american art

A little Friday fun.  

Found on http://moma.tumblr.com. Originally posted on Incidental Comics.

Instagram Experiments

These quirky and creative illustrations by Javier Perez totally made my morning.  He takes everyday objects and illustrates them using simple line drawings, resulting in these whimsical little scenes that he photographs and puts on Instagram. I think it is such a clever way to think about the objects we see and use in our everyday lives. Genius and totally inspiring. 

You can find much more on his Instagram account. Fair warning though, it is very addictive.

Originally seen here.  See more here and here.

I VOTE TREAT!

Happy Almost Halloween! If you are in need of a last minute Halloween card, make sure to visit our shop to check out our "I Vote Treat" card. After all, when it comes down to it, treats are the best part. The card features my favorite Halloween candy, the iconic and delicious candy corn.

If you are in need of bulk quantity's or expedited shipping please let us know! 

the reconstructionists

Have you had the chance to check out the year long collaboration between illustrator Lisa Congdon and writer Maria Popova titled "The Reconstructionists"? The project can be summed up by the site's byline "A year long celebration of remarkable women who have changed how we see the world". Each blog entry celebrates one woman with a beautiful illustration that includes a quote by the subject, and a short well written synopsis of that woman's life and contribution to society.  The subjects range from artists, writers and scientists to unsung heroes.  Every Monday in 2013 they post about a different woman, and I have started really looking forward to it at the beginning of every week. I included some of my favorite illustrations below, but I highly recommend taking some time, browsing through the entries, and reading the intelligent and edifying bios.

See more at http://thereconstructionists.org/

Fontspotting

I have always loved fonts and typography, so the game Fontspotting is right up my alley.  On each card, the front contains the common typographical phrase, "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog" (a phrase my dogs take a offense to; they have assured me that this would never happen to them). On the back of each card it tells you what font the phrase is typed in along with a brief history. The best part is that it is free and downloadable. You can either review it on your computer or print it out and play at home. How do you think you'd do?

Originally found here and the game can be downloaded here.

myriam dion

While there are so many artists that impress me,  I have to say the pieces by Canadian artist Myraim Dion truly inspire and amaze me.   She creates these beautiful lace-like pieces by hand-cutting newspapers with an X-Acto knife.  Newspaper as a medium is so thin, that I am amazed by how she can create such small, intricate patterns without tearing the paper. I love how she utilizes different patterns and textures, and that she keeps the paper's name to provide context for the piece. Beyond that however,  her treatment of the images imbedded in the paper is pretty brilliant - she leaves enough of the image intact to give context, but allows it to remain somewhat abstract by taking away the paper's commentary on the subject matter.  Honestly, I could go on and on about how much I love these pieces, but I will stop and let you take a look for yourself. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

  Images via My Modern Met and This is Colassal
More info found at www.myriamdion.com, The Jealous Curator and Design Crush 

free shipping

gracefullyNOTED is happy to offer free shipping on any order placed during the remainder of October!

Have you been thinking of placing an order? Now is the time to stock up!

 *Terms and Conditions: Free Shipping is valid from October 15, 2013 12:01AM to October 31, 2013 11:59AM. Applies only to orders within the United States. 

get reconnected

In an installation completed for the 2012 Pendle Sculpture Trail, artist Philippe Handford created the sculpture Reconnected 1.  In this piece, he took a tree that had been illegally cut down in Northwest England and reconnected it to its trunk using slices of log and a metal brace that is almost spine-like.  The sculpture trail was installed in celebration of the 400th anniversary of the trails and the executions of the Pendle witches. I really love the shape of the sculpture and the idea of restoring the trees, while acknowledging that they can never be like they were before being illegally cut down.  This piece is so unique that it really caught my attention.

via here

Tie the Knot

Do you know someone getting married? Two of our newest offerings are all about celebrating the act of "Tying the Knot"!  The first card is actually based on the save the date that I designed for my own wedding, where the knot forms the shape of a heart. I like to call it the "Love Knot".  The second is titled the "Philadelphia Love Knot" and the idea for the card originated from my deep-seeded love of Philadelphia soft pretzels (handed down from my Mom!).  The soft pretzel is such an iconic symbol of Philadelphia and this card would be perfect to celebrate with anyone who loves the city or the carb-y goodness that is the soft pretzel!

The cards shown below, as well as any of the others in our shop, can all be customized with names, dates or other personalized info. Below you can see how we recently customized the Philadelphia Love Knot card for a couple who love Philly. Check out our custom designs page for more info!

I hope you like them!  I would love to hear what you think! We will be adding new designs to our shop in the next day or two, so check back soon!

