thisiscolossal

Friday, December 15, 2023

Meticulous Embroideries by Cécile Davidovici Bring Objects to Life and Evoke the Passing of Time

A portrait of a woman, surrounded by flowers and hands that cover her mouth

All images © Cécile Davidovici, shared with permission

Through densely embroidered still lifes and portraits, Cécile Davidovici stitches together a dialogue between time, objects, and nostalgia. Focusing on gesture and color, the Paris-based artist uses short, expressive stitches to render melons, wine glasses, hands, and faces that glow by candlelight and sunset.

Evolving quite a bit from her previous works, Davidovici explains, “I’ve always wanted to do portraits, and I finally succeeded in a way that spoke to me by working and experimenting a lot with embroidery. I love the idea of pushing the technique to places it’s never been before.” After completing the series, she applied her new embroidery methods to still lifes.

Placing both modern and classical subjects next to each other, La Vie Silencieuse, or The Silent Life, questions what it means to make still lifes today in contrast to their popularization centuries ago. Created as a joint effort, the artist worked with David Citborsky, who first created 3D models of each composition. Davidovici then used these images to render each scene through copious threads, converging textures, and jewel-toned hues.

See more work and process videos on Davidovici’s website and Instagram.

Propped up against mountains, a watermelon and a cantaloupe rest against each other. There is a warm light emitted from the left side.

“Jupiter”

A still life of a cup with a straw, figs, bread, and a cloth.

“Le Poids des Choses”

A classic still life table with a blue cloth, and a vase of flowers, watermelon, and a TV.

“La Vie Silencieuse”

A hand hovering over rippling water.

An orange orb, with a seemingly plastic of translucent shiny material around it.

“Pluton”

A pumpkin, artichokes, and a glass sculpture of an angel on a table.

“Marbre Vert”

Two feet stand on top of a rocky surface. In the background is a sky of pinks and blues.

A tube of unrolled tin foil with a rock resting upon it, a glass, and grapefruit on a table.

“Pierre Bleue”

Candles, a glass of wine, a fig, and blueberries on a table.

“Les Heures de Cire”

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 Meticulous Embroideries by Cécile Davidovici Bring Objects to Life and Evoke the Passing of Time appeared first on Colossal.

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Two Newly Discovered (and Very Tiny) Rembrandt Paintings Are On View for the First Time in 200 Years

two hands hold small portraits in black frames up to a gray wall

Rembrandt portraits Jan and Jaapgen. All images courtesy of Rijksmuseum/Olivier Middendorp

Standing just under eight inches tall, two oval portraits rediscovered after 200 years are now considered Rembrandt’s smallest formal works. On view at the Rijksmuseum, which houses the largest collection of the Dutch painter’s oeuvre, the pair was rediscovered two years ago and depicts members of Rembrand’s family rendered with his characteristic loose brushstrokes.

Painted in 1635, the portraits feature the wealthy plumber and slater Jan Willemsz van der Pluym and his wife Jaapgen Caerlsdr, who were married in 1591 and ages 70 and 69, respectively, when they sat for Rembrandt. “Considering (the works’) small size and dynamic, sketchy style, he probably painted them as a favour to the couple,” a release from Rijksmuseum says. “The van der Pluyms had a close bond with Rembrandt’s family, which began in 1624 when Jan and Jaapgen’s son Dominicus wed Rembrandt’s cousin Cornelia Cornelisdr van Suytbroek.”

Larger versions of these tiny works have been known to researchers for decades, which helped to attribute the smaller pair. Using a combination of X-radiography, infrared photography, infrared reflectography, macro X-ray fluorescence, stereomicroscopy, and paint sample analysis, Rijksmuseum found that the portraits were built up like other Rembrandt works and alterations in the sitters’ collars were made similarly to his other pieces. The materials, including lead- and iron-based paints and Earth pigments, also match those often employed by the artist.

Both works are on view long-term in Amseterdam. (via Hyperallergic)

a painted portrait of a man with a white collar in a black frame on a gray wall

Jan Willemsz van der Pluym

a painted portrait of a woman with a white collar in a black frame on a gray wall

Jaapgen Caerlsdr

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 Two Newly Discovered (and Very Tiny) Rembrandt Paintings Are On View for the First Time in 200 Years appeared first on Colossal.

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Thursday, December 14, 2023

Uncanny Woven Portraits by Jason Chen Splice Two Moments in Time

a woven photo of a woman standing in front of a white building covered in green vines

“Coming to an End.” All images © Jason Chen, shared with permission

Rather than capture a single moment, Jason Chen (previously) weaves together photographs taken just seconds apart, creating disjointed portraits that convey movement and the passage of time. The Philadelphia-based artist often splices snapshots of the same setting and subject with slight differences in the tilt of the head, gesture, or gaze. Laced into a grid or hypnotizing circle like a photographic tapestry, the resulting images are uncanny and disorienting, nodding to fragmented identities and skewed perceptions of the self and others.

