Play Meets Ink in Roy Scholten’s Ongoing LEGO Letterpress Bird Series

Common linnet. All images © Roy Scholten, shared with permission

Roy Scholten is wrapping up a years-long printing project with dozens of playfully rendered fowl. 50 Birds is an ongoing series that uses LEGO in place of lead type to create curved beaks, long tails, and rounded bellies. With only three species—hawfinch, reed bunting, and kingfisher—remaining, The Netherlands-based artist and designer has nearly a full flock of the letterpress creatures, all nested inside 6 x 6-inch paper.

“It’s been interesting to see how the experience from earlier prints feeds back into the following ones,” he tells Colossal. “In a way, because I got better at it, the more difficult it has become. More subtle color schemes and patterns resulted in a more painterly approach to printing.”

Scholten began working with the unconventional material about a decade ago in collaboration with artist Martijn van der Blom, and the pair recently released a bi-lingual book, Print & Play, the Art of LEGO Letterpress, documenting their process and projects during the last ten years. Their practice of inking and printing with the plastic blocks is known in printmaking circles as the “Hilversum method,” named for their studios’ location in the city of Hilversum.  Included in the book’s pages are some early works from the 50 Birds collection, along with van der Blom’s architectural typography, stylized dinosaurs, landscapes, and more.

Keep an eye on Scholten’s Instagram for the final avian pieces, along with larger species like owls, falcons, and hawks, which are next on his docket. You can also purchase prints on his site.

 

Crested tit

Pied flycatcher

Sanderling

Skylark

Treecreeper

A spread from ‘Print & Play, the Art of LEGO Letterpress’

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In Calida Rawles’ New Paintings, the Next Generation Transcends Darkness

“With Wings of Infinity” (2023), acrylic on canvas, 72 x 60 inches. All images courtesy of the artist and Lehmann Maupin, New York, Hong Kong, Seoul, and London, shared with permission

Tufts of a pink skirt, a soaked evening gown clinging to a knee, and a few fingers and toes gently breach the water’s surface in Calida Rawles’ A Certain Oblivion. On view this month at Lehmann Maupin, the new body of work is transcendent and monumental, with canvases scaling nine feet of rippling blues and blacks. The paintings return to the artist’s interest in water memory theory and the idea that the life-giving liquid preserves moments of time.

In A Certain Oblivion, Rawles renders two of her daughters who gracefully float together and apart, their heads just above the surface. Placing the next generation in such vulnerable, precarious positions alludes to the resilience and determination needed to rise above “the riptides of contemporary American life,” a statement says. Despite facing the threat of being consumed by the current, the figures remain calm and graceful, carrying on and resting at the surface.

While exploring similar themes to earlier series, A Certain Oblivion is darker. Palettes of navy, gray, and black obscure the figures, who are already distorted by the undulating nature of water. These deep, saturated tones reflect the current political and cultural moment that seems to consistently plunge the world into darkness and despair. For Rawles, though, the paintings are hopeful. She explains:

There is always darkness before the light. I thought of that often when making the work and hope this may inspire others during these very trying times. Much of the work in this show is dark, for sure, but I do have a few pieces that are in the light. A cool blue water. I thought of those pieces as my day and the dark ones as part of my night waters. Our light cycle was definitely on the top of my mind when thinking of this show. I want to believe this is a moment in a larger path.

There’s an uncertainty and illegibility that the artist gravitates toward as she reminds us that predicting outcomes isn’t always possible. She even likens the process of painting in acrylics to that of floating, two physical acts that both require a release of control. “All of the dark colors look alike when they are wet,” she says. “You have to trust yourself and (your) ability. The experience was really fun, to put it simply. I was excited to wait for the outcome when it dried.”

A Certain Oblivion is on view from November 9 to December 16 in New York.

