Matchstickmen: Burnt Matches Resembling Charred Human Heads by Wolfgang Stiller

Matchstickmen: Burnt Matches Resembling Charred Human Heads by Wolfgang Stiller  wood sculpture matches

Matchstickmen: Burnt Matches Resembling Charred Human Heads by Wolfgang Stiller  wood sculpture matches

Matchstickmen: Burnt Matches Resembling Charred Human Heads by Wolfgang Stiller  wood sculpture matches

Matchstickmen: Burnt Matches Resembling Charred Human Heads by Wolfgang Stiller  wood sculpture matches

Matchstickmen: Burnt Matches Resembling Charred Human Heads by Wolfgang Stiller  wood sculpture matches

Matchstickmen: Burnt Matches Resembling Charred Human Heads by Wolfgang Stiller  wood sculpture matches

Matchstickmen: Burnt Matches Resembling Charred Human Heads by Wolfgang Stiller  wood sculpture matches

Matchstickmen: Burnt Matches Resembling Charred Human Heads by Wolfgang Stiller  wood sculpture matches

Matchstickmen: Burnt Matches Resembling Charred Human Heads by Wolfgang Stiller  wood sculpture matches

Matchstickmen: Burnt Matches Resembling Charred Human Heads by Wolfgang Stiller  wood sculpture matches

While living in Beijing several years ago German artist Wolfgang Stiller acquired several head molds and large pieces of wood. After experimenting with the various components the artist struck on an idea to create several large-scale burnt matches where the charred remains of each tip appeared as the face of a human, a series he calls Matchstickmen. While Stiller leaves the meaning of the artworks open for interpretation the pieces exist in a surprisingly strange area between morbid and humorous. At a distance each match seems almost laughable in its appearance almost like a toy bobblehead, but up close the somber, lifeless faces often resting in coffin-like matchboxes are pretty disconcerting. The Matchstickmen will be on display again in just a few days starting March 8th, 2013 at Python Gallery in Zurich as part of the show Burnout which runs through April 20th.(via lustik, designboom, lustik)

By Christopher on       

The Port Vieux Pavilion: A Mirrored Canopy Constructed on a French Wharf

The Port Vieux Pavilion: A Mirrored Canopy Constructed on a French Wharf mirrors France architecture

The Port Vieux Pavilion: A Mirrored Canopy Constructed on a French Wharf mirrors France architecture

The Port Vieux Pavilion: A Mirrored Canopy Constructed on a French Wharf mirrors France architecture

Recently unveiled in Marseille, France this giant mirrored canopy called the Port Vieux Pavilion was designed by architecture firm Foster + Partners. The pavilion measures nearly 150 feet (46 meters) long and is made of highly polished stainless steel meant to reflect people and the surrounding environment of Marseille’s World Heritage-listed harbor. The project is somewhat analogous to Anish Kapoor’s Cloud Gate here in Chicago and based on these photos I have no doubt the canopy will be a huge draw for tourists and locals alike. (via designboom)

By Christopher on       

Unstable Matter: A Giant Moving Surface Containing Thousands of Steel Ball Bearings

Unstable Matter: A Giant Moving Surface Containing Thousands of Steel Ball Bearings  sculpture multiples kinetic sculpture

Unstable Matter: A Giant Moving Surface Containing Thousands of Steel Ball Bearings  sculpture multiples kinetic sculpture

Unstable Matter: A Giant Moving Surface Containing Thousands of Steel Ball Bearings  sculpture multiples kinetic sculpture

Unstable Matter is kinetic sculpture by Finnish artists Tommi Grönlund and Petteri Nisunen, a.k.a. Grönlund-Nisunen. The moving table contains thousands of small ball bearings that move and crash within the confines of a giant wobbly table, sort of a modern take on a rain stick. The table is part of several kinetic and magnetized works by the duo that were recently on view at Esther Schipper in Berlin.

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Smithsonian Magazine Announces 10th Annual Photo Contest Finalists

Smithsonian Magazine Announces 10th Annual Photo Contest Finalists travel nature
Jason Hatfield

Smithsonian Magazine Announces 10th Annual Photo Contest Finalists travel nature
Vo Anh Kiet

Smithsonian Magazine Announces 10th Annual Photo Contest Finalists travel nature
Raul Amaru Linares

Smithsonian Magazine Announces 10th Annual Photo Contest Finalists travel nature
Colin Hutton

Smithsonian Magazine Announces 10th Annual Photo Contest Finalists travel nature
Colleen Pinski

Smithsonian Magazine Announces 10th Annual Photo Contest Finalists travel nature
Md. Akhlas Uddin

Smithsonian Magazine Announces 10th Annual Photo Contest Finalists travel nature
Giang Hai Hoang

