Ape on the Moon: Contemporary Visual Culture » Hand Craft

Surreal Shapes in Mixed Media by Graffiti Artist, Alexey Luka

Philip Dennis — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 10:33:27 +0000

Since a beginning on the street art scene, Alexey Luka has branched out diversely, now with a portfolio that includes 3D, use of found materials and interior design.

We like the simple, strong shapes used throughout and the surreal, deconstructed scenes. Across all the materials used, it’s the arrangement of the soft, wavy forms against the hard, architectural lines that gives Alexey’s work its identifiable signature look.

My name is Alexey Luka. I live and work in Moscow, Russia. I work at home as a freelancer. About 10 years ago, I began to paint as a graffiti writer . But, the last 3-4 years I’ve been using a lot of different medias for my works. I prefer to use found wood panels and canvases, my favorite paint is acrylic and spray cans.

Sometimes, I do a lot of collages that I make from old paper and magazines, I also use a lot of markers for my sketches. In my works, I always try to use different styles to find something new.

Aaron S. Moran Reclaiming Materials and Constructing Geometric Forms

Philip Dennis — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 09:38:28 +0000

‘Reduce, Reuse, Recycle’ is an important message and one that is echoed in the work of reclaimed materials artist, Aaron S. Moran. Using what others might toss aside, he creates these multi-dimensional constructs. Distressing, revealing, and manipulating the materials, he arranges the unwanted into new, valuable forms.

There’s a wonderful juxtaposition here. Reclaimed wood and other organic materials usually give the assumption of more rounded shapes with softer, worn edges, whereas Aaron’s sculptures are geometric and edgy. The colours are also used for contrast, sometimes worn away, sometimes left as they have been found. Aaron tells us more about the finding and making process with some great photos of his workspace.

I make paintings and sculptures out of found wood that I find from construction / demolition sites, dumpsters, the side of the road … pretty much everywhere. Using an array of tools, I cut down my finds into a manageable size and work from there. The main power tools I could not work without are a table saw, band saw, and miter saw.

I work heavily with geometric forms, so I need those tools to accurately produce the shapes I require. Power aside, I rely on countless other hand tools to both clean up the pieces, and achieve weathering where desired.

Matthew Shlian, Paper Engineering, and Working on the Nanoscale

Philip Dennis — Sun, 11 Mar 2012 14:01:58 +0000

When seeing Matthew Shlian’s paper structures for the first time, you may be taken aback by the amount of time, patience, and skill that must have been involved. That’s bewildering enough but what is more interesting is the background to the crystalline, fractal patterns he creates.

With as much scientific query as artistic, his work considers the engineering principles at work in paper sculpture. Similarly to how you might trace the root of naturally forming patterns to fundamental mathematical truths, Matthew reveals the beauty in physics and displays it in his work. Here, he explains his process more.

“Hi, I’m Matt. I fold, cut, and glue paper for a living.

I do design work for Apple, P&G and Ghostly International. I am working on two NSF grants right now using paper folding as a way to understand micro systems engineering. I teach at the University of Michigan, show my work at galleries and museums and give lectures and workshops all over.”

“In my work I use paper, tyvek, computers, plotters, laser cutters, bone folders, CAD, x-actos, PVA glue, tweezers …”

“As a paper engineer my work is rooted in print media, book arts and commercial design. Beginning with an initial fold, a single action causes a transfer of energy to subsequent folds, which ultimately manifest in drawings and three dimensional forms. I use my engineering skills to create kinetic sculpture which has lead to collaborations with scientists at the University of Michigan.”

“We work on the nanoscale, translating paper structures to micro folds. Our investigations extend to visualising cellular division and solar cell development. Researchers see paper engineering as a metaphor for scientific principles; I see their inquiry as a basis for artistic inspiration. In my studio I am a collaborator, explorer and inventor.

I begin with a system of folding and at a particular moment the material takes over. Guided by the wonder, my work is made because I cannot visualize its final realization; in this way, I come to understanding through curiosity.”

Ashkan Honarvar’s Gorgeously Macabre Collage

Philip Dennis — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 13:43:02 +0000

Ashkan Hanovar sees the beauty in the grittier, more macabre, and in some ways more realistic, elements in life. His collages juxtapose the horrific and the gorgeous in organic outcrops that flow effortlessly between one another.

The first and third examples here are from a series called ‘Krokodil’, depicting the physical and mental effects of the tissue damaging drug that is spreading out from Russia, Desomorphine. The images, which are at first glance are almost luxurious in their tones, beg more consideration when you understand what they are about— a recreational drug that can leave its users scaly-skinned amputees with a life expectancy of two to three years.

“I always use original material from old books. Before starting, I always cut up the whole book and sort them around me. After this, the collage making starts.”

“It’s possible that at the end I don’t use all of the images. I never use the leftovers images for any other project. So, each project looks different. All my collages are handmade.”

Ryan Gillett Tells Us About Brush and Ink Techniques for Texture

Philip Dennis — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 13:54:36 +0000

I was recently very lucky to receive this lovely, little promotional book from Ryan Gillett. The book is screen printed and full of tactile, two-colour drawings. The touchable quality of his illustrations comes from the textures he brings through brushing techniques, which he tells us more about below.

It’s a nice introduction to his website, where you’ll find more of his textural ink work, plus some great full-colour illustrations.

I create my illustrations in a screen-printed style, everything I draw is done individually, then brought together to build layers. Using stippling brushes and thick pencil crayons, I aim to give my drawings a unique texture and feel, like a hand drawn version of bitmapping. My inspiration ranges from classic art deco posters to 50s adverts for toys.

Hand drawn aspects and minimalist colour are my passions. I strive to create cheerful scribbles that will hopefully brighten up someone’s day.

