Friday, August 11, 2023

An 18th-Century Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants Honors the Groundbreaking Artist Elizabeth Blackwell

A botanical illustration of a yellow fruit growing from green and white leaves with a pink flower

Quince. All images courtesy of Abbeville Press, shared with permission

Slices of quince revealing tiny seed pockets, serrated dandelion leaves cradling spindly stems, and juicy elderberries growing in dense clusters are a few of the specimens that intrigued Elizabeth Blackwell (1699–c. 1758). An always passionate artist living during a time that saw a burgeoning interest in the natural world, Blackwell illustrated a thick, detailed compendium of approximately 500 plants and their properties to aid doctors and medical professionals in treatment.

Titled A Curious Herbal: Elizabeth Blackwell’s Pioneering Masterpiece of Botanical Art, the book today is hailed for both its exquisitely detailed renderings and the fact that it’s the first of its kind created by a woman. Abbeville Press released the first modern edition earlier this year, finally granting Blackwell long-deserved recognition and offering today’s readers a chance to peek inside the vivid, botanical encyclopedia.

Artistically talented and ambitious, Blackwell first got the idea for A Curious Herbal when she needed to make money after her husband was jailed in a debtor’s prison. The project was all-encompassing, with the artist not only researching, drawing, hand-coloring the printing plates, and writing the descriptions for each specimen but also selling the book herself.

In addition to undertaking such a herculean amount of work, Blackwell was doing so at a time when women were largely barred from scientific institutions and medical professions. Given its commercial success, A Curious Herbal was not only a creative feat but also a social one, emphasizing the value of women’s knowledge and artistic output particularly as it related to male-dominated fields.

A Curious Herbal is available now on Bookshop. (via Hyperallergic)

 

A botanical illustration of yellow flowers and a white puff of dried seeds growing from serrated leaves with a long, carrot-like root

Dandelion

A botanical illustration of red and green tomatoes growing from a leafy plant with yellow flowers

Love apple, a.k.a. tomato

A botanical illustration of a leafy green plant with large brown seed pods

Cacao

Two botanical illustrations, on the left is a leafy plant with pink leaves and a pink root, on the right is a green plant with large leaves and a sparse yellow petaled flower with large brown root

Left: Garden radish. Right: Elecampane

A botanical illustration of a leafy plant with deep purple berries

Elder

A botanical illustration of a green leafy plant with small yellow flowers and a brown root

Creeping birthwort

a book cover with pink plant that reads A curious herbal

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 An 18th-Century Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants Honors the Groundbreaking Artist Elizabeth Blackwell appeared first on Colossal.



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Thursday, August 10, 2023

A 12-Meter-High Wedding Cake by Joana Vasconcelos Rises From the Grounds of an English Estate

Photo by Chris Lacey. All images © A Rothschild House and Garden and Atelier Joana Vasconcelos, courtesy of Waddesdon Manor, shared with permission

Nearly five years in the making, a 12-meter-high confectionary has emerged on the grounds of the sprawling Waddesdon Manor in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire. Portuguese artist Joana Vasconcelos (previously) designed an enormous “Wedding Cake” pavilion to sit near the 19th-century Dairy, which was built by Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild to entertain guests, drawing on the location’s history of charming visitors and providing an architectural focal point within the expansive parkland.

“Wedding Cake” playfully avails itself of the architectural legacy of follies, a type of building constructed primarily for decoration, with famous examples like Marie Antoinette’s hamlet at Versailles or the Dunmore Pineapple in Scotland. Vasconcelos’ design was inspired by Baroque style, Waddesdon Manor’s reputation for events and hospitality, and the symbolism and traditions of the sweet treat through time.

Commissioned by the Rothschild Foundation, the three-layered cake is clad entirely in ornate ceramic tiles, a craft tradition rooted in Vasconcelos’ home in Lisbon. Pâtisserie-worthy adornments like fish diving into shell bowls and corniced platforms complement lacy ironwork and pastel hues. Part sculpture and part building, the immersive installation invites visitors to walk up winding inner stairwells and traipse around the tiers.

See more of the artist’s work on her website and Instagram. (via Dezeen)

 

Photo by Chris Lacey

Left: Photo by Lionel Balteiro. Right: Photo by Chris Lacey

Photo by Lionel Balteiro

Photo by Chris Lacey

Photo by Lionel Balteiro

Photo by Chris Lacey

Photo by Chris Lacey

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 12-Meter-High Wedding Cake by Joana Vasconcelos Rises From the Grounds of an English Estate appeared first on Colossal.



