Type Observation

http://artfan24.blogspot.com/2010/09/typography-art.html

 I was absolutely stunned that these two portraits use only typography and negative space to create such realistic representations of these faces. The one of John Lennon feels a bit more free and easy, whereas the detail on Morgan Freeman's face is out of this world.  I was particularly impressed by the creation of his hair and facial hair.

 

I love this poster, it uses typography to get a very powerful message across. 

This one is brilliant!

http://www.designsplanet.com/2010/12/brilliant-type-and-text-artworks/

These were some beautiful examples of typography art I found on individual's blogs (link listed below the images). There was not terribly much information on the artists who created them, but I thought they were all phenomenal.

"You shouldn't be a prisoner of your own ideas." -Sol LeWitt

A few weeks ago we went to Mass MoCA to see the the Sol Lewitt exhibit. During first readings about the artist, I was intrigued but a little skeptical because I've never been a big fan of abstract contemporary art. Not to say that I don't have an appreciation for them, rather I'm a bit puzzled by the canvases that are painted a solid colour, sold for a couple hundred thousand, and titled something like "Marching Band in Communist Russia".

I suppose my issue with this sort of art was rooted in the fact that I always interpreted the 'art' as the finished product, rather that the process itself. Because of this, LeWitt's work was fascinating and extremely eye-opening to me. He allowed the concept and process to be the art, letting the end product of this process be whatever it would be.

It may seem like a ridiculous comparison, but for me, looking at LeWitt's work was equivalent to learning how to cook. Before I could cook I always appreciated a good meal; how it tasted, how it looked. But until I learned to cook, I never understood the art and finesse required in the actual process as well. Knowing all the steps in the recipe gives you a whole other level of awareness and appreciation for the final dish. 

I also found it really interesting that LeWitt took the tangibility out of his work. Best said in his own words, he enjoyed making art for the public to view. 

"I believe that the artist’s involvement in the capitalist structure is disadvantageous to the artist and forces him to produce objects in order to live."          
   -Sol LeWitt

Image Observation

Photography has always been an interest of mine, one I haven't pursued as of yet. One of my favorite photographers is Steven Masters. Along with being a phenomenal photographer, he is also a marvelous artist, art teacher, and wonderful person. Living in bermuda, his photographs are of what he sees the most. I absolutely love his observation of light, reflection, and colour. Check out more of his art and photographs on his website or facebook page. 

http://www.stevenmastersbermuda.com

http://www.facebook.com/stevenmastersbermuda

Layer Observation

Babylon the Bride (4'x8') 2005-2009

Babylon the Bride (First Detail) 2005

Babylon the Bride (Detail) 2005

Tahiti Perhson after installing Babylon the Bride in a backyard for a 2year olds birthday party.

Portrait of Marc Snegg

Blood Lines (36"x48") 2010

Sink (36"x48") 2008

Dishwasher Family (33"x46") 2009

Tourment (36"x36") 2009

Neptune's Daughter (36"x36") 2009

Delta Corvi 2011

Aspidiske 2011

Lota 2011

Forest Cathedral (9'x18') 2007

Ever Gold S.F. 2011

Art in Storefronts 2009-Present

From large scale installations to smaller gallery pieces, patterns based on geometry to elaborate life inspired portraits, all the works above are produced by Tahiti Perhson; an American artist out of North California. 

Using white paper as his medium, he hand cuts his designs out, making it the equivalent of a paper stencil. He then layers these cutouts in such a way that they create an overall story or picture. The highlights and shadows created by these layers add depth and activity to the pieces, erasing  the need for colour.

Perhson's geometrical patterns are inspired by the Guilloche engraving machine. This machine is able to "scratch fine patterns and designs on metallic surfaces” and is named after the French engineer Guillot who created it. The Guilloche was created to speed up and improve the process of hand carving detail into architecture, seem mainly in Greece and Rome. Perhson designs patterns based on this method and cuts them out by hand creating pieces that are perfect to the human eye. 

I know I included a lot of images, but they were so great I wanted to show a bunch. View more pieces on his website

http://tahitipehrson.com/Home_Page.html

"This is governing by obeying the people."

Territorio Indígena y Parque Nacional Isiboro Secure or TIPNIS is a protected area of Bolivia where there are  four rainforest ecosystems, approximately fifty distinct indigenous communities, as well as countless species of flora and fauna that have yet to be documented.

Why does all this matter you wonder? Because the government was planning on cutting a massive highway through the whole area to make the lives easier for Brazilian/Bolivian Industry. Fortunately, the inhabitants of the area took a serious stand against this road. At first their protests were not taken into consideration at all by their government. In fact, President Morales (who is surprisingly the nations first indigenous-born leader as well as a politician who has allegedly always had an environmentally friendly campaign) was quoted to say "Whether they like it or not, we will build that road." Charming, right?

http://bolivianthoughts.wordpress.com/2011/08/15/brazils-role-in-the-bolivian-tipnis-road/

The two images above show the locals views on the situation. In the first they show Brazil's Industry on the edge of demolishing their beloved land. In the second image it shows a road already running through the TIPNIS, with Mother Nature about to be hung. 

So the people protested. Some protests were not as peaceful as hoped and were "managed" with teargas and batons. The photos below were retrieved from a site dedicated to the TIPNIS. The website was in Spanish, but the title of this album read "BRUTAL REPRESSION OF PROGRESS IN DEFENSE OF TIPNIS"; when translated means "Brutal Repression of Progress in Defense of TIPNIS".

http://www.isiborosecure.com/tipnisfotos.htm

The people of Bolivia arranged for a walk in protest of this new road, to go from Trinidad, Bolivia to La Paz, a distance (according to googlemaps) of just under 850km. It is said the walkers left Trinidad in August, and just got into La Paz last week. Amazing people!

http://bolivianthoughts.wordpress.com/2011/08/13/bolivian-indigenous-tipnis-protest-walk/

https://nacla.org/blog/2011/10/14/bolivias-tipnis-conflict-moves-la-paz

Fortunately, the President changed his mind due to a massive decrease in his popularity. Go figure. The last (and best) part of the article last read:


"In announcing that the Amazon road through TIPNIS would be canceled, Morales said that the region would now be designated and "untouchable zone.""


http://www.treehugger.com/files/2011/10/bolivia-axes-plans-to-build-highway-in-the-amazon.php