Ironic Self-Help Titles Painted by Johan Deckmann Cure Existential Woes

All images © Johan Deckmann, shared with permission

A trained psychotherapist, Johan Deckmann (previously) has stacks of books to remedy our most painful emotional struggles and existential dread. His collection includes the massive “Your chances of changing the world,” the much slimmer “Your chances of changing yourself,” and the dismally timely “How to take a deep breath and go on even though everything feels so wrong.”

Often painted on soft, cloth covers evocative of vintage self-help manifestos, Deckmann’s ironic titles are steeped in our culture of incessant improvement and tend to be brutally honest about human limitation. His straightforward messages are not unlike those found in a therapist’s office and harness the power of simple language to confront contemporary dilemmas. “The idea of writing on books comes partly from my work as a psychotherapist, a music composer, and lyricist. I like the idea of distilling words to compress information, feelings, or fantasies into an essence, a truth,” said the Copenhagen-based artist.

Deckmann is participating in a group exhibition up through May 15 at Sala Amós Salvador in La Rioja, Spain, and will be at the Venice Biennale next month with the Gervasuti Foundation. He also has a solo show later this year at San Francisco’s Modernism, and you can find an expansive collection of his poignant messages on Instagram.

 

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Found Text Weaves New Narratives in Sculptures of Common Objects by Cecilia Levy

“Lena” (2015). All images © Cecilia Levy, shared with permission

Artist Cecilia Levy (previously) carves individual words and phrases from vintage books that she then refashions into Mary Janes, fringed boots, and classic tea sets. As thin as a single sheet of paper, her fragile, pasted sculptures weave blocks of texts into new patterns and contexts that add intrigue and depth to their everyday forms. The sourced material “carries several narratives at the same time, both in the content itself and by the passing of time, for instance where light and age have turned the edges of the paper brittle and brown. My works are also about this. They reflect my inner stories and memories,” she tells Colossal.

Levy models many of her pieces after items found around her home or by casting objects in a silicone mold, though it’s not only the shape that guides the work but often the prose itself. Words like “poësie,” for example, nestle into the center of a teacup piece by the same name, while other sculptures like “Lena” or “Rosa” could be likened to narrative mazes that require navigating an array of words and phrases strung together in non-linear manners.

Based in Sigtuna, Sweden, Levy has two pieces available in her shop and several shows slated for this spring: her works will be on view at Homo Faber in Venice and two venues in Malmö, the Form/Design Center and at Southern Sweden Design Days. She’s currently working on a series involving paper maché clay that she’ll exhibit next year at Konsthantverkarna in Stockholm. You can see more of Levy’s process and works on Instagram.

 

“Hobo – Homeward Bound” (2012), book pages, paste, string. 40 x 30 x 30 centimeters

“Rosa” (2015)

“Rosa” (2015)

“Tea for two,” book pages, wheat paste, concrete base, 15 x 40 x 40 centimeters. Photo by Alvaro Campo

Detail of “Hobo – Homeward Bound” (2012), book pages, paste, string. 40 x 30 x 30 centimeters

“Hobo – Homeward Bound” (2012), book pages, paste, string. 40 x 30 x 30 centimeters

“Poësie” (2016), book pages and wheatpaste, 9-centimeter cup, 13-centimeter saucer

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Absurd and Unlucky Scenarios Unfold in Levalet’s Site-Specific Street Art

All images © Levalet, shared with permission

French artist Charles Leval, who works as Levalet (previously), is attuned with the nonsensical and hapless, which he translates into clever site-specific works in craft paper and India ink. Often built off of public architecture like windows and sidewalks, his streetside wheatpastes either typify a bad day or find humor in the odd and absurd: new works feature an angry pack of dogs, a construction worker planting an already blooming flower in concrete, and a golfer putting into a drainpipe. Levalet’s characters tend to be life-sized and depicted with earnest expressions that capture their unwarranted concentration or surprise at a situation gone awry.

Currently, the artist is adding to his narrative-based Odyssée project and will open a solo show at Dorothy Circus in London on March 25. Until then, find more of his works on Instagram, and pick up a print from his shop

 

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The Art X Peace Print Sale Is Raising Money to Support People Fleeing Ukraine

“Stand with Ukraine” by Lele Saa. All images courtesy of Art X Peach, shared with permission

It’s estimated that more than 2.8 million refugees have left Ukraine since Russia’s invasion less than three weeks ago, and an ongoing print sale is raising funds to help those fleeing the country. Art X Peace is offering dozens of limited-edition works from artists around the world, including Paola Ferrarotti’s black-and-white photos, Masha Manapov’s whimsically rendered landscapes, and a classic sign of peace by Lele Saa. All profits are donated to World Central Kitchen, which is serving food to refugees across Europe, and the fundraiser is accepting submissions from artists interested in donating their work. For additional ways to support the people of Ukraine, check out It’s Nice That’s list of resources.