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Three Bolts of Lightning Simultaneously Strike the Chicago Skyline During a Wild Summer Storm

Three bolts of lightning against a vibrant blue sky strike the Chicago skyline

Image © Barry Butler, shared with permission

Lightning might never strike the same place twice, but in Chicago this last week, it did strike three spots at the same time.

During the early hours of July 29, a volatile storm rolled into the Midwestern city, and photographer Barry Butler hunkered down west of the skyline to watch the action. “The skyscrapers in our town were getting battered with lightning. I thought it was just a matter of time before all three of the main skyscrapers in Chicago got it simultaneously,” he told PetaPixel. “The storm was too active for not to happen.”

Around 12:30 a.m., Butler was proved right and snapped a photo of the bolts illuminating the summer sky and hitting the city’s three tallest buildings, including the John Hancock Center and Willis Tower. While capturing three strikes in a single shot is already rare, this photo is even more stunning considering that, due to Lake Michigan, most storms wane or change direction before reaching downtown.

Find more images from the storm on Butler’s 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 Three Bolts of Lightning Simultaneously Strike the Chicago Skyline During a Wild Summer Storm appeared first on Colossal.



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Community and Connection Center in Damien Cifelli’s Portraits of a Fictional World

A portrait of a greengrocer wearing a hat and coat, surrounded by produce.

“Greengrocer at Crow Road Market.” All images © Damien Cifelli, shared with permission

“I think it says a lot about humans that we have been creating alternative worlds as long as we have been around, whether it’s a way of escaping our reality or thinking of new ways of living,” says Damien Cifelli. From a stoic greengrocer to a gathering of friends to a bored shop clerk, vibrant colors illuminate a stylish cast of characters in the London-based artist’s paintings.

Cifelli’s work revolves around a fictional world called “Tarogramma,” drawn from his experiences traveling and living abroad, and many of the pieces shown here are part of the artist’s solo exhibition Welcome to Tarogramma at Moosey. “As a kid, I was fascinated by adventure novels, explorers, and the idea of discovering a new place,” he tells Colossal.

I love seeing the distinct visual cultures that are built up and refined over generations. There is meaning behind everything. It’s so nuanced, it would take forever to really understand it all. I realised that if I created my own world, based on my own history and ancestral stories, I could use it as a vessel for all the ideas I have.

Cifelli approaches his practice through narrative, primarily focused on painting but often incorporating additional elements like wood sculptures, clay reliefs, scarves, banners, badges, pins, architectural models, and sound. Tarogramma is “a fictional land with a detailed culture and its own aesthetic, way of living, and understanding of the world,” Cifelli tells Colossal. “The paintings are a visual representation of the place and the people, like documentary images of a new world.”

Welcome to Tarogramma is on view in London through August 31, and you can find more of Cifelli’s work on his website and Instagram.

 

A colorful painting of friends seated around a dinner table covered in food.

“Downtable”

A painting of a bored shop clerk surrounded by fictional branded boxes.

“Higher Ground General Store”

A painting of numerous people wearing scarves, with customized football scarves hanging from the bottom.

“The Cup Final (Pre-Game)”

A painting of five figures.

“May You Live in Interesting Times”

A painting of two people seated at a table with a wall painting in the background.

“Dinner at the False Idol”

A diptych of two figures wearing puffer jackets next to a snowy mountain peak.

“Summiting Taro Mountain”

A horizontal painting of eight figures wearing colorful robes.

“The Congress (This New World Needs a Name)”

A painting of a young woman wearing glasses, standing behind a giant green and pink cake.

“Too Much Love”

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 Community and Connection Center in Damien Cifelli’s Portraits of a Fictional World appeared first on Colossal.



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Wednesday, August 9, 2023

A Brief Lesson Explains the Art Historical Shift to Painting Everyday People

Evan Puschak of Nerdwriter brings us another dose of art history as he explains a profound shift in Western painting traditions. The insightful “Bruegel: Birth Of A New Genre” video explains how many works made prior to the 16th century dealt with religious and mythic themes or were portraits of the elite, all commissioned by the church or wealthy patrons. Protestant reforms in the church, political revolution, and a rise in the merchant class shifted the economic makeup, culture, and values, and as generally happens, art reflected this change. Painters like Pieter Bruegel The Edler began to render scenes and people that better captured this reality, focusing on the daily lives of regular people.

