radice Orlandini Designs.
DOMITALIA New Retro Chair by Fabrizio Batoni Design
DOMITALIA Playa chair
DOMITALIA Baba chair
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS:
DE CASTELLI Shrouded dresser
RAW EDGES Plaid Bench
CASAMANIA Loop Chaise by Sophie de Vocht
MAGIS Zartan Chairs by Philippe Starck with Eugeni Quitlet
Philippe Starck collaborated with Eugeni Quitllet to create the entirely natural Zartan chair. Made of a new technology using “liquid wood” the chair is molded much like polycarbonate but fuses only with other natural materials such as fibers, wax and fish oil to create a “strong, non-toxic alternative to petroleum-based plastics”. The chair is envisioned in 5 varying finishes: bamboo, flax, hemp, jute and rattan.
SPAZIO ROSSANA Flat Table Peeled by Jo Nagasaka
Balloon Bowls by Marteen de Ceulaer
Belgian designer Marteen de Ceulaer came up with an innovative method of creating bowls by pouring dyed plaster into a balloon then placing another balloon inside it, blowing it up and allowing the plaster to dry. The result is organic as the bowls have an array of varying color, sizes and shapes in a smooth finish and irregular edges.
CASAMANIA Rememberme chairs by Tobia Juretzek
Another response towards sustainability was brought by designer Tobia Juretzek with his Rememberme chair made of old garments that would otherwise have been discarded and unused.
FUTURE TRADITIONS Paper Chairs by Lei+Christoph+Jovana
FUTURE TRADITIONS Xuan Lamp
FENDI Installation by Rowan Mersh
Watson Table by Paul Loebach
* Photos of objects in Other Highlights are (c) of Design Boom
WALK THROUGHS: Modern Ocean Penthouse
03/23/2011 § Leave a Comment
These are photos from one of the most recent projects from Miami based interior design firm DKOR Interiors.
The design of the ocean-front penthouse borrows from the seashore nearby it’s curvilinear forms, organic textures and abundant light accentuated with the repetition of white. The result? An airy modern beach house in the sky.
Photos by Renata Bastos
HIROSHI SUGIMOTO: Seascapes
03/06/2011 § 1 Comment
Artist Feature vol. 4
This past week at the TED Miami event I heard Edith Widder the marine biologist state that more than 90% of the Earth is ocean. Yet there is still so much we do not know about the oceans and the seemingly infinite variety of creatures that inhabit them.
The ocean evokes so many connotations from it’s mighty power and volume to the serene tranquility of it’s vastness. The Japanese photographer Hiroshi Sugimoto captured the essence of these waters in his breathtaking meditative series entitled “Seascapes“.
North Atlantic Ocean, Cliffs of Mother I by Sugimoto
Sea of Japan, 1997 by Sugimoto
Aegean Sea, Pillon 1990 by Sugimoto
North Atlantic Ocean, Cape Breton 1996 by Sugimoto
Baltic Sea, near Rugen, 1996 by Sugimoto
Ligurian Sea, near Saviore 1993 by Sugimoto
” Water and air. So very commonplace are these substances, they hardly attract attention―and yet they vouchsafe our very existence.
The beginnings of life are shrouded in myth: Let there water and air. Living phenomena spontaneously generated from water and air in the presence of light, though that could just as easily suggest random coincidence as a Deity. Let’s just say that there happened to be a planet with water and air in our solar system, and moreover at precisely the right distance from the sun for the temperatures required to coax forth life. While hardly inconceivable that at least one such planet should exist in the vast reaches of universe, we search in vain for another similar example.
Mystery of mysteries, water and air are right there before us in the sea. Every time I view the sea, I feel a calming sense of security, as if visiting my ancestral home; I embark on a voyage of seeing. “
ANDREAS GURSKY
10/07/2010 § Leave a Comment
Artist Feature, vol. 2
Installation Shot
I first learned about the German photographer when a professor of mine suggested I look at his work. He knew I was majoring in architecture and was trying to motivate me towards this genre. I didn’t find it too compelling. I thought it was too restrictive. Then, I saw the beauty in restriction when I observed the seemingly infinite repetition and grand scale of Gursky’s work.