 

“Palm Springs” by Ward Roberts

“Nature Saves Us #2” by Paola Ferrarotti

Left: “COVID Still Life no. 2 – Rose” by Isabel Sierra Gómez de León. Right: “Gesso” by Masha Manapov

“Pureza” by Eva Mena

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Spectacular Moments of Life and Death Are Unveiled in the 2021 World Nature Photography Awards

“Facing reality” © Amos Nachoum. All images courtesy of the 2021 World Nature Photography Awards, shared with permission

Taken across six continents, the entries to the 2021 World Nature Photography Awards capture the hungry, curious, and ingenious animals around the globe. This year’s winners include an arctic fox braving an Icelandic snowstorm, a trio of red ants forming a bridge to let each other pass between rocks, and a serendipitous shot of a leopard seal preparing to snack on a gentoo penguin, which garnered the top prize. Centering on both the largest and the often imperceptible creatures inhabiting the planet, the photos are diverse and an example of the wonder and awe that exists at every level of the animal kingdom. See some of our favorite shots below and the full collection on the award’s site.

 

Arctic Fox, Iceland © Vince Burton

© Mohammad Murad

“Capturing the movement” © Mike Eyett

New York City Humpback © Matthijs Noome

© Massimo Giorgetta

“North of the Wall” © Christian Tuckwell Smith

© Chin Leong Teo

“Open wide” © Celia Kujala

© Buddhilini de Soyza

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Interview: A Conversation with Social Justice Sewing Academy Explores Community Activism and the Power of Remembering Through Quilts

All images courtesy of SJSA, shared with permission

When witnessing inequity is like digging into an already numb wound and participating in surface-level social justice is as easy as recycling digital shares, the Social Justice Sewing Academy offers the power of touch. The organization works with kids and teens to make quilt blocks that express injustices in their lives, and Colossal contributor Gabrielle Lawrence recently sat down with program director Stephanie Valencia to discuss the project’s mission in a new interview supported by Colossal Members.

They speak about the work of honoring the victims of violence and their families through community art, supporting young entrepreneurs with creative or social justice-oriented businesses, and most importantly, giving people something to hold on to.

So often, when someone loses a loved one, you cherish their items for a while. And then eventually, their items end up in a box, in the back of a closet, or in an attic somewhere. This really does give the family something to hold on to and use every day. Beyond comfort, it’s reflection, as well as memory. Every time they see or touch that quilt, they can remember the good times.

Ultimately, SJSA empowers youth to use their voices and requires tactile processing of issues that often seem bigger than all of us. Every stitch is felt, and it is not a practice that participants must endure alone. From design to completion, each person is required to spend time sitting with these stories in a physical way, which creates room for grief, remembrance, education, and critique.

 

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In ‘Turn Off the Plastic Tap,’ Three Tons of Waste Pour From a Spigot Floating 30 Feet Above Ground

All images © Benjamin Von Wong, shared with permission

Last week, representatives from 175 nations formally agreed to curb plastic pollution in a momentous move. Plastic has become an increasingly urgent part of the climate crisis, and recent estimates approximate that the total amount of the material produced throughout history exceeds the combined weight of all animals on land and sea. Each year, we collectively generate 300 million tons more waste from single-use containers and similar products, a staggering number in comparison to the 9 percent we’ve recycled and a testament to the harsh reality that the planet is engulfed with plastic.

To coincide with the United Nations Environment Assembly meeting, photographer and artist Benjamin Von Wong (previously) erected a towering, 30-foot installation outside U.N. headquarters in Kenya. With the help of the Human Needs Project, an NGO providing basic services to slums around the world, Vong Wong collaborated with more than 100 residents of the large, poverty-stricken region of Nairobi known as Kibera. Together, they gathered, sanitized, and strung up three tons of water bottles, condiment containers, and other unwanted items that were then suspended from the oversized silver spigot.

Although it shows a minuscule portion of the waste produced worldwide, the resulting installation, titled Turn Off the Plastic Tap, is a powerful indictment of consumerism and the lack of environmental protections. “Too much of the plastic conversation revolves around recycling and cleanups, but those only deal with the consequences, and not the root cause,” Von Wong writes. “The real solution and opportunity is getting plastic production back under control by making sure we turn off the plastic tap.”

Watch the video below and check out Von Wong’s Instagram to see how the massive spout was constructed, and find more of his projects concerned with plastic waste, like this installation of 168,000 straws, on his site.

 

Photo by Atieno Muyuyi

Photo by Atieno Muyuyi

Photo by Ziggy

Photo by Atieno Muyuyi

Photo by Ziggy

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