Iconic Artworks by Keith Haring Pop Up in a Vibrant New Book
One of the most iconic figures of the 1980s Pop Art movement, Keith Haring (previously) is best known for his playful pictograms like “Radiant Baby” or “Barking Dog,” motifs that frequently appeared in compositions amid boldly outlined dancing figures, flying saucers, gender symbols, angels, crosses, and pyramids. His energetic surfaces depict colorful, playful scenes, incorporating a deceptive simplicity and vibrancy to bolster important and challenging themes of community, health, religion, politics, and sexuality. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/07/keith-haring-pop-up-book/
A Rare Cross-Section Illustration Reveals the Infamous Happenings of Kowloon Walled City
At its height in the 1990s, Kowloon Walled City in Hong Kong housed about 50,000 people. Its population is unremarkable for small cities, but what set Kowloon apart from others of its size was its density. Spanning only 2.6 hectares, the tiny enclave contained 1,255,000 people per square kilometer, making it the densest city in the world. For context, New York City boasts about 11,300 per square kilometer, while Manila, the most highly concentrated municipality today, tops out at about 42,000. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/07/kowlooon-walled-city-illustration/
Raising Awareness of Systemic Racism in Healthcare, a Stork Embarks on an ‘Impossible Journey’
The timeless tale of the stork delivering babies is, like many myths, difficult to trace to a single source, as the story unfolds in folklore throughout Europe, the Americas, North Africa, and the Middle East. In the short film “Impossible Journey” —directed by YUCA and produced by The Youth Company and Colossal (no affiliation)—the creature’s vital mission sets the scene for a critical and poignant message.
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/07/impossible-journey-yuca/
In London, All You Need Is ‘Love Continuum’ by Yoni Alter
A love-ly new artwork curls through the bustling Duke of York Square in central London, thanks to Yoni Alter (previously), who celebrates the most enigmatic and important emotion in human experience. Approachable from various vantage points, the piece appears like a squiggly red line at first glance, but when viewed from the right perspective, the abstract curves reveal the word “love.”
LOVE” sculptures. More
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A Colossal Conversation: vanessa german On Being Whole and Having a Responsibility to Be Irresponsible
Working across assemblage, sculpture, and installation and often in communities, vanessa german (previously) frequently returns to love and honesty as the core of her practice and therefore, her life. She believes love is an “infinite human technology” with the immense potential to catalyze change and mobilize people, and it emerges in her work not as a theme or metaphor but as a material, named alongside others like rose quartz, Astroturf, and the artist’s own hair. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/07/vanessa-german-conversation/
A Colossal Conversation: vanessa german On Being Whole and Having a Responsibility to Be Irresponsible
Working across assemblage, sculpture, and installation and often in communities, vanessa german (previously) frequently returns to love and honesty as the core of her practice and therefore, her life. She believes love is an “infinite human technology” with the immense potential to catalyze change and mobilize people, and it emerges in her work not as a theme or metaphor but as a material, named alongside others like rose quartz, Astroturf, and the artist’s own hair. More
Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $5 per month. The article A Colossal Conversation: vanessa german On Being Whole and Having a Responsibility to Be Irresponsible appeared first on Colossal.
https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/07/vanessa-german-conversation/
Playfool Casts Colorful ‘Forest Crayons’ from Japan’s Surplus Timber
Japan is covered in nearly 70 percent forest, a remarkable statistic at a time when demand for timber continues to rise and urban developments expand. In today’s age of global commerce, however, we can ship entire woodlands across oceans, impacting supply chains and altering how local resources are utilized. And since importing timber from elsewhere is often more affordable, trees cut locally can go unused. “Japan basically has too much wood,” says Daniel Coppen, who co-founded the design studio Playfool with Saki Maruyama. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/07/playfool-forest-crayons/
July 2024 Opportunities: Open Calls, Residencies, and Grants for Artists
Every month, Colossal shares opportunities for artists and designers, including open calls, grants, fellowships, and residencies. If you’d like to list an opportunity here, please get in touch at hello@colossal.art. You can also join our monthly Opportunities Newsletter.
Fiberart International 2025 Call for Entry Featured
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/07/july-2024-opportunities/
Paul Villinski’s Sculptures Swoop and Swarm and in ‘Flight Patterns’
From found objects like aluminum cans, bottles, knives, and vinyl records, Paul Villinski frames myriad interpretations of flight. The artist’s solo exhibition Flight Patterns at Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park draws on his background as a licensed pilot, casting the experience of airborne motion through the thematic lenses of hope and transformation.
