Lone Splendor: A Group Show Revels in the Wonder and Unknown of the Night Sky

Danielle Clough. All images courtesy of Paradigm Gallery + Studio, shared with permission

What lies beyond the stars we see when we look up at the night sky? A group exhibition opening next week at Paradigm Gallery + Studio brings together the works of 18 artists who each capture the wonder of the unknown.

Curated by Colossal’s founder and publisher Christopher Jobson, Lone Splendor draws its name from John Keats’ poem “Bright star, would I were stedfast as thou art” and conjures our enduring fascination with the cosmos and imagined worlds. The exhibition features works in a variety of mediums and styles, including the dense, thread portraits of Danielle Clough, Hari & Deepti’s illuminated sculptures, and Lorraine Loots’ tiny recreation of the enormous Pillars of Creation.

Lone Splendor will be on view through January 7, 2024, in Philadelphia. Join us on December 1 for an opening reception, and get a sneak peek of the available works on Paradigm.

 

Lorraine Loots

Duy Huynh

Eli McMullen

Graham Franciose

Jeremy Miranda

Andrew McIntosh

Allison May Kiphuth

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JR’s Dramatic Cave Intervention Emerges from the Center of the Palais Garnier in Paris

“Retour à la Caverne – Acte I” (2023), Palais Garnier, Opéra de Paris. All images courtesy of Opéra de Paris

“Our role as artists is always to search for the light,” says French artist JR (previously) about the second act of his Retour à la Caverne project. “We know this much: You don’t chase away the darkness with more darkness. You chase it away with light, however tiny.”

The work he’s referring to, though, is far from tiny. Cloaking Paris’s Palais Garnier while the building is under construction, Retour à la Caverne is an enormous trompe l’oeil facade, the first part of which depicts a cave carved into the grand structure that houses the opera. Illuminated at the center, the temporary piece highlights the physical and metaphorical interactions between light and dark. Broken into two acts like an opera libretto, the work references Plato’s allegory that emerging from the depths of the cave, and from darkness, brings knowledge.

“Act I” debuted earlier this fall with four nights of projected works, while the second part was held on November 12. “Back in September, we invited you to step out of the cave to go and explore. This time, we’re inviting you back inside the cave,” JR said while introducing the work. Whereas “Act I” portrays the cavern gouged into the center of the building, “Act II” switches perspectives, placing the viewers entirely inside the space.

Titled “Chiroptera,” the performance featured choreography by Damien Jalet and music by Thomas Bangalter. More than 150 dancers appeared through an elevated seven-story scaffolding after an eerie introduction by ballerina Amandine Albisson, who appeared to open the cave, causing a plummet into darkness. As with many of JR’s works, the artist asked the crowd to participate by using headlamps and their phones to illuminate the remainder of the performance, revealing the ways light can emerge from collective action.

Watch the full performance below, and find more from JR on Instagram.

 

“Retour à la Caverne – Acte II” (2023), Palais Garnier, Opéra de Paris

“Retour à la Caverne – Acte II” (2023), Palais Garnier, Opéra de Paris

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Surreal Anatomies and Architectural Motifs Emerge from Elegant Sculptural Candles

Aline Asmar d’Amman, “Aspiration.” All images by Carl Halal, © House of Today

Ten Lebanese designers have collaborated with artisans from the Beit Chabab Hospital Workshop to create a unique, limited-edition collection of sculptural candles. The initiative of the nonprofit House of Today, The Candle Project features ten carved, wax works in varying colors and styles, ranging from Aline Asmar d’Amman’s architectural “Aspiration” with winding staircases to LimbObject’s surreal entanglement of hands and arms. Each piece is available from House of Today, with proceeds benefiting the hospital and the nonprofit’s mentorship program. (via designboom)

 

Richard Yasmine, “Sinking sun for another one”

Flavie Audi, “Nothing is forever”

Nada Debs, “Spiritual sphere”

Carla Baz, “Chrysalis”

Left: Sayar & Garibeh, “Flaws.” Right: 200 Grs, “Blrrrrr”

LimbObject, “I am here”

Tamara Barrage, “Silhouettes”

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $5 per month. The article Surreal Anatomies and Architectural Motifs Emerge from Elegant Sculptural Candles appeared first on Colossal.

