Tag: News

Escif (previously) gained a foothold in street art by portraying playful scenes that tap into themes of capitalism, politics, and society, often relying on humor to convey messages related current events and activism. Now, the prolific Valencia-based artist is producing his first-ever book, a whopping 600-page tome titled The Foundations of Harmony and Invention, with help from a fully-backed crowdfunding campaign. For this project, Escif leans into a sense of jocular absurdity present throughout his work, delving into his archive of paintings, photographs, murals, journeys, reflections, and more, which he describes as an “encyclopedic archive of images, poetry, and resistance.” He maintains an element of serious fun, as h

Merging organic forms with timeless craft, Susanna Bauer emphasizes incredible details in her intimate leaf sculptures. Working with a range of foraged species, from ginkgo to magnolia to oak, the artist (previously) meticulously stitches around the edges or fills in tiny incisions, creating intricate lacework compositions. A new monograph Susanna Bauer: IN LEAF, published by 5 Continents Editions, celebrates her use of natural ephemera to create elegant pieces exploring the relationship between strength and fragility.

School might be out for summer, but for those of us needing extra credit in the world of aesthetics, objects, and their meaning, the team at Crash Course is offering bite-sized lessons in art history. A new video series hosted by curator and educator Sarah Urist Green dives into the vast realm of visual culture to explore the techniques, people, and movements that have transformed how we see the world. More Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as

In the mid-20th century, during reconstruction following World War II, an architectural style emerged in the U.K. and Europe that favored bare, industrial building materials, a monochrome palette, and angular geometry. Both iconic and divisive, the hulking, concrete facades can be seen in the likes of London’s Barbican Centre or the National Theatre. In the U.S., think of Boston City Hall or Met Breuer. These stalwart structures represented modernity, resilience, and strength, serving as civic hubs and governmental centers—the opposite of “soft around the edges.” That’s where Olivia Broome’s project Brutalist Plants comes in, a repository of photographs featuring gardens and greenery around

Despite claims that CDs are raring back into the zeitgeist, only a small number of people today consume media through the slim, shiny discs. In an exhibition at Pace, artist Tara Donovan presents an ode to the outmoded, if not beloved objects through 11 towering works. The artist is known for her large-scale sculptures and installations of common, mass-produced objects like pencils, styrofoam cups, and Slinkys that consider accumulation and aggregation. More Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become

Marisa Adesman unsettles domestic stability by twisting common sights into the surreal. From her studio in St. Louis, the artist infuses still lifes evocative of the Dutch Golden Age with a strange animism: forks coil around lit taper candles, an upside-down terracotta pot appears to levitate, and an illustrated kitchen tile seamlessly morphs into the feathered flesh of a duck. The luminous oil paintings use food and dining to explore issues of gender, culture, and politics, including the invisible labor women historically have undertaken. More Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts

Inspired by Dada and Surrealism, Anja Brunt’s instinctive paper medleys evoke a sense of whimsy, spontaneity, and randomness. The Amsterdam-based graphic designer has been creating assemblages for six years as a way to relax. After falling in love with the many possibilities of the medium, she began to work intuitively, cutting and arranging vintage ephemera into iterations of bodies, buildings, and bold text. Brunt collects materials from every place imaginable. From papers she finds in chocolate boxes and antique playing cards to instruction leaflets and train tickets, the artist sources both aged pieces and contemporary media gathered from her daily life. More Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support

Since its establishment in 2016, the VH AWARD, hosted by Hyundai Motor Group, has offered a platform for emerging media artists to showcase their artistic expression and discuss diverse cultural and socio-political issues. Artists interested in applying for the 6th VH AWARD can submit proposals to produce audiovisual screen-based artworks that may include but aren’t limited to video art, moving images, film, motion graphics, computer animation, gaming, and more. Individuals or collectives whose work engages with the context of Asia may now submit applications through the VH AWARD website. More Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $5 per month. The article

Sam Rodriguez sorts his works into three categories: nouns, verbs, and typography. Nouns comprises his portraits that zero in on a singular person and their expressions, while verbs takes a step back to portray figures in action. Typography is more abstract and centers on letterforms and graphics informed by Rodriguez’s early forays into graffiti. These classifications help the San José-based illustrator “bring order to the chaos of making art,” freeing him to focus on the stories he wants to tell. More Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $5 per month. The article

“For me, the studio is a place of discovery,” says Jason Boyd Kinsella (previously). “It maybe sounds silly, but it’s a little bit like a Christmas morning when you get a gift, and you’re excited to open it because you don’t know what’s inside… Something is going to be revealed, and I am excited to see what it is.” The unexpected encounters Kinsella describes arise naturally in his Oslo studio as he conjures enigmatic characters. More Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $5 per month. The article