Oopsy Daisy/Studio Avo

The dawning of a new era! Today I had the privilege and pleasure of starting at No Boundaries, Inc., home of Oopsy Daisy and Studio Avo- wholesale website of fine art and miscellaneous items for children and adults! The day was filled with paperwork, tutorials, and introductions, and I think I'm going to be very happy to be a part of this dynamic, interesting, and creative environment!

The BEST part of my day was when the girl who sits next to me and I got to pick out our new wall art! New people means new views, and after flipping through the catalog we decided to go with two pieces by Andrea Cobb, a North Carolina based artist who had studied Illustration at Parsons School of Design in NYC:

Morning Pond

Evening Pond (images used from Studio Avo and are copyrighted Andrea Cobb).

I'm incredibly excited to be a part of this, and I'm looking forward to much more exposure to art and artists that I'm not familiar with. Check out both sites for extremely high quality, GREAT stuff for all ages.

MY GOD... I'M DELICIOUS!

I have a Twitter account. Believe me, I was a HUGE skeptic when it first came out, and when even now when I sit down and try to grasp the actual concept it still seems ridiculous. That being said, I follow Rainn Wilson's Twitter (Dwight from the Office) and his posts are always silly antics of online taunting with a few worthwhile links thrown in. His new background is courtesy of Mike Mitchell, an artist I'd never heard of- he hails from Los Angeles (where else) and a is self-proclaimed cat enthusiast. His work largely deals with animals, comic book characters, mixed in with a dash of silly, a splash of ridiculous, and some adorable grotesquerie. Take a peek at a few of his pieces (all used directly from his site)







These are just a couple of my favorites (wow, I like bunny art and a zombie ice cream- how totally unlike me!!!) Mike is also a brother in blogging! Check out his blog and shop for even more stuff from this darkly original artist. Shirts, prints, the works! He seems like a fun guy. Mike, if you ever see this, come on down to San Diego and we'll discuss important topics, like crime fighting slugs and spontaneously combusting kittens.

Souther Salazar and Megan Whitmarsh

First of all, I LOVE studio tours. It's such a great glimpse into the reality of the working artist. Fecal Face is really good about updating them on the reg, and the latest one was the LA studio of Souther Salazar and Megan Whitmarsh. I think collaborations or even shared spaces is an excellent idea, because even though the personal space is affected, the bouncing and sharing of ideas is a fabulous marriage. One day I would love to have a seperate studio from home; I kind of got a taste of that in the Honors Studio at VCU and it gave me the bug. I won't even bother posting images of their actual work (you can go to their websites for that) but I love the following things about their studio:
1) Exposed brick walls
2) Lots of weird nooks and corners
3) FLAT FILES. SO AMAZING.
4) Lots of light
5) Tons of books and other reference materials
6) An influx of neon. Superb.

Anyway, here's the studio. Maybe the next time I'm in LA I'll be a creep and lurk outside.

Ryan McClennan

Ryan McClennan is an artist from Richmond who's making big strides in the art world today. The first exposure I had to his work was his cover of RVAMag a year or so ago when he was promoting an in-town show, but now he's moved on past lil' ol' RVA! He's been featured on Tiny Showcase a few times already, and who knows what else he's got his fingers in. His intricate illustrations of nature beautifies the violence and intensity in a world we can't fully immerse ourselves in.

Check out his site and tinyshowcase to see more of his work.

Stuart Kolakovic

Every once in a while I get really bored with whatever my current desktop image happens to be, but it's not always the simplest task finding a new one. You don't really realize how much you actually look at it, and if it's just not quiiiiite right, it will bother me until I find The Perfect Image. Usually my go-to's are FecalFace and Tiny Showcase, and today proved no exception. I scanned through the archives of Tiny Showcase to come across the work of Stuart Kolakovic, a UK artist that I could only find a little information about, but his work speaks for itself. Folk art, cubism, and retro color theory are all explored through his works. He's worked as a comic artist and illustrator with a pretty impressive clientele. Check out his site and especially his comics.

