Little People

In one of my earlier posts entitled 'Mini Polaroid People' I found some cool photographs of tiny figurines, but I didn't know who the artist was. I'm chuffed as I think I've discovered who it is. The mystery artist is called Slinkachu.

He's a street artist who positions these little people around London. He creates amusing situations, photographs them then leaves them to survive in the big wide world. Slinkachu says, "It should be a universal kind of feeling that you get living in any big city when you're just one tiny person living among millions of people. It is that kind of feeling that most people feel at one time or another, where they feel a bit lost." He says, "I don't often check back on them once I've placed them on the street. If I do, I usually find that they have long gone." I'm not surprised- they're so tiny, I wouldn't mind betting that half of them get stuck to the bottom of people's shoes. It's a real shame as they'll either be destroyed or most people will walk by without noticing them. But I guess that's the charm of it. For the few people who do discover the real life situations, it's a rare wonder.

Luckily for us, Slinkachu posts the photos on his blog, allowing us to appreciate them, thereby making them immortal. Check out his blog at http://little-people.blogspot.com

Quirky Korea part 4: New Media

"Turn and Widen" is an international exhibition at the Seoul Museum of Art. It explores how new forms of media are turning into art and the influence this has had on the art world. The exhibition focuses on three different areas: light, communication and time.

The light part of the exhibition was my favorite as it was so visually striking. This exhibit is called Reincarnation by Li, Hui. In a dark room you find this bed covered in glowing red lights. It's quite eerie, but somehow the atmosphere creates a sense of calm.



This is a video of an installation called Augmented Sculpture Series by Pablo Valbuena. Different light patterns are beamed onto the white sculpture, showing how the light changes its appearance.

This hanging neon sculpture is from the time section. It's a piece called Sin Lugar (Nowhere) by Carlos Coronas. I'm not quite sure what it has to do with time but it was really impressive.




This is a collage from communication. It's made up of hundreds of video clips of newsreaders all over the world. It's intriguing watching these tiny heads chattering away, each voice blending into a blur of noise. The changing images create moving patterns of light that dance across the screen.

Overall, the exhibition was a mixed bag. Some of the exhibits were really magnificent and a lot of the interactive ones were good fun. However quite a few were rather wanky and a bit too 'experimental' for my liking.

Migration

Migration, a piece by Hellovon- a London based illustrator, is taking place across two cities. At the end of August a " flock of abstracted birds" first appears at the Truman Brewery in London. They then fly to New York, where they will reappear in September at the Espeis gallery in Williamsburg. It's a stunning piece and a great way to convey its meaning.

Robert Deyber Paintings

Rock and Roll

My Ass Is On The Line

The Chick Magnet

These are some pieces by the artist Robert Deyber. I discovered his work when I was in San Francisco looking around the Martin Lawrence Gallery. His work is all about visually interpreting well known cliches and euphemisms. He says, "In creating these works the challenge is to take whimsical imagery and attempt to render it in a contemplative and elegant manner without being obtuse. My goal is also to take something common and elevate it to the uncommon and create theater, an unfamiliar and unexplored scene."

It seems ironic, but by painting words as their literal meaning, he's thinking laterally. We're so used to these phrases that they just skim over us- we don't see them. When you look at his work, it makes you realize how quirky the English language is. You can see his work at http://www.martinlawrence.com

The House of Victor and Rolf

The exhibition at The Barbican is a fascinating showcase of the fashion designer's work. It's based around a giant dolls house where the dolls model miniature versions of their key pieces. Surrounding this, the exhibition is divided into sections representing each season of their work. Life size dolls display the clothes and in the background their catwalk shows are projected on the walls. At first it seems a little creepy- the dolls and their blank expressions can look a bit disturbing. But as you wonder round, learning about the inspiration behind each collection, you start to appreciate the theatrical nature and master craftsmanship of their work.

One of the most impressive collections is from A/W 2002-2003 entitled "Long Live The Immaterial (Bluescreen)". The designers adapted bluescreen technology into their work to "go beyond the product, to design something that is immaterial". The clothes contain elements of chromakey blue which when combined with a live video feed, seem to come to life. The models become walking screens, displaying moving footage from the urban and natural world, making them look almost 2D. You can see it below (it's 18 minutes long and gets better towards the end so it might be worth winding forward if you don't fancy watching the whole thing).

Viktor & Rolf Fall 02 Fashion Show (Full)
Uploaded by FBK1976

Among their other talents, I discovered that the duo are masters of self publicity. In 1996, early on in their career, Victor & Rolf were feeling frustrated with their status as novice artists. So, to gain some publicity the pair launched a fake fragrance entitled "Le Parfum". In the fashion world, a perfume is the symbol of a fashion houses success. They produced 250 limited edition bottles, that were sealed shut, with a publicity still to accompany it. Later that year, they rebelled against the dictatorship of the fashion industry by refusing to stage an A/W collection. During fashion week they plastered the streets of Paris with posters announcing "Victor and Rolf On Strike" which were also sent to magazine editors. There's nothing like kicking up a bit of a fuss to get you noticed...

Street Art

Each time I walk past the Tate Modern, I can't help but be blown away by it's outdoor exhibition of street art.  It's the first time they've used the facade of the building as a canvas for artists.  The sheer scale of it alone, is impressive.  My favourite piece is by JR, of the black man holding what on first impressions seems to be a gun, but when you look closer is a video camera.  It's not only technically brilliant with it's photographic quality, but it also challenges your negative assumptions.  