Smithsonian Magazine Announces 10th Annual Photo Contest Finalists travel nature
Nathan Carlsen

Smithsonian Magazine Announces 10th Annual Photo Contest Finalists travel nature
Neal Piper

Smithsonian Magazine Announces 10th Annual Photo Contest Finalists travel nature
Bob Bush

Smithsonian Magazine just announced the finalists in their 10th Annual Photo Contest. This year the competition saw 37,600 photo submissions from photographers in 112 countries and Smithsonian’s editors selected 50 finalists organized into their usual five categories: Altered Images, Americana, The Natural World, People and Travel. Like last year the photos are open to a public vote through March 29, 2013 and a ‘Readers Choice’ award will be announced along with the rest of the winners in June. Here are ten of my favorites by take some time to go see the rest.

By Christopher on    

Trippy Animated GIFs by Matthew DiVito aka ‘Mr. Div’

Trippy Animated GIFs by Matthew DiVito aka Mr. Div gifs

Trippy Animated GIFs by Matthew DiVito aka Mr. Div gifs

Trippy Animated GIFs by Matthew DiVito aka Mr. Div gifs

Trippy Animated GIFs by Matthew DiVito aka Mr. Div gifs

Trippy Animated GIFs by Matthew DiVito aka Mr. Div gifs

Trippy Animated GIFs by Matthew DiVito aka Mr. Div gifs

With over 100,000 followers on Tumblr, Boston-based motion graphics designer Matthew DiVito (aka mr. div) is probably one of the most popular artists making animated gifs today. DiVito works with a combination of After Effects and Cinema 4D to create each image which appear to be inspired by 1970-80s era motion graphics with a distinctly modern twist. These are just a few of my favorites, but you can see dozens more right here.

By Christopher on

[Sponsor] Open Call for the 100 Painters of Tomorrow

100 Painters of Tomorrow is an ambitious new project to find the 100 most exciting painters at work today.

The project will culminate with a major publication edited by edited by Kurt Beers, Director of London’s Beers.Lambert Contemporary and published by Thames & Hudson. The book will be accompanied by a major painting exhibition at London’s Institute of Contemporary Arts and will introduce and present each artist and their work, creating a snapshot of the best new talent in painting from across the globe.

Artist submissions will be judged by an international jury featuring the painter Cecily Brown, curators Sir Norman Rosenthal, Yuko Hasegawa, Gregor Muir and Suzanne Cotter, and writer-critics Suzanne Hudson, Philip Tinari, Tony Godfrey, and Barry Schwabsky.

Submissions to 100 Painters of Tomorrow are due March 15, 2013 and are open internationally to any artist using paint as a primary medium. Apply now at 100paintersoftomorrow.com.[Sponsor] Open Call for the 100 Painters of Tomorrow sponsor

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A Frosty Morning on the Rhine Photographed by Patrick Hübschmann

A Frosty Morning on the Rhine Photographed by Patrick Hübschmann ice

A Frosty Morning on the Rhine Photographed by Patrick Hübschmann ice

A Frosty Morning on the Rhine Photographed by Patrick Hübschmann ice

A Frosty Morning on the Rhine Photographed by Patrick Hübschmann ice

A Frosty Morning on the Rhine Photographed by Patrick Hübschmann ice

A Frosty Morning on the Rhine Photographed by Patrick Hübschmann ice

German photographer and graphic designer Patrick Hübschmann recently captured this great series of photos on a freezing morning on the Rhine in Southern Germany. The trees and grass are completely covered in a thick layer of frost, conveying an uncanny sense of stillness in each shot. You can follow more of Hübschmann’s work over on his blog. (via behance)

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Mädir Eugster Perfectly Balances a Feather Atop 14 Giant Branches

Mädir Eugster Perfectly Balances a Feather Atop 14 Giant Branches performance art performance balance

Mädir Eugster Perfectly Balances a Feather Atop 14 Giant Branches performance art performance balance

Mädir Eugster Perfectly Balances a Feather Atop 14 Giant Branches performance art performance balance

When you first begin watching this clip from Japan’s Kamiwaza 2013 talent show, you’ll notice a fair amount of dramatic lighting, deep breathing, and plenty of showmanship from Swiss performer Mädir Eugster of the Rigolo Swiss Nouveau Cirque. He carefully rests the feather on a small tree branch and then grabs another slightly larger stick and another and another. Fast forward ten minutes and the act miraculously continues, sweat pouring from the top of Eugster’s head down his bare back until a series of 14 enormous sticks zig zags from the performer’s lifted arm like a massive wooden Calder mobile. If you have any doubt of how precarious this might be, wait until the very end when he removes the feather. I’ve also included another video above of Lara Jacobs (Eugster’s daughter!) of Cirque Du Soleil’s Amaluna performing the same act. Pretty amazing.

By Christopher on       
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