All photos © Johnny Tang.
These fabulous photos are by no means all of the ones in this project. There are many more, and you can click on each one and read all the details of that particular shot, at Johnny Tang Photo. This is stunning work, on more than one level, and it certainly deserves very wide exposure. I’m no stranger to long term projects, but I don’t think I could ever fold 1,000 cranes.
Made in collaboration between photographer Kate Fichard and plastic artist Hugo Deniau, ‘Scarecrows’ is a series that invites the former tradition ousted by sharp technological progress. The project was born out of Fichard’s observation that the tradition of blanking out birds from the crops has faded recently in France. “I noticed that scarecrows no longer exist on fields and vegetable gardens. Unfortunately, today they are replaced by pesticides and protection nets.” Being sensitive to environmental issues, the photographer decided to bring back the tradition and offer the meeting with these mysterious sculptures once again. This time, however, scarecrows are inspired by the idea of contemporary terror by using objects and colors tied to pollution and attacks that ruin the environment. Fichard, who got very much involved in the project, plans to continue travelling around different fields and produce more works, aiming at publishing a book or an exhibition about the subject.
All images © Kate Fichard
You can see more of these amazing statements at iGNANT.
Cabbage. Click for full size.
© C. Ford.
And for all of us who never saw a man in the moon, but a hare (or rabbit).
There are eight more wonderful, well worth seeing Indigenous shorts to see here.
From rq, more of her immortalization of the three lab cats, who continue to look as if their lives are pretty good. I wouldn’t mind playing with lab equipment, either. :D Click for full size!
© rq, all rights reserved.
Cincinnatiopera.org
Most people are aware of Sen. McCarthy’s red scare, the hunt for commies under every rock and pillow, but it wasn’t the only hunt McCarthy engineered, there was the lavender scare also, which yes, Cohn helped out with, in spite of being gay himself. There was a terrible purge of people, many of whom decided to die rather than face decades of abuse, turned backs, and no way to find employment ever again. In 2008, Thomas Mallon wrote Fellow Travelers, a historical fiction which centers on two people living and working during the lavender scare. The choice of title is a laden one. Now the book has become an opera:
You can read all about it at The Advocate.
An abandoned U.S. missile base.
An abandoned Soviet missile base.
Be it the deliberate destruction of something or its sheer neglect, what transgresses is rarely the complete story. I photograph the visual footprints that the human race leaves on the landscape during its march through time. When the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet Union signaled the end of the Cold War, the holdings of American and Russian nuclear armaments were significantly reduced with many of the supporting facilities being closed and abandoned. All that now remains are decaying reminders of the might once exhibited by two opposing forces heading towards an unimaginable end. Just like time, photography can strip away the extraneous distraction of life to leave a meditative stillness. Sometimes silence speaks the loudest.
Soviet and American Nuclear Missile Bases by Brett Leigh Dicks.
UPRISE / ANGRY WOMEN Exhibit artwork, The Untitled Space Gallery, New York – Laura Murray – Plug It Up.
In the wake of Paul Ryan’s promise to defund Planned Parenthood, the current political climate is not promising for women. In response, The Untitled Space art gallery has assembled work by 80 contemporary female artists expressing anger and defiance through their art. Uprise/Angry Women gives women a chance to artistically express their fears and frustrations about the sexist and discriminatory rhetoric brought to light by the impending administration. The show’s curator Indira Cesarine writes, “Right now, more than ever, women need to unify and work together to ensure that our rights, which were fought for with blood and tears for many decades, are not only assured, but continue to progress.”
UPRISE / ANGRY WOMEN Exhibit artwork, The Untitled Space Gallery, New York – CARA DEANGELIS- Donald Trump with a Crown of Roadkill.
UPRISE / ANGRY WOMEN Exhibit artwork, The Untitled Space Gallery, New York – Lili White “Winning-Personality Target”.
UPRISE / ANGRY WOMEN Exhibit artwork, The Untitled Space Gallery, New York – Linda Friedman Schmidt – Weeding.
You can read about this at The Creators Project. * UPRISE / ANGRY WOMEN.
Following a highly successful inaugural year, the 2017 Ronin | Globus Artist-in-Residence Program is back! Open to artists practicing in Japan, this annual program seeks to stimulate cross-cultural dialogue by providing the opportunity for Japanese visual artists to live, work and exhibit in New York City. Last year’s winner, Oz Yamaguchi, concluded his residency last year with a sold-out art show!
Spoon & Tamago is happy to be collaborating once again as a media sponsor and judge. The theme this year is “Iki: Stylish, Simple, and Sophisticated.” Artists working in Japan can submit applications through April 1st, 2017.
