archigram

i have always been inspired by artwork that i sort-of fantastical-- the kind that looks as if it could sort-of be based in reality but has these elements of unreality that are so clearly rooted in somebody's intensely imaginative vision that it just stops me in my tracks.
archigram's work is does that for me: i am floored by this work.

here is a little info about archigram, in case you want to know more:

"ARCHIGRAM dominated the architectural avant garde in the 1960s and early 1970s with its playful, pop-inspired visions of a technocratic future after its formation in 1961 by a group of young london architects – warren chalk, peter cook, dennis crompton, davd greene, ron herron and michael webb." (excerpt from design museum website)

i think this is leading to a new feature on my blog.... sort-of like an art history feature in a way, so i can learn (and thus you can learn, too!) about inspiring artists or movements from the past. there are so many artists from the past that are worth knowing more about-- how did they live? how did they work? who were their inspirations?

i think it would also be inspiring to see how these artists/movements have inspired artists in the present. like a pas & present kind of thing. ooh, i'm so excited now!!

keep you eye out for this new column....

cool artist... michelle blade

it's a good thing there are artists out there to document the things other people wouldn't think to document. like a trust fall-- something i've never thought to paint, but i love these paintings by michelle blade. don't you? (you can see more of michelle's work at park life in san francisco.)

the cutest headphones in the world

can i tell you quickly how much i NEED these headphones? every time i try to use my classic white ipod earbuds, they just fall right out of my ears. maybe my ears are smaller than average, maybe they are the wrong shape, but whatever it is, those things do not work well for me. all the noise around me gets in, which means i have to turn up my music really loud, but then i can't enjoy it because i'm worrying about how i'm wrecking my hearing and will be deaf by the time i'm 45, and then i end up just turning it off because it's not worth the hassle.

but these pretty little babies might just be the ticket to enjoyable ipod listening for me!! they are adorable, no?

you can buy them at audiocubes. they are part of the zumreed border collection by japanese company dreams.

oops! a mistake that needs correcting

mati rose kindly pointed out that this adorable little drawing is not in fact by margaret kilgallen, but by anke weckmann. oops! how i mixed that up is a mystery, but thank you to mati for clearing it all up!
and now it leads me to show you some of anke's fantastic work:

i guess this was a great mistake for me to make, because now i know about anke's work, and i am absolutely infatuated with it!

thanks again, mati! and sorry again to anke....

earth hour 2008

i just pledged my name to participate in earth hour 2008, which means that tomorrow, march 29, 2008, i will turn off all my lights and electricity for one hour, from 8-9 pm, in an effort to reduce our environmental impact as humans.

the first earth hour occurred last year in sydney, australia, and had the effect of taking 48,000 cars off the road for an hour. incredible, huh? this year's event is global, so imagine the impact it will have!

you can pledge your name on the earth hour website and get more info on ways you can reduce your footprint. (earth hour was created by the world wildlife fund). they also have a great list of things you can do while your lights are out (don't you think candlelight is romantic??) and beyond, to help our earth.

you can also watch this youtube video for more information about earth hour:

margaret kilgallen

i'm feeling totally inspired by margaret kilgallen's work this morning. that could piece above is knocking my socks off! have had i had my head under a rock up until now? i had heard margaret kilgallen's name many times before but had never taken the time to look at her work.
but this morning i am seeing the light. whew!
sadly, margaret died of breast cancer in 2001 (at the age of 33, yikes.) but her work is all over the internet, so it's very easy to find. also, giant robot sells quite a few margaret kilgallen items in their online store.
i love that it's sort-of naive, but really sophisticated, too, in the color schemes and subject matter.
and the hand-drawn typography, oh! gorgeous.

and doesn't that cloud drawing at the top remind you a little bit of camilla engmann's work? i love her, too. i'm full of love this morning.

time to get down to painting

it's back to painting for me. there are more shows on the way and much to do, as always! i just wanted to quickly show you a new spring-time painting. it's called "goodbye winter."

a print version of it will be in my etsy shop soon! stay tuned.

cool illustrator... robert hanson

these illustrations by robert hanson really caught my eye this morning. i love their simplicity and humor, as well as the paired down color combos. i tend to go all out as far as color goes, so i'm always inspired by artists that can do so much with fewer colors.

robert is represented by eye candy illustration agency, and their website has many great artists to browse. go see for yourself!

'at home' show at artstream gallery

i am so so pleased to announce that i will be in a show beginning april 4, 2008 at artstream gallery in rochester, new hampshire. i know i've mentioned the show here already, but i wanted to post the official details and the lovely postcard! if you are in the area on april 4th, you can attend the opening from 5-8 pm.

congratulations to susan and the gang at artstream for 5 successful years! (the show is celebrating the 5th anniversary.)

ps-- feel free to pass this postcard around blogland!!!

new book by lotta jansdotter!

i must have this book. i am pre-ordering it as we speak. if you pre-order it, it will come signed by lotta herself. it says on the website that it is due to ship in late march, which is... now!

