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Fabian Oefner – Black Hole on Vimeo on Vimeo

via Fabian Oefner – Black Hole on Vimeo.

” “Black Hole” is a series of images, which shows paint modeled by the centripetal force. The setup is very simple: Various shades of acrylic paint are dripped onto a metallic rod, which is connected to a drill. When switched on, the paint starts to move away from the rod, creating these amazing looking structures.

The motion of the paint happens in a blink of an eye, the images you see are taken only millisecond after the drill was turned on. To capture the moment, where the paint forms that distinctive shape, I connected a sensor to the drill, which sends an impulse to the flashes. These specialized units are capable of creating flashes as short as a 1/40000 of a second, freezing the motion of the paint.”

AN: amazing shots and creative thinking to even conceive this form of photograpic artistic capture imagery.

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“The Wuppertal Northern Railway in Germany retired from its original function in the late 1990s and the ‘Nordtrasse’ was officially reopened as a cycle and pedestrian path in June 2010. The ten mile route is maintained by the Wuppertal Bewegung Association e.V., an Eingetrangener Verein or registered charity, that continues to look for exciting ways to use the space (which is sensible considering the success of New York’s High Line). Enter street artist MEGX.

As part of the redevelopment, Martin Heowold (MEGX) transformed 250 square meters of grey concrete into several giant toy bricks. MEGX is a street artist with a real interest in projects that can help people to perceive their surroundings more positively. In this case, paint has proved to be a relatively cheap way to transform a dull bridge into a talking point…..”

AN : do look up the reference article and see the before and after pictures. Public Art can be constructive and transformational !

http://goo.gl/uIwHE

via Street Artist MEGX creates LEGO Bridge on Abandoned Railway | Urban Ghosts |.

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……. “And it turns out it is indeed possible to make something resembling art on an Etch A Sketch. Mr Cassagnes’s death has thrown a light on those foolhardy few who didn’t throw away their toys in frustration. George Vlosich, an Ohio-based artist, has been creating professional work on the toy for years. His highly detailed pieces are astounding works of craftsmanship and patience, not least because even small errors in simple drawings cannot be fixed on an Etch A Sketch, and a simple shake of the toy wipes the whole slate clean.

Mr Vlosich is quick to list the challenges of his chosen medium. “You can’t exactly pick up your stylus and start somewhere else on the screen,” he says. And works on an Etch A Sketch are missing lighter tones; darker tones are achieved by retracing the same line over and over again, but “there’s only so dark you can go”.

When one of Mr Vlosich’s works is completed, it is often after 150 hours or more of hard graft—and some careful planning about how he will twist the two white knobs to wind his path over the easel. Still, he likes the restrictions of the medium. “It’s a challenge,” he says, “and it’s kind of cool to overcome the restrictions.”

Though some may see the easel as nothing more than a toy, serious collectors pay upwards of $10,000 for intricate drawings that push the strict limits of this strangely memorable toy. (To prevent the rough handling of the postal system from shaking away their hard work, professional Etch A Sketch artists will unhinge the back of the toy and remove any excess aluminium powder before dispatching their work.) Despite the limitations of the medium, Etch A Sketch art has an emotional resonance, expressing the struggle of taming a toy that touched 100m childhoods.”

AN : indeed, few will not have at least some familiarity with the Etch A Sketch toy…..but very, very few would have toiled with the toy as  described in the link with such wonderful results !

via Andre Cassagnes and the Etch A Sketch: Unshakable memories | The Economist.

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BBC News – Kelvin Okafor pencil drawings amaze art critics.

 

AN; Amazing talent ! Watch the brief video interview  in the BBC story in the link.

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“If you’re given an empty canvas and asked to paint your inner thoughts, the brush is likely to slither across it with abandon, giving form to your whims and fancies. Art is freedom and a conduit to express individualism. But, if the canvas turns into a priceless gold dial, the brush morphs into a scientific engraver, and your job is to carve microscopic details on it, being an artist takes on a new meaning. The fear of faltering on a tiny piece of metal, that a team of engineers and artists have already spent years labouring on, is at once unnerving and challenging.