Architecture is expressed through space and form. I was trying to devise a method to express this third dimension in a 2d format that would be more than a formal study of composition. I wanted to convey a sense of grandeur and space. I wanted the viewer to get a sense of what a space feels like when you are inside of it. Sure, this all sounds great and dandy in writing but to actually achieve it proved a more daunting task.
Andreas Gursky’s work impresses me for I feel it captures the monumentality of architecture I was trying to achieve through photography.
(c) Andreas Gursky - Kamiokande, 2007
(c) Andreas Gursky - Image of catalogue, showing 99 Cent II Diptychon, 2001
(c) Andreas Gursky - Chicago Board of Trade II, 1999
(c) Andreas Gursky - Rhein II, 1999, C-print
(c) Andreas Gursky - Image of catalogue, showing F1 Boxenstopp 1, 2007
(c) Andreas Gursky - Pyongyang III, 2007
(c) Andreas Gursky - Pyongyang II, Diptychon, 2007
(c) Andreas Gursky - Untitled XV, 2008
(c) Andreas Gursky - Untitled IX, 1998
(c) Andreas Gursky - Love Parade, 2001
(c) Andreas Gursky - James Bond Island III, 2007
(c) Andreas Gursky - Bahrain I, 2005
(c) Andreas Gursky - Shanghai, 2000, C-print
(c) Andreas Gursky - Ocean II, 2010
Installation Shot II
Gagosian Gallery Installation Shot
For more on Andreas Gursky and his work please visit:
White Cube Gallery – London
Gagosian Gallery – Los Angeles
Sprueth Magers – Berlin, London
ANISH KAPOOR
09/04/2010 § Leave a Comment
Artist Feature Vol. 1
Svayambh 2007
Born in Bombay in 1954 the Indian sculptor has lived in London since the early 70's where he studied at the Hornsey College of Art and Chelsea School of Art Design.
Untitled, 2010
Tall Tree & The Eye, 2009
Shooting Into The Camera, 2008-09
Sky Mirror, 2006
Marsupial, 2006
Dark Brother, 2006
Cloud Gate, 2004
Origin du Monde, 2004
Imagine Blue, 2003
At The Edge of The World, 1998
Iris, 1998
My Body is Your Body, 1993
When I am Pregnant, 1992
Mother As A Mountain, 1985
Over the past twenty years Anish Kapoor has exhibited extensively in London and all over the world. His solo shows have included venues such as Kunsthalle Basel, Tate Gallery and Hayward Gallery in London, Reina Sofia in Madrid, CAPC in Bordeaux and most recently Haus der Kunst in Munich. He has also participated internationally in many group shows including the Whitechapel Art Gallery, The Royal Academy and Serpentine Gallery in London, Documenta IX in Kassel, Moderna Museet in Stockholm and Jeu de Paume and Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris.
Anish Kapoor was awarded the ‘Premio Duemila’ at the Venice Biennale in 1990, the Turner Prize Award in 1991 and was awarded an Honorary Fellowship at the London Institute in 1997 and a CBE in 2003. He is represented by the Lisson Gallery, London, Barbara Gladstone Gallery, New York and Galleria Continua and Galleria Massimo Minini, Italy.
Anish Kapoor lives and works in London, UK.
THRIFT STORE FINDS
08/12/2010 § 1 Comment
Brass Wall Mounted Candle Holder from India – 99 cents
Your local thrift store provides you with the bare bones of great household goods waiting to be re-found and transformed into design gems. What’s the trick? Recognizing the potential behind the items by learning to look at the core of the items instead of their current finished state.
Questions to consider:
1. Is it an interesting design (the form, proportions, size) ?
2. Is it built in a sturdy way?
3. Is it made out of good material (real wood or metal, authentic paintings, etc.)?
White Melamine Dresser with Brass Detail $59.99
Easy changes that could transform the item:
1. Could it be more interesting if you painted it a different color?
2.What if you upholster with different fabric?
3. What if you just polished the metal?
4. What if you changed the hardware or other pieces (for example: lamp shade, handles, frame)?
Dining Chair from Set of 6 Chairs + Table $220
Be creative and play with different techniques. Visit your local Home Depot to explore the materials offered that allow for infinite possibilities of changes you can make.
