Sebastian Foster Announces 30 Artists for Their Eclectic Fall Print Set
Austin-based gallery Sebastian Foster continues its 2023 Fall Print Set, marking the 11th anniversary of the collection since it launched in 2012. The new release features 30 works by well-established illustrators, printmakers, and painters from across the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Japan, and Europe. Half of the artists have worked with the gallery for years, while the other half are guests who joined just for this collection.
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2023/12/sebastian-foster-fall-prints/
The Top Ten Colossal Stories Readers Loved Most in 2023
As we approach the end of 2023, we’re revisiting some of the top stories we wrote about this year. From enormous kinetic beach creatures to a trove of salvaged historic photographs, our readers’ most-loved projects illustrate a diverse array of mediums, ideas, and groundbreaking discoveries.
A Wind-Powered Herd of Beach Animals Merge Into a Storm Defense System in Theo Jansen’s Latest ‘Strandbeest’
Strandbeest scuttles across the sands of a beach in The Netherlands in a short video by Dutch artist Theo Jansen, who has been releasing his otherworldly creatures into the world each year since 1990. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2023/12/top-ten-stories-2023/
In Luke Stephenson’s Bold Portraits of Show Birds, the Personality Is in the Plumage
From charming robins and spritely blackbirds to a canary with a suave, natural bowl cut, Luke Stephenson‘s portraits capture the fine feathers and downy details of exquisite show birds (previously). Using a customized, portable box with a perch inside, the artist captures each species’ distinctive personality and plumage in front of a variety of colored backgrounds.
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2023/12/luke-stephenson-birds/
Joshua Smith Serves Up Slices of Main Street in Meticulously Detailed Miniature Buildings
Wheatpasted posters, spraypainted tags, and signs with missing letters are just a few of the hyperrealistic details on the facades of Joshua Smith’s extraordinary miniatures. “My work focuses on often neglected and abandoned buildings, which more often than not are covered in graffiti, rust, and grime,” the Adelaide, South Australia-based artist tells Colossal. Rendering corner stores, photo booths, and anonymous entryways with precision, he adds layers of lifelike details both inside and out, from stacks of boxes to checkout counters to racks of merchandise. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2023/12/joshua-smith-miniatures/
Elaborate Personas Spring to Life During Carnival in ‘We the Spirits’ by Jason Gardner
Between January and March in Christian communities around the world, incredible personas emerge for Carnival in the form of mythological creatures, folkloric emblems, and historical figures. Donning elaborate masks and costumes, people obscure their identities, indulge in abundant fare, and gather together in parades and street parties before Lent. In his forthcoming book, We the Spirits, photographer Jason Gardner explores the remarkable diversity of Carnival and its traditions. “‘Winter and spring; barren and fertile; life and death; beauty and ugliness; light and dark; ritual and reality; chaos and order—the annual Carnival is much more than a party and parade in the streets,” he says. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2023/12/jason-gardner-we-the-spirits/
Design Platform Modyfi Introduces Playful and Innovative Real-Time Animation Editing
Modyfi is a brand new world class design platform based entirely in your web browser that incorporates intuitive vector tooling, team collaboration, AI-driven art direction, and now motion graphics. More
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The Artists of ‘PULP’ Fold, Emboss, and Quill Their Way Through the Possibilities of Paper
Strips of cardboard, papier-mâché, and precision folding are just a few of the techniques artists employ as they explore of the endless potential of paper. Whether using found pages of magazines and books, intricately folding single sheets into detailed figures, or designing unique wearable pieces, artists are constantly finding original ways to use the humble material.
MAKE Southwest, a group exhibition titled PULP celebrates the possibilities of the medium in all its forms, from quilled flowers to figurative sculptures to playful miniatures. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2023/12/pulp-paper-exhibition/
Dan Lam Blurs the Lines Between the Alluring and Grotesque in ‘Guttation’
Guttation is a botanical process that occurs when fungi or plants like grasses and ferns secrete sap from their pores. Small droplets of dew will emerge and then hang from fronds or leaves to help relieve the specimen of too much liquid accumulating in its roots.
Dan Lam evokes this vital act in an upcoming solo show at Hashimoto Contemporary in New York. Guttation comprises more than 60 of Lam’s signature drippy sculptures that take a turn toward the grotesque in comparison to previous bodies of work. More
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Take an Immersive Journey Through an Ancient Rainforest’s Mycelial Network in ‘Fungi: Web of Life’
Merlin Sheldrake (previously) in the trailer for the visually stunning, immersive new film Fungi: Web of Life.
K2 Studios, the movie follows Sheldrake—who has devoted his career to the remarkable and mysterious world of mycelium and mushrooms—as he embarks on a journey through the ancient Tarkine rainforest of Tasmania. More
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Jean Jullien Designs a Cheery Whale Sculpture with a Functional Blowhole
French artist Jean Jullien (previously) has teamed up with Case Studyo to create a jolly sculpture titled “La Baleine,” a.k.a. “The Whale.” With a functional blowhole that can hold pencils, plants, or flowers, the porcelain vessel features Jullien’s signature chunky line drawings. The wide, toothy grin adds a sense of optimism and goodwill, while the artist likens the blowhole to “an emblem of exhaling and releasing creative energy.”