 

“Untethered, Twice Bold” (2023), acrylic on canvas, 84 x 72 inches

“Beyond the Certain Oblivion” (2023), acrylic on canvas, 108 x 84 x 3 inches

“Above Yesterday, Beyond Tomorrow” (2023), acrylic on canvas, 96 x 78 x 3 inches

“Like Other Gods With Ancient Rage” (2023), acrylic on canvas, 84 x 84 x 3 inches

“And So It Be” (2023), acrylic on canvas, 60 x 72 x 3 inches

Calida Rawles in her studio (2023). Photo by Marten Elder

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A New Documentary Follows the Ohio Environmentalists Making Paint from Toxic Mining Runoff

In southeast Ohio, toxic drainage from abandoned coal mines has devastated streams and rivers. The acidic sludge, which is filled with heavy metals, leaches into waterways, destroying ecosystems and turning what should be clear, bluish waters into murky, rust-colored runs. In Athens, home of Ohio University, a Hocking River tributary known as Sunday Creek is a prime example of mining’s harmful effects, with more than two million pounds of iron oxide pouring into the stream each year  A new documentary directed by Jason Whalen visits the area and the team vowing to clean it up.

“Toxic Art” follows an unconventional pairing of two Ohio University professors who have teamed up on a project that turns sludge from the stream into pigments for oil paint. A project of the global conservation organization Rivers are Life, the short film shares the story of artist John Sabraw and Guy Riefler, the chair of the Civil Engineering department, who have spent six years developing pigments using iron oxide they collected from the creek.

Riefler explains that conventional treatments are often cost-prohibitive, and so the pair decided that if they could create and sell a commercial product, they could fund clean-up efforts on their own. From there, they helped develop True Pigments, a collaborative project with Gamblin Artist Colors that uses proprietary technology to create vibrant pigments from the toxic material.

“We’ve been refining a process that can continuously treat acid mine drainage, restore a stream for aquatic life, and collect sustainably sourced iron pigment that can be sold offsetting operational costs,” Sabraw told Hyperallergic. “Based on our best estimates, we should be able to create jobs and produce a small profit, while eliminating a perpetual pollution source.”

While primarily comprised of volunteers manually harvesting and processing the materials, the multi-pronged project has now secured $3.5 million in funding to construct a True Pigments facility on the Appalachian site. Once that plant is running, Sabraw estimates that his team will be able to completely restore Sunday Creek, “remove over 6,000 lbs of iron… and theoretically produce 75,000 tubes of paint,” every day. Because that’s a staggering amount of material that would overwhelm the consumer market, the team plans to sell much of their future stock to industrial sources.

Watch “Toxic Art” above to see the innovative pollution-to-pigment pipeline in action, and purchase your own set of reclaimed materials from True Pigments.

 

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A Forgotten Vault Where Michelangelo Hid and Sketched For Months Opens for the First Time

All images courtesy of the Bargello Museums, Florence

In 1530, Michelangelo went into hiding after receiving a death sentence from Pope Clement VII. The iconic Renaissance artist had been caught in the political strife of his patrons, the Medici family, who had just returned to Florence after being overthrown by a populist revolt in 1527. During their exile, Michelangelo worked with the short-lived republican government to help secure the city’s defense walls and so became an enemy of his powerful supporters.

It is believed he spent two months stowed away in a tiny vault stretching just 32 feet long and 6.5 feet wide, with 8-foot ceilings at their highest points and a single window to the street, before the pope rescinded the sentence. Tucked into the Medici Chapels in the Basilica of San Lorenzo, the claustrophobic room also became a canvas for the artist, who’s thought to have sketched dozens of drawings on the walls. Using carbonized wood and red chalk, the artist rendered several figurative works, including the head of the ancient Laocoön sculpture and iterations of his own masterpieces, including his Leda and the Swan painting and iterations of his David statue.

The drawings were hidden until 1975 when the then-director of the Medici Chapels, Paolo Dal Poggetto, was trying to find a new space for the museum exit. A trapdoor under a cabinet led to the room, which was filthy from housing slack coal for two decades. When the walls were finally stripped of two layers of plaster, the museum discovered the artworks.