You can also take the Street Art walking tour, but I wouldn't recommend it.  I started it with my friends, feeling positive about the combination of culture and exercise the walk would bring.  But it was a big disappointment.  The first few pieces were nothing to write home about, and you could easily walk past them without a second thought.  The walk then took us through Borough, one of the most depressing, nondescript areas of London I've been to.  After that, we gave up and went in search for a cup of tea which was much more rewarding.

Forever 27

I saw this exhibition at the weekend when I was wondering through Camden.  It's at Proud Galleries and is about the "27 Club"- a group of rock stars who have all tragically died at the age of 27.   Apparently it has over 30 members- all musicians that have died at that age.  The exhibition focuses on the five most notorious rock stars: Kurt Cobain, Jimmy Hendrix, Brian Jones, Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison.  Featuring some of their most iconic images, the exhibition celebrates their extraordinary, short lived lives.  As you learn about each artist, you can't help but feel dispirited by the tragedies surrounding these talented people.  

What is it about the number 27 that has such a mystery around it?  I did a little Google research on it, and it is quite the strange one, with lots of meaning around it.  It's the cube of 3 (3x3x3), if you add up the numbers between 2 and 7, the sum is 27, there's 27 letters in the Hebrew, Greek and Spanish alphabet, 27 books in the New Testament, the moon takes 27 days to orbit the earth...the list goes on and on.  Anyway, it's quite bizarre and keeps popping up in all sorts of unexpected circumstances.  Google it and have a look. 

Psycho Buildings- Artists Take On Architecture

This is one of those brilliant exhibitions that's fun, fascinating and people friendly.  It's not too wanky as far as modern art goes.  There are 10 exhibits in total, ranging from an eerie village of 200 lit up dolls houses to a room frozen in an explosion.

The exhibition takes place both within and outside the Hayward Gallery, with the outdoor exhibits being more interactive.  The first is a boating lake that's been built on one of the terraces.  It's a surreal experience rowing above ground looking down on London.   The downfall is that we queued for almost an hour to have a go, which wasn't exactly worth the time.  So if you go and there's a long queue, just take a peek as you'll get the idea.

My favourite outdoor exhibit was the "Observatory, Air-Port-City" by Tomas Saraceno.  It's a transparent dome with a roof that allows people to walk about, giving the illusion that they're floating.  Inside, is a space that's protected by an air lock door which keeps the atmospheric pressure balanced.  You lie down, looking up at the people floating above being supported on the pillow of air.   The best way to describe it is to imagine yourself as an ant trapped inside a transparent ball.  A pretty cool experience for £10 I think...    

Frieda Kahlo

During my time in San Francisco I couldn't help but notice images of Frieda Kahlo's work all over the city.  Publicity for her exhibition at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art was plastered everywhere.  So being the sheep that I am, I thought I'd follow the crowds and check out what all the hype was about.  The queues were huge to get in and you had to get in with a special timed ticket.  But it was well worth the wait. 

 

Although her work isn't something I'd necessarily want hanging up in my room, it is amazing.  Her folkloric style is influenced by her Mexican roots and many of her paintings have a Surrealist feel to them.  Although she denied she was a Surrealist, stating "I never painted dreams.  I painted my own reality".  It's this reality about her life and thoughts, that makes her work so intriguing.  It's shockingly personal and you can't help but get sucked in by the tragedies in her life, wanting to discover more about her.  

Beggars to Exiles

While I was in San Francisco, I popped into this great little art gallery called the San Francisco Art Exchange. It's located on Geary Street which is crammed full of lots of lovely independent galleries (and obviously a dozen Starbucks- you just can't get away from them!!) This exhibition follows the Stones' evolution and captures the rock n roll lifestyle that you can only dream of having. It's based on the photography of Michael Cooper and Dominique Tarle. Michael Cooper captures images from 1966 to 1970, while Tarle's images are from 1971 when the band recorded "Exile On Main Street".

The exhibition not only features The Stones, but the women that influenced them including, Marianne Faithful and Anita Pallenberg (seen above). While we were looking around the gallery we got chatting to one of the art dealers who kindly showed us parts of the gallery that weren't available to the general public. We were taken to the store room that had stacks and stacks of original artwork from bands such as Pink Floyd to Yes. It was amazing!! The stuff in that room must have been worth millions. If only I could afford a square inch of one of those prints...

Found Magazine

I popped in to The Photographer's Gallery and came across this cool exhibition by Found Magazine. The idea behind the magazine is pretty simple. They collect things that people have found such as letters, photos and all sorts of objects. There's an entertaining mix of wierd, hilarious and beautiful stuff. You get to see snippets of stranger's lives and it's fascinating! I don't think the exhibition is there anymore but check out the website at http://www.foundmagazine.com/

Surreal Things: Surrealism and Design

This exhibition at the V&A museum is fascinating. It shows how Surrealism transformed from an art movement into the commercial world of theatre, film, fashion, interiors, architecture and advertising during the 1930s. Most of the pieces are truly bizarre, such as Salvador Dalí's famous Lobster Telephone and Oscar Dominguez's silk cushioned Wheelbarrow. There is an ongoing sense of wit and fantasy throughout the exhibition which I love. The highlight for me was the final section on advertising and magazine design. Some of the old covers of magazines such as Vogue and Harpers Bazaar are real works of art and so different from the typical magazine covers we see today. With work from artsists such as Salvador Dalí, Joan Miró, René Margritte and Man Ray, to name but a few, this exhibition is a real treat for any art and design lover.