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Art

Sensual Sculptures by Polly Verity Tease Moments of Intimacy Out of Single Sheets of Paper

Wales-based artist Polly Verity (previously) coaxes sheets of watercolor paper, canvas, and wire mesh into elegantly suggestive sculptures. The minimal works are carefully molded through a series of bends, twists, and slight folds that contour pursed lips or a rose grazing a nose, and each curve subtly alters the figure’s expression. Alongside her facial silhouettes, Verity also shapes fragmented torsos and voluptuous limbs, an expansion of her practice that connects the “sensual and yielding” material more directly to the subject matter.

“I work in the moment, perhaps imparting an initial deep crease in the paper, taken by the whim of the moment and open to any form that begins to suggest itself. I work with the paper, gently exaggerating a hint of form or gently working an area until a form feels sure and authentic,” the artist tells Colossal. There’s a delicate balance between the intimate and the erotic, though, and when the latter or a form that’s too personal emerges, she discards the piece.

Verity is currently collaborating with the sound collective Crimson Yew to create a body of work that responds to its live music—if you’re in Wales, you can catch their next performance on June 25 at Davies & Co. She also has a few pieces available in her shop and at The Old Bank Vault, and you can find much more of her practice on Instagram.

 

Craft

Minimal Faces Emerge From Sandra Apperloo’s Lanky Patterned Bud Vases

Nestled within polka-dotted expanses, stripes, and leafy motifs are Sandra Apperloo’s miniature faces. The quirky characters with pointed noses, freckles, and tiny, black eyes are part of the Utrecht-based ceramicist’s line of Weirdo Bud Vases, which are just wide enough to hold a stem or two within their tall, slim bodies. To create each piece, Apperloo (previously) hand-builds the rounded vessel, slip-casts facial features and arm-like handles, and finally, paints strands of hair and colorful patterns. The playful ceramics tend to sell out quickly, so you’ll want to keep an eye on her Instagram for announcements about shop updates. The next release is slated for April 10.

 

Craft

Tiny Faces Animate Minimal Mugs and Planters by Ceramicist Rami Kim

Enjoy the company of Rami Kim’s minimally sculpted personalities emerging from her footed planters, mugs, and other ceramic pieces. The artist and animator (previously), who gravitates toward bright monochromatic finishes and simple patterns, creates a wide array of vessels featuring perfectly round eyes, tiny mouths, and noses that add a dose of whimsy and play to her functional objects.

See more of Kim’s works, check for stockists near you, and shop available pieces on her site, and keep an eye on her Instagram for announcements about sales and opportunities to visit her Los Angeles studio. You also might enjoy Fan Yanting’s moody characters.

 

Art

Massive Human Faces Loom Over Japanese Cities in Uncanny Balloon Works by Mé

An unlikely sight was spotted hovering over Tokyo earlier this month in a disorienting installation by the Japanese collective 目 (Mé). Titled “Masayume” or “prophetic dream,” the eerie artwork featured a giant human face printed on a balloon, which launched above the city on July 16 as part of the Tokyo Tokyo Festival, an event organized to coincide with the start of the Olympics.

Bizarre and unexpected for most passersby, the single-day piece was derived from a dream Mé artist Kojin Haruka had as a teen. “‘Masayume’ will be carried out suddenly and without prior notice nor a clear reason, just like an image a 14-year-old Japanese girl saw in a dream, momentarily disabling the ordinary,” a statement reads. “The face will be gazing back at us from the sky in the midst of this pandemic. It is as though we are a part of the spectacle.”

“Masayume” is a follow-up to a 2013-2014 project titled “Day with a Man’s Face Floating in the Sky” (shown below) that floated a similar black-and-white balloon over Utsunomiya City, Tochigi. Each of the anonymous figures depicts a real person, and about 1,400 people applied to have their faces loom over Tokyo this round.

Mé’s work is on view at the Towada Art Center in a three-part group exhibition that runs through May 29, 2022. Check out the collective’s Instagram for more of its large-scale projects, including a massive wave sculpture rippling through a museum. (via Spoon & Tamago)

Update: “Masayume” took to the air again on August 13, 2021, as it floated above eastern Tokyo.

 

Art

Meditative Faces Emerge from the Staggered Wooden Sticks Forming Artist Gil Bruvel’s Sculptures

Gil Bruvel (previously) has spent 40 years practicing vipassanā meditation, an introspective practice that invites judgment-free observation of the mind. The Australia-born artist infuses the philosophies of this decades-long ritual into his variegated sculptures as he forms a series of faces in deep thought. With eyes and mouths closed, the figures project serenity and calmness, serving as “a reminder of what it looks like to be centered and at peace,” Bruvel says of The Mask Series.

Different in shape and size, the sticks are burned, painted with subtle gradients, and then held in place with wood glue, causing the figures to appear pixelated and as a disparate grouping of squares and rectangles when viewed up close. From a distance, however, “that fragmentation reveals a coherent whole: a face arises from apparent chaos,” Bruvel shares with Colossal. Through their collated forms, the assemblages offer a visual metaphor for the complexity and contradiction that’s inherent to human beings.

Bruvel also draws attention to the backs of the sculptures, which stray from the figurative depictions of the front to focus on the abstract workings of the mind.  “The assemblage of pixel-like stick-ends conveys the hidden realm of emotion, sensation, and thought—our internal universe. The gradients of color represent the flows of feeling and consciousness that pass through our minds like ripples on a lake, leaving the lake unchanged,” he says.

Explore more of Bruvel’s meditative artworks and see some works-in-progress on Instagram and Artsy.

 

 

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A post shared by Gil Bruvel (@gilbruvel) on Aug 1, 2020 at 6:26am PDT

Craft

Quirky Characters Anthropomorphize Patterned, Pastel Vases by Ceramicist Sandra Apperloo

Sandra Apperloo infuses her love for pastels and tiny freckles into a playful crew of characters. Shaped to hold a single flower stem, the anthropomorphized vases display a range of emotions and together, form a series humorously named Weirdo Bud Vases. Their lengthy bodies are covered in polka dots, floral motifs, and stripes, and while some stand straight up, others twist around a similarly dressed figure. “I hope my works make people laugh and daydream. I hope they distract from daily businesses, leave warm feelings, and tickle imaginations,” she writes.

Based in the city of Utrecht in the Netherlands, Apperloo works under the moniker The Pottery Parade and creates planters, mugs, bowls, and other vessels through a mix of hand-building and wheel-based techniques. She doesn’t plan each piece in advance, instead favoring a method that involves “finding what feels good at that moment. This is the case for every part of the process: shaping, sculpting, choosing the colors, and painting the patterns. It helps me to stay open-minded and try out new things, which I feel is really important in my work,” she says.

To snag one of her pieces, which includes a forthcoming series of holiday ornaments, follow Apperloo on Instagram, where she often shares announcements about shop updates.