Given its small dimensions, the space has previously been restricted to visitors for fear of damaging the drawings, although on November 15, it will open to the public for the first time. The decision comes after security renovations that will allow four visitors inside at a time, with only 100 tickets available per week through March 30, 2024. (via The History Blog)

 

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Monumental Paper Installations by Marianne Eriksen Scott-Hansen Bring Vibrant Flora Indoors

All images © Marianne Eriksen Scott-Hansen, shared with permission

Enormous blooms crafted from thousands of sheets of creased, textured, and twisted paper explode in Marianne Eriksen Scott-Hansen’s vibrant installations. The Copenhagen-based artist (previously) draws inspiration from real blossoms like peonies or dahlias, adding fantastical, patterned embellishments to the pistils and stamens. The artist emphasizes larger-than-life sculptures, often creating painstakingly detailed displays that radiate from floor to ceiling.

If you’re in Copenhagen this winter, you can see Scott-Hansen’s Christmas installation at Illum department store. She is currently working with The Spaceless Gallery to make some of her pieces available for purchase and is collaborating with HAGD Contemporary to take the botanical theme a step further in a series of masks. You can explore more work on Instagram.

 

 

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A Photo Preservationist Saved a Trove of 4,000 Glass Plate Negatives That Nearly Went Into the Trash

All images courtesy of Terri Carpucci, shared with permission

It’s estimated that people around the world will take a whopping 1.6 trillion photographs this year. With lenses built in to our digital devices, a quick snap has never been easier. In the second half of the 19th century, though, before film was even invented, taking a picture required technical skill and access to expensive equipment and supplies. Some of the earliest large- and medium-format cameras used delicate glass plates to capture black-and-white portraits and landscapes in fine detail.

In 2019, Terri Carpucci, a photographer and preservationist based in Massachusetts, stumbled upon a veritable treasure trove. A collection of 4,000 glass plates spanning the 1860s to the 1930s had been destined for the trash before Carpucci, who has experience shooting wet plates and tintypes, noticed the negatives’ high quality. She also recognized a few Massachusetts landmarks and knew she held abundance of local history in her hands.

 

Carpucci set out on the long and painstaking process of preserving the slides, consulting with conservation experts and enrolling in a course that taught the fundamentals of cleaning and archiving the fragile pieces. “I would clean them individually only on the glass side; I wouldn’t touch the emulsion side,” she told PetaPixel. “Definitely don’t clean them with Windex or anything you would use to clean windows, just distilled water.” Carpucci digitized each slide using scanning guidelines provided by the National Archives, then slipped each one into an acid-free envelope for storage.

The University of Massachusetts Archives in Amherst recently acquired the collection, and Carpucci shares insights into individual photos on the website Somebody Photographed This and Facebook. You can also check out her YouTube channel.

And if you can’t get enough of the discovery old photos, you might also enjoy exploring the Museum of Lost Memories.

 

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November 2023 Opportunities: Open Calls, Residencies, and Grants for Artists

Mural by Adele Renault

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.

 

$3,500 Artist Grants | The Hopper PrizeFeatured
The Hopper Prize offers two awards of $3,500 and four of $1,000. Submissions will be juried by Laura Phipps, Assistant Curator of the Whitney Museum of American Art, and Rachel Winter, Assistant Curator of the Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum. Thirty artists will be selected for a shortlist. This is an international open call, and all visual media is eligible.
Deadline: 11:59 p.m. PST on November 14, 2023.

On::View Artist ResidencyFeatured
Located in the heart of Savannah’s Starland District, this one-month residency provides a free, high-visibility studio for an artist to complete a new or existing project or to research conceptual, material, performative, and social practices. The program is open to artists from around the world working in any medium and includes an exhibition opportunity.
Deadline: 11:59 p.m. ET on December 1, 2023.

2024 NOT REAL ART Grant for ArtistsFeatured
Six visual artists based in the U.S. and working in any 2D or 3D medium will win a no-strings-attached cash award of $2,000, plus PR and marketing support. There’s no application fee.
Deadline: 11:59 p.m. PT on January 1, 2024.