(Information in Japanese)
昨年に続き、ローニン／グローバス・アーティスト・イン・レジデンス・プログラムに 参加させていただく運びとなりました。本プログラムは日本のヴィジュアル・アートの先駆者たちを通じた異文化間対話の活性化を模索するものです。紙上に作 品を創り上げる日本人のアーティストに向けて開かれたこの機会では、住居と、畳敷きのスタジオ・スペースと、そしてローニン・ギャラリーで開催される「日 本における現代美術の才能」展に出品するチャンスを提供いたします。本プログラムや詳しい応募方法（締め切りは２０１７年４月１日）については、こちらをご参照ください。ご応募おまちしております！
This is a great opportunity for all artists living in Japan. Jump on it!
Chinese New Year is coming up, it’s on the 28th this month. 2017 is the Year of the Rooster. I’m a rooster, a fire rooster to be specific. If it’s your year, it’s supposed to be a bad one for you. Nothing new there, except that I can hope that particular fantasy is wrong. Very wrong. Please be very wrong. Are you listening, universe? Probably not.
Over 150 years ago the ukiyo-e artist Shigematsu Enrosai created an imaginary beast as a woodblock print and called it “Twelve Precepts.” The beast featured the head of a rabbit, the neck of a dragon, the tail of a snake, the forelegs of a monkey and the hind legs of an ox. Indeed, it was a fantastical combination of all 12 zodiac animals. Now, Japanese artist Feebee has created her own interpretation, and has produced it in the same technique as it was made in around 1850.
“A beast called Kotobuki”
Feebee’s creation is titled “A beast called Kotobuki – bird-“ (2017) and is created in her unique style of using vivid colors and excruciating detail to render fantastical beasts. This time, however, instead of painting she collaborated with the Adachi Foundation for the Preservation of Woodcut Printing. If you were thinking about becoming a member, now’s your chance because Feebee’s woodblock print comes as a membership reward (20,000 yen, or about $170).
[…]
Below are 2 fascinating videos that show the production process of the woodblock print. Even if you’re familiar, it’s a nice reminder of the incredible work and craftsmanship that goes into producing these.
Via Spoon & Tamago.
Click for full size.
Astrophotographer Mike Killian took this image of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket blasting off on May 6 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
Greg Diesel Walck took the image from Moyock, North Carolina as a thunderstorm drifted across the horizon on Aug. 5. Read the full story here.
Y’know, we get serious weather here, but it never looks like this. Sigh.
Click for full size.
Every Moment Counts, 1989, Rotimi Fani-Kayode.
Conversation with a Mannequin, 2013, Kelvin Atmadibrata
performance for the camera.
Lovers Lane, 2016, Sharmar Johnson
White pencil Black paper, 22×28.
A Pile of Crowns, for Jean-Michel Basquiat, 1988, Keith Haring
acrylic on canvas, 108×120,
Keith Haring artwork © Keith Haring Foundation.
…“In our work and in our living, we must recognize that difference is a reason for celebration and growth, rather than a reason for destruction.” Reflecting on this quote by Audre Lorde, I know that these sentiments are the way forward. Although, I am honestly a bit anxious about the next four years, I see strength and intelligence in these artists. I love the humor in RALPH HALL’s piece Bassethound, which pictures a fluorescent dog with butt plug. I also salute the tenacity of young artists like Kia Labeija. As seen in all their work, many of the artists in the Visual AIDS Artist+ Registry share the same love of an eclectic bunch of leaders that I do. We stand on the shoulders of heroes, like Harriet Tubman, Gordon Parks, Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Grace Jones, Frankie Knuckles, Lady Bunny, Marlon Riggs, Tina Turner and countless others. Brave hearts are not a new concept; this struggle is part of our DNA.
The featured gallery from Visual Aids December 2016. Beautiful, poignant work, you can see it all here.
After years of chasing a laugh track on How I Met Your Mother, the actor is following roles in Gone Girl and American Horror Story with Netflix’s new Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events, based on the classic children’s books. In the new super-stylized series, Harris stars as the villainous Olaf, who becomes the guardian of three orphans solely to abscond with their fortune.
“I’m drawn to puzzles and darkness,” says Harris. “The Alfred Hitchcock–y vibe is something I’ve been into since I was kid, and I loved Gene Wilder’s take on Willy Wonka and Bridge to Terabithia.”
Aside from being just plain rotten, Harris’s alter ego is also a rotten aspiring musical-theater actor — basically, a much crappier, much uglier version of himself.
“Playing someone so miserable makes things hard to complain about,” says Harris, who spends two and a half hours having prosthetics applied for the role. “I can ingest my annoyances and use them.”
Going by the trailer, Harris also infuses the role of Count Olaf with humor. A performance to look forward to, along with the rest of the cast.
Via Out.
