Photos By Gail
One of the more recent additions to the First Street Green Art Park is this horned skull mural, entitled Thorns, by prolific street artist K-NOR. You can see a time-lapse video of this mural going up over a two-day period in August at K-NOR’s Instagram, @itskaynor.
Photo By Gail
Here at ‘The Gig, we are having a bit of a Spring Fling, as NYC transitions from one cold, wet season to a different but almost equally cold, wet season! Why is spring in this part of the country so freaking cold? I am already over it, as the kids say! As I do whatever I can to keep the fantasy of warmer weather alive in my head, please enjoy this week’s Pink Thing: a sculpture of Winnie The Pooh’s best pal of Piglet made entirely of beautiful pink floral blooms! I took this photo at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida one hot summer longer ago than I can remember.
All Photos By Gail
On my last full day in California, I spent a couple of late afternoon hours strolling through the very beautiful Descanso Gardens, a 150-acre botanical garden located in the La Cañada Flintridge area of Los Angeles. The daylight was already starting to fade, but I got some good shots of the many varieties of gorgeous flowers that are still blooming even in late December. Enjoy!
Descanso is well-known for their signature pink Camellias, of which there are numerous varieties.
Of course, I love anything that is pink. This one has a tiny wound on one petal, but its beauty is unspoiled.
You would almost think you are in Hawaii when you see flowers like this!
For the Holiday season, Descanso hosts a special evening event called Enchanted Forest of Light, which competes with the numerous Chinese Lantern Festivals going on at the LA Zoo, the LA Arboretum, and elsewhere. This prismatic star is just one of the many added features that help to transform the nighttime garden into fantasy wonderland for this always sold-out event!
I’m guessing that this prism is illuminated from within once the sun sets.
While the beds are not necessarily lush at this time of year, the Roses are still in bloom and looking good!
I love how the petals of this delicate pink bloom are almost translucent.
This flower is called an African Daisy.
These Yellow Snapdragons have a tiny visitor!
Yellow Chrysanthemums!
Red Thistles – gorgeous!
Daffodils!
I don’t know the proper name of this tropical-looking plant with its tiny pink berries, but I have seen one like it at the NYBG in the Bronx.
Purple Irises!
Descanso Gardens is Located at 1418 Descanso Drive, La Cañada Flintridge, CA 91011.
All Photos By Gail
This elaborately Beaded Vest (2013) was inspired by the catalogs for the Burpee Seed Company, an online purveyor of gardening supplies. Whereas much Native American beadwork features flat, abstract designs, Marcus Amerman (Choctaw, Born 1959) stitches each bead individually, alternating colors to create three-dimensional effects. The result is vivid imagery that leaps off the surface and defies our expectations of the medium.
Continue reading Eye On Design: Beaded Vest By Marcus Amerman
Adult Contemporary Electronica: Yes, it Exists. This week’s Video Clip comes from Westerman, an artist who’s flown under my radar until the link to his latest single, “Outside Sublime,” arrived in my email box. Lucky me, lucky you!
With a penchant for creating songs that explore and interrogate the nature of personal connection, Westerman’s new visual is a soothing, ethereal look at the fantasy world one escapes to when opening up to another person. Aurally, “Outside Sublime” is not just easy listening, it’s completely effortless. This is the soothing break your mind needs after a long weekend spent holiday shopping and hanging out with your family, trust me.
Director Beatrix Blaise shared a creative insight on how the video for “Outside Sublime” came together: “When I first heard it, I instantly imagined glistening watery scenes, fireflies and some sense of harmonious escape. Out of that came a kind of visceral world, where each thing in it was trying to mirror a human softness and duality.”
“Outside Sublime” can be found on Westerman’s just-released Ark EP, out now on Blue Flowers. Enjoy!