swarming insects, which explore subjects like environmentalism, addiction and recovery, and food insecurity. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/07/paul-villinski-flight-patterns/
Absurdly Superficial Solutions Rule Toni Hamel’s Witty Paintings
While scientists and researchers attempt to find innovative solutions to climate devastation and other global ills, Toni Hamel (previously) takes an unorthodox approach to ingenuity. With her unique brand of satire, the artist imagines a world of pure futility, in which geese are affixed to strings suspended from the sky and a massive air freshener replaces living pine trees. When disaster strikes, she suggests, some people gravitate toward the simple, superficial fix and in the case of “In Lieu of Better Days,” choose to spend their time painting a rainbow despite destruction on the horizon. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/06/toni-hamel-in-lieu-of-better-days/
Delicate Flowers and Wings Flutter Across Gold Skeletons in Casey Curran’s Kinetic Sculptures
Suspended in the lofty gallery of Heron Arts is a series of new kinetic sculptures by Casey Curran (previously). The motorized works of brass, gold leaf, and organza draw on Greek mythology, particularly that of Icarus who met his demise after flying too close to the sun. With fluttering white wings, the largest sculpture hangs upside down as if falling to the wheat-laden ground.
Writ Against The Sun, which considers the chasm between ambition and reality. More
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Through a Boeing 737 Window, Leslie Wayne Frames the Grandeur of the American West
The German word heimat roughly translates to the web of ideas and feelings associated with home and the land we occupy. During a flight across the Rocky Mountains and Cascade Range in 2021, the concept was front and center for artist Leslie Wayne as she peered down through the small airplane window at the massive expanses below.
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/06/leslie-wayne-airplane-paintings/
The 2024 Drone Photo Awards Capture a Striking Overview of Global Struggle
From magnificent natural wonders to human destruction on multiple fronts, the nominees of the 2024 Drone Photo Awards offer a sweeping overview of the state of the world. The annual contest by Siena Awards asks photographers to zoom out and provide new perspectives on global happenings, capturing conflict, devastation, and beauty at all scales.
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/06/2024-drone-photo-awards/
Andréa Keys Connell Searches for Moments of Beauty in Her Tender Clay Sculptures
Andréa Keys Connell has an immeasurably tender outlook on craft. Viewing object-making as a way to better understand how art adds to the human experience, the North Carolina-based artist feels tremendous joy in sculpting clay.
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/06/andrea-keys-connell-clay/
Glimpse the Studios of Art Historical Greats in Vibrant Paintings by Damian Elwes
From the cubist compositions of Pablo Picasso to “The Two Fridas,” the 1939 iconic double self-portrait by Frida Kahlo, vibrant views of seminal artworks and acclaimed artists’ studios emerge in the imaginative acrylic paintings of Damian Elwes.
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/06/damian-elwes-studio-visit/
Keita Morimoto’s Glowing Street Scenes Pit Connection Against Solitude
While dense cities carry an air of extraversion on the surface, it doesn’t take much digging beyond this superficial layer to see that sometimes even the most crowded places can also be the most solitary. Keita Morimoto (previously) uncovers this double-edged experience through cinematic depictions of street scenes rendered in acrylic and oil paint.
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/06/keita-morimoto-street-scenes/
In ‘A Thousand Cuts,’ Sujata Setia’s Powerful Portraits Expose Domestic Abuse
For centuries in southeast Asia, lingchi was employed as a particularly brutal form of torture in which a knife was used to methodically remove parts of the body over long periods. Translated as “death by a thousand cuts,” the ancient practice provides the metaphorical groundwork for London-based Indian artist Sujata Setia’s stirring series A Thousand Cuts.
SHEWISE, a charity that empowers marginalized women to overcome trauma and cultivate lives free from oppression and violence. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/06/sujata-setia-a-thousand-cuts/
Creating Hundreds of Colors, La Maison du Pastel Continues a 300-Year-Old Tradition
With roots dating back to early 18th-century Paris, La Maison du Pastel has the distinction of being the world’s oldest manufacturer of pastels. Producing more than 1,800 unique colors from high-quality pigments still mixed and rolled by hand, the material has been used by artists for hundreds of years, including art history heavyweights like Edgar Degas and Claude Monet.
Business Insider recently shared a video as part of the publication’s Still Standing series, taking us behind the scenes of the artisanal company’s studio in rural France, where a small team works tirelessly to keep the 300-year-old tradition alive and thriving. More
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Build Your Own Modular ‘Birdies’ with ESNAF’s Magnetic Toy Kits
With increasing awareness of the effects of children spending so much time on their screens, which has the potential to negatively influence cognitive and social-emotional growth, parents often think carefully about how their kids play. ESNAF (previously) is a toy company formed around the philosophy of hands-on play and learning. The company posits that thoughtful design can promote a more connected experience—and create valuable family time in the process.
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Massive Glowing Rocks by ENESS Tumble into i Light Singapore
Iwagumi is a Japanese term that refers to the methodical arrangement of rocks in aquascaping. Usually taking on the form of bold, weighty stones resting among each other in opposition to open, airy surroundings, the distinctive art form appreciates and showcases the humble beauty of rocks. For the tenth edition of the i Light Singapore art festival in Marina Bay, art and technology studio ENESS pays homage to the creative tradition with a major installation titled Iwagumi Air Space. More
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https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/06/eness-iwagumi-air-space/