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Moss, Pine Bark, and Roots Camouflage Tiny Refuges Among the Wild Swedish Forests and Farmland

“Moss Hut.” All images © Ulf Mejergren, shared with permission

Artist and architect Ulf Mejergren (previously) continues his interest in cozy, outdoor constructions with a new series titled Farm Art. Collaborating with farmer Robert Pettersson, Mejergren built several site-specific structures from materials found around Pettersson’s property in Grödinge, Sweden.

For “Pine Bark Hut,” the pair layered thick, gnarly wood into a slender cabin camouflaged between two trees, a space first used for hunting and then storing tools. Similarly, “Root Hut” entwines gathered branches with the existing roots to create a small, sand pit enclosure nestled beneath the forest, while the circular “Moss Hut” stands 4.5 meters tall among the trees. The latter work “stems from the farmers’ hunting interest,” Mejergren writes. “For many years, he has put food at certain points in the forests so wild boars come to feed there. The problem is they are like bulldozers in the forests, looking for insects and roots in the soil, so they have dug up moss from the forest floor and left them scattered in big droves.” Cloaked in the remaining lichen, the structure is a disguised refuge among the wild landscape.

Other works in Farm Art are more aesthetically driven, like the vivid “Sunset.” Made of dandelion heads at full bloom, the spherical form appears to glow in a field of weeds and wildflowers. Find the full series on Mejergren’s site and Instagram.

 

“Pine Bark Hut”

“Sunset”

Detail of “Moss Hut”

“Sunset”

“Root Hut”

“Hay House”

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More Than 100 Photographers Team Up for Vital Impacts Print Sale Supporting Elephant Conservation

Tim Flach, “Flamingo Reflections.” All images courtesy of Vital Impacts, shared with permission

Since launching a few years ago, Vital Impacts (previously) has raised more than $2 million for conservation and humanitarian efforts. The nonprofit hosts annual print sales to raise funds for various causes, bringing together hundreds of photographers from around the globe who document the beauty and unexpected moments of the natural world. This year’s initiative encompasses images of both the minuscule and the vast, from a close-up of the tiny, bulbous tentacles of a blue button jellyfish to a stunning composite of a star being born.

Proceeds from the sale will go toward Retei Elephant Sanctuary, Africa’s first Indigenous-owned and-run group seeking to return 13 orphaned elephants to the wild. Shop the collection on Vital Impacts.

 

Michael Nichols, Jou Jou and Dr. Jane Goodall, Brazzaville Zoo, Republic of Congo (1990)

Mitch Dobrowner, “Lightning Strikes”

Ami Vitale, “Mary and Lodokejek”

Jody MacDonald, “Rajan Morning Walk”

James Webb Telescope, “Birth of Sun-like Stars”

Jim Naughten, “Muledeer”

Javier Aznar, “Two Owls”

David Liittschwager, “Blue Button”

Michelle Valberg, “Mid-Air Flurry”

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $5 per month. The article More Than 100 Photographers Team Up for Vital Impacts Print Sale Supporting Elephant Conservation appeared first on Colossal.

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Kendall Ross Gets Personal with Her Colorful Sweaters Embedded with Stories

“I would never wear this in public” (2022), hand-knit with wool the artist hand-dyed for Factory Obscura in Oklahoma City. All images © Kendall Ross, shared with permission

Creating pieces that are part artwork and part fashion, Oklahoma City-based artist Kendall Ross of I’d Knit That imbues her knitwear with plenty of personality. “My I’d Knit That project got started because I thought the name was funny, and I was convinced I needed to claim the Instagram handle before someone else did back in 2019,” she tells Colossal. “Originally, it was a very casual way for me to share photos of what I was making and to organize knitting meet-ups with my friends from college. Still, I started taking it very seriously, and it ended up being a very important way for me to share my art and connect with other artists.”

