.. and not a drop to swim in. Well, without a wetsuit, at least here in Northern Idaho. What is it about the water that calls to us, calms our senses, rejeuvenates? These photographers might have a clue, as they’ve answered water’s siren song..
Philippe Cheng | Mertxe Alarcon | Neil Krug | Thomas Hager
To see more work from these artists, please visit their websites linked above. Happy weekend, Artsies!
All images are via the artists websites.
My husband and I love Oregon. George lived for a while on the Northern Coast of Oregon and last year, we lived in Southern Oregon while he worked in Grants Pass. The beauty and natural diversity there is just absolutely incredible. So when Joe Stevens of Shwood Eyewear emailed me about This is Oregon, a photo project “to inspire others to get up, go out and start exploring”, I told him I was more than happy to share it with you!
Shwoood Eyewear teamed up with photographer Julian Bialowas to photograph 10 magificient locations, all within a 90 minute drive from downtown Portland, Oregon. The project’s aim is to “showcase the awe-inspiring landscapes waiting to be explored.”
There will be a This Is Oregon photo show and party at The Ace Hotel in Portland on May 3rd, admission is free and so is the beer! ( If only we were closer, we would be there for sure! ) Super cool prints of Julian’s This Is Oregon work can be purchased here. I can’t decide which one I love best. Each one is more beautiful than the next, just like the landscape in Oregon. ( I’m leaning toward the Columbia River Gorge piece above– it’s one of our favorite OR places! )
I hope you’ll check out the This Is Oregon website and see for yourself. If you haven’t been to Oregon– plan a trip. NOW. You’ll never regret it.
And make sure you watch this video. It’s almost like being there. But you need to see it for yourself!
I can’t tell you how much it thrills me to have talented artists contact me to be featured on the blog. I’m planning to feature Barcelona artist Mertxe Alarcon’s work here at Artsy Forager soon, but I just couldn’t wait to share it with you. So head over to Escape Into Life today for a little sneak peek!
This blogging world is chock full of creative and inspiring people. I am so excited to participate in the collaborative blogging project, Art to Inspiration! Art to Inspiration is a monthly collaborative blogging project in which bloggers around the world post how the same piece of artwork has inspired them on the first Wednesday of every month. So let’s get started!
I was pumped when I saw the artwork inspiration for April, 2 Years, 264 Days and This Morning by Pakayla Biehn, an artist whose work I love and recently featured!
In my gallery days, one of my absolute favorite tasks was to help curate, design and plan how the work was hung in the gallery. Laying work out, figuring out how pieces relate and the best way for them to work together visually. So for my first Art to Inspiration, it felt natural to curate my own gallery of work inspired by Biehn’s piece.
Markus Linnenbrink | Kristina Bailey | Lauren Clay | Wil Jansen | Lissy Laricchia | Michelle Armas
Visit the artists’ websites, linked above, for more inspiration!
Just realized that this didn’t post yesterday! ( Operator error 😉 )
So many fantastically talented art photographers, so little time! Check out one of my recent finds, Jennifer Zwick ( thanks to Seattle artist Deborah Scott ) over on Escape Into Life today.
Recently I’ve been hesitating to feature certain artists’ work because though I’ve had them in my queue for quite sometime, I suddenly starting seeing their work popping up all over other blog sites. And the last thing I want to do is seem like a copycat. But then I said to myself, Artsy Forager, why should you let that stop you from featuring talent that inspires you? I answered, I shouldn’t. Simple as that. Case in point, Berlin photographer Matthias Heiderich.
Heiderich has over ten series of images showcased on his website and any one of them are beautiful enough to be featured. But I’m currently in love with his most recent series, Spektrum Eins, so this post is full of his signature architectural loveliness.
He is a master at finding the most interesting buildings and composing their intersecting angles and colors into striking, graphic compositions.
His compositions are so simple yet so crisp, his colors so bright and bold. The architectural forms take a backseat to line, color and shape. Each photo is a celebration of simplicity.
To see more of Matthias Heiderich’s work please visit his website ( and I highly recommend you do! ).
All images are via the artist’s website.
I have a feeling that I held on to my childhood dolls longer than most young girls. I think I may have been almost thirteen before I finally stopped playing with them, although my favorites still held a place of honor in my room while I was young. Those were the symbols of childhood that I couldn’t bear to part with. I never wanted to forget the countless hours of play and joy those plastic babies had brought me. In her Doll series, Canadian artist Fausta Facciponte, confronts us with imagery of the forgotten dolls of our childhood, reminding us of the innocence we’ve left behind.
When we’re young, many of our toys teach and shape who we may eventually become. Dolls seem especially important to teach children how to care and nurture. How many times have you “personified” a doll so that a child will know to be gentle with a baby? I can vividly recall a niece swinging a doll by her hair..
We dress and undress them, feed them plastic food, bathe them, swaddle and cuddle them. But as we mature, we reach a point where we realize that it is all pretend. That caring for a real baby is much more work, much more complicated. As we transition from childhood, perhaps we realize that the doll play mimics a much more scary reality.
So we put away the childish toys, discarding them as infantile. But maybe what we are really putting out of our prepubescent minds is the inevitable reality of growing up and being faced with the actuality of the world we were playing and preparing for.
To see more of Fausta Facciponte’s work, please visit her website. Are there any childhood toys that were touchtones for your transition from childhood to the adult world?
Featured image is Peter by Fausta Facciponte, archival pigment print. Images are via Stephen Bulger Gallery.
Like attracts like. So it’s no surprise that many times, I find great artists by way of other great artists! Today’s Escape Into Life artist, Elly MacKay is just such a case– thanks to Dolan Geiman for introducing me to such lovely work!
While digging through my Pinterest inspiration boards, planning my features for next week, I noticed a color trend in a few of my pins. It’s funny how our minds gravitate toward certain palettes some days, isn’t it? Apparently, my eyes are loving the combination of orange and indigo these days! I thought you might enjoy a few examples from my boards..
Any color combos you’re enamored with these days? Guess this native Florida girl can’t escape the Orange & Blue!
Featured image by Stephanie Paige. Sources can be found by clicking on each image.
If you’ve ever taken an art class, I’m sure you’ve copied the work of a “master”. Redrawing and painting great works of art is one of the tried and true methods used to teach basic skills. I love the way some artists are taking masterworks and recreating them in fun and interesting ways. Check ’em out!
Have a fantastic weekend, Artsies! Any plans for museum visits this weekend?
Cesar Santos ( His official website seems to be down. You can see some examples of his work at Art Renewal Center. )
Featured image is Picnic in Central Park by Cesar Santos ( via Art Renewal Center ). All images are via the artist’s websites, unless otherwise stated.