Inflatable Dinosaurs Stalk Paris’s Jardin des Plantes in a Spectacular Journey Through Time

All images © China Light Festival B.V.& Sichuan Tianyu Culture Communication Co., Ltd, shared with permission

Trilobites, luminous flying raptors, and a T-Rex towering 27 meters above the ground are just a few of the otherworldly creatures currently haunting the grounds of the Jardin des Plantes. The massive inflatable organisms are the subjects of a fantastic exhibition now on view at the Paris venue that takes viewers on a spectacular journey of development and biodiversity through the ages.

Populated by glowing, air-filled sculptures crafted by the Sichuan-based company China Lights, Evolution on a Path to Enlightenment opens about 3,700 million years ago with the Precambrian era’s marine creatures. The walkable, outdoor show then ventures into the early terrestrial environment of the Paleozoic period, greets the dinosaurs of the Jurassic and Cretaceous ages—this segment includes fanciful renditions of well-recognized creatures like the stegosaurs and velociraptor, all of which are based on research from paleontologists from the National Museum of National History—before closing with the birds and mammals that remain today.

Visit the botanical garden before January 30, 2022, to explore life 600 million years ago or take a virtual tour in the video below.

 

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A New Book Captures Roger A. Deakins’s Signature Cinematic Style Through Ironic Black-and-White Photos

All images are © Roger A. Deakins

Alongside his work with a host of renowned directors like the Coen brothers, Sam Mendes, and Denis Villeneuve, cinematographer Roger A. Deakins spent the last five decades quietly amassing a collection of photographs that capture his distinct sense of irony and wit. Now compiled in a monograph titled Byways, the black-and-white images traverse rural North Devon, the English coasts, and distant locales from 1971 onward, documenting Deakins’ surprising and idiosyncratic encounters with life across the world. Signed editions of the new book, which features a spate of previously unpublished images, are available now from Damiani. (via Juxtapoz)

 

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Cut from Found Feathers, Minuscule Silhouettes Become Intricate Symbolic Works

“Gull Flight” All images © Chris Maynard, shared with permission

Equipped with surgical knives and scissors, artist Chris Maynard (previously) carefully slices exquisite silhouettes of birds, people, and tiny stars from individual feathers. He cuts the naturally shed materials, which come from private aviaries and zoos, into metaphorical scenes of change and transformation: figures hatch from eggs, a flock of seagulls flies into a perfectly round arc, and still developing chicks nestle into the barbs. “Feathers are symbols of our aspirations,” the artist tells Colossal. “Like a lot of us, I want to fly but I can’t, so I use feathers to try to capture an essence of flight.”

To see how Maynard extracts such intricate shapes, head to his Instagram where he shares more about his process and a variety of recent works.

 

“Journey”

“Acorn Woodpecker”

Top: “Worm Food.” Bottom left: “Entwine.” Bottom right: “Goodbye”

“Undulation Reflection”

“Another Creation Story”

“Embryo III Flight Training”

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Jane Goodall, Paul Nicklen, and 100 Photographers and Conservationists Join a Print Sale to Protect the Environment

Kilifi was an 18-month-old rhino and his keeper, Kamara was hand-raising along with two other baby rhinos at Lewa Wildlife Conservancy in Kenya. Kamara spends 12 hours every day watching over the vulnerable baby rhinos. He loves these animals like his own children and is part of the reason Kenya’s black rhinos, whose population had plummeted to near extinction, are doing so well here. Photo © Ami Vitale

A collaborative effort by 100 world-renowned photographers and conservationists is harnessing the power of an image to generate much-needed empathy and protect the environment. Helmed by the woman-led nonprofit Vital Impacts, an ongoing print sale captures the stunning, intimate, and remarkable sights of the natural world through a diverse array of works focused on the earth’s landscapes, plants, and animals. “As world leaders disperse to implement COP26, these photographers show us exactly what is at stake. The photographs from all the artists in this initiative are diverse but the one thing they all have in common is a shared commitment to the environment,” co-founder Amy Vitale says.

Available images include a signed self-portrait by Jane Goodall and shots by some of Colossal’s favorites, including Paul Nicklen (previously), Xavi Bou (previously), Reuben Wu (previously), and Tim Flach (previously). Sixty percent of the net profits will go toward four programs—Big Life Foundation, Jane Goodall Institute’s Roots and Shoots, Great Plains Conservation’s Project Ranger, and SeaLegacy—and you can shop the sale, which is operating on an entirely carbon-neutral platform, through the end of the month. (via PetaPixel)

 

The Nenana River wolf pack spends time in Denali National park and just East of the Park. The pack is moving more and more away from the Park into territory where it is legal to hunt wolves. Photo © Aaron Huey

