Move over canvas, these chunks of wood want a turn! This is the cosmic, clean-lined, bird-filled work of Texas based painter Adrian Landon Brooks. Ok, he works on paper and panels too, but these pieces of wood are so inspiring! They help shape the landscape and I’m quite sure they must play a role in deciding on Adrian’s compositions. Here are his words about why he does what he does:

“My primary intention is to show universal themes of love, loss and redemption – subjects that transcend race or creed; worlds too far away to resemble any one place; and sacred rituals that could be part of any culture.”

{found via Andenken Gallery}

Yes, those are carpets melting and pouring onto the floor. This is the mind-bending work of Azerbaijan born artist Faig Ahmed. I wrote about him five years ago, which was clearly way too long ago! He continues to beautifully blur the line between art and craft, which happens to be one of my favorite lines to blur. All of  the pieces shown here are part of his “Liquid” series… obviously.

Oh my monotype! These gorgeous monotypes on paper are the work of Vancouver based artist Renée Gouin. I can’t decide which I love more … her gorgeous dusty/pastel palette or the way she crops her subjects. Um, hm… TIE! Here are her words about this fashion inspired series:

“I’m inspired by an array of aesthetics including the spare flatness of Japanese woodblock prints and the reductive visual vocabulary of Morandi. My most recent work is influenced by the color palettes and ambiguous spacial effects found in fashion photography. By emphasizing these flat abstract forms, I embrace the playful antics of cubism. I make monotype prints that strive to celebrate women’s relationship with clothes. My interest is to bring an awareness to the daily ritual of dressing and accessorizing, while pursuing my delight in form and color.”

{via Miss Moss}

Oh, HELLO! ‘Ceramic drawings’ by Canadian artist Genevieve Dionne. I’ve written about her before {fyi, this woman can make anything}, but this work is relatively new for her. I’ve been following along on Instagram so I can see what she’s gonna put in the kiln next! It’s truly a peek into her art practice because Genevieve shows the good, the bad, and the broken … poor little brassiere. Follow her.  {Also, how clever is this video of Genevieve in action?}

A post shared by Genevieve Dionne (@genevievedionne) on Oct 24, 2017 at 12:45pm PDT

A love of history, a badly timed diagnosis, researching everything, taking found images from small to huge, and a really spooky ghost story. Yes, all of it! I’m so excited to have American artist Daisy Patton on the podcast. I know I always say this… I’ve loved her work for years, but after this conversation I love it even more. You can listen right under that flower-faced swimmer, or you can subscribe on iTunes.

First up, these are a few of Daisy’s pieces I wrote about back in 2015:

So good! But, when I mentioned right off the top of the episode that she “was on fire” with this ongoing series {titled “Forgetting Is So Long”}, I was not kidding. Look at these beauties… and note the life-size SCALE:

What? The detail, the size, the palette… ALL OF IT. On. Fire.

Next, well, more images to show scale. I thought all of her work was small-ish, so I was pretty excited to find out the huge range she works within. That said, I feel the need to show you more:

Yes, I love them all. Small, medium, large.

Ok, onto the funeral paintings. This one is titled “A Bulgarian Funeral”:

Whoa. I’d love to stand in front of this in person. ps. that’s Daisy doing exactly that.

This next piece is one of her latest research crushes… funeral wreaths and the meaning behind the various symbols. Doves, banners, circular arrangements, etc:

Phew, luckily the dove is pointing up in this arrangement. Apparently facing down means you’re going somewhere other than heaven.

Speaking of heaven, this is where Daisy is right this very minute. Anderson Ranch Arts Center in Colorado. She’s there for a ten week residency {aka heaven}, so I thought I’d show you what she’s up to. A few really big wips {works in progress}, and apparently she stumbled on her very own print shop:

Sigh. Gorgeous.

And finally, I just can’t end a post without a shot of an artist with their work:

Beautiful, on every level. Thank you soooo much to Daisy for taking so much time away from her residency to hang out with me {and for telling me that ghost story – thank goodness voicemail now exists instead of answering machines!}; thanks to both Saatchi Art and Thrive Mastermind for supporting the episode; as always thank you so much for stopping by to look ‘n listen! There will be more art for your ear next weekend:

Other links:

1. Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Colorado
2. Multiple sclerosis 
3. Daisy’s Instagram
4. Pennylane Shen

Paint-By-Number-ish work mixed with vintage neon signs!? Oh my word, I have just fallen madly in love with the work of LA based painter Melissa Sims. These pieces are currently hanging in a two-person show at Zinc Contemporary in Seattle. The show is titled, quite appropriately, “Sign of the Times” and will be up until November 18th, 2017. Happy Friday!

ps. The other artist in this show is Chelsea Wong.

Past and present, fashion and fine art, classic and contemporary. These are the gorgeous works of Argentinian photographer Romina Ressia. I have to admit… she had me at bubblegum. I found her work via Arusha Gallery in Edinburgh. Here is their description of her background and work:

“The inspiration for these unusual portraits stems from Romina’s fascination with the fashion photography which had always drawn her attention, but her work departs from the usual fare and enters a different space altogether.

There is an element of surrealism to her pictures which combine unique artifacts to present a personal reflection upon advancing technologies and cultural movements set against images of classical beauty in painterly-lit backgrounds.”

Lovely.

When paintings look like collages? LOVE! These ‘romanticism meets nostalgia’ oil paintings are the work of UK based artist Morwenna Morrison. I’ve included her statement about this work, because she describes it perfectly:

“My recent body of work explores ideas around nostalgia and romanticism. The word nostalgia was coined during the 17^th Century, the same time that Claude Lorrain was painting his idealised landscapes. Nostalgia is our notion of happier times – the past improved with age – a hankering after a time that doesn’t exist apart from in our minds, ‘those were the days’.  The feeling is bittersweet.” 

Ah yes… bittersweet, indeed.

Have I had these pieces in my drafts folder for ages just waiting for today? Yes, yes I have! This is the work of Austrian born, LA based artist Mercedes Helnwein  I’ve written about her before {back in 2014}, and obviously I fell in love all over again when I saw these nostalgia-filled images {oil pastel on paper}. Thank goodness Halloween is finally here … I couldn’t wait much longer. Happy Halloween!

Now this is a lovely way to start a Monday. This is the soft, layered, mixed media work of Seattle based artist Jenna Douglass. I love her mixture of found images, washy paint, and perfect graphite lines. Perhaps it’s the palette, but they all feel like a dewy spring morning …  a dewy spring morning that makes me want to get into the studio! Happy Monday.

ps. Some of her leaf pieces are available in her shop.