Like a good timekeeper Vacheron Constantin rules out any uncertainty by using the past and the future to its advantage. So, while the age-old know how is passed on to the apprentices, they are also encouraged to invent. The young watchmakers undergo a four year training programme under the aegis of old-timers and pick up rare skills like assembling astronomic and navigational complications and understanding the metrical placement of the watch’s gear-train and escapement.

The 250-year-old tradition might be weighty enough to eclipse any effort at innovation and change, but it doesn’t. Just as watchmakers in the 18th century were referred to as ‘cabinotiers’, or craftsmen, today’s generation too treasures its association with art and innovates order to keep creativity at the fore. What’s more, the brand seats them in a little heaven near Geneva where they look out into grassy stretches, enjoy the cool breeze and hear chimes of cow-bells while they ideate. With pictures of their family and quotes on horology pinned around them, they are hunched over in a relentless passion for their product, and for life in general.

In 1994, the brand observed the 400th death anniversary of Gerardus Mercator, the architect of the world’s first flat geographic maps, by enamelling his creations on the dials. More scientific than creative though, but its success served as a yardstick for future interpretations. Ten years later, the Metiers d’ Art was born to preserve traditional arts like enamelling and engraving.

The first series recreated the historic journeys of Marco Polo and Christopher Columbus. For this, the dial was diagrammed with the geographic locations of their adventures, in their latitudinal exactness. The art at play here is ‘Grand Feu’ which involves placing the visual composition on the dial, dot by dot with a fine tipped brush. The movement too blends with the theme, as the hour glides across 120 degrees like a ship in sea-tide and the minutes inscribed on the lower enamel dial resemble markings of a nautical compass.

 

The Metiers d’ Art Les Dragons Collection embodies the Chinese sacred symbol through a Guilloche motif which results from an alternating use of two machines, one to engine-turn straight lines and the other to rotate the work- piece on its axis for engraving curves. For the first time, this created non-geometric lines that ran erratically over the colourfully metallic dials, leaving a dramatic visual effect.

 

The Metiers d’Art La Symbolique des Laques roped in artisans from Kyoto’s oldest lacquer house, Zohikoto, to unleash on its watch-faces, the art of ‘maki-e’. This involves sprinkling gold and silver dust on moist black lacquer to define the delicate motifs of flora and fauna. To complement its delicate patterns, the 1003 calibre movements were done in 14-carat white gold and skeletonised exquisitely in its nucleus. But, the most unusual Metiers is Les Masques that replicates extinct tribal masks from Geneva’s Barbier Mueller Museum. As if afloat, the masks sit on translucent glass as the calibre 2460 movement stands concealed underneath.

To boost such ancient crafts, the brand has set up the Cercle 250 project that generates awareness with corporate sponsors. To cut a long story short, Vacheron has committed itself to preserving what’s good and creating what’s better, and has succeeded each and every time.”

AN : totally inspiring ! The art of anyone who creates and is a craftman / woman at their chosen passion , indeed sets them and their work apart in this  era of repetition and exact reproductions. What a strong credo : “ preserve what is good and create what is better ” !

http://goo.gl/QLrtA

 

via World’s oldest watchmaker in operation: Vacheron Constantin – Business Today.

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“Artist and light sculpture pioneer Makoto Tojiki is one of the most brilliant sculptures in modern day. He mainly works with light, and what fits better in a futuristic home than a couple of innovative light sculptures, right? His artwork, called No Shadow, has become a viral sensation and can only be described as a cord carbon copy of the holographic system. Standing at a distance will make it appear as such, and even if you walk up to it to take a closer look, you will be amazed by the accuracy that Makoto managed to implement into his sculptures with just a few lights.”

AN : the intersection and integration of Art, Light and Technology are vividly displayed here.

http://goo.gl/3H8Qg

via Mind Twisting Futuristic Holographic Light Sculptures.

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“So let me suggest 12 artistic criteria for judging the art of particular leaders. To appreciate their leadership, we should ask about its …

Intent. Do they make an express commitment to achieve certain exceptional ends?