You also might enjoy Pushack’s lesson on realistic impressionism. (via Kottke)

 

A painting of people dancing

A black and white work of people ice skating

A painting of a town square with livestock and people

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 Brief Lesson Explains the Art Historical Shift to Painting Everyday People appeared first on Colossal.



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Papier-Mâché Critters Traipse and Trot in Delighful Sculptures by Diana Parkhouse

A small paper mache fox, made of book pages

All images © Diana Parkhouse, shared with permission

Nuzzling against each other, moseying along, or convening with a group of forest friends, Diana Parkhouse’s papier-mâché personalities capture her passion for nature and love for animals. Based in Nottingham, the Australian artist is especially connected to the U.K. region, depicting its common woodland wildlife, such as foxes, hares, and badgers.

Swathed in words, each charming creature is formed using upcycled book pages and papier-mâché techniques. Increasingly aware of her impact on the environment, Parkhouse turned to found materials in an effort to render all of her sculptures biodegradable and repurpose as much as she could.

The artist has always enjoyed crafting miniature creations, and though small in stature, each figure presents a compelling and endearing nature. “Small things have always brought me great joy, I don’t know why,” she tells Colossal.

My father took me to an estate auction once when I was about 8 years old…There was a box with a miniature tea set in it which I’d admired as we looked about the lots before the auction started. He of course bid on it and won it for me…I remember spending an entire summer making tiny plasticine pies!

Make sure to visit Parkhouse’s website and Instagram for more forest friends and news about updates to her shop.

 

Two small paper mache polar bears, made of book pages

Two small paper mache foxes, made of book pages

Asmall paper mache raccoon, made of book pages

A group of small paper mache animals including foxes, a racoon, a wolf, and a dog, made of book pages

Two small paper mache rabbits, made of book pages

Two small paper mache ducks, made of book pages

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 Papier-Mâché Critters Traipse and Trot in Delighful Sculptures by Diana Parkhouse appeared first on Colossal.



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Delphine Diallo Crafts Divinely Elegant Portraits of Black Women in ‘Highness’

A portrait of a Black woman wearing an elaborately braided wig redolent of Nefertiti's hat.

All images © Delphine Diallo, shared with permission

In her series Highness, Delphine Diallo’s regal subjects don elaborate masks, headdresses, and jewelry. Captured in both color and black-and-white, the women are portrayed as timeless and noble, wearing body paint, jewelry, and attire that draw on mythology and spiritual symbols to explore what the photographer calls the “divine female body.”

Highness developed from an earlier project focused on presenting family members and friends as goddesses. As the series expanded, Diallo recognized the importance of connecting to her subjects and empowering them in the process, emphasizing deep conversations and building long-term relationships with her sitters.

In a practice spanning sculpture, design, photography, collages, and music, Diallo finds inspiration in collaboration and learning from others. Highness features intricate hair pieces made by Joanne Petit-Frère, including a towering form evocative of Nefertiti’s tapered blue headdress. Composed of numerous braids, Petit-Frère’s creations envelop the face or curl around beads, complemented by metalwork by L’Enchanteur.

Diallo recently released a new book titled Divine, published by Hat and Beard Press, and if you’re in London, you can see her work at Somerset House through September 24 as part of the group exhibition Black Venus. Find more work on the artist’s website and Instagram.

 

A portrait of a Black woman wearing an elaborately braided wig.

Two portraits of Black women wearing elaborately braided wigs.

A portrait of a Black woman wearing an elaborately braided wig.

Two black-and-white portraits of Black women. On the left, the woman wears white body paint on half of her face. On the left, the woman wears a face covering of cascading beads.  A portrait of a Black woman wearing an elaborately braided mask.

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 Delphine Diallo Crafts Divinely Elegant Portraits of Black Women in ‘Highness’ appeared first on Colossal.



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A Knotted Octopus Carved Directly into Two Pianos Entwines Maskull Lasserre’s New Musical Sculpture

“The Third Octave” (2023). All images © Maskull Lasserre, shared with permission Behind the hammers and pins of most upright pianos is a ...