Happy Friday!

sagrada familia

Has anyone else seen this video illustrating the transformation and the expected final form of the Sagrada Familia? The cathedral, located in Barcelona, was designed by Antoni Gaudi and started in 1882. Since his death 87 years ago, numerous architects have been charged with its completion.  When I was in Barcelona in 2010 with my Dad, I got to visit the cathedral (as well as other houses and works by Gaudi - I became slightly obsessed and fell more than a little bit in love with his work).  Almost needless to say, it was such a surreal and overwhelming experience. Even at that point, the Cathedral was so beautiful, and the attention he paid to every little detail was mind-blowing.  So, when I saw this video projecting its completion in 2026, I got pretty excited. Obviously, a lot can happen between now and then, but generally, I think I may have just found an excuse to visit Barcelona again in 2026 (assuming I haven't made my way over before then!).

I hope you enjoy the short video as much as I did! 

EN] Final stages of Gaudí's masterpiece. --- [CA] Recta final de l'obra mestra de Gaudí. --- [ES] Recta final de la obra maestra de Gaudí.

Though it was all over the web yesterday, I originally saw it here and here.

My Heart Skips a "Beet"

Introducing one of gracefully NOTED's newest designs, "My Heart Skips a "Beet""!  This playful card stems from my own personal love of beets and is a fun way to let someone know that you care. What do you think? This card is currently available in our shop so make sure to go over and check it out! Over the next couple of weeks I will be formally introducing a bunch of new cards so make sure to visit us again soon!

Happy Monday! 

fall

Fall has always been my favorite season and I feel like this year I am especially excited for everything that goes along with it: fall festivals, pumpkin everything and anything, apple picking/baking, scarf weather, beer tasting, trying new soups, and lots of strolling. Love it.  

Hope everyone had a good weekend!

via

chipping away

The artist Karin Waskiewicz creates her pieces by layering acrylic paint on a wooden panel, allowing the layers to dry and then chipping or carving away at the layers. The result is these beautiful and intricate three-dimensional pieces that almost look topographical.  There is also a certain element of chance in these pieces.  While she chooses the colors to include, she can't predict ahead of time how each piece will come together as the effect of the work changes as each different layer is revealed. When I first saw these pieces without reading their description, I couldn't figure out how she achieved this effect, and then after reading about them, it was one of those, "Wow, that is brilliant" moments. I love how textured and detailed they are, and just the idea of chipping through and revealing different layers is really appealing. Layering is something I have been experimenting with more in my own work, so these really hit home for me. What do you think?

"Landscape in Flight" 

 "Deep Blue"

Growth/Decay

Growth/Decay detail

 "Reflective Mound"

 "Reflective Mound" detail

 "Rolling Hills"

via

Artist's website here. 

Library Love

A little hump day fun. I am loving the Bibliothèque Méjanes in Aix-en-Provence, France and am now wishing more libraries/bookstores could be in the shape of books. It also makes me want to re-read Le Petit Prince.

Hope everyone is having a good day! 

Bibliothèque Méjanes, Aix-en-Provence, France

Image from Pinterest. 

nimbus

I have been finding myself coming back to the Nimbus Photography series by Dutch artist Berndnault Smilde recently.   Smilde creates clouds indoors using a smoke machine. In order to create the clouds, Smilde says that "It has to be cold, damp, and really wet, so I'm moisturizing the air as much as possible." He tells the BBC that "The moisture will stick to the smoke, making it much heavier." The cloud holds its shape just long enough to be photographed before it dissipates. Smilde notes that there really isn't a way to predict the shape a cloud will take, so they create the clouds hundreds of times, then choose one to be the final piece.

These have such a surreal quality for me.  I love the all of the contrast in these pieces: such as the white of the cloud vs the color of the room; the hard and even sometimes ornate quality of the architecture versus the soft billowiness of the clouds; and placing an object we associate with the natural world and expect to see outside within a man made structure. 

Smilde was also recently commissioned to do a series with Harper's Bazaar where he created clouds for a photo shoot featuring famous designers.  I particularly liked what Karl Lagerfeld and Albert Elvaz had to say about clouds and fashion. You can see their photos and their quotes below.

Do you have a favorite from the images below?  

Happy Friday! 

Nimbus Green Room, 2013

Nimbus Minerva, 2012

Nimbus Munnekeholm, 2012

Nimbus LOT, 2013

Nimbus Cukurcuma Hamam I, 2012

Nimbus NP3, 2012

Nimbus Platform57, 2012

““I love the old saying and the idea that clouds have a silver lining. I would love it to be true. A cloudy day can be inspiring, because just blue can be tiring and boring in the end. Clouds are the most beautiful installations of ever-changing abstract modern art in movement. They are like an inspiring veil. Unformulated dreams of realities to come.

