Eye On Design: Steuben Glass Vase By Frederick Carder

Jul8

steuben glass vase photo by gail worley
Photos By Gail

This striking, six-pronged Green Glass Vase (circa 1931) is part of a small group of modernist art glass by Frederick Carder for the Steuben Division of Corning Glass Works. Carder was a glass blower, born and trained in England. He preferred traditional forms and elaborate ornament, but like many of his contemporaries active in the late 1920s, he responded to the international interest in abstraction and avant-garde experimentation by incorporating sharp angles, asymmetry, and bright color combinations into some of his designs.

steuben glass vase photo by gail worley
Installation View

Photographed in the Art Institute, Chicago.

T-Shirt Sale: The Distancing

Jul7

the distancing t shirt artwork

Oh, how timely is this T-Shirt parody of the undead Grady Sisters from Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining? Designed by Boggs Nicolas, the shirt is shown here in dark (blood) red, but it’s available in over a dozen different colors, and in sizes and styles to please everyone. Best of all, The Distancing T-Shirt is here just in time for all of your summer quarantining needs! You can pick one up for yourself or as a gift for a fan, at This Link! Prices start at just $19.95!

the distancing t shirt artwork detail

Modern Art Monday Presents: Charles Sheeler, The Artist Looks at Nature

Jul6

the artist looks at nature photo by gail worley
Photo By Gail

Contrary to its title, this intriguing and enigmatic self-portrait, The Artist Looks at Nature (1943),  shows the artist ignoring the brightly lit landscape in front of him. Nature, as depicted here, is surreal, with inexplicable discrepancies of scale and perspective. The fields suggest the terrain around Sheeler’s Connecticut home, while the massive walls recall Hoover Dam, which the artist photographed in 1939. In the painting, Sheeler works intently on a monochromatic drawing of an antiquated stove, which is based on a photograph he took in 1917. Yet despite these deliberate references to his own work, the painting’s meaning is ambiguous. Perhaps Sheeler wished to evoke the many vistas open to an artist, the literal and figurative landscapes of the mind.

Photographed in the Art Institute, Chicago.

Pink Thing Of The Day: Abandoned Pink Cowboy Hat

Jul3

pink cowboy hat photo by gail worley
All Photos By Gail

Confession: there is often a hidden agenda with regard to my daily walks — I’m looking for stuff to blog about. Since I’m not going to any events, exhibits, restaurants, or shows I must seek inspiration from what I can photograph from the streets. I am rarely disappointed. Behold today’s Pink Thing, found resting amid a group of furniture that had been set out curbside for the garbage truck. I spotted this pristine and fancy Pink Cowboy Hat from the corner, and moved closer to investigate.

pink cowboy hat photo by gail worley

First Sighting

pink cowboy hat photo by gail worley

I certainly wouldn’t recommend taking anything from the trash in this current environment (#covidlife) but I’m glad I was able to preserve it for the blog!

pink cowboy hat photo by gail worley

Spotted on East 3rd Street Near Avenue B, in NYC’s East Village.

SwaddleDesigns Masks: Breathable, Fashionable and On Sale!

Jul2

swaddle designs mask

A few weeks into lockdown here in NYC, I realized that the KN95 masks I paid $10 each for (and waited weeks for them to arrive from China) would need to be supplemented with many additional masks that could also double as fashion accessories: because we are going to be wearing masks for a long, long time. Just being serious. I was able to find some colorful cloth masks while visiting the Berkshires a few weeks ago, but otherwise it seems like stylish, seasonally-appropriate masks are only available to pre-order, and who wants to wait for something you need right now?  The great news is that, just in time for the 4th of July, SwaddleDesigns has all of their Made in the USA face masks on sale, starting at the low price of just $4.99. What a bargain.

swaddle designs pink mask

Made from 2-layers of double-napped cotton flannel, these SwaddleDesigns non-medical Cotton Flannel Masks yield better particle filtration effectiveness than cloth masks made using cotton knit, cotton muslin, gauze, and polyester fleece fabrics. The double-napped cotton flannel (mechanical brushing on both sides of the cloth) increases the degree of randomness and enhances the filtration effectiveness. I probably don’t have to tell you that wearing a KN95 in the summer is like strapping a sauna to your face, but these cotton masks are going to keep your face cooler and drier.

swaddle designs mask

swaddle designs mask

With so many masks on backorder, the good news is that the SwaddleDesigns masks are available and ready to ship right now! Shop the above designs and more, all on sale, at This Link.

swaddle designs mask
Stopping the Spread of Corona Virus: You Are Doing It Right.

Eye On Design: Bench IIa by Max Lamb

Jul1

bench IIa by max lamb photo by gail worley
All Photos By Gail

The Bench I I a (2017) by designer Max Lamb is one of the first prototypes made from solid textile board, a material composed of waste cotton.  Lamb created this piece for Really, a Danish company that focuses on upcycling discarded textile waste.

bench IIa by max lamb photo by gail worley
Installation View

Really mills used textiles into small fibers that are then bonded together with a special agent. The dark blue color of this bench comes from the cotton material, which is discarded denim. The bench is at once a functional object and a conversation starter regarding the reuse of waste materials. The museum installation includes a video (iPad screen seen above) in which Lamb discusses the making of the Really collection of furniture.

bench IIa by max lamb photo by gail worley

Photographed in the Art Institute, Chicago.

Yoshiki-Inspired Yoshikitty Dominates Global Sanrio Character Ranking!