And FYI, here's the image I have as my background now:

Worship Something, Tiny Showcase

Here's just one that I especially like (the geometric patterns in nature is a concept that I've explored for years. I actually based my AP portfolio on it in high school):

Arctic Chilling, personal work

Jeremy Fish

Jeremy Fish's largest print to date is for sale now! It spans a 22" x 34" area, and looks awesome in the frame (but that adds a significant cost!) He's been a big name in the contemporary illustration/paint/street art/etc. scene in the past few years, and this San Francisco based artist has the world by its balls. His collaboration with Aesop Rock is a sight to see. I really like his condensed but articulate pallete and his re-occurring anthropomorphism. A weird detail that I always like in his work is also his edges! Clean, crisp, and perfectly balancing the entire work. Wonderful.

Marcos Chin

Sometimes when I read articles by or interviews with professional artists it's hard for me to grasp the concept that their lives can be true. This interview with illustrator Marcos Chin was one of the most refreshing reads from a professional in a long while. I especially liked the part where he talks about brunch! Anyway, it's a very clear article that outlines his metamorphosis from student to professional and all the steps he takes to maintain his life. PS. I am VERY jealous of his studio. It's nice having a studio in our apartment, but I bet it's REALLY nice to have a totally seperate space dedicated to creation. Regardless, the article is a winner. Read it.

Alexander Girard

Folk art isn't one of my favorite genres, but add a contemporary twist to any sort of toy and of course my attention is grabbed. My sister actually sent me this link to Alexander Girard's work, and I was intrigued. His estate now handles the ongoing branding of his work, which includes dolls, fonts, puzzles, woodwork, and more. Here's a few from his doll collection:




It's like broccoli, cats, color and dolls all in one! FUN!


Apparently he also has a large collection of nativity scenes, with focus on color and simplicity in composition. I should send some to my mom to mix with her Fontanini nativity. A good mix, right?

Japanese Young Artists' Book Fair

Last year I was lucky enough to be at Printed Matter in NYC for the 2nd annual Japanese Young Artists' Book Fair, and let me just tell you there are some SHARP book artists coming out of there right now. I picked up a few gems, and I'm sure this year is going to be just as spectacular. I actually caught it at 2 locations, the second being Spoonbill and Sugartown in Brooklyn, and this year it'll be in a variety of locations across the city as well (Kinokuniya Bookstore and St. Marks Book Shop along with the two aforementioned). Over 100 artists are participating, and it's going on from February 15 – March 8, 2009.

If you plan on being in the NYC area during the show, be sure to stop by one of the four locations. Book art is underappreciated and overwhelmingly beautiful to anyone who hasn't really experienced anything like it. I took a class about Book Arts at VCU last year, and it really opened my eyes to the entire world of tangible art that can be held and appreciated physically. There's definitely something to be said about the ability to hold something created in your hands. It's a great feeling.

Tiny Showcase- Stephanie Specht

It's been awhile since I've looked at Tiny Showcase, but every once in awhile I manage to find my way through the crazy entanglement of the interweb to reach this exquisite site. I was looking through the past few weeks' work and loved this print from Stephanie Specht "Apple Tree". She selected OrcaLab for her donation, which is a research lab located in Canada dedicated to studying marine life without interfering with the natural habitats of these creatures. They also place an emphasis on stopping commercial whaling and rehabilitating the animals who are in need.

I love gray! When it's juxtaposed against bright vibrant colors it's truly a delight to my eyes. And lambs are awesome. The only thing that would make this better is if it were bunnies. But disregarding that (and my obvious insane bias), this is just one great print of many. I highly recommend visiting her site, where you can feast your design-hungry eyes on her really simple, clean line work. She runs the design studio Stipontwerpt in Belgium, so hop over there and give it a peek.

NOWHERE Skateboards

Barf is a Richmond art icon who has got his tentacles wrapped up in most aspects of Richmond life. His work includes Barf Comics, Nowhere Skateboards, Municipal Waste, and a plethora of other underground independent things. I'm happy to say that his print of a cat vomiting a stream of undesirable objects graces the wall in our kitchen next to the refrigerator. It pleases me to stumble in blindly before work, attempting to get some orange juice before facing the day to look up and constantly be startled by the intensity feline face.

Anyway, Barf's got some new jamz going on, with his new Nowhere "Stab Bat" decks, available here for $45.




My only encounter with Barf was at a Municipal Waste show at the Canal Club, where I proceeded to take shots of whiskey with him since I always forget Anica's inability to consume the deadly beverage and continued to buy unwanted shots. It was a good night.

new blog to check

My friend Tim Skirven just started up a new blog Drunk at my own Party. Check it out!