The Art Stories Colossal Readers Loved Most in 2022

As we edge closer to the end of 2022, we’re taking a look back at some of the biggest hits on Colossal throughout the year. We’ve published hundreds of articles spotlighting extraordinary work by artists around the globe who test boundaries, activate discussion, and inspire innovation.

We collected 10 of the most-read articles on the site this year, ranging from street art and embroidery to soldered teacups and mirrors with hidden images. And if you want even more of 2022’s art highlights, dive into the Colossal archive.

 

Image © Banksy

New Banksy Works Emerge Among the Destruction in Ukraine

Banksy‘s signature stencils have been spotted among the rubble of bombed buildings and barricades in Borodyanka and Gorenka, both in the Bucha Region, while others are just outside the capital city of Kyiv.

 

Image © Ruth Miller

Tender Embroidered Portraits by Ruth Miller Are Tinged with Expressive Colors

Beginning with a line drawing in pencil, U.S.-based artist Ruth Miller renders hand-embroidered portraits based on photos into wool tapestries and thread drawings.

 

Image © Ememem

Vibrant Tiled Mosaics by Ememem Repair Gouged Pavement and Fractured Sidewalks

Lyon native Ememem, aka “the pavement surgeon,” examines the streets of European cities and checks for splintered pavement and sidewalks fractured in pieces.

 

Image © Nick Cave

A Colossal Interview: Artist Nick Cave Unpacks Silence and Compassion Ahead of His First Retrospective at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago

A portmanteau of forevermore and for others, Forothermore is a prescient title for the first retrospective of artist Nick Cave, whose practice spanning sculpture, installation, performance, and various mediums consistently confronts racism, homophobia, and other bigotries through the alluring, affecting power of art.

 

Image © Glen Taylor

Spikes, Rusted Wire, and Scissors Bind Shattered Porcelain in Sculptures by Glen Taylor

A visual metaphor for imperfection and the possibilities of repair, the porcelain sculptures created by Ohio-based artist Glen Taylor are steeped in contrast.

 

Image © Mariki Kusumoto

Clusters of Diaphanous Textile Sculptures by Mariko Kusumoto Evoke the Ocean Floor

Japanese artist and designer Mariko Kusumoto shapes gossamer coral and sea creatures from soft fibers like polyester, nylon, and cotton.

 

Image © Estelle Chrétien

Anthropomorphic Interventions in the Landscape by Estelle Chrétien Playfully Examine Rural Life

For artist Estelle Chrétien, the expansive lawns, fields, and wooded ravines around her home in Nancy, France, and other parts of Europe become sites of mischievous mixed-media interventions.

 

Image courtesy of Cincinnati Art Museum

Cincinnati Art Museum Discovers That a Rare 16th Century Mirror Reveals a Hidden Image When Illuminated

While plumbing the archives at the Cincinnati Art Museum, curator Hou-mei Sung uncovered what appeared to be an ordinary patinaed mirror printed with the name of Amitābha Buddha. After closer inspection, though, the object revealed a surprise.

 

Image © Lyske Gais and Lia Duinker

1,400 Pages of Rembrandt’s Hand Drawings Fill a Wearable Book Bracelet

Lined with gilt edges and secured with a gold clasp, a bracelet by the Amsterdam-based duo of Lyske Gais and Lia Duinker packs a vast art historical collection within the span of a wrist.

 

Image © Kang Dong Hyun

Complex Networks of Metallic Branches Shape Animal Sculptures by Kang Dong Hyun

What eventually becomes a stately stag or majestically posed lion in Kang Dong Hyun’s Forest of Coexistence starts with countless metallic branches that splay in every direction.

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 The Art Stories Colossal Readers Loved Most in 2022 appeared first on Colossal.

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Precise Aerial Photos by Mitch Rouse Document the Immaculate Patterns of California Farmland

All images © Mitch Rouse, shared with permission

Captured above Kern County, California, a collection of aerial photos by Mitch Rouse (previously) highlight the vibrant precision of American farmland. The striking images frame segments of fields and groves that juxtapose the exactitude of large-scale production with organic growth. Long, rainbow-like rows of botanics, a single pink tree among an orchard of yellow, and repeating squares of dried vegetation transform the agricultural topographies into textured tapestries bursting with color.

Explore the full Farmland series and shop prints on Rouse’s site. You can follow his latest projects on Behance and Instagram.

 

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 Precise Aerial Photos by Mitch Rouse Document the Immaculate Patterns of California Farmland appeared first on Colossal.

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Vivid Hues and Intricate Embroidery Bring Yumi Okita’s Remarkably Tactile Moths to Life

All images © Yumi Okita

In vividly colored thread and textiles, Yumi Okita imbues remarkably tactile moths and butterflies with lifelike features. The North Carolina-based artist designs each specimen to perch on its own delicate wire legs, and some of the larger creatures boast wing spans nearly 10 inches wide. Long fascinated by the natural world, she portrays the insects’ intricate detail, innate fragility, and sublime patterns in embroidery thread, faux fur, feathers, and layers of dyed fabric.

Okita often sells her sculptures in her Etsy shop and is currently exploring the theme of nature further in a series of botanical designs, which she has begun sharing on Instagram.

 

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 Vivid Hues and Intricate Embroidery Bring Yumi Okita’s Remarkably Tactile Moths to Life appeared first on Colossal.

