Friday Design Finds: Palette + Plate

I’m a firm believer that the beauty of objects we use every day enhances our simple daily rituals.  That doesn’t mean every meal should be eaten off Royal Dalton china with fine silver, but we do eat with our eyes as much as our mouths, so why not help even the most ordinary of meals a lovely experience?  Here are some “painted” plates that would make any meal feel a bit more artsy!

Splash Dinner Plate by Liberty London

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Mixed Tableware by Laurens Van Wieringen

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Andrew Ludick

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Dipped set by Sydney Studios

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Hmm.. wonder if we could get any of these in time for Thanksgiving next Thursday? 🙂  Happy weekend, Artsies!

All image sources are linked under each image.

Without Guile: Catriona Miller

There is so much cynicism to be had in this world, that sweetness and innocence seem to get lost in the shuffle.  What drew me to the work of Scottish artist Catriona Miller is its charming purity.

Brighton Belle

Her figures gaze coyly to the side, just a hint of a smile on their lips.  It’s as if they carry a delicious secret they cannot tell.

Daisy Daisy

Small World

River Man

Isn’t it interesting how we might often feel sorry for “simple” folks,  yet how much more happy might they be than we?

Jack Jarrett

To see more of Catriona Miller’s work, please visit her website.

All images are via the artist’s website.

Drops of Jupiter and Other Cosmicness: William Loveless

In the book I’m currently reading, The Opposite of Fate, author Amy Tan writes a great deal about the concept of fate, how much of what happens is in our own control or predetermined or even mere chance?  In that same vein, how much control does an artist truly have in the creative process?  Yucca Valley, CA artist William Loveless takes his own chances with the action & reaction of his materials in his series of glue paintings, which I first saw ( and fell in love with ) last weekend at The Red Arrow Gallery here in Joshua Tree.

#116 ( Resonance Strategy ), mixed media on panel, 36×36

Through this work, Loveless is able to “probe the intersection where the creative act meets the mystery of creation itself. Through experimentation with materials and their various autonomous interactions, I seek an organic empathy with the complex patterns and processes of the physical world.”

#12-53, mixed media on panel, 3.5×3.5×1.5

#12-13, mixed media on panel, 3.5×3.5×1.5

Although the primary way in which the materials will react is known, what cannot be foreseen is the unique end result of every interaction.  The final result being a record of a unique synergy to be found between the materials in that one moment.

#1204, mixed media on panel, 10x10x1.5

I see these interactions as similar to the way in which we connect with the world around us.  Each moment we exist is a unique interchange between other individuals, other creatures, and the world around us.

To see more of William Loveless’s work, please visit his website/blog.  If you’re Southern California, you can see his work in Culver City, in the exhibition ELEMENTal at Fresh Paint Art and in Joshua Tree at The Red Arrow Gallery.

All images are via the Fresh Paint Art website.

Artsy on Escape Into Life: Sarah Johanna Eick

While most of the time I’m drawn to saturated “happy” color, occasionally my soul calls out for a little moody darkness.  So when I laid my eyes upon the work of photographer Sarah Johanna Eick at The Red Arrow Gallery here in Joshua Tree, the quiet power in the work took hold of me and I just had to feature her in my Artist Watch over on Escape Into Life today ( see the EIL post here ).

From The Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing series by Sarah Johanna Eick

Sarah Johanna Eick on Escape Into Life

PS- stay tuned for another Red Arrow artist later this week!

Mod Scene: Gary Peterson

I grew up around Mid-Century culture way before it was hipster cool.  No, I’m not old enough to have experienced it first hand!  But my dad did and we were heavily involved in a 1950s classic car club, one that celebrated mod style by restoring vintage cars, showing them off and even putting on the occasional sock-hop.  Needless to say, when I spotted the California pop-tastic abstract work of New York artist Gary Peterson, it reminded me of the innovation and fantastic design that came from the atomic age.

What’s Between Us, acrylic and oil on masonite board, 16×20

Peterson uses overlapping and intersecting lines to create forms that play with our sense of perspective and place.

Step Up, acrylic and oil on masonite panel, 16×20

Passage, acrylic and oil on masonite board, 16×20

Don’t Go Anywhere, acrylic and oil on masonite board, 16×20

While perhaps the shapes may seem random, they create a palpable sense of movement across the canvas and even between each other.  To see what I mean, try scrolling through down & up the post kind of quickly.  The shapes seem to move, don’t they?  Totally groovy.

Surround Sound, acrylic on masonite panel, 16×20

To see more of Gary Peterson’s work, please check out his website.

All images are via the artist’s website.

November Art Association Pinterest Contest!

Surprise!  This month’s Art Assocition contest is coming at ya a bit early!  With the Thanksgiving holiday coming up here in the US next Thursday, we thought many of our readers might be busy making pie & stuffin’ turkeys next Wednesday.  So Erin & I decided to hold our Art Association contest a week earlier than usual.  And it’s a good one!

If you’re new to Art Association here’s how it works– You create a Pinterest board around one work of art ( which we provide ), filled with anything and everything that pops into your mind while gazing at the catalyst piece.

Our “jumping off” art this month comes courtesy of artmuse.com, an online gallery website dedicated to bringing you beautiful artwork at accessible prices.  Sphere of Influence by Jennifer Chenoweth will provide some fantastic associations, don’t ya think?

Sphere of Influence by Jennifer Chenoweth

Are you ready to start pinning away and maybe win some art?

