All of the incredibly talented Ashkan Honarvar’s art deals with the darker sides of the human mind through the undeniable and unavoidable beauty of the human body. The universal human body, used as tool for seeking identity, is the focal point of his work. By dissecting and rearranging images with careful aesthetic vision, Honarvar creates work with an intriguing macabre darkness. Since his graduation from the Art School in our hometown Utrecht in 2007 Ashkan has been making a name for himself with his utmost fascinating collages. Themes like colonialism, war, mass destruction, megalomania and other grotesque behavior are all observable in his progressively growing body of work. We can't get enough of his enthralling collages and love how the artist combines the abject with the aesthetic, creating images one can't stop looking at. Being very inspired by Ashkan's vision we asked him a couple questions to find out what inspires a highly unique mind like his. [ Continue reading ]
We have written about the extraordinary work of the French artist Marc Giai-Miniet before and on the 11th of October his one of a kind sculptures have finally crossed the the Atlantic Ocean for his first solo exhibition in the United States. The work of Giai-Miniet is truly unique and balances the fine handcraft involved in the creation of his tiny dioramas with poignant explorations through memory, association, and dreamscape. His tiny homes, though dealing with images of mundane possessions, industrial equipment, and furniture, evoke a feeling which is surreal and even a touch sinister. His sculptures are heavily influenced by childhood visits to the garage his father worked in as a mechanic, hence the systematic arrangements of the spaces and industrial influences, but also the exposure of the images of the Holocaust at a young age are mentioned when one deconstructs where in his life the roots for his incredible art have grown from. [ Continue reading ]
Since the 10th of September inspirational Birmingham-based Ikon Gallery is hosting the first solo show in the United Kingdom of the extraordinary works of one of the most influential modern Korean artists: Lee Bul. The show is a judicious survey of early drawings, studies, sculptural pieces and ambitious installations, including a new commission especially made for Ikon, showcasesing the visually compelling and intellectually sharp works which have established Lee Bul to her status of one of the most important artists of her generation. In conjunction with Ikon’s exhibition, Korean Cultural Centre UK in London presents a large-scale floor installation entitled Diluvium. Lee has created a new version of the work, which is specifically designed for the exhibition space of KCC. Overall the elements combined of the exhibited both in Birmingham and London simply blows our mind, with both explosion-like shows feeling like some sort of perfect contemporary Gesamtkunstwerke. [ Continue reading ]
The Austrian-born and -based illustrator Stefan Zsaitsits creates highly fascinating dark pencil drawings of childlike figures in which he oftenly seems to hybridize particular thoughts and emotions directly on or with the body part which is involved, mostly the head. And even if he chooses to portray his subject in a more traditional fashion, one can always observe that sense of astonishment combined with a touch of fear. The results are surrealistic and sometimes even slightly repulsive raw images, which evoke a sense of unsettlement, clearly representing the unfiltered stream of thoughts one mostly finds within the disclosure of the world in all its beauty and hardships during childhood. And although most people lose that particular perspective on the world with the years, Zsaitsits rightfully seems to question if growing up inherently has to mean the end of sincere astonishment, despite the fact that most people choose it to be the case. [ Continue reading ]
We wrote about the stunning 'Post Natural History' project by French photographer Vincent Fournier last year when it was on display at the Amsterdam-based Ravenstein Gallery and we still find it one of the most interesting series we've seen in a long time. While the images themselves will leave you speechless regardless, Fournier in collaboration with Paris and New York-based creative Studio be-poles also created an amazing limited box set form which does 'Post Natural History' justice perfectly. We mentioned this collaboration in our last writing, but last month it returned on our rader as 20 of the 50 sets with signed and numbered color prints on fuji crystal archivemounted onto embossed board editions were (and are, at the time of writing only 1 edition was still available) for sale at the inspirational Los Angeles-based gallery/boutique Please Do Not Enter, which was kind enough to provide the imagery of this highly inspirational and elegant new form of the incredible series. [ Continue reading ]
On the 15th of September during the London Design Festival, The Map House, London's oldest seller of antique maps, relaunched their Mews Gallery with a beautiful exhibition of new work by prizewinning artist Kristjana S Williams, in a contemporary exploration of the traditional art of cartography which they named 'Art Cartography'. For this exhibition Williams brings incredible historical works of art back to life using her eye-catching signature style, by featuring new vibrant digital collages on historical maps of locations such as London and China as well as maps of the world. Alongside these intricate prints, the artist will also present her first ever three-dimensional hand cut paper collaged maps, and a series of her incredible designs superimposed on to globes of the world. Beautiful! [ Continue reading ]
