inspired by: window seat by jim darling

"Windows" is a collection of paintings by illustrator Jim Darling. Although flying makes me really nervous, the beautiful views from 35,000 feet are always enough to take my mind off it for a while. As a "window seat" person (versus "aisle seat" people... I don't think "middle seat" people exist) I love Darling's oil and aerosol paint take on the geometric landscape.

inspired by: the art of missed connections

Have you ever read the Missed Connections section of your local Craigslist? I'm a huge Craigslister; around half of my worldly possessions, from every piece of furniture I owned in college to our current barn door coffee table and papasan-chair-turned-clothes-rack, came into my life via Craigslist Seattle, Western Mass or Boston. I love that aside from being an online garage sale of gross couches and certified-pre-owned cats it's also got a human side with interesting, sometimes bizarre but often sweet stories.

Described as "the internet's version of lost and found," Missed Connections is a last-ditch effort for people to connect with someone they were either by chance or by choice unable to interact with in the moment. Buried between the always humorous Sorry-I'm-Not-Sorry psuedo-appologies, the Passive-Aggressive-Behavioral-Complaints, and the More-Than-Slightly-Creepy-Library-Pun-Users, there are some heartfelt pleas from Craigspeople just looking for that second chance at friendship, love, owls, whatever.

The serendipitous humor and hope in these posts inspired a collection of paintings by illustrator Sophie Blackall called (obviously) Missed Connections. Blackall does a beautiful job pairing her whimsical watercolors with equally quirky and unique ads she has found. Some are cute, some are funny, some are bittersweet. Here are some of my favorites :)

The last two are my favorite... I love that whoever the original posters were, they might not have wanted anything but to tell another person that they were awesome. There are so many people I'm now tempted to anonymously thank for existing in South Boston... the construction worker with a cowboy-hat shaped hardhat who sings country songs with an Irish accent outside the subway is first on my list.

Most of these are from Blackall's local Brooklyn MC, but she recently did an illustration for Boston.com's Love Letters column based on a real-life story of cat-shirt love found and lost on a Brookline dance floor. If you've ever been to the shady hipster outskirts of Boston you can totally imagine this scene playing out:

The ad: "you hooked me in with your sweet robot moves and cat shirt. none of that grinding stuff, just natural robotic talent. you said ‘‘hey, you’re cute.’’ and i said, ‘‘you, too’’ and then i elbowed you in the ribs because i’m not very smooth when it comes to romance... kept looking at your cat shirt thinking, ‘‘yesssss, i can see us marrying and having lots of cats.’’ went to dance on stage with friends and then lost you?!?myfriend said you got shy, which makes you and your cat shirt even more cute!!! alas, i lost both you and my heart on the dance floor. find me cat shirt guy, find me. p.s. i also put up ‘‘LOST: cat shirt guy’’ signs for you."

While there is a lot of humor in these paintings there's also a poignant undertone of loss and possibility to them that was best noted by a commenter on Blackall's Etsy's video:

"I've been a huge fan of Sophie's Missed Connections since I stumbled onto them by chance. The whole idea of the posts on Craigslist is so bittersweet. So many missed chances, so many 'what ifs,' a world of infinite possibilites with people focusing on the opportunities they lost and the people they just managed not to connect with. I hope it teaches us all to seize the moment, smile at strangers and really interact with the people around us."

Sophie Blackall's Missed Connections is now available in book form as well as archival prints (in case you want to commemorate Mr. Throat Tattoo in your living room for all time), and if you live in New York her work can be seen on the newer subway trains as part of the MTA for Arts program. And, if you're more the literary type and you ever have a few minutes to kill (or just don't like doing your job at work, no judgement here!) the CL Best-Of has some gems.

inspired by: line juhl hansen

I didn't major in art while in college, or art history, and I can count on one hand all the art or art theory classes I've ever taken. Sadly (or perhaps thankfully) I've taught myself most of what I know, and don't have the knowledge or vocabulary to properly express what I think about most art. When I share artists or work that I like, it isn't because I know what is trending in the art world right now or that they've pioneered a particular technique, but simply because I just know what I like and perhaps if you like my art you might like the art that in turn inspires me.