Here’s how Art Association works–

Step 1|  We give you a piece of artwork, this month’s work is Sphere of Influence by Jennifer Chenoweth ( above )

Step 2 | You create a Pinterest board titled Art Association, like mine here, where you pin any and all images you associate with the featured artwork ( like word associations, only visual )– here’s a little sneak peek at my board

Artsy Forager’s November Art Associations Pinterest Board

Step 3 | Leave a link to your Art Association pinboard in the Comments section of this post

Step 4 | Follow both art social and Artsy Forager on Pinterest ( if you already are, you’re ahead of the game and doubly awesome )

Here’s what you can win–

Once you’ve completed the steps above, you’ll be entered for a chance to win any small size artmuse.com print of your choosing!  Some super fantastic choices on their site– be sure to check out all your options so you’ll have your choice ready when you win. 😉  Big thank you to artmuse.com for generously donating the giveaway this month!

The pinner with the best Art Association board ( as judged by me and Erin ) will be chosen on Monday, November 19th at 5pm (mountain standard time).  With this artmuse.com print as your catalyst, I know your boards are gonna be spectacular!

Pinning begins… NOW!!

Would you like your artwork to be featured as an Art Association subject?  Shoot Erin an email at artsocialonline@gmail.com for more info.

Sphere of Influence & artmuse.com logo via artmuse.com.

Consumptive Histories: Norah See

You can take the Art History major out of college, but you can’t take the Art History major out of the girl.  Yep, I still completely geek out on anything art historical, especially when it’s done in a dynamic way.  Enter Nora See, a New Orleans artist whose Reboot series elegantly repositions famous works of art as tiny trinkets, giving us a lesson in our history of consumption.

The Loss of Man, oil on canvas, 18×24

In her take on Rene Magritte’s Son of Man, Magritte’s infamous face obscuring green apple is replaced with the Apple computer logo, showing us a link between the advance of technology and the loss of human interaction, as well as a loss of our connection to our own selves outside of our technologically driven lives.

Portrait of Madame Y, oil on canvas, 18×24

Her Portrait of Madame Y reworks John Singer Sargent’s famous portrait into a modernized version of what a 19th century trophy wife might look like– fake tan, breast implants and all.

The Cliff, oil, ink, gold leaf and enamel on canvas, 18×24

Green Wall, oil on canvas, 18×24

To see more of Nora See’s work, please visit her website.  If you’re in New Orleans, her Reboot series can be seen at her representing NOLA gallery, Gallery Orange.

All images are via Nora See’s website.

Friday Design Finds: The Light Fantastics

I’m a huge fan of combining artistry with functionality.  Why should we settle for something boring when we could fill our worlds with the extraordinary?  Time to rip down that contractor’s special chandelier you’ve been hating on since you moved in.  Maybe one of these will inspire you to think outside the Home Depot box. Check out these fantastically artsy options!

Pink Octopus Chandelier by Adam Wallacavage

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Tide Chandelier by Stuart Haygarth

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Bower Bird Nest Chandelier by Tracey Barnes

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Candlelier by Takeshi Miyakawa

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Seriously, how could you not be inspired by seeing one of these every day?  What will you make more artsy this weekend?

All image sources are linked below each photo.

On the Verge: Kevin Peterson

You may have noticed that moving over the website didn’t happen yesterday.. things didn’t quite go as planned.  Working on it again today! 

In just a few days, I’ll be seeing my beautiful nieces for the first time in over a year.  They’ve gotten older and taller and I can tell from photos that they are on the brink of leaving childhood behind.  The work of Houston artist Kevin Peterson looks at that the journey out of childhood and into a fractured world.

Oil on panel, 27×34

Acrylic, metallic paint on panel, 36×36

As children, we’re so quick to want to grow up, we can’t wait to go on our first date, get our driver’s license, go off to college, be able to sit at the “grown-up table”.  But isn’t it amazing how swiftly we would go back to swing sets and school holidays, once we get a glimpse of the cynicism and cruelty of life among the full grown.

Bubbles, oil on panel, 27.5×31

Lovely, oil on panel with corrugated metal, 40×57

While entering adulthood has its carefree qualities ( hello, ice cream for dinner! ), there is a delicious freedom when you’re a kid that only grown-up children can recognize.

To see more of Kevin Peterson’s work, please visit his website.

All images are via the artist’s website.

Art to Inspiration: Linda Monfort

I’ve been out to lunch Art to Inspiration-wise lately.  I love this collaborative exercise, but alas, there just wasn’t time for it last month with our moving 1300 miles south and all.  But this month’s inspiration piece is so lovely, I couldn’t resist!  The inspiration artwork for November, The Other Side by painter Linda Monfort, is full of the vibrant color I’m longing for after my first few weeks of living in the desert.

The Other Side by Linda Monfort

I’ve put together a gallery of work of varied styles that tie in beautifully with the palette, texture, and energy of Monfort’s piece.  I give you, Color Riot!  Hope you enjoy!

Glow One by Liz Tran

Love Me Two Times by Kirra Jamison

Avant Garden by Karen Klassen

Square ( Equipose ) by Michael Velliquette

CUBEN series by Simon C Page

Liz Tran | Kirra Jamison | Karen Klassen | Michael Velliquette | Simon C Page

To see more from each artist, check out their websites, linked above.

You can find more information on Art to Inspiration here and if you would like to participate in the next Art to Inspiration, just fill out this form! Follow me and all the other Art to Inspiration bloggers on Twitter by subscribing here.  Let the inspiring begin!