Artsology | An arts blog | Art musings, found art, news, and other art-related items of interest

No Standing, at 5 Pointz in Long Island City

admin_arts — Thu, 23 May 2013 19:46:41 +0000

I wonder if the “No standing” order applies to all people, or just zombies like the one pictured on the sign? Seen at 5 Pointz in Long Island City.

Jack Kerouac Movies

admin_arts — Thu, 23 May 2013 18:32:58 +0000

I’m all confused … I had been patiently waiting for the U.S. release of the film version of Jack Kerouac’s On the Road, knowing that it had been pushed back from last December until sometime this year. Now it seems that it was released (?) in March, yet I never heard about it in the theaters or saw it reviewed. I’ll have to try to track that down, as I definitely want to see it.

And now I hear that a 2nd Kerouac novel has been made into a film, this time it’s Big Sur. All I can find on this is that it’s “vying for a 2013 release date, the new film, Big Sur, just made its world premiere at The Sundance Film Festival.” Here’s the trailer, and for a fan of the Beats, this looks like a must-see as well.

Leggy people visiting Tomás Saraceno’s “Cloud City”

admin_arts — Thu, 23 May 2013 17:50:47 +0000

Photo taken last September at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s rooftop exhibition.

Unexpected Street Art Pairings

admin_arts — Thu, 23 May 2013 15:13:44 +0000

Not quite sure why we’ve got Martin Luther King Jr. with two hooded girls, the one on the right makes me think of Little Red Riding Hood. This street art was found in Montmartre by The Arts Adventurer on his trip to Paris last November.

Montclair Art Walk: Steven Langehough at Gallery 51

admin_arts — Wed, 22 May 2013 22:17:14 +0000

One of my favorite art installations from last Friday’s Montclair Art Walk was a series of paintings by Steven Langehough titled Spirit Mappings, at Gallery 51 on Church Street. The exhibition runs through June 22nd, so if you’re in the area, you should check it out.

The artist explains that this new body of work is “inspired by the topography and maps of the Quetico Superior National Forest in northern Minnesota and references my experiences in the wilderness.” The paintings are enamel paint on hard board, and their physical presence is even more beautiful when you can see them in person. Here’s a sampling of paintings from the show … scroll down for more info after the pictures.

Steven Langehough received his MFA from Cranbrook Art Academy and continued his education with the Whitney Independent Study Program. He is currently the Registrar at the Cooper-Hewitt Museum in New York. Steven has shown his work in galleries in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Detroit. Quite a few of these paintings were already sold, so I’m not the only one who thinks these are beautiful paintings. For more information on Steven and his work, check out his Facebook page here.

Tie Monsters: part dog, part animated shoebox, very unusual

admin_arts — Wed, 22 May 2013 17:20:52 +0000

I received an e-mail from an art studio in Paris named Le3, in which the three refers to “Light, Material, and Movement.” Using these three elements are how the studio partners Julien Nonnon and Romain Vollet transform our perceptions: perceptions of space, time and representation.

After looking around their site, I found this unusual art installation: “Tie Monsters.” There’s not much information about this, other than it was an installation that took place in October of 2011. I guess you just have to watch it for yourself:

Try our new Kandinsky Stay-away Game

admin_arts — Wed, 22 May 2013 15:57:34 +0000

We’ve just launched a new game, the “Kandinsky Stay-away Game,” featuring his painting “Sky Blue” from 1940. Click here or on the image below to go to the game page.

Dave Devries and The Monster Engine

admin_arts — Tue, 21 May 2013 15:46:24 +0000

I happened upon an interesting project this morning: “The Monster Engine,” by artist Dave Devries. Devries is a professional illustrator who has done work for Marvel and DC Comics, Dreamworks, Lucasfilm, Universal Studios, and Sega, among others. The Monster Engine, however, is a project that takes kids’ drawings and turns them into realistic adaptations. Devries writes: “It began at the Jersey Shore in 1998, where my niece Jessica often filled my sketchbook with doodles. While I stared at them, I wondered if color, texture and shading could be applied for a 3D effect. As a painter, I made cartoons look three dimensional every day for the likes of Marvel and DC comics, so why couldn’t I apply those same techniques to a kid’s drawing? That was it… no research, no years of toil, just the curiosity of seeing Jessica’s drawings come to life.” For more info, check out The Monster Engine website.

Davy Crockett Mascots and the American Triceratops of Doom

admin_arts — Tue, 21 May 2013 14:58:16 +0000

I was running an errand when I saw this Davy Crockett image on the back of the car in front of me (below left), and wondered, who has a Davy Crockett mascot? When I looked at the picture on my computer, I could make out the “SHU” on Davy’s hat, and found out that it’s the official mascot of Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, CT (below center). But when I was looking up “Davy Crockett mascot” on Google, I also found that this hero of the west also makes appearances at Texas Rangers games (below right). But what I found most odd – and humorous – is that my Google image search for “Davy Crockett mascot” had the number 1 result slot not taken by Davy Crockett, but rather this “American Triceratops of Doom” character (scroll down below the Crocketts). I like his American flag undies and the bloodied knife strapped to his thigh. I think Marvel Comics needs to pick up this character and get him on the big screen soon! This image was found on a MySpace page for a hardcore band named Davy Crockett – it’s amazing all of the random info one can learn by driving around town.

Montclair Art Walk: Photography by Anna Ryabtsov

admin_arts — Sun, 19 May 2013 21:24:34 +0000

As I mentioned in my last post, this past Friday night was The Montclair Art Walk, a one night event featuring local artists in 26 Montclair venues. At the Monclair Library’s gallery (in a hallway between the library and the Isabel Rose Cafe) was an exhibition featuring 8 artists titled “Jersey Fresh Artists 2013.” The idea for “Jersey Fresh Artists” as an arts exhibition series began in 2009, and are curated by Library Foundation Board member Diana Stewart. These exhibitions are designed to offer Montclair art collectors of all budgets a wide selection of quality work. And for each sale, artists donate 25% to the Foundation.

One of the artists in this show that caught my attention was Anna Ryabtsov, and her surrealist photography, as seen below. On the left we have “The Devil is Just a Skin,” and on the right we have “The Eternal Recurrence,” both of which are from the “Thus Spoke Zarathrustra Series.” The artist writes about her work: “Masks play a large role within the mental state of any individual. Through many of these images, the mask is forcefully reversed so the truth underneath cannot be concealed and can overpower the physical state.”