Video: Crochet Coral Reef

The "Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef" started out as a math experiment and has become a world wide art project. How cool is that? I first heard about the project from an article in American Craft Magazine.

What a creative way to get people thinking about the garbage that winds up in the oceans too. It's one thing to say, "There's a lot of plastic junk that gets dumped in the ocean, and that's not a good thing for the environment." People are going to think about that a lot more when faced with beautiful art made out of that same trash.

Artist: Ben Heine

I've seen Ben Heine's work before in the past, but have just now discovered the name behind the fun pictures. He makes deceptively simple images that are full of whimsy and play.

Pencil vs. Camera #30 by Ben Heine

Over on DeviantArt, there's a nice write up about him along with a great interview that spurred this blog. You can browse through the Pencil vs. Camera series (which is my favorite), the Digital Circlism series (a play on Pointillism), and more.

Pencil vs. Camera #59 by Ben Heine

In the Pencil vs. Camera series, Heine takes a picture of a real place, then creates a drawing that overlays part of the scene that plays with your perception of what you're seeing. This would be a really fun project for your kids to try their hands at as well!

Video: Daniel Eatock's Felt-tip Prints

This installation is currently on view at the Walker Art Center through January 22, 2012. I thought it was such an interesting way to make a "drawing." Your kids might like to try to recreate it on a smaller scale.

Video: Off Book - Street Art

Off Book is a web only series from PBS. Each video is under 10 minutes and discusses different aspects of modern art, from online culture to light painting to typography. My favorite so far features the street artist Swoon whose work I really love:

Article: Feel Art Again-- A Sunday Afternoon

A short post from the Mental Floss Blog about George Seurat's famous painting "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte":

Several months back, a reader named Joseph suggested George Seurat’s “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte” for, aptly enough, a Sunday afternoon. Since ‘Feel Art Again’ runs on Tuesdays and Thursdays, though, I figured today was as good a time as any. And, with the snowy forecast for tomorrow (at least here in PA), a cheery weather painting is just what we need. So, I’m proud to present “Un dimanche après-midi à l’ÃŽle de la Grande Jatte” by Georges-Pierre Seurat.

1. George Seurat devoted two years to “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte,” spending afternoons in the park sketching figures. He completed approximately 60 studies for the 2×3 meter painting, and even reworked the original. He was most focused on color and light. Unfortunately, the pigment zinc yellow, which was new at the time, has darkened to brown over the years, changing the appearance of the lawn and other parts of the painting.

2. Seurat’s interest in the study and emotion of color might possibly be traced back to his childhood home. With his parents and two siblings, he lived at 100 Boulevard Magenta.

3. Near the end of his life, Seurat secretly cohabited with Madeleine Knobloch, a young model. In February 1890, she gave birth to their first son. Seurat died of uncertain causes in March 1891, shortly before the birth of his second son, who died soon after birth. Supposedly, Seurat had only introduced Knobloch and his son to his parents two days before his death.

4. After his death, the contents of Seurat’s studio were classified at his parents’ request. They offered the contents to the Louvre, but were refused; the contents were then divided amongst Knobloch and some of Seurat’s followers.

5. “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte” isn’t just Seurat’s most famous painting, it is also one of the most famous and frequently reproduced paintings in the world. Like Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa,” Salvador Dali’s “The Persistence of Memory,” and Edvard Munch’s “The Scream,” Seurat’s painting is often reference in pop culture. Stephen Sondheim wrote a Tony award-winning musical about it; the Looney Tunes, the Simpsons, and Sesame Street parodied it; it appeared in “Barbarella” (1968) and “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” (1986); and Nancy Cameron posed in front of a copy of it for the January 1976 issue of Playboy.
6. In 2006, the painting was recreated in modern clothes in Beloit, WI. The recreation took place on a Saturday afternoon on the bank of the Rock River to promote the “Saturday in the Park with Friends” event. Arranged by Friends of Riverfront, the event was a bigger hit than expected. Check out the photo collection on flickr to see how close to the original they got.
A larger version of the painting is available here.

‘Feel Art Again’ appears every Tuesday and Thursday.

Artist: Kendall Bohn

I met Kendall Bohn the other day at the California Arts Building where he has his studio. My attention was grabbed by his paintings displayed in the hallway, which reminded me a lot of Henri Rousseau's. Kendall's paintings have that same dreamlike quality with vivid colors and undulating shapes. But he doesn't only paint, sculptures and ceramics are also part of his repertoire. And he's a graphic designer on top of that. That's what you call a jack of all trades!

What I really want to share with you is Kendall's series of coloring books, Kaleidoscopia. So many coloring books these days are overtly simplified and dumbed down, as if publishers think kids can't focus enough to color in even the most basic shapes. If your child loves to color and gets bored with the typical fare available, the Kaleidoscopia series is for them. There is no way you can finish these pictures in just a few minutes. The Abstract books caught my eye the most, but there's also dinosaur and fantasy titles available. There's a free coloring page from each Kaleidoscopia title available for download.
You can buy the books online at the Kaleidoscopia site, and they're available at a number of retailers, like Creative Kidstuff, as well.
You can also visit Kendall's studio in the California Arts Building during the open studios event every second Saturday of the month. He showed me some of the original drawings he did for the coloring books, which was pretty cool. I also got to see the work for the next Abstract coloring book coming out this summer, which is going to have twice as many pages as previous titles.
And now, if you'll excuse me, I'm inspired to go doodle in my sketchbook.