Books Photography

Winnie Au Photographs 60 Pups with Pizzazz in Her New Book ‘Cone of Shame’

Protecting an injured paw or pesky stitches never looked so good. Winnie Au (previously) upends the humiliating nature of Elizabethan collars as she photographs hounds sporting stylish takes on the medical devices for her series Cone Of Shame.

Au began the project back in 2017 in collaboration with designer Marie-Yan Morvan as a way to showcase dogs’ unique personalities and turn otherwise torturous ruffs into spectacular accessories. Using materials like paper and tulle, and more unconventional finds like dissolvable insulation foam and candy buttons, the pair fashioned a wide array of designs much more glamorous and charming than their veterinarian-issued counterparts. “Each dog, cone, and backdrop has been conceived as a mash-up of abstract shapes, tones, and textures. No longer turning dogs into laughing stocks, these collars become works of art,” Au says.

A new book published by Union Square & Co. collects photos of 60 dogs donning the fashionable ruffs, 48 of which haven’t been shared before. While the core concept is the same as when the series began, the pair incorporated newer technologies into recent images, including the inflatable rings that have grown in popularity. They also worked with new breeds and materials in what Au describes as “my love letter to all the good dogs out there.”

Cone Of Shame will be released on July 9 and is available for pre-order in the Colossal Shop. Find more from Au on Instagram.

 

Art Nature

Monumental Plants Nourish and Flourish in Adele Renault’s Lush Paintings

Nature walks are Adele Renault’s main source of inspiration. Spending her time between Los Angeles and Brussels, the artist (previously) encounters varying landscapes that catalyze her practice. While the rugged urban terrain of southern California bolsters desert plants and palms, the Belgian countryside bears lush vegetation and thickets of trees. Renault likes to connect her subjects with the environments she thrives in, explaining, “the flora become a metaphor for the people, both native and nonnative, who inhabit a city, enrich its cultural assemblage, and share in a collective consciousness.”

Placing a magnifying glass over small details that are often overlooked, Renault depicts transient features such as the intricate texture of leafy specimens, the protruding prickles of flowering cacti, and the way the the sunlight hits dense tufts of grass in the forest. She’s passionate about plants and appreciative of these minutia. “It’s a very nourishing subject. You can live with plants, eat plants, talk to plants, learn from plants and paint plants all your life,” she shares. “And that way, I’m sure you’ll live a happy life.”

Nowadays, Renault spends more time in her studio, leaving the larger walls for the next generation of muralists. The artist has some exciting projects coming up with galleries in Los Angeles and Brussels, so follow her on Instagram and visit her website to keep tabs on those works.

 

 

Art Craft Design

Ted Lott Retrofits Vintage Furniture and Suitcases with Stark, Miniature Dwellings

For Ted Lott, the distinction between a shelter and a home is endlessly fascinating. Using vintage furniture as the foundation, the Grand Rapids-based artist and designer (previously) outfits common domestic objects with bare-bones models of houses, apartments, and other living spaces. His architectural additions are often minimal and pared back to just the essentials, which contrasts the ornate trimmings and motifs of the found bases.

Recent works include “Carpenter Gothic 2,” which retrofits a dining chair with a cabinet that appears like a four-story building. Illuminated by four small bulbs, the structure emits a warm, welcoming glow that once opened, reveals a barren interior. “Sometimes people see the miniature first and sometimes the furniture,” Lott told Craft Council about this piece. “It’s fun to notice where people land before they go the other way. Then there’s that moment when they realize it’s this, but also that!”

The sculptures in his Migration series are especially timely as they transform suitcases into tiny dwellings. Given the ongoing refugee crises around the world, the works are poignant reminders that populations are on the move and in need of shelter, a basic human right.

For more of Lott’s work and to follow news about upcoming exhibitions, visit Instagram.

 

Art Nature

A 5-Year-Old’s Drawing of a Bird Nest Became an Enormous Beacon of Light Above an Estonian Port

Soaring above Noblessner Port in Tallinn, Estonia, three enormous eggs rest inside a woven nest. The project of design studio Velvet in collaboration with UN-LIKE, the glowing work perches atop a former mast and was inspired by a 5-year-old’s sketch.

Stina Onemar was aboard a ferry to Hiiumaa Island with her aunt when they were discussing a competition to install a public work at the site. “There was this post where Aunt Helen wanted to do something. I had an idea that there would be eggs and stuff,” she said, before quickly drawing the nest atop the mast. The suggestion stuck, and her aunt shared her niece’s sketch with her coworkers at Velvet, who loved the proposal.

Commissioned by Merko Ehitus Eesti, “Nest” features a trio of polyethylene eggs that sit in a bed of salvaged roof trim harvested from construction sites. Designers chose the materials to withstand both seaside and freezing Arctic weather, and over time, the metal will rust and form a patina that matches the revitalized mast.

Find more from Velvet on its website and Instagram.

 

Art Craft Nature

Megan Bogonovich’s Exuberant Ceramic Sculptures Find Joy in Coexistence

Protruding in a meandering fashion like tree branches or the sprawling overgrowth of flowering vines, the flamboyant botanical sculptures that sprout from Megan Bogonovich’s Norwich studio capture the wondrous moments of when “bucolic tips over into batty.”

Her workspace is tucked in a wooded area, leaving Bogonovich constantly surrounded by lush landscapes. “When I look around my neighborhood this time of year,” she says, “nature seems so verdant and powerful. I think the fragility of the material and the quantity of sculptures have mirrored the natural world in the way that plants are abundant, but vulnerable and highly pluckable.”

Bogonovich’s sculptures (previously) embody the delicate relationship between humans and the environment. Fascinated by nature’s ability to adapt to human presence, she sculpts cylindrical structures that twist and turn in different directions, perhaps implying the irregularity of the landscapes that her superempirical organisms might thrive in. Spiky and bumpy textures cover vibrant surfaces, emphasizing the idiosyncrasies of repetition and pattern that are so prevalent in organic forms.

Though each sculpture exists “in the realm of exuberance and glee,” she adds, “I know people see a sinister undercurrent, and that is definitely true of the work.” In a world so apprehensive toward shifting climates, invasive species, and future existence altogether, the artist’s ceramic iterations offer a feeling of bountiful pleasure.

Bogonovich just finished a residency at the Vermont Studio Center, and you can find more work on her Instagram and website.

 

 

Art Craft

Kirsty Elson Transforms Driftwood and Detritus into Whimsical Animal Sculptures

For Kirsty Elson, a sliver of driftwood or a scrap of metal is more than just a piece of detritus or trash. She sees a sleepy goat in some old nails and hunks of worn timber or a docile and curious donkey from rusty rods and brush bristles.

Elson has long been attracted to found objects, giving old elements new life. She previously focused on creating small cottages and seaside scenes, but recently she has shifted her attention to expressive, whimsical animals, which perch on pegs, roll on wheels, or warm themselves with little scarves. “I’m thoroughly enjoying this new path, as I can be even more playful and inject some humour into my work,” the artist says, “which I think is a nice distraction in these troubled times.”

Find more on Elson’s Etsy shop, and follow her on Instagram for updates.