Wow. Every time I look at these pieces, I’m in wonder. It’s so cool to see the works of artists like Rashad Alakbarov or Kumi Yamashita. These artists have found beauty in light and shadow. They take found materials and transform them into human forms or a city by throwing light on them at just the right angle.

Kumi Yamashita

Akari 2009 || Tokyo Japan || wood, light and shadow

City View 2003 || Osaka Japan || aluminum, light and shadow

Rashad Alakbarov

transparent color plastic shapes

Happy Valentine’s Day. What perfect timing. Last week I went to the first art show for Everyday Valentine. Trina Spiller, a genuine lover, just plain cool girl, and the artist behind these poetic illustrative pieces of art, is just the type of person you want to be around. If you don’t know her, each one of her pieces takes a bit of her humor and lovely nature and swirls it up in a quirky one-of-a-kind piece that you can buy, if only to remember to smile every time you look at it. Trina was kind enough to engage in a quick Q&A. Read below for more.

Jump to the next page to read Trina’s interview!
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At LS we pull inspiration for our events from anything and everything, especially art. Martin Pfeifle’s commentary on space and color translate very easily into an event setting, if you look hard enough. I love the colored paper hanging from the ceiling as a potential backdrop or partition. And, I’m a big fan of this pink spacial field turning into a table with one huge hit of color.

Lately, I’ve been mesmerized by water art/photography. The following artists show a passion for photography that extends into the underwater world. It’s a mystery to me on how they make taking underwater photos seem so effortless. The very nature of water makes each split second conjure up a completely different image. The colors and smokey feel of these images ignite a sense of organic beauty.

The breathtaking series Aqueous Fluoreau is the most recent body of work by photographer Mark Mawson, a nominee for the London Photography Award 2012.

Local artist (Piedmont CA), Michele Hofherr specializes in portraiture and commercial photography. Her current work (pictured here) is currently on display at Slate Contemporary Gallery in Oakland until February 25, 2012. Go check it out.

I’m totally loving textile artist Amanda McCavour Spirograph-like disks of yarn. She weaves these pieces of yarn onto a water-soluble fabric that melts away and leaves a bowl like shell form. Accumulation is an installation at Toronto’s Gladstone Hotel Cafe. These disks of beautifully threaded flowers cascade down the wall and inspire my own imagination to come up with new ways to decorate.

I recently came across Tad Carpenter’s illustrations again and just in time to inspire you for the season (see below). Even Conan O’Brien has discovered him and put him to some use. Carpenter’s work is fun, playful and inspiring. It would be fun to see his pieces turned into 3D sculptures or an animation.

These cute holiday homies (below) are definitely on my seasonal shopping list for my holiday mailers. Check out his store for more fun.

Last Friday I attended an art opening in Oakland including kinetic sculptor Nemo Gould. I was loving his robot-like creations. They remind me of a 1950′s Sci-Fi fantasy. Polished and beautifully crafted, his sculptures use intriguing combinations (welded together) of odds and ends: everything from ice cream scoops to old speakers, antlers to baseball bats. His workroom is as meticulously organized as his sculptures are finessed, like a well organized medical operating room, and fit with all the tools he needs to construct his pieces of work.

The show, Proto:)Typical will be up through this Sunday, Nov 15th, by appointment only. Call 415.894.5361 to set up a time for a visit.
The other artists in the show include Eric Joyner, Mark Galt, Jeremy Mayer, and Benjamin Cowden.

I have to admit, I was a bit hesitant to touch the sculptures at first; I walked around just in wonder. But Nemo, and his fellow artists in the show, encourage interaction, which made my experience all that much better (once I saw other people doing it). Each sculpture moved upon pressing a button or flipping a switch. Pretty awesome.

Untitled from catherine weis on Vimeo.

I am so excited that Jo Ann Biagini is showing her work again in Oakland. Last time I saw her she was at Creative Growth in a group show. As a native to Oakland, Jo Ann combines image transfer, drawing and collage to create works on paper that merge multi-layered images with nuanced surfaces.

Her pieces remind me of delicate vintage wallpaper, but upon closer inspection reveal layers of natural elements forming connections and relationships. Her show, titled Unbound, as well as the work of many more artists, will be displayed in the Mercury 20 Gallery beginning this Friday November 3-26th. Go and take a look for yourself!

Born in Oakland, CA, Jo Ann Biagini received a BA from UC Santa Cruz and an MFA in Ceramics from CCAC. Her work has been shown at the SF MOMA Artists’ Gallery, Triton Museum of Art and the Oakland Art Gallery.

Check out some of the other artist shows who will also be featured here during this time, including Maya Kabat, Julie Alvarado, Eric Bohr, and Jill McLennan

Recently, I came across a new and very welcome change on my route to work in Mission Bay, a new mural along the CalTran tracks. The artist was San Francisco’s own Brian Barneclo. Barneclo has been creating murals all over SF for some time. The grand mural, over 600 feet in length, is the largest mural yet to be completed in San Francisco and stands at a pivotal location for those entering and exiting the city on CalTran. Named the Systems Mural Project, this mural represents the intersection of systems and man; from the solar system to government, making a commentary on the interconnectivity of man and nature.

If you’d like to find out more, go to http://systemsmuralproject.com.

Theresa Himmer is someone to watch. The young Danish/Czech artist was born in Denmark where she studied, lived in Iceland from 2005 – 2009 and is currently working in New York. She creates mostly site specific pieces of art that interact with existing art and city life. The pieces we’re showing below are only a few that focus on her use of a specific material, but her talent extends far beyond. I bet these pieces within her sequin series really do glimmer in the light and dance in the wind. I wish I could see one in person. I love how she chooses to layer her material and art over existing pieces of graffiti, in a way creating a conversation between both expressions of art as well as a conversation between her art and the landscape in which she places it.

Photo // Kristinn Magnusson Volcano #01 (2008) (DETAIL)

Photos // Gunnar Þór Nilsen The Mountain Series Waterfall #01 (2006)

Photo // Gunnar Þór Nilsen Glacier #01 (2008) (2006)