Photos of Everyday Activities Reveal the Humor of Perspective and Serendipitous Alignments

Tel Aviv, 2018. All images © Anthimos Ntagkas, shared with permission

One of the joys of street photography is that it reveals just how often unexpected, serendipitous juxtapositions are happening around us. Whether in Tel Aviv, New York, or Athens, Anthimos Ntagkas has a keen eye for these everyday alignments as he captures strange and amusing sights during his travels. Working in the Greek Army by day, Ntagkas spends his free time photographing passersby as they go about their commutes and appear as if they’re carrying a dog in a backpack, for example, or are the source of a billowing plume of smoke.

Ntagkas’ images are on view at Andora Cinema in Athens, and you can follow his witty frames on Instagram. (via PetaPixel)

 

Samos Island, Greece

New York, 2019

Athens, 2018

Athens, 2020

Marathonas, Greece, 2018

Athens, 2018

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What is Art’s Role in the Climate Crisis? Four Colossal Events Explore Connections and Solutions

“Build Me a Platform, High in the Trees” by Nathalie Miebach. Photo by Eric Lu

At the Precipice: Responses to the Climate Crisis opened last week at the Design Museum of Chicago with a vibrant collection of works considering what it feels like to live amid a global emergency. Through data, color, tactility, and beauty, ten artists and collectives create accessible entry points into this increasingly urgent issue. The exhibition, curated by Colossal, includes works by Selva Aparicio, Morel Doucet, Zaria Forman, Luftwerk, Nathalie Miebach, Chris Pappan, Redemptive Plastics, The Tempestry Project, Migwa Nthiga, and Jean Shin. It’s on view through October 30.

We’re excited to announce four events as part of At the Precipice that offer greater insight into the role of art and design in the climate crisis.

 

Luftwerk’s “White Wanderer”

Community-Led, Design-Followed: Responsibility of Design for the Future

On July 25, a conversation at the Design Museum of Chicago will bring together Bill Schleizer of Delta Institute, the Little Village Environmental Justice Organization, and Petra Bachmaier of Luftwerk to discuss the future of climate-informed design, using At the Precipice as a backdrop. The talk is part of the museum auxiliary board’s Community-led, Design-Followed speaker series.

Register here.

 

From left: Morel Doucet, Migwa Nthiga, Chris Pappan, and Justin Dwaun Redding

Artist Talk: Art + Climate Justice

What does justice look like in the age of the climate crisis? On August 30, artists Morel Doucet, Chris Pappan, and Migwa Nthiga will join moderator Justin Dwaun Redding to talk about the links between environmental destruction and racism, how those differ across regions, and the role of art in shaping a more equitable future.

This virtual conversation is hosted by the Design Museum of Chicago and will be recorded. Register here.

 

Inside the Happy Returns studio

Volunteer at Happy Returns Studio

On September 16, join us for a volunteer day at the Happy Returns studio, home of Redemptive Plastics. During this four-hour session, you’ll learn the ins and outs of the team’s innovative plastic recycling process and lend a hand in repurposing household waste.

Space is limited to 16 volunteers, so reserve your spot now.

 

A still from ‘After Antarctica’

After Antarctica Screening at Gene Siskel Film Center

On September 20, join us for a screening of Tasha van Zandt’s After Antarctica (2021). The award-winning feature-length documentary follows renowned polar explorer Will Steger’s life journey as an eyewitness to the greatest changes in the polar regions of our planet. Thirty years after his historic expedition across the coldest continent on Earth, Steger is not only known for being the first in history to complete this historic feat–he is also the last.

A discussion will follow the film. Tickets will be available soon.

 

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 What is Art’s Role in the Climate Crisis? Four Colossal Events Explore Connections and Solutions appeared first on Colossal.

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Mystery Abounds in Lee Madgwick’s Uncanny Paintings of Derelict Buildings

“The Veil.” All images © Lee Madgwick, shared with permission

A sense of unease surrounds the buildings in Lee Madgwick’s paintings, their sides crumbling or coated in thick vegetation as they stand alone in fields or swamps. The neglected structures appear lifted from cities and towns and dropped directly into rural landscapes, where nature slowly envelops their brick facades or sprouts trees from their eaves. “I’m forever drawn to places of abandonment and isolation,” Madgwick tells Colossal. “I’m compelled to explore these enigmatic wonders. There’s a poignancy and an unwavering silence and fragility that hangs in the air.”

Containing only remnants of human life, the scenes prompt questions about the buildings’ origins and caretakers. Some pieces, like “The Veil,” depict a home long-deserted by inhabitants as thick vines cover the lower windows, while others like “Fen View” suggest that people remain, as a small window is neatly trimmed out of an overgrown hedge.

Working in what he terms “imagined realism,” the artist uses a mix of water-mixable oil and acrylic paints layered during the course of several weeks. “The skies are painted with the palms of my hands and fingertips. It’s the most expressive part of the process,” he shares. “Together with a brooding sky and concentrated light a sense of drama is formed and a narrative is set in motion.”

Madgwick has a solo show slated for October at Brian Sinfield Gallery in Burford, Oxfordshire. Until then, find his work on Instagram and shop limited-edition prints on his site. (via This Isn’t Happiness)

 

“Fen View”

“The Flood”

“Summer House”

“Gatehouse”

“Kingdom”

“Fragments”

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 Mystery Abounds in Lee Madgwick’s Uncanny Paintings of Derelict Buildings appeared first on Colossal.