Due to busy schedules on both ends, the collaboration between Our Current Obsessions and the very talented Ramon Haindl was realized only two days before the opening on Friday the 5th of September. On that grey Wednesday we got in the car at the end the of morning in Utrecht and drove to Ramon’s hometown Frankfurt, with the GERTRUD & GEORGE Overnighter which just had arrived a day earlier in the trunk, filling in the only shared gap in our agendas to get together. Ramon had been working early and long hours in Stuttgart the days before, and arrived back in Frankfurt only a few moments before we got there, which didn’t temper his or our enthusiasm to make it happen, no matter what was needed. The piece created by Ramon exemplifies his unpolished collage/mixed media approach in his free work, which we particularly love and special features his young dog Vila. The key inspiration for the piece lays in Ramon’s observation of a sharp parallel between the dog’s fur and the grain of the Buffalo leather used by GERTRUD & GEORGE, which he caught beautifully in this collage of analogue and digital photography plus handwritten text. [ Continue reading ]
Chamber is an exciting new boutique of limited edition design, objects and art, which opens today in the Chelsea neighborhood of New York City. The space’s unique concept and retail experience is the vision of Argentinian-born Founder Juan Garcia Mosqueda. Critically acclaimed architectural practice MOS has designed the interior of the space. Taking the Renaissance-era Cabinet of Curiosities as its inspiration, Chamber will be a twenty-first century reliquary for unusual objects and a platform for design experimentation. Every two years, Garcia Mosqueda will choose a different designer or creative to curate the shop’s entire program, bringing their unique viewpoint to Chamber through specially commissioned works, and rare and vintage items. For the inaugural curatorial period, he has selected designers Studio Job, who are working closely with a dynamic group of established and emerging designers and artists to create Chamber Collection #1. [ Continue reading ]
Although there had been earlier clues towards it, last Friday one of our favorite artists of the moment, Ashkan Honarvar, announced that the collage works which have been released under the pseudonym Who Killed Mickey for the last three years were also the product of his fascinating mind and that the project now has ended. The idea for Who Killed Mickey, which progressively grew over the period of the last years, came up in order for Honarvar to have an output where he could use all his leftover scraps from his regular work, but also to create collages just for the fun of it. These prerequisites translated into some of Honarvar's most bold work, using familiar images from the fashion industry and pop culture combined with pornography and anatomical images, without a clear overall concept to be observed, but with his incredible signature aesthetic written all over it. [ Continue reading ]
We recently stumbled upon the thrilling photographic work of New London, USA, based photographic artist Pola Esther, who was born and raised in Lodz, Poland. As an artist Esther uses photography as her main platform for expression, with her fascinating series named 'Mutual Attraction' consisting of diptych collages, clearly showing her love of photographing nature, mostly human. The work of Esther reflects upon her intimacy, femininity and sexuality. Images with the figure can be provocative, encouraging us to peep through the keyhole, where behind lays a romantic and sometimes grim world full of the unknown. She produces a highly diverse color palette moving as broad as grainy, blurry black and white to silky pastelle-like colors in orchestrated romantic settings, sometimes juxtaposing different styles, creating wonderful little spectacles which continue to fascinate us. [ Continue reading ]
Last week the amazing work of the highly talented Singapore-based Michelle Yu was brought to our attention. In everything the 25-year old creates there is a sense of dark brooding energy to be found, and we particularly love the work named 'mad girl's love song' which is inspired by the poem with the same title written by American poet Sylvia Plath in 1951. Plath who suffered from depression most of her adult life, which she ended by suicide when she was 30, left an oeuvre of poems, short stories and a novel which are considered to be a significant milestone for the genre of confessional poetry, which focusses on individual experience, the psyche, personal trauma, and taboos. This sentiment of personal trauma, very apparent in 'mad girl's love song' is beautifully caught in the black and white drawing by Yu. All figurative elements in the drawing, a girl's head, hand and feet, two birds and what appears to be a set of lungs are drowning in a fire-like pool. Beautifully catching the emotions of despair and misunderstood love which are expressed by Plath. [ Continue reading ]