Jun30

yoshikittty wins awards

Yoshikitty Defeats Hello Kitty To Win #1 In France, Germany, And Brazil, #2 China, And #6 Worldwide

In 2020 Sanrio Character Ranking.

Here’s a bit of global news that will surely take your mind off the current troubling state the world, especially in you ar a fan of Japanese Rock Star Yoshiki and also Hello Kitty. The final results of the 2020 Sanrio Character Ranking (yes, it is a thing) were announced in early June and Yoshikitty has defeated Hello Kitty to win #1 Sanrio character in France, Germany, and Brazil, as well as, #2 in China. This is obviously a BFD. The Sanrio Character Ranking competition grows more intense every year, and the 2020 event allowed fans from all over the world to vote on a selection of Sanrio’s 80 most-popular characters. Yoshikitty’s massive international support brought the beloved character to #6 worldwide overall, placing in the Top 10 for the fifth straight year in a row. To view the full Sanrio Character Ranking voting results of the 80 characters, visit: This Link!

Based on Yoshiki, rock star, composer and the leader of heavy metal superstars  X Japan, Yoshikitty was created in 2009 by the original Hello Kitty designer Yuko Yamaguchi as the first Hello Kitty character to be modeled after an actual living person.  Did your head just explode yet? Because mine did.

Yoshiki (who is a babe) commented, “Thanks to everyone who voted for Yoshikitty. I’m so happy to see the support from fans not just in Japan but also from around the world.” Yoshiki, who composed the official theme song for Hello Kitty, teased fans with the idea that “Maybe I’ll compose a theme song for Yoshikitty to say ‘thank you’ for all the support. Not only that, I would like to continue delivering wonderful music, so that I can give back to everyone as much as possible.”

Squee.

yoshiki and yoshikitty

Yoshiki and Yoshikitty, Having Some Fun.

Modern Art Monday Presents: Giorgio De Chirico, The Philosopher’s Conquest

Jun29

the philosophers conquest photo by gail worley
Photo By Gail

Giorgio de Chirico’s work represents an unexpected form of classicism in early avant-garde painting. The Philosopher’s Conquest  (1913 – 14), one of six in a series, combines a Mediterranean cityscape with familiar still-life objects that appear in many of the artists’s paintings, including a classical arcade, a cannon and cannonballs, a clock, chimney and a train. The stage set is an Italian piazza, virtually deserted except for the menacing, shadowy figures outside the edge of the scene. Rendered with a matter-of-fact — though intentionally crude — precision, de Chirico’s paintings seem rife with meaning but are resolutely enigmatic. Indeed, by juxtaposing incongruous objects, he sought to produce a metaphysical art, one that “resembles . . . the restlessness of myth.”

Photographed in The Art Institute, Chicago.

Pink Thing of The Day: Pink As F*ck Coffee Mug!

Jun26

pink as fuck coffee mug photo by gail worley
Photos By Gail

This week’s Pink Thing happens to be related to another recent Pink Thing, but that is kind of a coincidence. After stumbling upon Pietro Nolita, the charming pink restaurant featured in This Post, I started following them on Instagram and quickly discovered their shop, Pink As Fuck Dot Com, where they sell this awesome coffee mug! Sells for $25 plus tax and shipping. So worth it!

pink as fuck coffee mug photo my by gail worley
Cheers, Bitches!

Nature Photos From My Beautiful Quarantine Berkshires Vacation!

Jun25

japanese red maple photo by gail worley
Japanese Red Maple (All Photos By Gail)

The original vacation plan for Summer 2020 called for me to fly from New York City to Barcelona on June 4th. There, I would meet up with my Los Angeles-based sister, and we’d spend two days site-seeing and recovering from jet lag before departing on an adventure-packed, seven-day cruise through the western Mediterranean. Sigh, I fucking love to cruise.

Obviously, those plans changed. In May, our sailing was predictably canceled by the cruise line due to the Covid-19 pandemic. While I was relieved to receive a full-refund on my paid fare — and overjoyed with the bonus of nearly $1,000 in onboard credit for a 2021 rebooking — I was also super bummed to know that I would likely not be getting out of Manhattan this summer. First world problems: they are a  thing.

g and t in the berks photo by gail
This Glass Holds The Remains of a Very Stiff Gin and Tonic

It cannot be overstated then that my summer was miraculously saved by friends who own a home the Berkshires, where they’d been quarantining since March. They generously offered to host me for a week of doing basically what I do in Manhattan — eating and going for walks — but with way better food and immeasurably more awe-inspiring scenery, not to mention (but you can see I am about to) air that smells like honey, and the absence of blaring sirens. It was the best week I’ve had in three months. Please enjoy a selection of photos from my many nature walks taken during the vacation that restored my sanity.

white pines view photo by gail worley
The Berkshires: Stunning Even When It’s Overcast

My friends live in a private community accessed from a narrow road set about a mile off of a rural thoroughfare. On summer evenings (during any normal year), you can sometimes hear faint music drifting over from Tanglewood, where I saw a fantastic concert by Squeeze with these same friends last August. Sadly, Tanglewood’s 2020 season has been canceled.

reeds against the sky photo by gail worley

Instead, the soundtrack includes choruses of bullfrogs hiding among the marsh reeds, and a rush of wind through the endless trees that can make you look over your shoulder to confirm that no cars are coming.

marsh pond photo by gail worley

This marsh and pond are just across the road from a private beach. There, you can take colorful kayaks out onto a lake, which is called the Stockbridge Bowl.

lake view through the trees photo by gail

I could gaze at at this view for hours.

Continue Enjoying the Scenery, After the Jump!

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