Charles Ray’s sculptures are often loosely patterned on pre-existing ideas and things. Such is the case with Tractor(2005), which takes as its point of departure a boyhood memory and, more directly, an abandoned vintage tractor found in the San Fernando Valley, California.
From 1943 to 1947, Georgia O’Keeffe painted a series that explored the intricate shapes and surfaces of animal bones. The bones were pictured in their entirety or in magnified detail. In this abstract variation, Pelvis II (1944) O’Keeffe draws attention to the blue sky seen through the empty socks. The work demonstrates her ability to present what the writer Jean Toomer described as “the universe through the portal of a bone.”
Photographed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Manhattan.
Designer Claudia Li’s autumn/winter 2020 collection, entitled 3.16.19, is a tribute to her grandfather, who passed away in 2019. The designs in the collection reflect Li’s memories of him, the imprint of their experiences together in China, and the creative ability passed through generations.
Many of Winslow Homer’s images of the Bahamas evoke the idea of the island as a paradise created especially for tourists. Enjoying local fruits was perceived as a fundamental luxury of the visitor experience, as one contemporary guidebook noted: “Oranges to daily break our fast in the morning, and delightfully crown our afternoon meal, are felt to be a necessity. Without them the most elaborate feast fails to satisfy.” This vibrant watercolor, Oranges On a Branch (1885), a rare still life by the artist, offers a complete sensory experience — ripe citrus, bright green leaves, and fragrant blossoms are bathed in warm sunlight.
Photographed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art as Part of Winslow Homer: Crosscurrents, on Exhibit Through July 31st, 2022.
In her designs, Claude Kameni (b. 1994) uses fabrics often referred to as African wax prints. These vividly colored and densely pattern textiles, which having enduring history of popular use in West and Central Africa, originally inspired by batik, or wax resist, cloth from Indonesia. Continue reading Eye On Design: Dress, Lavie By Claude Kameni→