BOLD SHAPES

I've been seeing shapes everywhere. ..and I love it. Take a look at some inspiration I've been drawing from lately!

My roommate and I went to MOMA this weekend when I remembered how much I adored Louise Nevelson's work.

We also saw one of my all time favorite artists, Egon Schiele. Right now, there's a gorgeous German Expressionist showing going on. The shapes the colors take along with the line quality is so brilliant.

A big star in the gallery world lately is Tara Donovan. You may have heard of her work before. She takes a lot of everyday objects and turns them into works of art. This one, with mylar. (aka what your chip bag is made from!)

I just found this today off of honestlywtf. Thanks for posting artist, Camila do Rosário's work! Reminds me a little of a project I did last year for a drawing class!

I can't stop admiring, this illustration done by ray morimura found on ffffound!

Found a new favorite blog, dos family. I really would love to paint a room like this someday.

I came across artist, Rachel Castle a while ago, but I can't stop looking at her work. It's so simple and quirky.

Lastly, the only reason why I know about this designer is because when I attended an Eleni's event with the design studio I work for (we design for Eleni!) Gossip Girl star, Kelly Rutherford was there launching her new cookies and handbags while wearing an adorable dress such as this one by Lisa Perry.

Sincerely,

Sarah

20 X 200

Affordable Art? Is that real? If you don't have money spilling out of your pockets and you respect and want to see good looking art hanging on your walls...THIS COULD BE FOR YOU. I mean your childhood crayon drawings are free and one of the most beautiful things your mother has ever seen, but that's not what I'm talkin' out.

At an art fair a couple weeks ago called Pulse I passed a booth handing out free tote bags full of mysterious goodies, so obviously I picked one up and they happened to be from this company called 20 X 200.

you have to check them out

Catch your eye? Hope so!

Sincerely,

Sarah

top notch displays

I was so happy to have my family in town this weekend!

It was my brother's spring break, so they paid the Big Apple a visit!

They all really wanted to go ice skating at Rockefeller Plaza..and guess what's nearby?

Anthropologie!

All of these are made up of dyed wine corks! Can you imagine how long that would take?

...and across the street is J. Crew. I love the lines that the coffee mugs make!

Such amazing craftsmanship. Hope this inspired!

Sincerely,

Sarah

black & white admirers

My friend, Olivia introduced me to this artist a couple of days ago and I had to share his work with you! His name is Nicholas Nixon. You can see more of his work here.

There is so much intense care and love in each piece. My family is coming to visit this week and so I thought this was appropriate for the time. Absolutely stunning. Wouldn't you agree?

Sincerely,

Sarah

pencil & paper

Sketching in NY is so great. There are so many places to people watch around here...the subway, at the museum, in coffee shops or bookstore. I need to draw more. I miss it.

Curious to see earlier drawings of mine?

You can see more on my student portfolio site, http://ccad.digication.com/SarahEDeford!

I'll be posting more soon!

Happy Monday :)

Sincerely,

Sarah

The little things

For the past couple weeks I've been completely reliant on art fairs. The Armory Show and Pulse were some of the two that we happened to attend...this piece below is made out of packaging tape! (check out his work!)

....of course Five Guys. not a regular in my diet, but definitely a much needed treat!!

My best friend is in town!! She is one of the greatest people I know.

The very tall buildings & beautiful skyline thanks to the Staten Island Ferry is such a little thing I am so thankful for.

Thanks for these two panorama shots of the city Lindsay Schell!

Have a great weekend readers!!

Sincerely,

Sarah

unwrap and bundle

Like Ashleigh's last post, this sculpture is all kinds of repetition. For a sculpture class, I designed and created this synthetic piece to embody the idea of communication and human interaction.

We all constantly fail to think about so many temporary items. Take straws for example; how many times do you take for granted that small piece of plastic poking out of your lid? It comes and goes so quickly after you're done using it. Especially walking down the streets, I've really started to notice the amount of small wrappers and straws shriveled up on the sides of the sidewalk.

They were such an easy object to find in bulk. Thank you Gordon Food Service. What about how many people you pass everyday on the street? Think about their past. You'll never know. Walking past people is so temporary. Cities are made up of people who possess these temporary points in time.

By bundling them together, the light is able to pass through. The light representing conversations, moments in time, the opacity of human communication.

I took the straw with its beautiful shade of white, cut it, grouped it up into a bundle, glued it together and boarded it up with 4 pieces of wood.

It makes a skyline of sorts. Don't you think?

The communication of light, ideas, beauty.

I hope it inspires.

Sincerely,

Sarah

reading and writing

Read and make art.

Remember those fabric pieces I showed you earlier? Well I made a book describing each piece..sort of like a journal. Actually I didn't make the book, just made it my own! Instead of just writing in a journal, I wanted to enhance it and make the piece a little more unique. I pasted the photos on one page and talked about it on the opposite page. I bought the book for a dollar at the library right next door to our apartment. So great! You can find them just about anywhere... Take a look!

I wanted to have the journal match the rest of pieces, that's why there are so many embellishments. You don't of course have to add this much! You can glue / hot glue your pieces together to make it easier, but I sewed each piece with a different colored thread. I also used sheer fabric in parts to see the words underneath. Make one yourself! Choose a book that suites who you're making the journal for or whatever purpose it is supposed to have. You might be surprised what you can find! Check out this group that made books they found into collages.

Enjoy!
Sincerely,
Sarah

cut up

Recently, I came across this Brooklyn artist, Mia Pearlman. Her beautiful installation work transforms any space into a foreign land. Made out of cut paper, you can imagine the insane amount of time she has to spend on each piece. The negative space and organic shapes her pieces create imitates sea life or lace.

Her piece reminded me of Ashleigh and I's apartment back in Columbus! We easily transformed our drab living room into a space of creativity and beauty.

So many of the finds in our apartment came from local flea markets and thrift stores...more photos to show off in the future!

Ashleigh happened on how to make this flowerlike shapes (tutorial link & photos below) from the web, but we added our own touch by creating the large shape as a whole and also expanding them onto the ceiling. Help from our lovely friends was obviously necessarily :) as we nailed and tacked them to the wall. Some of them are attached by string while others are attached on their own.

Many a photo shoot has happened in front of them ... this from my 20th birthday with my love :)

The following photos are taken from the lovely blog, MADE. A tutorial on how to make them can be found there. She also used a variety of different colors to spice up the look. Ashleigh and I are partial neutrals, so we kept ours all white...but look at how great the following photos look!

Enjoy this spring inspired look & happy Monday!

Sincerely,

Sarah