Ross emphasizes bright hues in her pieces, using stitching methods like intarsia or Fair Isle colorwork—also known as stranded colorwork—to illustrate playful graphics and incorporate original texts. In a statement on her site, she writes that she is “drawn to telling unapologetically intimate, complicated stories of feminine, overlooked moments…putting private emotions on display for people to wear on their chest in their public lives.”

All of Ross’ vests and cardigans are hand-knit from either acrylic or wool yarn, the latter of which the artist hand-dyes herself whenever she is able. “I have done a lot of hand-dyeing in the past, and I really love the process of it,” she says, sharing that space is limited in her home studio, so she isn’t able to add color to all of her materials. This winter, she’s looking forward to a residency at Penland School of Craft in January, where she’ll focus on the hand-dyeing process.

Ross is currently working toward shows in 2024 in Oklahoma City, Tulsa, and the Pacific Northwest, and she also teaches at the Oklahoma Contemporary Arts Center, where this winter, she is offering a class on how to knit sweaters for dogs. “I think they only agreed to let me do it because I talk about my basset hound Frankie so much, but I’m very excited about it!”

Find more in the artist’s shop, and follow updates on Instagram. (via Kottke)

 

“Girl Talk” (2021), hand-knit acrylic

Left: “Stress Knit” (2022), hand-knit wool. Right: “Bad Driver” (2022), hand-knit with wool the artist hand-dyed

“Product Placement” (2023), hand-knit wool

“Fake Vest” (2023), hand-knit wool

Left: “Storyteller 2” (2023), hand-knit with wool for La Colombe Coffee. Right: “Company” (2022), hand-knit with wool the artist hand-dyed

“Everyone will forget about this” (2023), hand-knit with wool the artist hand-dyed

“Boring” (2023), hand-knit wool

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $5 per month. The article Kendall Ross Gets Personal with Her Colorful Sweaters Embedded with Stories appeared first on Colossal.

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Wander Through a Geometric Field of More Than 400 Pyramids in Jim Denevan’s ‘Self Similar’

Photos by Lance Gerber, courtesy of Manar Abu Dhabi, shared with permission

For artist Jim Denevan, a paramount element of his creative practice centers on building experiences within landscapes through art and temporary events. Known for his large-scale land works that shape expanses of sand into precise geometries (previously), he allows time, weather, and changing tides to gradually reform the compositions back into natural terrain. Opening today in the capital of the U.A.E., Denevan’s expansive “Self Similar” is part of Manar Abu Dhabi, a new initiative celebrating public art and illuminating the city’s landmarks and vistas with light.

Bordered by the Arabian Sea on Abu Dhabi’s Fahid Island, visitors can reach the installation via a bridge that aligns with its geometry. “As I draw and shape these forms, an invitation is made; it emerges. An ‘entering into’ takes place,” he says of the creative process, mirroring the experience of wandering through the composition. The piece’s 19 rings and 448 pyramids span nearly a square kilometer, and at the work’s highest point, it reaches 27 meters tall.

Denevan, who is also a chef, founded Outstanding in the Field in 1999, inviting people to meet and dine at temporary tables in stunning locations before packing up and leaving the location just as it was. “In the tables he sets and the land artworks he creates, there is an element of organic impermanence at play,” says a statement on his site. The size and scale of his installations range from small compositions on beaches to city-size interventions that stretch miles, each in response to a specific site.

Manar Abu Dhabi continues through January 30, 2024, and you can explore more on Denevan’s website. You might also enjoy this music video from earlier this year, directed by Owen Brown of CNTRL5 and featuring the band ARIZONA, which centers around a 90,000-square-foot installation by Denevan in a dry riverbed in the American Southwest.

Manar Abu Dhabi continues through January 30, 2024, and you can explore more on the artist’s website.

 

 

Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $5 per month. The article Wander Through a Geometric Field of More Than 400 Pyramids in Jim Denevan’s ‘Self Similar’ appeared first on Colossal.

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