…from Sweden! I received a nice package this weekend, and of all the things that might have been inside it, I found this: a sponge emblazoned with the face of the Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden. I’m not sure about the man (not being on my Swedish gossip) but he certainly looks a lot like her fiance, the fitness trainer Daniel Westling.
Nice mail to get, and so helpfully labeled as kitsch. Otherwise, I might fear it was sincerely meant.
Amazing, right? I’ve been mulling over making pop up books as Christmas presents. Then I came across this on Art:21 Blog. I’m not quite up to snuff yet, but if I can get my boyfriend to figure out the wiring thing, maybe. There’s a wealth of pop up books on Youtube, should you feel similarly inclined to do present research this morning.
There is turmoil in the world, too many dots to connect; we are many outsiders floating around lost centers. I want my work to reflect that near chaos. – Artist Statement
Of the openings I went to in Chelsea last night, I saw a lot of more, or less, successful toyings with geometric shapes and color (nostalgia much?). What a relief then, to come upon Anna Jóelsdóttir’s show priest chews velvet haddock at the Stux Gallery.
For this exhibition, the Chicago-based Icelandic artist produced mylar installations, paintings, a really extraordinary journal, and a big game of pick up sticks. While that may seem like quite a range of objects, they were very much unified by a stark, sprawling, detailed aesthetic that was precise yet evocative. It was too crowded to get a good installation shot last night, so I pulled the images above from Stux’s website. The artist folds, cuts, and otherwise manipulates the painted mylar into a variety of complex forms. The mylar shows her typical thin streaks and spurts of color on a white background.
When the Bough Breaks
Jóelsdóttir’s paintings, also on white backgrounds with pulsing color connected by thin lines, create poetic yet direct images. Somehow even where there is chaos and tension, there is also a sort of peace. I’m not sure how well these paintings reproduce here, but seeing them last night I was struck by how refreshing and clean the white background was, and how well the artist used the thin crawling lines to explode the space. They felt very personal and immediate. I like how they reconcile what ought to be opposite characteristics, like emotion and coolness, and strength and delicacy. They’ll be up through the New Year if you have a chance to go by, and I recommend you do. More about the artist on her website.
Bent Horizons