Monday, March 28, 2011

Juan Francisco Casas


At first glance, you might think these works of art are photographs. Surprisingly, they are not.

It is hard to believe, but these are drawings done by a ballpoint pen! Make note of the detail!

Casas was inspired for the idea three years ago by pictures he took of friends from wild nights out. He recaptures the images onto canvases measuring up to 10 feet-- using exclusively blue Bic ballpoint pens.






Casas has a B.A., M.F.A. and PhD from the University of Granada in Spain. His work has been featured in long lists of exhibits, books, magazines, and collections worldwide. 
His style is not limited to ballpoint pen, either. Casas is also a contemporary painter.


To see more images of his drawings and paintings and read his credentials visit his website here
** Make sure you switch your language from Spanish to English in the top right corner!

Aren't these insanely awesome?

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

David Kawena

If you're like me, then you love classic Disney movies. David Kawena's illustrations of our favorite Disney male characters aren't bashful, to say the least. It's interesting to see artist's interpretations of cartoons we know and love and turn them into mature portraits.

Enjoy, everyone! ;)

Gaston- Beauty & the Beast

Aladdin

Kokoum- Pocahontas 

Prince Naveen- Princess & the Frog

Dr. Sweet- Atlantis

Prince Adam- Beauty & the Beast

Peter Pan

Prince Phillip- Sleeping Beauty

Hercules

David- Lilo & Stitch

Tarzan 

Prince Eric- Little Mermaid
Those are some sexy cartoons-- They're packing some serious heat! Who's your favorite??

see more on dumage.com  & Kawena's profile on deviantART

Jeff Jordan





"My favorite “ism” is surrealism. I think that once artists learned to paint the world around them – call it ‘realism’– it was a short step to paint imaginary realities. Maybe the Greeks were the first surrealists, with all those stories about centaurs, mermaids, satyrs, and so on. Mythical creatures, visions of heaven and hell, dreams and nightmares – artists have always painted realistic images of worlds which never were. Surrealism has existed in various forms nearly as long as realism, and I consider it to be the second “ism.” --Jeff Jordan, 2004 








What do you think about Jordan's surrealism paintings? 

all pictures and bio from www.jeffjordanart.com/

Joining the MACteam

As mentioned before, I had to find a client and do their PR for my Media Writing course. I showed some interest in the Monongalia Arts Center, The MAC. I even went to the gallery opening and networked with a few heads and finally met Ro.

Well last week I finally had my meeting with the director, Ro Brooks. It lasted FOUR hours! We were having fun chatting about art and the community, the time seemed to slip by us. We talked about my assignment and what I'm going to be doing for The MAC. We bounced ideas off each other and our creativity was flowing. Talks of managing social media, helping coordinate events, writing press releases and newspaper articles were in the works. Possible open-mic nights, auditions for MACglee, and different types of classes were also talked about.

"Here-- you'll be needing this for your green tea!" -Ro Brooks
The meeting was just last week and we are still working on particular items but I'm glad to say that I'm joining forces with the "Macadoodle," as Ro calls it, until I graduate in December. I'm anxious to learn and gain experience from this opportunity!

Stay tuned for updates!

Friday, March 11, 2011

Irina Werning


via irinawerning.com 

Photography series titled Back to the Future.  In 2010, Irina Werning started an ongoing project that recreates the past by having her subjects pose exactly the way they were in their old photos. Places them in the same setting and even dresses them to the tee.
She states:
...To me, it’s imagining how people would feel and look like if they were to reenact them today... A few months ago, I decided to actually do this. So, with my camera, I started inviting people to go back to their future.
Werning is from Buenos Aires and has studied at several accredited institutions including Westminister University in London. In 2007, she was selected for the Joop Swart Masterclass (World Press Photo Organization)











What do you think?

Thursday, March 10, 2011

First Time's a Charm!

This past Saturday I attended my first art gallery opening. It was at the Monongalia Arts Center (the MAC) here in Morgantown. I went with my longtime best friend, Jack.

We walked between the giant columns of the historic building and through the lobby.

Right then, we both acknowledged the fact that we were newbies, so we took a deep breath and entered the Benedum gallery. The white walls were adorned by various photographs of different subjects. Fourteen artist's work were on display.
View of the photographs (picture taken later in the week)

Some images included Appalachian wildlife, abandoned factories, portraits, landscapes of foreign countries, our beloved Mountaineer Football players in action, and even the wreckage of the Pentagon attack from September 11, 2001. I felt a balanced mixture of 'overwhelmed' and 'admiration.'

The space in between the was full of chit-chatting bystanders who were too, enjoying to works of the artists. Most artists were from Morgantown so many were networking and sipping red wine.

Fragile Places postcard
for the exhibit
After we grabbed a glass of wine for ourselves, we walked up the marble stairs to see the next exhibit. The work of Raquel Martina Lopez titled Fragile Places (Lugares Fragiles) was set up different than the last.
The theme was women as a place. Half a dozen clay sculptures of native women were placed throughout the room. They all laid in various positions. Brown and grey leaves lined the perimeter of the room and around the sculptures. About 50 or so tiny houses made of black and white paper peeked out of the leaves.
From the MAC websiteThe delicate and weak houses made of paper are on the hard and heavy ceramic woman that becomes a mountain...The breast becomes a mountain — arms becomes the street of the valley...Rivers and roads come and go between the white and black of the paper. She uses paper to represent dreams: Dreams are made of paper — they are not strong, but fragile. The light builds the dreams.

Cheering to a successful first-time art gallery opening!!
Overall, I feel like the exhibit opening went really well and it was a great event for me to experience. I was able to meet some interesting people and spoke with the director of the MAC, Ro Brooks. I got to see how the gallery operated in action.

Both exhibits will remain in the gallery throughout the month of March. I really suggest checking them out if you have a chance-- Even if it's in between classes or after lunch.

BECHA



The Serbian artist (her actual name is Vesna Pesic) harmonizes the use of graphic design and mixed media to produce vivid collages. Each piece portray mixture of human and surreal visuals. 






Visit her website http://www.becha.me/ to view more illustrations and browse her professional platform on the Behance Network.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Mati Klarwein

 "The most famous unknown artist"
(1932-2002)

circa 1956
Klarwein is a unique artist from an unusual background. He is a German native. However at the age of two his family moved to Palestine (current Israel). Throughout his lifetime he has lived in 20 countries: Paris, New York, Spain, Italy, Morocco, India, Kenya, Jamaica and Cuba- to name a few.

Klarwein lived in New York City for many years, hanging and partying in lofts with other many notorious artists of the 60s era, such as Andy Warhol and Jimi Hendrix.

Even though he lived a legendary life full of voyage and parties, unfortunately Klarwein lost his battle to cancer. He passed during the night at age 69 in 2002.



His diverse travels and psychedelic spirit manifest themselves in his work:

Visit
Jimi Hendrix
New York Angel
Athens Angel
Nativity

Explore more of Mati Klarwein's legacy at this site