In a note to Colossal, Chen shares that the process and outcome of each piece depend on the subject. “When I work with professionals, the initial photoshoots tend to be an exploration of movement whereas with my close friends, there is often an exploration of more subtle emotion in the process. Sometimes I’m most excited about the pieces that end up only having a subtle shift,” he says.

While Chen sometimes plans portraits, the weaving process is entirely intuitive. He often narrows his materials to two images, although he’s currently experimenting with adding more to the mix. “Unlike the initial act of photographing, the photoweaving process involves a lot of unknowns. I usually like to dive in without preplanning the effect the weaving is going to have on the two photos, and sometimes this leads to weavings that don’t quite work out, but it makes it that much more exciting when they do.”

Find more of Chen’s recent works at Paradigm Gallery + Studio in Philadelphia.

a woven photo of a girl wearing a white dress and standing in a meadow

“Familiar”

“He Stayed”

a woven photo of a woman dancing outdoors with a fan in her right hand

“La Éimi II”

a woven photo of a woman dancing in a black dress in a subway station

“Like Nobody’s Watching”

a woven photo of a woman tilting her head

Detail of “Coming to an End”

a woven photo of a woman wearing a black dress dancing in front of a rusted blue door

“La Éimi III”

a woven photo of a landscape and two people sitting on a rock

“Disguised Confidence”

a fragmented woven photo of a person on a rock, facing in both directions

Detail of “Disguised Confidence”

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 Uncanny Woven Portraits by Jason Chen Splice Two Moments in Time appeared first on Colossal.

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In a Neighborly Portrait Series, Ashraful Arefin Turns His Gaze Toward Four-Legged Passersby

A cat with its back to the camera turns its head to look at the photographer. another orange cat is blurred in the backdrop

All images © Ashraful Arefin, shared with permission

In Animals from the streets, photographer Ashraful Arefin takes a moment to greet the furry creatures that join the hustle and bustle of the city. Taken during the last few years in cities like Kolkata, Delhi, Jaisalmer, Kathmandu, Dubai, and Dhaka, where Arefin is based, the portraits are dreamlike and neighborly, glimpsing the mundane goings on of cats, rhesus monkeys, and cows sunbathing or lumbering through small thoroughfares. Arefin takes a friendly approach to documenting his subjects, framing them like any other passerby wandering through the streets.

View the entire series on Behance, and follow Arefin on Instagram to keep up with his latest projects.

a cow licks its own face while walking down the street

a white cat looks at the camera

a monkey sits peacefully on a stone

a monkey sits on a concrete block

a cow with horns is in the center of the frame with blurred people in the background

a small cat sits in front of fringed textiles

two cows lie down in the street

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 a Neighborly Portrait Series, Ashraful Arefin Turns His Gaze Toward Four-Legged Passersby appeared first on Colossal.

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Sebastian Foster Announces 30 Artists for Their Eclectic Fall Print Set

Amy Dury. All images courtesy of Sebastian Foster, shared with permission

Austin-based gallery Sebastian Foster continues its 2023 Fall Print Set, marking the 11th anniversary of the collection since it launched in 2012. The new release features 30 works by well-established illustrators, printmakers, and painters from across the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Japan, and Europe. Half of the artists have worked with the gallery for years, while the other half are guests who joined just for this collection.

This set features 30 works all published as relatively small editions, hand-signed and numbered by the artists. Encompassing an eclectic array of mediums and themes, the collection showcases work from artists previously featured on Colossal, including Jeremy Miranda’s vibrant oil paintings, Jay Ryan’s playful illustrations, and Mia Bergeron’s dreamy dualism.

Now online-only, Sebastian Foster focuses on original works and prints, publishing over 1,000 editions since opening in the late 2000s. Whether you’re looking for the next piece to add to your collection or for meaningful holiday gifts, head to the gallery’s site to shop the Fall Print Set today.

Graham Franciose

Grant Haffner

Left: Caroline Ji. Right: Hiroki Kawanabe

Heather Sundquist Hall

Jeremy Miranda

Kevin Yaun

Michelle Morin

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 Sebastian Foster Announces 30 Artists for Their Eclectic Fall Print Set appeared first on Colossal.

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Wednesday, December 13, 2023

The Top Ten Colossal Stories Readers Loved Most in 2023

Image © Laurent Ballesta

As we approach the end of 2023, we’re revisiting some of the top stories we wrote about this year. From enormous kinetic beach creatures to a trove of salvaged historic photographs, our readers’ most-loved projects illustrate a diverse array of mediums, ideas, and groundbreaking discoveries.

Image © Theo Jansen

A Wind-Powered Herd of Beach Animals Merge Into a Storm Defense System in Theo Jansen’s Latest ‘Strandbeest’

An 18-meter-long Strandbeest scuttles across the sands of a beach in The Netherlands in a short video by Dutch artist Theo Jansen, who has been releasing his otherworldly creatures into the world each year since 1990.