A resting endangered Green Sea Turtle surrounded by Glass Fish on the back of the Ningaloo reef. Photo © Aimee Jan

While on a remote climbing expedition in Greenland, I was approached by a curious polar bear while scouting fjords in a small zodiac boat. The moment lasted only a brief second before the bear dove down and into the icy arctic sea. Photo © Andy Mann

As night falls over the Makgadikgadi Pans, giant trees stand starkly against the horizon. Leafless branches reach for the light. On the opposite side of the sky, Earth’s shadow is rising. True wildness manifests itself in the form of curling black branches in November, silhouetted against an indigo sky. Photo © Beth Moon

Self-portrait © Jane Goodall

Image taken for National Geographic on the Pristine Seas Expedition to Franz Josef Land, 2013. Underwater Walrus shots from near Hooker Island. Photo © Cory Richards

Heron Island, Queensland, Australia. A Green Sea Turtle hatchling cautiously surfaces for air to a sky full of hungry birds. Against all odds, this hatchling must battle through the conditions of a raging storm whilst evading a myriad of predators. Not only has the tropical storm brought out thousands of circling birds, but there are also patrolling sharks and large schools of fish on the hunt for baby turtles. Only 1 in 1000 of these hatchlings will survive, will this one survive against all odds. Photo © Hanna Le Leu

In winter, Japanese macaques in the Joshin’etsukogen National Park, on the island of Honshu, congregate in the hot-spring pools, to stay warm and to socialize. The colder it gets in the mountains, the more of them head for the pools. Photo © Jasper Doest

Giant Sequoia Trees, photographed for National Geographic. These trees are without a doubt my favorite and a species endemic to California’s Sierra Mountains. Fully matured trees grow upwards of 250 feet tall, can live for over 3,000 years, and have fire retardant bark that’s three feet thick. Photo © Keith Ladzinski

Hope Through The Storm. Renan Ozturk lives to tell stories about our connection to the natural world, often set within the most challenging environments on Earth. Photo © Renan Ozturk

A school of sailfish set upon a ball of sardines off Isla Mujeres, Mexico. Photo © Shawn Heinrichs

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Bars of Light Pierce a Dilapidated Sydney-Area Home in Ian Strange’s Illuminated Intervention

All images © Ian Strange, shared with permission

Tagged with graffiti and marred by a chipped facade, a stately Victorian home in a Sydney suburb is the site of a brilliant site-specific installation by artist Ian Strange. “Light Intersections II” uses angled beams of light to impale the derelict structure and permeate outer walls, windows, and the ornate, metallic railing on the second-floor balcony. Illuminating the battered building, Strange’s monumental public work is one of his many projects that explores ideas of home through architectural interventions.

The artist, who lives between Melbourne and Brooklyn, relies on the concepts of drawing to inform much of his practice, with a particular focus on how single marks alter perspectives and affect understandings of the material world. He explains:

The lines of light in ‘Intersections’ are an attempt to place abstracted perspective lines back into the environment. These drawn perspective lines don’t appear in nature, but are staples in both painting, drawing, and architecture, used as a way of containing, representing, and changing the natural environment.

Commissioned by the City of Sydney, “Light Intersections II” follows the artist’s 2019 project that installed a similar concept throughout the galleries and around the perimeter of Melbourne’s Lyon Housemuseum. Watch the video below for a tour of the radiant home, and explore more of Strange’s work on Instagram. (via Street Art News)

 

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December 2021 Opportunities: Open Calls, Residencies, and Grants for Artists

“Columbia Basin Pygmy Rabbit” by Courtney Brims

Every month, Colossal shares a selection of opportunities for artists and designers, including open calls, grants, fellowships, and residencies. If you’d like to list an opportunity here, please get in touch at hello@colossal.art. You can also join our monthly Opportunities Newsletter.

 

iStock Creative Inclusion Grants Featured
The inaugural iStock Creative Inclusion Grants will award four emerging photographers $5,000 each to support a project that draws attention to underrepresented communities.
Deadline: December 6, 2021.

 

Open Calls

Socrates Sculpture Park Open Call
The 2022 Socrates Annual Fellowship program is looking for public art proposals for its Sink or Swim Climate Futures project and group exhibition. Awardees will receive an $8,000 production grant, a $2,000 honorarium, and three months of studio access at the New York Studio.
Deadline: 11:59 p.m. on December 6, 2021.

Mattress Factory 2021 International Open Call
The Mattress Factory is hosting an open call for residencies followed by solo exhibitions, which are slated for the spring of 2023. Applications are open internationally.
Deadline: 4:50 p.m. on December 10, 2021.

Visual Art Open Prize
The U.K.-based Visual Art Open Prize will award £2,000 to one artist and £250 prizes to category winners. International artists working across disciplines are encouraged to apply.
Deadline: December 15, 2021.