On the 29th of August a new inspirational Culture CHANEL exhibition opened, the successor of the exhibition in Paris last year, this time in the highly impressive Dongdaemun Design Plaza in Seoul, Korea. Each of the exhibition's ten sequences, which were curated by Jean-Louis Froment, acts as a particular landmark in Mademoiselle Chanel's life story. More than 500 pieces including photographs, books, objects, manuscripts, archives and artworks along with fashion, jewelry, watch and perfume creations retrace the life story of the legendary designer who left an enduring mark on her time. In a stunning and therefore very fit context the exhibition retraces the fascinating adventures of the designer and her brand whose language undeniably still is synonymous with modernity and creativity. [ Continue reading ]
Last Friday was a very special day. After a lot of hard work over the course of the last couple of months we were finally able to open a next chapter in the AS&Co universe: a tactile space that will be open for the public named Our Current Obsessions. The new space, which also houses the studio, can in many ways be seen as a direct result of what has been created online since the eruption of Another Something in 2009, but with more focus in its purpose. Our Current Obsessions will hybridize the traditional concept of an art gallery with a retail-space, always based around one particular theme in which we will take a deep-dive both off- and online. Located right at the mouth of one of Amsterdam's main canals, it is a little dream come true that finally our love for the ‘beauty of cultures’ can be touched and shared in the analogue world. [ Continue reading ]
We are still inspired by the book named 'The Age of Collage' which was published by Gestalten a year ago. The book is a striking documentation of today’s continued appetite for destructive construction found in the art of collage. Showcasing outstanding current artwork and artists, the book also takes an insightful behind-the-scenes look at those working with this interdisciplinary and cross-media approach. The collages featured in this book are influenced by illustration, painting, and photography and play with elements of abstraction, constructivism, surrealism, and dada. Referencing scientific images, pop culture, and erotica, they reflect humanity’s collective visual memory and context. Among the featured artists are the highly talented Ashkan Honarvar and our friend, multitalent Sergei Sviatchenko. [ Continue reading ]
Since his graduation in 2007 artist Ashkan Honarvar has been making a name for himself with his utmost fascinating collages in which he focuses on the dark side of humanity. Themes like colonialism, war, mass destruction, megalomania and other grotesque behavior are all observable in his progressively growing body of work. We particularly love his series of this year; 'Conquest 5' and 'Identity Lost' which was released in 2013. The series examine different visual languages, out of which the new images are created, but the results are equally haunting and show beauty in the most macabre images, exemplifying the enormous talent of Honarvar. [ Continue reading ]
The 'Water – Colour' project by artist Katherine May was an impressive and beautiful textile installation that aimed to raise awareness of water consumption in the production and use of textiles. A sensory environment was designed around the dye process to reconnect the spectator physically to water through a direct experience of handling water in a dye vat. Every year the textile industry uses in excess of 370 billion litres of water. Fibre crops like cotton require significant artificial irrigation after which the water isn't fit for consumption or agricultural use anymore. Furthermore, the coloring of textile diverts water into mills, expelling toxic waste into local water supplies. These are the macro issues of a global industry, however the micro habits of laundering textiles is now known to use more water than growing fibre, processing yarn, and all other phases of a textile’s life-cycle, which was beautifully condensed by May into this aesthetic project making one actively reflect on society's harmful habits. [ Continue reading ]
We really like the first publication by Independent publishing house Zioxla named 'Strange Plants'. The book is a celebration of plants in contemporary art featuring the work of 25 artists: from oozing paintings of rotting cacti to eerie, mesmeric photos of the leafy kudzu vine, and discusses the role plants play in the artists’ personal lives. For the book, editor Zio Baritaux brought together eight artists whose work focuses on the natural world: Erik Parker, Helene Schmitz, Paul Wackers, Lee Kwang-Ho, Taylor McKimens, David Axelbank, Stephen Eichhorn and Aiyana Udesen. In-depth interviews and articles are presented alongside images that showcase the instinctive and unique ways plants are represented in the artists’ works. [ Continue reading ]
We love this insane project by the Japanese artist Makoto Azuma named Exobiotanica. Two weeks ago, in the week that NASA was celebrating the 45th anniversary of the first moon landing, Azuma pioneered a new kind of space endeavor by sending plant life to the edge of space. The result of this enterprise are some of the most beautiful surrealistic, extraterrestrial images since Apollo 8′s famous Earthrise imagery was shot. Using GoPro and Fuji Film cameras, the florist-turned-artist got both film and still shots of the entire process as the plants lifted off from Black Rock Desert in Nevada and traveled to almost 30 kilometer above the earth’s surface, the ceiling of the giant helium balloons used to propel their ride towards the perfect backdrop where these tremendous images were shot. [ Continue reading ]
