Create, Recreate

"Recycling has been around forever, born of a need and not having the luxury to waste but coupled with a basic human desire to create, recreate and entertain and I like to think that my work is part of this age old tradition." ~ Madeleine Boulesteix

I love things created from other things!! There is so much beauty in re purposing old trinkets into new creations. Every piece and part tells a story from a past life. Madeleine Boulesteix makes chandeliers in her studio in London. It would be so sweet to hang one of her pieces in a breakfast nook at home, or a tea lounge in a hospitality setting. I would love to see one of the candle fixtures at night, I bet there are all kinds of amazing shadows.

&

These are pretty awesome too.

Duck duck goose!

No posts for awhile, I'm a slacker I know, it must be spring fever. March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb. That's what I learned about spring in elementary school. We would cover paper cut-outs of lambs with cotton balls to put on the front board. Now, I know it is spring when my air conditioner breaks and a record heat wave hits the southland. Also the ducks have moved back into the pool in the apartment complex next door. One brown mommy duck, one green daddy duck. I can see them out my living room window. They make a lovely addition to the choir of noises that include screeching pet macaws and midnight Thursday freeway races. (Yes, this is my life....) Last year, there were no signs of any little duckies running around... We'll see we hear the pitter patter of webbed feet this year.

The weekend of March 15th was Pasadena Art Night. THe best exhibit (by far) that we visited was at the Art Center. Sufficient LattitudeInteractive Wood Machines by Bernie Lubell is described on the website as,

"... complex machine environments are made of wood, use no computers or video or motors and are entirely human-powered. The use of wood and ancient
technologies to examine 21st century issues adds a disarming historical
perspective to Lubell's enterprise. The pieces are witty, friendly and
personal even as they tackle serious issues such as the nature of
consciousness or the origins of life. Resembling three-dimensional Medieval
diagrams, mapping questions about our place in the universe, Lubell's
installations reference the incompleteness of our knowledge along with the
enduring impulse to search and explore."

Here are a few pictures of our adventures.

Fernando and Carrie giggle when a heart thumping noise comes from this gramophone shaped piece. The noise came from a gadget that someone else was working in a different room. This exhibit was full of cranks and pulls that seemed to have no purpose until you followed the wood work around the corner, up to the ceiling and into another contraption.

Jaycee wheels herself into a "coffin". Inside wire strings made sounds like Star Wars fight scenes.

I look very uneasy about riding this "bike" that made a large plastic tarp roll wooden balls around like they were floating on water.

Carrie is a good sport as she poses in the HOT seat! ;)

Just another typical day...

HAPPY FRIDAY!

And the St. Patty's day party hasn't even started yet!!!

Alex Couwenberg

I first came across this painting while visiting a girlfriend in the up and coming Downtown Pomona Art Walk District. It hangs in a gallery/wine bar by the name of dba256. The artist is Alex Couwenberg. My girlfriend had raved on and on about his work for weeks prior to me seeing any visuals. I have now joined in her excitement! I LOVE this artist! I love his color combinations, the layers and the play between the many different shapes in each piece. I particularly like this paragraph from a review on the artist's website by d.e.n. contemporary writer Mat Gleason.

"The soft poetry of asking where we have been and where we are going is contrasted with absolutes of line and hard-edge; the distinction of Couwenberg’s new work is that neither the wistful beauty nor the politburo formalism ever completely dominates a picture. The spirit is of a democracy of ideas, each vying for visual primacy. When the viewer pulls back to see the entire picture, the tension of this conglomeration transforms into a patternless, complex engagement . It is not sentimental work, but it is not a comrade of the unsentimental either. Couwenberg’s Millenial Modernism depicts the frenzy of making a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. The artist succeeds in this endeavor with style and aplomb."

yummy.

Blue jacket, pink ruffles

Finished. I was inspired by the many pastel colors that have been infiltrating my eyeballs lately. Pastel colors aren't really my cup of tea, so I thought I would challenge myself. Of course, I had to throw in some contrast, hence the dark blue jacket. I would really love to hear what you think about this one. Feel free to leave comments.

Chugga Chugga Choo Choo

Rhoi and I went to the Travel Town museum today. It's in Griffith Park and really close to work. It was another BEAUTIFUL day in SoCal, so we decided to pack it up and head outside to get some much needed vitamin D and see some ginormous machines!
Being there reminded me of my grandfather. When I was young, and he was still on this earth, his entire garage was a miniature train station. Not to mention, towns, landscape, mountains, schools, the works! It was always fascinating as a child to go in and see his trains run.

He had the entire operation up on stilts and tables so you would have to duck under large pieces plywood and come up in the middle of the "station" where are the controls were.

You know when you were little and played "giant" when eating your broccoli? "Hey mom! look! I'm eating TREES!" I get that same feeling when I remember my grandfather's own travel town. It was a very "Indian in the Cupboard" time of my life.

March Loves I can't get away from

The beginning of March has brought me a wealth of information. As life does to me sometimes, there seem to a be few reoccurring themes that have popped up out of nowhere. Has that ever happened to you before? All of the sudden you become aware of something undeniably delicious. Then with further research you find that, in reality, you are the last one to know. How is it possible that I had never heard of Tracy Porter before?

It seems that many blogs have been raving about her lately. Her work and products are full of life, color, warmth and adventure. She has created a lifestyle brand and there seems to be nothing she won't tackle; from furniture to jewelery to bedding to fashion to tabletops. I adore her bold use of color and quirky delight for eclecticism.

What about Strumpet and Pink ? It just goes to show that my education will never be complete. There will always be new inspirations to find, more knowledge to acquire. Thank goodness for that!! Here are some amazing new pieces from the Stumpet and Pink spring lingerie line.

I nearly fell out of my chair after previewing the line at Faire Frou Frou. According to the FFF blog, they will soon carry the Strumpet and Pink line with custom pieces especially for the boutique!

Last week there was another Designers Networking Group held at Alie Waldman Home Couture. In my opinion, it was one of the best DNG meetings I've attended yet. There were many new faces and the discussion was lively and informative. I am always relieved and delighted to find young professionals in the same situations I struggle with on a day to day basis, and to relate to someone who has common goals as I do. I'm hoping that DNG will continue to evolve into somewhat of a modern day salon for the up and coming professionals in the design industry.

FYI for those of you in the LA area. Pasadena Art Weekend is March 14th through the 16th.