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Animals of Translucent Botanics Center in Molly Devlin’s Ethereal Portraits

All images © Molly Devlin, shared with permission

In her exquisitely rendered portraits in acrylic, artist Molly Devlin instills an aura of dreamlike mystery. She shapes the likeness of a deer or snail from layers of translucent florals and foliage: stacked leaves splay outward like the fur of a cat’s face, fronds and wispy tendrils billow from the bulbous head of a jellyfish, and mycelium cloaks a small bird in delicate webbing. Through the fantastical, gossamer compositions, Devlin prods the ephemeral nature of existence and explores various facets of the unknown. “I’ve always been fascinated by the mysteries beyond life and death, the unexplainable offers infinite inspiration to me,” she shares.

Devlin, who is based in Sacramento, is currently preparing for an upcoming group exhibition at Corey Helford Gallery, and she also has shows slated for next year at Revolution Gallery and Arch Enemy Arts. Find prints and original paintings in the artist’s shop, and watch her at work on Instagram.

 

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 Animals of Translucent Botanics Center in Molly Devlin’s Ethereal Portraits appeared first on Colossal.

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A Kinetic Glass Greenhouse Blossoms into a Massive Open-Air Terrarium

All images by Hufton + Crow, courtesy of Heatherwick Studio, shared with permission

A kinetic design by Heatherwick Studio transforms a sleek glass enclosure on the Woolbeding Gardens property into an elegant flower in full bloom. Situated at the edge of the West Sussex estate, “Glasshouse” protects a melange of sub-tropical flora from southwest China, particularly those found along the Silk Road. A hydraulic mechanism opens the 10 panels of the aluminum-and-steel structure during warmer temperatures, allowing for ventilation within the 141-square-meter terrarium and transforming the architectural form into a blossoming botanical.

Heatherwick Studio is responsible for an eclectic array of designs, including a silo-turned-art-gallery and a honeycomb vessel for pedestrians, and you can follow the latest on Instagram.

 

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 A Kinetic Glass Greenhouse Blossoms into a Massive Open-Air Terrarium appeared first on Colossal.

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In Richly Patterned Portraits, Ruby Sky Stiler Dismantles Art History’s Most Persistent Archetypes

“Artist with Muse” (2022), acrylic, acrylic resin, paper, glue, and graphite on panel, 60 x 50 inches. All images © Ruby Stiler, shared with permission courtesy of Nicelle Beauchene Gallery, New York

Throughout the history of Western art, certain tropes occur again and again in painting and sculpture. The motif of mother and child has been reflected throughout the centuries in the likeness of the Holy Virgin and infant Christ or in domestic family portraiture, like in the works of Impressionist painter Mary Cassatt, who specialized in the theme. The archetype of the female muse dates back to ancient Greek mythology and religion, when goddesses like Calliope or Melpomene were considered the source of creativity and knowledge. Brooklyn-based artist Ruby Sky Stiler challenges these preconceptions and archetypes in her ongoing series of Relief Paintings.

Stiler’s works play with gender conventions by turning the male subject into a muse for the female artist or representing parenthood through an image of a father with his children. In “Old Woman (Blue),” she taps into society’s lingering taboo of aging, especially for women. “I’ve recently been exploring the trope of the ‘muse’ and placing the male figure as object. And also in the role of parent, which is strikingly uncommon (in contrast to the abundant depictions of mother and child),” she tells Colossal. “I’ve also re-positioned the female figure in the empowered role as The Artist.”

In bold, geometric patterns, Stiler’s subjects are human-scaled and gaze directly at the viewer. Black-and-white, tile-like patterns provide the background for abstracted figures that nod to Cubism—a movement practically synonymous with masculine figures like Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque. Stiler dismantles the “male gaze,” or the lens through which women are depicted as objects of desire for men in visual culture. She explores the notion of the gaze further in the way that the paintings are experienced by the viewer; from far away the outlines of the figures are easy to see, but the closer one gets, the more the fractal-like patterns distort the image.

A monograph of Stiler’s work is scheduled for publication in the spring in collaboration with her representing gallery Nicelle Beachene, and a solo exhibition of her work will open in March 2023 at Nina Johnson Gallery in Miami. You can find more of her work on her website and Instagram.

 

“Cat Sitter” (2022), acrylic paint, acrylic resin, paper, glue, and graphite on panel, 32 x 25 inches

“Father and Children” (2022), acrylic paint, acrylic resin, paper, glue, and graphite on panel, 60 x 50 inches

Detail of “Father and Children”

“Generational Portrait” (2022), acrylic paint, acrylic resin, paper, and glue, 60 x 50 inches

Left: “Old Woman (Blue)” (2022), acrylic paint, acrylic resin, paper, and glue, 18 x 15.5 inches. Right: Detail of “Artist with Muse”

“Seated Woman (Facing Left)” (2018), mixed media, 50 x 60 inches

“No Title (Father and Boy” (2020), acrylic paint, acrylic resin, graphite, and paper, 44 x 50 inches

“Women in Gold” (2022), acrylic paint, acrylic resin, paper, glue, and graphite on panel, 32 x 25 inches

Detail of “Cat Sitter”

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 In Richly Patterned Portraits, Ruby Sky Stiler Dismantles Art History’s Most Persistent Archetypes appeared first on Colossal.

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