Case Studyo. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2023/12/jean-jullien-la-baleine/
Colossal Releases Two New Limited-Edition Prints with Jon Ching
We’re thrilled to announce our next limited-edition print release with Jon Ching (previously). Longtime Colossal readers will recognize Ching’s fantastic hybrids, which seamlessly meld flora and fauna into otherworldly compositions. In “Sanguines,” blush-colored petals and feathers merge into a delicately layered crest, while “Adaptive Radiation” depicts two fluffy rabbits wearing a crown of pink gladiolus.
Colossal Shop. More
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In an Animated Battle of the Bands, The Beatles and The Stones Clash Through Dozens of Albums
A legendary rivalry dukes it out one more time in Dog & Rabbit’s animation, “The Beatles Vs The Stones.” As iconic album covers from both rock groups come to life, the character from Voodoo Lounge rides a yellow submarine while Keith Richards, Paul McCartney, Mick Jagger, and Ringo Starr have a food fight.
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2023/12/dog-and-rabbit-beatles-stones/
The Cavernous Bat Trang Pottery Museum Swells Upward Like a Hand-Thrown Ceramic Vessel
The historic village of Bat Trang in northern Vietnam has been a hub for ceramic production since the 11th century. Home to vast reserves of white clay, the town’s economy is still deeply rooted in creating and selling various functional and decorative objects, while becoming increasingly popular for tourism.
1+1>2 studio designed the Bat Trang Pottery Museum, a spacious, four-story venue devoted to sharing the history of the region and offering a space where local artisans can showcase their works. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2023/12/bat-trang-pottery-museum/
A Major Retrospective Celebrates Iris van Herpen’s Mesmerizing Designs at the Intersection of Art, Fashion, and Science
Water, skeletons, and the origins of life usher in a major retrospective of the exquisite, otherworldly garments of Iris van Herpen (previously). On view now at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Sculpting the Senses is a celebration of the Dutch designer’s groundbreaking contributions to fashion, particularly her collaborative sensibilities and interest in working across art and science.
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2023/12/iris-van-herpen-sculpting-the-senses/
Love Hultén Merges Audio-Visual Experiences with Mid-Century Aesthetics in His Elaborate Synthesizers
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Whether ocean-themed, compact with a slide-out keyboard, or installed vertically on the wall, Love Hultén’s elaborate custom synthesizers (previously) are one-of-a-kind. Combining a love for woodworking and sound art, the Gothenburg, Sweden-based artist and designer merges electronic elements with a wide range of console designs evocative of early computers and mid-century industrial control systems. Incorporating playful elements from video games or aesthetic themes—”C O U S T E A U” features oxygen tank details and a custom MIDI crab—Hultén activates each sculptural instrument into original audio-visual experiences. More
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A Trippy New Book Surveys 100 Years of Art Since the Birth of the Surrealist Movement
Next year marks the 100th anniversary of surrealism, an enduring movement the poet André Breton sparked in 1924. Countless artists across disciplines have been inspired by the uncanny, unconscious, and fantatstic, a few of which are celebrated in a forthcoming book written by Robert Zeller.
New Surrealism: The Uncanny in Contemporary Painting, published by Monacelli later this month, chronicles the history of the artistic and political movement from its birth amid World War I to more contemporary interests. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2023/12/new-surrealism-robert-zeller/
A New Film Documents Kerry James Marshall’s Dynamic Stained Glass Windows for the Washington National Cathedral
Kerry James Marshall (previously) was commissioned to create their replacements, he grappled with these questions, ultimately offering a dynamic pair of works installed this September. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2023/12/kerry-james-marshall-film/
Hugh Hayden Untangles American Mythology with Overgrown Sculptures and Skewed Installations
In a trio of ongoing exhibitions, Hugh Hayden (previously) tackles American myth-making, unraveling the incomplete and ignored narratives that ground our politics and culture.
National Gallery of Victoria Triennial, Hayden installed “The end,” a grade-school classroom complete with wooden desks and a mirrored blackboard. Educational settings are a recurring in the artist’s practice, and he pairs the motif with three dodo skeletons. The flightless birds were native to Mauritius and one of the first species to go extinct because of European hunting and deforestation on the island. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2023/12/hugh-hayden-american-mythology/
Expansive Landscapes Spill from Tiny Frames in Detailed Miniature Dioramas by A House of Wonders
“I didn’t really set out with the intention of making miniatures. They just turned out that way,” says artist Caroline Dewison of A House of Wonders. For several years, the Warrington, England-based artist experimented with beads and clay to make small sculptures, but she was never quite satisfied. “It began with making little mossy patches on clay pieces, sourcing materials I found in model railway layouts, which I immediately fell in love with,” she says. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2023/12/house-of-wonders-miniatures/
Otherworldly Zip-Tie Sculptures by Sui Park Crawl Across Galleries and Sprout in City Parks
Evoking sea anemones, bulbous spores, and supple, round cells, Sui Park’s zip-tie sculptures seamlessly meld the organic and synthetic. The New York-based artist (previously) continues to weave scores of industrial nylon cables into works that appear to scale gallery walls and spawn in dense clusters in public spaces.
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2023/12/sui-park-city-ecology/