We really like the most recent collaboration by the ever-inspiring publisher and producer of artworks CASE STUDYO, this time with regular collaborator Dutch artist Parra. With the sculpture named ‘Cold’, the Amsterdam-based artist once again translates his unique signature curved post-pop imagery into a beautiful porcelain sculpture. A surreal and hybrid character of a female birdlike creature with hands around the legs looking for warmth. The eye-catching sculpture comes in a screen printed wood box with a signed and numbered certificate of authenticity by the artist, making it another signature high quality addition to the already great catalogue of CASE STUDYO. [ Continue reading ]
From March 26th to May 6th 2014 the first retrospective on the art and design collective led by Piergiorgio Robino, Nucleo, named 'Manifesto' took place in Parisian Hôtel de Galliffet. The exhibition was conceived and realised by the Nilufar Gallery of Milan, and curated by Elena Giulia Abbiatici and Melania Rossi. It was set up under the 'Promises of Art' program, which aims to promote young talents from the ultra-contemporary Italian art scene. Manifesto tells the story of the highly creative collective and its assertions. A thought which translates into action, a meeting at the peak of artisanal and artistic research. Nucleo's work is simultaneously material and conceptual: molded by many hands, it has the ambition to combine three forms of knowledge: theory, practice and production (theoria, pràxis e poiesis). [ Continue reading ]
'Cy-collage' was the great pop up exhibition by the London-based collective Colectivo Futuro during last Spin London. Housed inside the iconic Old Truman Brewery building on Brick Lane, the exhibition featured works from both International and local, London-based, artists, most of which had been previously featured in the inspirational colectivo futurist series on their online platform. Each artist was commissioned to interpret cycling through the use of collage as a technique. In the eyes of Colectivo Futuro, like the act of cycling, a collage piece is made up of carefully assembled parts that harmoniously fit together to achieve their purpose, which resulted in beautiful raw works with a somewhat punk aesthetic. The unique and limited pieces by the artists are from now on for sale through Colectivo Futuro's webstore. [ Continue reading ]
Julien Rademaker is one of those people who has successfully translated his love for collecting into a personal blog project named Gevonden op Marktplaats, which gathered a large following rather quickly, making it the most-desirable location on the internet for every Dutch seller to be mentioned on. Julien uses his platform to showcase an ongoing curation of rare and stand-out furniture, objects, art, and other curiosities that he spots on Marktplaats, which is the Dutch equivalent of Ebay. As the digital world still quite lacks the aura of the materialized world, Julien has stretched the horizon of his project once again, after doing his first live event 'Spullen waar we niks vanaf weten' in December 2012, together with architect Samir Bantal he now presents: 'De Gevonden op Marktplaats-Salon' taking place the 5th until the 8th of June. Where in 2012 Julien and Samir only did a small exposition/sale of curated goods, the two friends now will fill up a large space on the Looigersgracht 60 in Amsterdam, which they arranged in different thematic areas or rooms; from baroque, Memphis Milano to Hollywood Regency. [ Continue reading ]
We highly recommend the inspirational exhibition 'Dries Van Noten Inspirations' in the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris after visiting it last weekend. It is the very first exhibition devoted to the artist’s work and the broad field of inspirational sources for the designer of the Antwerp Six, making it an multidisciplinary feast for the senses. Dries Van Noten takes the spectator on an intimate journey into his artistic universe, revealing the singularity of his creative process which he illustrates with his various and numerous sources of inspiration. One receives an eye opening experience into the space within van Noten's mind or rather soul, bringing together the designer's men’s and women’s collections with iconic pieces from the museum’s fashion and textile collection. The show also includes photographs and videos, film clips, musical references, as well as artworks by renowned artists, from public and private collections, that have triggered the designer’s imagination throughout his life and career, making it one of the more extraordinary fashion exhibitions created till date. [ Continue reading ]
On the 8th of May the Toronto-based gallery Narwhal opened an extensive solo exhition of The Godfather of Japanese Eroticism, Toshio Saeki. His beautiful but at the same time sometimes repulsive artwork draws from the basement of a collective subconscious, depicting universal taboos through surreal narratives and dark humor. Filtering imagery from his photographic memory and childhood experiences through imagination and dreams, Saeki splits open a universally erotic world where iconic characters subject themselves to grotesque behaviors staged within traditional Japanese environments. [ Continue reading ]