 

Open Calls

Beam Center NYC Open Call (International)
The center seeks proposals for public artworks that will be realized by a community of more than 100 young people in NYC. Artists receive a $5,000 award and a $15,000 fabrication budget.
Deadline: 11:59 p.m. ET on November 6, 2023.

The 10th International Landscape Photographer of the Year (International)
This contest awards winners $10,000 in cash prizes, inclusion in a photo book, and NiSi filter outfits and tripods. Entry is free until November 8.
Deadline: November 15, 2023.

Third Annual Festival Dei Lumi Open Call (International)
Video artists working on pieces that explore the intersection of art, nature, and ecological thinking are encouraged to submit to this annual festival. There is a €10 submission fee.
Deadline: November 22, 2023. 

Arte Laguna Prize  (International)
The 18th annual Arte Laguna Prize is open to artists working across disciplines who want to exhibit their work in Venice. There is a €149 application fee.
Deadline: November 22, 2023.

Locust Projects Project Room Open Call  (International)
Artists are invited to submit proposals for installations that haven’t been previously exhibited to be shown at the new Locust space in Miami. Successful applicants will receive a $5,000 project budget, a $3,100 artist fee, and aid for travel and accommodations.
Deadline: November 30, 2023.

BLINK Cincinnati Call for Artists  (International)
BLINK, Illuminated by ArtsWave, is calling for artists working in light-based experiential installation, murals, projection mapping, digital art, or animation to submit proposals. BLINK plans to commission 12 to 15 new murals, 30 to 40 temporary lighted installations, and 30 to 35 projection/digital animation installations.
Deadline: December 15, 2023.

Prisma Art Prize (International)
Open to emerging painters and artists, this quarterly competition awards €2,000 in cash and €3,000 in services annually, plus exhibition opportunities. There is a €29 submission fee.
Deadline: January 11, 2024.

Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition 2025 (United States, Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, and the U.S. Virgin Islands)
This portrait competition is open to all media, including painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, printmaking, textiles, video, performance art, and digital or time-based art. One winner will receive $25,000 and a commission to portray a remarkable living American for the National Portrait Gallery’s collection. Other prizes range from $1,000 to $10,000, and all finalists will be included in an exhibition. There is a $50 entry fee.
Deadline: Midnight MT on January 26, 2024.

Sony Future Filmmaker Awards (International)
The Sony Future Filmmaker Awards elevates voices that bring a fresh perspective to storytelling. The shortlisted filmmakers are flown to Los Angeles for an exclusive four-day event to gain unparalleled insight into all aspects of the filmmaking process to advance their careers.
Deadline: February 15, 2024.

 

Grants

California Documentary Project Grants (California)
This grant supports documentary film, audio, and digital media projects about California. Funding is available for research and development (up to $15,000), production (up to $50,000), and in DP NextGen Grants (up to $15,000).
Deadline: November 1, 2023.

National Sculpture Society Stanley Bleifeld Memorial Grant (U.S.)
This annual $5,000 prize is awarded to one sculptor working in the round and in bas-relief who has been inspired by nature.
Deadline: November 6, 2023.

Rathaus Film Grant (Detroit)
This $10,000 grant supports the development, production, or installation of a film or video art project. Artists should plan to complete the proposed project within one year of receiving the award.
Deadline: 12 p.m. ET on November 10, 2023.

Eugenie Designer Grant (Detroit)
This $10,000 grant supports Detroit-based fashion designers prioritizing sustainable practices. Applications should include a proposed project to be completed within one year of receiving the award.
Deadline: November 10, 2023.

The David Prize (New York)
Five New Yorkers will receive $200,000 awards for projects that help their home city. Projects can vary in topic and field and include art and culture, workforce and economic development, civic engagement, environment and sustainability, immigrant rights, food and nutrition, and more.
Deadline: November 13, 2023.

Women’s Studio Workshop Grants  (U.S.)
Women’s Studio Workshop has several funding opportunities open to artists working in bookmaking, printmaking, and other paper-based mediums.
Deadline: November 15, 2023.

