4.30.2010


Good weekend, everyone. Wherever you may roam.







:217project no. 27; image diana murphy, afternoon in morningside park

4.27.2010

relief



Yet another obsession of mine: architectural detail. These are a few snaps from my burgeoning collection — I took these pics early one morning a couple of weeks ago. The sidelong a.m. light is killer.























:217project no. 26; images dianamuse

4.26.2010

a tree grows on henry street







I was in Brooklyn this past Friday morning, just so you know. As I inched my way through traffic on Henry Street (Brooklyn loses many points for its narrow streets, useless crossing guards at every corner and unoccupied driveways — I mean, really), the loveliest red foliage caught my eye. One parking space later, I was happily, obsessively capturing as much of the red-flora/blue-backdrop goodness that I could cram into whatever time I didn't really have — all the while considering its similarity to Emilio's runner-up collection from Runway's finale the night before. Such a pretty palette.





















:foliage images dianamuse; project runway images new york magazine

4.25.2010

call him ahab



Last August, Matt Kish took on a whale-size project of his own making: Draw an original artwork from a page of Melville's Moby Dick every day.

The illustration above takes inspiration from page 18:

Depend upon it, landlord, that harpooneer is a dangerous man.





:image matt kish, acrylic paint, collage and ink on found paper, august 23, 2009

4.23.2010





Creative and colorful weekend, everyone. Wherever you may be.









:kate woodliff, rose mandala, fabric collage, 35" x 33", 2008; kate woodliff at ada gallery

4.22.2010

25:217








:217project; image dianamuse, green day

4.12.2010

24:217








:217project; image dianamuse, saturday twilight at the met

4.10.2010

visionaries: keith carter





In Keith Carter's book, Fireflies, a compilation of his portraiture of children, Carter describes his work as a “world of truths and half truths where the inhabitants might be amiss or fallen from grace; they inhabit a peaceful kingdom where everything that falls deserves a chance to be restored."

Chicago Art Magazine recently reviewed Keith Carter's new show at Catherine Edelman, Seen and Unseen:

Discourse between the small, intimate, and whimsical, and the introspective and macabre make for a compelling cerebral trip to a different place and time. A place where nothing is as it seems, somber children engage the onlooker with pensive stares, and a highly symbolic narrative slowly unravels only with further study.










Heavily influenced by Paul Strand, Carter’s work is about the celebration of life’s imperfections. Other influences come from his own childhood growing up in Louisiana and Texas. At first glance, the work seems traditional and contemplative in nature, the imagery is quiet, like a low hum; naturally lit and toned, the photos blur the edges between fantasy and reality. Aptly playing with scale and selective focus compositionally, Carter is a gentle guide as he leads us into this world he created for the viewer to revel in.










Following is the introduction from Keith Carter's Artist Talk video for the exhibition (the gallery's complete Artist Talk series can be found here):





Keith Carter's Seen and Unseen is on view at Catherine Edelman through May 1. Regrettably, I won't see the show in person, but one of my great pals is going in my stead next week. (Seen and unseen, indeed.)






:images keith carter, seen and unseen; catherine edelman gallery; exhibition catalog

4.09.2010


Good weekend, everyone. Wherever you may be — or wish you were.






:image via the best part

4.07.2010

beauty pageant


I can't stop! I'm completely obsessed! These are the precious few days of spring when the magnolia trees are in bloom — and I cannot get enough. I confess that a few things might be slipping through the cracks:

Are we having any dinner? You had lunch, didn't you?

Weren't we scheduled to meet today at 10:00? Gosh, I'm sorry. Let's push it to next week. You'll be fine. Really.

Woman, where's my Super Suit?* Oh, just wear what you wore yesterday. Trust me. No one'll be the wiser.

People, don't you know the MAGNOLIA TREES ARE IN BLOOM!




I'm working on a photo pageant — a veritable Project Runway of Full Frontal Flora — featuring (you guessed it) the magnificent magnolias of NYC. Stay tuned. They are spectacular.





:images dianamuse
* for spcm

brood



Tennessee resident and flickr contributor Lucycat began photographing the progress of bluebird nest boxes in her yard in 2004. She kept her first complete documentation in 2005 at flickr.

(Take a deep breath and ponder the utter beauty, the exquisite shape and color. Exhale. Carry on.)




Of course, you have to witness the results — one! two! three! four! five! — right here.

(Awesome little guys.)




As of July 2009, there have been 79 bluebirds that got their start in Lucycat's nest boxes. She "encourages anyone who has the appropriate habitat to put up nest boxes for these beautiful birds. They can definitely use the help, and they make wonderful neighbors."







What (or whom) are you incubating and brooding over this spring?





:images lucycat; for joanna

4.06.2010

design kudos



Design student Linna Xu's brilliantly conceived and executed package design for Ilford film stopped me in my tracks. Visually, the package is meant to resemble a Twins Lens Reflex Camera from the 1800’s, which was one of the earliest types of cameras to use
120 film. The package includes assembly instructions and all of the necessary materials for easy reassembly as a fully functioning pinhole camera.

More photos and story here.


















:images and story via the dieline

4.05.2010

23:217


I enjoy the idea of taking a photo of someone taking a photo. I gave it a go recently in the African Mammals room at The American Museum of Natural History. Fun.





:217project; image dianamuse, amnh

4.04.2010

transfigurations



For seven years, Michael Lundgren worked exclusively on his Transfigurations series. He began the work in 2000 as a graduate student at Arizona State University. The project culminated in a monograph published in 2008. From the artist's statement:

Borne from a long-term relationship with the desert, these pictures refer to the heart of these places, not by description, but by metaphor. If I have learned anything from Postmodernism, it is that photographs are not the thing itself. These photographs are a lust for the primitive, for what lies behind personality. They are a search to understand beauty and terror, which are bound to one utter certainty — change.














:images michael lundgren

4.03.2010

22:217


This happy, accidental tabletop arrangement is so packed with print and pattern goodness, I couldn't walk by without taking a quick shot and sharing it with you, my dearests.






:217project; image dianamuse

21:217








:217project; image dianamuse, decorative detail from the great cathedral; easter weekend schedule at st. john the divine

4.01.2010

20:217


A big adventure day in our fair city. Took many photos. This is one of them.





:217project; image dianamuse, this morning on the 1 train, looking out at the elevated platform on 125th