Win a Book Deal with Walter Foster
Walter Foster is looking for submissions for instructional art and craft books and will award one creative an opportunity to publish a beginner’s text. Applicants must live in the U.S. and can work across media, from fine art to embroidery to block printing.
Deadline: December 31, 2021.

The Other Art Fair Melbourne
The Other Art Fair is looking for artists to exhibit in person at its Melbourne event next May. Sign up for its newsletter to stay up-to-date with application deadlines for fairs in Brooklyn, Chicago, Dallas, London, Los Angeles, Sydney, and Toronto.
Deadline: February 2022.

 

Grants

Innovate Artist Grants
Each quarter, Innovate Grant offers two $550 awards to one visual artist and one photographer. Applications are open internationally.
Deadline: December 14, 2021.

NEW WORK from Prospect Art
Prospect Art awards a $500 mini-grant to visual artists twice each year as part of its NEW WORK program, which is designed to support projects that don’t fit into commercial galleries. Submissions should be representative of today’s moment.
Deadline: January 15, 2022.

Creative Capital’s Wild Futures 2023/2024
During a two-year period, Creative Capital will award 100 artists up to $50,000 each, with additional advisory services per project. 2023 is open to performing arts, technology, and literature, and 2024 is seeking visual arts and moving image/film.
Deadline: April 1, 2022, for 2023 applicants.

$500,000 Creative Capital x Skoll Foundation Fund
Kickstarter, Creative Capital, and Skoll Foundation launched a $500,000 Creative Capital x Skoll Foundation Fund to support projects by Asian, Black, Indigenous, and Latinx creators. Awards are given out on an ongoing basis to creators in categories like Arts, Comics & Illustration, Design & Tech, Film, Food & Craft, Games, Music, and Publishing.
Deadline: Rolling.

Adobe Creative Residency Community Fund
Adobe’s Creative Residency Community Fund commissions visual artists to create company projects on a rolling basis. Awardees will receive between $500 and $5,000.
Deadline: Rolling.

 

Residencies & Fellowships

Residencies for Artists at Art Omi
Applications are open for Art Omi’s three residencies in visual art, dance, and music. Located in Columbia County, New York, each program brings together a group of creatives for cultural exchange, experimentation, and critical evaluation.
Deadline: December 15, 2021.

Bernheim’s Artist in Residence
Each year, Bernheim Forest’s Artist in Residence program awards up to four artists a $2,500 stipend and a stay at Bernheim to create site-specific work inspired by the natural environment. One residency is always awarded to a regional artist living in Kentucky or in Clark and Floyd counties of Southern Indiana, and another is devoted to environmental issues and the severity of the climate crisis.
Deadline: 11:59 PST on December 15, 2021.

Elsewhere Funded Family Residency
Elsewhere Studios will host its third 10-day residency in June of 2022. Artists will receive a $1,000 stipend to be used at their discretion and will be provided with living and studio space, which they can share with their spouse or family, if desired.
Deadline: December 17, 2021.

Right of Return USA Fellowship
The Right of Return USA Fellowship will award six formerly incarcerated artists a $20,000 grant each for a project that considers criminal justice reform. Fellows will participate in a group retreat in the spring of 2022.
Deadline: 11:59 p.m. EST on January 14, 2022.

Curatorial Fellowship at the Center for Craft
Three fellows will be awarded up to $5,000 to develop an exhibition at the Center for Craft in Asheville, North Carolina. They will work with program staff to produce the exhibition, develop didactic material and an exhibition catalog, and lead a curatorial talk.
Deadline: February 14, 2022.

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Canning the Sunset: Hundreds of Jars of Dyed Sand Preserve the Swirling Colors of a Skyline Before Dusk

All images © Carly Glovinski, shared with permission

There’s a human impulse to preserve life’s blissful moments—a quick scroll through your camera roll will probably give you plenty of evidence—one Carly Glovinski gives into by bottling up the rich, swirling gradients the cloak the sky at day’s end. Her ongoing Canning the Sunset project, which the New Hampshire-born artist began in March of 2020, layers hand-colored sand in reused glass jars to capture the last hours of light before they descend into dusk.

Now stored in hundreds of vessels in various shapes and sizes, the grainy compositions range from subtle pastel palettes to vibrant oranges and yellows, rationing the short-lived hues “for times of scarcity,” Glovinski says. “The sunset marks the sky with color in a fleeting moment each day, slipping down behind the horizon like grains of sand through an hourglass. To try and capture it, contain it, or possess it is a futile, and impossible gesture. ”

Canning the Sunset is on view through December 4 at Untitled Art Fair Miami with Morgan Lehman Gallery, and Glovinski shares more of her paintings, sculptures, and other projects on Instagram. You also might enjoy these calming sunrises by Sho Shibuya.

 

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