{via oh joy)

quiet little backyard abode

if i had a great backyard and lots of money to spend, i would put this little house in the yard and hide myself away to read books and look out the mini windows and draw flowers and spy on bugs. it reminds me somewhat of this, but on a smaller scale of course.
don't you love it?

{via designer's block}

duane hosein

i am enthralled by hot air balloons. it's a little like my weird fascination with whales. i've never been on a hot air balloon, but i just find them so captivating, and lately i've been wanting to incorporate them into my paintings and drawings. so you can imagine how thrilled i was to find duane hosein's work on flickr. bird-headed hot air balloons? this is a man after my art-loving heart.

and this just made me laugh. this is duane. oh, the things we do and then take photos of. :)

cool illustrator... andy smith

i'm really digging andy smith's work this morning, especially that top drawing. love the color combos. and it makes me want to live at the top of some high rise so i could sit at the window and draw. but then i start thinking about how little fun it would be to move all my stuff to the top of that high rise, up ad down the stairs, and then i think it might just be better to stay in a hotel. you couldn't draw the view every day, but maybe you'd enjoy it more?

anyway, i like these illustrations. andy's work has been featured by many of the bigwigs-- nike, mercedes, mickelodeon, random house..... and many many more. his website is fun and colorful- and he has some silkscreen prints and books for sale, too!

cool artist... jordan crane

while in california, i came across the work of jordan crane and was totally in love at first sight.
are these not the most gorgeous prints ever? ok, i know i say that a lot about a lot of different artists and their work, but seriously-- aren't these the best ever? i *love* them. especially the first two. sigh. i love being an artist and art-lover.

check out jordan's website, because he also makes books and other things that are pretty darn awesome.

california dreamin'

well, i'm back from 75 degree california with a bit of a tan and a nice relaxed feeling. what a great trip! i saw a great little show by artist sarajo freiden at little bird gallery in hollywood (photos above), and also visited reform school. what a great shop! i wanted to buy everything in there, and i saw quite a few things that i've been oogling over on the internet but had never seen in person. it's such a different feeling to see something in the flesh.


i also had the HUGE treat of meeting erin from design for mankind, and she is quite something! i think i smiled for about 24 hours straight- she is so friendly and inspiring and wonderful, just like you would imagine from reading her blog! we talked about favorite blogs, what inspires us, what we both have in store for the coming months (she has some amazing things coming that you won't want to miss!!)...

i love that we can make friends in different places through the internet-- even though it seems kind-of strange and parents definitely don't get it (i still get the "be careful!" warning), it is amazing to connect through this fun little (well, MASSIVE) blogging world we are a part of.

and we visited san diego (my first time there!), and i think i'm in love. southern california begs me to stay every time i'm there-- i just love the sunshine and ocean and lifestyle.... maybe not the pollution, but the rest of it is calling my name....

a few other things:

check out my guest blog post on indie fixx today-- it's all about my eco-indie dream life!

my blog is in the easter reading guide list on desire to inspire today! check it out here-- it's full of blogs, old and new, popular and not-yet-so, that you won't want to miss!

glad to be back with you all this morning. :)
hope you had a happy easter, if that's your thing. if not hope your weekend was grand.

things to come in april

today i am shipping off 3 boxes filled with paintings, to 2 different galleries in the northeastern part of the usa. i am so so excited about these 2 new venues--

one box is going to artstream gallery in rochester, new hampshire, which i'm sure many of you are familiar with. they have a great show up right now featuring alena hennessy, abby glassenberg, darryl berger , and tara hogan, and then my work is going to be part of th 5th anniversary show beginning in april! (more specific details to come soon.)

here are some of the pieces that will be in the show, whose theme is "at home" :

the next 2 boxes are going to yes gallery & studio, a brand spankin' new gallery that's opening in warren, rhode island (near providence). the website should be fully up and running soon, and it sounds like leigh, the owner, has some really fantastic stuff in store for us all.

here are some of the pieces you'll find there:





you can also find prints of my work in these 2 online shops:
indie fixx and the shiny squirrel!

whew! so, after today i'm taking a much needed break and ryan and i are whisking ourselves away to california to visit his family. i'll be back blogging on monday!

**also, i will be starting a new monthly newsletter beginning at the end of this month, so if you would like to be on the mailing list to receive the newsletter, you can pop over to my website and sign yourself up, or just shoot me an email and i'll add you to the list.