Snow Sculptures

Occasionally, we get snow in Olympia, Washington. This is day two of the winter wonderland.

This morning I looked outside and found my garden sculptures wearing white coats.










One more day of snow in the forecast :-)

Artists On Reality TV

As I was reading the latest edition of Art Business News, I learned that there was a reality TV series on Bravo where 14 artists competed. "Work of Art: The Next Great Artist," shared the stories of the artists and their processes for creating art, along with insightful critiques from a panel of notable art-world insiders.

The judges for the Bravo show included art collector and series host China Chow; New York magazine art critic Jerry Saltz; and gallerists Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn and Bill Powers. Art auctioneer Simon de Pury participated as mentor to the contestants, and a different guest judge joined the panel each week. The Brooklyn Museum’s John and Barbara Vogelstein Curator of Contemporary Art, Eugenie Tsai, advised in the final selection of the winner.

I went to Art Business News blog and watched some of the videos.

After three months of creating works of art and beating out tough competition, Abdi Farah came through as the uncontested winner of “Work of Art.” Along with the $100,000 cash prize, he also earned a solo exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum of Art.

Abdi Farah discusses his work in this video. The figurative paintings, sculpture, and drawings on view at the Brookly Museum reflect his investigation of the human body as a material entity that possesses the potential to transcend its physical being.

Libation
Abdi Farah
Resin, mixed media, spray paint
2010

Metal Sculptures

As promised, I will share the unique metal sculptures created by Layne Koina who was one of the artists I met at the annual Art in the Garden show in Enumclaw, Washington this past weekend.

Actually, I met him last year and purchased a few of his whimsical metal sculptures.







This year I could not resist his cat tails. The cat tails are metal and the leaves are stainless steel, so as it ages the cat tails will rust but the stainless steel will not. I look forward to this transformation.



Unfortunately, Layne does not have a website where you can see more of his creative metal sculptures. He is local to Enumclaw and is associated with Arts Alive.

Artistic Gardening

A continuation of the concept that art encompasses life, I was gifted with the loan of a lovely book from my friend, Janet.

A Garden Gallery; the Plants, Art, and Hardscape of Little and Lewis by George Little and David Lewis.

Little and Lewis are long-time collaborators whose concrete sculptures and garden installations have been collected around the world. Their Puget Sound garden is the primary showcase for their artwork, but also for the unique gardening qualities that epitomize their style. Water features, oversize and broad-leaf plants, expansive use of color, zone-pushing tropicals, architectural emphasis, and elements of classicism and mystery-all combine to create a deeply personal and magical space.

Hosta Leaf Sculputre

The book alternates voices of Little and Lewis and is filled with insights as well as stories. It is a fascinating look at a creative partnership that came about spontaneously, succeeded quickly, and, like their garden, continues to evolve and grow.

My favorite quote so far is from George in speaking about creating a garden. He says, "What matters is the relation of people to their spaces. Does the garden seem a natural extension of the owner? Is there a love of gardening here, a simple joy in the partnering with nature to make something beautiful?"

The idea for dinosaur eggs, which an artist friend created that I shared in earlier blog, is a spin off from Little and Lewis.