Daily Art Muse

shadow box brooch

Susan Lomuto — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:00:37 +0000

rebecca barton: metals graduate student

Susan Lomuto — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:37:31 +0000

After completing her BFA with an emphasis in metalsmithing and jewelry in her hometown state of Illinois, 23 year old Rebecca Barton recently pulled up roots and moved to Kansas to attend graduate school. In her artist statement, Barton describes what fuels the work:

“As a way to explain a state of being, plants have become the focus of my investigations and detailed depictions. Fusing realistic imagery with metalwork, I depict vulnerability and insecurity through the use of plants as the palette for my emotions. Plants as metaphors, both in literary iconography and visual symbolism, can describe changes and stages of life.

I’m quiet when I look at these pieces and I want to see more. She’s one to watch.

Just Begun, ring

Trapped, open

Trapped, closed

brian dettmer carves a new definition for book

Susan Lomuto — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 12:57:02 +0000

Throughout history writers have connected us to new experiences, people and ideas with books that enrich, enlighten, educate, romance, uplift, devastate and distract. Brian Dettmer’s altered book sculptures are meant for the same curious sort who dares to pick up a book and be transported to another place. Full of intrigue and mystery, Dettmer’s carved books are as layered and complex as the characters in a good story.

Full Set of Funk, altered set of encyclopedias, 9.5″ x 66″ x 6″

Standard American, altered vintage encyclopedia set , 9.25″ x 26″ x 9.5″

Standard American, detail

Packer Schopf Gallery describes Dettmer’s work as “sculptural subtraction.” The artist, adept at uncovering secrets, exposing hiding places and revealing beauty, conveys old messages in new ways. By ‘taking away’ - carefully removing pieces and parts of a book’s pages with scalpel and tweezers - he alters our perception and accomplishes the unthinkable: Brian Dettmer creates new connections.

New Books of Knowledge, altered set of encyclopedias, 16″ x 26.5″ x 10″

New Books of Knowledge, top view

New Books of Knowledge, detail

In the video below, listen to the artist talk about his work, including an explanation of how he created his new, animated sculptures. If you want to know more about his process read this BPM Magazine article.

For Brian Dettmer’s most recent work, visit his Flickr site. Even more at Toomey Tourell Fine Art. And books aren’t the only thing he alters. His altered cassette tape skulls are scary. More work-in-progress studio shots here.

Books being prepped in the artist’s studio

Kingdom, altered book, 9 5/8″ x 10.75″ x 9.75″

Many thanks to Seth Savarick to thank for letting us know about this fascinating work.

chocolate pot

Susan Lomuto — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 15:03:41 +0000

lovers arise ring

Susan Lomuto — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 15:00:37 +0000

beach stone rings

Susan Lomuto — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 14:57:47 +0000

nahabetian’s metal, wire, mesh

Susan Lomuto — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 13:15:10 +0000

Geometrical, architectural, textural, colorful, wonderful…these are all words that come to mind when looking at Dennis Nahabetian’s work. The New York artist, who has an MFA in jewelry and metalsmithing from Southern Illinois University, developed a technique that allows him to manipulate wire into vessels and jewelry that beg the question “How did he do that?”

Spring Lotus Vessel

Nahabetian’s portfolio includes vessels that derive from meditations on nature, architecture and decorative objects from history along with a selection of smaller scale jewelry designs based on “nature, music notations and rhythm”. What a spectacular interpretation of complex forms and expert manipulation of materials.

Wave Ornament Bracelet

Vessel #74b

Here in the Northeast the week promises to be filled with Summer sun (finally!). My plan is to harness that warmth and light and turn it into my own renewable energy source - care to join me? First let’s take a peek at this slideshow from Nahabetian’s Crafthaus profile.

Find more photos like this on crafthaus

polly whitcomb: clay and corrosion

Susan Lomuto — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 13:03:25 +0000

After a long, successful career as a production potter Polly Whitcomb began making stoneware and found object assemblages a few year ago and she is enjoying a new kind of attention with the one-of-a-kind art works. Whitcomb offers a fresh interpretation of simple shapes with clay glazes that complement the aged patina of their found object counterparts. When I saw images of her work on the Patina Gallery website I assumed they were brooches. Looks can be deceiving. The assemblages are wall sculptures.

Blue Rain, stoneware clay and found objects

Tango, stoneware clay and found objects

Double Whammy, stoneware clay and found objects

Ribbing, stoneware clay and found objects

Encircled, stoneware clay and found objects

The New Mexico based artist fabricates simple stoneware forms, deftly combining them with found objects until she finds the most interesting arrangement to showcase the shapes, textures and colors perfectly. I do like the idea of translating these into smaller, wearable art, don’t you?

From the Patina Gallery:

Her vocabulary of shapes is deliberately small; spheroids, pods, and disks are sufficient for her purpose. So direct and unembellished, they entice touch while providing dimension and contrast to the found elements she combines. And just as she works with a small selection of forms, she designs within a select, limited palette of color: shades of ochre, grey, and blue.

vintage alphabet

Susan Lomuto — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 23:10:21 +0000

I thought you might enjoy this image of vintage letters that I will be listing on Etsy soon. They are a hard, thick plastic, each side wears a different color, and they stand almost two inches high. Their bright, bold, colorful cheeriness made me smile - kid style - yeah, that kind of smile.