I like layers of media, rustic colors from nature and folksy details. I like geometric shapes and classic typography but also carefree script and brushstrokes. And overall, I appreciate art with energy and intention, which is what I see when I look at the work of Danish artist Line Juhl Hansen. I can't really describe why I love here work so much but if you take a look I think you'll understand. It is big. It is bold. It is so simultaneously in-your-face and so subtly detailed that you can't not be drawn into it.

The fact that Hansen's portfolio and blog are both written in German meant I couldn't really decipher much about her painting process. It made me examine all her work with the freshest eyes possible and really scour the details in each negative space. I admire her use of bright, bold colors both as focal points in some pieces and in details peeking out from large swaths of black... the combinations of rust, copper patina, black and stark whitewash over found paper, stenciled numbers and scribbled symbols make me think of colors and textures found on reclaimed urban walls. Hansen is also one of those artists whose studio space is nearly as intriguing as her actual artwork... check out her studio tour here and her website here.

gallery visit: robin luciano beaty & lanoue fine art

"My process is the visceral journey of discovering something reminiscent rather than the recording of a specific space. The medium of encaustic provides me with that exploratory means of expression. Its qualities are sublime and unpredictable, additive and subtractive, translucent and sculptural..." - Lost & Found Artist Statement, Robin Luciano Beaty

I've been a fan of Robin Luciano Beaty's encaustic mixed media artwork since seeing her studio tour in Apartment Therapy a few years ago, and regretted missing her exhibit in Boston last summer. Her current exhibit Lost & Found at Lanoue Fine Art was extended, so Mike and I grabbed lunch at Berkeley Perk and battled some wicked wind on the walk to Newbury Street.

It was worth it... Luciano Beaty's work is just gorgeous; smooth, sculpted layers of encaustic wax punctuated by found objects, organic material and sparkles of glass and nails. The thick textural quality of her paintings was what really drew me in, as each surface morphed quickly from deep translucent planes into rough, gritty sand, wood, various weights of textile fabric... even what looked like a dried sea fan and a mossy strip of tree bark. I knew I needed to see her work in person but didn't realize how much more detail and texture could be seen up close.

Confluence #28 and Quiescence #6, both 36" x 36" mixed media on panel. Quiescence #6 was by far my favorite... and not just because it's a seascape. Though so many found materials are incorporated, Luciano Beaty achieves the goal of making the entire piece more than just the sum of its parts... I appreciated how they were combined so intentionally and with so much care to each layer, and how each contrasted but still complimented the adjoining layers of material.

Mike liked Traversing, a 72" x 36" diptych. He said it reminded him of a shoreline from the sky, with breaking waves and rocks. For an engineer, my boyfriend gets a lot of credit for accompanying me to art galleries and fairs and taking the time to consider and talk about abstract art with me. Love him.

Remains To Be Seen was another favorite of mine and was the piece I was most excited to see in person after seeing it online. Even in this photo you can't begin to see all the different materials, layers, colors and techniques used in each 5"x5" panel. It almost seemed like no material or brush-stroke was duplicated... each panel projected its own unique quality while remaining relative to the others. Some were speckled with tack nails and wrapped in rusting metal mesh... some were lake-smooth with gesso or aluminum... others were unique moonscapes of bubbling wax encapsulating vintage photographs or handwritten letters. I could have looked at this one for hours.

Lost & Found also featured a couple artists I hadn't heard of including the sculptures of Johan Hagaman and the paintings of Andrew Saftel.

He's More Cloud and Stream, a wire, metal and resin sculpture.

Scenic Road by Tennessee artist Andrew Saftel... you can't tell from the photo but so much of what looks "painted" on is actually carved into this thick piece of wood. A lot of Saftel's paintings had this same engraved quality, with many patterns and symbols recessed into thick layers of vibrant paint. I loved the soulful Americana displayed throughout all his work.

My photographs really don't do any justice... there is really nothing like seeing art up close and in person. After leaving the gallery we walked across the Charles River to Cambridge so Mike could do a couple hours of work at his lab while I got coffee and answered emails :)

lazy sunday, big art.

I love being lazy on Sunday afternoons... today Mike watched football, we played with the cats, I sent some emails, wasted time on Pinterest and just lived on the couch. Had a couple beers, ate homemade chili, snuggled. I love my home.