Focus. Do they highlight certain features of the business environment over others to separate the important from the trivial?

Skill. Do they demonstrate mastery or virtuosity in critical aspects of business; do they possess a foundation for understanding people, organizations, and the way work is accomplished?

Form. Do they combine their communications, structures, policies, etc. into a unified, coherent whole?

Representation. Do they convey meanings, in nonobvious and captivating ways, as opposed to giving simple directives and making straightforward declarations of fact?

Imagination. Do they make surprising and unconventional departures from the ordinary that create a new sense of awareness or understanding?

Authenticity. Do they present a stylistic distinctiveness that is an honest expression of their individuality and personal beliefs?

Engagement. Do they offer complex and challenging information that stimulates intellectual effort and imaginative contemplation?

Pleasure. Do they provide emotionally rewarding experiences that are shared among members of a group, promoting stronger bonds and fostering personal fulfillment?

Human significance. Do they facilitate personal reflection about who one is, what is most important, what is culturally valuable, and what is possible?

Context. Do they take actions that are commensurate with institutional practices, customs, demands, and norms, and communicate in a style that is understandable and appropriate?

Criticism. Do they welcome discourse and evaluation from others regarding how well they have performed and the amount of appreciation they should be afforded?”

AN : Full article worth the read . Insightful and thought provoking.

http://goo.gl/Ip8Kd

via Every Leader Is an Artist | The Creativity Post.

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” eL Seed, a 31-year-old French Tunisian artist, has just used his distinctive style of Arabic street art, which he calls “calligraffiti,” to decorate the tallest minaret in Tunisia with a verse from the Quran that tackles intolerance.”Street art is not new to Tunisia, but it was much more small scale before the revolution,” he said. “I would do a wall in a community and people in the neighborhood would come along and help me.

“In the beginning I would work when no-one was around, but as I got more well-known, people would invite me to decorate their walls.”

After the revolution in January 2011, street art was possible on a bigger scale, he said.

“Before the revolution art in Tunisia was quite bourgeois, but if you put big pieces of art on walls it is for everyone,” said eL Seed, now living in Montreal, Canada.

“The revolution pushed people to be more creative because before they were scared — and now they have more freedom.”

eL Seed said he believed both the artists and the religious extremists were showing intolerance and he wanted to bring a message of tolerance.

“My goal was to bring people together, which is why I chose these words from the Quran,” said eL Seed. “I like graffiti because it brings art to everyone. I like the fact of democratizing art. “

via Tunisian artist graffitis minaret, fights intolerance – CNN.com.

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“The creative act is not performed by the artist alone.”

In 1964, Arthur Koestler penned his celebrated classic The Act of Creation, a fine addition to other notable hypotheses on how creativity works and where good ideas come from. Seven years prior, in April of 1957, French Surrealist artist Marcel Duchamp spoke at the Convention of the American Federation of Arts in Houston, Texas, addressing the same subject in a short paper he presented, entitled The Creative Act. The session included two university professors, an anthropologist, and Duchamp himself, listed in the program as “mere artist.”

 A decade later, Aspen Magazine recorded Duchamp reading the paper, and the audio is now available as part of a fantastic compilation featuring several Duchamp readings and interviews.The full transcript, found in Robert Lebel’s 1959 tome Marcel Duchamp (public library, can be read below, with highlights.

via The Creative Act: Marcel Duchamp’s 1957 Classic, Read by the Artist Himself | Brain Pickings.

AN : do listen to the audio reading…

http://goo.gl/MM11N

 

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“Korean artist Lee Kyu-Hak creates beautiful mixed-media paintings (mosaics?) by wrapping small wooden wedges with colored newsprint that mimic the brushstrokes of famous artists. Lee’s artworks appear mostly to be reinterpretations of pieces by Vincent van Gogh, but I think I see a few original compositions as well. See much more over at Yesong gallery.”

AN : a plethora of imagination. Re-creation of some well known art pieces in a very innovative fashion…for that matter, the entire blog that this comes from has a vast canvas of artistic creativity….

http://goo.gl/NwGxQ

via Colossal | A blog about art and visual ingenuity..