Photo by Diego Lourenço Gurgel, courtesy of Vinicius Peripato

More Than 10,000 Indigenous Earthworks Hidden in the Amazon Reveal Human Connections to the Forest Over Millennia

Researchers Vinicius Peripato and Luiz Aragão of Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research led surveys that identified 24 previously undocumented earthworks in the Amazon basin, with results suggesting that between 10,000 and 24,000 sites remain undiscovered across Amazonia’s 2.59 million square miles.

Image courtesy of Terri Cappucci

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

In 2019, Terri Cappucci, a photographer and preservationist based in Massachusetts, stumbled upon a veritable treasure trove of 4,000 glass plates spanning the 1860s to the 1930s that had been destined for the trash.

Photo by Shiinoki Shunsuke / AMKK. Image © Azuma Makoto

Azuma Makoto’s Temporary Sculptures Freeze Hundreds of Flowers on a Snow-Coated Lake

On a frozen lake in the Notsuke Peninsula, a tendril of land that juts out from Hokkaido’s east coast, acclaimed floral artist Azuma Makoto has constructed the third botanical sculpture in an ongoing series called Frozen Flowers.

Image courtesy of Robert van Embricqs

A Wooden Artwork Miraculously Unfurls into a Functional Desk Designed by Robert van Embricqs

The surge in remote work during the last few years prompted Amsterdam-based designer Robert van Embricqs to rethink how conventional desks would impact a home’s atmosphere.

Laurent Ballesta’s Luminous Photographs Reveal the Astounding Diversity of Ocean Life

The earth’s oceans are mindbogglingly expansive, and less than 20 percent has been mapped, explored, or seen by humans. For Laurent Ballesta, the underwater world provides an endless stream of remarkable aquatic personalities.

In His Largest LEGO Work To Date, Ai Weiwei Recreates One of Claude Monet’s Most Famous Paintings

Ai Weiwei challenges our perceptions of natural beauty and reality, replacing brush strokes with plastic bricks redolent of digital pixels, using a more saturated color palette, and embedding shadows that evoke a hint of unease.

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

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.

“Creación de las aves (Creation of the Birds)” (1957), Museo de Arte Moderno, INBAL/Secretaría de Cultura. Photo by Rodrigo Chapa. © 2023 Remedios Varo, Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / VEGAP, Madrid, courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

A Major Exhibition Materializes Surrealist Artist Remedios Varo’s Alchemical Visions

More than 60 of Remedios Varo’s paintings, sketches, and sculptures went on view at a U.S. museum, the Art Institute of Chicago, for the first time in 23 years. The enchanting works evidence the artist’s esoteric affinities and are rife with unexpected magic.

Mikko Lagerstedt Photographs the Quiet Grandeur of Snowy Nordic Landscapes

Underneath soft light from the moon or the early morning sun, Finnish photographer Mikko Lagerstedt captures the quiet magic and mystery of Nordic landscapes.

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 Top Ten Colossal Stories Readers Loved Most in 2023 appeared first on Colossal.

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In Luke Stephenson’s Bold Portraits of Show Birds, the Personality Is in the Plumage

From charming robins and spritely blackbirds to a canary with a suave, natural bowl cut, Luke Stephenson’s portraits capture the fine feathers and downy details of exquisite show birds (previously). Using a customized, portable box with a perch inside, the artist captures each species’ distinctive personality and plumage in front of a variety of colored backgrounds.

For more than a decade, Stephenson traveled across the U.K. and the Netherlands to make the portraits, and over time, he experimented with ways to make the birds more comfortable and achieve the most compelling compositions. “I keep adapting (the boxes) to work better; the latest version allows me to spin the perch with out putting my hand in the box and bothering the birds,” he tells Colossal.

Stephenson recently compiled a second volume of his popular book An Incomplete Dictionary of Show Birds, including all of the images that appeared in the first volume, plus 115 never-before-published portraits. Now based in Stockholm, he is currently working on a project focused on Swedish traditions.

If you’re in California, you can spot a few of Stephenson’s birds in Still Life, a three-person show at Joseph Bellows Gallery in La Jolla, through February 10. Find more on the artist’s website, and follow him on Instagram for updates.

“Canary #13 (Gloster Corona, cock)” (2017)

Left: “Budgie #10” (2019). Right: “Japanese Thrush #1 (cock)” (2021)

“Agate Starling (hen) #1” (2019)

Left: Canary #10 (Yorkshire yellow)” (2017). Right: “Blackbird #1 (cock)” (2019)

“Bramble Finch #1 (cock)” (2017)

“European Robin #1” (2018)

Left: “Golden Song Sparrow #1 (cock)” (2018). Right: “Timor Sparrow #1” (2018)

“Linnet #1” (2017)

“Pagoda Starling #1” (2019)

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 Luke Stephenson’s Bold Portraits of Show Birds, the Personality Is in the Plumage appeared first on Colossal.

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