Nordic PhotoBook Award  (Norway)
Photographers with a cohesive body of work interested in publishing a book are invited to apply for this Kr 200,000 award to support the production, distribution, and promotion of the work.
Deadline: January 1, 2024.

The Adolf and Esther Gottlieb Emergency Grant  (International)
The Adolph and Esther Gottlieb Emergency Grant program provides one-time interim financial assistance to qualified painters, printmakers, and sculptors whose needs are the result of an unforeseen catastrophic incident and who lack the resources to meet that situation. Awardees typically receive $5,000, up to $15,000.
Deadline: Rolling.

Adobe Creative Residency Community Fund (Ukraine)
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.

Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant (International)
The foundation welcomes applications from actively exhibiting visual artists who are painters, sculptors, and artists who work on paper, including printmakers. Grants are intended for one year and range up to $50,000. The individual circumstances of the artist determine the size of the grant, and professional exhibition history is taken into consideration.
Deadline: Rolling.

 

Residencies, Fellowships, & More

A.I.R. Fellowship Program (New York)
Six underrepresented and emerging women and non-binary artists will be awarded a year-long fellowship to develop and exhibit a project at A.I.R. Gallery. Selected applicants receive a stipend, access to gallery space, and support.
Deadline: 11:59 p.m. ET on November 1, 2023.

Squeaky Wheel Workspace Residency (U.S.)
This residency supports filmmakers, writers, critics, curators, artists, and other practitioners working in media arts. Residents receive a $1,200 stipend, $400 in travel, accommodations, studio space, and an optional $900 financial assistance for disability or childcare.
Deadline: November 3, 2023.

MASS MoCA’s Artist Residency Program (International)
Applications are open for MASS MoCA’s residencies for artists, writers, and performers in the second half of 2024. Fully funded scholarships are available, and residents receive studio space and housing.
Deadline: 11 p.m. on November 8, 2023.

Artspace Pathways: A Native Space Initiative (Select U.S. states)
This program supports Native American arts and cultural organizations through a one-year virtual cohort. The goal is to assist organizations in professional development and finding physical spaces to work.
Deadline: November 10, 2023.

The Goethe-Institut Boston Studio 170 Residencies (New England)
This two-week residency program is open to projects of all types, including installations/exhibitions, performances/actions, artist talks, panel discussions, author readings, film screenings, digital projects, and more. Successful applicants are given access to several indoor and outdoor spaces, along with a $1,000 stipend and a $1,000 project budget.
Deadline: November 17, 2023.

Quinn Emanuel London Artist in Residence (London)
Emerging and mid-career artists working in all disciplines are eligible for this residency from January to May 2024. One chosen applicant will receive a £12,000 stipend, £1,000 material budget, and studio space.
Deadline: 11:59 p.m. GMT on November 19, 2023.

SmackMellon Artist Studio Program (New York City)
Six emerging or early career artists working in all visual arts mediums will be awarded private studio space.
Deadline: November 20, 2023.

2024 Bernheim Artist in Residence (International)
This program focuses on multi-disciplinary explorations of our relationship with nature. Two residencies are available: the regional program for local artists and another for artists working with the climate crisis. Both offer a $2,500 stipend, living and studio spaces, and research opportunities.
Deadline: Midnight ET on November 27, 2023.

Foundation House Artist Residency Program (International)
Six residents receive a $500 stipend, a private bedroom and bathroom, meals, and studio space. The residency will run from January 26 to February 4, 2024.
Deadline: 11:59 p.m. ET on December 3, 2023.

Arts/Industry at John Michael Kohler Arts Center (International)
Open to all disciplines, this program selects twelve artists each year for three-month pottery and foundry residencies. No experience with clay or cast metal is required, just an interest in pursuing a new body of work and being open to new ideas. Residents receive a $160 weekly stipend, studio space, housing, transportation, industrial materials, equipment, and more.
Deadline: February 1, 2024.

Hunter Moon Homestead Artist Residency (International)
Artists and arts educators working across disciplines are invited to apply to this program in Palouse. Residents receive one- to three-week stays, with lodging and studio space included.
Deadline: Rolling.

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