Vintage Alphabet Circa 1946

elephants, luck and muzylowski allen revisited

Susan Lomuto — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 14:57:25 +0000

I’m thinking about elephants today. This lumbering, awkward animal is revered in many parts of the world. A symbol of strength, power, perseverance, wisdom, patience, longevity, good luck and dignity, the elephant is also highly regarded for its intelligence and memory. So I’m thinking about elephants as I move clumsily through my day today. I’m in good company. And I’ve got the perseverance part down, really I do. But perhaps some of the elephant’s luck, patience and wisdom will rub off on me - that would be a good thing today. Lots to do. I hope to have more to report soon.

Shelley Muzylowski Allen thinks a lot about elephants too. When we visited the artist in 2007 she was focused on horses. Her most recent work includes several blown glass elephants with just the right muted color palette and delicate surface design to make me sigh and let my mind wander for a few moments.

The Elephant Cage and detail , 14″ X 11″ X 7″, blown glass, silver foil, steel

Silver Elephant Trolley, 7″ X 6.5″ X 6.5″, blown glass, silver foil, steel

Tattooed Elephant Trolley, 7″ X 6.5″ X 6.5″, blown, hand sculpted & engraved glass, steel

renee adams’ artificial reality in polymer clay and mixed media

Susan Lomuto — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 13:00:35 +0000

Drawing inspiration from botanical images by 19th century biologist Ernst Haeckel, Renee Adams constructed her own imaginary hybrid species using polymer clay, glass, wood and acrylic paint. The Washington artist, who has an MFA in sculpture, strives to create work that “questions ideals of beauty and the way in which we manipulate nature and ourselves to attain it.” Adams uses flocking directly on polymer clay (Bindybop, below), something I haven’t seen before. You can see more out-of-this-world sculpture on her website and from a recent exhibition at Swarm Gallery.

Crowned Polylyp, glass, polymer clay, wood, flocking, mixed media, 13”x5.5”x5.5”

Blowpod, wood, polymer clay, leather, seed pod, 6”x10”x7”

Gussy, polymer clay, acrylic paint, mixed media, 60”x10”x14”

Bindybop, polymer clay, shoe polish, flocking, 9”x4”x4”

Flinderspindle, polymer clay, shoe polish, leather, wood, map pins, 12”x7”x7”

bovey lee’s controlled chaos

Susan Lomuto — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 13:56:10 +0000

The titles alone scream chaos: Tsunami, Office Tornado, Power Plant, Childhood Torture, Atomic Jellyfish, Butterflies and Grenades, Not Mary Poppins. The degree of detail and precision in Bovey Lee’s paper cuts counter the chaos and speak to complete control over material and subject matter. The scenes are haunting and thought provoking. Gossamer webs of paper standing ready to remind us of how fragile life is…and how strong we are. Hong Kong born Lee holds MFA’s from both the University of California at Berkeley (painting) and Pratt University in Brooklyn New York (digital arts). Her work is rooted in history, yet it is today’s technology that allows her to fully explore this ancient folk art.

Tsunami II and detail, cut rice paper, 27″ x 36.5″

Power Plant I and detail, rice paper, 40″ x 27″

Lee sketches out ideas and makes a digital template on the computer using photographs, scanned images and vector graphics. The template is printed and used as a general guideline for the paper cut and the artist often leaves areas of the template blank for improvisation. Placing the template either above or below a sheet of rice paper, she then hand cuts each design with an exacto knife. Patience. Practice. Perfect.

zinnia

Susan Lomuto — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 15:00:16 +0000

jacqueline rush lee’s paintures

Susan Lomuto — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 13:00:37 +0000

While much has been written about Jacqueline Rush Lee’s book art sculpture over the last decade, I am most interested in the artist’s figurative Paintures - acrylic and oil paint skins and scrapings over metal armatures. The Hawaii based artist’s latest series emerged from her 2007 Chromascapes series as “a playful respite from the labour-intensive task of building sculptures out of hundreds of layers of paint”. Lee found the Chromascapes an interesting idea to explore, but not particularly satisfying. Perhaps the most important feature of the exploration was that it led her to create horse sculptures that come alive when colorful paint skins are attached to their scrap metal frames.

Jackson’s Other Steed, acrylic, oil paint scrapings over armature, 6′ x 4′ x 7′

Dark Horse with Puddle, acrylic, oil paint scrapings over armature, 7.5′ x 4.5′ x 12′

Dark Horse with Puddle, detail

Painture No. 3, oil, acrylic paint skins on armature, 5.5″ x 8.5″ x 3′

I like to think of them as being like abstract paintings that have jumped off of the canvas to become 3D figurative works……

sustainable energy

Susan Lomuto — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 13:21:17 +0000

My guy is a sustainable, renewable energy expert - he is my mentor in all things related to renewable energy. This morning he took one look at my weary face and announced that in his expert opinion the only way for me to renew and sustain my energy was for me to cut my blog week short and rest. I’m going to find some sun, some lemonade, some light summer reading, and my good man. Renew. Refresh. Replenish.

[P.S. This is a good time to cruise the archives. There are real riches deep in the pages of this blog waiting for another look. You can either do that by clicking on any month in the archive links (sidebar) or clicking into one of the categories on the menu above the title of this post.]

(Aren’t their solar panels pretty?)

Prism Solar’s Holographic Solar Module