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Spritely Animals Spring from Cubes of Wood in Yoshiaki Ito’s Series of ‘Morphits’

All images © Yoshiaki Ito

Slender pieces of beechwood connected by strings of elastic form a playful menagerie of toys by Brooklyn-based designer Yoshiaki Ito. Morphits begin as cubes, carefully packaged in a box, then expanded to reveal a stable of animals, which currently include a giraffe, monkey, pig, hippo, or a tiger. Bendable and posable, they can be displayed on a surface or puzzled back together into a compact form.

Find more of Ito’s work on his website, where he sells the toys in his shop in both color and natural options. You can also follow Ito and the monkey’s world travels on Instagram. (via designboom)

 

  

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In ‘Microcosmos,’ Roberto de la Torre Photographs the Elaborate Masked Characters of Northern Spain’s Entroidos

“Vellarron de Catrelo de Cima,” Galicia. All images © Roberto de la Torre, shared with permission

In Microcosmos, photographer Roberto de la Torre (previously) centers his lens on the celebratory costumes of the entroido. Held widely in his home region of Galicia around Lent and the shift from winter to spring, entroidos are annual gastronomic carnivals in which food and dance are plentiful. Elaborate costumes and masks are essential for participation, which de la Torre documents in the ongoing series.

Taken throughout northern Spain and Portugal, the photos capture the expressive, varied designs made with feather-like husks, vibrant tufts of synthetic materials, and animal horns. Each costume is unique and tied to a specific role in the celebration. “Some of them are difficult to portray because of their elusive character. Sometimes the people who wear them do not want them to become tourist symbols and lose their ritual character, so they do not like to be photographed,” he tells Colossal.

The demonic “Chocalheiro de Bemposta,” for example, has bulbous horns and a serpent-like creature on the shoulder and is from a small Portuguese village in Mogadouro called Bemposta. It emerges twice annually, making “an appearance the first day of the year and the day after Christmas in a very special ritual for its movement through the village, visiting people and bowing in the houses where some of its inhabitants have recently died,” he explains.

De la Torre is currently working on a parallel series to Microcosmos that considers ritual and divinity. View more of the costumes on the photographer’s Instagram, and find prints in his shop.

 

“Follateiro de Lobios,” Galicia

“Chocalheiro de Bemposta,” Portugal

“Felos de Esgos,” Galicia

“Boteiro de Vlana do Bolo,” Galicia

“Feo de Bande,” Galicia

“Pantalla de Pinzo de Limia,” Galicia

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 ‘Microcosmos,’ Roberto de la Torre Photographs the Elaborate Masked Characters of Northern Spain’s Entroidos appeared first on Colossal.

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A Bench by Akasaki Vanhuyse on the River Thames Buoyantly Nods to London’s Maritime History

All images © Akasaki Vanhuyse, shared with permission

Once the largest enclosed docks in the world, London’s Royal Docks span around 2.5 miles of waterway along the River Thames, encompassing about 250 acres. Today the home of numerous repurposed spaces and contemporary living developments, the area remains flush with industrial and maritime heritage, with historic architecture characterized by red brick. For design studio Akasaki Vanhuyse, founded by Japanese architect Kenta Akasaki and French designer Astrid Vanhuyse, Royal Albert Wharf provided the perfect platform for “FLOAT,” a curvaceous brick bench perched on the quayside.

Working with specialty brickmaker Mishelmersh, the designers tapped into the company’s deadstock, plucking 360 pieces that were expertly cut into 13 unit types with specific angles and dimensions so that they could be precisely puzzled together into the final shape. The shape of the seat nods to the recognizable ring shape of the life preservers dotting the river’s edge, and users can sit around the perimeter or sink into the middle as if in an inner tube. “By connecting the bench design to its immediate surroundings, we wanted to create a symbol for the town,” the studio says.

See more work on Akasaki Vanhuyse’s website and Instagram. (via designboom)

 

 

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From Dawn to Dusk and Back Again, Stephen Wilkes Pursues Natural Drama in Remarkably Detailed Panoramas

All images © Stephen Wilkes, courtesy of Taschen, shared with permission

Whether atop a 40-foot lift truck in the center of Paris, in a small house on a far-flung island, or perched beside a Serengeti watering hole, photographer Stephen Wilkes certainly has patience on his side. Sitting in one spot for hours on end, he sets up his camera to capture a single scene over the course of a full day or more, tracking the dramatic movement of weather and the sun over expansive landscapes. Day to Night, a forthcoming book published by Taschen, highlights 60 of the artist’s most compelling images, from U.S. National Parks to iconic international landmarks to remote wildernesses brimming with wildlife.

Wilkes carefully selects his location and takes more than 1,500 exposures from a fixed angle to follow the gradual changes in light and the bustling activity of humans and animals. To get the scene of visitors at the Grand Canyon just right, for example, he slept in a watchtower during a 36-hour shoot. “There was, of course, no artificial light, so I had to wait for the moon to light the canyon. I had only one hour of exposure to get this right,” he says. When he returns to the studio, he painstakingly filters all of the images into a single composition, producing pieces akin to distilled timelapses.

Day to Night will be released next month and features panoramas taken between 2009 and 2022, many with hidden stories that Wilkes describes throughout. You can pre-order a copy on Bookshop, and see more of his work on his 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 From Dawn to Dusk and Back Again, Stephen Wilkes Pursues Natural Drama in Remarkably Detailed Panoramas appeared first on Colossal.

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