What to wear with a cloud? All shades of gray go best with clouds. I would not wear black-and-white. Silver would be great too, or an elegant pink. But no gold—too shiny. Leave it to the sun. “”

— Karl Lagerfeld to Harper's Bazaar

““When I was younger, people said I had my head in the clouds, but I always had my feet on the ground. Clouds are never negative for me. There is something serene and naive about clouds. I think that when kids start to sketch, after doing home or a tree, there is always a cloud. I drew a lot of clouds, and I tried once for a Lanvin show to have the girls coming from the clouds. But it didn’t come out well—it looked like the CNN weather report. A cloud would be my world—even the shape of a cloud is round. The fantasy, the desire, the reality, work, love, relationships. Everything. I love cloudy days. I work in a black room. I live in a very dark apartment. I love Paris in the winter. I love Paris when it’s really cloudy. I feel that clouds have some sort of protection. Clouds are like dreams, and I dream about work. Every collection, it’s like starting a new chapter and a new book. I think we need that moment of being inside the cloud, and the cloud follows us through the whole process. That’s the beauty of design. You don’t have to go inside the total reality. You start with a dream, you start with a cloud, then you start moving on and going down. Even when you hit the ground, I think it’s important to keep your head up.” - Alber Elbaz”

— Alber Elbaz to Harper's Bazaar

Nimbus Info and Photos from here and here; Harper's images and quotes from here and here.

translucent floats

Christian Haub's "floats" are incredibly beautiful.  These "shallow reliefs" are made from cast acrylic sheets, which Haub refers to as "plexi."  There is just something about the layering of colors and the translucent nature of the pieces that I really love. The floats are so luminous and I enjoy how the visual effect can change depending on the ambient light of their surroundings. They just feel so modern and clean while also being cheerful.

Originally seen here. More information found here. Quotes from above found here.

embroidered

I am loving these quirky embroidered dwellings by Stephanie K. Clark.  The juxtaposition of the detailed and colorful dwellings, with the simple black outline of the surrounding elements, is inspired.

Originally seen here. More Images can be found on Stephanie K Clark's website.

design: beer labels in motion

I was so impressed by these animated beer labels created by Trevor Carmick. Not only are they really impressive design wise, but the GIF's are also a lot of fun and really breathe life into the characters on the labels. They also kind of make you want a beer, no? 

I hope you enjoy them as much as I did! 

See more of his animated beer labels here! 

All images from http://beerlabelsinmotion.tumblr.com/

mechanical sculpture on a small scale

I have really been enjoying the intricacies of miniature sculptures made out of old mechanical parts; be it typewriter pieces, parts of old watches, small lightbulbs or other found objects. The following examples manage to transform the mechanical parts that comprise each piece from cold and sterile objects, to whimsical and playful works of art.  Additionally, it is also always great when you see an artist using recycled or found source material.

Below are three of my recent favorites.

Jeremy Mayer's swallows are made of old typewriter parts and are assembled without glue or soldering. Each piece is assembled using parts that are native to the typewriter and that's it. As icing on the cake, his design even allows for the wings to partially retract. These pieces look so strong to me, it feels as though they can really fly.  

These little mechanical insects are made by the artist Justin Gershenson-Gates using recycled watch parts, light bulbs and other found objects. Each piece is made by hand, and the resulting whimsical assemblies are so interesting. They almost look like they belong in a pixar movie.

Sue Beatrice of All Natural Arts creates steampunk watch part sculptures made out of repurposed antique time pieces and other recycled watch parts. As seen below, she assembles the parts into sculptures of animals, humans, and even mythical creatures, such as the sea monster which can be seen below. I am a little obsessed with these pieces.  The way they are assembled, so you can see all the moving parts, it really seems as though they could come to life and even serve as some sort of talisman.

Do you have any favorite miniature sculptures? 

Hope everyone is having a good week so far!

via here, here & here.

A Big Thank You!

This past Friday was gracefullyNOTED's debut at "First Friday", an open house for art galleries in Old City, Philadelphia. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the event, in addition to the more formal presentation of art in the galleries, artists and art vendors also set up tables along 2nd street to show and sell their work. We were so excited to take part, we had such a great time,  and overall it was a great success!

 Thank you so much to everyone who visited our table, took the time to ask questions and talk about our work, provided advice about where to sell, gave positive encouragement and provided constructive feedback. It was much appreciated! Also, a special thanks to all of the friends who were so supportive in the lead up, the friends who stopped by and especially Dana and Kai, who were there the whole time and made it even more fun!

We can't wait to see everyone at the next "First Friday" on September 6th! If you are around, please stop by! 

Winston Churchill (our Boston Terrier) was also thankful for everyone who stopped to give him attention!  Below is our Boston Terrier Birthday Card that debuted at First Friday, and for which Winston was the model!

Introducing our new Boston Terrier Birthday Card, based on my own little Boston terrier, Winston Churchill! It made it's grand debut at "First Friday" and is now available in our store!