I stumbled upon an interview with artist and writer Justin Chance, who has a Bachelor of Fine Arts and a BA in Visual & Critical Studies from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. His series of quilts are fascinating, combining his love for making with his interest in painting.
These quilts are so ethereal, like stitched together memories, assemblages of random fibers and feelings coming together to tell a new story. I love the colors and textures he’s able to achieve, they’re so stunning. I keep seeing a resurgence of tapestries and knit pieces living on walls as fine art, which I think is great. Pieces like Chance’s are beautiful because of the warp and weft of the material. They’re imprecise and a bit chaotic and it leads to such gorgeous character.
OlssønBarbieri, one of my favorite design studios working in food and drink branding, sat down with the team at Two Times Elliott to speak about their beliefs, their process and their work. Always interesting to hear about how beautiful work is made, certainly worth an hour of your time.
This is the sort of thesis for Akiko Nakayama’s “alive paintings” where she combines different liquids combined with projectors to bringing painting to life. The stills of her work look like galaxies or alien micro-organisms, while her live work is like a fascinating journey through an alien universe. I’m so impressed by the way that she’s been able to figure out, I’m assuming through trial and error, how to manipulate these liquids to do such extraordinary things, while also putting on a captivating show at the same time. Be sure to watch the video below in it’s super high-res, full-screen glory for the optimal experience.
Design comes in many forms. I think one unexpected way of designing comes in the form of landscape design, a field that seems to have really bloomed over the last 20 years. In the documentary below, Piet Oudolf describes what he does best within the first 5 minutes, saying, “This is what you’d like to see in the wild.”
He is well-known around the world for his work, such as projects like The High Line in New York, the gardens at Hauser & Wirth Somerset, or the Vitra campus in Weil am Rhein. Instead of creating traditional, structured gardens, he focuses on making literally wild organizations of plants which create an idealized atmosphere for people to enjoy. It’s like the ultimate user-experience design, as you can’t really control the outcome, and that inherently is part of the beauty. I love this documentary as it speaks to the rich depth of design, and I think it’s incredibly important to find inspiration from fields that are so different from my own.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcAiJt0Y3vY
“In this captivating five-season documentary, we delve into the world of Piet Oudolf, a renowned Dutch garden designer known for his breathtaking naturalistic landscapes. From his iconic works like the High Line in New York City to his private garden in the Netherlands, we witness the creation of stunning gardens that evolve with the changing seasons. Join us on this visual journey through the eyes of Piet Oudolf, as we explore his unique design philosophy and see how his gardens come to life. Whether you’re a seasoned gardener or simply appreciate the beauty of nature, this documentary is a must-watch for anyone looking to be inspired by the natural world.”
I’m such a fan of Salman Toor, I’ve written about his work many times at this point, and so I was happy to see that Art21 had created a video interview with him. Before this, I hadn’t actually seen Toor speaking, and it was fascinating getting to see him exist, and hear him talk about his work. He captures such an interesting world of queer friendships, as well as the stresses and anxieties of being queer in such a turbulent time in the US. Anyhow, I really like being able to see a glimpse behind the curtain of creatives and this is a really lovely profile.
