Layers of Realistic and Invented Winged Creatures Combine in Surreal Illustrations by Vorja Sánchez
“Birds Dialogue 2,” Mixed media on paper
Vorja Sánchez (previously) combines imaginative interpretations of birds, wolves, and hybrid creatures into surreal paintings and mixed media works that are diverse in both style and form. In the follow up to his popular work Bird Dialogues, the Spanish illustrator layers winged animals of all colors and breeds, presenting realistic drawings alongside half-formed birds that spring from the deep corners of his brain. You can see more recent illustrations of real and invented creatures, in addition to less public murals and less formal sketches, on Instagram and Facebook.
“Birds Dialogue 2” (detail), Mixed media on paper
“Birds Dialogue 2” (detail), Mixed media on paper
“Organic Haku,” Ink, watercolor and colored pencil on paper.
“Organic Haku” (detail), Ink, watercolor and colored pencil on paper.
“Mirada orgánica,” Pencil and colored pencil on old paper.
“Frutos Rojos,” Ink and watercolor on paper
“Frutos Rojos” (detail), Ink and watercolor on paper
Expressive Text Loops, Folds, and Ties Itself in Knots in New Murals by Pref
British graffiti artist Pref (previously) transforms words and sayings into visual interpretations of their meanings or messages—forming the word “undo” into a knot, or layering the phrase “all over the place” on top of itself to take up as much surface area as possible. With added shading and perspective the words appear as if they are 3D, like his piece “It Is,” which forms a a narrow grey cube when the letters are stacked. Some of his monochromatic works on paper (which you can see below) will be included in the upcoming group exhibition Control and Disorder with Gary Stranger, Elliott Routledge (Funskull), and William LaChance at Galerie 42b in Paris. The exhibition opens this Friday, December 14, and runs through January 19, 2019. You can see more of Pref’s recent work on his Instagram, and buy prints through his Big Cartel.
Olafur Eliasson on his daring melting ice blocks installation
Tuesday (December 11) marked the launch of renowned Icelandic-Danish artist Olafur Eliasson’s new major piece of outdoor public art in London. Ice blocks sourced from the waters of the Nuup Kangerlua fjord in Greenland have been placed outside the Tate Modern and around the rest of London, in a visual call-to-arms against climate change. They are just 30 of the 10,000 that…
read more »The future-spanning work of video artist Meriem Bennani
An inherent contradiction of our world right now is that the movement of bodies around the globe is both freer and more restricted than it’s ever been before. Tech is driving a culture of convenience and speedy travel, but to actually move seamlessly and uninhibited around the world is the privilege of a rich, white few. New York-based Moroccan artist Meriem Bennani encapsulates this paradox with her latest installation, “Party on the CAPS”, which…
read more »Simon Fensholm’s Expressive, Uninhibited Scenes
From Simon Fensholm’s distinct, swirling strokes, vulnerable portraits and scenes emerge. The oil painter, based in Copenhagen, creates works that are both expressive and observant, finding a humanity in their otherworldly forms.
This designer created a Balenciaga office that we wish we worked in
Over the course of the last couple of years, we’ve seen a resurgence in the logo-mania that first gripped the world back in the early 00s, when the likes of Fendi, Dior, and Gucci splashed their monograms over… well, pretty much everything. As fashion fans around the world plunge…
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Roísín Murphy on creating some of 2018’s most exciting club records
Roísin Murphy is having, in her own words, a lazy day. It’s 3pm, and she’s sat sipping a beer in a cool, pastel-hued London hotel. The fatigue she tweeted about earlier this year, she reassures me, has been and passed. “I was exhausted then, but today I just woke up and got the kids ready for school,” she laughs. “I had loads of hours before I came here! Sometimes I don’t have much to…
read more »Amsterdam’s 2018 Light Festival Illuminates City Streets with 29 Art Installations
OGE Group, “Light a Wish,” Amsterdam Light Festival 2018, all images © Janus van den Eijnden
This past month the Amsterdam Light Festival (previously) opened its seven year, inviting visitors to observe 29 light-based works by international artists, designers, and architects along the canals and throughout the historical center of the city. Artworks were inspired by this year’s theme, a quote from media scientist Marshall McLuhan: “The medium is the message.”
Installations such as British artist Gali May Lucas’s piece “Absorbed by Light” address our contemporary obsession with screen-based technologies. Her piece features three figures next to each other on a bench, each head bent to peer at an illuminated phone. Guests can take a seat between the sculptures to get a better look at the piece, or simply rest and check their own device. Another piece, “Waiting” by Frank Foole features a paused loading wheel on the side of the building surrounding the silhouette of a person inside.
Many of the works are presented close to the city’s canals, making an even more spectacular scene when reflected in the water below. Sculptures like Jeroen Henneman’s “Two Lamps” pay tribute to this effect as the title references the lamp installed on the riverfront, and the one that is projected into the glassy surface underneath. The Amsterdam Light Festival continues to light up the city through January 20, 2019. You can see more documentation of this year’s festival on their website. (via Design Boom)
Alicia Eggert, “All the Light You See”
Frank Foole, “Waiting”
Gali May Lucas, “Absorbed by Light”
Jeroen Henneman, “Two Lamps”
“Michela Bonzi, “Antenna Sud”
Peter Vink, “Mr. J.J. van der Veldebrug”
Ivana Jelić & Pavle Petrović, “Starry Night”
OGE Group, “Light a Wish”
