“man needs spiritual expression and nourishing….
even in the prehistoric era, people would scrawl pictures of bison on the walls of caves.”
*-fernando botero
Paul Klee, Forest Architecture, 1925, pen and watercolour on paper mounted on card
swiss painter, draftsman, and printmaker 1879-1940
—
“art should be like a holiday;
something to give a man the opportunity to see things differently,
and to change his point of view.”
-paul klee
not me, nor my garden
but he and i have similar attitudes
and this warmer weather
really has me wanting to get my garden going
then just stand back
and take it all in.
(hello to claude monet, at giverny gardens in 1923, perhaps thinking about painting it)
—
“to plant a garden is the chief of the arts of peace.”
~ mary stewart
“look, i made a map! and it goes right to my house!”
—
‘the most expressive part of the body when it comes to art.
for a child, their hands often become their voice.’
-the art of creativity
the kinder painted
using play feathers and real fingers
and colors they mixed and made
one
chose to paint
only white on white paper
to see what it would look like
it was a beautiful painting
all nuance and shade and texture.
“renoir said once that nothing was so difficult, and at the same time so exciting, to paint, as white on white.”
– ambroise vollard
2500 hours across 5 years – “The Snowflake,”
featuring more than 400 snowflakes, all in relative size to one another.
photography by *don komarechka
*Don Komarechka is a nature & landscape photographer located in Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Born and raised in Sudbury, Ontario, Don is no stranger to cold winters. From auroras to pollen, insects to infrared, much of Don’s photographic adventures reveal a deeper understanding of how the universe works. Snowflakes are no exception.
Don began studying the science of snowflakes the same day he first photographed them, nearly four years prior to the publication of this book. Since then, snowflakes have been a non-stop passion.
Each one of Don’s snowflake images is photographed on an old black mitten at his home. Barrie, Ontario is known for higher levels of winter precipitation, making it a great location to capture hundreds of beautiful specimens.
Always science-minded but never formally trained, Don uses photography as a way to explore and understand the world around him. Photographing something unusual or unknown is the perfect excuse to learn something new.
—
on international coffee day
Meet the Italian Artist who creates Incredible Works of Art From Spilled Coffee
Italians are known for their love of coffee, but while most enjoy espresso for its taste, artist Giulia Bernardell appreciates it for its creative potential. She turns spilled coffee into works of art that look like detailed watercolor paintings.
Many of us start our day with a cup of joe, but Bernardelli indulges in a dose of inspiration, too. Her bio reads, “My future starts when I wake up every morning. Every day I find something creative to do with my life.” Bernardelli’s journey to creating coffee art began by chance. One day, the artist accidentally spilled coffee over her canvas as she was working. But rather than clean it up, Bernardelli grabbed a spoon and used it to guide the brown liquid around the white space.
Today, Bernardelli continues to use spoons in lieu of a paint brush, but she also uses matchsticks to achieve intricate details. From architectural sketches to studies of the human face, Bernardelli takes inspiration from everywhere. She even recreates Italian Renaissance masterpieces in her coffee art style. She’s “painted” the Mona Lisa and The Creation of Adam, using spilled coffee as pigment.
Since making a name for herself as a respected “coffee artist,” Bernardelli has branched out into new, edible mediums. She also creates art from melted ice cream, fruit, vegetables, and much more.
—
“coffee is the best thing to douse the sunrise with.”
-terri guillemets
—
art credit: spilled coffee art, guilia bernadelli
source credit: mymet, emma taggart
My Modern Met granted permission to feature photos by Giulia Bernardelli
what a lovely experience – attending a taping of singer-songwriter Devon Gilfillian performing at *The Leon Loft, featuring soulful songs from his new album Love You Anyway , a bit of Marvin Gaye, and some of his other favorite originals, all while chatting with local radio’s Rob Reinhart in between songs. a portion of the session aired live on ann arbor’s 107one and will air later, in its entirety, on Rob’s Acoustic Café show. this was an intimate setting, 75 seats, perfect acoustics, all close to the stage, tickets won on-air or by invite only, an eclectic mix of music lovers. meeting up outside, then moving in to share this space and time on a weekday afternoon.
—
“art is how we decorate space; music is how we decorate time.”
-jean-michel basquiat
—
*At Leon, we mix art with audio, design with technology, and business with bohemia. We’re a group of artists, designers, engineers, and craftsmen who are dedicated to producing the finest quality bench made American audio. For over 20 years, we’ve been meticulously handcrafting a full palette of custom speakers and technology concealment solutions that bring sound + style to any space. Leon products are available world-wide, exclusively at high-end audio/video retailers. And because music is our first love, we have a dedicated performance space, the Leon Loft, at our headquarters in Ann Arbor, Michigan. In this intimate, live performance venue, we’ve had the privilege of welcoming some of today’s biggest recording artists for a live recording of Acoustic Cafe with Rob Reinhart. For more information about the Leon Loft, visit leonloft.com
mac does its part with loose parts: an earth day art show
—
the children have been learning for weeks
about recycling, reusing, and repurposing
many kinds of materials
in honor of tomorrow’s holiday (earth day)
using the voice of art as expression
each child created an original sculpture
repurposing used items
finding new beauty in these discarded things
putting them together in new ways
inviting their families
to their ‘gallery opening’
each child filled with pride in their work
and a realization that they are artists.
“art is a form of exploration, of sailing off into the unknown alone, heading for those unmarked places on the map. if children are not permitted-not taught-to be adventurers and explorers as children, what will become of the world of adventure, of stories, of literature itself?
– michael chabon
“It is so much more than a vending machine. It’s an art experience, but it’s also an art object in and of itself,” Samantha Timm, the curator at Saint Kate The Arts Hotel in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, said.
Since Saint Kate opened in 2019, the Art-o-mat has been a huge hit.
The first Art-o-mat was built by Clark Whittington in 1997. He refurbished an old cigarette vending machine after it became more or less illegal. He displayed it at an art exhibition, and it became a huge hit. Now, he leases them out to galleries, libraries, and hotels.
It’s not cheap to have one. It can cost $5,000 per year. Plus, it costs $2.50 plus shipping to stock the machine. However, it’s not about making a ton of money. These exhibits are designed to be a fun way to interact with art and the past. Furthermore, it makes art collecting accessible for buyers. All the art inside the machines is made by different artists from around the world.
“It’s so unique. It’s so different. I’ve never seen anything like this,” Kami Strunsee, an artist and owner of Timber Lane Studio and Gallery in Wales said.
Strunsee also has an Art-o-mat in her gallery. She estimates more than 500 pieces of cigarette box-sized art has been purchased since she opened in April 2022. Strunsee also discovered that there is an entire community of people who collect pieces of art from these vending machines.
“I have several people from California come in. They came to Wisconsin, and they just drove east, and were trying to hit as many Art-o-mats as they could,” she said.
Strunsee has even hosted Art-o-mat nights. People come in with their friends, buy a few pieces of art, and then sit around a table looking at each other’s collectibles and making trades with each other just like one would with basketball or Pokemon cards. “It’s kind of random as to what you get but it’s always something really unique,” she said.
—
“i do not want art for a few any more than education for a few, or freedom for a few.”
-william morris
—
I didn't have my glasses on.... 