I came across the work of Argentine artist, Francisco M. Diaz today, specifically his large scale murals. Diaz, who goes by the street name Pastel, paints flora and fauna on walls all over the world. His locations are never arbitrary, but rather selected due to their historical significance. Pastel’s, ‘Two peasants’ mural in Kiev (below) was inspired by the Makhnovist movement. How poignant, that he looks to nature, local nettle plants, to explore such a charged and thorny moment in history. This quote was posted on his social media, shortly after he completed the work. “We have all flirted with freedom and, deep inside all of us have the urge to make it a serious relationship. The Anarchist values of individual freedom, grass roots democracy, and the decentralisation of all forms of power are, if anything, more pertinent today then over. See you on the barricades.” Tony Allen, Kiev.
Posts from January 2019
childsplay
January 31, 2019
Proving that children’s rooms need not be childish, this wallpaper is such a delight. It’s sweet and charming, but the monochrome makes it chic, too. The rust headboard and smattering of pillows is great looking against the wallpaper, and I love how this little girl gets an elegant vase of full tulips all to herself.
visible women
January 29, 2019
Have you heard of Louise Nevelson? Pissed off with the many holes in my art history education, I’ve decided to learn about a new female artist every week. Nevelson was a Russian Jewish woman born in 1899, who created sculptures from scraps of wood and other abandoned materials. Her massive, “Sky Gate, New York” sculpture, stood in the mezzanine of World Trade Center before it collapsed. In her book, Rediscovering Seven Outstanding American Women Artists, Donna Seamen describes Nevelson’s work as, “wooden poems, each box a stanza, each piece a word, yet they are not tethered to any one language. They speak to everyone.”
knock on wood
January 29, 2019
if you’re not claustrophobic, this is the place for you. I mean is there a room cozier? I bet some great stargazing goes on this room. I love the blue stripe with the colourful Persian. Of course, now I want to see the rest of the house. I am picturing a tiny but perfect pine cabin in the Catskills or Swiss Alps.
pinch, coil, repeat
January 28, 2019
I’m learning how to make pinch pots, and then adding coils for additional height. It’s kind of amazing to me how large a vessel made entirely from coils can get. Lawson Oyekan‘s monolithic sculptures are entirely pinched and coiled. I find Candice Methe‘s massive hand-pinched pots so very exciting, too. A friend showed me Maria Martinez‘ work last week; a legendary native American potter who made pots using long tubes of clay. Mine are still quite small, and they very often crack as I still have so much to learn. Timing is key, and as with all things pottery, the best vessels are ones made slowly. Here, Marea Gazzard, one of England’s most significant mid century ceramicists, coils a pot.
uniform
January 28, 2019
New England, style
January 25, 2019
Time stands still in this heavenly room at Beauport, in Gloucester, Massachusetts. In fact, the whole house, once the summer home of one of America’s first professional interior designers, Henry Davis Sleeper, has retained its original early 20th century charm and splendor. The beautiful block-printed wallpaper, was made by the French firm Zuber & Cie, and was designed to look like hand-painted Chinese wallpapers.
finned
January 25, 2019
As a child, my brother was petrified of sharks. But as is often the case with things we’re fearful of, he was fascinated by them, too. He watched Jaws over and over, and took a keen interest in their characteristics and behavioral adaptations. In homage to my brother, I’ve been making platters this week with shark fins as handles.
cap couture
January 23, 2019
In another life, I wore Dior Swimming caps and Chanel snow boots. In this life, I wear Speedo and Blundstone. This week, Dior’s Maria Grazia Chiuri capped her models in bejewelled silicone as they walked down the runway. I do smile at the thought of my head bobbing along the lanes of my local salt water pool covered in sequins and sparkle. The black netted veils added to the drama. Chanel and Valentino have also thrown caps into the ring, so it won’t be long until the high street follows suit.
surreal
January 22, 2019
Gosh! Have you heard of Villa Santo Sospir? Until today, I hadn’t. What a jewel of a home! It’s situated at the very tip of Cap Ferrat, between Nice and Monaco, and was the holiday home of Alec and Francine Weisweiller. Picasso, Marlene Dietrich and Greta Garbo were all guests. In 1950, Jean Cocteau came to visit, and covered every wall in his signature surrealist sketches. “When I stayed at Santo Sospir in the summer of 1950, I hastily decorated a wall,” said Cocteau. “Matisse told me that if you decorate one wall you should do the others as well. He was right. Picasso opened and closed all the doors. All that was left to do was to paint the doors. But the doors lead into rooms. The rooms have walls. And if the doors are painted, the walls have an empty look. I spent the entire summer of 1950 working on ladders. An old Italian worker prepared my pigments, immersed in fresh milk. A young woman lives at Santo Sospir. I didn’t need to dress the walls. I had to draw on their surface. That’s why I made line frescoes, with a few colours that echoed tattoo art. Santo Sospir is the tattooed villa.” Today, the villa is owned by a Russian real estate developer, and private tours are offered for the right price. Have a gander around online, the house feels like a love letter to bohemia.