Exhibition at Gallery Nucleus in California Exploring the Versatility of ‘The Line’

Philip Dennis — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 13:16:08 +0000

If you happen to be in California over the next couple of weeks, be sure to drop by Gallery Nucleus in Alhambra. They’re holding the second of their exhibitions devoted to the use the all important line in art, ‘Line Weight: An Exploration of Line Work’

They have a great selection of contemporary artists involved, such as AOTM previously featured artists Josh Cochran, Raymond Lemstra, and Brooks Salzwedel, plus Greg Ruth, Robert Valley and more. The show is on now until the 26th of February, and here’s a little more about the concept of the collection.

“The element of line is perhaps both the most basic yet most limitless of all of the elements of art. It communicates emotion to us through its character, direction, implication and value. It can stand alone or even combine with others to create intricate patterns and textures.”

“Gallery Nucleus is proud to reprise its exhibition, ‘Line Weight’. This second installment welcomes a new roster of widely diverse and notable talents exploring the versatility of ‘the line’ in compelling ways.”

Hand-carved, Wooden, Sculptural Frames by Bonsoir Paris

Philip Dennis — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 12:45:37 +0000

Probably being as comfortable in a Dali painting as they would on any wall, these spectacularly surreal frames are the work of French multidisciplinary creative studio, Bonsoir Paris. They’re even more impressive upon closer inspection, realising their molten, liquid forms are actually hand carved out of wood.

The studio, formed in 2010 by Remy Clémente and Morgan Maccari, work in both 2D and 3D design, across many different areas. Here’s what they had to say about their project, DURAMEN.

DURAMEN is a series of handmade wooden sculptures. Born of a simple impulse, the one to break with conventional ways of exhibiting, Bonsoir Paris and its team have imagined a series of frames so strongly mistreated that they have become unrecognizable. Their wish is to break the properties of the compound, a form of compromise as minimal and it is efficient.

They found a subtle twist while remaining faithful to a primitive form of revolt, without getting lost in vain styles effects. The choice of noble materials (Oak, Fir, Wenge, Pear, Linden) and the quest for finesse, enables them – with the DURAMEN series – to position themselves on the razor’s edge between two opposites, that of the deformed and that of the elegant, instinctive and thoughtful.

Art Direction / Design: Bonsoir Paris
Sculpture: Adrien Corroler
Cabinet: Kwantiq
Design / Achievement: Jules Cairon
Photographer: Davina Muller
Post-production: Cédric Hugonnet @ Studio Collet

Model City Typography by Creative Studio, Soon

Philip Dennis — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 16:58:14 +0000

From their converted train station workspace, Belgian studio, Soon created this surreal cityscape for Ghent city council. To represent the topography and structure of the city, they pieced together a real 3D sculpture using miniature models.

The resulting typography is a fantastic, surreal, M. C. Escheresque floating city, complete with fields and roads going down and around different dimensions. Check out the details, including a child mid-swing and a roadside accident. They tells us more about their studio and the project.

What we do is creative branding, Soon is a Belgian studio that creates visual identities in combination with photography. Most of the work is hand crafted and afterwards transformed into a digital image.

‘Gent Scheppende Stad’ (‘Ghent Creative City’) is an initiative of the city council of Ghent (together with several creative forces/different sectors of society) to look for solutions for the urban challenges, so they can shape the future of Ghent together.

Soon created 4 big letters G, E, N and T, on which the habitat of Ghent (GENT) was represented by means of scale models.

Happycentro’s Paper, Pen, and Plasticine Typography

Philip Dennis — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 19:44:58 +0000

While doing a monthly typographic treatment for ‘IL- Intelligence’ in ‘Lifestyle Magazine’, dynamic creative studio, Happycentro’s open approach to their work has led to a set of images as intricate as they are diverse.

From paper sculpture, detailed draughtsmanship, papercut, and plasticine modelling, they have been keeping it exciting with a spectrum of different ideas, we can’t wait to see what they have in store for us next. They tell us more about their studio and the project, and give us a glimpse of the backstage process.

The studio began in 1998 in Verona, the romantic city of Romeo and Juliet. In recent years we have worked with both large and small clients, for local agencies and major international companies.

Our approach to design is always the same: designing a logo, an advertising page, a wall or directing a commercial offers the same opportunity to deal with a problem. With time we have become quite good at solving problems.

Mixing complexity, order and fatigue is our formula for beauty. Always, in addition to the commissioned work, we spend plenty of energy in research and testing. Visual art, typography, graphic design, illustration, animation, film direction and music. We like contamination between creative disciplines and diversity in general.

We don’t like to do the same thing twice and prefer to go beyond what we are already able to do. It is tiring but satisfying.

We started collaborating with IL – Intelligence In Lifestile Magazine, supplement of Il Sole 24 Ore. Under the creative direction of Mr. Francesco Franchi, each month we develop the title typography for the brand new column “Remo Contro” written by the italian philosopher Remo Bodei.

Drawing Lines and Colourful Printing with Marie ERR

Philip Dennis — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 17:04:14 +0000

Here are some fun illustrations from Marie ERR, showing off her great passion for colour. She was kind enough to give us a backstage look at some of the printing processes she uses.

I usually sketch my ideas on random papers or in sketchbooks, the trouble starts when I try to look for them, usually without much luck. Depending on the type of work I’m doing, I usually draw lines with either indian ink or markers, and then I add colour with Photoshop.

If I’m going for handmade only, my favorite medium is acrylic on plywood, the colour always gets super bright, just the way I like it! And, if I like the design enough, I can always screen print it! It’s so much hard work but so much fun to do, I love it!