A couple weeks ago we hung a 30"x40" painting over our bed, and now I'm almost obsessively trying to find more ways to put up art in our apartment. I have a couple pieces of my own and of others' waiting for me to find frames and wall space for them. Until then I'm drooling over big art in beautiful spaces found on Pinterest.

Decor by Lonny Magazine

the home of Sabrina Ward Harrison via Apartment Therapy

big script art tutorial by Elise Blaha

Robin Luciano Beaty's art barn via Apartment Therapy

big wall art by Anahata Katkin

Little art and large art via Apartment Therapy

Addie Rementer painting via Apartment Therapy's Room for Color

Gorgeous, right? I want to go play with a big canvas right now!

ever since the beginning to keep the world spinning

The last few weeks have been a blur... saying I work harder and longer since becoming self-employed is more of an understatement than ever before. My days start when the sun (and occasionally jackhammers on our street.. ugh) wakes me up and ends around 2 or 3am when all emails are replied to, all artwork orders are packed and ready to be walked up to the post office, all paint is cleaned up and everything else is checked and reordered and planned and done. It's exhausting but in a really good way... I can't imagine a more perfect use of my energy right now.

Outside of commissioned work, I haven't been painting as much as usual but I've been stoking the creative fires in my head often. I plan on taking a short break from painting after Christmas to create with some other materials and thoughts I've been collecting and dreaming about recently.

Things that have been inspiring me right now...

 

Self Portrait by Regina Pagles.. no explanation needed.

Still feeling that wanderlust I couldn't satisfy last summer.

Star Trails Over Boston by Nimay Shah

I started running in October and still do 2-3 miles once or twice a week after dropping art off at the post office if it isn't too cold... my favorite route to run is from my apartment to the Seaport and along the waterfront because it takes me right where this photo was taken. It really is this gorgeous at night.

"Vancouver" for EF International Language Centers' "Live The Language" campaign

(Sydney and Beijing are pretty cool too! and make me very disappointed that I didn't travel abroad in college.)

Spring Swatch dying over at Scout & Catalogue
also these tips on creating natural dyes on the Free People blog


"1st Round Compilation" by The Beauty of a Second

Doing a compilation like this would be a really cool way to record special events or a year of life/work.

Charmaine Olivia's workspace


"One Day Like This" by Elbow... you'll like this but you might have to click the link to watch it on YouTube.

 

My own Appalachian road trip journal in progress... also Miranda Lambert's new album, Four. I don't know how to embed it but you can listen to the first track "All Kinds of Kinds" here.

Have you found anything good lately?

inspired by: 3.2 million dots

"Hero" - Created, Filmed, Produced and Edited by Miguel Endara

Music by Bonobo - Noctuary

inspired by: sketchbooks

I've been living in a sea of prints and packing materials since the holiday rush began and also in a sort of inspiration lull for a couple days... if the feeling isn't there I don't like to force it, so I haven't been painting or creating as much as usual this week (although, I really enjoyed playing with my watercolors for When We Love.) Instead I'm working on my sketchbook, printing out old photos and playing with new materials and figuring out what I want from my next few paintings. Sketchbooks and art journals are such a good way to experiment and sometimes they end up being just as gorgeous as "real" paintings. Also a good way to collect little bits of life to save for later... occasionally I've ripped a page from a sketchbook and sewed or glued it right into a work in progress. 

Here are some of my favorite sketchbooks by other artists and links to check out more of their work if you like.

Sketchbooks by illustrator Oliver Jeffers

UK Journal #11 via Just A Plane Ride Away

Sketchbook Pages via Yelena Bryksenkova
(I was a little excited when I ran across both of these.
My bedroom growing up in Seattle had a view of the Space Needle and Mount Rainier.
The beach in Ocean City was where I had my first "night swimming" experience.)

Moleskine via David Fullarton

Personal Mini Album DIY via Amanda Johnson

Moleskine via Anna Ruskova

Travel journals via Mary Ann Moss of Dispatch From L.A.

Art Journal by Debra Cooper

This is my own sketchbook... one of my favorite pages.

Okay... now I'm going to stop writing about art and actually go make some art. Ready, go.